Self-assembled formation of uniform InP nanopore arrays by electrochemical anodization in HCl based electrolyte

Attempts were made to optimize the electrochemical anodization process for the formation of high-density, regular and straight nanopore arrays on InP. The structure, shape and size of the pores were very sensitive to substrate orientations, electrolyte concentrations and anodization voltages. Among (1 1 1)A, (1 1 1)B and (0 0 1) substrate orientations, the most uniform and most straight nanopore arrays were obtained on (0 0 1) substrates at anodization voltages of 5-7 V by using 1.0-1.5 M HCl electrolyte containing HNO₃. The pore depth could be controlled up to 80 μm by the anodization time.     

FIB快速加工纳米孔点阵的新方法

纳米尺度的点阵在纳米器件和基础科学研究方面都具有非常重要的应用.目前普遍采用的聚焦离子束和电子束曝光技术可以很方便的在衬底上加工纳米量级的微细结构，但大面积的图形加工过程需要花费太多的机时.介绍一种利用设计图形BMP文件的像素点阵和实际加工区域之间的匹配关系，通过聚焦离子束加工获得所需要的纳米孔点阵的新方法.采用这种方法可以在短时间内获得大面积的纳米点阵结构. 关键词： 聚焦离子束 电子束曝光 纳米孔点阵     

Anatase type titania nanotube arrays direct fabricated by anodization without annealing

In this paper, anatase type titania nanotube arrays were direct fabricated by anodization in dimethyl sulfoxide electrolyte containing 1 wt% HF solution at above 50 °C without subsequently annealing. The length of the nanotubes decreases with increasing anodization temperature from about approximately 15 μm at 40 °C to approximately 4.5 μm at 60 °C. High resolution transmission electron microscope images and selected area electron diffraction pattern confirm the polycrystalline anatase specimen consisting of many nanocrystals with a random orientation.     

Strong photoluminescence anisotropy in porous silicon layers prepared by polarized-light assisted anodization

Linearly-polarized infrared (1.06 μm) laser light with intensities ranging from 5.3 to 97 mW/cm² has been used to obtain anisotropically luminescent porous silicon (PSi) layers by photoanodic etching in a hydrofluoric acid solution. Remarkably large photoluminescence (PL) anisotropy has been observed in samples prepared with the highest illumination intensity. These samples show very low degrees of linear polarization when the PL excitation light is polarized parallel to the polarization direction of the etching light. When the excitation light is polarized perpendicular to that, we obtain usual degrees of linear polarization of several percent. This result indicates that anisotropic Si nanostructures in PSi layers can be made isotropic with high orientation selectivity by the polarized-light assisted technique. A simple two-dimensional model is presented to explain the observed prominent anisotropy.     

Fabrication of self-ordered nanohole arrays on Si by localized anodization and subsequent chemical etching

Nanohole arrays with a 60 nm hole periodicity were fabricated on a Si substrate by the anodization of an aluminum film sputtered on a Si substrate in sulfuric acid and subsequent chemical etching. The transfer of the nanoporous pattern of anodic alumina into the Si substrate was achieved by the selective removal of silicon oxide, which was produced by the anodic oxidation of the underlying Si substrate through the anodic porous alumina used as a mask.     

Poisson-Fokker-Planck model for biomolecules translocation through nanopore driven by electroosmotic flow

A non-continuous electroosmotic flow model (PFP model) is built based on Poisson equation, Fokker-Planck equation and Navier-Stokse equation, and used to predict the DNA molecule translocation through nanopore. PFP model discards the continuum assumption of ion translocation and considers ions as discrete particles. In addition, this model includes the contributions of Coulomb electrostatic potential between ions, Brownian motion of ions and viscous friction to ion transportation. No ionic diffusion coefficient and other phenomenological parameters are needed in the PFP model. It is worth noting that the PFP model can describe non-equilibrium electroosmotic transportation of ions in a channel of a size comparable with the mean free path of ion. A modified clustering method is proposed for the numerical solution of PFP model, and ion current translocation through nanopore with a radius of 1 nm is simulated using the modified clustering method. The external electric field, wall charge density of nanopore, surface charge density of DNA, as well as ion average number density, influence the electroosmotic velocity profile of electrolyte solution, the velocity of DNA translocation through nanopore and ion current blockade. Results show that the ion average number density of electrolyte and surface charge density of nanopore have a significant effect on the translocation velocity of DNA and the ion current blockade. The translocation velocity of DNA is proportional to the surface charge density of nanopore, and is inversely proportional to ion average number density of electrolyte solution. Thus, the translocation velocity of DNAs can be controlled to improve the accuracy of sequencing by adjusting the external electric field, ion average number density of electrolyte and surface charge density of nanopore. Ion current decreases when the ion average number density is larger than the critical value and increases when the ion average number density is lower than the critical value. Our numerical simulation shows that the translocation velocity of DNA given by the PFP model agrees with the experimental, results better than that given by PNP model or PB model.     

Optical detection of DNA translocation through silicon nanopore by ultraviolet light

In this paper, we propose a new optical detection scheme for nanopore-based DNA sequencing with high resolution towards eventual base identification. We use ultraviolet light for excitation of a fluorescent probe attached to DNA and a nanopore in the silicon membrane that has a significantly large refractive index and an extinction coefficient at ultraviolet wavelengths. In this study, numerical electromagnetic simulation revealed that the z-polarization component (perpendicular to the membrane plane) of the electric field was dominant near the nanopore and generated a large electric field gradient at the nanopore exit, typically with a decay length of 2 nm for a nanopore with diameter of 7 nm. The large extinction coefficient contributed to reduction in background noise coming from fluorophore-labeled DNA strands that remain behind the membrane (the cis side of the membrane). We observed a high signal-to-noise ratio of single DNA translocation events under the application of an electric field.     

离子束辅助沉积硅薄膜负极材料的研究

采用离子束辅助沉积法制备了锂离子电池硅薄膜负极材料,研究了硅薄膜的晶体结构、表面形貌和电化学性能.研究结果表明：硅薄膜是非晶态的结构;非晶态硅薄膜发生嵌脱锂反应的电位分别为0.03 V与0.34 V和0.16 V与0.49 V;硅薄膜表现出很高比容量和充放电效率,其可逆比容量和库仑效率分别为3134.4 mAh/g和87.1％;硅薄膜具有优异的循环性能,在0.5C倍率下200次循环后容量保持率为92.2%. 关键词： 硅薄膜 离子束辅助沉积 锂离子电池 负极材料     

Experimental observation of two‐layer TiO2 nanotube arrays prepared by stepping‐voltage anodization

Two‐layer TiO₂ nanotube arrays were produced by stepping down the anodic voltage during which three nanotube interface structures between the top layer and the second layer were observed by SEM. We detected a polygonal ring structure on the top surface of the second layer and offer direct evidence of the growth of this second tube layer both at the cell boundary and right beneath the bottom of the first tube layer. For these processes, a possible growth mechanism is presented. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Fabrication of open‐ended TiO2 nanotube arrays by a simple two‐step anodization

We report a two‐step anodizing approach for the fabrication of large‐scale open‐ended TiO₂ nanotube arrays (TNAs) on a conductive Au layer. In this method, a deposited Ti/Au bilayer film is initially anodized under a high potential to form and shape the TNAs. A following low potential is then in situ applied at a suitable time to slowly eliminate the remaining barrier layer at the bottom of the TNAs without further treatment. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Percolating through networks of random thresholds: finite temperature electron tunneling in metal nanocrystal arrays

We investigate how temperature affects transport through large networks of nonlinear conductances with distributed thresholds. In monolayers of weakly coupled gold nanocrystals, quenched charge disorder produces a range of local thresholds for the onset of electron tunneling. Our measurements delineate two regimes separated by a crossover temperature T*. Up to T* the nonlinear zero-temperature shape of the current-voltage curves survives, but with a threshold voltage for conduction that decreases linearly with temperature. Above T* the threshold vanishes and the low-bias conductance increases rapidly with temperature. We develop a model that accounts for these findings and predicts T*.     

Applying the statistical experimental method to evaluate the process conditions of TiO2 nanotube arrays by anodization method

Vertically oriented TiO₂ nanotube arrays were successfully produced by the anodization technique in NH₄F/H₃PO₄ electrolyte. The structure and morphology were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). It is found that TiO₂ nanotube arrays annealed at 500 °C containing 100% anatase phase and entirely converted into rutile at 800 °C. The response surface methodology (RSM) and Box-Behnken design were applied to find the optimal factor conditions in production of TiO₂ nanotube arrays. Based on the results in preliminary experiments, we selected anodization time, anodization voltage and NH₄F concentration as the key factors to investigate their effects on responses. The regression models were built by fitting the experimental results with a second-order polynomial. By using the regression models, the optimal factor conditions were obtained as follows: anodization time of 300 min; anodization voltage of 15.39 V; NH₄F concentration of 0.50 M. Corresponding to the optimal factor conditions, the predicted average length and diameter of nanotube array were 1429 nm and 33 nm, respectively. Confirmation experiments using the optimized conditions were performed: TiO₂ nanotube arrays were obtained with an average tube length of 1420 nm and average tube diameter of 36 nm. The experimental results are in good agreement with the predicted results.     

Controlling ionic current through a nanopore by tuning pH: a local equilibrium Monte Carlo study

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this work is to create a model of a nanofluidic transistor which is able to mimic the effects of pH on nanopore conductance. The pH of the electrolyte is an experimentally controllable parameter through which the charge pattern can be tuned: pH affects the ratio of the protonated/deprotonated forms of the functional groups anchored to the surface of the nanopore (for example, amino and carboxyl groups). Thus, the behaviour of the bipolar transistor changes as it becomes ion selective in acidic/basic environments. We relate the surface charge to pH and perform particle simulations (Local Equilibrium Monte Carlo) with different nanopore geometries (cylindrical and double conical). The simulations form a self consistent system with the Nernst–Planck equation with which we compute ionic flux. We discuss the mechanism behind pH-control of ionic current: formation of depletion zones.     

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用火花预电离辅助介质阻挡放电装置在大气压空气中实现了均匀的类辉光放电。通过用光谱模拟法和波尔兹曼图解法对N 2 第一负带系B2Σ→X 2Σ(0,0)带发射谱线的分析,对放电过程中N 2 的转动温度进行了诊断。研究了不同频率和放电模式下转动温度的变化规律,对由两种方法计算所得的温度进行了对比。实验结果表明,转动温度会随着外加频率的增加而缓慢的增加;当放电从类辉光模式变到丝状放电模式时,转动温度会有70K左右的升高。     

IV-Curves of tunnel junction arrays at lowered temperature by numerical simulation

We have numerically investigated the effect of lowered T on the performance of the Coulomb blockade thermometer, which has been demostrated to yield primary thermometry in the high T limit where thermal excitations compete with the Coulomb blockade. The thermometer is formed by an array of tunnel junctions whose differentiated IV—curve is used to determine the temperature. The IV—curves were calculated by computer simulations and we have obtained corrections to the analytic high T behaviour due to the lowered temperature.     

Direct imprinting of ordered and dense TiO2 nanopore arrays by using a soft template for photovoltaic applications

Highly ordered and dense TiO₂ nanopore arrays are directly nanoimprinted on a transparent conductive glass substrate by using a polymethylmethacrylate/polydimethylsiloxane (PMMA/PDMS) composite soft template, which is replicated from an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) replica mold. Results indicate that heat infiltration under vacuum conditions can ensure complete filling of PMMA into the AAO pores, and that free-standing PMMA nanorods with an aspect ratio more than 5 can be obtained by adjusting the AAO pore depth based on a freeze-drying technique. TiO₂ nanopore arrays with different diameters from 30 to 300 nm and inter-pore distances between 70 and 450 nm can be easily fabricated by using the corresponding templates with different sizes. Preliminary solar cells are also assembled with a heterojunction of conjugated polymer/TiO₂ nanopore arrays. Results indicate that the construction of poly-(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT)/TiO₂ nanopore arrays can be more helpful in quenching the PL emission of P3HT than that of P3HT/flat TiO₂ film, and a maximum efficiency of about 0.32% can be obtained for a photovoltaic device with a TiO₂/[6,6]-phenyl-C₆₁-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM)/P3HT structure.     

Characterisation of ZnO nanorod arrays grown by a low temperature hydrothermal method

In this paper, growth steps of well defined ZnO nanorod arrays deposited on seeded substrates were investigated. To obtain ZnO seed layer on glass substrates, a successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) method was used and then ZnO nanorods were grown on seed layer using a chemical bath deposition (CBD) method. The effects of seed layer and deposition time on morphology, crystallographic structure (e.g. grain size, microstrain and dislocation density) and electrical characteristics of ZnO nanorods were studied. From the SEM micrographs, it could be seen that the ZnO nanorods densely covered the substrate and were nearly perpendicular to the substrate surface. The XRD patterns showed that the ZnO nanorod arrays had a hexagonal wurtzite structure with a preferred orientation along the (002) plane. An increase in deposition time resulted in an increase in the intensity of the preferred orientation and grain size, but a decrease in microstrain and dislocation density. Electrical activation energies of the structures were calculated as 0.15–0.85?eV from current–temperature characteristics. It was concluded that the morphologies of the structures obtained in this study via a simple and fast solution method can provide high surface areas which are important in area-dependent applications, such as solar cells, hydrogen conversion devices, sensors, etc.     

Si nanopillar arrays with nanocrystals produced by template-induced growth at room temperature

Well-aligned and closely-packed silicon nanopillar (SNP) arrays are fabricated by using a simple method with magnetron sputtering of Si on a porous anodic alumina (PAA) template at room temperature. The SNPs are formed by selective growth on the top of the PAA pore walls. The growth mechanism analysis indicates that the structure of the SNPs can be modulated by the pore spacing of the PAA and the sputtering process and is independent of the wall width of the PAA. Moreover, nanocrystals are identified by using transmission electron microscopy in the as-deposited SNP samples, which are related to the heat isolation structure of the SNPs. The Raman focus depth profile reveals a high crystallization ratio on the surface.     

Organic molecules modified palladium nanowires arrays prepared by high temperature liquid phase reduction

This paper reports high temperature liquid phase synthesis of Pd nanowires using chemically modified porous anodic aluminium oxide as template. In this synthesis process, oleic acid is used to modify the inner wall of the pores and Pd^2＋ complex with oleylamine is filled into the channel of the template. The complex is then reduced to give oleylamine-capped Pd nanowires. This paper suggests that oleic acid can improve the environment of inner wall of the pores, leading to the formation of uniform Pd nanowires. The synthetic process can be extended to make other types of nanowires.     

Reconstruction of the in-depth temperature distribution for biological objects by linear phased arrays

The feasibility of the reconstruction of two-dimensional temperature distributions in biological objects with the use of linear phased arrays is investigated theoretically with allowances made for the actual array directivity patterns and without using the data on the absorption coefficient. The method provides an opportunity to reconstruct the temperature distribution in the region under investigation with an accuracy of about 0.5 K from the data of 1.5-min-long measurements when the temperature of the region of interest is raised by 5–10 K.