Synthesis of nanoscale antimony particles

For the search of new negative electrodes of Li-ion batteries, a low-temperature method has been developed for the preparation of nanoscale antimony particles which uses an alkoxide-activated sodium hydride as reducing agent of antimony pentachloride. X-ray diffraction and TEM studies confirm the obtaining of amorphous Sb nanoparticles dispersed in an organic matrix. ¹²¹Sb Mössbauer spectroscopy gives evidence for the occurrence of interactions between antimony and the matrix. These interactions are modified by the washing treatments.     

Magnetic enhancement in nanoscale CoRh particles

The influence of size reduction on the magnetism of CoRh has been studied on a system of isolated nanometric spherical bimetallic ultrafine particles embedded in a polymer matrix. Pulsed fields up to 30 T were used in order to approach the magnetic saturation ( M(S)). Particles with a mean diameter of 1.65 (+/-0.1) nm display a value of 2.38 micro(B) per CoRh unit strongly enhanced compared to values calculated or measured on a bulk alloy. These results were interpreted as the first evidence of the cooperative role of both alloying and size reduction to the enhancement of M(S) in this system associating a 3d FM metal with a 4d metal.     

Real-time TEM imaging of the formation of crystalline nanoscale gaps

We present real-time transmission electron microscopy of nanogap formation by feedback controlled electromigration that reveals a remarkable degree of crystalline order. Crystal facets appear during feedback controlled electromigration indicating a layer-by-layer, highly reproducible electromigration process avoiding thermal runaway and melting. These measurements provide insight into the electromigration induced failure mechanism in sub-20 nm size interconnects, indicating that the current density at failure increases as the width decreases to approximately 1 nm.     

Real-time optical imaging and tracking of micron-sized particles

We report real-time imaging and dynamics monitoring of micrometer predefined and random sized particles by time-space-wavelength mapping technology using a single-detector. Experimentally, we demonstrate real-time line imaging of a 5 μm polystyrene microsphere, glass powder particles and patterns such as fingerprints with up to 5 μm resolution at 1 line/50 ns capture rate. By using the same setup, real-time displacement tracking of micrometer-size glass particles with 50 ns temporal resolution and up to 5 μm spatial resolution is achieved. We also show that existing correlation spectroscopy algorithms can be adopted to extract dynamic information in a complex environment.     

Influence of thermal fluctuations on the interactions between nanoscale particles

We present a method to investigate the influences of the thermal fluctuations on the nanometer-sized particle in pickup manipulation by an atomic force microscope (AFM). We show that thermal fluctuations can play an important and even major role in the interaction between particles at room temperature. Moreover, thermal fluctuations always have an opposing effect on the particle interactions. The deterministic directional motion of a particle governed by the interfacial properties of the nanoparticles becomes non-deterministic, with a reduction of the adhesion probability up to 44% under different strength of the thermal fluctuations.     

Photonic generation of background-free millimeter-wave ultra-wideband signals

We review the recent progress of photonic generation of millimeter wave(MMW)-ultra-wideband(UWB) signals. To fully satisfy the standard defined by the Federal Communications Commission(FCC), the baseband signal(background signal) and the residual local oscillator(LO) signal should be well controlled. We discuss several schemes in this work for generating background-free MMW-UWB signals that are fully compliant with the FCC requirement.     

Treatment of petroleum refinery wastewater by ultrasound-dispersed nanoscale zero-valent iron particles

Petroleum refineries release wastewater, which is rich in organic pollutants and cannot be treated easily. This study presents the treatment of petroleum refinery wastewater using nanoscale zero valent iron (NZVI) in the presence of ultrasonication. NZVI characteristics were analyzed using SEM and XRD. The influence of NZVI dosage and initial pH on % chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduction was studied. From the results, it can be inferred that a dosage of 0.15 g/l and an initial pH are optimum for the effective degradation of effluents. The degradation data were found to follow first order kinetics. The results indicate that using NZVI in combination with ultrasonication is an efficient method for the treatment of petroleum refinery wastewater.     

Real-time three-dimensional optical micromanipulation of multiple particles and living cells

Counterpropagating light fields provide a stationary optical potential well for a Brownian particle. Introducing variability in the relative strengths of the counterpropagating beams allows us to create a more general configuration-the optical elevator. An optical elevator dynamically controls the axial location of the potential minimum where the particle finds a stable equilibrium position. We describe the implementation of multiple real-time reconfigurable optical elevators with the generalized phase contrast method for dynamic manipulation of polystyrene spheres and yeast cells S. cerevisiae in three dimensions.     

Thermoelectric detection of ferromagnetic resonance of a nanoscale ferromagnet

We present thermoelectric measurements of the heat dissipated due to ferromagnetic resonance of a Permalloy strip. A microwave magnetic field, produced by an on-chip coplanar strip waveguide, is used to drive the magnetization precession. The generated heat is detected via Seebeck measurements on a thermocouple connected to the ferromagnet. The observed resonance peak shape is in agreement with the Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert equation and is compared with thermoelectric finite-element modeling. Unlike other methods, this technique is not restricted to electrically conductive media and is therefore also applicable to for instance ferromagnetic insulators.     

Exposure to nanoscale particles and fibers during machining of hybrid advanced composites containing carbon nanotubes

This study investigated airborne exposures to nanoscale particles and fibers generated during dry and wet abrasive machining of two three-phase advanced composite systems containing carbon nanotubes (CNTs), micron-diameter continuous fibers (carbon or alumina), and thermoset polymer matrices. Exposures were evaluated with a suite of complementary instruments, including real-time particle number concentration and size distribution (0.005–20 μm), electron microscopy, and integrated sampling for fibers and respirable particulate at the source and breathing zone of the operator. Wet cutting, the usual procedure for such composites, did not produce exposures significantly different than background whereas dry cutting, without any emissions controls, provided a worst-case exposure and this article focuses here. Overall particle release levels, peaks in the size distribution of the particles, and surface area of released particles (including size distribution) were not significantly different for composites with and without CNTs. The majority of released particle surface area originated from the respirable (1–10 μm) fraction, whereas the nano fraction contributed ~10% of the surface area. CNTs, either individual or in bundles, were not observed in extensive electron microscopy of collected samples. The mean number concentration of peaks for dry cutting was composite dependent and varied over an order of magnitude with highest values for thicker laminates at the source being >1 × 10⁶ particles cm⁻³. Concentration of respirable fibers for dry cutting at the source ranged from 2 to 4 fibers cm⁻³ depending on the composite type. Further investigation is required and underway to determine the effects of various exposure determinants, such as specimen and tool geometry, on particle release and effectiveness of controls.

Real-time phase-shift detection of the surface plasmon resonance

We have investigated a method to directly measure the phase of a laser beam reflected from a metallic film after excitation of surface plasmon polaritons. This method permits real-time access to the phase information, it increases the possible speed of data acquisition, and it may thus prove useful for increasing the sensitivity of surface plasmon based sensors.     

Influence of yttrium on EPR characteristics of chromium ions in nanoscale particles of zirconium dioxide

The EPR and proton magnetic resonance methods were applied to study zirconium hydroxide samples which transformed to nanoscale ZrO₂ powders upon annealing. The samples were obtained from solutions with mixture compositions (ZrO₂ + 0.5 mol % Cr₂O₃) and (ZrO₂ + 3 mol % Y₂O₃ + 0.5 mol % Cr₂O₃). The influence of yttrium on the recharging of the chromium ion upon annealing of samples was studied in the temperature range 100–950°C. A significant influence of yttrium on internal stresses caused by heating and cooling in the lattice of nanoscale ZrO₂ particles was detected using the EPR method. It was shown that the typical features of the influence of yttrium on total (over the entire crystallite) and local (near chromium ions) lattice distortions depend on the sample heating temperature and are different for various annealing temperatures.     

Laser optogalvanic detection of airborne uranium particles

Received: 30 May 1996/Revised version: 5 February 1997     

Real-time detection technique for Doppler optical coherence tomography

We propose and demonstrate a novel detection technique, based on a modified electronic phase-locked loop, for Doppler optical coherence tomography. The technique permits real-time simultaneous reflectivity and continuous, bidirectional velocity mapping in turbid media over a wide velocity range with minimal sensitivity penalty compared with conventional optical coherence tomography, which is a major advance over current postprocessing and discrete parallel detection techniques.     

Real-time defect detection on highly reflective curved surfaces

This paper presents an automated defect detection system for coated plastic components for the automotive industry. This research activity came up as an evolution of a previous study which employed a non-flat mirror to illuminate and inspect high reflective curved surfaces. According to this method, the rays emitted from a light source are conveyed on the surface under investigation by means of a suitably curved mirror. After the reflection on the surface, the light rays are collected by a CCD camera, in which the coating defects appear as shadows of various shapes and dimensions. In this paper we present an evolution of the above-mentioned method, introducing a simplified mirror set-up in order to reduce the costs and the complexity of the defect detection system. In fact, a set of plane mirrors is employed instead of the curved one. Moreover, the inspection of multiple bend radius parts is investigated. A prototype of the machine vision system has been developed in order to test this simplified method. This device is made up of a light projector, a set of plane mirrors for light rays reflection, a conveyor belt for handling components, a CCD camera and a desktop PC which performs image acquisition and processing. Like in the previous system, the defects are identified as shadows inside a high brightness image. At the end of the paper, first experimental results are presented.     

Real-time detection of DNA interactions with long-period fiber-grating-based biosensor

Using an optical biosensor based on a dual-peak long-period fiber grating, we have demonstrated the detection of interactions between biomolecules in real time. Silanization of the grating surface was successfully realized for the covalent immobilization of probe DNA, which was subsequently hybridized with the complementary target DNA sequence. It is interesting to note that the DNA biosensor was reusable after being stripped off the hybridized target DNA from the grating surface, demonstrating a function of multiple usability.     

旋转部件切向位移偏差实时监测系统及其关键技术研究

 控制套印误差是现代印刷技术的重要课题,而印刷机滚筒在旋转过程中表面各点的切向位移偏差是套印误差产生的主要原因。为此,论文设计并实现了旋转部件切向位移偏差实时监测系统,该系统利用光电检测以及模/数混合信号处理方法实现了对印刷机套印误差的实时监测,可用于高精度印刷机械的研发与制造过程。系统采用了条形码编码技术、虚拟标尺技术、动态切向位移偏差实时测量技术以及自适应动平衡技术4项关键技术,测量精度可达到±10 μm。     

基于X射线的药筒质量实时检测技术

为了能实时而准确地检测药筒质量是否合格,通过无损检测的方法,首先获取药筒的X射线图片,然后对其采取一些预处理算法,以提高图像的信噪比,并对图片内部特征分别采取文中提出的局部平滑度的极小值算法和局部均值极小法,提取相应的特征参数,并将其与标准的特征参数比较,进而可以判断药筒质量是否合格。该算法具有快速、准确、高效的优点,在现场测试中取得了很好的实际应用效果。