Improvement of the efficiency of a glow discharge-based ion emitter with oscillating electrons

Ion emission from the plasma of a low-pressure (≈5×10⁻² Pa) glow discharge with electrons oscillating in a weak (≈1 mT) magnetic field is studied in relation to the cold hollow cathode geometry. A hollow conic cathode used in the electrode system of a cylindrical inverted magnetron not only improves the extraction of plasma ions to ≈20% of the discharge current but also provides the near-uniform spatial distribution of the ion emission current density. The reason is the specific oscillations of electrons accelerated in the cathode sheath. They drift in the azimuth direction along a closed orbit and simultaneously move along the magnetic field toward the emitting surface of the plasma. A plasma emitter with a current density of ≈1 mA/cm² over an area of ≈100 cm² designed for an ion source with an operating voltage of several tens of kilovolts is described.     

Anti-icing performance of superhydrophobic surfaces

This article studies the anti-ice performance of several micro/nano-rough hydrophobic coatings with different surface chemistry and topography. The coatings were prepared by spin-coating or dip coating and used organosilane, fluoropolymer or silicone rubber as a top layer. Artificially created glaze ice, similar to the naturally accreted one, was deposited on the nanostructured surfaces by spraying supercooled water microdroplets (average size ∼80 μm) in a wind tunnel at subzero temperature (−10 °C). The ice adhesion strength was evaluated by spinning the samples in a centrifuge at constantly increasing speed until ice delamination occurred. The results show that the anti-icing properties of the tested materials deteriorate, as their surface asperities seem to be gradually broken during icing/de-icing cycles. Therefore, the durability of anti-icing properties appears to be an important point for further research. It is also shown that the anti-icing efficiency of the tested superhydrophobic surfaces is significantly lower in a humid atmosphere, as water condensation both on top and between surface asperities takes place, leading to high values of ice adhesion strength. This implies that superhydrophobic surfaces may not always be ice-phobic in the presence of humidity, which can limit their wide use as anti-icing materials.     

用激光分子束外延在Si衬底上外延生长高质量的TiN薄膜

采用激光分子束外延技术,利用两步法,在Si单晶衬底上成功地外延生长出TiN薄膜材料.原子力显微镜分析结果显示, TiN薄膜材料表面光滑,在10 μm×10 μm范围内,均方根粗糙度为0842nm.霍耳效应测量结果显示,TiN薄膜在室温条件下的电阻率为36×10^-5Ω·cm,迁移率达到5830 cm²/V·S,表明TiN薄膜材料是一种优良的电极材料.X射线θ—2θ扫描结果和很高的迁移率均表明,高质量的TiN薄膜材料被外延在Si衬底 关键词： 激光分子束外延 TiN单晶薄膜 外延生长     

Probe measurements in a discharge with liquid nonmetallic electrodes in air at atmospheric pressure

Discharges with liquid nonmetallic electrodes of much interest for applications are investigated. It is found that a dc discharge between two streams of tap water in air at atmospheric pressure is stable at a currentof 40≤I≤100 mA. The discharge exists in the diffuse (volume) form with a relatively low current density (∼0.2 A/cm²) and a high (above one kilovolt) voltage drop across the air gap (∼1 cm) between the water electrodes. The current density and voltage depend only slightly on the discharge current. Probe measurements show that three regions can be distinguished in the discharge: two electrode regions (1–2 mm in length) and a discharge column with a constant electric field of ≈0.8 kV/cm (i.e., E/N≈20 Td, because the gas in the discharge is heated up to 1500–2000 K). The average electric field strength near the electrodes is E≈2–3×10³ V/cm (E/N≈60–80 Td). The charged particle density in the column is n ∼ 10¹² cm⁻³. The probe measurements of n agree with the previous microwave absorption measurements. The water vapor concentration in the column is also estimated from probe measurements.     

Ultra-smooth metal surfaces generated by pressure-induced surface deformation of thin metal films

We present a mechanical pressing technique for generating ultra-smooth surfaces on thin metal films by flattening the bumps, asperities, rough grains and spikes of a freshly vacuum deposited metal film. The method was implemented by varying the applied pressure from 100 MPa to 600 MPa on an e-beam evaporated silver film of thickness 1000 Å deposited on double-polished (100)-oriented silicon surfaces, resulting in a varying degree of film smoothness. The surface morphology of the thin film was studied using atomic force microscopy. Notably, at a pressure of ～600 MPa an initial silver surface with 13-nm RMS roughness was plastically deformed and transformed to an ultra-flat plane with better than 0.1 nm RMS. Our demonstration with the e-beam evaporated silver thin film exhibits the potential for applications in decreasing the scattering-induced losses in optical metamaterials, plasmonic nanodevices and electrical shorts in molecular-scale electronic devices.     

通过插入Au薄膜改善绿光OLED器件的发光色纯度

在一些有机电致发光器件中,Au常被用作阳极,研究者希望Au在导电的同时兼具半透明可出光的属性,这要求Au在能导电的同时厚度要尽量薄。因此制备两种金属共同组成电极成为了选择。将半透明Au/Al层插入阳极一侧,制备了结构为ITO/Al(16 nm)/Au(10 nm)/TPD(30 nm)/AlQ(30 nm)/LiF(0.5 nm)/Al的OLED器件,相对于器件ITO/TPD(30 nm)/AlQ(30 nm)/LiF(0.5 nm)/Al在长波方向出现了光谱窄化现象,通过分析和实验判断该现象是Au薄膜特有的对光的选择透过性造成,而并非微腔效应。阳极一侧加入了Au/Al的器件保持了广视角无角度依赖的优点,同时可以输出滤掉部分红光的纯度更高的发光,发光色纯度得到了改善。     

Pulsed-periodic discharge in cesium as an effective source of light

The spectrum of visible radiation from an inhomogeneous cesium-plasma column is evaluated in the approximation of locally thermodynamically equilibrium plasma. The plasma parameters correspond to a pulsed-periodic low-power discharge at pressures of 0.1–1.0 atm and the axial temperature T=5500 K. Under these conditions, the visible spectrum of the cesium plasma changes from discrete (line) to continuous as the pressure varies from 0.1 to 1.0 atm. This is associated largely with an increase in the intensity of the 6P and 5D recombination continua and an appreciable shift of the thresholds of the continua toward larger wavelengths (by ≈100 nm for 6P and by ≈150 nm for 5D) when the plasma density rises to ≈4×10¹⁷ cm⁻³. In this case, the optical thickness of the plasma column approaches unity and the average luminous flux per unit length of the arc column is close to 6500 lm/cm at the column radius R=2 mm and a duty ratio of 0.1.     

Effect of an ultralow-frequency electric field on the explosive instability threshold of ice

It is found that a weak (10³–10⁵ times lower than breakdown fields) ultralow-frequency (1<ω<1000 Hz) electric field has a strong effect on the explosive instability threshold of ice uniaxially compressed by high pressures in the temperature range 210–240 K. The explanation for the high electromechanical sensitivity of ice is based on the concept that ice undergoing structure modifications due to highly nonuniform compression is a heterogeneous system with cooperative phenomena in space-bounded sets of dipoles. The dipoles form around new-phase nuclei, defects, or air microbubbles and occupy domains with a typical size of 10⁻²–10⁻⁵ mm. When exposed to ultralow-frequency electric fields, such systems may exhibit resonant bursts of polarization, causing the ice stability to drastically drop because of dipole compression or microbreakdowns.     

Surface roughness analysis and magnetic property studies of nickel thin films electrodeposited onto rotating disc electrodes

Ni films were electrodeposited onto polycrystalline gold substrates mounted on a rotating disc electrode. The effects of rotation speed, film thickness and current density on the kinetic roughening and magnetic properties of the films were investigated. The film surface roughness was imaged using an atomic force microscope (AFM). The results indicate that the film roughness increases as the film thickness or deposition current density increases. We found that the electrodeposited Ni films exhibit anomalous scaling since both local and large-scale roughnesses show a power-law dependence on the film thickness. The effect of electrode rotation speed on the film surface roughness was also investigated. Scanning electron microscopy studies (SEM) had a good agreement with the AFM results. The average crystalline size of the film surfaces is also calculated from X-ray line broadening using (220) peak and Debye–Scherrer formula. The obtained results agree with that of AFM and SEM. The Ni thin films which are grown at different deposition current densities and rotation speeds exhibit in-plane magnetization with coercivities less than 110 Oe.     

Introduction of ice protective film for 3D microscale analysis of biological sample

It is urgently necessary for secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) analysis to overcome influence on the compositional distribution of the sample in vacuum chamber. In this study, we investigated the handling of the ice protective film in techniques such as the gallium focused ion beam (Ga FIB) etching. Here we demonstrate the technique with frozen Hymenochirus boettgeri red blood cell. The red blood cells covered with an ice protective film were cross-sectioned by using Ga FIB, and the two-dimensional SIMS mapping over the cross-section was carried out. The distributions of Na and K were observed on the cross-section and surface of red blood cell with ice protective film. This result agrees qualitatively with physiological intracellular and extracellular concentrations of vital cells. The technique used for SIMS was proved to be a reliable method, preserving the cells in their living state.     

Evolution of the glow of an aerogel irradiated with a high-power pulse electron beam

The evolution of the glow of the energy-release zone in porous transparent aerogel, with a density of 0.03–0.25 g/cm³, which is irradiated by a high-power pulse electron beam, is studied experimentally. In addition to a fast (τ≤τ_beam) and a luminescent (τ≈10⁻⁶ s) glow components, a slow glow component (τ≈2×10⁻⁵ s) has been revealed. The appearance of this slow component is associated with an aerogel rarefaction wave and its destruction (cracking) arising after its isochoric bulk heating by electron radiation, which may occur due to an electrostatic field induced under irradiation. The discovered glow is utilized to visually determine the current position of the rarefaction wave front. The sound velocity measured as a function of the density of SiO₂ aerogels with porosities of 10–100 allowed us to experimentally determine the percolation parameter of the aerogel equation of state.     

Solid state photoelectrochemical cells utilising graphite thin films counter electrode

This paper reports the use of graphite thin films as a counter electrode of a solid state photoelectrochemical cells of ITO/TiO₂/PVC-LiClO₄/graphite. The photoelectrochemical cells material was a screen-printed layer of titanium dioxide onto an ITO-covered glass substrate which was used as a working electrode of the device. The solid electrolyte used was PVC-LiClO₄ that was prepared by solution casting technique. The graphite films which serve as a counter electrode were prepared onto glass substrate by electron beam evaporation technique at substrate temperatures variation of 25, 50, 100, 150 and 200 °C. The dependence of sheet resistance and surface morphology of the graphite films on substrate temperature were studied. The films deposited at 25 °C shows the smoothest surface morphology and the smallest grain size. Bigger grain size, rougher surface morphology of graphite film counter electrode. The current-voltage characteristics of four devices utilising the graphite counter electrode with different substrate temperature in dark as well as under illumination of 100 mWcm⁻² light from a tungsten halogen lamp were recorded at room temperature and at 50 °C, respectively. It was found that the photovoltaic parameters of the device such as short-circuit current density, J_sc and open-circuit voltage, V_oc increases with the decreasing average grain size of the graphite counter electrode. The device whose graphite film counter electrode was deposited onto the glass substrate at 25 °C gave the highest J_sc of 0.32 μA/cm² and V_oc of 117 mV, respectively.     

Testing an ensemble model of cirrus ice crystals using midlatitude in situ estimates of ice water content,volume extinction coefficient and the total solar optical depth

In this paper an ensemble model of cirrus ice crystals is tested against midlatitude in situ estimates of ice water content, volume extinction coefficient and the total solar optical depth. During the Winter of 2005 and Spring 2006 the FAAM (Facility for Airborne Atmospheric Measurements) BAE-146 G-LUXE aircraft flew three flights as part of the CAESAR (Cirrus and Anvils: European Satellite and Airborne Radiation measurements project) campaign of flying in cirrus around the UK. The suite of microphysical instrumentation onboard the aircraft included the PMS 2D-C probe and the Stratton Park Engineering Company (SPEC) cloud particle imager (CPI). The campaign characterized cirrus properties such as ice water content, volume extinction coefficient, ice crystal geometric shape and ice crystal effective dimension. Cirrus cloud temperatures ranged approximately between 215 and 240 K. From the CPI instrument 60–80% of the ice crystal habits were estimated to be either indeterminate or ‘irregular’ (though such irregular crystals could be composed of pristine components) of some form with hexagonal columns and hexagonal plates accounting for generally much less than 3% of the ice crystal population. The CPI estimated integrated ice water content ranged between 5±2 and 45±22 gm^?2, whilst the CPI estimate of the total solar optical depth was found to lie between 0.2±0.1 and 1.0±0.5. The CPI estimate of the mean ice crystal effective dimension was found to range between about 59±9 and 90±75 μm.The particle size distribution (PSD) function was estimated using a PSD scheme that requires as input the in situ estimated IWC and measured in-cloud temperature. The CPI estimates of the bulk and microphysical properties of the midlatitude cirrus are used to test whether an ensemble model of cirrus ice crystals together with a PSD scheme can predict CPI in situ estimates to within the experimental uncertainty. This paper demonstrates that the ensemble model coupled with a PSD scheme can predict the ice water content and the integrated ice water content to generally well within the experimental uncertainty if a varying density with respect to size is assumed. The ensemble model together with a PSD scheme is also shown to predict the CPI estimated volume extinction coefficient and the derived total solar optical depth to generally well within the experimental uncertainty. The paper demonstrates that an ensemble model of cirrus combined with a PSD scheme can predict the radiative properties of cirrus without the need to invoke the concept of an ice crystal effective dimension.     

Electrochemical impedance spectroscopic study of the lithium storage mechanism in commercial molybdenum disulfide

The first lithiation and delithiation processes of commercial molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) electrode as anode material for lithium-ion batteries were studied by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). It is found that the typical EIS is composed of four parts, namely, high-frequency semicircle, middle-frequency semicircle, low-frequency short sloping line, and low-frequency arc in the Nyquist diagram, and they can be attributed to the solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) film and ionic resistance in pores, charge transfer step, solid state diffusion process, and phase transformation, respectively. An equivalent circuit that includes elements related to the SEI film and charge transfer process, in addition to phase transformation, is proposed to simulate the experimental EIS data. The change of kinetic parameters for lithiation and delithiation of MoS₂ electrode as a function of potential in the first charge–discharge cycle is analyzed, and the reason for the rapid degradation in capacity of the MoS₂ electrode when cycled between 3.00 and 0.01 V is discussed in detail.     

Roles of Al-doped ZnO (AZO) modification layer on improving electrochemical performance of LiNi<Subscript>1/3</Subscript>Co<Subscript>1/3</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>1/3</Subscript>O<Subscript>2</Subscript> thin film cathode

Al-doped ZnO (AZO) was sputtered on the surface of LiNi_1/3Co_1/3Mn_1/3O₂ (NCM) thin film electrode via radio frequency magnetron sputtering, which was demonstrated to be a useful approach to enhance electrochemical performance of thin film electrode. The structure and morphology of the prepared electrodes were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive spectrometer, and transmission electron microscopy techniques. The results clearly demonstrated that NCM thin film showed a strong (104) preferred orientation and AZO was uniformly covered on the surface of NCM electrode. After 200 cycles at 50 μA μm^?1 cm^?2, the NCM/AZO-60s electrode delivered highest discharge capacity (78.1 μAh μm^?1 cm^?2) compared with that of the NCM/AZO-120s electrode (62.4 μAh μm^?1 cm^?2) and the bare NCM electrode (22.3 μAh μm^?1 cm^?2). In addition, the rate capability of the NCM/AZO-60s electrode was superior to the NCM/AZO-120s and bare NCM electrodes. The improved electrochemical performance can be ascribed to the appropriate thickness of the AZO coating layer, which not only acted as HF scavenger to keep a stable electrode/electrolyte interface but also reduced the charge transfer resistance during cycling.     

Magneto-optic study of spatial magnetic-field distribution relaxation in an HTSC film strip after transport current turn-on

The paper provides the first demonstration of the efficiency of applying the magneto-optic method to studies of the spatial and temporal magnetic-field relaxation in an YBa₂Cu₃O₇ film strip after the transport current is switched on. It is shown that the evolution of magnetic flux distribution is adequately described in terms of a modified Bean model with time-dependent critical current. At a time 50 ms after the current is switched on, the critical current of the samples studied decreases by ≈15%. This proves the significance of thermally activated magnetic flux motion (creep) in the regime investigated. The magnetic vortex pinning energy has been estimated as U ₀≈20 kT. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 41, 965–968 (June 1999)     

A Simulation study of the cooling of an isolated metal sphere in aqueous media (quenching)

A quantitative study is carried of a metal cooling process in aqueous and water-polymer cooling liquids. In the study, an original spherical hot probe with a heat-insulated stem is used to simulate the cooling conditions of the operating part of the probe and to correspond to the cooling conditions of an isolated sphere. It has been shown that in this case the process consists of distinct consecutive stages, each of which can be studied separately in a quantitative way. The cooling process in all stages is described with a simple exponential relationship containing two parameters. One of these is the effective temperature of the cooling medium; the other is a time constant of the cooling process uniquely related to the heat dissipation coefficient. In the film boiling stage the effective temperature can be much lower than the nominal temperature; moreover, for cooling in cold water it is found to be lower than the absolute temperature, which indicates the dominant contribution of convection to the heat dissipation. The effective temperature of the medium is a monotonously increasing function of the nominal temperature and rises with rising liquid viscosity. Dependence of the cooling process time constant on the liquid temperature is influenced by two competing processes affecting convection, namely, by variations with temperature of the density and viscosity of a liquid. The effect of diminishing density becomes prevalent at temperatures of the liquid above ≈80°C.     

Response of the capacitance of a planar La0.67Ca0.33MnO3/SrTiO3/La0.67Ca0.33MnO3 heterostructure to an electric field

Manganite film electrodes were integrated with a spacer layer of strontium titanate to produce an epitaxial La_0.67Ca_0.33MnO₃/(1000 nm)SrTiO₃/La_0.67Ca_0.33MnO₃ (LCMO/STO/LCMO) heterostructure by laser ablation. At T = 300 K, the mechanical stresses in the STO layer relaxed to a considerable extent, while the LCMO electrodes were found to be under biaxial lateral tensile strain, with the lattice unit cell of the top electrode distorted considerably stronger (a _∥/a _⊥ ≈ 1.026) than that of the bottom electrode (≈1.008) (a _∥ and a _⊥ are the unit cell parameters in the substrate plane and along the normal to its surface, respectively). The reciprocal of the capacitance C of the plane-parallel LCMO/STO/LCMO film capacitors thus formed increased almost linearly with increasing temperature T in the range 50–250 K. At T < 100 K, the capacitance C decreased by approximately 50% in an electric field E = 40 kV/cm. After the electric field E was varied as 0 → + 100 kV/cm → 0, the capacitance C decreased by approximately 3% and the maximum in the C(E, T > 200 K) dependence shifted by approximately 9 kV/cm with respect to the point E = 0.     

Penetration of ammonia molecule into ice film; activation energy analysis using Xe molecular beam irradiation

We have investigated the barrier energy for an ammonia molecule to penetrate into ice film by the use of infrared spectroscopy and Xe supersonic beam. After the ice film on a Pt(1 1 1) surface is exposed to ammonia molecules, an umbrella mode of ammonia molecules adsorbed on the ice film has been observed in infrared spectra. After the irradiation of accelerated Xe beam, we observed an energy shift of the mode of ammonia. The shifted mode is assigned to that of ammonia molecules at the interface between the ice film and the Pt(1 1 1) surface. This indicates that the collision with Xe beam induced the penetration of an ammonia molecule to the interface through the ice film. Using this feature, we estimate a barrier for penetration as 0.28 ± 0.03 eV which is much smaller than the one previously reported for bulk ice.     

Properties of low-refractive-index films obtained by the close-spaced vapor transport technique under the sublimation of graphite in a quasi-closed volume

The properties of low-refractive-index carbon films obtained by close-spaced vapor transport at graphite sublimation are studied. The optical properties of the films are investigated by monochromatic multiple-angle ellipsometry, and their morphology is examined by AFM. It is found that the films have a columnar structure with a background surface roughness of about 1 nm. In addition, the surface of the film contains islands up to 50 nm in height with a footprint of ≈200 nm. A low-refractive-index carbon film deposited by close-spaced vapor transport on silicon tips is found to decrease the field emission threshold and drastically raise the current.