A metal-polymer composite with unusual properties

Electrically conductive composites that contain conductive filler dispersed in an insulating polymer matrix are usually prepared by the vigorous mixing of the components. This affects the structure of the filler particles and thereby the properties of the composite. It is shown that by careful mixing nano-scale features on the surface of the filler particles can be retained. The fillers used possess sharp surface protrusions similar to the tips used in scanning tunnelling microscopy. The electric field strength at these tips is very large and results in field assisted (Fowler-Nordheim) tunnelling. In addition the polymer matrix intimately coats the filler particles and the particles do not come into direct physical contact. This prevents the formation of chains of filler particles in close contact as the filler content increases. In consequence the composite has an extremely high resistance even at filler loadings above the expected percolation threshold. The retention of filler particle morphology and the presence of an insulating polymer layer between them endow the composite with a number of unusual properties. These are presented here together with appropriate physical models. © 2005 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Properties of grain boundaries in bulk, melt processed YB2Cu3O7-δ fabricated using bridge-shaped seeds

Single grain REBa2C3uO7 ((RE)BCO, where RE is a rare earth element or yttrium) bulk superconducting materials have significant potential for a variety of engineering applications due to their ability to trap high magnetic fields. However, it is well known that the presence of grain boundaries coupled with a high angle of misorientation (typically 5�) significantly reduces the critical current density, J c , in all forms of high temperature superconducting materials. It is of considerable fundamental and technological interest, therefore, to investigate the grain boundary properties of bulk, film and tape (RE)BCO. We report a successful multi-seeding technique for the fabrication of fully aligned, artificial (0��misalignment) grain boundaries within large grain YBCO bulk superconductors using bridge-shaped seeds. The microstructure and critical current densities of the grain boundaries produced by this technique have been studied in detail.

Growth of ultrahigh density single-walled carbon nanotube forests by improved catalyst design.

We have grown vertically aligned single-walled carbon nanotube forests with an area density of 1.5 × 10(13) cm(-2), the highest yet achieved, by reducing the average diameter of the nanotubes. We use a nanolaminate Fe-Al(2)O(3) catalyst design consisting of three layers of Al(2)O(3), Fe, and Al(2)O(3), in which the lower Al(2)O(3) layer is densified by an oxygen plasma treatment to increase its diffusion barrier properties, to allow a thinner catalyst layer to be used. This high nanotube density is desirable for using carbon nanotubes as interconnects in integrated circuits.

Thermal plasma synthesis of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles were synthesized by injecting ferrocene vapor and oxygen into an argon/helium DC thermal plasma. Size distributions of particles in the reactor exhaust were measured online using an aerosol extraction probe interfaced to a scanning mobility particle sizer, and particles were collected on transmission electron microscopy (TEM) grids and glass fiber filters for off-line characterization. The morphology, chemical and phase composition of the nanoparticles were characterized using TEM and X-ray diffraction, and the magnetic properties of the particles were analyzed with a vibrating sample magnetometer and a magnetic property measurement system. Aerosol at the reactor exhaust consisted of both single nanocrystals and small agglomerates, with a modal mobility diameter of 8-9 nm. Powder synthesized with optimum oxygen flow rate consisted primarily of magnetite (Fe 3O 4), and had a room-temperature saturation magnetization of 40.15 emu/g, with a coercivity and remanence of 26 Oe and 1.5 emu/g, respectively. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2011.

Growth of large sized y Ba 2Cu 3O 7 single crystals using the top seeded melt growth process

Neutron scattering experiments are fundamental to the study of magnetic order and related phenomena in a range of superconducting and magnetic materials. Traditional methods of crystal growth, however, do not yield single crystals of sufficient size for practical neutron scattering measurements. In this paper, we demonstrate the growth of relatively pure, large Y Ba 2Cu 3O 7 single crystals up to 30mm in diameter using a top seeded melt growth process. The characterization of the microstructural and magnetic properties of these crystals indicates that they contain <2% of impurity phases and, hence, exhibit only weak flux pinning behaviour. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd.

Effects of multi-scattering on the performance of a single-beam acoustic manipulation device.

The effects of multiple scattering on acoustic manipulation of spherical particles using helicoidal Bessel-beams are discussed. A closed-form analytical solution is developed to calculate the acoustic radiation force resulting from a Bessel-beam on an acoustically reflective sphere, in the presence of an adjacent spherical particle, immersed in an unbounded fluid medium. The solution is based on the standard Fourier decomposition method and the effect of multi-scattering is taken into account using the addition theorem for spherical coordinates. Of particular interest here is the investigation of the effects of multiple scattering on the emergence of negative axial forces. To investigate the effects, the radiation force applied on the target particle resulting from a helicoidal Bessel-beam of different azimuthal indexes (m = 1 to 4), at different conical angles, is computed. Results are presented for soft and rigid spheres of various sizes, separated by a finite distance. Results have shown that the emergence of negative force regions is very sensitive to the level of cross-scattering between the particles. It has also been shown that in multiple scattering media, the negative axial force may occur at much smaller conical angles than previously reported for single particles, and that acoustic manipulation of soft spheres in such media may also become possible.

Occurrence of particle debris field during focused Ga ion beam milling of glassy carbon

To explore the machining characteristics of glassy carbon by focused ion beam (FIB), particles induced by FIB milling on glassy carbon have been studied in the current work. Nano-sized particles in the range of tens of nanometers up to 400 nm can often be found around the area subject to FIB milling. Two ion beam scanning modes - slow single scan and fast repetitive scan - have been tested. Fewer particles are found in single patterns milled in fast repetitive scan mode. For a group of test patterns milled in a sequence, it was found that a greater number of particles were deposited around sites machined early in the sequence. In situ EDX analysis of the particles showed that they were composed of C and Ga. The formation of particles is related to the debris generated at the surrounding areas, the low melting point of gallium used as FIB ion source and the high contact angle of gallium on glassy carbon induces de-wetting of Ga and the subsequent formation of Ga particles. Ultrasonic cleaning can remove over 98% of visible particles. The surface roughness (Ra) of FIB milled areas after cleaning is less than 2 nm. © 2010.

CFD modeling of single-phase flow in a packed bed with MRI validation

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations are becoming increasingly widespread with the advent of more powerful computers and more sophisticated software. The aim of these developments is to facilitate more accurate reactor design and optimization methods compared to traditional lumped-parameter models. However, in order for CFD to be a trusted method, it must be validated using experimental data acquired at sufficiently high spatial resolution. This article validates an in-house CFD code by comparison with flow-field data obtained using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for a packed bed with a particle-to-column diameter ratio of 2. Flows characterized by inlet Reynolds numbers, based on particle diameter, of 27, 55, 111, and 216 are considered. The code used employs preconditioning to directly solve for pressure in low-velocity flow regimes. Excellent agreement was found between the MRI and CFD data with relative error between the experimentally determined and numerically predicted flow-fields being in the range of 3-9%. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE).