Changes in the magnetic parameters of amorphous alloys as an indicator of structural transformations

Metallic glasses exhibit unusual physical properties, compared to their crystalline analogues of the same composition. Thermal annealing of amorphous alloys leads to the multistep transformation of their structures, considerably altering their magnetic state. The high sensitivity of magnetic characteristics to the early stages of crystallization allows us to consider the temperature dependence of saturation magnetization as an indicator of such transformations.     

Mechanisms of the wurtzite to rocksalt transformation in CdSe nanocrystals

We study the pressure-driven phase transition from the four-coordinate wurtzite to the six-coordinate rocksalt structure in CdSe nanocrystals with molecular dynamics computer simulations. With an ideal gas as the pressure medium, we apply hydrostatic pressure to spherical and faceted nanocrystals ranging in diameter from 25 to 62 A. In spherical crystals, the main mechanism of the transformation involves the sliding of (100) planes, but depending on the specific surface structure we also observe a second mechanism proceeding through the flattening of (100) planes. In faceted crystals, the transition proceeds via a five-coordinated hexagonal structure, which is stabilized at intermediate pressures due to dominant surface energetics.     

The fine structure of excitonic levels in CdSe nanocrystals

The fine structure of the exciton ground level in a spherical nanocrystal of a zincblende or a wurtzite structure semiconductor was calculated with the inclusion of short-and long-range (nonanalytical), exchange-interaction components. The band-parameter dependence of the long-range exchange-interaction contribution to the spin Hamiltonian describing the exciton ground-level splitting was found. A study was made of the effect exerted on the exciton-level fine structure by the difference between the background dielectric permittivities of the nanocrystal and of the dielectric host in which it was grown.     

Size-dependence of the anharmonicities in the vibrational potential of colloidal CdSe nanocrystals

We investigated multi-phonon processes in two types of CdSe nanocrystals, spherical quantum dots and nanorods by temperature-dependent Raman spectroscopy. We find the anharmonic constants relating to the two- and three-phonon decay channels to systematically change with changing nanocrystal size. The contributions from two-phonon processes decrease with decreasing diameter, while the contributions from higher-order processes increase. The anharmonicities in the vibrational potential increase due to the phonon confinement, and we did not find a shape dependence.     

First-principles study of high-pressure phase transformations in LaBi

An investigation into the structural stability and the electronic properties of LaBi under high pressure was conducted using first-principles calculations based on density functional theory (DFT), in the presence and absence of spin–orbit coupling (SOC). Our results demonstrate that there exists a structural phase transition from the NaCl-type (B1) structure to a primitive tetragonal (PT) structure at the transition pressure of 11.2 GPa (without SOC) and 12.9 GPa (with SOC). The chemical bond between La and Bi is mainly ionic. The band structure shows that B1-LaBi is metallic. A pseudogap appears around the Fermi level of the total density of states (DOS) of the B1 phase of LaBi, which may contribute to its stability.     

Ultrafast dynamics of carrier-induced absorption changes in highly-excited CdSe nanocrystals

We use femtosecond time-resolved transmission spectroscopy to study the density and time dependence of transient absorption changes of CdSe nanocrystals. Our data show pronounced absorption saturation up to complete bleaching of the lowest optical transition. At high carrier density the nonlinear spectra show several peaks that can be related to the two lowest quantized electron states. Thetime dependence of the carrier-induced absorption changes indicates an ultrafast relaxation process within the strongly broadened absorption lines.     

Temperature dependence of photoluminescence from CdSe nanocrystals embedded in silica matrix

In this work, CdSe nanocrystals (NCs) embedded in SiO₂ matrix were grown by radio frequency (RF)-sputtering technique. X-ray technique was used to characterise the structural properties of the system. The NC's size was estimated to be around 4±1 nm in diameter. The temperature dependence of the photoluminescence from the CdSe/SiO₂ system showed carriers thermal exchange between the NCs and deep defects in the matrix. The evolution of the excitonic energy emission with temperature is about 10 meV in the temperature range 15-295 K. This weak shift was explained by thermal mismatch between the matrix and the NCs.     

The high-pressure structural transition in MnS: an ab initio study

The structural phase transition between B1 (α-MnS) and B3 (β-MnS) is investigated using a density functional theory method. The structural phase transition pressure Pt from α-MnS to β-MnS, which is determined on the basis of the third-order Birch–Murnaghan equation of states, is 30.75?GPa. Also, the lattice parameters a, the bulk modulus B and pressure derivative of bulk modulus B′, which are generally in good agreement with experiments and other theoretical values, are obtained under zero pressure. For further investigation of the structural phase transition pressure of MnS, the relative volumes V/V ₀, the bulk modulus B, first and second pressure derivatives (B′ and B″) of bulk modulus for the two structures of MnS have been calculated under various pressures.     

Observation of size-dependent thermalization in CdSe nanocrystals using time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy

We report heat dissipation times in semiconductor nanocrystals of CdSe. Specifically, a previously unresolved, subnanosecond decay component in the low-temperature photoluminescence decay dynamics exhibits longer decay lifetimes (tens to hundreds of picoseconds) for larger nanocrystals as well as a size-independent, ~25-meV spectral shift. We attribute the fast relaxation to transient phonon-mediated relaxation arising from nonequilibrium acoustic phonons. Following acoustic phonon dissipation, the dark exciton state recombines more slowly via LO-phonon assistance resulting in the observed spectral shift. The measured relaxation time scales agree with classical calculations of thermal diffusion, indicating that interfacial thermal conductivity does not limit thermal transport in these semiconductor nanocrystal dispersions.     

Evidence of electron wave function delocalization in CdSe/CdS asymmetric nanocrystals

We studied the delocalization of electron wave function in asymmetric CdSe/CdS nanocrystals, consisting of a spherical CdSe dot embedded in an elongated CdS shell, by means of a pump–probe technique. By comparing the transient spectra obtained upon pumping the band edge transition of the CdSe in CdSe/CdS heterostructure and in a bare CdSe dot, we observed the delocalization of electron wave function at the CdSe/CdS interface.     

Interaction of CdSe/ZnS core-shell semiconductor nanocrystals in solid thin films

The optical properties of CdSe/ZnS semiconductor nanocrystals with the core-shell structure are studied upon visible-laser excitation in a wide range of flux densities. It is demonstrated that the dimensional quantization effect is preserved in the films with a limiting high concentration of nanocrystals. A strong bathochromic shift of the absorption and luminescence peaks relative to the peak positions in the corresponding spectra of nanocrystals in films with a relatively low concentration of nanocrystals and solutions is caused by a high concentration of nanocrystals and the dipole moment related to the asymmetry of the nanoparticles. The shift is varied from 35 to 50 nm depending on the film thickness. The luminescence spectra of the films remain unchanged upon an increase in the laser intensity to 1 × 10⁶ W/cm². The laser action on the nanoparticle films is studied at intensities (5 × 10⁶?1 × 10⁹ W/cm²) higher than the damage threshold.     

Modification of carrier dynamics in CdSe nanocrystals by excess Cd in deposition bath

Photoexcited carrier dynamics in thin CdSe nanocrystalline films prepared by chemical bath deposition are strongly dependent on the deposition parameters. In this paper, we show how an increase in concentration of CdSO₄ in deposition bath affects the photoexcited carrier dynamics in nanocrystals. We used ultrafast absorption and photoluminescence laser spectroscopy to compare the carrier dynamics in samples prepared with and without increased CdSO₄ concentration. We have found that in the Cd-rich samples the spectral dependences of both photoluminescence and absorption dynamics are considerably less pronounced and the dynamics are slower. The observed effects were explained by the suppression of surface mediated carrier relaxation due to the passivation of individual nanocrystals by cadmium hydroxide and/or by sulphatocomplexes of Cd²⁺.     

Large-scale flow as an indicator of superplasticity

A model is proposed for superplastic deformation of materials, based on the concept of cooperative grain-boundary slip. The conditions for superplastic deformation are obtained as conditions for coherent shear bands. Analysis of the temperature dependence of the limits of the stress interval for superplastic flow is used as a basis for the introduction of two types of threshold stress that elucidate the cause of the ambiguity in the interpretation of exisiting experimental results. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 39, 2179–2185 (December 1997)     

Correlation between photon-emission intervals in blinking luminescence of single CdSe/CdS nanocrystals

The statistics of luminescence from single CdSe/CdS core/shell semiconductor nanocrystals under CW laser excitation at room temperature is experimentally investigated by recording sequences of absolute arrival times of the emitted photons. It is shown that the correlation coefficient for consecutive intervals between the photon-arrival times differs from zero. The correlation persists for photon-arrival intervals separated by two or more photon-detection events, until the time between the two intervals becomes, on average, as long as 180 ms, which corresponds to about 10³ detected photons. A simulation of the luminescence process supports the conclusion that this correlation is linked to the blinking character of the quantum-dot luminescence.     

Confirming the lattice contraction in CdSe nanocrystals grown in a glass matrix by Raman scattering

This work gives the evidence of the lattice contraction in CdSe nanocrystals (NCs) grown in a glass matrix. The CdSe NCs were investigated by atomic force microscopy (AFM), optical absorption (OA), and Raman spectroscopy. The average size of CdSe NCs can be estimated by AFM images. Using the OA spectra and the effective‐mass approximation, it was also possible to estimate the average sizes of CdSe NCs, which agree very well with the AFM data. These results showed that the CdSe NCs grow with increasing time of heat treatment. The blue shift of the longitudinal optical (LO) modes and surface optical (SO) phonon modes with an increase in the average radius of the NCs, shown in the Raman spectra, was explained by the lattice contraction in CdSe NCs caused by thermodynamic interactions at the interface with the host glass matrix. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Solitonic mechanism of structural transformations in a nondegenerate chain of particles with anharmonic and competing interactions

A new type of dynamics of an infinite atomic chain of particles with anharmonic and competing interactions is investigated in the general case when its homogeneous equilibrium states have different energies. Cooperative transformations realized by topological and nontopological solitons are revealed. The soliton velocity spectrum is calculated in the framework of an approximate continuous second-order theory. Solitons with vanishing velocity are shown to be in good asymptotical correspondence with the exact static solutions of the Reichert-Schilling model.     

Beneficial effect of tributylphosphine to the photoluminescence of PbSe and PbSe/CdSe nanocrystals

A small quantity of tributylphosphine was employed to improve the surface state of fresh and oxidized PbSe nanocrystals after the formation of nanocrystals. Experimental results showed that the photoluminescence intensity increased in both situations. However, an excessive amount of tributylphosphine exhibited negative effects of decreasing photoluminescence and particle aggregation. A suitable amount of tributylphosphine added before the synthesis of a CdSe shell on PbSe core (PbSe/CdSe) also exhibited a photoluminescence intensity increase for these core/shell nanocrystals.