Colossal magnetoresistance manganites: A new approach

Manganites of the LA_1−x Ca _x MnO₃ family show a variety of new and poorly understood electronic, magnetic and structural effects. Here we outline a new approach recently proposed by us, where we argue that due to strong Jahn-Teller (JT) coupling with phonons the twofold degeneratee _g states at the Mn sites dynamically reorganize themselves into localised, JT polaronsl with exponentially small inter-site hopping, and band-like, nonpolaronic statesb, leading to anew 2-band model for manganites which includes strong Coulomb and Hund’s couplings. We also discuss some results from a dynamical mean-field theory treatment of the model which explains quantitatively a wide variety of experimental results, including insulator-metal transitions and CMR, in terms of the influence of physical conditions on the relative energies and occupation of thel andb states. We argue that this microscopic coexistence of the two types of electronic states, and their relative occupation and spatial correlation is the key to manganite physics. Dedicated to Professor C N R Rao on his 70th birthday     

Study of the viscoelastoplastic deformation of an element of a body with a three-branch loading path

Institute of Mechanics, Academy of Sciences of the Ukraine, Kiev. Translated from Prikladnaya Mekhanika, Vol. 27, No. 12, pp. 26–33, December, 1991.     

First measurement of the ϱ spectral function in nuclear collisions

The NA60 experiment at the CERN SPS has studied low-mass muon pairs in 158 A GeV In–In collisions. A strong excess of pairs is observed above the yield expected from neutral meson decays. The unprecedented sample size close to 400000 events and the good mass resolution of about 2% made it possible to isolate the excess by subtraction of the decay sources. The shape of the resulting mass spectrum shows some non-trivial centrality dependence, but is largely consistent with a dominant contribution from π⁺π^-→ϱ→μ⁺μ^- annihilation. The associated ϱ spectral function exhibits considerable broadening, but essentially no shift in mass. The p_T-differential mass spectra show the excess to be much stronger at low p_T than at high p_T. The results are compared to theoretical model predictions; they tend to rule out models linking hadron masses directly to the chiral condensate. PACS 25.75.-q; 12.38.Mh; 13.85.Qk     

InAs/GaSb superlattice focal plane arrays for high-resolution thermal imaging

The first fully operational mid-IR (3–5 μm) 256×256 IR-FPA camera system based on a type-II InAs/GaSb short-period superlattice showing an excellent noise equivalent temperature difference below 10 mK and a very uniform performance has been realized. We report on the development and fabrication of the detecor chip, i.e., epitaxy, processing technology and electro-optical characterization of fully integrated InAs/GaSb superlattice focal plane arrays. While the superlattice design employed for the first demonstrator camera yielded a quantum efficiency around 30%, a superlattice structure grown with a thicker active layer and an optimized V/III BEP ratio during growth of the InAs layers exhibits a significant increase in quantum efficiency. Quantitative responsivity measurements reveal a quantum efficiency of about 60% for InAs/GaSb superlattice focal plane arrays after implementing this design improvement. The paper presented there appears in Infrared Photoelectronics, edited by Antoni Rogalski, Eustace L. Dereniak, Fiodor F. Sizov, Proc. SPIE Vol. 5957, 595707 (2005).     

Quantitative methods for nanopowders characterization

The size, shape and surface topology have a strong influence on powders properties, such as: mechanical, optical, catalytic, etc. In addition, when particles have a nanometer size, the dispersion of these features plays an important role.There are a number of techniques, which could be used in order to characterize powders in terms of particle size and shape. However, due to the scale of analysis, well beyond the wavelength of visible light, most of them cannot be applied for investigations of nanopowders.In this paper, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) image analysis and X-ray methods are presented as promising and complementary techniques. An example of their application to ZrO₂ nanopowder is shown. The advantages and limitations of each method are described.     

Electrodeposition of molybdenum oxide and its structural characteristics

The cathodic processes in electroplating of compact molybdenum oxide coatings onto supports made of 12Cr18Ni9Ti steel and aluminum are considered along with the physicochemical characteristics determining their service properties.     

Cyclic and telechelic ladder polymers derived from tetrahydroxytetramethylspirobisindane and 1,4‐dicyanotetrafluorobenzene

5,5′,6,6′‐Tetrahydroxy‐3,3,3′,3′‐tetramethylspirobisindane was polycondensed with 1,4‐dicyanotetrafluorobenzene in four different solvents at 70 °C. In dimethylformamide, N‐methylpyrrolidone, and sulfolane exclusively, cyclic polymers were detectable by matrix‐assisted laser desorption/ionization time‐of‐flight (MALDI‐TOF) mass spectrometry up to masses around 13,000 Da. In dimethyl sulfoxide, linear byproducts were also found. Higher temperatures caused degradation reactions catalyzed by potassium carbonate. Polycondensations performed with the addition of 4‐tert‐butyl catechol or 2,2′‐dihydroxy binaphthyl yielded linear telechelic oligomers. Equimolar mixtures of linear and cyclic ladder polymers were examined by MALDI‐TOF mass spectra to determine how the end groups and the cyclic structure influenced the signal‐to‐noise ratio. The results suggested a preferential detection of the linear chains. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 5344–5352, 2006     

Heterograft copolymers of poly(ε‐caprolactone) prepared by combination of ATRA “grafting onto” and ATRP “grafting from” processes

This paper aims at reporting on the synthesis of a heterograft copolymer by combining the “grafting onto” process based on atom transfer radical addition (ATRA) and the “grafting from” process by atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). The statistical copolymerization of ε‐caprolactone (εCL) and α‐chloro‐ε‐caprolactone (αClεCL) was initiated by 2,2‐dibutyl‐2‐stanna‐1,3‐dioxepane (DSDOP), followed by ATRA of parts of the chlorinated units of poly(αClεCL‐co‐εCL) on the terminal double bond of α‐MeO,ω‐CH₂?CH? CH₂? CO₂‐poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO). The amphiphilic poly(εCL‐g‐EO) graft copolymer collected at this stage forms micelles as supported by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The unreacted pendant chloro groups of poly(εCL‐g‐EO) were used to initiate the ATRP of styrene with formation of copolymer with two populations of randomly distributed grafts, that is PEO and polystyrene. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 6015–6024, 2006     

Control of the conjugation length and solubility in electroluminescent polymers

A new type of cyclolinear polymer, poly(phenylene vinylene‐alt‐cyclotriphosphazene), was synthesized through Heck‐type coupling reactions to produce π‐conjugated macromolecules with excellent solubility and precise electronic control of the band‐gap energy. This synthesis method is capable of producing well‐defined alternating polymers. The method is highly adaptable and can be readily used for other chromophore systems. The resulting polymers were also capable of accommodating a wide variety of substituents on the cyclophosphazene rings with minimal effect on the electronic properties. The band gap and electron affinities of the polymer were varied through the manipulation of the π‐conjugated unit located between the insulating phosphazene rings. Each chromophore matched the intended conjugation length consistently throughout the macromolecules. The polymers were good film formers because of the chosen substituents on the phosphazene rings. The absorbance of the polymers indicated minimal spectral shift from the monomer absorbance. This suggested an effective insulation of each chromophore unit from its neighbors by the phosphazene rings. Solution photoluminescence efficiencies were found to be up to 44.1%. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 44: 69–76, 2006