InN thin film lattice dynamics by grazing incidence inelastic x-ray scattering

Achieving comprehensive information on thin film lattice dynamics so far has eluded well established spectroscopic techniques. We demonstrate here the novel application of grazing incidence inelastic x-ray scattering combined with ab initio calculations to determine the complete elastic stiffness tensor, the acoustic and low-energy optic phonon dispersion relations of thin wurtzite indium nitride films. Indium nitride is an especially relevant example, due to the technological interest for optoelectronic and solar cell applications in combination with other group III nitrides.     

Solvent and surfactant effect on the self-assembly and luminescence properties of ZrO2:Eu3+ nanoparticles

ZrO₂:Eu³⁺ nanocrystals ranging from 17 to 43 nm were prepared by the facile precipitation method with a hydrothermal process. The crystallite size was strongly influenced by the solvent composition and enhanced with the presence of surfactant. The use of ethanol combined with surfactant stabilizes 50 wt% of the monoclinic phase, while the use of water only results in 100 wt% tetragonal phase. 80% of nanobelts were obtained preparing the sample with ethanol and surfactant as a results of the self-assembly of nanoparticles. The photoluminescence emission peak centered at 606 nm dominates the emission band for nanobelts, while for nanoparticles it is dominated by a peak centered at 612 nm. Such differences were explained in terms of the site symmetry occupying Eu³⁺ in the host that in turn depends on the crystalline phase. Changes in the intensity ratio I(612 nm)/I(606 nm) is proposed as a tool to analyzing changes in the monoclinic/tetragonal phase composition. The calculated asymmetry ratio R=⁷F₂/⁷F₁～1.2 suggest a high degree of crystallinity of the prepared samples.     

The contribution of order to the phase stability of β-Cu-Zn-Al

We report the lower stability temperatures, T(β), of the body centred cubic (bcc) β phase for several alloys along the line of compositions Cu(0.76-0.5x)-Zn(x)-Al(0.24-0.5x), corresponding to a constant electron to atom ratio e/a = 1.48. The results have been obtained by means of differential scanning calorimetry measurements at various heating rates. The influence of atomic ordering on the stability of the bcc structure was evaluated using a mixed approach involving Monte Carlo simulations and the cluster variation method. It was found that the chemical short- and long-range ordering contributes to the free energy of the alloy by an amount of around 200k(B).     

Electron capture and loss in the scattering of H+ from HOPG graphite

In this paper we report measurements of the positive (H⁺) and negative (H^?) ion fractions after H⁺ scattering from a highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) surface. The experimental results show that for a fixed (large) exit angle the negative fraction is almost independent of the primary ion energy, while the positive fraction increases steadily. For a fixed incident energy, the H⁺ and H^? fractions show a complementary behavior with exit angle. A dynamical quantum mechanical calculation, based on the localized and extended features of the atom–surface interaction, allows us to understand many of the features of the experimental results.     

Low-Energy Kaon�CNucleon/Nuclei Interaction Studies at DA��NE (SIDDHARTA and AMADEUS Experiments)

The DA??NE electron?Cpositron collider at the Laboratori Nazionali di Frascati of INFN has made available a unique quality low-energy negative kaons ??beam??. The SIDDHARTA experiment used this beam to perform unprecedented precision measurements on kaonic atoms, while the AMADEUS experiment plans to perform in the coming years precision measurements on kaon?Cnuclei interactions at low-energies, in particular to study the kaonic nuclei. The two experiments are briefly presented in this paper.     

On a coupled logistic map with large strength

In this paper, a class of diffusive coupled logistic map with large strength is considered. Depending on the parameter of the logistic family and the strength of coupling, we show the existence of a forward invariant curve which determines, in some sense, the boundary of the set whose points have unbounded orbit.     

Chirped fibre Bragg grating based multiplexer and demultiplexer for DWDM applications

A multiplexer/demultiplexer for 100 GHz channel spacing based on chirped fibre Bragg gratings with different bandwidths and optical circulators is presented. The spectral characteristics, specifications and operation of these passive devices are described, showing its potential use in dense wavelength division multiplexing (DWDM) applications.     

Determination of total copper in haemodialysis water by differential-pulse anodic stripping voltammetry

An anodic stripping voltammetric method was developed in order to determine copper in the water used to prepare haemodialysis solutions. The interference from organic matter was overcome by high-pressure bomb mineralization. The electrochemical results were compared with those obtained by using graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and the correlation was excellent (r = 0.983, p < 0.001). The detection limit was 0.2 μg l^?1 copper.