Cylindrical spike model for the formation of diamondlike thin films by ion deposition

T /n_S of n_T rearrangements and n_S atoms in the spike volume as the crucial parameter characterizing the ability of a given ion–target combination to achieve complete rearrangement of the spike volume. n_T/n_S>1 is the optimum condition for diamondlike film growth. For aC films the ion energy dependence of n_T/n_S agrees well with the measured sp³ bond fraction. For Ar⁺-ion-assisted deposition of aC we find n_T/n_S>1 above 50 eV with no pronounced ion energy dependence. Furthermore, our model predicts optimum conditions for the formation of cubic boron nitride between 50 eV and 3 keV. Accepted: 14 October 1997     

Recurrent solar wind streams

A new approach to investigating the statistical relationship between certain solar features and recurrent wind streams is presented. This approach is based, on a comparative analysis of the distributions of lifetimes of a set of solar features, recurrent geomagnetic disturbances, and geomagnetic “calms.” Correlation coefficients of 0.81, 0.85, 0.79, and 0.77 are found for the distributions of several solar features—filaments, large-scale magnetic fields, coronal features, and coronal holes, respectively—and recurrent geomagnetic disturbances. A correlation factor of 0.97 between the distributions of geomagnetic “calms” and active regions is found. The combined evidence indicates that no specific type of solar feature is responsible for the recurrent stream activity. Rather, the configuration of the large-scale magnetic field of the Sun appears to control the permanently existing corpuscular activity. Since prominences trace polarity division lines of the large-scale magnetic field structure of the Sun, they have been checked as a possible general predictor of recurrent corpuscular activity; their parameters could present the most reliable indices that relate closely with trends in geomagnetic disturbances. A comparative analysis of cyclic variations of sunspot numbers, the total number of prominences, the relative number of low-height (<-20″) prominences, and recurrent geomagnetic storms is made for solar cycle N16. The relative number of low-height prominences is found to correlate broadly (0.83) with recurrent wind streams. P. K. Shternberg State Astronomical Institute, Moscow, Russia; National Solar Observatory, Sacramento Peak, U.S. Published in Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 41, No. 2, pp. 145–151, February, 1998.     

Carbon thin films through laser ablation

Thin carbon films were deposited on silicon substrates at room temperature using a 0.355 μm Nd:YAG laser wavelength at low irradiance in the presence of argon gas. Various techniques including scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy were used to analyze the film quality. The influence of the argon gas pressure on the properties of the films is demonstrated and a correlation with the optical emission data is presented.     

Scanning capacitance microscopy and spectroscopy applied to local charge modifications and characterization of nitride-oxide-silicon heterostructures

We have combined a home-built capacitance sensor with a commercial scanning force microscope to obtain a Scanning Capacitance Microscope (SCM). The SCM has been used to study Nitride-Oxide-Silicon (NOS) heterostructures which offer potential applications in charge storage technology. Charge writing and reading on a submicrometer scale is demonstrated with our SCM setup. In addition, SCM appears to be very useful for the characterization of subsurface defects in semiconductor devices which are inaccessible by most of the other scanning probe microscopies. Finally, we introduce a novel spectroscopic mode of SCM operation which offers combined voltage-dependent and spatially resolved information about inhomogeneous charge distributions in semiconductor devices.     

Antimicorbial effects of newly synthesized organotin(IV) and organolead(IV) derivatives

Triorganotin(IV) and triorganolead(IV) derivatives of the types Me₃Sn(SCZ) and Ph₃Pb(SCZ) (where SCZ^? is the anion of a semicarbanzone ligand) have been synthesized by substitution reactions of trimethyltin chloride and triphenyl-lead chloride with semicarbazones derived from heterocyclic ketones. The resulting complexes have been characterized by elemental analyses, molecualr weight determinations and conductivity measurements. The mode of bonding has been established on the basis of infrared and ¹H, ¹³C and ¹¹⁹Sn NMR spectroscopic studies. Some respresentative complexes have also been evaluated for their antimicrobial effects on different species of pathogenic fungi and bacteria; the results of these investigations have been reported in the present paper.     

Generating well-behaved utility functions for compromise programming

The purpose of this paper is to seek utility functions satisfying a weak condition which guarantees that the utility optimum always belongs to the compromise set. This set is a special subset of the attainable or feasible set, which is generated through the application of the well-known operational research approach called compromise programming. It is shown that there are large families of utility functions satisfying this condition, thus reinforcing the value of compromise programming as a good surrogate of the traditional utility optimum.Thanks are due to the reviewers for their helpful suggestions. The English editing by Ms. Christine Méndez is appreciated. The authors have been supported by the Comisión Interministerial de Ciencia y Tecnología (CICYT), Madrid, Spain.     

X-ray study of the superionic phase transition in CuCrS2

The temperature disorder of copper ions in the CuCrS₂ superionic conductor was studied by X-ray analysis. It is shown that the average square deviations of atoms sharply increase and become comparable with the distance between neighbouring tetrahedral sites when CuCrS₂ transforms into the superionic phase. It is also established that the direction of maximum deviation of atoms is close to the direction connecting the tetrahedral positions.     

Neutron diffraction study of magnetic properties of TmCo2

The present neutron diffraction studies have confirmed that TmCo₂ represents an exception within the RCo₂ series. It was found that, in contrast with other heavy RCo₂ compounds, the Co sublattice in TmCo₂ does not order magnetically below the Curie temperature (T_c = 3.9 K). This is assumed to be due the fact that in TmCo₂ the intersublattice (f-d) molecular field is smaller than the critical field necessary to induce magnetic order within the Co sublattice, as is the case in other RCo₂ compounds. Furthermore, we show that the magnetic structure and the onset of long-range order in TmCo₂ depend sensitively on the sample preparation, which partly explains the differing results published earlier.     

Acoustic wavefront imaging

We introduce a new class of experiments which provide graphic insights into the propagation of acoustic waves in anisotropic media. Simply stated, we have devised a means of observing the expanding acoustic wavefront from a point disturbance in a solid. The data may be viewed as a movie or a series of snapshots. The observed wavefronts represent the group-velocity surfaces of acoustic waves, which reflect the basic elastic anisotropy of the solid. The technique has been applied to coherent acoustic waves with frequencies in the megahertz range (at ambient temperatures) and to incoherent heat pulses in the hundred-gigahertz range (at liquid-helium temperatures). In this article, we first provide a pedagogical introduction to wave propagation in elastically anisotropic media, reviewing some early methods for visualizing acoustic waves. Next, we describe the “acoustic wavefront imaging” method and give representative results in crystals and composite materials. Finally, we show how this method relates to recent advances in phonon imaging and internal diffraction of ultrasound.