The solid–liquid interface energy of organic crystals

A simple thermodynamic model, originally developed for metals based on the Gibbs–Thomson equation and related considerations for homogeneous nucleation, has been extended to predict the solid–liquid interface energy γ_sl of organic crystals. The model predictions correspond to available experimental and other theoretical results for 38 organic crystals. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influence of boron on the giant magnetocaloric effect of La(Fe0.9Si0.1)13

The influences of boron addition on the phase formation, Curie temperature and magnetic entropy change of the NaZn₁₃-type La(Fe_0.9Si_0.1)₁₃ compound have been investigated. Eight boron containing La(Fe_0.9Si_0.1)₁₃B_x samples were prepared with x=0, 0.03, 0.06, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.5 and 0.6, respectively. Experimental results show that a small amount of B addition in La(Fe_0.9Si_0.1)₁₃ forms the solid solution NaZn₁₃-type structure phase by substituting B for Si or doping B into interstitial position of the lattice, preserves its giant magnetocaloric effects due to their first-order structural/magnetic transition, as well as increase its Curie temperature T_c slightly. The maximum magnetic entropy changes in the magnetic field change of 0–1.6 T are around 20 J kg^–1 K^–1 for the samples with Boron addition less than 0.3, while improving the Curie temperatures by 2 K.     

Magnetic,electrical transport and electron spin resonance studies of Fe-doped manganite LaMn0.7Fe0.3O3+δ

We have investigated the magnetic, electrical transport and electron spin resonance (ESR) properties of polycrystalline Fe-doped manganite LaMn_0.7Fe_0.3O_3+δ prepared by sol–gel method. A typical cluster-glass feature is presented by DC magnetization and AC susceptibility measurements and a sharp but shallow memory effect was observed. Symmetrical Lorentzian lines of the Mn/Fe spectra were detected above 120 K, where the sample is a paramagnetic (PM) insulator. When the temperature decreases from 120 K, magnetic clusters contributed from ferromagnetic (FM) interaction between Mn³⁺ and Mn³⁺/Fe³⁺ ions develop and coexist with PM phase. At lower temperature, these FM clusters compete with antiferromagnetic (AFM) ones between Fe³⁺ ions, which are associated with a distinct field-cooled (FC) effect in characteristic of cluster-glass state.     

The effects of Si3N4 interlayer on the thermal stability and hardness of Ti/TiNx (x = 0.5-1) nanolayered coatings

The polycrystalline Ti/TiN_x multilayer films were deposited by magnetron sputtering, and the as-deposited multilayer coatings were annealed at 500-800 °C for 2-4 h in vacuum. We investigated the effects of annealing temperature and annealing time on the microstructural, interfacial, and mechanical properties of the polycrystalline Ti/TiN_x multilayer films. It was found that the hardness increased with annealing temperature. This hardness enhancement was probably caused by the preferred crystalline orientation TiN(1 1 1). The X-ray reflectivity measurements showed that the layer structure of the coatings could be maintained after annealing at 500 °C and the addition of the Si₃N₄ interlayer to Ti/TiN_x multilayer could improve the thermal stability to 800 °C.     

Surface oxidation behavior of MgNd alloys

The oxidation kinetics of MgNd alloys oxidized in pure O₂ at high temperatures has been investigated. The results revealed two stages of the reaction: A fast initial oxidation was followed by a slow oxide growth with a parabolic kinetics. For MgNd alloys (Nd = 25 wt.%), the oxidation rate increased with the enhancement of the oxidation temperature. A sudden ignition was found for this alloys oxidized at 873 K up to about 80 min. Moreover, the increase of the Nd content would harm the oxidation resistance of the MgNd alloys. By Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, it was found that a triplex structure of oxide film formed. The outer layer was composed of MgO, Nd₂O₃ and Nd(OH)₃, the middle layer mainly consisted of MgO and Nd₂O₃, and the inner layer was the transitional layer made of MgO, Nd₂O₃ and the content of the substrate. The protective oxidation was associated with the formation of the dense Nd₂O₃/MgO layer during isothermal oxidation process. The oxidation mechanisms for the formation of oxide film are discussed.     

Narrow-band terahertz wave generation and detection in one periodically poled lithium niobate crystal

In this article, we present studies on therahertz (THz) wave generation and frequency up-conversion in a periodically poled lithium niobate (PPLN) crystal. A frequency at 1.37 THz was generated as femtosecond pump pulses passed through a PPLN crystal with grating periods of 30 μm. The pump-induced THz wave interacts with the probe wave in the crystal by frequency mixing. The frequency up-converted THz wave is easily detected by a normal photodiode. A new scheme for generation and detection of THz wave in one non-linear crystal was proposed.     

Temperature dependence of the second threshold field for rubidium blue bronze Rb0.3MoO3

We have investigated the threshold properties of Rubidium blue bronze Rb_0.3MoO₃ under high dc electric field in a large temperature range 20-150 K. The second threshold fields have been observed at temperature up to 102.4 K, and have quasi-linear relationships with temperatures 20-45 K and 55-100 K, respectively. A novel crossover platform has been found firstly in the temperature dependence of the second threshold field E_T2 at about 45-55 K. The results indicate that the dynamical behavior of the second threshold effects may originate from different mechanisms. We suggest that the highly conducting state at 20-45 K and 55-100 K result from the undamped sliding motion of rigid CDW and current inhomogeneity, respectively.     

Effects of sintering temperature and atmosphere on magnetism in Mn-doped TiO2 bulk samples

Magnetic properties have been investigated on Mn doped TiO₂(Ti_0.98Mn_0.02O₂) bulk samples prepared by solid state reaction, which were sintered at different temperature ranging from 450 ^°C to 900 ^°C in air and argon atmosphere, respectively. The results show that the magnetic properties were strongly dependent on the sintering temperature and atmosphere. For samples sintered in air, the magnetization initially increase with the increase of sintering temperature up to 600 ^°C and thereafter it decrease. While the magnetization of samples sintered in argon atmosphere decreases monotonically with the increase of sintering temperature. Furthermore, for samples sintered at 600 ^°C in air, the magnetic susceptibility exhibits a dominant Curie-Weiss behaviour and no magnetic transition is observed over the temperature range from 10 to 300 K. In contrast, for samples sintered in argon atmosphere, besides the magnetic transition near 45 K perhaps caused by Mn₃O₄, another magnetic transition appears near room temperature.     

Total Current Operator and its Classical Correspondence for Particles Bounded in Central Force Fields

When a particle is bounded in a central force field, the only nonvanishing component of the mean value for current density is along the azimuthal direction; and the total current can therefore be defined. It is found that the total current is in fact a mean value of a newly defined total current operator in the quantum mechanical state. Not only the total current operator itself but also the mean total current has exact classical correspondence.     

Room-Temperature Ferromagnetism of Co-Doped CeO2 Thin Films on Si（111） substrates

Using Co2O3 as the Co source, doped cerium oxide thin films with the composition of Ce0.97C00.03O2-δ （CCO） are deposited on Si（111） and glass substrates by pulse laser deposition technique. X-ray diffraction reveals that CCO films with （111） preferential orientation are grown on Si, while the fihn on glass is polycrystalline with nanocrystal. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that the （Jo displaces the （;e atom and exists in high spin state rather than low spin state, which contributes to the room-temperature ferromagnetism confirmed by vibration sample magnetometer. I~ilms on Si and glass are different in ferromagnetism, which is believed to be induced by different film microstructures. Based on these results, the possible ferromagnetism in this insulating film is discussed. Anyway, successful fabrication of CCO films with room-temperature ferromagnetism on Si substrates is of great importance in both technological and theoretical aspects.