Probing the use of small‐angle light scattering for characterizing structure of titanium dioxide/low‐density polyethylene nanocomposites

Small‐angle light scattering (SALS) measurements were used to study the structure of titanium dioxide (TiO₂)/low‐density polyethylene (LDPE) nanocomposites. The results showed that the scattering from LDPE crystalline structures and the scattering from TiO₂ nanoparticles can be resolved and separated. It is shown that the independent effects of crystallization conditions and the presence of nanoparticle aggregates on the spherulitic structure of the LDPE matrix can be determined by analyzing the scattering patterns using the methods proposed. From the SALS results, we conclude that the nanoparticle surface chemistry affects both nucleation of spherulites and their structure particularly under rapid cooling conditions. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 1084–1095, 2006     

Metallocene copolymers of propene and 1‐hexene: The influence of the comonomer content and thermal history on the structure and mechanical properties

The relationships between the structure and properties have been established for copolymers of propylene and 1‐hexene synthesized with an isotactic metallocene catalyst system. The most important factor affecting the structure and properties of these copolymers is the comonomer content. The thermal treatment, that is, the rate of cooling from the melt, is also important. These factors affect the thermal properties, the degree of crystallinity, and therefore the structural parameters and the viscoelastic behavior. A slow cooling from the melt favors the formation of the γ phase instead of the α modification. Regarding the viscoelastic behavior, the β relaxation, associated with the glass‐transition temperature, is shifted to lower temperatures and its intensity is increased as the 1‐hexene content raises. The microhardness values are correlated with those of the storage modulus deduced from dynamic mechanical thermal analysis curves, and good linear relations have been obtained between these parameters. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 1253–1267, 2006     

Characterization and electrical properties of polypyrrole/multiwalled carbon nanotube composites synthesized by in situ chemical oxidative polymerization

This study describes the preparation of polypyrrole (PPy)/multiwalled carbon nanotube (MWNT) composites by in situ chemical oxidative polymerization. Various ratios of MWNTs, which served as hard templates, were first dispersed in aqueous solutions with the surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide to form micelle/MWNT templates and overcome the difficulty of MWNTs dispersing into insoluble solutions of pyrrole monomer, and PPy was then synthesized via in situ chemical oxidative polymerization on the surface of the templates. Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), field‐emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), and high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) were used to characterize the structure and morphology of the fabricated composites. Structural analysis using FESEM and HRTEM showed that the PPy/MWNT composites were core (MWNT)–shell (PPy) tubular structures. Raman and FTIR spectra of the composites were almost identical to those of PPy, supporting the idea that MWNTs served as the core in the formation of a coaxial nanostructure for the composites. The conductivities of these PPy/MWNT composites were about 150% higher than those of PPy without MWNTs. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 44: 1413–1418, 2006     

垂直低温两相流管底液氮汽泡上升速度的实验研究

本文对垂直低温两相流管底部液氮汽泡的上升速度运用高速摄像机进行了可视化实验研究,对所采集的实时图像进行处理.在Cole和Mendelson汽泡上升速度经验公式的基础上,通过对液氮汽泡的上升速度的分析,提出了圆管管路底部液氮汽泡的上升速度的拟合公式,分析研究其变化规律,为进一步探求圆管内液氮弹状汽泡的生成机理提供依据.     

Study of ferromagnetism–superconductivity interactions in Co/Nb multilayers

We investigate Co/Nb multilayers to explore the spontaneous π-phase shift between the superconducting (SC) layers, which is attributed for causing the non-monotonic change of the SC transition temperature (T_c) with the ferromagnetic (FM) layer thickness (t_FM) in several FM/SC multilayered systems. The issue of interfacial roughness is also explored by growing Co/Nb multilayers at various sputtering pressures. Transport measurements show a non-monotonic dependence of T_c on t_FM, and this dependence is insensitive to the structural variation present in the samples, as measured by X-ray scattering.     

A Fully Vectorial Effective Index Method for Accurate Dispersion Calculation of Photonic Crystal Fibres

A fully vectorial effective index method is developed for accurate dispersion calculation of photonic crystal fibres （PCFs）. In order to improve the accuracy of the model, different values for the effective core radius are used when PCFs have different fibre parameters. The accuracy of our approach is demonstrated by comparing our results with other numerical and experimental results reported in literature. It is found that the accuracy of the fully vectorial effective index method is improved and our results agree well with accurate numerical results obtained by other methods as well as the previously reported experimental data.     

Effect of Molecular Weight on Liquid Crystal Photoalignment by Photosensitive Polyester Containing Thrifluoromethyl Moieties

We investigate the liquid-crystal （LC） alignment direction on photoalignment films formed from photosensitive polyester containing thrifluoromethyl moieties （PPDA） with various molecular weights by crossed polarized optical microscopy. It is found that LC alignment behaviour changes with molecular weight of PPDA. The LC alignment on PPDA irradiated films with the highest molecular weight is homogeneous, while those with low and intermediate molecular weights are homeotropic. However, surface morphologies show weak dependence on molecular weight. The surfaces are smooth and there is no clear morphological anisotropy on these aligned films observed by an atomic force microscope. The surface energies of the irradiated films are also measured by using an indirect contact-angle method where both surface energy and its polar component, increase with increasing molecular weight. Different polar surface energies can be considered as a main reason for different alignment characteristics.     

为学生打开自主学习的空间--一个高中物理教学案例与思考

现在，整个教育界都在提倡创新教育和自主探究式学习．笔者曾经尝试着在课堂上渗透让学生自主学习的思想，努力创设情景给学生多一些创新的机会，允许并鼓励他们在课堂上提出自己的看法．但课堂教学，特别是在目前仍受考试压力影响的高中课堂中，教师和学生依然面临着升学压力．无奈的现实很难在课堂上落实这些“理念”．毕竟学生这么多、课时这么少、教学任务又如此之重，作出一个教学决定又要考虑方方面面的因素，     

Positive Steady States of a Prey-predator Model with Diffusion and Non-monotone Conversion Rate

In this paper, we study the positive steady states of a prey-predator model with diffusion throughout and a non-monotone conversion rate under the homogeneous Dirichlet boundary condition. We obtain some results of the existence and non-existence of positive steady states. The stability and uniqueness of positive steady states are also discussed.