Enhanced luminescence in ZnGa<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4-x</Subscript>S<Subscript>x</Subscript>:Mn<Superscript>2+</Superscript> thin-film phosphors grown on MgO(100) substrate

Mn-doped ZnGa₂O_4-xS_x thin-film phosphors have been grown using a pulsed laser deposition technique at varying growth conditions. Structural characterization was carried out on a series of ZnGa₂O_4-xS_x:Mn²⁺ films grown on MgO(100) substrates using Zn-rich ceramic targets. Oxygen pressure was fixed at 100 mTorr and substrate temperatures were varied from 500 to 700 °C. The results of X-ray-diffraction patterns showed that the lattice constants of the ZnGa₂O_3.95S_0.05:Mn²⁺ thin films decrease with the substitution of sulfur for the oxygen in ZnGa₂O₄. Measurements of photoluminescence (PL) properties of ZnGa₂O_4-xS_x:Mn²⁺ thin films have indicated that MgO(100) is one of the most promising substrates for the growth of high-quality ZnGa₂O_4-xS_x:Mn²⁺ thin films. In particular, the incorporation of sulfur into the ZnGa₂O₄ lattice could induce a remarkable increase of PL. The highest green-emission intensity was observed with ZnGa₂O_3.95S_0.05:Mn²⁺ films, whose brightness was increased by a factor of 3.5 in comparison with that of ZnGa₂O₄:Mn²⁺ films. This phosphor may be promising for application to flat-panel displays. PACS 78.20.-e; 78.55.-m; 78.66.-w     

The design of an efficient load balancing algorithm employing block design

In order to maintain load balancing in a distributed system, we should obtain workload information from all the nodes on network. This processing requiresO(v ²) communication overhead, wherev is the number of nodes. In this paper, we present a new synchronous dynamic distributed load balancing algorithm on a (v, k+1, 1)-configured network applying a symmetric balanced incomplete block design, wherev=k ²+k+1. Our algorithm needs only $O(v\sqrt v )$ communication overhead and each node receives workload information from all the nodes without redundancy. Therefore, load balancing is maintained since every link has the same amount of traffic for transferring workload information.     

Synthesis of blue-light-emitting ZnGa2O4 nanowires using chemical vapor deposition

A high-density array of vertically aligned ZnGa(2)O(4) nanowires has been synthesized on Si substrates via CVD of ZnO-Ga at 1000 degrees C consisting of a single-crystalline cubic spinel structure grown in a [111] direction and exhibiting strong photoluminescence and cathodoluminescence in the blue wavelength region.     

Synthesis of N-(2-methylpropyl)-2E-undecene-8,10-diynamide, a novel constituent of Echinacea angustifolia

The first synthesis of a diacetylenic amide from Echinacea is reported. The key steps included the reaction of an aldehyde with the monoanion of a diacetylene and the reductive removal of a propargylic alcohol.     

An optimal service rate in a Poisson arrival queue with two-stage service policy*

We consider a two-stage service policy for a Poisson arrival queueing system. The idle server starts to work with ordinary service rate when a customer arrives. If the number of customers in the system reaches N, the service rate gets faster and continues until the system becomes empty. Otherwise, the server finishes the busy period with ordinary service rate. After assigning various operating costs to the system, we show that there exists a unique fast service rate minimizing the long-run average cost per unit time.This work was supported by Korea Research Foundation Grant(KRF-2002-070-C00021).     

Photobleaching of γ-Glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane-Chelated Metal Alkoxide Gel Films

Thick photosensitive inorganic-organic hybrid gel films are fabricated using a silica–PEO(poly(ethylene oxide)) polymeric network and several chelated metal alkoxides: Ti(OEt)₄, Al(OBu^sec)₃, Zr(OPr ⁿ )₄. The -glycidoxypropyltrimethoxysilane (GPTS) and the metal alkoxides stabilized by -ketoester or -diketone are used as precursors. The chelated metal complex in the gel films are photodecomposed and forms the oxide network by UV exposure. The photodecomposition of the chelate ring and the photobleaching of the UV absorption bands are investigated as a function of UV exposure time. The photobleaching rates with respect to chelating agents, metal alkoxides and photon energy are compared.     

Electrostatic interaction effect for human DNA separation with functionalized mesoporous silicas

This work describes the development of highly efficient human DNA separation with functionalized mesoporous silica (FMS) materials. To demonstrate the electrostatic interaction effect between the target DNA molecules and FMS, three aminofunctionality types comprised of a mono-, a di-, and a tri-amine functional group were introduced on the inner surfaces of mesoporous silica particles. Systematic characterization of the synthesized materials was achieved by solid-state ²⁹Si and ¹³C-NMR techniques, BET, FT-IR, and XPS. The DNA separation efficiency was explored via the function of the amino-group number, the amount used, and the added NaCl concentration. The DNA adsorption yields were high in terms of the use of triaminofunctionalized FMS at the 10 ng/L level, and the DNA desorption efficiency showed the optimum level at over 3.0 M NaCl concentration. The use of FMS in a DNA separation process provides numerous advantages over the conventional silica-based process.     

Synthesis and properties of sulfonated poly(arylene ether)s containing azole groups

Random and multiblock sulfonated poly(arylene ether sulfone)s (SPEs) containing various azole groups such as oxadiazole and triazole were synthesized and characterized for fuel cell application. Successful preparation of SPE membranes depended on the structure of azole groups, which affected solubility of precursors and the resulting SPEs. Although oxadiazole groups were incorporated into hydrophobic component, they were found to be hydrophilic to give higher proton conductivity. Introduction of oxadiazole groups into random SPE gave comparable proton conductivity to that of Nafion NRE at >60% relative humidity at 80 °C. Block copolymer structure further increased the proton diffusion coefficient without increasing ion exchange capacity. Hydrolytic and oxidative stability of the SPE membranes was affected by both hydrophilic and hydrophobic components. Oxadiazole groups gave negative impact on hydrolytic and mechanical stability to the SPE membranes. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011     

Predicting the proton conductivity of perfluorosulfonic acid membrane via combining statistical thermodynamics and molecular dynamics simulation

The electrochemical properties of a perfluorosulfonic acid (PFSA) membrane are estimated using a combination of molecular dynamics simulation and statistical thermodynamic model. We obtain all parameters in an ionic conductivity model from an atomistic simulation and remove all adjusted model parameters. From a microscopic point of view, the hydrated PFSA membrane shows micro‐phase segregation which separated into hydrophilic and hydrophobic phases. Our present work originates with this phenomenon and we treat this phase segregation as if it is a continuous phase for each of which the proton (H⁺) is transported inside the PFSA membrane/solvent (water and alcohols) mixture. The chemical potential for a given system is estimated using a molecular simulation technique to predict the van der Waals interaction energy between the polymer and solvent. In addition, the self diffusion coefficients are calculated from the molecular dynamics simulation. We study various polymer/solvent compositions to understand the concentration dependence of self diffusion coefficient. Our self diffusion coefficients and also the predicted final ionic conductivity agree well with previously reported experimental data. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 49: 1455–1463, 2011