Effect of Te addition on the optical properties of As(2)S(3) thin film

Bilayer thin films of Te/As(2)S(3) were prepared from Te and As(2)S(3) by thermal technique under high vacuum. Optical constants were calculated by analysing the transmission spectrum in the spectral range 400-1100 nm. The optical band gap decreases with the addition of Te to As(2)S(3). The decrease of optical band gap has been explained on the basis of density of states and the increase in disorder in the system. We have irradiated the as-deposited films using a diode pumped solid state laser of 532 nm wavelength to study photo-diffusion of Te into As(2)S(3). The changes were characterised by Fourier Transform Infrared and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). The optical band gap is found to be decreased with the light irradiation which is proposed due to homopolar bond formation. The core level peaks in XPS spectra give information about different bond formation. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Observation of photobleaching and intensity dependent kinetics in Ge22As22Se56 thin films under sub-bandgap light illumination

We experimentally demonstrate photobleaching (PB) in Ge22As22Se56 thin films, when illuminated with a diode pumped solid state laser (DPSSL) of wavelength 671 nm, which is far below the optical bandgap of the sample. Interestingly, we found that PB is a slow process and occurs even at moderate pump beam intensity of 0.2 W/cm(2), however the kinetics remain rather different.

Novel schmitt trigger based on lahbda diode

A new circuit to realise a Schmitt trigger has been conceived. This circuit, which is based on the well known lambda diode, is suitable for integration using CMOS technology. It requires only three devices and is probably simpler than any other conventional Schmitt trigger circuit.

Electromechanical interactions in a carbon nanotube based thin film field emitting diode

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have emerged as promising candidates for biomedical x-ray devices and other applications of field emission. CNTs grown/deposited in a thin film are used as cathodes for field emission. In spite of the good performance of such cathodes, the procedure to estimate the device current is not straightforward and the required insight towards design optimization is not well developed. In this paper, we report an analysis aided by a computational model and experiments by which the process of evolution and self-assembly (reorientation) of CNTs is characterized and the device current is estimated. The modeling approach involves two steps: (i) a phenomenological description of the degradation and fragmentation of CNTs and (ii) a mechanics based modeling of electromechanical interaction among CNTs during field emission. A computational scheme is developed by which the states of CNTs are updated in a time incremental manner. Finally, the device current is obtained by using the Fowler–Nordheim equation for field emission and by integrating the current density over computational cells. A detailed analysis of the results reveals the deflected shapes of the CNTs in an ensemble and the extent to which the initial state of geometry and orientation angles affect the device current. Experimental results confirm these effects.

Analysis of a cascade‐pumped 16 μm CO2‐N2 downstream‐mixing gasdynamic laser

The generation of a 16 μm laser beam through cascading in a downstream‐mixing CO2 gasdynamic laser is studied. To simulate actual lasing action, a generalized, two‐dimensional, flow‐radiation‐coupled power extraction model for a gasdynamic laser is used. Also, to model the cascade process a new four‐mode CO2‐N2 vibrational kinetic model has been proposed. The steady‐state intensity obtained for an exclusive 9.4 μm transition is of the order of 5×107 W/m2. In the cascade mode of operation the steady‐state intensities for 9.4 and 16 μm transitions of the order of 5×107 W/m2 and 1.0×106 W/m2, respectively, have been obtained.

Evaporation Heat Transfer Coefficient in a Capillary Pumped Loop and Loop Heat Pipe for Different Working Fluids

Capillary pumped loop (CPL) and loop heat pipe (LHP) are passive two-phase heat transport devices. They have been gaining importance as a part of the thermal control system of spacecraft. The evaporation heat transfer coefficient at the tooth-wick interface of an LHP or CPL has a significant impact on the evaporator temperature. It is also the main parameter in sizing of a CPL or LHP. Experimentally determined evaporation heat transfer coefficients from a three-port CPL with tubular axially grooved (TAG) evaporator and a TAG LHP with acetone, R-134A, and ammonia as working fluids are presented in this paper. The influences of working fluid, hydrodynamic blocks in the core, evaporator configuration (LHP or CPL), and adverse elevation (evaporator above condenser) on the heat transfer coefficient are presented.

Signal-Powered Low-Drop-Diode Equivalent Circuit for Full-Wave Bridge Rectifier

Piezoelectric-device-based vibration energy harvesting requires a rectifier for conversion of input ac to usable dc form. Power loss due to diode drop in rectifier is a significant fraction of the already low levels of harvested power. The proposed circuit is a low-drop-diode equivalent, which mimics a diode using linear region-operated MOSFET. The proposed diode equivalent is powered directly from input signal and requires no additional power supply for its control. Power used by the control circuit is kept at a bare minimum to have an overall output power improvement. Diode equivalent was used to replace the four diodes in a full-wave bridge rectifier, which is the basic full- wave rectifier and is a part of the more advanced rectifiers like switch-only and bias-flip rectifiers. Simulation in 130-nm technology and experiment with discrete components show that a bridge rectifier with the proposed diode provides a 30-169% increase in output power extracted from piezoelectric device, as compared to a bridge rectifier with diode-connected MOSFETs. The bridge rectifier with the proposed diode can extract 90% of the maximum available power from an ideal piezoelectric device-bridge rectifier circuit. Setting aside the constraint of power loss, simulations indicate that diode drop as low as 10 mV at 38 mu A can be achieved.

Calibration and linearity verification of capacitance type cryo level indicators using cryogenically multiplexed diode array

In space application the precision level measurement of cryogenic liquids in the storage tanks is done using triple redundant capacitance level sensor, for control and safety point of view. The linearity of each sensor element depends upon the cylindricity and concentricity of the internal and external electrodes. The complexity of calibrating all sensors together has been addressed by two step calibration methodology which has been developed and used for the calibration of six capacitance sensors. All calibrations are done using Liquid Nitrogen (LN2) as a cryogenic fluid. In the first step of calibration, one of the elements of Liquid Hydrogen (LH2) level sensor is calibrated using 700mm eleven point discrete diode array. Four wire method has been used for the diode array. Thus a linearity curve for a single element of LH2 is obtained. In second step of calibration, using the equation thus obtained for the above sensor, it is considered as a reference for calibrating remaining elements of the same LH2 sensor and other level sensor (either Liquid Oxygen (LOX) or LH2). The elimination of stray capacitance for the capacitance level probes has been attempted. The automatic data logging of capacitance values through GPIB is done using LabVIEW 8.5.

Space vector based modulation scheme for reducing capacitor RMS current in three-level diode-clamped inverter

The DC capacitor is an important component in a voltage source inverter.The RMS current flowing through the capacitor determines the capacitor size and losses. The losses, in turn, influence the capacitor life. This paper proposes a space vector based modulation strategy for reducing the capacitor RMS current in a three-level diode-clamped inverter. An analytical closed-form expression is derived for the DC capacitor RMS current with the proposed PWM strategy. The analytical expression is validated through simulations and also experimentally. Theoretical and experimental results are presented, comparing the proposed strategy with conventional space vector PWM (CSVPWM). It is shown that the proposed strategy reduces the capacitor RMS current significantly at high modulation indices and high power factors. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of Micro-Structured Copper as Cathode Material for P3HT-Based Diode

Here, the effect of micro-structured cathode material on the device performance of indium tin oxide/poly(3hexylethiophene)/copper diode (ITO/P3HT/Cu) is investigated. Two different forms of copper namely bulk metal (Cu{B}) and nanoparticle (Cu{N}) were used as top electrode to probe its effect on device performance. Crystallographic structure and nanoscale morphology of top Cu electrodes were characterized using X-ray diffraction and scanning electronmicroscopy. Electrode formed by evaporation of copper nanoparticle showed enhancement in current density. From capacitance based spectroscopy we observed that density of trap states in ITO/P3HT/copper larger size grain (Cu-LG) are one order greater than that in ITO/P3HT/copper smaller size grain (Cu-SG) device.

Measuring the linewidth of a stabilized diode laser

We demonstrate a straightforward technique to measure the linewidth of a grating-stabilized diode laser system - known as an external cavity diode laser (ECDL) - by beating the output of two independent ECDLs in a Michelson interferometer, and then taking the Fourier transform of the beat signal. The measured linewidth is the sum of the linewidths of the two laser systems. Assuming that the two are equal, we find that the linewidth of each ECDL measured over a time period of 2. s is about 0.3 MHz. This narrow linewidth shows the advantage of using such systems for high-resolution spectroscopy and other experiments in atomic physics.

Thermal Modeling of Organic Light-Emitting Diode Display Panels

Power densities required to operate active-matrix organic-light-emitting diode (AMOLED) based displays for high luminance applications, lead to temperature rise due to self heating. Temperature rise leads to significant degradation and consequent reduction in life time. In this work numerical techniques based computational fluid dynamics (CFD) is used to determine the temperature rise and its distribution for an AMOLED based display for a given power density and size. Passive cooling option in form of protruded rectangular fins is implemented to reduce the display temperature.

Study of the processes occurring when sputtering YBa2Cu3O7-x in pure oxygen

The sputter deposition of YBa2Cu3O7-x in a de-diode was performed in pure oxygen medium and an optical spectroscopic study of the resultant discharge revealed strong emissions from both metal atoms and oxygen ions. Emission intensities were studied in pressure range from 0.5 to 3 mbar, with substrate temperatures from 150 to 850 degrees C. Raising the substrate temperature to 850 degrees C increased the number of positive ions and excited neutral atoms. Raising the pressure decreased the emission intensities of excited neutral and ionic species. The results have been compared with those obtained from Langmuir probe measurements. The rise in emission intensities of excited neutrals and ions with temperature suggested the possibility of chemically enhanced physical sputtering of YBa2Cu3O7-x. The effect of process conditions on film composition and quality is also discussed.

Excellent rectifying characteristics in Au/n-CdTe diodes upon exposure to rf nitrogen plasma

Nitrogen plasma exposure (NPE) effects on indium doped bulk n-CdTe are reported here. Excellent rectifying characteristics of Au/n-CdTe Schottky diodes, with an increase in the barrier height, and large reverse breakdown voltages are observed after the plasma exposure. Surface damage is found to be absent in the plasma exposed samples. The breakdown mechanism of the heavily doped Schottky diodes is found to shift from the Zener to avalanche after the nitrogen plasma exposure, pointing to a change in the doping close to the surface which was also verified by C-V measurements. The thermal stability of the plasma exposure process is seen up to a temperature of 350 degrees C, thereby enabling the high temperature processing of the samples for device fabrication. The characteristics of the NPE diodes are stable over a year implying excellent diode quality. A plausible model based on Fermi level pinning by acceptor-like states created by plasma exposure is proposed to explain the observations.

Enhanced sensitivity in detection of Kerr rotation by double modulation and time averaging based on Allan variance

Experiments in spintronics necessarily involve the detection of spin polarization. The sensitivity of this detection becomes an important factor to consider when extending the low temperature studies on semiconductor spintronic devices to room temperature, where the spin signal is weaker. In pump-probe experiments, which optically inject and detect spins, the sensitivity is often improved by using a photoelastic modulator (PEM) for lock-in detection. However, spurious signals can arise if diode lasers are used as optical sources in such experiments, along with a PEM. In this work, we eliminated the spurious electromagnetic coupling of the PEM onto the probe diode laser, by the double modulation technique. We also developed a test for spurious modulated interference in the pump-probe signal, due to the PEM. Besides, an order of magnitude enhancement in the sensitivity of detection of spin polarization by Kerr rotation, to 3x10(-8) rad was obtained by using the concept of Allan variance to optimally average the time series data over a period of 416 s. With these improvements, we are able to experimentally demonstrate at room temperature, photoinduced steady-state spin polarization in bulk GaAs. Thus, the advances reported here facilitate the use of diode lasers with a PEM for sensitive pump-probe experiments. They also constitute a step toward detection of spin-injection in Si at room temperature.