Interplay between structure and magnetism in Mo12S9I9 nanowires

We investigate the equilibrium geometry and electronic structure of Mo12S9I9 nanowires using ab initio density functional calculations. The skeleton of these unusually stable nanowires consists of rigid, functionalized Mo octahedra, connected by flexible, bistable sulfur bridges. This structural flexibility translates into a capability to stretch up to approximately 20% at almost no energy cost. The nanowires change from conductors to narrow-gap magnetic semiconductors in one of their structural isomers.     

Visible photoluminescence of nanometer-sized SiGe/Si heterostructure fabricated by ion implantation

An innovative fabrication technique for the nanometer-sized SiGe/Si heterostructure was developed in this study. Ge was induced in Si substrate by two-step ion implantation. The spherical SiGe nanoclusters are self-assembled in the Si substrate by subsequent rapid thermal annealing at 1,100 °C. The diameter of the spherical SiGe nanoclusters is 5–7 nm. Visible photoluminescence from this nanometer-sized SiGe/Si heterostructure at room temperature was investigated. We found three peak energies of visible luminescence spectra at 1.97, 2.13, and 2.16 eV, respectively. The luminescence intensity depends on the number of the nanoclusters and will be decreased because of the micro-defects around the heterostructure, which is discussed in detail.     

Influence of Bi underlayer on the magnetic properties of Fe<Subscript>x</Subscript>Pt<Subscript>100-x</Subscript> (<Emphasis Type="BoldItalic">x</Emphasis> =<Emphasis Type="Bold">40</Emphasis>∼<Emphasis Type="Bold">58</Emphasis>) films

We have studied the effect of a Bi underlayer on ordering and coercivity H_c of Fe_xPt_100-x thin films (atomic content of Fe x=40∼58). We found that the Bi underlayer enhances H_c remarkably. After annealing at 400 °C for 20 min, a Bi/Fe₄₉Pt₅₁ film can realize an H_c as high as 1.07×10³ kA/m and a ratio of the remnant M_r to the saturated magnetization M_s as high as 0.93. The ordering process of FePt film was promoted by the diffusion of Bi atoms. Moreover, the Bi underlayer broadens the range of x for high H_c from 49∼55 to 43∼55. Interestingly, with Bi underlayer, the high H_c is affected by x to a less extent. PACS 75.50.Ss; 75.50.Vv; 75.60.Ej     

Confining analyte droplets on visible Si pillars for improving reproducibility and sensitivity of SALDI-TOF MS

Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry - We present a universal method to efficiently improve reproducibility and sensitivity of surface-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass...     

Porphyrin‐containing Polyimide with Enhanced Light Absorption and Photocatalysis Activity

A series of porphyrin‐containing polyimide (PI) photocatalysts were synthesized by a one‐step solvothermal method. Characterization results revealed that porphyrin was uniformly coupled into the PI framework through covalent bonding and the visible‐light absorption was greatly improved. The photodegradation activity of porphyrin‐containing PIs for methyl orange (MO) under visible light was enhanced significantly, with the highest pseudo‐first‐order rate constant 35 times higher than that of neat porphyrin and 10 times higher than that of porphyrin‐free PI. The enhancement is mainly attributed to an increased light harvesting accompanied by a varied HOMO level, which was clarified by control experiments, characterizations and theoretical calculations. This work provides an insight into multiple effects of dye molecules in dye‐containing heterogeneous photocatalysts.     

Structural damage detection using convolutional neural networks combining strain energy and dynamic response

Meccanica - Based on the classification ability of a convolutional neural network (CNN), this paper proposes a structural damage detection method in which a CNN is used to classify the location and...     

Dynamics and isolation properties for a pneumatic near-zero frequency vibration isolator with nonlinear stiffness and damping

Nonlinear Dynamics - Aiming to isolate disturbance vibration for heavy machines with low frequency, a novel hydro-pneumatic vibration isolator with high-static and low-dynamic (HSLD) stiffness is...