Spatial persistence of angular correlations in amyloid fibrils

Using atomic force microscopy height maps, we resolve and quantify torsional fluctuations in one-dimensional amyloid fibril aggregates self-assembled from three different representative polypeptide systems. Furthermore, we show that angular correlation in these nanoscale structures is maintained over several microns, corresponding to many thousands of molecules along the fibril axis. We model disorder in the fibril in respect of both thermal fluctuations and structural defects, and determine quantitative values for the defect density, as well as the energy scales involved in the fundamental interactions stabilizing these generic structures.     

Sub-persistence-length complex scaling behavior in lysozyme amyloid fibrils

We combine atomic force microscopy single-molecule analysis with polymer physics concepts to study molecular conformations of lysozyme amyloid fibrils. We resolve a wavy structure of the fibrils in which the scaling behavior varies at multiple length scales. Bond and pair correlation functions, end-to-end distribution, and wormlike chain model identify three characteristic length scales. At short length scales (≈150 nm), there is a first bending transition of the fibrils corresponding to a bending length L(b). At larger length scales (>2L(b)), fibrils become pseudoperiodic and start to undulate. Finally, at length scales larger than the persistence length (~ μm), the fibrils become flexible and follow a 2D self-avoiding random walk. We interpret these results in terms of the twisting of the fibrils and the impact this has on the area moment of inertia and the propensity of the fibril to bend.     

Nanomechanical resonator shuttling single electrons at radio frequencies

We observe transport of electrons through a metallic island on the tip of a nanomechanical pendulum. The resulting tunneling current shows distinct features corresponding to the discrete mechanical eigenfrequencies of the pendulum. We report on measurements covering the temperature range from 300 down to 4.2 K. We explain the I-V curve, which unexpectedly differs from previous theoretical predictions, with model calculations based on a master equation approach.     

Nanomechanical magnetization reversal

The dynamics of the ferromagnetic order parameter in thin magnetic films is strongly affected by the magnetomechanical coupling at certain resonance frequencies. By solving the equation of motion of the coupled mechanical and magnetic degrees of freedom we show that the magnetic field induced magnetization switching can be strongly accelerated by the lattice and illustrate the possibility of magnetization reversal by mechanical actuation.     

Nanomechanical characterizations of InGaN thin films

In_xGa_1−xN thin films with In concentration ranging from 25 to 34 at.% were deposited on sapphire substrate by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Crystalline structure and surface morphology of the deposited films were studied by using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Hardness, Young's modulus and creep resistance were measured using a nanoindenter. Among the deposited films, In_0.25Ga_0.75N film exhibits a larger grain size and a higher surface roughness. Results indicate that hardness decreases slightly with increasing In concentration in the In_xGa_1−xN films ranged from 16.6 ± 1.1 to 16.1 ± 0.7 GPa and, Young's modulus for the In_0.25Ga_0.75N, In_0.3Ga_0.7N and In_0.34Ga_0.66N films are 375.8 ± 23.1, 322.4 ± 13.5 and 373.9 ± 28.6 GPa, respectively. In addition, the time-dependent nanoindentation creep experiments are presented in this article.     

Nanomechanical analysis of Clostridium tyrobutyricum spores

In this work we report on the measurement of the Young modulus of the external surface of Clostridium tyrobutyricum spores in air with an atomic force microscope. The Young modulus can be reliably measured despite the strong tip-spore adhesion forces and the need to immobilize the spores due to their slipping on most substrates. Moreover, we investigate the disturbing factors and consider some practical aspects that influence the measurements of elastic properties of biological objects with the atomic force microscopy indentation techniques.     

Transport properties of single crystal

Transport properties of BaNi₂P₂ single crystals prepared by high-pressure synthesis method have been investigated. The temperature dependence of the resistivity is that of a typical metal with the anisotropy ratio ρ/ρ of 6.3 and suggests that electron–phonon interaction dominates the scattering mechanism. We have also found that the Hall effect and the magnetoresistance can be explained by a two-carrier model which is consistent with a multiple-band structure with both hole and electron characters.     

品质因子可调的石墨烯纳米机械振子

纳米机械振子尺寸小,质量轻,可以用来制作探测力、质量等微小物理量的超灵敏探测器.石墨烯拥有质量轻、密度低和杨氏模量高等特性,被认为是制作纳米机械振子的理想材料.石墨烯纳米机械振子因其具有的谐振频率高、品质因子高和谐振频率可调性高等优势,近年来得到了人们的广泛关注.作为表征纳米机械振子性能的一个重要指标,品质因子越高,意味着纳米机械振子耗散越低,纳米机械振子的灵敏度越高.本文通过微纳加工的工艺制备出一种谐振频率随栅压可调(调节的范围为73 MHz～90 MHz)的石墨烯纳米机械振子样品,研究其在极低温高真空环境下的品质因子与栅极电压之间的关系.实验表明通过栅压调节振子的内部应力,能够使石墨烯纳米机械振子品质因子从220提高到1000.我们的结果为二维材料纳米机械振子的耗散研究提供了一种新的研究思路.     

Nanomechanical characterization of amorphous hydrogenated carbon thin films

Amorphous hydrogenated carbon (a-C:H) thin films deposited on a silicon substrate under various mixtures of methane-hydrogen gas by electron cyclotron resonance microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (ECR-MPCVD) was investigated. Microstructure, surface morphology and mechanical characterizations of the a-C:H films were analyzed using Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM) and nanoindentation technique, respectively. The results indicated there was an increase of the hydrogen content, the ratio of the D-peak to the G-peak (I_D/I_G) increased but the surface roughness of the films was reduced. Both hardness and Young's modulus increased as the hydrogen content was increased. In addition, the contact stress-strain analysis is reported. The results confirmed that the mechanical properties of the amorphous hydrogenated carbon thin films improved using a higher H₂ content in the source gas.     

Scintillation properties of BeO single crystals

Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 49, No. 2, pp. 286–291, August, 1988.     

Surface properties of GaTe single crystals

Surface properties of gallium telluride were studied. It was found that the surface after vacuum cleavage is partly reconstructed from monoclinic to hexagonal. Peculiarities of the surface topology are also discussed.     

Optical properties of InBr single crystals

Single crystals of orthorhombic InBr were grown by the sublimation technique. Two of the three principal refractive indices were determined by measuring interference due to multiple reflection. The absorption curve near the band edge was measured at 295,80 and 10°K for different polarisation vectors of the incident light. At low temperatures large exciton absorptions could be seen which enabled us to determine accurate values of the band gap energy.     

Electrical properties of molybdenite single crystals

Molybdenite crystals used in the present work were grown by direct vapour transport or sublimation method. The electrical resistivities and I-V characteristics were measured at different temperatures in the symmetry plane. The room temperature resistance of a specimen annealed for different periods has also been measured. These results are described and discussed.     

Luminescent properties of LiCl-Cu single crystals

The absorption, photoluminescence, x-ray luminescence, and thermoluminescence spectra, and the photoluminescence excitation spectra of LiCl-Cu single crystals with different activator concentration were investigated at temperatures of 79–450°K. The absorption spectrum at room temperature has two bands with maxima at 237 and 259 nm. The absorption coefficient of the 237 nm band is proportional to the copper concentration in the crystal (C_Cu ≤ 7·10^?4 mole %). The photoluminescence and x-ray luminescence spectrum at room temperature consists of one emission band at 324 nm, which conforms with the Mollwo-Ivey rule in the homologous series RbCl → KCl → NaCl → LiCl. The copper ions create trapping levels for electrons and holes at different depths in the forbidden band of the LiCl crystal. The correlation between the thermoluminescence peaks and the recombination-luminescence excitation bands (infrared stimulation) is investigated.     

Cooling Torsional Nanomechanical Vibration by Spin-Orbit Interactions

We propose and study a spin-orbit interaction based mechanism to actively cool down the torsional vibration of a nanomechanical resonator made by semiconductor materials. We show that the spin-orbit interactions of electrons can induce a coherent coupling between the electron spins and the torsional modes of nanomechanical vibration. This coupling leads to an active cooling for the torsional modes through the dynamical thermalization of the resonator by the spin ensemble.     

Nanomechanical characteristics of annealed Si/SiGe superlattices

In this study, the nanomechanical damage was investigated on the annealed Si/SiGe strained-layer superlattices (SLSs) deposited using an ultrahigh-vacuum chemical vapor deposition (UHVCVD). Nanoscratch, nanoindenter, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques were used to determine the nanomechanical behavior of the SiGe films. With a constant force applied, greater hardness number and larger coefficients of friction (μ) were observed on the samples that had been annealed at 600 °C, suggesting that annealing of the Si/SiGe SLSs can induce greater shear resistance. AFM morphological studies of the Si/SiGe SLSs revealed that pile-up phenomena occurred on both sides of each scratch, with the formation of some pellets and microparticles. The Si/SiGe SLSs that had been subjected to annealing under various conditions exhibited significantly different features in their indentation results. Indeed, the TEM images reveal slight dislocation propagation in the microstructures. Thus, the hardness and elastic modulus can be increased slightly after annealing treatment because the existence of comparatively unstable microstructures. It is suggested that cracking phenomena dominate the damage cause of Si/SiGe SLSs.