Characteristics of polyethylenes at low temperature studied by positron annihilation

The positron annihilation lifetime method (PAL) has been applied to study the characteristics of polyethylenes (PEs) at low temperatures between 273 and 100 K. It has been found that the intensity (I ₃) of the long-lived component of positronium (Ps) showed an increase in non-annealed PE and annealed PE in vacuo. However, PAL in PEs annealed in an atmosphere containing oxygen did not show such an increase. It has been indicated that the latter effect is due to formation of carbonyl groups through oxidation during the annealing.     

Short-step synthesis of tamoxifen and its derivatives via the three-component coupling reaction and migration of the double bond

The anti-tumor agent, tamoxifen, is easily synthesized by the successive allylation of benzaldehyde and the Friedel-Crafts alkylation reaction of anisole with the intermediary homoallyl silyl ethers, followed by the migration of the double bond to form the desired tetra-substituted ethylenes. Several derivatives of tamoxifen are also produced according to a similar synthetic strategy.     

Quantum Hall effect in back-gated InAs/GaSb heterostructures under a tilted magnetic field

We investigate the quantum Hall effect (QHE) in the InAs/GaSb hybridized electron–hole system grown on a conductive InAs substrate which act as a back-gate. In these samples, the electron density is constant and the hole density is controlled by the gate-voltage. Under a magnetic field perpendicular to the sample plane, the QHE appears along integer Landau-level (LL) filling factors of the net-carriers, where the net-carrier density is the difference between the electron and hole densities. In addition, longitudinal resistance maxima corresponding to the crossing of the extended states of the original electron and hole LLs make the QHE regions along integer-ν_net discontinuous. Under tilted magnetic fields, these R_xx maxima disappear in the high magnetic field region. The results show that the in-plane magnetic field component enhances the electron–hole hybridization and the formation of minigaps at LL crossings.     

Growth process of TiC clusters from Ti nanoparticles with evaporated carbon layer

Titanium carbide formation by the solid–solid reaction on the surface of Ti nanoparticles was studied in situ using a high-resolution transmission electron microscope with a heating stage. The cross-sectional image of the Ti surface was clearly observed. Vacuum-deposited carbon covered the whole the surface of Ti nanoparticles in spite of the partly evaporation on the nanoparticle surface. The diffusion of the carbon atoms inside the Ti nanoparticles depended on the size of the nanoparticles. When the Ti nanoparticle diameter was less than 30 nm, carbon atoms diffused into the Ti nanoparticle and formed TiC. The superstructure of the Ti nanoparticles was observed, which revealed the growth process of TiC to be the diffusion of carbon atoms. For Ti nanoparticles with diameter larger than 30 nm it was observed that diffusion of Ti atoms into the carbon layer was dominant, which resulted in formation of TiC in the carbon layer at the surface of Ti nanoparticles.     

Reduction of dislocation density and improvement of optical quality in ZnO layers by MgO-buffer annealing

Optical properties of ZnO thin films with/without MgO-buffer annealing were investigated by low and room temperature photoluminescence measurements. The ZnO films were grown on c-sapphire substrates by plasma-assisted molecular-beam epitaxy employing a thin MgO-buffer layer. Dislocation density of ZnO layer was reduced from 5.3 × 10⁹ to 1.9 × 10⁹ cm⁻² by annealing MgO-buffer prior to the growth of ZnO. The intensity of free exciton emission from the sample with MgO-buffer annealing was almost twice of that from the sample without annealing, while the deep level emission from the sample with MgO-buffer annealing was about 1/3 of that without annealing. The MgO-buffer annealing improves optical quality of overgrown ZnO films.     

WIDE RANGE DETECTOR USING PARABOLIC CYLINDRICAL MIRROR FOR THz APPLICATIONS

A new, wide-band, high-speed and high-sensitivity THz detector has been developed. The prototype detector consists of a parabolic cylindrical mirror, a long wire antenna and a Schottky barrier diode. Direct detection measurements have shown a stable sensitivity of 150 ± 50 V/W for 1–2 THz without any adjustments. The long wire antenna was fixed at the focus of parabolic cylindrical mirror then it has been realized less operation steps, easy coupling to the external THz signals and a dramatic enhancement in the practicality of this system. The optically polished mirror and frosted surface one showed comparable sensitivities, thus easy polishing and less cost mirror fabrication can be applied for this system. The radiation pattern showed a maximum radiation angle of approximately 23° with its dominant main lobe, which was attributed to the wire antenna character and confirmed good agreements with classical antenna theory.     

Characteristic curved structure derived from collagen-containing tubular giant vesicles under static magnetic field

Collagen-containing tubular giant vesicles (Col–tGVs) under a high static magnetic field were found to constitute characteristic curved structures (e.g. circular, 8-figure, and hairpin-loop), which were sustained by polymerization of collagen units inside the tGV. We ascribed the formation of these structures to the elasticity of the tGV and to the competing diamagnetic anisotropies between collagen and the tGV. These curved structures can be well expressed by the equation of elastica.     

Simultaneous imaging of the structure and fluorescence of a supramolecular nanostructure formed by the coupling of π‐conjugated polymer chains in the intermolecular interaction

We fabricated a micrometer‐long supramolecular chain in which π‐conjugated polyrotaxane was coupled. A new experimental setup was designed and constructed, and the simultaneous direct imaging of the structure and fluorescent function was achieved. Furthermore, we identified the formation of a polymer intertwined network and observed novel fluorescence due to a long‐range interaction via this intertwined network over a distance of 5 μm or more without quenching over 15 min in the near field. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 801–809, 2006     

Tristimulus colorimetry using a digital still camera and its application to determination of iron and residual chlorine in water samples.

Tristimulus colorimetry using a digital still camera (DSC) as a colorimeter has been developed. A photograph of a sample and standard solutions was taken simultaneously with the DSC, and it was transferred to a PC. On the PC, the colors of the sample and of the standard solutions were analyzed and L* (brightness), a* (red-green component), and b* (yellow-blue component) values were determined with laboratory-made software. A dedicated light-box containing white-color LEDs as light source was made of white acrylic to make constant exposure at each photograph. Various settings of the DSC, such as exposure mode, white balance, and so on, that affect analytical figures, were studied with determination of iron with 1,10-phenanthroline. This method was successfully applied to the determinations of iron in a river water sample and of residual chlorine in tap water samples with N,N-diethylphenylenediamine (DPD).