Surface treatment of magnesium hydroxide to improve its dispersion in organic phase by the ultrasonic technique

Micron magnesium hydroxide [Mg(OH)₂] was modified by means of ultrasonic method with stearic acid (SA) as modifier in water. The Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and element analysis showed all SA was bonded upon the surface of the Mg(OH)₂ forming a coating layer and no free SA was detected after the modifying process. The thickness of coating SA on the Mg(OH)₂ was determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Compared with the unmodified Mg(OH)₂, the modified Mg(OH)₂ had better dispersion property in xylene, slower sedimentation velocity of dilute suspension in xylene and lower viscosity of suspension in paraffin liquid. The results showed that the modified Mg(OH)₂ could be dispersed much better than the unmodified Mg(OH)₂ in organic phase.     

Thermal modeling of laser sintering of two-component metal powder on top of sintered layers via multi-line scanning

Laser sintering of a two-component metal powder layer on top of sintered layers, with a moving circular Gaussian laser beam is modeled numerically. The overlap between the adjacent scanning lines, as well as the binding between the newly sintered layer and existing sintered layers underneath through melting, are also considered. The governing equation is formulated by a temperature-transforming model, with partial shrinkage induced by melting taken into account. The liquid flow of the molten low melting point metal powders driving by capillary and gravity forces is formulated by Darcy’s law. The effects of the dominant processing parameters, including the moving laser beam intensity, scanning speed, and the number of the existing sintered layers underneath on the shape of the heat affected zone (HAZ) are investigated. PACS 44.05.+e; 81.20.Ev     

Mid-infrared metamaterial based on perforated SiC membrane: engineering optical response using surface phonon polaritons

We theoretically and experimentally study electromagnetic properties of a novel mid-infrared metamaterial: optically thin silicon carbide (SiC) membrane perforated by an array of sub-wavelength holes. Giant absorption and transmission is found using Fourier transformed infrared (FTIR) microscopy and explained by introducing a frequency-dependent effective permittivity ε_eff(ω) of the perforated film. The value of ε_eff(ω) is determined by the excitation of two distinct types of hole resonances: delocalized slow surface polaritons (SSPs) whose frequencies are largely determined by the array period, and a localized surface polariton (LSP) corresponding to the resonance of an isolated hole. Only SSPs are shown to modify ε_eff(ω) strongly enough to cause giant transmission and absorption. Because of the sub-wavelength period of the hole array, anomalous optical properties can be directly traced to surface polaritons, and their interpretation is not obscured by diffractive effects. Giant absorbance of this metamaterial can be utilized in designing highly efficient thermal radiation sources. PACS 41.20.Cv; 42.70.Qs; 71.45.Gm     

Demonstration of fiber pulsed light source at 1.6 μm with adjustable pulse duration

A novel practical 1.66-μm pulse light source with adjustable pulse duration is proposed. A 2.5-km Raman fiber is placed into a ring type Q-switched erbium-doped fiber laser (Q-EDFL), serving as both delay line fiber and Raman gain medium so that in addition to the wavelength shifted to 1.6μm, the pulse duration and the buildup time can be relatively extended. By properly controlling the fall edge of the acousto-optic switch (AOS), the pulse duration of 30-345 ns for ～ 770-Hz repetition frequency with power of 1-1.6 W is achieved.     

Color pattern recognition based on the joint fractional Fourier transform correlator

A new system of multi-channel single-output joint fractional Fourier transform correlator (JFRTC) for color pattern recognition is proposed based on the conventional system of multi-channel single-output joint transform correlator (JTC). The theoretical analysis and optical experiments are performed. With this method, one can obtain three correlation peaks at the output plane which show a pair of desired cross-correlation peaks and one auto-correlation peak. In comparison, the conventional system leads to more correlation peaks playing a noise role in color pattern recognition.     

20-GHz optical pulse source based on cascaded electroabsorption modulators

A high-quality low-timing-jitter 20-GHz optical pulse train is generated by using two cascaded sinusoidally driven electroabsorption modulators (EAMs) at very low bias voltage of -0.8 V in conjunction with a tunable distributed feedback (DFB) semiconductor laser. An approximate transform-limited optical pulse,with the pulse width less than 7 ps, the spectral width of 0.3 nm, and the side-mode suppression ratio (SMSR) above 20 dB, is obtained by tuning the optical delay line.     

Broadband dispersion compensation using microstructure fibers

Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Beijing 100876Dispersion and dispersion slope compensation of 10-Gb/s pulses using microstructure fibers (MFs) is demonstrated experimentally. A 26-m MF is used to compensate the dispersion of 2-km standard singe mode fiber in a 20-nm range in C band. The experimental results show that a significant improvement can be achieved in the quality of the observed pulses with the dispersion compensation. Moreover, the further research shows that the MF can compensate the anomalous dispersion of a single mode fiber within ±0.27 ps/(nm·km) over a 50-nm wavelength range from 1520 to 1570 nm.     

A novel scheme of label abstraction and erasion based on Fabry-Perot semiconductor optical amplifier

A novel label abstraction and erasion scheme based on a Fabry-Perot semiconductor optical amplifier (FP-SOA) is proposed for all-optical separation of the bit-serial label from payload and its performance is investigated by simulation. Important features of this scheme are that it does not make use of any high-speed electronics and only one device is needed. Using this scheme, label abstraction and erasion can be realized with the extinction ratio of 9.72 and 7.05 dB, respectively.     

Synthesis of carbon nanotubes on Ni-alloy and Si-substrates using counterflow methane–air diffusion flames

We have conducted an experimental study to investigate the synthesis of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in counterflow methane–air diffusion flames, with emphasis on effects of catalyst, temperature, and the air-side strain rate of the flow on CNTs growth. The counterflow flame was formed by fuel (CH₄ or CH₄ + N₂) and air streams impinging on each other. Two types of substrates were used to deposit CNTs. Ni-alloy (60% Ni + 26% Cr + 14% Fe) wire substrates synthesized curved and entangled CNTs, which have both straight and bamboo-like structures; Si-substrates with porous anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) nanotemplates synthesized well-aligned, self-assembled CNTs. These CNTs grown inside nanopores had a uniform geometry with controllable length and diameter. The axial temperature profiles of the flow were measured by a 125 μm diameter Pt/10% Rh–Pt thermocouple with a 0.3 mm bead junction. It was found that temperature could affect not only the success of CNTs synthesis, but also the morphology of synthesized CNTs. It was also found, against previous general belief, that there was a common temperature region (1023–1073 K) in chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and counterflow diffusion flames where CNTs could be produced. CNTs synthesized in counterflow flames were significantly affected by air-side strain rate not through the residence time, but through carbon sources available for CNTs growth. Off-symmetric counterflow flames could synthesize high-quality CNTs because with this configuration carbon sources at the fuel side could easily diffuse across the stagnation surface to support CNTs growth. These results show the feasibility of using counterflow flames to synthesize CNTs for particular applications such as fabricating nanoscale electronic devices.