Atomically-flat,chemically-stable,superconducting epitaxial thin film of iron-based superconductor,cobalt-doped BaFe2As2

The epitaxial growth of Fe-based superconductors such as Co-doped SrFe₂As₂ (SrFe₂As₂:Co) was reported recently, but has still insufficient properties for a device application because they have rough surfaces and are decomposed by reactions with water vapor in an ambient atmosphere. This paper reports that epitaxial films of Co-doped BaFe₂As₂ grown at 700 ^°C show the onset superconducting transition temperature of ～20 K. The transition is sharper than those observed on the SrFe₂As₂:Co films, which would originate from their improved crystallinity. These films also have atomically-flat surfaces with step-and-terrace structures and exhibit chemical stability against exposure to water vapor.     

Field-assisted sustainable O− ion emission from fluorine-substituted 12CaO·7Al2O3 with improved thermal stability

We examined the electric field-assisted thermionic emission of atomic oxygen radical anion (O^?) in a vacuum from fluorine-substituted derivatives of 12CaO·7Al₂O₃ (C12A7) with a composition of (12 ? x)CaO·7Al₂O₃·xCaF₂ (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.8). Unsubstituted C12A7 easily decomposed into 5CaO?3Al₂O₃ (C5A3) and 3CaO?Al₂O₃ (C3A) above 830 °C during the emission experiment in a vacuum. The decomposition temperature range became narrower as the amount of F^? ion substitution increased, e.g. the sample with x = 0.4 kept a single phase after the emission experiment at 900 °C. The emitted anionic species from the x = 0.4 sample were dominated by O^? ions (～ 92%) together with a small amount of O₂^? ions (～ 4%) and F^? ions (～ 4%). The absence of an O₂ gas supply to the opposite side of the emission surface led to a nearly steady co-emission of O^? ions and electrons with a ratio of < 1/1. The O₂ gas supply markedly enhanced the O^? ion emission, and suppressed the electron emission. A sustainable and high-purity O^? ion emission with a current density of 11 nA cm^? 2 was achieved at 830 °C with the supply of 40 Pa O₂ gas. The similarity in these emission features to the unsubstituted C12A7, together with the improved thermal stability demonstrates that the F^? ion-substituted C12A7 is a promising material for higher intensity O^? ion emission at higher temperatures.     

Degenerate electrical conductive and excitonic photoluminescence properties of epitaxial films of wide gap p-type layered oxychalcogenides, LnCuOCh (Ln=La, Pr and Nd; Ch=S or Se)

Electrical and photoluminescence properties were investigated for epitaxial films of layered oxychalcogenides, LnCuOCh (Ln=La, Pr, and Nd, Ch=S or Se). Epitaxial films of Mg 10 at.% doped LaCuOS_1-xSe_x are the first demonstration of degenerate conduction with high hole concentration >10²⁰ cm^-3 in wide gap p-type semiconductors. Ion substitution varied the excitonic emission energy from 3.21 eV to 2.89 eV while lanthanide and chalcogenide ion substitutions displayed the opposite tendency against cell volume. These unique properties are discussed with respect to the electronic structure originating from the layered crystal structure. PACS 72.20.-i; 73.50.-h; 78.55.Hx; 78.66.-w     

Heteroepitaxial growth of wide gap p-type semiconductors: LnCuOCh (Lr=La, Pr and Nd; Ch=S or Se) by reactive solid-phase epitaxy

Heteroepitaxial thin films of Cu-based oxychalcogenides, LnCuOCh (Ln=La, Pr and Nd; Ch=mixture of S and Se), were fabricated and their resulting film structures were characterized. A reactive solid-phase epitaxy method successfully yielded heteroepitaxial films on MgO(001) substrates. A high-resolution electron microscopic examination of a LaCuOS film revealed a sharp film-substrate interface. Four-axes high-resolution X-ray diffraction measurements revealed that crystalline lattices in the films are fully relaxed and that the crystallographic orientation is (001)[110] LnCuOCh || (001)[110] MgO. Furthermore, systematic variations in the lattice constant by lanthanide or chalcogen ion substitutions were observed. PACS 81.10.Jt; 81.15.-z; 81.15.Np; 68.55.-a; 81.20.-n     

Porous glass-ceramics composed of a titanium phosphate crystal skeleton: A review

Bulk microporous glass-ceramics with a skeleton of two types of functional titanium phosphate crystal were prepared by controlled crystallization of RTi₂(PO₄)₃ (

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glasses, and chemical treatment. One crystal is a NASICON-type with a three-dimensional network structure of TiO₆ and PO₄ while the other is a zirconium phosphate-type crystal Ti(HPO₄)₂ · 2H₂O with a two-dimensional layered structure. The mean pore diameter and porosity of 30–60 nm and 40–60 vol.% were achieved. Porous CaTi₄(PO₄)₆ glass-ceramics have excellent properties as supports for immobilization of enzymes, humidity sensors and porous LiTi₂(PO₄)₃ glass-ceramics as ion exchange media. Conspicuous bacteriostatic activities were found for the partially Ag-exchanged porous LiTi₂(PO₄)₃ and Li_1.4Ti_1.6Al_0.4(PO₄)₃. Integrated microporous glass-ceramics with skeletons of LiTi₂(PO₄)₃ (LTP) and Ti(HPO₄)₂ · 2H₂O (TP) crystals were synthesized utilizing a novel discovery that LTP is transformed into TP in acid solution.     

Effect of quenching rate and annealing on ESR of Cu2+ and γ-induced Cd+ in low alkali borate glasses

A new ESR hyperfine structure (hfs) of Cu²⁺ was detected in moderately (cooling rate ≈ 3 K/s) and rapidly (10³–10⁵K/s) quenched borate glasses with Na₂O content smaller than 5 mol% in addition to the already reported three patterns, spectra I, II and III, for the moderately quenched borate glasses with 5 ? [Na₂O]?13, 20 ? [Na₂O] ?37 and 55 ? [Na₂O] ? 75, respectively. The ESR parameters of this spectrum were much the same as those of II, but a significant difference was observed between thermal stabilities of these spectra. The newly observed spectrum was named spectrum II′. A superposition of spectra II′ and I was seen in low alkali borate glasses ([Na₂O] ? 5 mol%). The relative intensity of II′ to I increased remarkably with increasing quenching rate of the melts and with decreasing alkali content under the same quenching condition. In addition, spectrum II′ was found to relax into I upon thermal annealing of the glasses. Similar changes were observed also in ESR of the γ-induced Cd⁺ with 5s¹ electronic configuration. A tentative model to account for the spectral changes was proposed on the basis of the characteristics of B—O bonding.     

Highly sensitive spectrophotometric determination of cationic surfactants in ground waters as their Cu(II)-TPPS aggregates preceded by solid-phase fractionation

A highly sensitive spectrophotometric determination of cationic surfactants in ground waters was established by forming their Cu(II)-TPPS aggregates, preceded by solid-phase extraction with an SCX cartridge. Cationic surfactants (CSs) were quantitatively trapped and isolated by the SCX solid phase. The use of Cu(II)-TPPS anionic chromophore could reduce the interference by unintentional metal ions coexisting in surrounding waters. The method was very sensitive in the determination of CSs less than 10⁻⁵ M levels with acceptable recovery and calibration data. The colorimetric sensitivity was very dependent on the alkyl-chain length of the surfactants, and a CS having 23 carbon atoms gave the highest sensitivity. Overall recoveries were 95-97% with R.S.Ds. less than 3% in the cases over 10⁻⁶ M levels. In the cases in 10⁻⁷ M levels, however, a portion of the analyte would be adsorbed by reservoir walls, which could seriously affect the trace determination. The preliminary addition of 4,4′-bipyridyl into the sample solution was effective in decreasing such unintentional analyte losses, leading up to 73% recovery. The developed method was applied to the analysis of river water at ppb levels of CSs with a fractional concentration through a SCX solid phase subjected by 500-mL aliquots of sample.     

EVAPORATION CHARACTERISTICS OF Se/Te ALLOYS AS APPLIED TO PHOTORECEPTORS

Abstract

Xerographic devices obtained by vacuum deposition of SeTe alloys have inhomogeneities in stoichiometry because of the differences in vapor pressures of the individual elements. As a result the concentration of Te on the top surface of the devices is considerably higher than the rest of the film. This is termed as “fractionation”. It has been observed that the fractionation characteristics of the SeTe alloys are dependent on the quenching temperature during the alloy preparation which in turn affects the electrical properties of the photoreceptors.     

Nickel-based oxyphosphide superconductor with a layered crystal structure, LaNiOP

A layered oxyphosphide, LaNiOP, was synthesized by solid-state reactions. This crystal was confirmed to have a layered structure composed of an alternating stack of (La(3+)O(2-))(+) and (Ni(2+)P(3-))(-). We found that the resulting LaNiOP shows a superconducting transition at approximately 3 K. This material exhibited metallic conduction and Pauli paramagnetism in the temperature range of 4-300 K. The resistivity sharply dropped to zero and the magnetic susceptibility became negative at <4 K, indicating that a superconducting transition occurs. The volume fraction of the superconducting phase estimated from the diamagnetic susceptibility reached approximately 40 vol % at 1.8 K, substantiating that LaNiOP is a bulk superconductor.