The effect of porosity on the laser induced damage threshold of TiO2 and ZrO2 single layer films

Monolayer ZrO₂ and TiO₂ films were prepared on BK7 glass by physical vapor deposition (PVD) and were subsequently annealed for 1 h at 300 °C. By using the transmission spectra of two samples and the envelope method, the refractive index dispersion and extinction coefficients have been calculated. Laser induced damage threshold (LIDT) measurement shows that despite slight differences between the extinction coefficients of the two samples, the LIDT parameter of the ZrO₂ film is greater than that of the TiO₂ film. This fact leads us to consider thermal conductivity as an important parameter for interpreting the LIDT difference. According to our theoretical analysis, as a consequence of increase in the number of thermal barriers along poorer film, its thermal conductivity, and hence LIDT, decreased, which is in agreement with our experimental results. The measured porosity of the two samples shows higher porosity for TiO₂ single layer, which is in agreement with atomic force (AFM) images. The gradual and smooth damage morphology of ZrO₂ observed in optical images implies higher thermal conductivity than TiO₂.     

Molecular dynamics simulation of gas adsorption on defected graphene

Gas sensing is one of the most promising applications for graphene. Using molecular dynamics simulation method, adsorption isotherm of xenon (Xe) gas on defected and perfect graphene is studied in order to investigate sensing properties of graphene for Xe gas. In this method, first generation of Brenner many-body potential is used to simulate the interaction of carbon–carbon (C) atoms in graphene, and Lennard–Jones two-body potential is used to simulate interaction of Xe–Xe and Xe–C atoms. In the simulated systems, adsorption coverage, radial distribution function, heat of adsorption, binding energy and specific heat capacity at constant volume are calculated for several temperatures between 90 K and 130 K, and various pressures. It was found that both of the defected and perfect graphene could be introduced as very good candidates for adsorption of Xe gas.     

Localization of elastic waves in heterogeneous media with off-diagonal disorder and long-range correlations

Using the Martin-Siggia-Rose method, we study propagation of acoustic waves in strongly heterogeneous media which are characterized by a broad distribution of the elastic constants. Gaussian-white distributed elastic constants, as well as those with long-range correlations with nondecaying power-law correlation functions, are considered. The study is motivated in part by a recent discovery that the elastic moduli of rock at large length scales may be characterized by long-range power-law correlation functions. Depending on the disorder, the renormalization group (RG) flows exhibit a transition to localized regime in any dimension. We have numerically checked the RG results using the transfer-matrix method and direct numerical simulations for one- and two-dimensional systems, respectively.     

Photocatalytic and superhydrophilicity properties of N-doped TiO2 nanothin films

Pure TiO₂ and nitrogen doped titanium dioxide (N-TiO₂) thin films were prepared by sol-gel method through spin coating on soda lime glass substrates. TiCl₄ and urea were used as Ti and N sources in the sol. XRD results showed nitrogen doping has retarded anatase to rutile phase transformation. The doping also leads to a decrease in roughness of the samples from 4 nm (TiO₂) to 1 nm (N-TiO₂). However, surface analysis by statistical methods reveals that both surfaces have self-affine structure. Optical band gap of thin films was shifted from 3.65 eV (TiO₂) to 3.47 eV (N-TiO₂). Hydrophilic conversion and photocatalytic degradation properties of thin films were investigated and exhibited that N-TiO₂ thin film has more preferable hydrophilicity and photocatalytic properties under UV illumination.     

Shape of a wave front in a heterogenous medium

Wave propagation in a heterogeneous medium, characterized by a distribution of local elastic moduli, is studied. Both acoustic and elastic waves are considered, as are spatially random and power-law correlated distributions of the elastic moduli with nondecaying correlations. Three models--a continuum scalar model, and two discrete models--are utilized. Numerical simulations indicate the existence, at all times, of the relation, alpha = H, where alpha is the roughness exponent of the wave front in the medium, and H is the Hurst exponent that characterizes the spatial correlations in the distribution of the local elastic moduli. Hence, a direct relation between the static morphology of an inhomogeneous correlated medium and its dynamical properties is established. In contrast, for a wave front in random media, alpha = 0 (logarithmic growth) at short times, followed by a crossover to the classical value, alpha = 1/2, at long times.     

Constraining f(G) Gravity Models Using Energy Conditions

Recently, energy condition inequalities in the context of modified Gauss-Bonnet gravity have been derived in Garcia et al. (Phys. Rev. D, 83:104032, 2011). Using these general inequalities, we examine the viability of specific forms of f(G) models proposed in De Felice and Tsujikawa (Phys. Lett. B, 675:1, 2009) that can be responsible for the late-time cosmic acceleration following the matter era. In doing so we also use the recent estimated values of the deceleration, jerk and snap parameters to obtain the bounds from the weak and strong energy conditions on the parameters of the above mentioned forms of f(G) gravity theories.     

Ab initio investigation of the structural and unusual electronic properties of α-CuSe （klockmannite）

In this article, a computational analysis has been performed on the structural properties and predominantly on the electronic properties of the α-CuSe （klockmannite） using density functional theory. The studies in this work show that the best structural results, in comparison to the experimental values, belong to the PBEsol-GGA and WC-GGA functionals. However, the best results for the bulk modulus and density of states （DOSs） are related to the local density approximation （LDA） functional. Through utilized approaches, the LDA is chosen to investigate the electronic structure. The results of the electronic properties and geometric optimization of α-CuSe respectively show that this compound is conductive and non-magnetic. The curvatures of the energy bands crossing the Fermi level explicitly reveal that major charge carriers in CuSe are holes, whose density is estimated to be 0.86×1022 hole/cm3. In particular, the Fermi surfaces in the first Brillouin zone demonstrate interplane conductivity between （001） planes. Moreover, the charge carriers among them are electrons and holes simultaneously. The conductivity in CuSe is mainly due to the hybridization between the d orbitals of Cu atoms and the p orbitals of Se atoms. The former orbitals have the dual nature of localization and itinerancy.     

Electronic properties and topological phases of ThXY(X= Pb,Au, Pt and Y= Sb,Bi, Sn) compounds

The electronic properties and topological phases of Th XY(X = Pb, Au, Pt, Pd and Y = Sb, Bi, Sn) compounds in the presence of spin–orbit coupling, using density functional theory are investigated. The Th Pt Sn compound is stable in the ferromagnetic phase and the other Th XY compounds are stable in nonmagnetic phases. Band structures of these compounds in topological phases(insulator or metal) and normal phases within generalized gradient approximation(GGA) and Engel–Vosko generalized gradient approximation(GGA EV) are compared. The Th Pt Sn, Th Pt Bi, Th Pt Sb, Th Pd Bi, and Th Au Bi compounds have topological phases and the other Th XY compounds have normal phases. Band inversion strengths and topological phases of these compounds at different pressure are studied. It is seen that the band inversion strengths of these compounds are sensitive to pressure and for each compound a second-order polynomial fitted on the band inversion strengths–pressure curves.     

A quantitative structure–mobility relationship of organic acids using solvation parameters

A quantitative structure–mobility relationship (QSMR) is proposed to estimate the electrophoretic mobility of diverse sets of analyses in capillary zone electrophoresis using Abraham solvation parameters of analyses, such as the excess molar refraction, polarizability, hydrogen bond acidity, basicity, and molar volume. QSMR was developed for prediction the electrophoretic mobility of 231 organic acids using the solvation parameters calculated by Abraham. Multiple linear regression (MLR) as a linear model and artificial neural network (ANN) methods were used to evaluate the nonlinear behavior of the involved parameters. The prediction results are obtained by nonlinear model, ANN, seem to be superior over MLR and were in good agreement with experimental data. In the proposed ANN–QSMR model, the overall mean percentage deviation values were 5.6, 5.4, and 5.3% and the coefficients of determinations (R²) were 0.84, 0.84, and 0.84 for training, test, and verification set, respectively. To investigate the robustness of the model, cross-validation methods have been established, i.e., leave-one-out and leave-N-out (N?=?5 and 10) and model is showed good predictive ability against data variation in cross-validation process. This model is not only able to accurately predict the migration order of a diverse set of organic acids but also model finds that solvation parameters are responsible in separation mechanism.     

Inhibition of acid‐induced decomposition of diphenyltriazenes by complexation with cyclodextrins

Acid‐promoted N? N bond cleavage in 1,3‐diphenyltriazenes (X‐Ph‐N=N‐NH‐Ph‐X; X = H, 4‐OCH₃), leading to formation of diazonium ions and anilines, is strongly inhibited in aqueous solutions in the presence of cyclodextrins (CDs). The inhibition is ascribed to the formation of inclusion complexes that render the guest diphenyltriazene significantly less basic as a result of the less polar nature of the CD cavity (a microsolvent effect). Association equilibrium constants for 1:1 host–guest complexes increase in the order α‐CD <β‐CD ～ permethyl‐β‐CD < hydroxypropyl‐β‐CD, with values for X = 4‐OCH₃ being larger than those for X = H. In the case of α‐CD, formation of 2:1 host–guest complexes is also involved. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Chem Kinet 42: 567–574, 2010