Quantitative Strain and Compositional Studies of InxGa1-xAs Epilayer in a GaAs-based pHEMT Device Structure by TEM Techniques

In GaAs-based pseudomorphic high-electron mobility transistor device structures, strain and composition of the InxGa1 (-) As-x channel layer are very important as they influence the electronic properties of these devices. In this context, transmission electron microscopy techniques such as (002) dark-field imaging, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) imaging, scanning transmission electron microscopy-high angle annular dark field (STEM-HAADF) imaging and selected area diffraction, are useful. A quantitative comparative study using these techniques is relevant for assessing the merits and limitations of the respective techniques. In this article, we have investigated strain and composition of the InxGa1 (-) As-x layer with the mentioned techniques and compared the results. The HRTEM images were investigated with strain state analysis. The indium content in this layer was quantified by HAADF imaging and correlated with STEM simulations. The studies showed that the InxGa1 (-) As-x channel layer was pseudomorphically grown leading to tetragonal strain along the 001] growth direction and that the average indium content (x) in the epilayer is similar to 0.12. We found consistency in the results obtained using various methods of analysis.

Wrinkling of Atomic Planes in Ultrathin Au Nanowires

A detailed understanding of structure and stability of nanowires is critical for applications. Atomic resolution imaging of ultrathin single crystalline Au nanowires using aberration-corrected microscopy reveals an intriguing relaxation whereby the atoms in the close-packed atomic planes normal to the growth direction are displaced in the axial direction leading to wrinkling of the (111) atomic plane normal to the wire axis. First-principles calculations of the structure of such nanowires confirm this wrinkling phenomenon, whereby the close-packed planes relax to form saddle-like surfaces. Molecular dynamics studies of wires with varying diameters and different bounding surfaces point to the key role of surface stress on the relaxation process. Using continuum mechanics arguments, we show that the wrinkling arises due to anisotropy in the surface stresses and in the elastic response, along with the divergence of surface-induced bulk stress near the edges of a faceted structure. The observations provide new understanding on the equilibrium structure of nanoscale systems and could have important implications for applications in sensing and actuation.

Amorphous W-S-N thin films: The atomic structure behind ultra-low friction

Amorphous W-S-N in the form of thin films has been identified experimentally as an ultra-low friction material, enabling easy sliding by the formation of a WS2 tribofilm. However, the atomic-level structure and bonding arrangements in amorphous W-S-N, which give such optimum conditions for WS2 formation and ultra-low friction, are not known. In this study, amorphous thin films with up to 37 at.% N are deposited, and experimental as well as state-of-the-art ab initio techniques are employed to reveal the complex structure of W-S-N at the atomic level. Excellent agreement between experimental and calculated coordination numbers and bond distances is demonstrated. Furthermore, the simulated structures are found to contain N bonded in molecular form, i.e. N-2, which is experimentally confirmed by near edge X-ray absorption fine structure and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. Such N-2 units are located in cages in the material, where they are coordinated mainly by S atoms. Thus this ultra-low friction material is shown to be a complex amorphous network of W, S and N atoms, with easy access to W and S for continuous formation of WS2 in the contact region, and with the possibility of swift removal of excess nitrogen present as N-2 molecules. (C) 2014 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Electronic Structure of CH3NH3PbX3 Perovskites: Dependence on the Halide Moiety

A combination of measurements using photoelectron spectroscopy and calculations using density functional theory (DFT) was applied to compare the detailed electronic structure of the organolead halide perovskites CH3NH3PbI3 and CH3NH3PbBr3. These perovskite materials are used to absorb light in mesoscopic and planar heterojunction solar cells. The Pb 4f core level is investigated to get insight into the chemistry of the two materials. Valence level measurments are also included showing a shift of the valence band edges where there is a higher binding energy of the edge for the CH3NH3PbBr3 perovskite. These changes are supported by the theoretical calculations which indicate that the differences in electronic structure are mainly caused by the nature of the halide ion rather than structural differences. The combination of photoelectron spectroscopy measurements and electronic structure calculations is essential to disentangle how the valence band edge in organolead halide perovskites is governed by the intrinsic difference in energy levels of the halide ions from the influence of chemical bonding.

Feshbach modulation spectroscopy of the Fermi-Hubbard model

In the vicinity of a Feshbach resonance, a system of ultracold atoms in an optical lattice undergoes rich physical transformations which involve molecule formation and hopping of molecules on the lattice and thus goes beyond a single-band Hubbard model description. We explore theoretically the response of this system to a harmonic modulation of the magnetic field, and thus of the scattering length, across the Feshbach resonance. In the regime in which the single-band Hubbard model is still valid, we provide results for the doublon production as a function of the various parameters, such as frequency, amplitude, etc., that characterize the field modulation, as well as the lattice depth. The method may uncover a route towards the efficient creation of ultracold molecules and also provide an alternative to conventional lattice-depth-modulation spectroscopy.

Botulinum neurotoxin type-A enters a non-recycling pool of synaptic vesicles

Neuronal communication relies on synaptic vesicles undergoing regulated exocytosis and recycling for multiple rounds of fusion. Whether all synaptic vesicles have identical protein content has been challenged, suggesting that their recycling ability may differ greatly. Botulinum neurotoxin type-A (BoNT/A) is a highly potent neurotoxin that is internalized in synaptic vesicles at motor nerve terminals and induces flaccid paralysis. Recently, BoNT/A was also shown to undergo retrograde transport, suggesting it might enter a specific pool of synaptic vesicles with a retrograde trafficking fate. Using high-resolution microscopy techniques including electron microscopy and single molecule imaging, we found that the BoNT/A binding domain is internalized within a subset of vesicles that only partially co-localize with cholera toxin B-subunit and have markedly reduced VAMP2 immunoreactivity. Synaptic vesicles loaded with pHrodo-BoNT/A-Hc exhibited a significantly reduced ability to fuse with the plasma membrane in mouse hippocampal nerve terminals when compared with pHrodo-dextran-containing synaptic vesicles and pHrodo-labeled anti-GFP nanobodies bound to VAMP2-pHluorin or vGlut-pHluorin. Similar results were also obtained at the amphibian neuromuscular junction. These results reveal that BoNT/A is internalized in a subpopulation of synaptic vesicles that are not destined to recycle, highlighting the existence of significant molecular and functional heterogeneity between synaptic vesicles.

飞行高度及设计长度对锥形流乘波体优化的影响

高超声速条件下,乘波体布局具有高升阻比特性,本文应用单纯形加速法,以最大升阻比为目标,开展了锥形流乘波体布局优化设计研究.特别是,研究了在高层大气飞行时雷诺数效应与气动特性的关系,从乘波体飞行高度与设计长度两方面探讨雷诺数对乘波体优化的影响,结果表明:给定设计马赫数和圆锥角情况下,对于最大升阻比优化乘波体,其雷诺数越小,摩擦阻力越大,而升阻比越低.

Theermal Stress and Fracture in Transparent Optical Materials due to Laser Energy-Absorption by a Defect

利用热弹性理论分析了在光学材料中由于缺陷吸收激光能量引起的温度和热应力分布,并且针对一个简单的裂纹模型分析了热应力产生的应力强度因子,给出了一些主要参数对于应力强度因子的影响的规律。

Efecto de diferentes dosis de N.P.K. sobre el rendimiento agroindustrial de la variedad L-68-90 (Saccharum sp hibrido); en caña planta

El presente estudio se realizó de junio de 1992 a marzo de 1993 en El Ingenio Victoria de Julio. Se evaluó el efecto de 13 dosis de N-P-K (0-60-60, 40-60-60, 80-60-60, 120-60-60, 40-0-60, 40-30-60, 80-0-60, 80-30-60, 40-9Ó-60, 120-0-60, 120-30-60, 120-60-0 y 120-60-30), sobre el cultivo de la caña de azúcar (Saccharum sp. híbrido), las cuales se compararon con e1 testigo (0-0-0). Se plantó la variedad L 68-90. El diseño experimental utilizado fue de Bloques Completos al Azar modificado, las variables analizadas fueron: brotación, diámetro, altura, población, rendimiento agrícola, rendimiento industrial y rendimiento agro industrial. Los datos que se obtuvieron se sometieron al análisis de varianza y separación de medías según Tukey a un 5 % de margen de error. En ninguna de las variables evaluadas se observó diferencia estadística significativa. Con respecto a la Germinación el mayor porcentaje fue de 75.33 porciento y correspondió a los tratamientos 120-60-0 y 40-30-60. El mayor diámetro fue de 2.73 cm habiéndose obtenido con el tratamiento 120-60-30. La mayor altura se obtuvo con el tratamiento 40-30-60 y fue de 2.94 cm. La población mayor fue de 231 750 tallos/ha correspondiendo al tratamiento 40-30-60. El mayor rendimiento agrícola se logró con el tratamiento 80-0-60 y fue de 86.23 t/ha. El mayor rendimiento industrial fue de 93.80 kg/t correspondiendo éste al tratamiento 120-0-60. El mayor rendimiento agro-industrial se obtuvo con el tratamiento 80-0-60 siendo éste valor de 7.675 t/ha.

Evaluación de Actellic 2 (Pirimiphos-methil) y fosfamina (Fosfuro de aluminio) en el control de diferentes poblaciones de sitophilus zeamais motschulsky (Coleoptera: curculionidae) en laboratorio

El trabajo se realizó en el laboratorio del Programa Nacional de Postcosecha 1 INTA, de noviembre de 1994 a agosto de 1995. El objetivo fue evaluar la eficacia de los productos comerciales Actellic (pirimiphos-methil) y Fosfamina (fosfuro de aluminio) en el control de poblaciones del gorgojo del maíz, recolectadas en trojas tradicionales para maíz en comunidades de Matagalpa y Nueva Segovia. Para ejecutar el estudio se realizó una encuesta en Muy Muy, Matagalpa; y Jalapa, Nueva Segovia, para conocer aspectos del almacenamiento de maíz de pequeños productores, con estructuras de almacenamiento tradicionales y mejoradas. Se estableció la metodología para la crianza del gorgojo del maíz en laboratorio, utilizando dieta natural. El producto Actellic 2% se evaluó de tres procedencias contra tres poblaciones de gorgojos recolectadas de tres regiones ecológicamente distintas. Los bioensayos se montaron en frascos plásticos, con una libra de maíz fragmentado, infestado con cien gorgojos. El Actellic 2% se aplicó en base a la dosis comercial. El tiempo de lectura para el Actellic 2% fue de 5 horas. Para los bioensayos con Fosfamina, se utilizaron si los metálicos de 18 quintales. Para estos bioensayos se utilizaron las mismas tres poblaciones de gorgojos. La dosis fue una pastilla por cada cinco quintales de capacidad del silo. El tiempo de lectura fue de cuatro horas, tomando lecturas de la mortalidad del gorgojo a la primera y segunda hora, después cada media hora. Los resultado de la encuesta indican que la principal plaga de almacén, es el gorgojo del maíz; la mayoría de los productores encuestados manifestaron utilizar en sus trojas tradicionales productos altamente tóxicos como DDT, Lorsban y las pastillas de Fosfamina, que son de aplicación en recipientes herméticos. En el silo metálico, los productores ponen menos pastillas de las indicadas. Las procedencias del Actellic 2% evaluadas, y que se comercializan en Nicaragua, no controlaron al gorgojo del maíz. El producto Actellic 2% de Guatemala, demostró un 100% de control del gorgojo del maíz a las cinco horas de exposición. El Tiempo Letal Medio, con el Atellic 2%, para las tres poblaciones del gorgojo del maíz, fue de 129 minutos. Con el producto Fosfamina se obtuvo un Tiempo Letal Medio de 152 minutos contra las tres poblaciones del gorgojo. No hubo diferencia en la susceptibilidad. De las tres poblaciones del gorgojo del maíz con respecto al Actellic 2% y Fosfamina.

Tailoring the electrical properties of carbon nanotube-polymer composites

Advances in functionality and reliability of nanocomposite materials require careful formulation of processing methods to ultimately realize the desired properties. An extensive study of how the variation in fabrication process would affect the mechanism of conductivity and thus the final electrical properties of the carbon nanotube-polymer composite is presented. Some of the most widely implemented procedures are addressed, such as ultrasonication, melt shear mixing, and addition of surfactants. It is hoped that this study could provide a systematic guide to selecting and designing the downstream processing of carbon nanocomposites. Finally, this guide is used to demonstrate the fabrication and performance of a stretchable (pliable) conductor that can reversibly undergo uniaxial strain of over 100%, and other key applications are discussed. © 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Domains beyond the grain boundary

Thin films of inorganic materials are used in diverse applications, typically in polycrystalline form due to their relatively simple production. We have used enhanced piezoresponse force microscopy to investigate the domain distribution within neighbouring grains in thin polycrystalline films of the ferroelectric-ferroelastic system lead zirconate titanate (PZT). We demonstrate that domains are organized into areas with a correlated alignment of the ferroelastic and ferroelectric domains, spanning multiple grain boundaries. We present five typical arrangements of such structures: azimuthal, radial, gradient, and short- and long- range linear domain organizations. Moreover, we discuss the mechanical and electrical constraints that dictate these structures. Copyright © 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.