Thermodynamic-Controlled Gas Phase Process for the Synthesis of Nickel Nanoparticles of Adjustable Size and Morphology

Gas phase processes are a successful route for the synthesis of nano materials. Nickel particles are used in applications ranging from catalysis to nano electronics and energy storage. The application field defines the required particle size, morphology, crystallinity and purity. Nickel tetracarbonyl is the most promising precursor for the synthesis of high purity nickel particles. Due to the toxicity of this precursor and to obtain an optimal process control we developed a two-step flow type process. Nickel carbonyl and nickel particles are synthesized in a sequence of reactions. The particles are formed in a hot wall reactor at temperatures below 400°C in different gas compositions. Varying the process conditions enables the adjustment of the particle size in a range from 3 to 140 nm. The controllable crystalline habits are polycrystalline, single crystals or multiple twinned particles (MTP). Spectroscopic investigations show an excellent purity. We report about the process and first investigations of the properties of the synthesized nickel nanomaterial.     

钒氧酞菁多晶薄膜的稳态光电压特性研究

报道了Ａｌ／ＶＯＰｃ／ＩＴＯ夹心结构在稳态连续光照射下的光电压作用谱，稳态光电压作用谱不仅依赖于照射光的波长，而且依赖于ＶＯＰｃ（钒氧酞菁）多晶薄膜的堆积方式，对ＶＯＰｃ在相１，相１１，及α型三种堆积方式的稳态电压波长响应进行了研究，并对其内在机制作了初步探讨。     

Patterns and Structures in Disk Packings

Using a computational procedure that imitates tightening of an assembly of billiard balls, we have generated a number of packings of n equal and non-equal disks in regions of various shapes. Our experiments are of three major types. In the first type, the values of n are in thousands, the initial disk configuration is random and a priori one expects the generated packings to be random. In fact, the packings turn out to display non-random geometric patterns and regular features, including polycrystalline textures with "rattlers" typically trapped along the grain boundaries. An experiment of the second type begins with a known or conjectured optimal disk packing configuration, which is then "frustrated" by a small perturbation such as variation of the boundary shape or a relative increase of the size of a selected disk with respect to the sizes of the other disks. We present such frustrated packings for both large n (~ 10, 000) and small n (~ 50 to 200). Motivated by applications in material science and physics, the first and second type of experiments are performed for boundary shapes rarely discussed in the literature on dense packings: torus, a strip cut from a cylinder, a regular hexagon with periodic boundaries. Experiments of the third type involve the shapes popular among mathematicians: circles, squares, and equilateral triangles the boundaries of which are hard reflecting walls. The values of n in these experiments vary from several tens to few hundreds. Here the obtained configurations could be considered as candidates for the densest packings, rather than random ones. Some of these conjecturally optimal packings look regular and the regularity often extends across different values of n. Specifically, as n takes on an increasing sequence of values, n = n(1), n(2), ...n(k), ..., the packings follow a well-defined pattern. This phenomenon is especially striking for packings in equilateral triangles, where (as far as we can tell from our finite computational experiments), not only are there an infinite number of different patterns, each with its own different sequence n(1), n(2), ...n(k), ..., but many of these sequences seem to continue indefinitely. For other shapes, notably squares and circles, the patterns either cease to be optimal or even cease to exist (as packings of non-overlapping disks) above some threshold value n(k0) (depending on the pattern). In these cases, we try to identify the values of n(k0).     

Polycrystalline silicon S-diode fabricated using phosphorus thermal diffusion along grain boundaries

Electrical activity of grain boundaries (GB) in polycrystalline silicon films can stand duty as an additional factor of action on its properties. At present paper it has been studied polycrystalline silicon epitaxial films grown by CVD-method at low-resistivity n ⁺-type poly-Si substrates. A p ⁺-n junction of 0,5 m deep was formed by ion implantation of boron. The effect of thermal annealing (TA) on I-V characteristics of the p ⁺-n-n ⁺ structures was studied. It was founded that the region with negative resistivity is appeared in I-V characteristic after TA in vacuum at 800°C for 1 hour. Investigations by means of C-V and temperature characteristics of samples show that the S-image of the I-V characteristics is caused by phosphorus diffusion along GB that give rise to conduction of the charge carriers along GB. For the first time it was shown the opportunity of the creation of low-cost poly-Si S-diode by TA.     

Transient Currents of Carbon Monoxide and Methanol Adsorption on Platinum Electrodes and Determination of Composition of Chemisorption Layers

Transients of currents during the adsorption of CO on polycrystalline (pc) Pt in solutions of H₂SO₄ and H₂SO₄ + HCl are measured at a constant potential. The obtained values are compared with relevant reference data for Pt electrodes. Possible reasons for the established differences are discussed. Transient currents for the methanol adsorption on pcPt and Pt/Pt are compared. A method for correct determination of the composition of a chemisorption layer, which forms during dissociative adsorption of simple organic compounds of the type of RH _m , is considered. Experimental data on the methanol adsorption suggest that adsorption products on pcPt are chiefly species of CO. On Pt/Pt, at low potentials, in addition to CO one should assume the adsorption of species of HCO in perceptible amounts.     

原料杂质对堇青石窑具晶相结构与性能的影响

对重青石窑具原料中的CaO，TiO2，Fe2O3以及R2O（Na2O＋K2O）对窑具多晶结构与性能的影响进行研究，从而确定原料中的Cao，TiO2，Fe2O3和R2O允许的存在量为CaO（2．2～2．7）％，TiO2（1．0～1．5）％，Fe2O3（0．8）％和R2O≤0．9％。     

Imaging surfaces of nano‐scale roughness by atomic force microscopy with carbon nanotubes as tips: a comparative study

Accurate knowledge of the nanoroughness of surfaces is crucial for many applications related to optics, electronics or tribology. Although atomic force microscopy (AFM) can image surfaces with a nanometre spatial resolution, the finite size of standard tips means that pores, pits or grooves with dimensions similar to or smaller than the tip apex will not be accurately imaged. Furthermore, standard tips are made of silicon or silicon nitride and are prone to wear. Mitigation may arise from the availability of AFM tips with a carbon nanotube (CNT) at their foremost end. This study compares the imaging performance of ultrasharp Si tips, CNT AFM tips prepared by a Langmuir‐Blodgett (LB) technique, and of CNT AFM tips prepared by a chemical vapour deposition (CVD) technique. The free length of the CNT AFM tips is in the range 80–200 and 600–750 nm, respectively. A polycrystalline niobium film surface is imaged that shows nanoroughness. The measurements demonstrate that CNT AFM tips allow excellent imaging if the scan parameters are adjusted very carefully. Nevertheless, in some cases distortions are found. The measured average grain diameter is 19.9 ± 3.6 nm in the case of a CNT AFM tip made by the LB technique, and 18.0 ± 3.3 nm in the case of a CNT AFM tip made by CVD. In addition to cross‐sections of topography images, also the power spectral density (PSD) is analyzed. An empirical approach for the readout of the characteristic length is suggested that involves the first derivative of the decadic logarithm of the PSD. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Ageing of spherulites of an industrial relevant aromatic amine derivative

Polycrystalline spherulites of an aromatic amine derivative have been precipitated in a batch process by pH‐shift with hydrochloric acid from stirred aqueous solutions. The time dependent behaviour of the spherulites has been studied during crystallization in the temperature range from 5 °C to 60 °C. Cake resistance values have been obtained from batch filtration tests performed at 2 bar pressure difference at different stages of the crystallization process. The FBRM mean chord length of the crystals decreases with time as a result of crystal ageing into plate‐like crystals. The rate of the ageing process increases with temperature. XRD‐studies show no significant differences in the crystal structure during the ageing process, and the mechanism of the transformation was not established. The filterability of aromatic amine crystals deteriorates as the crystallization progresses. The decrease in the filterability is attributed to the appearance of small plate‐like crystals and a change in the interaction between the crystal surface and the solution, during the ageing of the particles. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Hopping conductivity in polycrystalline diamond films

The results of the experimental study of the conductivity of a polycrystalline diamond film by dielectric spectroscopy are presented. A diamond film about 200 μm thick was grown by microwave plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition for 180 h. Two pronounced local peaks in the frequency dependence of the conductivity were observed. The relevant frequencies were temperature-dependent. These data permit us to hypothesize that the hopping mechanism of conductivity occurs in the polycrystalline diamond film. Two types of electrically active centers with different activation energies and relaxation times are involved in the conductivity.