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.

Complex study of transport AC loss in various 2G HTS racetrack coils

HTS racetrack coils are becoming important elements of an emerging number of superconducting devices such as generators or motors. In these devices the issue of AC loss is crucial, as performance and cooling power are derived from this quantity. This paper presents a comparative study of transport AC loss in two different types of 2G HTS racetrack coils. In this study, both experimental measurements and computer simulation approaches were employed. All the experiments were performed using classical AC electrical method. The finite-element computer model was used to estimate electromagnetic properties and calculate transport AC loss. The main difference between the characterized coils is covered inside tape architectures. While one coil uses tape based on RABITS magnetic substrate, the second coil uses a non-magnetic tape. Ferromagnetic loss caused by a magnetic substrate is an important issue involved in the total AC loss. As a result, the coil with the magnetic substrate surprised with high AC loss and rather low performance. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Intergranular and intragranular properties of superconducting multifilamentary Bi 2223 Ag tapes : comparison of electrical transport and magnetic measurement methods

Several experimental techniques have been used in order to characterize the properties of multifilamentary Bi-2223 / Ag tapes. Pristine samples were investigated by electrical resistivity, current-voltage characteristics and DC magnetic moment measurements. Much emphasis is placed on comparing transport (direct) and magnetic (indirect) methods for determining the critical current density as well as the irreversibility line and resolving usual lacks of consistency due to the difference in measurement techniques and data analysis. The effect of an applied magnetic field, with various strengths and directions, is also studied and discussed. Next, the same combination of experiments was performed on bent tapes in order to bring out relevant information regarding the intergranular coupling. A modified Brandt model taking into account different types of defects within the superconducting filaments is proposed to reconciliate magnetic and transport data.

Electrical transport and percolation in magnetoresistive manganite / insulating oxide composites: case of La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 / Mn3O4

We report the results of electrical resistivity measurements carried out on well-sintered La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 / Mn3O4 composite samples with almost constant composition of the magnetoresistive manganite phase (La0.7Ca0.3MnO3). A percolation threshold (fc) occurs when the La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 volume fraction is ~ 0.19. The dependence of the electrical resistivity as a function of La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 volume fraction (fLCMO) can be described by percolation-like phenomenological equations. Fitting the conducting regime (fLCMO > fc) by the percolation power law returns a critical exponent t value of 2.0 +/- 0.2 at room temperature and 2.6 +/-0.2 at 5 K. The increase of t is ascribed to the influence of the grain boundaries on the electrical conduction process at low temperature.

Complex study of transport AC loss in various 2G HTS racetrack coils

HTS racetrack coils are becoming important elements of an emerging number of superconducting devices such as generators or motors. In these devices the issue of AC loss is crucial, as performance and cooling power are derived from this quantity. This paper presents a comparative study of transport AC loss in two different types of 2G HTS racetrack coils. In this study, both experimental measurements and computer simulation approaches were employed. All the experiments were performed using classical AC electrical method. The finite-element computer model was used to estimate electromagnetic properties and calculate transport AC loss. The main difference between the characterized coils is covered inside tape architectures. While one coil uses tape based on RABITS magnetic substrate, the second coil uses a non-magnetic tape. Ferromagnetic loss caused by a magnetic substrate is an important issue involved in the total AC loss. As a result, the coil with the magnetic substrate surprised with high AC loss and rather low performance. © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Magnetocaloric and transport study of poly- and nanocrystalline composite manganites La 0.7Ca 0.3MnO 3/La 0.8Sr 0.2MnO 3

Magnetocaloric and transport properties are reported for novel poly- and nanocrystalline double composite manganites, La 0.8Sr 0.2MnO 3/La 0.7Ca 0.3MnO 3, prepared by the sol-gel method. Magnetic field dependence of magnetic entropy change is found to be stronger for the nano- than the polycrystalline composite. The remarkable broadening of the temperature interval, where the magnetocaloric effect occurs in poly- and nanocrystalline composites, causes the relative cooling power (RCP(S)) of the nanocrystalline composite to be reduced by only 10 compared to the Sr based polycrystalline phase. The RCP(S) of the polycrystalline composite becomes remarkably enhanced. The low temperature magnetoresistance is enhanced by 5 for the nanostructured composite. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.

Magneto transport characterization of the Sn-doped TbMnO3 manganites

The structural, magnetic and electrical transport properties of the Sn-doped TbMnO3 manganites are studied by X-ray diffraction, ac susceptibility, dc magnetization and electrical resistivity measurements. The Sn doping into the Tb and Mn sites of TbMnO3 compresses the unit cell and changes parameters of the antiferromagnetic phase whereas the magnetic moment of Mn are only weakly affected. The electrical resistivity of doped manganites is reduced and the activation energy EA is determined for the thermally activated conduction. © 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Electrical transport and magnetic properties of Mn3O4-La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 ceramic composites prepared by a one-step spray-drying technique

La0.7Ca0.3MnO3/Mn3O4 composites can be synthesized in one step by thermal treatment of a spray-dried precursor, instead of mixing pre-synthesized powders. Another advantage of this composite system is that a long sintering step can be used without leading to significant modification of the manganite composition. The percolation threshold is reached at ∼20 vol% of manganite phase. The 77 K low field magnetoresistance is enhanced to ∼11% at 0.15 T when the composition is close to the percolation threshold. © 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Magneto-transport study of Nb-doped Bi/Pb2223 superconductor

The magneto-transport properties of Bi1.5Pb0.4Nb0.1Sr2Ca2Cu 3O10-x polycrystalline, superconducting ceramic are reported. The material was found to be chemically homogeneous and partially textured. The mixed state properties were investigated by measuring the electrical resistivity, longitudinal and transverse (Nernst effect) thermoelectric power, and thermal conductivity. The magnetization and AC susceptibility measurements were also performed. The variation of these characteristics for magnetic fields up to 5 T are discussed and compared to those of the zero field case. The transport entropy and thermal Hall angle are extracted and quantitatively compared to previously reported data of closely related systems. © 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Liquid transport facilitated by channels in Bacillus subtilis biofilms.

Many bacteria on earth exist in surface-attached communities known as biofilms. These films are responsible for manifold problems, including hospital-acquired infections and biofouling, but they can also be beneficial. Biofilm growth depends on the transport of nutrients and waste, for which diffusion is thought to be the main source of transport. However, diffusion is ineffective for transport over large distances and thus should limit growth. Nevertheless, biofilms can grow to be very large. Here we report the presence of a remarkable network of well-defined channels that form in wild-type Bacillus subtilis biofilms and provide a system for enhanced transport. We observe that these channels have high permeability to liquid flow and facilitate the transport of liquid through the biofilm. In addition, we find that spatial variations in evaporative flux from the surface of these biofilms provide a driving force for the flow of liquid in the channels. These channels offer a remarkably simple system for liquid transport, and their discovery provides insight into the physiology and growth of biofilms.

Reynolds number effects on scalar dissipation rate transport and its modeling in turbulent premixed combustion

The effects of turbulent Reynolds number, Ret, on the transport of scalar dissipation rate of reaction progress variable in the context of Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes simulations have been analyzed using three-dimensional simplified chemistry-based direct numerical simulation (DNS) data of freely propagating turbulent premixed flames with different values of Ret. Scaling arguments have been used to explain the effects of Ret on the turbulent transport, scalar-turbulence interaction, and the combined reaction and molecular dissipation terms. Suitable modifications to the models for these terms have been proposed to account for Ret effects, and the model parameters include explicit Ret dependence. These expressions approach expected asymptotic limits for large values of Ret. However, turbulent Reynolds number Ret does not seem to have any major effects on the modeling of the term arising from density variation. Copyright © Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.

Cryogenic on-chip multiplexer for the study of quantum transport in 256 split-gate devices

We present a multiplexing scheme for the measurement of large numbers of mesoscopic devices in cryogenic systems. The multiplexer is used to contact an array of 256 split gates on a GaAs/AlGaAs heterostructure, in which each split gate can be measured individually. The low-temperature conductance of split-gate devices is governed by quantum mechanics, leading to the appearance of conductance plateaux at intervals of 2e^2/h. A fabrication-limited yield of 94% is achieved for the array, and a "quantum yield" is also defined, to account for disorder affecting the quantum behaviour of the devices. The quantum yield rose from 55% to 86% after illuminating the sample, explained by the corresponding increase in carrier density and mobility of the two-dimensional electron gas. The multiplexer is a scalable architecture, and can be extended to other forms of mesoscopic devices. It overcomes previous limits on the number of devices that can be fabricated on a single chip due to the number of electrical contacts available, without the need to alter existing experimental set ups.