Bipolar resistive switching of solution processed TiO2–graphene oxide nanocomposite for nonvolatile memory applications

In this study, we report the observation of memory effect in TiO₂–GO nanocomposite films. Electrical properties of the prepared Al/TiO₂–GO composite/ITO devices have shown stable and reproducible bipolar resistive switching behavior. The TiO₂–GO composite films were prepared using solution method by spin coating technique. Observed results have shown that the inclusion of GO in the TiO₂ matrix have exhibited a significant role in the resistive switching mechanism. The device has exhibited an excellent memory characteristic with low operating voltages, good endurance up to 10⁵ cycles and long retention time more than 5×10³ s$5\times {10}^3\text{s}$.     

Phonon energy inversion in graphene during transient thermal transport

This work reports on the phonon energy inversion in graphene nanoribbons: after initial localized thermal excitation, the energy of initial cold phonons (flexural mode: FM) becomes higher than that of local hot phonons (longitudinal and transverse modes: LM/TM). Such energy inversion holds for about 50 picoseconds. Two physical factors combine together to give rise of this phenomenon: one is the much faster heat conduction by FM phonons than that by LM/TM phonons, and the other factor is the strongly temperature-dependent energy exchange rate between FM and LM/TM phonons: 3.7×10¹⁰ s⁻¹$3.7\times {10}^{10}{\text{s}}^{-1}$ at 84 K to 20.3×10¹⁰ s⁻¹$20.3\times {10}^{10}{\text{s}}^{-1}$ at around 510 K.     

Shock mechanisms by ultrahigh laser accelerated plasma blocks in solid density targets for fusion

Ignition of nuclear fusion flames in solid state density fuel following Chu?s model of 1972 is evaluated using now available plasma blocks from ultrahigh acceleration with laser pulses of picosecond (ps) duration and power up to and beyond petawatt (PW). A new numerical approach is reported where genuine two-fluid hydrodynamics is used in order to study the shock mechanism of the generated fusion flame, its propagation velocities above 1000 km/s$1000\text{km}/\text{s}$, and fusion efficiencies for deuterium–tritium needing an energy flux of 10⁸ J/cm²${10}^8\text{J}/{\text{cm}}^2$. The results of the built-up of the shock process are reported showing a basic difference between the ps and nanosecond (ns) properties.     

First search for double β decay of dysprosium

A search for double β decay of dysprosium was realized for the first time with the help of an ultra-low background HP Ge γ detector. After 2512 h of data taking with a 322 g sample of dysprosium oxide limits on double beta processes in ¹⁵⁶Dy and ¹⁵⁸Dy have been established on the level of T_1/2?¹⁰¹⁴–¹⁰¹⁶ yr$T_{1/2}?{10}^{14}\text{–}{10}^{16}\text{yr}$. Possible resonant double electron captures in ¹⁵⁶Dy and ¹⁵⁸Dy were restricted on a similar level. As a by-product of the experiment we have measured the radioactive contamination of the Dy₂O₃ sample and set limits on the α   decay of dysprosium isotopes to the excited levels of daughter nuclei as T_1/2?¹⁰¹⁵–¹⁰¹⁷ yr$T_{1/2}?{10}^{15}\text{–}{10}^{17}\text{yr}$.     

Interpretation of the optical absorption spectrum of Co3O4 with normal spinel structure from first principles calculations

First principles calculations based on density functional theory have been employed to study the electronic, magnetic and optical properties of Co₃O₄ in a cubic normal spinel structure. Exchange and correlation effects between electrons were treated by a B3PW91 hybrid functional, which produced better results than others scheme, such as GGA+U or PBE0 hybrid functionals or mBJ semilocal potential. The work focuses on clarifying the nature of the optical absorption bands, which have motivated various theoretical and experimental works in the literature. The calculated optical absorption spectrum was compared with available experimental data. On the basis of this calculated electronic and magnetic structure, the optical absorption peaks (theoretical and experimental) could be satisfactorily explained in terms of d3d   charge transfer transitions between both CO²⁺${\mathrm{CO}}^{2^{+}}$→CO²⁺${\mathrm{CO}}^{2^{+}}$ and CO³⁺${\mathrm{CO}}^{3^{+}}$→CO³⁺${\mathrm{CO}}^{3^{+}}$ ions. The calculations also predicted that the crystal field splittings at both octahedral and tetrahedral sites in the Co₃O₄ compound are of the same magnitude.     

New experimental test of dispersion law for very slow neutrons

The results of an experiment on transmitting UCN through a rotating disc made of silicon single crystal are reported. They demonstrate that the transmission of the sample remains constant if it moves parallel to its surface. The range of neutron velocities in the system of reference associated with the sample is 6–38 m/s$6\text{–}38\text{m}/\text{s}$. It is found that the real and imaginary parts of the effective potential are constant to within 3×10⁻³$3\times {10}^{-3}$.     

Precipitate synthesis of BaMoO4 and BaWO4 nanoparticles at room temperature and their photoluminescence properties

The uniform BaMoO₄ and BaWO₄ nanoparticles (NPs) have been successfully synthesized by solution route – the direct precipitation of Ba(NO₃)₂ and Na₂MO₄ (M = Mo and W) in ethylene glycol under 24 h stirring. The XRD patterns and SEM images proved that the products were tetragonal structured BaMoO₄ and BaWO₄ with uniform round nanoparticles. Shape, average particle size and particle-size distribution of products were analyzed by TEM – showing the round nanoparticles with the average size of 31.52 ± 4.65 nm for BaMoO₄, and 59.77 ± 9.61 nm for BaWO₄. The room temperature photoluminescence (PL) indicated that the products have strong blue emission centered at 441 nm – excited with 280 nm wavelength for BaMoO₄ NPs, and strong violet emission centered 378 nm – excited with 344 nm wavelength for BaWO₄ NPs. These PL behaviors attributed the existence of intrinsic transitions in the [MO₄]^2-$[{\text{MO}}_4{]}^{2-}$ (M = Mo and W) tetrahedrons of their crystal lattices.     

Electromagnetic superconductivity of vacuum induced by strong magnetic field: Numerical evidence in lattice gauge theory

Using numerical simulations of quenched SU(2)$\mathit{SU}(2)$ gauge theory we demonstrate that an external magnetic field leads to spontaneous generation of quark condensates with quantum numbers of electrically charged ρ   mesons if the strength of the magnetic field exceeds the critical value e_Bc=0.927(77) GeV²$e{B}_c=0.927(77){\text{GeV}}^2$ or _Bc=(1.56±0.13)⋅10¹⁶ Tesla$B_c=(1.56\pm 0.13)\cdot {10}^{16}\text{Tesla}$. The condensation of the charged ρ mesons in strong magnetic field is a key feature of the magnetic-field-induced electromagnetic superconductivity of the vacuum.     

He2 and HeH molecular ions in a strong magnetic field: The Lagrange-mesh approach

Accurate calculations for the ground state of the molecular ions He³⁺₂ and HeH²⁺ placed in a strong magnetic field B?10² a.u.$B?{10}^2\text{a.u.}$ (≈2.35×10¹¹ G$\approx 2.35\times {10}^{11}\text{G}$) using the Lagrange-mesh method are presented. The Born–Oppenheimer approximation of zero order (infinitely massive centers) and the parallel configuration (molecular axis parallel to the magnetic field) are considered. Total energies are found with 9–10 s.d. The obtained results show that the molecular ions He³⁺₂ and HeH²⁺ exist at B>100 a.u.$B>100\text{a.u.}$ and B>1000 a.u.$B>1000\text{a.u.}$, respectively, as predicted in Turbiner and López Vieyra (2007) [1] while a saddle point in the potential curve appears for the first time at B∼80 a.u.$B\sim 80\text{a.u.}$ and B∼740 a.u.$B\sim 740\text{a.u.}$, respectively.     

Scattering rates for leptogenesis: Damping of lepton flavour coherence and production of singlet neutrinos

Using the Closed Time Path (CTP) approach, we perform a systematic leading order calculation of the relaxation rate of flavour correlations of left-handed Standard Model leptons. This quantity is of pivotal relevance for flavoured leptogenesis in the Early Universe, and we find it to be 5.19×10⁻³T$5.19\times {10}^{-3}T$ at T=10⁷ GeV$T={10}^7\text{GeV}$ and 4.83×10⁻³T$4.83\times {10}^{-3}T$ at T=10¹³ GeV$T={10}^{13}\text{GeV}$, in substantial agreement with estimates used in previous phenomenological analyses. These values apply to the Standard Model with a Higgs-boson mass of 125 GeV$125\text{GeV}$. The dependence of the numerical coefficient on the temperature T is due to the renormalisation group running. The leading linear and logarithmic dependencies of the flavour relaxation rate on the gauge and top-quark couplings are extracted, such that the results presented in this work can readily be applied to extensions of the Standard Model. We also derive the production rate of light (compared to the temperature) sterile right-handed neutrinos, a calculation that relies on the same methods. We confirm most details of earlier results, but find a substantially larger contribution from the t-channel exchange of fermions.     

Enhanced x-ray emissions from low-density high-Z mixture plasmas generated with intense nanosecond laser

Enhancement of x-ray emissions from laser-produced plasmas is imperative for various applications. Low-density Au–Gd mixture was proposed to enhance the x-ray emissions. X-ray emissions were simulated for the laser-irradiated gold and Au–Gd mixtures with different initial densities. It was shown that 1.34 times conversion efficiency has been achieved for the 0.05 g/cm³$0.05\text{g}/{\text{cm}}^3$ Au–Gd (6/4)$(6/4)$ mixture comparing with the 10 g/cm³$10\text{g}/{\text{cm}}^3$ gold. The enhancement is attributed to higher Rosseland mean opacities of the mixture and reduction of the ion kinetic energy caused by the lower initial density.     

Shot noise in HTc superconductor quantum point contact system

We study the electrical transport properties of a quantum point contact between a lead and a high Tc superconductor. For this, we use the Hamiltonian approach and non-equilibrium Green functions of the system. The electrical current and the shot noise are calculated with this formalism. We consider d_x²−y²${\mathrm{d}}_{x^2-y^2}$, d_xy${\mathrm{d}}_{\mathit{xy}}$, d_x²−y²+is${\mathrm{d}}_{x^2-y^2}+\mathrm{is}$ and d_xy+is${\mathrm{d}}_{\mathit{xy}}+\mathrm{is}$ symmetries for the pair potential. Also we explore the s₊₋${\mathrm{s}}_{+-}$ and s₊₊${\mathrm{s}}_{++}$ symmetries describing the behavior of the ferropnictides superconductors. We found that for d_xy${\mathrm{d}}_{\mathit{xy}}$ symmetry there is not a zero bias conductance peak and for d+is$\mathrm{d}+\mathrm{is}$ symmetries there is a displacement of the transport properties. From shot noise and current, the Fano factor is calculated and we found that it takes values of effective charge between e and 2e  , this is explained by the diffraction of quasiparticles in the contact. For the s₊₋${\mathrm{s}}_{+-}$ and s₊₊${\mathrm{s}}_{++}$ symmetries the results show that the electrical current and the shot noise depend on the mixing coefficient, furthermore, the effective electric charge can take values between 0 and 2e, in contrast with the results obtained for s wave superconductors.     

Studies on the properties of sputter-deposited Al-doped ZnO films

ZnO is a well known material; however, the research interest in this material is still high enough because ZnO is one of the materials with the most potential for optoelectronics due to its promising properties of high conductivity as well as good transparency. In this work, aluminum doped zinc oxide films (ZnO:Al) were deposited by RF magnetron sputtering on glass and silicon substrates with different deposition times of 2, 3 and 4 h. The aim of this work is the study of the deposition time effect on the properties of ZnO:Al films. It is shown that films grow with the hexagonal c$c$-axis perpendicular to the substrate surface. The morphological characteristics show a granular and homogenous surface and the cristallinity of the films is enhanced with increased deposition time. The deposited films show good optical transmittance (80%–90%) in the visible and near infrared spectrum. The calculated band gap is about 3.3 eV. The electrical ZnO:Al/Si(p) junction properties were investigated using the Capacitance–Voltage (C–V$C\text{–}V$) dependence. Calculations of the built-in potential from classical 1/C²–V$1/C^2\text{–}V$ characterization give values between 0.54 and 0.71 V.     

FCNC-induced heavy-quark events at the LHC from supersymmetry

We analyze the production and subsequent decay of the neutral Higgs bosons h≡h⁰,H⁰,A⁰$h\equiv h^0,H^0,A^0$ of the MSSM into electrically neutral quark pairs of different flavors (qq^′≡tc,bs$q{q}^{\prime }\equiv tc,bs$, depending on h  ) at the LHC, i.e. σ(pp→h→qq^′)$\sigma (pp\to h\to q{q}^{\prime })$, and compare with the direct FCNC production mechanisms σ(pp→qq^′)$\sigma (pp\to q{q}^{\prime })$. The cross-sections are computed in the unconstrained MSSM with minimal flavor-mixing sources and taking into account the stringent bounds from b→sγ$b\to s\gamma$. We extend the results previously found for these FCNC processes, which are singularly uncommon in the SM. Specifically, we report here on the SUSY-EW part of σ(pp→h→qq^′)$\sigma (pp\to h\to q{q}^{\prime })$ and the SUSY-QCD and SUSY-EW contributions to σ(pp→bs)$\sigma (pp\to bs)$. In this way, the complete map of MSSM predictions for the qq^′$q{q}^{\prime }$-pairs produced at the LHC becomes available. The upshot is that the most favorable channels are: (1) the Higgs boson FCNC decays into bs, and (2) the direct production of tc   pairs, both of them at the ∼1 pb$\sim 1\text{pb}$ level and mediated by SUSY-QCD effects. If, however, the SUSY-QCD part is suppressed, we find a small SUSY-EW yield for σmax_{(pp→h→tc)}∼¹⁰⁻⁴ pb$\sigma {(pp\to h\to tc)}_{\max }\sim {10}^{\mathrm{-4}}\text{pb}$ but, at the same time, σmax_{(pp→h→bs)}∼0.1–1 pb$\sigma {(pp\to h\to bs)}_{\max }\sim 0.1\text{–}1\text{pb}$, which implies a significant number (∼¹⁰⁴–¹⁰⁵$\sim {10}^4\text{–}{10}^5$) of bs   pairs per 100 fb⁻¹$100{\text{fb}}^{\mathrm{-1}}$ of integrated luminosity.