Preparation and characteristics of?a?BaO–Al2O3–B2O3–SiO2–La2O3 glass ceramic via spray pyrolysis

The characteristics of a BaO–Al₂O₃–B₂O₃–SiO₂–La₂O₃ glass ceramic prepared by spray pyrolysis were studied. Glass powders with spherical shape and amorphous phase were prepared by complete melting at a preparation temperature of 1 500°C. The mean size and geometric standard deviation of the powders prepared at the temperature of 1 500°C were 0.6 μm and 1.3. The glass powders had similar composition to that of the spray solution. The glass transition temperature (T _g) of the glass powders was 600.3°C. Two crystallization exothermic peaks were observed at 769.3 and 837.8°C. Densification of the specimen started at a sintering temperature of 600°C, in which Ba₄La₆O(SiO₄)₆ as main crystal structure was observed. Complete densification of the specimen occurred at a sintering temperature of 800°C. The specimens sintered at temperatures above 800°C had main crystal structure of BaAl₂Si₂O₈.     

Magnetic and structural properties of CaO–SiO2–P2O5–Na2O–Fe2O3 glass ceramics

Magnetic properties of glass ceramics derived from glasses with composition 41CaO·(52−x)SiO₂·4P₂O₅·xFe₂O₃·3Na₂O (2?x?10 mol% iron oxide (Fe₂O₃)) are reported. Structural investigation revealed the presence of nanocrystalline magnetite phase in the heat-treated samples containing x?2 mol% Fe₂O₃. Magnetic hysteresis cycles of the glass-ceramic samples were obtained with a maximum applied field of ±20 kOe as well as a low field of ±500 Oe, in order to evaluate the potential of these glass ceramics for hyperthermia treatment of cancer. Samples with x>2 mol% of iron oxide exhibited magnetic behavior similar to soft magnetic materials with low coercivity. The evolution of magnetic properties in these samples as a function of iron oxide molar concentration is correlated with the amount and crystallite size of magnetite phase present in them.     

Investigation of structural,physical and optical properties of CeO2–Bi2O3–B2O3 glasses

xCeO₂–30Bi₂O₃–(70−x) B₂O₃ glasses are synthesized by using the melt quench technique. A number of studies such as XRD, density, molar volume, optical band gap, refractive index and FTIR spectroscopy are employed to characterize the glasses. The band gap decreases from 2.15 to 1.61 eV, refractive index increases from 2.67 to 2.93 and density increases from 4.151 to 4.633 g/cm³. The decrease in band gap with CeO₂ doping approaches the semiconductor behavior. FTIR spectroscopy reveals that incorporation of CeO₂ into glass network helps to convert the structural units of [BO₃] into [BO₄] and results in Bi–O bond vibration of [BiO₆].     

Effects of K4CuNb8O23 on phase structure and electrical properties of K0.5Na0.5NbO3–LiSbO3 lead-free piezoceramics

Dense K₄CuNb₈O₂₃ (KCN) modified 0.948K_0.5Na_0.5NbO₃–0.052LiSbO₃ (KNNLS) ceramics were prepared by conventional solid state reaction method. The effect of addition of K₄CuNb₈O₂₃ liquid phase sintering aid on the phase structure and electrical properties of ceramics was studied. Results showed that K₄CuNb₈O₂₃ induced a perovskite structure transition from coexistence of orthorhombic and tetragonal phases to orthorhombic symmetry. The addition of K₄CuNb₈O₂₃ promoted the sintering of KNNLS ceramics. In particular, the K₄CuNb₈O₂₃ addition to the KNNLS greatly improved the mechanical quality factor Q_m value. The ceramics with x=0.8 sintered at 1090 °C possess the optimum properties (Q_m=192, d₃₃=135 pC/N, tan δ=0.024 and k_p=0.357). These results indicate that the ceramic is a promising candidate for lead-free high-power piezoelectric devices, such as piezoelectric actuators, transformers and filter materials.     

Electrical properties and emission mechanisms of Zn-doped β-Ga2O3 films

We study the electrical properties and emission mechanisms of Zn-doped β-Ga₂O₃ film grown by pulsed laser deposition through Hall effect and cathodoluminescence which consist of ultraviolet luminescence (UV), blue luminescence (BL) and green luminescence (GL) bands. The Hall effect measurements indicate that the carrier concentration increases from 7.16×10¹¹ to 6.35×10¹² cm⁻³ with increasing a nominal Zn content from 3 to 7 at%. The UV band at 272 nm is not attributed to Zn dopants and ascribed as radiative electron transition from conduction band to a self-trapped hole while the BL band is attributable to defect level related to Zn dopant. The BL band has two emission peaks at 415 and 455 nm, which are ascribed to the radiative electron transition from oxygen vacancy (V_O) to valence band and recombination of a donor–acceptor pair (DAP) between V_O donor and Zn on Ga site (Zn_Ga) acceptor, respectively. The GL band is attributed to the phonon replicas’ emission of the DAP. The acceptor level of Zn_Ga is estimated to be 0.26 eV above the valence band maximum. The transmittance and absorption spectra prove that the Zn-doped β-Ga₂O₃ film is a dominantly direct bandgap material. The results of Hall and cathodoluminescence measurements imply that the Zn dopant in β-Ga₂O₃ film will form an acceptor Zn_Ga to produce p-type conductivity.     

Sol–gel synthesis of 8 nm magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles and their magnetic properties

Magnetite (Fe₃O₄) nanoparticles were successfully synthesized by a sol–gel method. The obtained nanoparticles were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), energy dispersive analysis by X-ray (EDAX), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), superconducting quantum interference device (SQUID) and Mössbauer spectrometry. XRD and Mössbauer measurements indicate that the obtained nanoparticles are single phase. TEM analysis shows the presence of spherical nanoparticles with homogeneous size distribution of about 8 nm. Room temperature ferromagnetics behavior was confirmed by SQUID measurements. The mechanism of nanoparticles formation and the comparison with recent results are discussed. Finally, the synthesized nanoparticles present a potential candidate for hyperthermia application given their saturation magnetization.     

Characterization,electrical and magnetic properties of PVA films filled with FeCl3–MnCl2 mixed fillers

Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) films filled with different filling levels (FLs) of XFeCL₃(15−X)MnCl₂ were studied. The DSC thermograms exhibited an increase in the melting temperature with filling, indicating better thermal stability of the filled polymer of interesting industrial applications. The amorphous feature of the filled polymer was depicted using XRD scans. Vibrational studies displayed significant structural deformations. The FL dependence of certain IR absorption peaks was discussed. The dc electrical conduction mechanism was interpreted on the basis of the modified interpolaron hopping model. The present results of the dc magnetic susceptibility (χ) suggested the temperature dependence of Curie–Weiss behavior characterized by localized magnetic moments. The effective paramagnetic moment (μ_eff) was estimated; its dependence on the FL exhibited a non-linear character. The electron spin resonance (ESR) study revealed unresolved broad distorted signals characterized by the hyperfine structure. The ESR parameters were evaluated. A correlation between the above-mentioned studies was discussed to relate the structural, electrical and magnetic properties of the filled PVA polymer.     

Structure, electrical properties and temperature characteristics of?Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3–Bi0.5K0.5TiO3–Bi0.5Li0.5TiO3 lead-free piezoelectric ceramics

(1−x−y)Bi_0.5Na_0.5TiO₃–xBi_0.5K_0.5TiO₃– yBi_0.5Li_0.5TiO₃ lead-free piezoelectric ceramics have been prepared by an ordinary sintering technique, and their structure, electrical properties, and temperature characteristics have been studied systematically. The ceramics can be well-sintered at 1050–1150 °C. The increase in K⁺ concentration decreases the grain-growth rate and promotes the formation of grains with a cubic shape, while the addition of Li⁺ decreases greatly the sintering temperature and assists in the densification of BNT-based ceramics. The results of XRD diffraction show that K⁺ and Li⁺ diffuse into the Bi_0.5Na_0.5TiO₃ lattices to form a solid solution with a pure perovskite structure. As x increases from 0.05 to 0.50, the ceramics transform gradually from rhombohedral phase to tetragonal phase and consequently a morphotropic phase boundary (MPB) is formed at 0.15≤x≤0.25. The concentration y of Li⁺ has no obvious influence on the crystal structure of the ceramics. Compared with pure Bi_0.5Na_0.5TiO₃, the partial substitution of K⁺ and Li⁺ for Na⁺ lowers greatly the coercive field E _c and increases the remanent polarization P _r of the ceramics. Because of the MPB, lower E _c and large P _r, the piezoelectricity of the ceramics is improved significantly. For the ceramics with the compositions near the MPB (x=0.15–0.25 and y=0.05–0.10), the piezoelectric properties become optimum: piezoelectric coefficient d ₃₃=147–231 pC/N and planar electromechanical coupling factor k _P=20.2–41.0%. In addition, the ceramics exhibit relaxor characteristic, which probably results from the cation disordering in the 12-fold coordination sites. The depolarization temperature T _d shows a strong dependence on the concentration x of K⁺ and reaches the lowest values at the MPB. The temperature dependences of the ferroelectric and dielectric properties at high temperatures may imply that the ceramics may contain both the polar and non-polar regions at temperatures above T _d.     

Holographic properties of Fe3O4 nanoparticle-doped organic–inorganic hybrid photopolymer

An organic–inorganic hybrid photopolymer doped with sodium-citrate-coated Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles was fabricated. The experimental results showed that the maximum diffraction efficiency could be increased from 69 to 90%, and the maximum refractive index modulation improved from 1.386 × 10⁻³ to 2.083 × 10⁻³. It also found that the volume shrinkage during holographic exposure was noticeably suppressed without affecting the optical quality of the photopolymer.     

Physical,optical and radiative properties of CaSO4–B2O3–P2O5 glasses doped with Sm3+ ions

Trivalent rare earth ions doped borosulfophosphate glasses are in high demand owing to their several unique attributes that are advantageous for applications in diverse photonic devices. Thus, Sm³⁺ ion doped calcium sulfoborophosphate glasses with composition of 25CaSO₄–30B₂O₃–(45?x)P₂O₅–xSm₂O₃ (where x?=?0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7 and 1.0 mol%) were synthesized using melt-quenching technique. X-ray diffraction confirmed the amorphous nature of the prepared glass samples. Differential thermal analyses show transition peaks for melting temperature, glass transition and crystallization temperature. The glass stability is found in the range 91?°C to 116?°C which shows increased stability with addition of Sm₂O₃ concentration. The Fourier transform infrared spectral measurements carried out showed the presence of vibration bands due to PO linkage, BO_3, BO₄, PO₄, POP, OPO, SOB, and BOB unit. Glass density showed increase in value from 2.179 to 2.251?g cm^?3 with increase in Sm₂O₃ concentration. The direct, indirect band gap and Urbach energy calculated were found to be within 4.368–4.184?eV, 3.641–3.488?eV and 0.323–0.282?eV energy ranges, respectively. The absorption spectra revealed ten prominent peaks centered at 365, 400, 471, 941, 1075, 1228, 1375, 1477, 1528 and 1597?nm corresponding to ⁴D_3/2,⁶H_5/2→⁴I_11/2,⁶P_3/2, ⁶F_11/2, ⁶F_9/2, ⁶F_7/2, ⁶F_5/2, ⁶F_3/2, ⁶H_15/2 and ⁶F_1/2 transitions respectively. Photoluminescence spectra monitored at the excitation of 398?nm exhibits four emission bands positioned at 559, 596,643 and 709?nm corresponding to ⁴G_5/2→⁶H_5/2, ⁶H_7/2, ⁶H_9/2 and ⁶H_11/2 transitions respectively. The nephelauxetic parameters calculated showed good influence on the local environment within the samarium ions site and the state of the SmO bond. The Judd–Ofelt intensity parameters calculated for all glass samples revealed that Ω_6?>?Ω_4?>?Ω₂. The emission cross-section and the branching ratios values obtained for ⁴G_5/2→⁶H_7/2 transition indicate its suitability for LEDs and solid-state laser application.     

Optical and electrical properties of Sb-doped β-Ga2O3 crystals grown by OFZ method

Sb-doped β-Ga₂O₃ crystals were grown using the optical floating zone(OFZ) method.X-ray diffraction data and X-ray rocking curves were obtained,and the results revealed that the Sb-doped single crystals were of high quality.Raman spectra revealed that Sb substituted Ga mainly in the octahedral lattice.The carrier concentration of the Sb-doped single crystals increased from 9.55 × 10¹⁶ to 8.10 × 10¹⁸ cm^-3,the electronic mobility depicted a dec...     

Electrical and magnetic properties of [(CoFeZr)x(Al2O3)1 ? x/(α-SiH)]n multilayer structures

The concentration dependences of the electrical resistivity and complex permeability of [“(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} ”/“α-Si: H”] _n multilayer structures and (Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} composites have been studied. It has been established that introduction of a semiconductor interlayer into the (Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} composites substantially decreases the electrical resistivity of [“(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} ”/“α-Si: H”] _n multilayer structures. The concentration dependences of the real and imaginary parts of the complex permeability of the [“(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} ”/“α-Si: H”] _n nanomultilayer structures substantially differ from those of the (Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} composites. The real part of the complex permeability of the [“(Co₄₅Fe₄₅Zr₁₀) _x (Al₂O₃)_{100 − x} ”/“α-Si: H”] _n nanomultilayer structures follows the curve with a minimum near the percolation threshold of the composite, and the imaginary part smoothly decreases as the ferromagnetic phase concentration increases. The results obtained are explained by the increase in the bifurcation temperature due to the conduction electrons of the semiconductor interlayer, which favor magnetic ordering of ferromagnetic grains.     

Antiferromagnetic transition and electrical conductivity in α-Gd2S3

Magnetic susceptibility and electrical resistivity of α-Gd₂S₃ with an orthorhombic structure (space group: Pnma) have been measured for powder and single-crystal samples. While the magnetic susceptibility of powder sample exhibits a broad peak having a maximum at 4.2 K, the susceptibility for a single crystal with an applied magnetic field along the b-axis demonstrates a sharp drop below 10 K. Nevertheless, the susceptibility with the field perpendicular to the b-axis keeps increasing with decreasing temperature even below 10 K. The electrical resistivity ρ for the powder sample of 4.2×10³ Ω cm around room temperature increases with decreasing temperature and shows a slight discontinuity at about 65 K. In both regions above and below 65 K, is proportional to T^−1/4 with respective coefficients, which is associated with Mott variable-range hopping conductivity. The resistivity of a single crystal along the b-axis is considerably smaller than the value for the powder sample as 0.35 Ω cm at room temperature, and its temperature dependence is fairly weak. While cooling, the resistivity first decreases down to 240 K and then keeps the value independent of the temperature down to 140 K, and subsequently rises gently below 140 K.     

Synthesis and properties of Au-Fe3O4 and Ag-Fe3O4 heterodimeric nanoparticles

Monodisperse Au-Fe 3 O 4 heterodimeric nanoparticles (NPs) were prepared by injecting precursors into a hot reaction solution.The size of Au and Fe 3 O 4 particles can be controlled by changing the injection temperature.UV-Vis spectra show that the surface plasma resonance band of Au-Fe 3 O 4 heterodimeric NPs was evidently red-shifted compared with the resonance band of Au NPs of similar size.The as-prepared heterodimeric Au-Fe 3 O 4 NPs exhibited superparamagnetic properties at room temperature.The Ag-Fe 3 O 4 heterodimeric NPs were also prepared by this synthetic method simply using AgNO 3 as precursor instead of HAuCl 4.It is indicated that the reported method can be readily extended to the synthesis of other noble metal conjugated heterodimeric NPs.     

FTIR structural investigation of gamma irradiated BaO–Na2O–B2O3–SiO2 glasses

Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectra of xBaO–15Na₂O–(70−x)B₂O₃–15SiO₂ glass system with x=0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 (mol%) has been measured in the spectral range 400–4000 cm⁻¹ at room temperature in order to understand the characteristic frequencies of the chemical bonds and bonding mechanisms, which are susceptible to the structural and spectral changes. The effect of gamma irradiation in the dose range 0.1 kGy–60 kGy on the infrared absorption spectra of these glasses is also reported. The change in the glass structure due to the effect of composition is also discussed. It has been observed that irradiation of the glasses with the gamma rays increases the BO₃ groups and the non bridging oxygens which make the network loose.     

Electronic and thermodynamic properties of α-Pu2O3

Based on density functional theory+U$\text{density functional theory}+U$ calculations and the quasi-annealing simulation method, we obtain the ground electronic state for α-Pu₂O₃ and present its phonon dispersion curves as well as various thermodynamic properties, which have seldom been theoretically studied because of the huge unit cell. We find that the Pu–O chemical bonding is weaker in α-Pu₂O₃ than in fluorite PuO₂, and subsequently a frequency gap appears between oxygen and plutonium vibration density of states. Based on the calculated Helmholtz free energies at different temperatures, we further study the reaction energies for Pu oxidation, PuO₂ reduction, and transformation between PuO₂ and α-Pu₂O₃. Our reaction energy results are in agreements with available experiment. And it is revealed that high temperature and insufficient oxygen environment are in favor of the formation of α-Pu₂O₃.     

Conversion of covalent to ionic character of V2O5–CeO2–PbO–B2O3 glasses for solid state ionic devices

xV₂O₅–xCeO₂–(30−x)PbO–(70−x) B₂O₃ glasses are synthesized by using the melt quench technique. The number of studies such as XRD, density, molar volume, optical band gap, refractive index and FTIR spectroscopy are employed to characterize the glasses. The band gap decreases from 2.20 to 1.78 eV and density increases from 3.49 to 4.25 g/cm³. FTIR spectroscopy reveals that incorporation of V₂O₅ in glass network helps to convert the structural units of [BO₃] into [BO₄]. At higher concentration of vanadium, VO vibration of [VO₅] structural units and V–O–V vibration are present. The bond ionicity of glasses increases with incorporation of V₂O₅ contents.     

Varistor and dielectric properties of Cr2O3 doped SnO2–Zn2SnO4 composite ceramics

Cr₂O₃ doped SnO₂–Zn₂SnO₄ composite ceramics were prepared by traditional ceramic processing and the varistor, dielectric properties were investigated. With increasing Cr₂O₃ content, the breakdown electrical field E_B increases from 11 to 92 V/mm and the relative dielectric constant ε_r measured at 1 kHz, 50 °C decreases from 11,028 to 3412, respectively. The barrier height ?_B about 0.8–0.84 eV and the decreasing of SnO₂ grain size suggest that the varistor behavior with high ε_r is originated from SnO₂–SnO₂ or SnO₂–Zn₂SnO₄ grain boundary. In the dielectric spectra lower than 1 kHz, a dielectric peak is presented and depressed with increasing bias voltage. Similarly, at high temperature, the dielectric constant also presents a dielectric peak in the temperature spectra and the peak becomes faint with increasing frequency. The exhibition of the dielectric peak is thought to be attributed to the conduction of grain boundary since it is accompanied by the sharp increase of dielectric loss. In addition, a dielectric relaxation with the activation energy about 0.4–0.5 eV was observed in the temperature range of 20–100 °C. Based on the results, the formation mechanism of Schottky barriers at grain boundaries and the varistor behavior with high dielectric constant are well understood.     

Development and characteristic analysis of a field-plated Al2O3/AlInN/GaN MOS–HEMT

We present an AlInN/AlN/GaN MOS–HEMT with a 3 nm ultra-thin atomic layer deposition (ALD) Al₂O₃ dielectric layer and a 0.3 μm field-plate (FP)-MOS--HEMT. Compared with a conventional AlInN/AlN/GaN HEMT (HEMT) with the same dimensions, a FP-MOS--HEMT with a 0.6 μm gate length exhibits an improved maximum drain current of 1141 mA/mm, an improved peak extrinsic transconductance of 325 mS/mm and effective suppression of gate leakage in both the reverse direction (by about one order of magnitude) and the forward direction (by more than two orders of magnitude). Moreover, the peak extrinsic transconductance of the FP-MOS--HEMT is slightly larger than that of the HEMT, indicating an exciting improvement of transconductance performance. The sharp transition from depletion to accumulation in the capacitance--voltage (C--V) curve of the FP-MOS--HEMT demonstrates a high-quality interface of Al₂O₃/AlInN. In addition, a large off-state breakdown voltage of 133 V, a high field-plate efficiency of 170 V/μ m and a negligible double-pulse current collapse is achieved in the FP-MOS--HEMT. This is attributed to the adoption of an ultra-thin Al₂O₃ gate dielectric and also of a field-plate on the dielectric of an appropriate thickness. The results show a great potential application of the ultra-thin ALD-Al₂O₃ FP-MOS--HEMT to deliver high currents and power densities in high power microwave technologies.