Amorphous chalcogenide AgSbS2 films prepared by pulsed laser deposition

The pulsed laser deposition technique has been applied to prepare amorphous ternary AgSbS films. The films were prepared from AgSbS₂ bulk glass using a KrF excimer laser. The composition of prepared films according to the results of the energy dispersive X-ray analysis and the Rutherford backscattering was close to bulk one. Optical transmission and spectral dependence of the refractive index proved the good optical quality of the films. The Ar⁺ ion laser dot exposures of the films show a potential applicability of the films as a new type of optical recording material. PACS 78.66.Jg; 81.15.Fg; 81.40.Wx     

Finite element modal solutions of planar photonic crystal fibers with rectangular air-holes

Modal solutions of planar photonic crystal waveguides with rectangular air-holes are presented by using a rigorous full-vectorial finite element-based approach. The effective indices, mode field profiles, spot-sizes, power confinements, modal hybridness, beat lengths and group velocity dispersions are shown for the fundamental and higher order modes of the quasi-TE and TM polarizations.     

The Pathwise Numerical Approximation of Stationary Solutions of Semilinear Stochastic Evolution Equations

Under a one-sided dissipative Lipschitz condition on its drift, a stochastic evolution equation with additive noise of the reaction-diffusion type is shown to have a unique stochastic stationary solution which pathwise attracts all other solutions. A similar situation holds for each Galerkin approximation and each implicit Euler scheme applied to these Galerkin approximations. Moreover, the stationary solution of the Euler scheme converges pathwise to that of the Galerkin system as the stepsize tends to zero and the stationary solutions of the Galerkin systems converge pathwise to that of the evolution equation as the dimension increases. The analysis is carried out on random partial and ordinary differential equations obtained from their stochastic counterparts by subtraction of appropriate Ornstein-Uhlenbeck stationary solutions.     

The flow of a variable viscosity fluid between parallel plates with shear heating

A model for the flow of a fluid through a channel with parallel plates is investigated. The channel is narrow, so that the lubrication approximation may be applied. The channel walls are maintained at a constant temperature. Shear heating effects are included and the fluid viscosity decreases exponentially with temperature. When the flow is driven solely by shear stress or imposed velocity at the top, analytical progress is possible. When pressure gradient also drives the flow the problem is solved numerically.     

An improved approach for hydrogen analysis in metal samples using single laser-induced gas plasma and target plasma at helium atmospheric pressure

We report in this paper the results of an experimental study on hydrogen analysis of solid samples in high pressure helium ambient gas employing the basic scheme of laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). It is shown that the metastable excited state of helium atom can be utilized to induce delayed excitation of the ablated hydrogen atoms, and thereby avoid the Stark broadening effect as well as overcoming the undesirable mismatch effect, which are responsible for inefficient excitation respectively. It is further demonstrated that for samples of high boiling-point materials such as zircaloy, successful hydrogen analysis can be achieved by a newly introduced double excitation technique employing single laser realized in a modified configuration of the conventional LIBS method. PACS 51-52     

High-density plasma etching of indium-zinc oxide films in Ar/Cl2 and Ar/CH4/H2 chemistries

The dry etching characteristics of transparent and conductive indium-zinc oxide (IZO) films have been investigated using an inductively coupled high-density plasma. While the Cl₂-based plasma mixture showed little enhancement over physical sputtering in a pure argon atmosphere, the CH₄/H₂/Ar chemistry produced an increase of the IZO etch rate. On the other hand, the surface morphology of IZO films after etching in Ar and Ar/Cl₂ discharges is smooth, whereas that after etching in CH₄/H₂/Ar presents particle-like features resulting from the preferential desorption of In- and O-containing products. Etching in CH₄/H₂/Ar also produces formation of a Zn-rich surface layer, whose thickness (∼40 nm) is well-above the expected range of incident ions in the material (∼1 nm). Such alteration of the IZO layer after etching in CH₄/H₂/Ar plasmas is expected to have a significant impact on the transparent electrode properties in optoelectronic device fabrication.     

Surface and interfacial properties of PVDF/acrylic copolymer blends before and after UV exposure

Morphological and chemical properties of both the surface and interface of poly(vinylidene fluoride)/poly(methyl methacrylate)-co-poly(ethyl acrylate) (PVDF/PMMA-co-PEA) blend films have been investigated before and after the samples were exposed to ultraviolet (UV) irradiation using a xenon arc lamp at 50 °C and 9% relative humidity (RH) for 7 months. Surface and interfacial morphologies were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Chemical composition information was obtained by confocal Raman microscopy, attenuated total reflection-FTIR spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and contact angle measurements. Results show an enrichment of the PVDF material at the air surface, while the acrylic copolymer enriches the interface. Blends having greater than 50% mass fraction of PVDF show little change in the surface morphology after UV exposure for 7 months. However, for a lower PVDF content, blends exhibit significant degradation of PMMA-co-PEA copolymer and a much rougher surface after UV exposure. Microstructural changes in the PVDF spherulites are also observed after UV degradation. It is found that the surface and interfacial morphologies are correlated with the chemical properties.     

Measurements of theg-factor ratio of the first 3− and 5− states in40Ca and the lifetime of the 5− state

[Theg-factor ratio of the first excited 3^? and 5^? states in⁴⁰Ca was measured to beg ₃/g ₅=1.01(10) employing the implantation perturbed angular correlation technique. The static hyperfine fields (SF) in Fe and Gd hosts were used. In addition the lifetime of the 5^? state was measured to be τ=426(7)ps. The values of the SF in Gd and Fe hosts were deduced and compared with systematics in this element region.     

Synthesis of high-purity α- and β-PbO and possible applications to synthesis and processing of other lead oxide materials

Litharge, the red tetragonal form of lead oxide α-PbO and massicot, the yellow orthorhombic form β-PbO, are synthesized from lead(II) salts in aqueous media at elevated temperatures. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) were used to characterize the size, morphology, and crystallographic structural forms of the products. The role of impurities in the experimental synthesis of the materials and microstructural variations in the final products are described. The implications of these observations regarding the synthesis of different conducting lead oxides and other related materials are discussed. PACS 71.20.Ps; 72.80.Jc; 74.62.Bf; 74.62.Dh; 75.50.Tt     

Sympathetic cooling rate of gas-phase ions in a radio-frequency-quadrupole ion trap

We theoretically investigated the mass dependence of the sympathetic cooling rate of gas-phase ions trapped in a linear radio-frequency-quadrupole ion trap. Using an a priori molecular dynamical calculation, tracing numerically with Newtonian equations of motion, we found that ions with a mass greater than 0.54±0.04 times that of the laser-cooled ions are sympathetically cooled; otherwise, they are heated. To understand the mass dependence obtained using the molecular-dynamical calculation, we made a heat-exchange model of sympathetic cooling, which shows that the factor of 0.54±0.04 is a consequence of absence of micro-motion along the axis of the linear ion trap. Received: 10 December 2001 / Revised version: 28 January 2002 / Published online: 14 March 2002