Multi-point sensing system for plantar pressure measurement

In this paper, the development of a novel multipoint pressure sensor system suitable for the measurement of human foot pressure distribution has been presented. It essentially consists of a matrix of cantilever sensing elements supported by beams. Foil type strain gauges have been employed for the conversion of foot pressure in to proportional electrical response. Information on the signal conditioning circuitry used is given. Also, the results obtained on the performance of the system are included.

MEMS based pressure sensor with triple modular redundancy

In this paper, the design and development of micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS) based pressure sensor with triple modular redundancy (TMR) for space applications has been presented. In order to minimize the mass of the system and also to avoid the uncertainty in the pressure measurement of the three independent hardware, an integrated approach with TMR is adopted. Sequential steps of TMR logic followed and the test results obtained are included.

Effect of oxygen pressure on the grain and domain structure of polycrystalline 0.85PbMg(1/3)Nb(2/3)O(3)-0.15PbTiO(3) thin films studied by scanning probe microscopy

0.85PbMg(1/3)Nb(2/3)O(3)-0.15PbTiO(3) ferroelectric-relaxor thin films have been deposited on La(0.5)nSr(0.5)CoO(3)/(1 1 1) Pt/TiO(2)/SiO(2)/Si by pulsed laser ablation at various oxygen partial pressures in the range 0.05 to 0.4 Torr. All the films have a rhombohedral perovskite structure. The grain morphology and orientation are drastically affected by the oxygen pressure, studied by x-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The domain structure investigations by dynamic contact electrostatic force microscopy have revealed that the distribution of polar nanoregions and their dynamics is influenced by the grain morphology, orientation and more importantly, oxygen vacancies. The correlation length extracted from autocorrelation function images has shown that the polarization disorder decreases with oxygen pressure up to 0.3 Torr. The presence of polarized domains and their electric field induced switching is discussed in terms of internal bias field and domain wall pinning. Film deposited at 0.4 Torr presents a curious case with unique triangular grain morphology and large polarization disorder.

Vapor pressure and dissociation energy of (In2O)

The vapor pressure of pure liquid indium, and the sum of pressures of (In) and (In2O) species over the condensed phase mixture {In} + , contained in a silica vessel, have been measured by Knudsen effusion and Langmuir free vaporization methods in the temperatue range 600 to 950°C. Mass spectrometric studies reported in the literature show that (In) and (In2O) are the important species in the vapor phase over the {In} + ; mixture. The vapor pressure of (In2O) corresponding to the reaction, deduced from the present measurements is given by the equation, The “apparent evaporation coefficient” for the condensed phase mixture is approximately 0.8. The energy for the dissociation (In2O) molecule into atoms calculated from the above equation is D°0 = 180.0 (± 1.0) kcal mol−1.

Vapor pressure and thermodynamic properties of MgIn2O4

The vapor pressure of pure indium, and the sum of the pressures of (In) and (In2O) species over the condensed phase mixture {In} + 〈MgIn2O4〉 + 〈MgO〉, have been measured by the Knudsen effusion technique in the temperature range 1095–1350 K. The materials under study were contained in a zirconia crucible, which had a Knudsen orifice along the vertical wall. The major vapor species over the condensed phase mixture were identified as (In) and (In2O) using a mass-spectrometer. The vapor pressure of (In2O) corresponding to the reaction,View the MathML source was deduced from the experimental results;View the MathML source The standard free energy of formation of the inverse spinel 〈MgIn2O4〉 from its component oxides, is given by,View the MathML source View the MathML source The entropy of transformation of 〈In2O3〉 from the C rare-earth structure to the corundum structure is evaluated from the measured entropy of formation of (MgIn2O4) and a semi-empirical correlation for the entropy of formation of spinel phases from component oxides with rock-salt and corundum structures.

Vapor pressure of liquid metals and alloys

The Gibbs-Bogoliubov formalism in conjunction with the pseudopotential theory is applied to the calculation of the vapour pressure of eight liquid metals from Groups I to IV of the periodic table and of alloys (Na-K). The calculated vapour pressure of the elements and their temperature dependencies, the partial pressures, activities and boiling points of the alloys are all found to be in reasonable agreement with measured data.

Inter and intra crystalline ion exchange equilibria in the system Fe Cr Al O

The tie lines delineating ion-exchange equilibria between FeCr2O4FeAl2O4 spinel solid solution and Cr2O3Al2O3 solid solution with corundum structure have been determined at 1373 K by electron microprobe and EDAX point count analysis of oxide phases equilibrated with metallic iron. Activities in the spinel solid solution are derived from the tie lines and the thermodynamic data on Cr2O3Al2O3 solid solution available in the literature. The oxygen potentials corresponding to the tie-line composition of oxide phases in equilibrium with metallic iron were measured using solid oxide galvanic cells with CaOZrO2 and Y2O3ThO2 electrolytes. These electrochemical measurements also yield activities in the spinel solid solution, in good agreement with those obtained from tie lines. The activity-composition relationship in the spinel solid solution is analysed in terms of the intra-crystalline ion exchange between the tetrahedral and octahedral sites of the spinel structures. The ion exchange is governed by site-preference energies of the cations and the entropy of cations mixing on each site.

Structural and electrical properties of low pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition grown Eu2O3 films on Si(100)

Structural and electrical properties of Eu2O3 films grown on Si(100) in 500–600 °C temperature range by low pressure metalorganic chemical vapor deposition are reported. As-grown films also possess the impurity Eu1−xO phase, which has been removed upon annealing in O2 ambient. Film’s morphology comprises uniform spherical mounds (40–60 nm). Electrical properties of the films, as examined by capacitance-voltage measurements, exhibit fixed oxide charges in the range of −1.5×1011 to −6.0×1010 cm−2 and dielectric constant in the range of 8–23. Annealing has resulted in drastic improvement of their electrical properties. Effect of oxygen nonstoichiometry on the film’s property is briefly discussed.

Temperature-pressure-induced solid-solid < 100 > to < 110 > reorientation in FCC metallic nanowire: a molecular dynamic study

Atomistic simulation of initial < 100 > oriented FCC Cu nanowires shows a novel coupled temperature-pressure dependent reorientation from < 100 > to < 110 > phase. A temperature-pressure-induced solid-solid < 100 > to < 110 > reorientation diagram is generated for Cu nanowire with varying cross-sectional sizes. A critical pressure is reported for Cu nanowires with varying cross-sectional sizes, above which an initial < 100 > oriented nanowire shows temperature independent reorientation into the < 110 > phase. The effect of surface stresses on the < 100 > to < 110 > reorientation is also studied. The results indicate that above a critical cross-sectional size for a given temperature-pressure, < 100 > to < 110 > reorientation is not possible. It is also reported here that for a given applied pressure, an increase in temperature is required for the < 100 > to < 110 > reorientation with increasing cross-sectional size of the nanowire. The temperature-pressure-induced solid-solid < 100 > to < 110 > reorientation diagram reported in the present paper could further be used as guidelines for controlling the reorientations/shape memory in nano-scale applications of FCC metallic nanowires.