New developments in X-ray storage phosphors

We found a significant PSL effect in Eu²⁺-doped fluorozirconate glasses (ZBLAN) which were additionally doped with Br⁻ or Cl⁻ ions. The PSL is attributed to the characteristic emission of Eu²⁺ present in nano-crystallites of BaBr₂ or BaCl₂, which form in the glass upon annealing. The metastable hexagonal form of BaX₂ (X=Br,Cl) is always formed first before it is converted into the stable orthorhombic form. The particle size increases upon annealing and so does the PSL efficiency of the glass ceramic. However, there is a saturation of the PSL efficiency, which is for Br⁻ doping about 9% and for Cl⁻-doping about 80% of the Eu-doped BaFBr standard. The particle size was determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The TEM results show a clear tendency for bigger particles for longer annealing at the expense of its number. The particle size for the most efficient phosphor is about 100 nm.     

Evolution of the high power THz source program at Jefferson Lab

We report the evolution of the high power THz source program at Jefferson Lab. The source is based on coherent synchrotron radiation in which short bunches of relativistic electrons radiate when traversing a dipolar magnetic field. In our first accelerator we produced 20 W of broadband THz light. Our upgraded accelerator with higher current and improved THz extraction optics will considerably enhance the output power to >100 W. In this paper we describe the source in some detail and present theoretical calculations for the upgrade.     

Resonant-cavity-enhanced photodetectors and LEDs in the mid-infrared

In this paper we outline the use of resonant-cavity enhancement for increasing the exterior coupling efficiency of photodetectors and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in the mid-infrared (MIR) spectral region. This method is potentially very important in the MIR because encapsulation is not presently feasible due to the lack of suitable materials. Among other potential applications, resonant-cavity-enhanced (RCE) photodetectors and LEDs could be particularly suitable for greenhouse gas detection because of their ‘pre-tunable’ spectrally narrowed resonantly enhanced peaks. We also present the optical characterization of an InAs RCE photodetector aimed at the detection of methane gas (λ≈3.3 μm), and an InAs/InAs_0.91Sb_0.09 resonant-cavity LED (RCLED) aimed at carbon dioxide gas (λ≈4.2 μm). The high peak responsivity of the RCE photodetector was 34.7 A/W at λ=3.14 μm, and the RCLED peaked at λ=3.96 μm. These are among the longest operating wavelengths for III–V RCE photodetectors and RCLEDs reported in the literature.     

Application of ultrafine-dispersed diamonds in electroplating

The results obtained upon the electrochemical deposition of composite coatings containing ultrafine-dispersed diamonds produced by detonation synthesis are generalized. The main advantages of such coatings over the well-known composite electrochemical coatings are revealed.     

The mechanism of ionic conductivity in stabilized cubic zirconia

The electron-density functional method (in the gradient approximation) and the pseudopotential method are used to study the mechanism of ionic conductivity in the cubic phase of zirconia stabilized with magnesium or yttrium. The oxygen-ion migration in the stabilized zirconia is shown to be a two-stage process, which consists in the formation of active oxygen vacancies and in oxygen-ion jumps from one active vacancy to another. The total activation energy of these processes is calculated to be 1.0–1.5 eV, which agrees with experimental data.     

High-efficiency erbium ion luminescence in silicon nanocrystal systems

The photoluminescence spectra and kinetics of both erbium-doped and undoped multilayer structures of quasi-ordered silicon nanocrystals in a silicon dioxide matrix were studied. It was shown that the optical excitation energy of silicon nanocrystals 2–3 nm in size can be practically completely transferred to Er³⁺ ions in the oxide surrounding the nanocrystals, with its subsequent radiation at 1.5 μm. Possible reasons for the high excitation efficiency of the Er³⁺ ions are discussed, and the conclusion is drawn that the F?rster mechanism is dominant in the energy transfer processes occurring in these structures. __________ Translated from Fizika Tverdogo Tela, Vol. 46, No. 1, 2004, pp. 105–109. Original Russian Text Copyright ? 2004 by Kashkarov, Kamenev, Lisachenko, Shalygina, Timoshenko, Schmidt, Heitmann, Zacharias.     

Ultrashort electron beam and volume high-current discharge in air under the atmospheric pressure

Conditions are studied under which an electron beam and a volume discharge with a subnanosecond rise time of a voltage pulse are produced in air under atmospheric pressure. It is shown that the electron beam appears in a gas-filled diode at the front of the voltage pulse in ∼0.5 ns, has a half-intensity duration of ≤0.4 ns and an average electron energy of ∼0.6 of the voltage across the gas-filled diode, and terminates when the voltage across the gap reaches its maximum value. The electron beam with an average electron energy of 60 to 80 keV and a current amplitude of ≥70 A is obtained. It is assumed that the electron beam is formed from electrons produced in the gap due to gas ionization by fast electrons when the intensity of the field between the front of the expanding plasma cloud and the anode reaches its critical value. A nanosecond volume discharge with a specific power input of ≥400 MW/cm³, a density of the discharge current at the anode of up to 3 kA/cm², and specific energy deposition of ∼1 J/cm³ over 3 to 5 ns is created.     

Specific Features of Determining the Electrophysical Parameters of Variband CMT Structures Grown by Molecular-Beam Epitaxy

The effects of wide- and narrow- variband layers on the charge-carrier concentration and mobility in the MBE-grown epitaxial CMT structures measured by the Hall-effect method are studied by numerical simulation. The dependence of the relative difference between the experimentally obtained effective values of electrophysical parameters and those of an epitaxial coating on the variband-layer characteristics is discussed. An analysis of this dependence shows that the manner in which the broad-band and narrow-band layers affect the resulting parameters is inequivalent. The calculations suggest that the effect of the wide-band layer on the experimental electrophysical parameters can be neglected. In the case of the narrow variband layer, however, the difference between the electophysical parameters strongly depends on the variband-layer parameters and the concentrations of ionized donor and acceptor centers.