Type N spacetimes as solutions of extended new massive gravity

We study algebraic type N spacetimes in the extended new massive gravity (NMG), considering both the Born-Infeld model (BI-NMG) and the model of NMG with any finite order curvature corrections. We show that for these spacetimes, the field equations of BI-NMG take the form of the massive (tensorial) Klein–Gordon type equation, just as it happens for ordinary NMG. This fact enables us to obtain the type N solution to BI-NMG, utilizing the general type N solution of NMG, earlier found in our work. We also obtain type N solutions to NMG with all finite order curvature corrections and show that, in contrast to BI-NMG, this model admits the critical point solutions, which are counterparts of “logarithmic” AdS pp-waves solutions of NMG.     

Emission mechanisms in stabilized iron-passivated porous silicon: Temperature and laser power dependences

Photoluminescence (PL) measurements of porous silicon (PS) and iron-porous silicon nanocomposites (PS/Fe) with stable optical properties versus temperature and laser power density have been investigated. The presence of iron in PS matrix is confirmed by Raman spectroscopy. The PL intensity of PS and PS/Fe increases at low temperature, the evolution of integrated PL intensity follows the modified Arrhenius model. The incorporation of iron in PS matrix reduces the activation energy traducing the existence of shallow levels related to iron atoms. Also, the temperature dependence of the porous silicon PL peak position follows a linear evolution at high temperature and a quadratic one at low temperature. Such evolution is due to the thermal carriers' redistribution and an energy transfer. Similarly, we have compared the laser power dependence of the PL in PS and PS/Fe layers. The results prove that the recombination process in PS is realised through the lower energy traps localised in the electronic gap. However, the observed emission in PS/Fe is essentially due to direct transitions. So, we can conclude that the presence of iron in PS matrix induces a strong modification of the PL mechanisms.     

High power (130 mW) 40 GHz 1.55 μm mode-locked distributed Bragg reflector lasers with integrated optical amplifiers

High output power 40 GHz 1.55 μm passively mode-locked surface-etched distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) lasers with monolithically integrated semiconductor optical amplifiers are reported. These are based on an optimized AlGaInAs/InP epitaxial structure with a three quantum well active layer and an optical trap layer. The device produces near transform limited Gaussian pulses with a pulse duration of 3.3 ps. An average output power during mode-locked operation of 130 mW was achieved with a corresponding peak power of >1 W.     

Preconcentration of rifampicin prior to its efficient spectroscopic determination in the wastewater samples based on a nonionic surfactant

Every year, tuberculosis affects the lungs of millions of people and rifampicin is the commonly used medicine for its treatment due to its antibiotic nature. The frequent use of rifampicin may lead to its increased concentration in the water resources. This research work is focused on the cloud point extraction (CPE) procedure for the preconcentration of rifampicin prior to its determination in water. The UV/vis spectrophotometric method was adapted for the measurement of rifampicin content after the phase separation. Triton-X 100 was used as the nonionic surfactant which contains hydrophilic polyethylene chain feasible for the extraction of analyte. Various analytical parameters that can affect the extraction efficacy were optimized to achieve linearity of the proposed method in the concentration range of 3.54–81.41 mgL^–1. The Limit of detection and quantification were 1.261 and 4.212 mgL^–1, respectively. The Preconcentration factor was 40 with relative standard deviation (%RSD) of 2.504%. The standard addition methodology was adopted for the validation of this procedure and effectively applied for the determination of rifampicin in real wastewater samples.     

Determination of aflatoxin B1 by biomass derived porous carbon modified electrode with molecularly imprinted polymer

Aflatoxin determination is imperative among agricultural and food products as the pollution of the toxic aflatoxin could cause severe hazards towards animals and human beings. Here, we prepared Elaeagnus gum derived porous carbon material as electrode modified material. In situ electropolymerization of molecularly imprinted polymer utilizing phenol as monomer and aflatoxin B₁ as target template was further processed onto the porous carbon surface to achieve aflatoxin B₁ sensing ability. This sensitive MIP sensor has a detection range from 5 pM to 100 pM of aflatoxin B₁, an electrochemical sensitivity of 82.4 μA log(pM)⁻¹ cm⁻² with a detection limit of 1.7 pM, and a recovery rate of real sample measurement is 98.21 %. Good selectivity, fair repeatability and stability was confirmed. This work demonstrates the promising application of Elaeagnus gum derived porous carbon modified electrode sensor for food and drug monitoring.     

Growth of KCl crystal by Czochralski method and influence of nanodiamond impurity on its hardness and optical properties

KCl alkali halide crystal with different nanodiamond impurity was grown by Czochralski method. X‐Ray diffraction of the outcome samples reveals that they are still single crystal. Also crystal hardness observation reveals that the hardness of KCl single crystal has been increased by adding different percentage of nanodiamond impurity. In addition, the study of FTIR spectrums of the pure and doped crystals represents that the KCl optical properties has not changed.