On the role of inherent structures in glass-forming materials: I. The vitrification process

In this work, we investigate the role of inherent structures in the vitrification process of glass-forming materials by using a two-component Lennard-Jones mixture. We start with a simplified model that describes the dynamics of the atomistic system as a Poisson process consisting of a series of transitions from one potential energy minimum (inherent structure) to another, the rate of individual transitions being described by a first-order kinetic law. We investigate the validity of this model by comparing the mean square displacement resulting from atomistic molecular dynamics (MD) trajectories with the corresponding mean square displacement based on inherent structures. Furthermore, in the case of vitrification via stepwise cooling, we identify the role of the potential energy landscape in determining the properties of the resulting glass. Interestingly, the cooling rate is not sufficient to define the resulting glass in a stepwise cooling process, because the time spent by the system at different temperatures (length of the steps) has a highly nonlinear impact on the properties of the resulting glass. In contrast to previous investigations of supercooled liquids, we focus on a range of temperatures close to and below the glass transition temperature, where the use of MD is incapable of producing equilibrated samples of the metastable supercooled state. Our aim is to develop a methodology that enables mapping the dynamics under these conditions to a coarse-grained first-order kinetic model based on the Poisson process approximation. This model can be used in order to extend our dynamical sampling ability to much broader time scales and therefore allow us to create computer glasses with cooling rates closer to those used experimentally. In a continuation to this work, we provide the mathematical formulation for lifting the coarse-grained Poisson process model and reproducing the full dynamics of the atomistic system.     

On the role of inherent structures in glass-forming materials: II. Reconstruction of the mean square displacement by rigorous lifting of the inherent structure dynamics

In a previous paper, we investigated the role of inherent structures in the vitrification process of glass-forming materials, showing that the dynamical transitions between inherent structures (states) can be well predicted by a first-order kinetic scheme based on infrequent-event theory at low temperatures. In this work, we utilize and extend that methodology in order to completely reconstruct the system dynamics in the form of the mean square atomic displacement as a function of time at finite temperatures on the basis of the succession of transitions in a network of states, the vibrational contribution being evaluated on the basis of short molecular dynamics runs artificially trapped within each one of the states. In order to do so, we provide the mathematical formulation for lifting the coarse-grained Poisson process model of transitions between states back to the atomistic level and thereby reproducing the full dynamics of the atomistic system within the Poisson approximation. Our result shows excellent agreement for temperatures around and below the glass transition temperature of our model Lennard-Jones two-component mixtures. Clearly, our approach is able to reproduce the full dynamics of the atomistic system at low temperatures, where the Poisson approximation is valid.     

Direct Chemical Fine‐Tuning of Electronic Properties in Sc2Ir6−xPdxB

Crystal orbital Hamilton population (COHP) bonding analysis has predicted that ScPd₃B_0.5 is the least stable compound of the entire series Sc₂Ir_6?xPd_xB. Here, we report a systematic study of Sc₂Ir_6?xPd_xB (x=3, 5 and 6) by means of ¹¹B nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), Knight shift (K) and nuclear spin‐lattice relaxation rate (1/T₁). NMR results combined with theoretical band structure calculations provide a measure of s‐ and non‐s‐character Fermi‐level density of states. We present direct evidence that the enhanced s‐state character of the Fermi level density of states (DOS) in ScPd₃B_0.5 reduces the strength of the B 2p and Pd 4d hybridized states across the entire Sc₂Ir_6?xPd_xB series. This hybridization strength relates to the opening of a deep pseudogap in the density of states of Sc₂IrPd₅B and the chemical bonding instability of ScPd₃B_0.5. This study is an experimental realization of a chemical fine‐tuning of the electronic properties in intermetallic perovskites.     

Searching for new host compounds: synthesis and characterization of novel crown ether-functionalized dendrimers

Novel lipophilic dendrimers as host compounds, that is, 7-15, containing crown ether moieties with different sizes as the core, surrounded by first, second or third generation poly(aromatic ether) wedges, were synthesized by the use of bis(bromomethyl)-substituted crown ethers and Fréchet-type poly(benzyl ether) dendrons as building blocks. The compounds were fully characterized.     

Mechanisms and energetics of hydride dissociation reactions on surfaces of plasma-deposited silicon thin films

We report results from a detailed analysis of the fundamental silicon hydride dissociation processes on silicon surfaces and discuss their implications for the surface chemical composition of plasma-deposited hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) thin films. The analysis is based on a synergistic combination of first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations of hydride dissociation on the hydrogen-terminated Si(001)-(2x1) surface and molecular-dynamics (MD) simulations of adsorbed SiH(3) radical precursor dissociation on surfaces of MD-grown a-Si:H films. Our DFT calculations reveal that, in the presence of fivefold coordinated surface Si atoms, surface trihydride species dissociate sequentially to form surface dihydrides and surface monohydrides via thermally activated pathways with reaction barriers of 0.40-0.55 eV. The presence of dangling bonds (DBs) results in lowering the activation barrier for hydride dissociation to 0.15-0.20 eV, but such DB-mediated reactions are infrequent. Our MD simulations on a-Si:H film growth surfaces indicate that surface hydride dissociation reactions are predominantly mediated by fivefold coordinated surface Si atoms, with resulting activation barriers of 0.35-0.50 eV. The results are consistent with experimental measurements of a-Si:H film surface composition using in situ attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, which indicate that the a-Si:H surface is predominantly covered with the higher hydrides at low temperatures, while the surface monohydride, SiH((s)), becomes increasingly more dominant as the temperature is increased.     

Synthesis of 2D Germanane (GeH): a New,Fast, and Facile Approach

Germanane (GeH), a germanium analogue of graphane, has recently attracted considerable interest because its remarkable combination of properties makes it an extremely suitable candidate to be used as 2D material for field effect devices, photovoltaics, and photocatalysis. Up to now, the synthesis of GeH has been conducted by substituting Ca by H in a β‐CaGe₂ layered Zintl phase through topochemical deintercalation in aqueous HCl. This reaction is generally slow and takes place over 6 to 14 days. The new and facile protocol presented here allows to synthesize GeH at room temperature in a significantly shorter time (a few minutes), which renders this method highly attractive for technological applications. The GeH produced with this method is highly pure and has a band gap (E_g) close to 1.4 eV, a lower value than that reported for germanane synthesized using HCl, which is promising for incorporation of GeH in solar cells.     

Multifunctionality of Reduced Graphene Oxide in Bioderived Polylactide/Poly(Dodecylene Furanoate) Nanocomposite Films

This work reports on the first attempt to prepare bioderived polymer films by blending polylactic acid (PLA) and poly(dodecylene furanoate) (PDoF). This blend, containing 10 wt% PDoF, was filled with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) in variable weight fractions (from 0.25 to 2 phr), and the resulting nanocomposites were characterized to assess their microstructural, thermal, mechanical, optical, electrical, and gas barrier properties. The PLA/PDoF blend resulted as immiscible, and the addition of rGO, which preferentially segregated in the PDoF phase, resulted in smaller (from 2.6 to 1.6 µm) and more irregularly shaped PDoF domains and in a higher PLA/PDoF interfacial interaction, which suggests the role of rGO as a blend compatibilizer. rGO also increased PLA crystallinity, and this phenomenon was more pronounced when PDoF was also present, thus evidencing a synergism between PDoF and rGO in accelerating the crystallization kinetics of PLA. Dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA) showed that the glass transition of PDoF, observed at approx. 5 °C, shifted to a higher temperature upon rGO addition. The addition of 10 wt% PDoF in PLA increased the strain at break from 5.3% to 13.0% (+145%), and the addition of 0.25 phr of rGO increased the tensile strength from 35.6 MPa to 40.2 MPa (+13%), without significantly modifying the strain at break. Moreover, rGO decreased the electrical resistivity of the films, and the relatively high percolation threshold (between 1 and 2 phr) was probably linked to the low aspect ratio of rGO nanosheets and their preferential distribution inside PDoF domains. PDoF and rGO also modified the optical transparency of PLA, resulting in a continuous decrease in transmittance in the visible/NIR range. Finally, rGO strongly modified the gas barrier properties, with a remarkable decrease in diffusivity and permeability to gases such as O₂, N_2, and CO₂. Overall, the presented results highlighted the positive and sometimes synergistic role of PDoF and rGO in tuning the thermomechanical and functional properties of PLA, with simultaneous enhancement of ductility, crystallization kinetics, and gas barrier performance, and these novel polymer nanocomposites could thus be promising for packaging applications.     

Forecasting mortality rate by multivariate singular spectrum analysis

In this paper, we investigate the possibility of using multivariate singular spectrum analysis (SSA), a nonparametric technique in the field of time series analysis, for mortality forecasting. We consider a real data application with 9 European countries: Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, over a period 1900 to 2009, and a simulation study based on the data set. The results show the superiority of multivariate SSA in comparison with the univariate SSA, in terms of forecasting accuracy.     

Free volume in C60 modified PPO polymer membranes by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy

PPO (poly(2,6-dimethyl-1,4-phenylene oxide)) is a well-known membrane material showing good gas separation properties. The incorporation of nanoparticles can enhance or deteriorate the performance of composite membranes, sometimes depending only on the way of the composite preparation. We have modified the PPO polymer with C60 fullerenes up to a content of 2 wt %. Previous investigations showed a strong dependence of permeability on whether the C60 is simply dispersed in the polymer or chemically bonded to the polymer chains. Free volume effects were suggested as an explanation but not experimentally confirmed. Here, we present free volume studies by positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy. An additional long positron lifetime shows the increased free volume of composite samples, while the high electron affinity of C60 helps to indicate the homogeneity of the samples. Combining the presented results with permeability measurements refines the understanding of this promising membrane material.     

Single‐crystal sapphire microstructure for high‐resolution synchrotron X‐ray monochromators

We report on the growth and characterization of sapphire single crystals for X‐ray optics applications. Structural defects were studied by means of laboratory double‐crystal X‐ray diffractometry and white‐beam synchrotron‐radiation topography. The investigations confirmed that the main defect types are dislocations. The best quality crystal was grown using the Kyropoulos technique. Therein the dislocation density was 10²–10³ cm⁻² and a small area with approximately 2*2 mm² did not show dislocation contrast in many reflections. This crystal has suitable quality for application as a backscattering monochromator. A clear correlation between growth rate and dislocation density is observed, though growth rate is not the only parameter impacting the quality.