The role of the surfaces in the photon absorption in Ge nanoclusters embedded in silica.

The usage of semiconductor nanostructures is highly promising for boosting the energy conversion efficiency in photovoltaics technology, but still some of the underlying mechanisms are not well understood at the nanoscale length. Ge quantum dots (QDs) should have a larger absorption and a more efficient quantum confinement effect than Si ones, thus they are good candidate for third-generation solar cells. In this work, Ge QDs embedded in silica matrix have been synthesized through magnetron sputtering deposition and annealing up to 800°C. The thermal evolution of the QD size (2 to 10 nm) has been followed by transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction techniques, evidencing an Ostwald ripening mechanism with a concomitant amorphous-crystalline transition. The optical absorption of Ge nanoclusters has been measured by spectrophotometry analyses, evidencing an optical bandgap of 1.6 eV, unexpectedly independent of the QDs size or of the solid phase (amorphous or crystalline). A simple modeling, based on the Tauc law, shows that the photon absorption has a much larger extent in smaller Ge QDs, being related to the surface extent rather than to the volume. These data are presented and discussed also considering the outcomes for application of Ge nanostructures in photovoltaics.PACS: 81.07.Ta; 78.67.Hc; 68.65.-k.

Optical properties of silicon rich oxides

Thermally treated silicon rich oxides (SRO) used as starting material for the fabrication of silicon nanodots represent the basis of tunable bandgap nanostructured materials for optoelectronic and photonic applications. The optical modelization of such materials is of great interest, as it allows the simulation of reflectance and transmittance (R&T) spectra, which is a powerful non destructive tool in the determination of phase modifications (clustering, precipitation of new phases, crystallization) upon thermal treatments. In this paper, we study the optical properties of a variety of as-deposited and furnace annealed SRO materials. The different phases are treated by means of the effective medium approximation. Upon annealing at low temperature, R&T spectra show the precipitation of amorphous silicon nanoparticles, while the crystallization occurring at temperatures higher than 1000 °C is also clearly identified, in agreement with structural results. The existing literature on the optical properties of the silicon nanocrystals is reviewed, with attention on the specificity of the compositional and structural characteristics of the involved material. © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Light absorption and electrical transport in Si:O alloys for photovoltaics

Thin films (100-500 nm) of the Si:O alloy have been systematically characterized in the optical absorption and electrical transport behavior, by varying the Si content from 43 up to 100 at. %. Magnetron sputtering or plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition have been used for the Si:O alloy deposition, followed by annealing up to 1250 °C. Boron implantation (30 keV, 3-30× 1014 B/cm2) on selected samples was performed to vary the electrical sheet resistance measured by the four-point collinear probe method. Transmittance and reflectance spectra have been extracted and combined to estimate the absorption spectra and the optical band gap, by means of the Tauc analysis. Raman spectroscopy was also employed to follow the amorphous-crystalline (a-c) transition of the Si domains contained in the Si:O films. The optical absorption and the electrical transport of Si:O films can be continuously and independently modulated by acting on different parameters. The light absorption increases (by one decade) with the Si content in the 43-100 at. % range, determining an optical band gap which can be continuously modulated into the 2.6-1.6 eV range, respectively. The a-c phase transition in Si:O films, causing a significant reduction in the absorption coefficient, occurs at increasing temperatures (from 600 to 1100 °C) as the Si content decreases. The electrical resistivity of Si:O films can be varied among five decades, being essentially dominated by the number of Si grains and by the doping. Si:O alloys with Si content in the 60-90 at. % range (named oxygen rich silicon films), are proved to join an appealing optical gap with a viable conductivity, being a good candidate for increasing the conversion efficiency of thin-film photovoltaic cell. © 2010 American Institute of Physics.

Light absorption in silicon quantum dots embedded in silica

The photon absorption in Si quantum dots (QDs) embedded in SiO2 has been systematically investigated by varying several parameters of the QD synthesis. Plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) or magnetron cosputtering (MS) have been used to deposit, upon quartz substrates, single layer, or multilayer structures of Si-rich- SiO2 (SRO) with different Si content (43-46 at. %). SRO samples have been annealed for 1 h in the 450-1250 °C range and characterized by optical absorption measurements, photoluminescence analysis, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry and x-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. After annealing up to 900 °C SRO films grown by MS show a higher absorption coefficient and a lower optical bandgap (∼2.0 eV) in comparison with that of PECVD samples, due to the lower density of Si-Si bonds and to the presence of nitrogen in PECVD materials. By increasing the Si content a reduction in the optical bandgap has been recorded, pointing out the role of Si-Si bonds density in the absorption process in small amorphous Si QDs. Both the photon absorption probability and energy threshold in amorphous Si QDs are higher than in bulk amorphous Si, evidencing a quantum confinement effect. For temperatures higher than 900 °C both the materials show an increase in the optical bandgap due to the amorphous-crystalline transition of the Si QDs. Fixed the SRO stoichiometry, no difference in the optical bandgap trend of multilayer or single layer structures is evidenced. These data can be profitably used to better implement Si QDs for future PV technologies. © 2009 American Institute of Physics.

Permanent Genetic Resources added to Molecular Ecology Resources Database 1 May 2009-31 July 2009

This article documents the addition of 512 microsatellite marker loci and nine pairs of Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) sequencing primers to the Molecular Ecology Resources Database. Loci were developed for the following species: Alcippe morrisonia morrisonia, Bashania fangiana, Bashania fargesii, Chaetodon vagabundus, Colletes floralis, Coluber constrictor flaviventris, Coptotermes gestroi, Crotophaga major, Cyprinella lutrensis, Danaus plexippus, Fagus grandifolia, Falco tinnunculus, Fletcherimyia fletcheri, Hydrilla verticillata, Laterallus jamaicensis coturniculus, Leavenworthia alabamica, Marmosops incanus, Miichthys miiuy, Nasua nasua, Noturus exilis, Odontesthes bonariensis, Quadrula fragosa, Pinctada maxima, Pseudaletia separata, Pseudoperonospora cubensis, Podocarpus elatus, Portunus trituberculatus, Rhagoletis cerasi, Rhinella schneideri, Sarracenia alata, Skeletonema marinoi, Sminthurus viridis, Syngnathus abaster, Uroteuthis (Photololigo) chinensis, Verticillium dahliae, Wasmannia auropunctata, and Zygochlamys patagonica. These loci were cross-tested on the following species: Chaetodon baronessa, Falco columbarius, Falco eleonorae, Falco naumanni, Falco peregrinus, Falco subbuteo, Didelphis aurita, Gracilinanus microtarsus, Marmosops paulensis, Monodelphis Americana, Odontesthes hatcheri, Podocarpus grayi, Podocarpus lawrencei, Podocarpus smithii, Portunus pelagicus, Syngnathus acus, Syngnathus typhle,Uroteuthis (Photololigo) edulis, Uroteuthis (Photololigo) duvauceli and Verticillium albo-atrum. This article also documents the addition of nine sequencing primer pairs and sixteen allele specific primers or probes for Oncorhynchus mykiss and Oncorhynchus tshawytscha; these primers and assays were cross-tested in both species.

Método GMP-RAM para avaliação dos riscos ambientais de plantas geneticamente modificadas (PMG): estudo de caso do mamão geneticamente modificado para resistência ao vírus da mancha anelar.

2007

Entomofauna associada a citros em dois sistemas: manejo convencional com área de capina e cultivo intercalar com feijão de porco.

As leguminosas utilizadas de forma intercalada nas culturas possuem a vantagem de incorporarem nitrogênio via fixação biológica de N2 atmosférico, permitemirem a reciclagem de nutrientes das camadas mais profundas e fornecemrem abrigo, alimento e locais de refúgio para os inimigos naturais. O grande desafio da agricultura moderna é identificar as melhores práticas de manejo ambiental dos agroecossistemas que estimulem a biodiversidade e os processos ecológicos que favoreçam a sustentabilidade desses sistemas por meio da geração de serviços ambientais. Na cultura dos citros, o feijão-de-porco Canavalia ensiformes (L.) tem sido utilizado nas entrelinhas do pomar visando ao manejo do solo no controle de plantas vegetação espontânea e para minimizar problemas de compactação nas entrelinhas da cultura aumentando a macroporosidade e disponibilidade da água no solo

Comparação de laranjeiras de umbigo.

Objetivando ampliar o perido de oferta de fruta fresca no mecardo e diversificar as opções de plantio, dezenove seleções de laranjeiras de umbigo, plantadas na Estação Experimental de Citricultura de Bebedouro(EECB), município de Bebedouro-SP, sobre os porta-enxertos de limoeiro ?cravo? e citrumeleiro ?Swingle? foram avaliadas quando a qualidade e produção dos frutos; incidência e severidade da clorose variegada dos citros (CVC). Os resultados foram submetidos à análise de variância e as médias comparadas pelo teste de Tukey ou pelo teste de Scott-Knott (ambos a P< 0,05), exceto os resultados de CVC, que foram apresentados em termos de incidência e severidade médias ao longo do período de avaliação. A seleção ?Fischer? foi a mais eficiente, em termos absolutos (7,25 Kg m-3) quando comparada a ?Marrs? e ?Leng? ( média inferior a 4,00 Kg m?3). Houve diferenças na época de maturação dos frutos, e independentemente do porta-enxerto, as seleções ?Marrs? e ?Leng? foram as mais tardias, enquanto ?Fischer? ficaria entre as precoces. Os porta-enxertos não influenciaram na incidência e severidade da CVC. A tolerância ou resistência das laranjeiras de umbigo a CVC em campo será objeto de novas avaliações.

Milho Bt: avaliação preliminar da resistência de híbridos comerciais à lagarta-do-cartucho, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith 1797).

2008

Evolução comparativa das áreas municipais plantadas com milho, cana-de-açúcar, soja e café no Estado de Minas Gerais entre 1990 e 2007.

2008

Viabilidade do uso de hospedeiros alternativos como área de refúgio para o manejo da resistência da lagarta-do-cartucho, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) no cultivo do milho-Bt.

2008

Avaliação da incidência de organismos alvo e não alvo em milho Bt (Cry 1Ab) em condições de campo em Sete Lagoas-MG.

2009

Uso do milho Bt no manejo integrado de lepidópteros-praga: recomendações de uso.

2009

Levantamento dos danos causados pela infestação de Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) em lavouras comerciais de milho Bt na Região Central de Minas Gerais.

2009