Photoinduced Ordering Transition in Microdroplets of Liquid Crystals with Azo‐Dendrimer

Ordering transitions are observed in azo‐dendrimer‐dissolved nematic liquid crystal (NLC) droplets dispersed in a glycerol matrix. The dendrimer molecules are spontaneously attached at the interface between NLC and glycerol, so that the nematic directors orient perpendicular to the interface, in the radial configuration. Photoisomerization makes the directors be tangential to the interface, in a photoinduced ordering transition from radial to bipolar structure. Similar experiments are conducted both in cholesteric (Ch) and smectic‐A (SmA) LC droplets. Complicated photoinduced ordering transitions are also observed in Ch and SmA droplets, and the associated molecular orientation changes are discussed. Photoisomerizable azo‐dendrimer molecules provide a possible way to control orientation, even in microdroplet systems in which the interface cannot be treated by conventional surface agents.     

Continuous flame oxidation in supercritical water

Abstract

Continuous flames have been observed in Supercritical water oxidation (scWO) of isopropyl alcohol (IPA), using a vertical continuous reactor with sapphire windows and a mixing nozzle. Two types of continuous flame were confirmed: the one was long pale blue colored and the other was red short cone shaped, changing blue to red at around air ratio 2.0. The flame was strongly influenced by IPA concentration, air ratio and design of the mixing nozzle. Results for decomposition of PA are presented for IPA concentrations ranging from 600 up to 28260 ppm as TOC and initial reactor temperatures, were mostly around 490°C, at 25 MPa. Decomposition rate at steady state was over 99.9%. Experimentally measured CO₂ and O₂ concentrations at the flue gas were in good agreement with theoretically calculated values. Even for low air ratio as 1.1, high decomposition rate without CO, NO, NO₂ was achieved.     

Initial growth process and surface structure of Ag on Si(111) studied by low-energy Ion-Scattering Spectroscopy (ISS) and LEED-AES

The growth process of silver on a Si(111) substrate has been studied in detail by low-energy ion-scattering spectroscopy (ISS) combined with LEED-AES. Neon ions of 500 eV were used as probe ions of ISS. The ISS experiments have revealed that the growth at room temperature and at high temperature are quite different from each other even in the submonolayer coverage range. The following growth models have been proposed for the respective temperatures. At room temperature, the deposited Ag forms a two-dimensional (2D) island at around 2/3 monolayer (ML) coverage, where the Ag atoms are packed commensurately with the Si(111)1 substrate. One third of the substrate Si surface remains uncovered there. Then it starts to develop into Ag crystal, and at a few ML coverage a 3D island of bulk Ag crystal grows directly on the substrate. An intermediate layer, which covers uniformly the whole surface before the growth of Ag crystal, does not exist. At high temperatures (>~200°C), the well-known Si(111)√3-Ag layer is formed as an intermediate layer, which consists of 2/3 ML of Ag atoms and covers the whole surface uniformly. These Ag atoms are embedded in the first double layer of the Si substrate. It is concluded that the formation of the √3 structure needs relatively high activation energy which may originate from the large displacement of Si atoms owing to the embedment of the Ag atoms, and does not proceed below about 200°C. The most stable state of the Ag atoms on the outermost Si layer is in the shape of an island, both for the Si(111) surface and for the Si(111)√3-Ag surface.     

LEED-AES study of the AuSi(100) system

The system Au/Si(100) has been studied using LEED and AES. Au films grow as Au(111) | Si(100) having six azimuthally rotated orientations at low deposition temperatures below 50°C after the formation of intermediate gold suicide layers. Crystalline gold silicide thin layers are formed on the Au(111) film after heat treatment at 100–400°C. Two types of suicide LEED pattern observed seem to have no correlation with crystallographic data reported on quenched alloy films. Heat treatment over 450°C leads to agglomeration of the film, producing a series of Au-induced superstructures. Heat treatment of the Au film over 1000°C regenerates the clean Si surface accompanied with many etch pits.     

Curved Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal Matrix Displays Driven by Field-Sequential-Color and Active-Matrix Techniques

This paper describes a curved field-sequential-color matrix display using fast-response ferroelectric liquid crystal. Black matrix and transparent electrode patterns were formed on a thin plastic substrate by a transfer method from a glass substrate. While a composite film of liquid crystal and micro-polymers of walls and fibers was formed between the flexible substrates by printing, laminating and curing processes of a solution of monomers and liquid crystal, the mechanical stability was enhanced by use of multi-functional monomers to form large display panels. The image pixels of the matrix panel were driven by an active matrix scheme using an external switch transistor array at a frequency of 180 Hz for intermittent three-primary-color backlight illumination. The flexible A4-paper-sized color display with 24 × 16 pixels and 60 Hz field frequency was demonstrated by illuminating it with sequential three-primary-color lights from light-emitting diodes of the backlight. Our display system is useful in various information displays because of its freedom of setting and location.     

Gluonic excitation of the three-quark system in SU(3) lattice QCD

We present the first study of the gluonic excitation in the three-quark (3Q) system in SU(3) lattice QCD with beta=5.8 and 16(3) x 32 at the quenched level. For the spatially fixed 3Q system, we measure the gluonic excited-state potential, which is responsible for the properties of hybrid baryons. The lowest gluonic-excitation energy in the 3Q system is found to be about 1 GeV in the hadronic scale. This large gluonic-excitation energy is expected to bring about the success of the simple quark model without gluonic modes.     

Study on crystalline properties of Er-Si-O compounds in relation to Er-related 1.54 μm photoluminescence and electrical properties

Er-Si-O crystalline compounds, which exhibit superlattice structures and sharp and strong Er-related 1.54 μm photoluminescence (PL) spectra at room temperature have been formed by self-assembling growth mechanism. Oxidation of the starting materials which have Si and Er at an atomic ratio of 2:1 are prepared and then oxidation and succeeding high-temperature annealing in Ar above 1250 °C cause a self-assembled superlattice-structured Er-Si-O crystalline compounds. The control of the ratio of Si and Er, as well as the following oxidation and annealing processes, is found to be sensitive to the crystalline properties, PL spectra and electrical properties. In this study, Er-Si-O crystalline thin films are formed on Si substrates by sol-gel and MOMBE methods, and their crystalline properties such as crystalline orientation and concentration ratio of Er, Si and O are investigated. Crystalline Er-Si-O films of high orientation are successfully grown on Si(1 0 0) and its inclined surface. The PL and excitation spectra, fluorescence decay and the electrical properties are found to be strongly related to the crystalline properties. Excess O causes a broader 1.54 μm PL spectra, slower fluorescence decay, lower carrier-mediated excitation and higher resistivity. A precise control of O is found to be necessary to grow superlattice-structured Er-Si-O compounds, which are semiconducting and are excitable via carrier-mediated excitation mechanism.     

Asymptotic completeness for long-range many-particle systems with Stark effect. II

We prove the existence and the asymptotic completeness of the Dollard-type modified wave operators for many-particle Stark Hamiltonians with long-range potentials.     

Novel materials for electronic device fabrication using ink-jet printing technology

Novel materials and a metallization technique for the printed electronics were studied. Insulator inks and conductive inks were investigated. For the conductive ink, the nano-sized copper particles were used as metallic sources. These particles were prepared from a copper complex by a laser irradiation process in the liquid phase. Nano-sized copper particles were consisted of a thin copper oxide layer and a metal copper core wrapped by the layer. The conductive ink showed good ink-jettability. In order to metallize the printed trace of the conductive ink on a substrate, the atomic hydrogen treatment was carried out. Atomic hydrogen was generated on a heated tungsten wire and carried on the substrate. The temperature of the substrate was up to 60 °C during the treatment. After the treatment, the conductivity of a copper trace was 3 μΩ cm. It was considered that printed wiring boards can be easily fabricated by employing the above materials.