The mechanism of the recrystallization process in epitaxial GaN under dynamic stress field: atomistic origin of planar defect formation

The mechanism of the recrystallization in epitaxial (0001) GaN film, introduced by the indentation technique, is probed by lattice dynamic studies using Raman spectroscopy. The recrystallized region is identified by micro‐Raman area mapping. ‘Pop‐in’ bursts in loading lines indicate nucleation of dislocations and climb of dislocations. These processes set in plastic motion of lattice atoms under stress field at the center of indentation for the initiation of the recrystallization process. A planar defect migration mechanism is evolved. A pivotal role of vacancy migration is noted, for the first time, as the rate‐limiting factor for the dislocation dynamics initiating the recrystallization process in GaN. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A refined cellular automaton model to rectify impractical vehicular movement behavior

When implementing cellular automata (CA) into a traffic simulation, one common defect yet to be rectified is the abrupt deceleration when vehicles encounter stationary obstacles or traffic jams. To be more in line with real world vehicular movement, this paper proposes a piecewise-linear movement to replace the conventional particle-hopping movement adopted in most previous CA models. Upon this adjustment and coupled with refined cell system, a new CA model is developed using the rationale of Forbes’ et al. car-following concept. The proposed CA model is validated on a two-lane freeway mainline context. It shows that this model can fix the unrealistic deceleration behaviors, and thus can reflect genuine driver behavior in the real world. The model is also capable of revealing Kerner’s three-phase traffic patterns and phase transitions among them. Furthermore, the proposed CA model is applied to simulate a highway work zone wherein traffic efficiency (maximum flow rates) and safety (speed deviations) impacted by various control schemes are tested.     

Laterally-grown ZnO-nanowire photodetectors on glass substrate

We propose a simple method to fabricate laterally-grown ZnO-nanowire photodetectors on glass substrates. It was found that cutoff of the fabricated photodetector occurred at 360 nm with a transition region of only 30 nm. With an incident light wavelength of 350 nm and an applied bias of 0.1 V, it was found that measured responsivity of the photodetector was 6.04×10⁻³ A/W with an ultraviolet-to-visible rejection ratio larger than 600.     

非旋转性自由表面重力驻波的Euler与Lagrange方法解间的转换

对于等深水中的非旋转性重力驻波流场,本文用Euler与Lagrange两种方法求得其至三阶的解,根据同一粒流体质点在相同时间与位置处其流速值为唯一与质量守恒及在自由表面水位的Euler形式解与Lagrange形式解相同等特性,来推导其间互可转换.由一系列连续的Taylor级数展开,在考虑波动场中各流体质点的运动轨迹与运动周期条件下,将已知的Euler解转换成完全未知的Lagrange形式解.接着再将所得的Lagrange解转换成对应的Euler形式,均可得到完全相同的结果.由此可得知,在考虑波动场各流体质 关键词： 重力驻波 Euler与Lagrange解间的转换 质点运动轨迹     

Two isomeric 2‐[4‐chloro‐2‐fluoro‐5‐(prop‐2‐ynyloxy)phenyl]hexahydro­isoindole‐1,3‐dione compounds

The molecular structures of 2‐[4‐chloro‐2‐fluoro‐5‐(prop‐2‐ynyloxy)phenyl]‐1,3,4,5,6,7‐hexahydro­isoindole‐1,3‐dione, C₁₇H₁₃ClFNO₃, (I), and the isomeric compound 2‐[4‐chloro‐2‐fluoro‐5‐(prop‐2‐ynyloxy)phenyl]‐cis‐1,3,3a,4,7,7a‐hexahydro­isoindole‐1,3‐dione, (II), are, as anticipated, significantly different in their conformations and in the distances between the farthest two atoms. The six‐membered ring of the 1,3,4,5,6,7‐hexahydro­isoindole‐1,3‐dione moiety in (I) adopts a half‐chair conformation. The dihedral angle between the five‐membered dione ring of (I) and the benzene ring is 50.96 (7)°. The six‐membered ring of the cis‐1,3,3a,4,7,7a‐hexahydro­isoindole‐1,3‐dione moiety in (II) adopts a boat conformation. The dihedral angle in (II) between the five‐membered dione ring and the benzene ring is 61.03 (13)°. In the crystal structures, the molecules are linked by C—H⋯O hydrogen bonds and weak π–π interactions. Compound (I) is a much more potent herbicide than (II). The Cl⋯H distances between the farthest two atoms in (I) and (II) are 11.37 and 9.97 Å, respectively.     

Towards the development of theoretically correct liquid activity coefficient models

We propose a general approach for developing liquid activity coefficient models based on the concept of local composition that satisfy at least two important physical conditions: (1) the total number of neighboring molecules around one molecule of species A must be a constant at any temperature for all possible mixture compositions, and (2) the number of pairs between any two species A–B determined from the local composition of B around A must be the same as that of A around B. Most commonly used liquid activity coefficient models (such as UNIQUAC) satisfy condition (1) but fail to meet condition (2), and thus are considered as fundamentally flawed. We propose a general formulation for the local composition equation containing a symmetric function of species A and B which ensures condition (2) be always satisfied. We show that the composition and temperature dependence of the symmetric functions can be completely obtained from condition (1), resulting in a new class of excess Gibbs free energy models. It is found that such a model can quantitatively reproduce the results of Monte Carlo simulation for various types of lattice fluids, while conventional models are merely qualitative. Furthermore, such a model is more accurate than the UNIQUAC model in correlating experimental data, especially in the dilute regime. Therefore, models developed based on this approach are theoretically sound and potentially applicable to a broader range of conditions.     

Synthesis and electromagnetic properties of polyaniline-coated silica/maghemite nanoparticles

Polyaniline coated silica/maghemite nanoparticles (PANI/SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ composites) were synthesized by the combination of a sol-gel process and an in-situ polymerization method, in which ferrous and ferric salts as well as tetraethyl orthosilica (TEOS) acted as the precursor for γ-Fe₂O₃ and silica, respectively. As a result, the SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ particle showed a core-shell structure, with γ-Fe₂O₃ as the magnetic core and silica as the shell of the particle. The shell thickness can be controlled by changing the TEOS concentration. The PANI/SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ composites revealed a multilayer core-shell structure, where PANI is the outer shell of the composite. The doping level and the conductivity of PANI/SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ composites decreased with increasing the TEOS content due to the presence of the less coated PANI on the SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ core at higher TEOS content. For a SQUID analysis at room temperature, all γ-Fe₂O₃ containing composites showed a typical superparamagnetic behavior. The saturation magnetization of SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles decreased with increasing the TEOS content due to the increase in silica shell thickness, while the saturation magnetization of PANI/SiO₂/γ-Fe₂O₃ composites also decreased with increasing the TEOS content, which is attributed to the lower conductivity of PANI in the composites at higher TEOS content.     

Effect of chemical structure of interface modifier of TiO2 on photovoltaic properties of poly(3-hexylthiophene)/TiO2 layered solar cells

Two classes of phosphonic acid-bearing organic molecules, 2-oligothiophene phosphonic acid and omega-(2-thienyl)alkyl phosphonic acid were adopted as interface modifiers (IMs) of the TiO(2) surface, to increase its compatibility with poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT). The self-assembled monolayers of these molecules on titania surface were characterized by making contact angle measurements and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Atomic force microscopic (AFM) images revealed that the adsorption of IMs effectively smooths the TiO(2) surface. Both photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and PL lifetime measurements were made to investigate the photoinduced properties of the TiO(2)/IM/P3HT layered-junction. The PL quenching efficiency increased with the number of thiophene rings and as the alkyl chain-length in IMs decreased. Meanwhile, the decline in the PL lifetime followed a similar trend as the PL quenching efficiency. Additionally, the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the ITO/TiO(2)/IM/P3HT/Au devices was examined by measuring their photocurrent density-applied voltage (J-V) curves. The experimental results indicated that the short-circuit current density (J(SC)) increased with the number of thiophene units and as the hydrocarbon chain-length in IMs decreased. However, the open-circuit voltage (V(OC)) of the devices slightly fell as the energy level of the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of IM decreased. The PCE of the device with 2-terthiophene phosphonic acid was 2.5 times that of the device with 10-(2-thienyl)decyl phosphonic acid.     

Liquid crystalline conjugated polymers and their applications in organic electronics

This article describes the syntheses and electro‐optical applications of liquid crystalline (LC) conjugated polymers, for example, poly(p‐phenylenevinylene), polyfluorene, polythiophene, and other conjugated polymers. The polymerization involves several mechanisms: the Gilch route, Heck coupling, or Knoevenagel condensation for poly(p‐phenylenevinylene)s, the Suzuki‐ or Yamamoto‐coupling reaction for polyfluorenes, and miscellaneous coupling reactions for other conjugated polymers. These LC conjugated polymers are classified into two types: conjugated main chain polymers with long alkyl side chains, namely main‐chain type LC polymers, and conjugated polymers grafting with mesogenic side groups, namely side‐chain type LC conjugated polymers. In general, the former shows higher transition temperature and only nematic phase; the latter possesses lower transition temperature and more mesophases, for example, smectic and nematic phases, depending on the structure of mesogenic side chains. The fully conjugated main chain promises them as good candidates for polarized electroluminescent or field‐effect devices. The polarized emission can be obtained by surface rubbing or thermal annealing in liquid crystalline phase, with maximum dichroic ratio more than 20. In addition, conjugated oligomers with LC properties are also included and discussed in this article. Several oligo‐fluorene derivatives show outstanding polarized emission properties and potential use in LCD backlight application. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 2713–2733, 2009