Mössbauer study of layered iron hydroxysulfides: Tochilinite and valleriite

Natural and synthetic layered iron hydroxysulfides: tochilinite and valleriite, have been investigated by Mössbauer spectroscopy. Tochilinite, magnetite, troilite, and pyrite phases were found in the products of tochilinite synthesis under different conditions. The relative contents of the phases found are determined as functions of the relative magnesium content in the initial mixture. Crystallochemical identification of the ⁵⁷Fe subspectra of valleriite has been performed.     

Preparation and mechanical properties of layers made of recombinant spider silk proteins and silk from silk worm

Layers of recombinant spider silks and native silks from silk worms were prepared by spin-coating and casting of various solutions. FT-IR spectra were recorded to investigate the influence of the different mechanical stress occurring during the preparation of the silk layers. The solubility of the recombinant spider silk proteins SO1-ELP, C16, AQ24NR3, and of the silk fibroin from Bombyx mori were investigated in hexafluorisopropanol, ionic liquids and concentrated salt solutions. The morphology and thickness of the layers were determined by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) or with a profilometer. The mechanical behaviour was investigated by acoustic impedance analysis by using a quartz crystal microbalance (QCMB) as well as by microindentation. The density of silk layers (d<300 nm) was determined based on AFM and QCMB measurements. At silk layers thicker than 300 nm significant changes of the half-band-half width can be correlated with increasing energy dissipation. Microhardness measurements demonstrate that recombinant spider silk and sericine-free Bombyx mori silk layers achieve higher elastic penetration modules E_EP and Martens hardness values H_M than those of polyethylenterephthalate (PET) and polyetherimide (PEI) foils.     

Nanoparticle composites: FePt with wide-band-gap semiconductor

We present a simple way to synthesize FePt and ZnO (wide-band-gap semiconductor) nanoparticle composites. The FePt nanoparticles were fabricated using the method reported by Sun et al. By controlling the heating rate, 3 nm FePt nanoparticles were synthesized. Well-dispersed FePt and ZnO nanoparticle composites were prepared by further adding zinc acetate and oleyl amine into the 3 nm FePt nanoparticle dispersion. By controlling the molar ratio of the FePt and zinc acetate, FePt and ZnO nanoparticle composites with different FePt particle fractions were obtained. The intensity of photo luminescence spectra of the nanoparticle composites increases very much with decreasing FePt particle fraction, whereas the peak position shifts a little. After annealing at 550 °C for half an hour, the nanoparticle composites become magnetically hard or semi-hard with coercivity much dependent on the FePt particle volume fraction. The coercivity of the composites increases with annealing temperature. The composites hold the promise of applications in new generation recording and/or optical devices.     

The Design of Single Mode Large Cross-section Glass-based Waveguides for Photonic Integrated Circuits

This paper presents our recent simulation results and novel designs of single mode large cross-section glass-based waveguides for photonic integrated circuits (PICs). Simulations were performed using an in-house Finite Difference (FD) based mode solver and the FD Beam propagation Method (FD-BPM). Our simulation results show that this innovative technology could provide a simplified means to couple optical energy efficiently between optical components in a single chip. This would provide the base for the future large-scale integration of optical components in PICs. The novel idea of using single mode large cross-section glass-based waveguides as an optical integration platform is an evolutionary innovative solution for the monolithic integration of optical components, in which the glass-based structures act both as waveguides and as an optical bench for integration. This allows easy and efficient optical coupling between optical components and optical fibres, removing costly and tedious alignment problems and considerably reducing optical coupling losses in PICs. We expect that the glass-based waveguide PICs technology will enable the emergence of a new generation of compact, reliable, high speed, and multifunctional devices.     

Influence of the defect structure on the electrical conductivity of Pb5Ge3O11 single crystals at high temperatures

The impedance spectra of Pb₅Ge₃O₁₁ single crystals are measured in the frequency range from 5 Hz to 13 MHz at temperatures of 600 to 800 K in dry air and in a dry or wet nitrogen gas. It is found that the temperature and the gas composition significantly affect the electrical properties of the compound. The data obtained are used to discuss the origin of crystal lattice defects and their influence on charge transfer. It is concluded that the conduction is mixed in character (p-type electronic and ionic due to oxygen ions). The proton conduction is shown experimentally to be feasible. The possible mechanisms of proton transport in Pb₅Ge₃O₁₁ are discussed.     

Comparison of detection efficiencies of negatively charged gold-alkanethiolate-, gold-sulfur- and gold-clusters in ToF-SIMS

In order to improve quantification of high mass ions, the influence of cluster composition on detection efficiencies has been studied using a TOF-SIMS IV with the extended capability of postaccelerating ions up to 20 keV. In this experimental study, we focus on the comparison of detection efficiencies for three types of negatively charged secondary cluster ions: gold-alkanethiolate-clusters (Au_xM_y), gold-sulfur-clusters (Au_xS_y) and gold-clusters (Au_x). The clusters were sputtered from self-assembled monolayers of hexadecanethiols on gold substrates using 10 keV Ar⁺ primary ions. The detection efficiencies were derived on the basis of a function for the secondary electron yield and a fourth-order approximated Poisson probability distribution for electron propagation and amplification within the microchannel plate.In addition to the well-known dependence of detection efficiencies on ion mass and energy, which has already been studied for positively charged ions, we were able to show a similar behaviour for the investigated negatively charged secondary ions. We have observed major variations among the three types of clusters at similar mass and energy as predicted in a theoretical approach. The observed differences are due to the different composition of the investigated clusters which has a major influence on the kinetic ion induced electron emission within the microchannel plate. For the first time it was possible to experimentally verify these predictions for detection efficiencies.     

System of cryostating wide-aperture nonlinear crystals for generating the fifth harmonic of neodymium-laser radiation

Translated from Zhurnal Prikladnoi Spektroskopii, Vol. 51, No. 5, pp. 867–870, November, 1989.     

Decompositions of continuity and complete continuity

We introduce the notions of δ-t-sets, δ_β-t-sets, δ-B-continuity and δ_β -B-continuity and obtain decompositions of continuity and complete continuity.