A multi-winding transformer based power converter topology for a growing DC Micro-grid structure

A DC micro-grid essentially consists of power ports, bidirectional power converter and a controller structure that enables the control of dynamic power flow. In this paper, a prototype of a micro-grid structure using a recently proposed multi-winding transformer based power converter has been implemented. The power converter topology is further extended to multiple transformer cores in order to form a growing micro-grid structure. Additionally, modifications have been made in order to incorporate a battery charge controller with the main power circuit. All the other advantages of the power converter and its control scheme are still preserved.

Redox regulation of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B): Importance of steric and electronic effects on the unusual cyclization of the sulfenic acid intermediate to a sulfenyl amide

The redox regulation of protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) via the unusual transformation of its sulfenic acid (PTP1B-SOH) to a cyclic sulfenyl amide intermediate is studied by using small molecule chemical models. These studies suggest that the sulfenic acids derived from the H2O2-mediated reactions o-amido thiophenols do not efficiently cyclize to sulfenyl amides and the sulfenic acids produced in situ can be trapped by using methyl iodide. Theoretical calculations suggest that the most stable conformer of such sulfenic acids are stabilized by n(O) -> sigma* (S-OH) orbital interactions, which force the -OH group to adopt a position trans to the S center dot center dot center dot O interaction, leading to an almost linear arrangement of the O center dot center dot center dot S-O moiety and this may be the reason for the slow cyclization of such sulfenic acids to their corresponding sulfenyl amides. On the other hand, additional substituents at the 6-position of o-amido phenylsulfenic acids that can induce steric environment and alter the electronic properties around the sulfenic acid moiety by S center dot center dot center dot N or S center dot center dot center dot O nonbonded interactions destabilize the sulfenic acids by inducing strain in the molecule. This may lead to efficient the cyclization of such sulfenic acids. This model study suggests that the amino acid residues in the close proximity of the sulfenic acid moiety in PTP1B may play an important role in the cyclization of PTP1B-SOH to produce the corresponding sulfenyl amide.

Role of electrolyte chemistry on electronic and in vitro electrochemical properties of micro-arc oxidized titania films on Cp Ti

The primary objective of the present work was to study the electronic and in vitro electrochemical properties of micro-arc oxidized titania films on Cp Ti, fabricated independently in various electrolyte solutions consisting of anions such as phosphate (PO43-), borate (B4O72-), citrate (C6H5O73-) and silicate (SiO32-). Further the role of anions on the structural, morphological and compositional properties of the fabricated films was studied. All the titania films were developed by micro-arc oxidation (MAO) technique for a fixed treatment time of 8 min under constant current mode. The surface morphology, elemental distribution, composition and structural characteristics of the films were assessed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) equipped with energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. The thermodynamic and kinetic corrosion properties of the films were studied under simulated body fluid (SBF) conditions (pH 7.4 and 37 degrees C) by conducting chronopotentiometric and potentiodynamic polarization tests. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) coupled with equivalent circuit modelling was carried out to analyse the frequency response and Mott-Schottky analysis was performed to study the semiconducting (electronic) properties of the films. Salt spray fog accelerated corrosion test was conducted for 168h as per ASTM B117 standard to corroborate the corrosion and semiconducting properties of the samples based on the visual examination. The XRD results showed that the transformation from the metastable anatase phase to the thermodynamically stable rutile phase and the crystalline growth of the respective phases were strongly influenced by the addition of anions. The SEM-EDS results demonstrated that the phosphorous (P) content in the films varied from 2.4 at% to 5.0 at% indicating that the amount of P in the films could be modified by adding an appropriate electrolyte additive. The electrochemical corrosion test results showed that the film fabricated in citrate (C6H5O73-) containing electrolyte is thermodynamically and kinetically more stable compared to that of all the others. The results of the Mott-Schottky analysis indicated that all the fabricated films showed an n-type semiconducting behaviour and the film developed in citrate (C6H5O73-) containing electrolyte exhibited the lowest donor concentration and the most negative flat band potential that contributed to its highest corrosion resistance in SBF solution. The results of the salt spray accelerated corrosion tests were in agreement with those obtained from the electrochemical and Mott-Schottky analysis.

A Guided Wave approach for the detection of damage in a structure having elements with periodic damage

A wave propagation based approach for the detection of damage in components of structures having periodic damage has been proposed. Periodic damage pattern may arise in a structure due to periodicity in geometry and in loading. The method exploits the Block-Floquet band formation mechanism, a feature specific to structures with periodicity, to identify propagation bands (pass bands) and attenuation bands (stop bands) at different frequency ranges. The presence of damage modifies the wave propagation behaviour forming these bands. With proper positioning of sensors a damage force indicator (DFI) method can be used to locate the defect at an accuracy level of sensor to sensor distance. A wide range of transducer frequency may be used to obtain further information about the shape and size of the damage. The methodology is demonstrated using a few 1-D structures with different kinds of periodicity and damage. For this purpose, dynamic stiffness matrix is formed for the periodic elements to obtain the dispersion relationship using frequency domain spectral element and spectral super element method. The sensitivity of the damage force indicator for different types of periodic damages is also analysed.

Facile synthesis of carbon doped TiO2 nanowires without an external carbon source and their opto-electronic properties

The present study demonstrates a simple protocol for the preparation of one dimensional (1D) oxidized titanium carbide nanowires and their opto-electronic properties. The oxidized titanium carbide nanowires (Ox-TiC-NW) are prepared from TiC nanowires (TiC-NW) that are in turn synthesized from micron sized TiC particles using the solvothermal technique. The Ox-TiC-NW is characterized by X-ray diffraction, UV-Vis spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Raman spectroscopy. Thermal oxidation of TiC-NW yields carbon doped TiO2-NW (C-TiO2-NW), a simple methodology to obtain 1D C-TiO2-NW. Temperature dependent Raman spectra reveal characteristic bands for TiO2-NW. Electrical characterization of individual C-TiO2-NW is performed by fabricating a device structure using the focused ion beam deposition technique. The opto-electronic properties of individual C-TiO2-NW demonstrate visible light activity and the parameters obtained from photoconductivity measurements reveal very good sensitivity. This methodology opens up the possibility of using C-TiO2-NW in electronic and opto-electronic device applications.

Synthesis, structure, characterization and photocatalytic activity of Bi2Zr2O7 under solar radiation

Bi2Zr2O7 was synthesized via a facile solution combustion method. Two different fuels, urea and tartaric acid were used in the synthesis, which resulted in Bi2Zr2O7 crystals with different band gaps and surface areas. The structure has been determined by Rietveld refinement followed by the difference Fourier technique. The compound crystallizes in the space group Fm (3) over barm. The photocatalytic degradation of two dyes was carried out under solar radiation. Bi2Zr2O7 prepared using urea as the fuel exhibits a higher photocatalytic activity than the compound prepared using tartaric acid and comparable activity to that of commercial Evonik P-25 TiO2. It is suggested that this is due to the oxygen vacancies occurring in the two cases, the urea based compound has an occupancy of 0.216, whereas the tartaric acid based synthesis shows disorder in the oxygen position amounting to a small number of oxygen vacancies.

ABOUT FORMS OF ELECTRONIC AND IONIC DEVICES WITH THERMIONIC CATHODES.

The miniaturization of electronic and ionic devices with thermionic cathodes and thc improvement of their vacuum properties are questions of very great interest to the electronic engineer. However there have bcen no proposals so far to analyse the problem of miniaturization of such devices In a fundamental way. The present work suggests a choice of the geometrical shape of the cathode, the anode and the envelope of the device, that may help towards such a fundamcnlal approach.It is shown that a design, in which the cathode and the envelope of the tube are made of thm prismatic shape and the anode coincides with the cnvclope, offers a slriknrg advantage over the conventional cylindrical design, in respect of over-all size. The use of the prismatic shape will lead to considerable economy in msterials and may facilitate simpler prodoct~ont echn~ques. I n respect of the miin criteria of vacuum, namely the grade of vacuum, the internal volume occupied by residual gases, the evolution of gases in the internal space and the diffusion of gases from outside into the devicc, it is shown that the prismatic form is at least as good as, if not somewhat superior lo, the cylindrical form.In the actual construction of thin prismatic tubes, manv practical problems will arise, the most important being the mechanical strength and stablity of the structure. But the changeover from the conventional cylindrical to the new prirmaiic form, with its basic advantages, is a development that merits close attention.

Mechanical and electronic properties of pristine and Ni-doped Si, Ge, and Sn sheets

Silicene, a graphene analogue of silicon, has been generating immense interest due to its potential for applications in miniaturized devices. Unlike planar graphene, silicene prefers a buckled structure. Here we explore the possibility of stabilizing the planar form of silicene by Ni doping using first principles density functional theory based calculations. It is found that planar as well as buckled structure is stable for Ni-doped silicene, but the buckled sheet has slightly lower total energy. The planar silicene sheet has unstable phonon modes. A comparative study of the mechanical properties reveals that the in-plane stiffness of both the pristine and the doped planar silicene is higher compared to that of the buckled silicene. This suggests that planar silicene is mechanically more robust. Electronic structure calculations of the planar and buckled Ni-doped silicene show that the energy bands at the Dirac point transform from linear behavior to parabolic dispersion. Furthermore, we extend our study to Ge and Sn sheets that are also stable and the trends of comparable mechanical stability of the planar and buckled phases remain the same.

Atomic Structure of Quantum Gold Nanowires: Quantification of the Lattice Strain

Theoretical studies exist to compute the atomic arrangement in gold nanowires and the influence on their electronic behavior with decreasing diameter. Experimental studies, e.g., by transmission electron microscopy, on chemically synthesized ultrafine wires are however lacking owing to the unavailability of suitable protocols for sample preparation and the stability of the wires under electron beam irradiation. In this work, we present an atomic scale structural investigation on quantum single crystalline gold nanowires of 2 nm diameter, chemically prepared on a carbon film grid. Using low dose aberration-corrected high resolution (S)TEM, we observe an inhomogeneous strain distribution in the crystal, largely concentrated at the twin boundaries and the surface along with the presence of facets and surface steps leading to a noncircular cross section of the wires. These structural aspects are critical inputs needed to determine their unique electronic character and their potential as a suitable catalyst material. Furthermore, electron-beam-induced structural changes at the atomic scale, having implications on their mechanical behavior and their suitability as interconnects, are discussed.

Evolution of Nanocrystalline Ba2NaNb5O15 in 2BaO-0.5Na(2)O-2.5Nb(2)O(5)-4.5B(2)O(3) Glass System and Its Refractive Index and Band Gap Tunability

Monophasic Ba2NaNb5O15 was crystallized at nanometer scale (12-36 nm) in 2BaO-0.5Na(2)O-2.5Nb(2)O(5)- 4.5B(2)O(3) glass system. To begin with, optically transparent glasses, in this system, were fabricated via the conventional melt. quenching technique. The amorphous and glassy characteristics of the as-quenched samples were respectively confirmed by X-ray powder diffraction and differential thermal analyses. Nearly homogeneous distribution of Ba2NaNb5O15 (BNN) nanocrystals associated with tungsten bronze structure akin to their bulk parent structure was accomplished by subjecting the as-fabricated glasses to appropriate heat-treatment temperatures. Indeed transmission electron microscopy (TEM) carried out on these samples corroborated the presence of Ba2NaNb5O15 nanocrystals dispersed in a continuous glass matrix. The as-quenched glasses were similar to 75% transparent in the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum. The optical band gap and refractive index were found to have crystallite size (at nanoscale) dependence. The optical band gap increased with the decrease in crystallite size. The refractive indices of the glass nanocrystal composites as determined by Brewster angle method were rationalized using different empirical models. The refractive index dispersion with wavelength of light was analyzed on the basis of the Sellmeier relations. At room temperature under UV excitation (355 nm) these glass nanocrystal composites displayed violet-blue emission which was ascribed to the defects states.

Tectonic inheritance of the Indian Shield: New insights from its elastic thickness structure

A new evaluation of the elastic thickness (Te) structure of the Indian Shield, derived from isotropic fan wavelet methodology, documents spatial variations of lithospheric deformation in different tectonic provinces correlated with episodic tectono-thermal events. The Te variations corroborated by shear velocity, crustal thickness, and seismogenic thickness reveal the heterogeneous rheology of the Indian lithosphere. The thinned, attenuated lithosphere beneath Peninsular India is considered to be the reason for its mechanically weak strength (<30 km), where a decoupled crust-mantle rheology under different surface/subsurface loading structures may explain the prominent low Te patterns. The arcuate Te structure of the Western Dharwar province and a NNE-trending band of low Te anomaly in the Southern Granulite Terrane are intriguing patterns. The average Te values (40-50 km) of the Central Indian Tectonic Zone, the Bastar Craton, and the northern Eastern Ghats Mobile Belt are suggestive of old, stable, Indian lithosphere, which was not affected by any major tectono-thermal events after cratonic stabilization. We propose that the anomalously high Te (60-85 km) and high S-wave velocity zone to the north of the Narmada-Son Lineament, mainly in NW Himalaya, and the northern Aravalli and Bundelkhand Cratons, suggest that Archean lithosphere characterized by a high velocity mantle keel supports the orogenic topographic loads in/near the Himalaya. The Te map clearly segments the volcanic provinces of the Indian Shield, where the signatures of the Reunion, Marion, and Kerguelen hotspots are indicated by significantly low Te patterns that correlate with plume- and rift-related thermal and mechanical rejuvenation, magmatic underplating, and crustal necking. The correlations between Te variations and the occurrence of seismicity over seismically active zones reveal different causal relationships, which led to the current seismogenic zonation of the Indian Shield. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Photophysical, electrochemical and solid state properties of diketopyrrolopyrrole based molecular materials: importance of the donor group

Diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP) based molecular semiconductors have emerged as promising materials for high performance active layers in organic solar cells. It is imperative to comprehend the origin of such a property by investigating the fundamental structure property correlation. In this report we have investigated the role of the donor group in DPP based donor-acceptor- donor (D-A-D) structure to govern the solid state, photophysical and electrochemical properties. We have prepared three derivatives of DPP with varying strengths of the donor groups, such as phenyl (PDPP-Hex), thiophene (TDPP-Hex) and selenophene (SeDPP-Hex). The influence of the donor units on the solid state packing was studied by single crystal X-ray diffraction. The photophysical, electrochemical and density functional theory ( DFT) results were combined to elucidate the structural and electronic properties of three DPP derivatives. We found that these DPP derivatives crystallized in the monoclinic space group P21/c and show herringbone packing in the crystal lattice. The derivatives exhibit weak p-p stacking interactions as two neighboring molecules slip away from each other with varied torsional angles at the donor units. The high torsional angle of 32 degrees ( PDPP-Hex) between the phenyl and lactam ring results in weak intramolecular interactions between the donor and acceptor, while TDPP-Hex and SeDPP-Hex show lower torsional angles of 9 degrees and 12 degrees with a strong overlap between the donor and acceptor units. The photophysical properties reveal that PDPP-Hex exhibits a high Stokes shift of 0.32 eV and SeDPP- Hex shows a high molar absorption co-efficient of 33 600 L mol -1 1 cm -1 1 with a low band gap of similar to 2.2 eV. The electrochemical studies of SeDPP- Hex indicate the pronounced effect of selenium in stabilizing the LUMO energy levels and this further emphasizes the importance of chalcogens in developing new n-type organic semiconductors for optoelectronic devices.

Multichannel-Emissive V-Shaped Boryl-BODIPY Dyads: Synthesis, Structure, and Remarkably Diverse Response toward Fluoride

Three new V-shaped boryl-BODIPY dyads (1-3) were synthesized and structurally characterized. Compounds 1-3 are structurally close molecular siblings differing only in the number of methyl substituents on the BODIPY moiety that were found to play a major role in determining their photophysical behavior. The dyads show rare forms of multiple-channel emission characteristics arising from different extents of electronic energy transfer (EET) processes between the two covalently linked fluorescent chromophores (borane and BODIPY units). Insights into the origin and nature of their emission behavior were gained from comparison with closely related model molecular systems and related photophysical investigations. Because of the presence of the Lewis acidic triarylborane moiety, the dyads function as highly selective and sensitive fluoride sensors with vastly different response behaviors. When fluoride binds to the tricoordinate borane center, dyad 1 shows gradual quenching of its BODIPY-dominated emission due to the ceasing of the (borane to BODIPY) EET process. Dyad 2 shows a ratiometric fluorescence response for fluoride ions. Dyad 3 forms fluoride-induced nanoaggregates that result in fast and effective quenching of its fluorescence intensity just for similar to 0.3 ppm of analyte (i.e., 0.1 equiv 0.26 ppm of fluoride). The small structural alterations in these three structurally close dyads (1 - 3) result in exceptionally versatile and unique photophysical behaviors and remarkably diverse responses toward a single analyte, i.e., fluoride ion.

A MICROMACHINED WIDE-BAND IN-PLANE SINGLE-AXIS CAPACITIVE ACCELEROMETER WITH A DISPLACEMENT-AMPLIFYING COMPLIANT MECHANISM

With the premise that electronic noise dominates mechanical noise in micromachined accelerometers, we present here a method to enhance the sensitivity and resolution at kHz bandwidth using mechanical amplification. This is achieved by means of a Displacement-amplifying Compliant Mechanism (DaCM) that is appended to the usual sensing element comprising a proof-mass and a suspension. Differential comb-drive arrangement is used for capacitive-sensing. The DaCM is designed to match the stiffness of the suspension so that there is substantial net amplification without compromising the bandwidth. A spring-mass-lever model is used to estimate the lumped parameters of the system. A DaCM-aided accelerometer and another without a DaCM-both occupying the same footprint-are compared to show that the former gives enhanced sensitivity: 8.7 nm/g vs. 1.4 nm/g displacement at the sensing-combs under static conditions. A prototype of the DaCM-aided micromachined acclerometer was fabricated using bulk-micromachining. It was tested at the die-level and then packaged on a printed circuit board with an off-the-shelf integrated chip for measuring change in capacitance. Under dynamic conditions, the measured amplification factor at the output of the DaCM was observed to be about 11 times larger than the displacement of the proof-mass and thus validating the concept of enhancing the sensitivity of accelerometers using mechanical amplifiers. The measured first in-plane natural frequency of the fabricated accelerometer was 6.25 kHz. The packaged accelerometer with the DaCM was measured to have 26.7 mV/g sensitivity at 40 Hz.

Design and synthesis of new low band gap organic semiconductors for photovoltaic applications

Donor-acceptor (D-A) conjugated polymers have attracted a good deal of attention in recent years. In D-A systems, the introduction of electron withdrawing groups reduces E-g by lowering the LUMO levels whereas, the introduction of electron donating groups reduces E-g by raising the HOMO levels. Also, conjugated polymers with desired HOMO and LUMO energy levels could be obtained by the proper selection of donor and acceptor units. Because of this reason, D-A conjugated polymers are emerging as promising materials particularly for polymer light emitting diodes (PLEDs) and polymer solar cells (PSCs). We report the design and synthesis of four new narrow band gap donor-acceptor (D-A) conjugated polymers, PTCNN, PTCNF, PTCNV and PTCNO, containing electron donating 3,4-didodecyloxythiophene and electron accepting cyanovinylene units. The effects of further addition of electron donating and electron withdrawing groups to the repeating unit of a D-A conjugated polymer (PTCNN) on its optical and electrochemical properties are discussed. The studies revealed that the nature of D and A units as well as the extent of alternate D-A structure influences the optical and the electrochemical properties of the polymers. All the polymers are thermally stable up to a temperature of 300 degrees C under nitrogen atmosphere. The electrochemical studies revealed that the polymers possess low-lying HOMO energy levels and low-lying LUMO energy levels. In the UV-Vis absorption study, the polymer films displayed broad absorption in the wavelength region of 400-700 nm. The polymers exhibited low optical band gaps in the range 1.70 - 1.77 eV.