Fotocorrente spettrale di transistor organici irraggiati con protoni ad alta energia

Misure di fotocorrente ottenute utilizzando transistor organici irraggiati con protoni ad alta energia

Caratterizzazione di epid a silicio amorfo per controlli dosimetrici su fasci di fotoni ad alta energia.

Il presente lavoro è stato svolto presso la struttura di Radioterapia del Policlinico S. Orsola - Malpighi e consiste nella caratterizzazione di un sistema di acquisizione per immagini portali (EPID) come dosimetro relativo bidimensionale da usare nei controlli di qualità sui LINAC. L’oggetto di studio è il sistema di acquisizione di immagini portali OPTIVUE 1000ST (Siemens), dispositivo flat panel di silicio amorfo (a-Si) assemblato all’acceleratore lineare Siemens Oncor. La risposta dell’EPID è stata analizzata variando i parametri di consegna della dose, mantenendo fissa la distanza fuoco-rivelatore. Le condizioni di stabilità, ottimali per lavorare, si hanno intorno alle 50 U.M. Dalle curve dei livelli di grigio ottenute risulta evidente che in diverse condizioni d’irraggiamento il sistema risponde con curve di Dose-Risposta differenti, pur restando nello stesso range di dose. Lo studio include verifiche sperimentali effettuate con l’OPTIVUE e usate per espletare alcuni controlli di qualità di tipo geometrico come la coincidenza campo luminoso – campo radiante e la verifica del corretto posizionamento delle lamelle del collimatore multilamellare. Le immagini portali acquisite verranno poi confrontate con quelle ottenute irraggiando tradizionalmente una CR (computed radiography), per la coincidenza e una pellicola radiocromica EBT 3, per l’MLC. I risultati ottenuti mostrano che, per il primo controllo, in entrambi i modi, si è avuta corrispondenza tra campo radiante e campo luminoso; il confronto fra le due metodiche di misura risulta consistente entro i valori di deviazioni standard calcolati, l’OPTIVUE può essere utilizzato efficacemente in tale controllo di qualità. Nel secondo controllo abbiamo ottenuto differenze negli errori di posizionamento delle lamelle individuati dai due sistemi di verifica dell’ordine di grandezza dei limiti di risoluzione spaziale. L’OPTIVUE è in grado di riconoscere errori di posizionamento preesistenti con un’incertezza che ha come limite la dimensione del pixel. Il sistema EPID, quindi, è efficace, affidabile, economico e rapido.

Progettazione e sviluppo di un collimatore multi-slit per un sistema tomografico cone-beam con raggi X di alta energia

L'obiettivo di questo lavoro di tesi consiste nel progettare, realizzare e testare due collimatori multi-slit da applicare ad un sistema tomografico a raggi X con geometria cone-beam, caratterizzato da un voltaggio massimo di 320 kV. I collimatori che verranno realizzati sono un pre-collimatore e un post-collimatore entrambi multi-slit. Il fine ultimo è quello di riuscire ad avere un sistema di collimazione che permetta attraverso due sole tomografie di ottenere la ricostruzione dell'intero campione. L'abbattimento del tempo necessario per eseguire l'analisi costituisce il target su cui si basa questa tesi. Successivamente sulle immagini prodotte mediante questo nuovo sistema di collimazione saranno condotte delle specifiche analisi e i risultati saranno confrontati con quelli ottenuti mediante un sistema di collimazione a singola fenditura, anch'esso progettato in questa tesi e appositamente realizzato.

Studio di un rivelatore per neutroni di alta energia

Guidata dall'interesse per lo studio della fissione nucleare, per molto tempo la ricerca nel campo dei neutroni si è concentrata su energie medio-basse (E<20 MeV) mentre per la regione a più alte energie le informazioni risultavano scarse o mancanti. Recentemente, invece, si è sviluppato un nuovo interesse per i Neutroni di Alta Energia, utilizzabili nelle terapie mediche per la cura di tumori, e di grande importanza per la radioprotezione e la trasmutazione delle scorie radioattive derivanti da produzione di energia nucleare. Queste applicazioni richiedono precisi fasci di neutroni quasi-monoenergetici, con energie dai 20 a qualche centinaia di MeV, servono perciò misurazioni intese a determinare le caratteristiche del fascio e atte a ottenere valori precisi della sezione d'urto relativa ai processi innescati da neutroni veloci. La sezione d'urto di un certo processo nucleare si deduce dalla misura del numero di eventi acquisiti per unità di tempo da un rivelatore, conoscendo l'efficienza di questo, l'intensità del fascio che incide nel bersaglio e le caratteristiche del target. Diventa, quindi, determinante la conoscenza dell'intensità del fascio dei neutroni, anche nel caso di un intervallo energetico ampio, come quello prodotto al CERN dalla facility n_TOF, che possiede energie che vanno dal meV al GeV. Sulla base di queste motivazioni, in questo lavoro di tesi, si vuole proporre un prototipo semplice di rivelatore per Neutroni di Alta Energia e si presenta uno studio preliminare del primo test sotto fascio, focalizzando l'attenzione sulla massima energia misurabile.

Simulazioni Monte Carlo delle proprietà ottiche di un rivelatore per misure di flusso di neutroni ad alta energia

I neutroni possono essere classificati in base all'energia e per anni lo studio sui neutroni si è focalizzato verso le basse energie, ottenendo informazioni fondamentali sulle reazioni nucleari. Lo studio per i neutroni ad alta energia (E >20 MeV) ha ultimamente suscitato un vivo interesse, poiché i neutroni hanno un ruolo fondamentale in una vasta gamma di applicazioni: in campo medico, industriale e di radioprotezione. Tuttavia le informazioni sperimentali (sezioni d'urto) in nostro possesso, in funzione dell'energia dei neutroni, sono limitate, considerando che richiedono la produzione di fasci con un ampio spettro energetico e delle tecniche di rivelazione conforme ad essi. La rivelazione dei neutroni avviene spesso attraverso il processo di scintillazione che consiste nell'eccitazione e diseccitazione delle molecole che costituiscono il rivelatore. Successivamente, attraverso i fotomoltiplicatori, la luce prodotta viene raccolta e convertita in impulsi energetici che vengono registrati ed analizzati. Lo scopo di questa tesi è quello di testare quale sia la migliore configurazione sperimentale di un rivelatore costituito da scintillatori e fotomoltiplicatori per quanto riguarda la raccolta di luce, utilizzando una simulazione Monte Carlo per riprodurre le proprietà ottiche di un rivelatore per misure di flusso di un rivelatore ad alta energia.

Anodes for protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs)

One of the more promising possibilities for future “green” electrical energy generation is the protonic ceramic fuel cell (PCFC). PCFCs offer a low-pollution technology to generate electricity electrochemically with high efficiency. Reducing the operating temperature of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) to the 500-700°C range is desirable to reduce fabrication costs and improve overall longevity. This aim can be achieved by using protonic ceramic fuel cells (PCFCs) due to their higher electrolyte conductivity at these temperatures than traditional ceramic oxide-ion conducting membranes. This thesis deals with the state of the art Ni-BaZr0.85Y0.15O3-δ cermet anodes for PCFCs. The study of PCFCs is in its initial stage and currently only a few methods have been developed to prepare suitable anodes via solid state mechanical mixing of the relevant oxides or by combustion routes using nitrate precursors. This thesis aims to highlight the disadvantages of these traditional methods of anode preparation and to, instead, offer a novel, efficient and low cost nitrate free combustion route to prepare Ni-BaZr0.85Y0.15O3-δ cermet anodes for PCFCs. A wide range of techniques mainly X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), environmental scanning electron microscopy, (ESEM) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were employed in the cermet anode study. The work also offers a fundamental examination of the effect of porosity, redox cycling behaviour, involvement of proton conducting oxide phase in PCFC cermet anodes and finally progresses to study the electrochemical performance of a state of the art anode supported PCFC. The polarisation behaviour of anodes has been assessed as a function of temperature (T), water vapour (pH2O), hydrogen partial pressures (pH2) and phase purity for electrodes of comparable microstructure. The impedance spectra generally show two arcs at high frequency R2 and low frequency R3 at 600 °C, which correspond to the electrode polarisation resistance. Work shows that the R2 and R3 terms correspond to proton transport and dissociative H2 adsorption on electrode surface, respectively. The polarization resistance of the cermet anode (Rp) was shown to be significantly affected by porosity, with the PCFC cermet anode with the lowest porosity exhibiting the lowest Rp under standard operating conditions. This result highlights that porogens are not required for peak performance in PCFC anodes, a result contrary to that of their oxide-ion conducting anode counterparts. In-situ redox cycling studies demonstrate that polarisation behaviour was drastically impaired by redox cycling. In-situ measurements using an environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) reveal that degradation proceeds due to volume expansion of the Ni-phase during the re-oxidation stage of redox cycling.The anode supported thin BCZY44 based protonic ceramic fuel cell, formed using a peak performing Ni-BaZr0.85Y0.15O3-δ cermet anode with no porogen, shows promising results in fuel cell testing conditions at intermediate temperatures with good durability and an overall performance that exceeds current literature data.

Estudo da síntese e sinterização de pós compósitos do sistema Ta-Cu

Ta-Cu bulk composites combine high mechanical resistance of the Ta with high electrical and thermal conductivity of the Cu. These are important characteristics to electrical contacts, microwave absorber and heat skinks. However, the low wettability of Ta under Cu liquid and insolubility mutual these elements come hard sintering this composite. High-energy milling (HEM) produces composite powders with high homogeneity and refines the grain size. This work focus to study Ta-20wt%Cu composite powders prepared by mechanical mixture and HEM with two different conditions of milling in a planetary ball mill and then their sintering using hydrogen plasma furnace and a resistive vacuum furnace. After milling, the powders were pressed in a steel dye at a pressure of 200 MPa. The cylindrical samples pressed were sintered by resistive vacuum furnace at 10-4torr with a sintering temperature at 1100ºC / 60 minutes and with heat rate at 10ºC/min and were sintered by plasma furnace with sintering temperatures at 550, 660 and 800ºC without isotherm under hydrogen atmosphere with heat rate at 80ºC/min. The characterizations of the powders produced were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD) and laser granulometry. After the sintering the samples were analyzed by SEM, XRD and density and mass loss tests. The results had shown that to high intense milling condition produced composite particles with shorter milling time and amorphization of both phases after 50 hours of milling. The composite particles can produce denser structure than mixed powders, if heated above the Cu melting point. After the Cu to arrive in the melting point, liquid copper leaves the composite particles and fills the pores

Comportamento da adição do carbeto de nióbio (nBC) na matriz metálica do aço ferrítico 15kH2mfa

The 15Kh2MFA steel is a kind of Cr-Mo-V family steels and can be used in turbines for energy generation, pressure vessels, nuclear reactors or applications where the range of temperature that the material works is between 250 to 450°C. To improve the properties of these steels increasing the service temperature and the thermal stability is add a second particle phase. These particles can be oxides, carbides, nitrites or even solid solution of some chemical elements. On this way, this work aim to study the effect of addition of 3wt% of niobium carbide in the metallic matrix of 15Kh2MFA steel. Powder metallurgy was the route employed to produce this metallic matrix composite. Two different milling conditions were performed. Condition 1: milling of pure 15Kh2MFA steel and condition 2: milling of 15Kh2MFA steel with addition of niobium carbide. A high energy milling was carried out during 5 hours. Then, these two powders were sintered in a vacuum furnace (10-4torr) at 1150 and 1250°C during 60 minutes. After sintering the samples were normalized at 950°C per 3 minutes followed by air cooling to obtain a desired microstructure. Results show that the addition of niobium carbide helps to mill faster the particles during the milling when compared with that steel without carbide. At the sintering, the niobium carbide helps to sinter increasing the density of the samples reaching a maximum density of 7.86g/cm³, better than the melted steel as received that was 7,81g/cm³. In spite this good densification, after normalizing, the niobium carbide don t contributed to increase the microhardness. The best microhardness obtained to the steel with niobium carbide was 156HV and to pure 15Kh2MFA steel was 212HV. It happened due when the niobium carbide is added to the steel a pearlitic structure was formed, and the steel without niobium carbide submitted to the same conditions reached a bainitic structure

Síntese e caracterização estrutural e magnética da ferrita de cálcio

The calcium ferrite (Ca2Fe2O5) has a perovskite-type structure with oxygen deficiency and is used as a chemical catalyst. With the advent of nanoscience and nanotechnology, methods of preparation, physical and chemical characterizations, and the technological applications of nanoparticles have attracted great scientific interest. Calcium nanostructured ferrites were produced via high-energy milling, with subsequent heat treatment. The milling products were characterized by X-ray diffraction, magnetization and Mössbauer spectroscopy. Samples of the type Ca2Fe2O5 were obtained from the CaCO3 and Fe2O3 powder precursors, which were mixed stoichiometrically and milled for 10h and thermally treated at 700ºC, 900ºC and 1100ºC. The Mössbauer spectra of the treated samples were adjusted three subespectros: calcium ferrite (octahedral and tetrahedral sites) and a paramagnetic component, related to very small particles of calcium ferrite, which are in a superparamagnetic state. For samples beats in an atmosphere of methyl alcohol, there is a significant increase in area associated with the paramagnetic component. Hysteresis curves obtained are characteristic of a weak ferromagnetic-like material

Obtenção de materiais magnéticos para o estudo da propriedade magnetocalórica

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Síntese e caracterização estrutural, magnética e térmica da hidroxiapatita dopada com ferro

In this work, composites were prepared using high energy mechanical milling from the precursors hydroxyapatite - HAp (Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2) and metallic iron ( -Fe ). The main goal here is to study composites in order to employ them in magnetic hyperthermia for cancer therapy. The produced samples were characterized by X-ray di raction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), magnetization curves as a function of applied eld (MxH), and nally measurements of magnetic hyperthermia. The XRD patterns of the milled samples HAp/Fe revealed only the presence of precursor materials. The SEM showed clusters with irregular shapes. The magnetization curves indicated typical cases of weak ferromagnetic behavior. For samples submitted to grinding and annealing, the identi ed phases were: HAp (Ca10(PO4)6(OH)2), hematite (Fe2O3) and Calcium Iron Phosphate (Ca9Fe(PO4)7). Analyzing the results of MxH, there was a reduction of the saturation magnetization, given that the Fe was incorporated into HAp. Hysteresis curves obtained at 300 K are characteristics of samples possessing over a phase. At 77 K, the behavior of the hysteresis curve is in uenced by the presence of hematite, which is antiferromagnetic. Already at T = 4.2 K, it is observed a weak ferromagnetic behavior. Furthermore, there is the e ect of exchange bias. Regarding the magnetic hyperthermia, the results of temperature measurements as a function of the alternating eld are promising for applications in magnetic hyperthermia and other biomedical applications.

Densificação e microestrutura de um compósito Mo-Cu preparado a partir de um pó de heptamolibidato de amônia e cobre

The Cu-Mo system is a composite used in the electrical industry as material for electrical contact and resistance welding electrode as well as the heat sink and microwave absorber in microelectronic devices. The use of this material in such applications is due to the excellent properties of thermal and electrical conductivity and the possibility of adjustment of its coefficient of thermal expansion to meet those of materials used as substrates in the semiconductor micoreletrônic industry. Powder metallurgy through the processes of milling, pressing shaping and sintering is a viable technique for consolidation of such material. However, the mutual insolubility of both phases and the low wettability of liquid Cu on Mo impede its densification. However, the mutual insolubility of both phases and the low wettability of liquid Cu on Mo impede its densification. The mechanical alloying is a technique for preparation of powders used to produce nanocrystalline composite powder with amorphous phase or extended solid solution, which increases the sinterability immiscible systems such as the Mo-Cu. This paper investigates the influence of ammonium heptamolybdate (HMA) and the mechanical alloying in the preparation of a composite powder HMA-20% Cu and the effect of this preparation on densification and structure of MoCu composite produced. HMA and Cu powders in the proportion of 20% by weight of Cu were prepared by the techniques of mechanical mixing and mechanical alloying in a planetary mill. These were milled for 50 hours. To observe the evolution of the characteristics of the particles, powder samples were taken after 2, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 40 hours of milling. Cylindrical samples 5 to 8 mm in diameter and 3 to 4 mm thickness were obtained by pressing at 200 MPa to the mixed powders so as to ground. These samples were sintered at 1200 ° C for 60 minutes under an atmosphere of H2. To determine the effect of heating rate on the structure of the material during the decomposition and reduction of HMA, rates of 2, 5 and 10 ° C / min were used .. The post and the structures of the sintered samples were characterized by SEM and EDS. The density of the green and sintered bodies was measured using the geometric method (weight / volume). Vickers microhardness with a load of 1 N for 15 s were performed on sintered structures. The density of the sintered structures 10 ° C / min. reached 99% of theoretical density, how the density of sintered structures to 2 ° C / min. reached only 90% of the theoretical density

Estudo de duas pseudoligas de Nb-Cu obtidas pela rota da metalurgia do pó

The Nb-Cu pseudoalloys present themselves as potential substitutes for the alloys from a well known system and already commercially applied, as the W-Cu alloys, used in applications such as heat sinks, electrical contacts and coils for the generation of high magnetic fields. Because it is an immiscible system, where there is mutual insolubility and low wettability of the liquid Cu on the Nb surface, the processing route used in this work was the Powder Metallurgy. Two Nb alloys were used, with additions of 10% and 20% in weight of Cu, and times of 20, 30 and 40 hours for the high energy milling of the starting powders. The milling evolution of the powders is presented through the characterization techniques, such as the LASER diffraction for particle size, XRD, SEM, EDS, DSC, dilatometry, TEM and chemical analysis. After the milling, portions of the loads were submitted to the annealing heat treatment. The process used for the samples consolidation was the hot pressing, which has been applied both on some milled powders samples, as on the annealed powders. Subsequent heat treatments were performed in the samples at temperatures of 1000ºC (solid phase) and 1100ºC (in the Cu liquid phase). All sets of consolidated samples, and also the two sets of the heat treated, were analyzed by XRD, SEM, EDS, density and Vickers microhardness. Moreover, other Nb powder samples with 10% and 20% in weight of Cu obtained by simple mechanical mixing, were consolidated, thermally treated and characterized with the same techniques applied to the others, and the results were compared among themselves. Despite the difficulty of consolidation and densification of the two pseudoalloys of the Nb-Cu system of this study, on the route that passes through the HEM, samples were obtained with densities around 90% of the theoretical density. And, on the processing route of which were only mixed, the values reached up to 97%. Therefore, in this work are also emphasized the processes that made possible these results.

Síntese e caracterizações estrutural e magnética das ferritas de cobalto-manganês (Co1-xMnxFe2O4 E Co1,2Fe1,8-xMnxO4)

The cobalt-manganese ferrites (Co1¡xMnxFe2O4 and Co1,2Fe1,8¡xMnxO4) has a mixed structure of spinel type and it has been regarded as one of candidates for petitive wide variety of applications in devices from ultrasonic generation and detection, sensors, transformers, as well as in medical industry. Ferrites cobalt-manganese nanostructured were produced via mechanical alloying with subsequent heat treatment and were characterized by X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence, scanning electron microscopy and magnetization. Samples of Co1¡xMnxFe2O4 and Co1,2Fe1,8¡xMnxO4 were obtained from the precursor powders Fe3O4, Co3O4 and Mn3O4 which were stoichiometrically mixed and ground by 10h and heat treated at 900°C for 2h. The diffraction confirmed the formation of the pure nanocrystalline phases to series Co1,2Fe1,8¡xMnxO4 with an average diameter of about 94nm. It was found that the lattice parameter increases with the substitution of Fe3Å by Mn3Å. The x-ray fluorescence revealed that the portions of metals in samples were close to the nominal stoichiometric compositions. The microstructural features observed in micrographs showed that the particles formed show very different morphology and particle size. The magnetic hysteresis measurements performed at low temperature showed that the saturation magnetization and remanence increased as the concentration of manganese, while the coercive field decreased. The anisotropy constant (Ke f ), was estimated from the data adjustments the law of approaching saturation. It was found that the anisotropy decreases substantially with the substitution of Fe by Mn.

Estudo da influência da adição de níquel em alumina pela rota da metalurgia do pó

Ceramic materials alumina basis have been widely used in structural components, mainly because owning properties such as high hardness, chemical inertness and good wear resistance, however, the low toughness is a factor that compromises its use in many other applications, featuring the addition of nickel as a possible solution to this problem, in this context, this work aims to study the addition of nickel alumina using the route of powder metallurgy processing of the material. The percentage of nickel were added 2, 4 and 6 wt%; and each composition to high energy milling in a planetary mill was performed for 2, 4, 9 and 16h. Subsequently, the samples were compacted at 300 MPa and sintered in a vacuum oven at 1400⁰C for 2h. The samples were characterized as the physical and mechanical properties, observing, in general, an improvement in sinterability of the material with increasing grinding time and nickel content, and mixing with a decrease of porosity and increase of hardness, density values above 80% of theoretical were obtained. The milling time of 4 hours and addition of 2% nickel, particularly if achieved higher hardness (HV 1068.7 +/- 32.6) and density of about 99% theoretical density.