Optical planar waveguides in Yb³⁺-doped phosphate glasses produced by He⁺ ion implantation

Optical planar waveguides in Yb 3+-doped phosphate glasses are fabricated by implanting triple-energy helium ions. The guiding modes and the near-field intensity distribution are measured by using the prism-coupling method and the end-face coupling setup with a He-Ne laser at 633 nm The intensity calculation method (ICM) is used to reconstruct the refractive index profile of the waveguide. The absorption and the fluorescence investigations reveal that the glass bulk features are well preserved in the active volumes of the waveguides, suggesting the fabricated structures for possible applications as waveguide lasers.     

基于INtime的EtherCAT实时采集系统主站设计

为了满足EtherCAT网络通信的高实时性,提出了一种新的主站程序设计方案;基于Windows XP系统扩展INtime实时核的开发环境,使EtherCAT网络主站能够实现实时通信的要求;首先,介绍了EtherCAT网络的体系结构,然后,在分析INtime实时核扩展原理及EtheCAT网络通信原理的基础上,对主站功能模块进行了详细的划分,并给出了基于INtime实时系统的主站程序具体设计方法;最后,采用EtherCAT从站平台―高速多功能信号测试仪,验证了基于INtime的实时主站的功能,并对系统进行了测试分析,给出了实时性能测试的结果;实验结果表明设计的多功能采集系统主站具有高的实时性和可靠性特点。     

Ionic liquid-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of dendrite-like NaY(MoO4)2:Tb phosphor

Micro-sized NaY(MoO₄)₂:Tb³⁺ phosphors with dendritic morphology was synthesized by a ionic liquid-assisted hydrothermal process. X-ray diffraction (XRD) indicated that the as-prepared product is pure tetragonal phase of NaY(MoO₄)₂. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) images showed that the as-prepared NaY(MoO₄)₂:Tb³⁺ phosphors have dendritic morphology. The photoluminescent (PL) spectra displayed that the as-prepared NaY(MoO₄)₂:Tb³⁺ phosphors show a stronger green emission with main emission wavelength 545 nm corresponding to the ⁵D₄→⁷F₅ transition of Tb³⁺ ion, and the optimal Tb³⁺ doping concentration for obtaining maximum emission intensity was confirmed to be 10 mol%. Based on Van Uitert's and Dexter's models the electric dipole–dipole (D–D) interaction was confirmed to be responsible for the concentration quenching of ⁵D₄ fluorescence of Tb³⁺ in the NaY(MoO₄)₂:Tb³⁺ phosphors. The intrinsic radiative transition lifetime of ⁵D₄ level is found to be 0.703 ms.     

Temperature dependence of the Raman spectra of Bi2Te3 and Bi0.5Sb1.5Te3 thermoelectric films

The temperature dependence of the Raman spectra of Bi₂Te₃ and Bi_0.5Sb_1.5Te₃ thermoelectric films was investigated. The temperature coefficients of the E_g(2) peak positions were determined as –0.0137 cm^–1/°C and –0.0156 cm^–1/°C, respectively. The thermal expansion of the crystal caused a linear shift of the Raman peak induced by the temperature change. Based on the linear relation, a reliable and noninvasive micro‐Raman scattering method was shown to measure the thermal conductivity of the thermoelectric films. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Electronic transport properties of zigzag carbon- and boron-nitride-nanotube heterostructures

Using first-principles density functional theory and non-equilibrium Green's function formalism for quantum transport calculation, we have investigated the electronic transport properties of heteronanotubes by joining a zigzag (6,0) carbon nanotube and a zigzag (6,0) boron nitride nanotube with different atomic compositions and joint configurations. Our results show that the atomic composition and joint configuration affect strongly the electronic transport properties. Obvious negative differential resistance behavior and large rectifying behavior are obtained in the heterostructure with certain composition and joint configuration. Moreover, tube length and tube radius can affect strongly the observed NDR and rectifying behaviors. The observed negative differential resistance and rectifying behaviors are explained in terms of the evolution of the transmission spectrum with applied bias combined with molecular projected self-consistent Hamiltonian states analysis.     

Domain,dielectric and optical studies in antiferroelectric (Pb,La) (Zr,Sn, Ti)O3 single crystals

Antiferroelectric (Pb, La) (Zr, Sn, Ti)O₃ (PLZST) single crystals have been successfully grown by flux method using PbO–PbF₂–B₂O₃ as the flux. The obtained crystals are pale yellow in color and translucent. Domain structures, dielectric constants and optical transmission measurements have been performed on the 〈001〉-oriented PLZST single crystals. Two types of domains, namely, 90° and 180° domains, are observed. The extinction of 90° domains at P/A: 0° reveals a tetragonal structure in the crystal. The sequence of phase transitions from antiferroelectric to ferroelectric and then paraelectric has been established with increasing temperature. According to the modified Curie–Weiss relationship, the PLZST crystal is in an intermediate state between normal and relaxor antiferroelectrics. The broad optical transparent region (from 0.4 to 7.0 μm) and high optical transmittance (up to 65%) indicate that PLZST crystals are promising for optical uses.     

A facile strategy to synthesize bimetallic Au/Ag nanocomposite film by layer-by-layer assembly technique

A facile strategy has been developed for the preparation of bimetallic gold–silver (Au–Ag) nanocomposite films by alternating absorption of poly-(ethyleneimine)–silver ions and Au onto substrates and subsequent reduction of the silver ions. The composition, micro-structure and properties of the {PEI–Ag/Au}_n nanocomposite films were characterized by ultraviolet visible spectroscopy (UV–vis), transmisson electron microscopy (TEM), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) and cyclic voltammetry (CV). The UV–vis characteristic absorbances of {PEI–Ag/Au}_n nanocomposite thin film increase almost linear with the number of bilayers, which indicates a process of uniform assembling. Appearance of a double plasmon bands in the visible region and the lack of apparent core–shell structures in the TEM images confirm the formation of bimetallic Au–Ag nanoparticles. The result of XPS also demonstrates the existence of Ag and Au nanoparticles in the nanocomposite films. TEM and FESEM images show that these Ag and Au nanoparticles in the films possess sphere structure with the size of 20–25 nm. The resulting {PEI–Ag/Au}_n films inherit the properties from both the metal Ag and Au, which exhibits a unique performance in SERS and electrocatalytic activities to the oxidation of dopamine. As a result, the {PEI–Ag/Au}_n films are more attractive compared to {PEI–Ag/PSS}_n and {PEI/Au}_n films.     

Improved interframe registration based nonuniformity correction for focal plane arrays

In this paper, an improved interframe registration based nonuniformity correction algorithm for focal plane arrays is proposed. The method simultaneously estimates detector parameters and carries out the nonuniformity correction by minimizing the mean square error between the two properly registered image frames. A new masked phase correlation algorithm is introduced to obtain reliable shift estimates in the presence of fixed pattern noise. The use of an outliers exclusion scheme, together with a variable step size strategy, could not only promote the correction precision considerably, but also eliminate ghosting artifacts effectively. The performance of the proposed algorithm is evaluated with clean infrared image sequences with simulated nonuniformity and real pattern noise. We also apply the method to a real-time imaging system to show how effective it is in reducing noise and the ghosting artifacts.