Microelectromechanical Systems for Nanomechanical Testing: Electrostatic Actuation and Capacitive Sensing for High-Strain-Rate Testing

Experimental Mechanics - There have been relatively few studies on mechanical properties of nanomaterials under high strain rates, mainly due to the lack of capable nanomechanical testing devices....     

Surface of room temperature ionic liquid [bmim][PF6] studied by polarization- and experimental configuration-dependent sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy

Understanding and control of the surface properties such as molecular orientations are of great importance in numerous applications of ionic liquids. However, there remain discrepancies among the previous experimental and theoretical studies on the surface orientation and structures of room temperature ionic liquids(RTIL) systems. In this article, the orientation of 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium([bmin]) cation at the air/liquid interface of a characteristic RTIL, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate([bmim][PF6]), was investigated by the sum frequency generation vibrational spectroscopy(SFG-VS). Detailed polarization and experimental configuration analyses of the SFG-VS spectra showed the possibility of a small spectral splitting in the CH3 symmetric stretching region, which can be further attributed to the probable existence of multiple orientations for the interfacial [bmim] cations. In addition, the(N)–CH3 vibrations were absent, ruling out the prediction by several recent molecular dynamics simulations which state that portions of the [bmim] cations orient with a standing-up(N)–CH3 group at the ionic liquid surface. Hence, new realistic theoretical models have to be developed to reflect the complex nature of the ionic liquid surface.     

A study of density in electron-cyclotron-resonance plasma

A theory is developed for the density profile of low temperature plasmas confined by applied magnetic field and an experiment of the electron-cyclotron-resonance (ECR) plasma is conducted to compare the theoretical prediction and experimental measurements. Due to a large electron mobility along the magnetic field, electrons move quickly out of the system, leaving ions behind and building a space charge potential, which leads to the ambipolar diffusion of ions. In a steady-state condition, the plasma generation by ionization of neutral molecules is in balance with plasma loss due to the diffusion, leading to the electron temperature equation, which is expressed in terms of the plasma size, chamber pressure, and the ionization energy and cross section of neutrals. The power balance condition leads to the plasma density equation, which is also expressed in terms of the electron temperature, the input microwave power and the chamber pressure. It is shown that the plasma density increases, reaches its peak and decreases, as the chamber pressure increases from a small value (0.1 mTorr). These simple expressions of electron temperature and density provide a scaling law of ECR plasma in terms of system parameters. After carrying out an experimental observation, it is concluded that the theoretical predictions of the electron temperature and plasma density agree remarkably well with experimental data     

Optimal Planar Interception with Fixed End Conditions: Approximate Solutions

In a previous paper (Ref. 1), an exact solution of the optimal planar interception with fixed end conditions was derived in closed form. The optimal control was expressed as an explicit function of the state variables and two fixed parameters, obtained by solving a set of nonlinear algebraic equations involving elliptic integrals. In order to facilitate the optimal control implementation, the present paper derives a highly accurate simplified solution assuming that the ratio of the pursuer turning radius to the initial range is small. An asymptotic expansion further reduces the computational workload. Construction of a near-optimal open-loop control, based on the approximations, completes the present paper.     

Beryllium coordination chemistry

The coordination chemistry of beryllium with particular emphasis on chelates under physiological or near physiological conditions is surveyed. Hard donors such as oxygen are emphasized; equilibrium data and formation constants are reported as an indication of the strength of the complex.