Structure and orientation of an intermetallic phase in a W-Ni-Co alloy

The aim of this investigation is crystal structure determination of an intermetallic phase formed in a W-Ni-Co alloy during a heat-treatment carried out at a temperature of 800°C. This intermetallic phase is expected to play a critical role on the final microstructure (fine tungsten particles in an FCC matrix that is present in between large tungsten grains) and thereby, on the properties of the alloy. 92W-5.3Ni-2.7Co alloy was prepared through powder metallurgy route (liquid phase sintering) followed by heat-treatment at 800°C for 5?h. The intermetallic phase formed at this temperature was characterised using transmission and scanning electron microscopes. The intermetallic phase was found to have orthorhombic crystal structure with Pnam (62) space group as determined using automated diffraction tomography along with precession electron diffraction. Chemical analysis in TEM suggested that the intermetallic phase is based on stoichiometry (Co,Ni)₂W. Orientation imaging of the phase was also carried out in TEM and EBSD to understand its evolution. Equiaxed or lath morphology of the intermetallic phase was found to depend on the crystallographic orientation relationship of the phase with the tungsten grains and the matrix phase.     

In vitro measurement of attenuation and nonlinear scattering from echogenic liposomes

Echogenic liposomes (ELIP) are an excellent candidate for concurrent imaging and drug delivery applications. They combine the advantages of liposomes-biocompatibility and ability to encapsulate both hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs-with strong reflections of ultrasound. The objective of this study is to perform a detailed in vitro acoustic characterization - including nonlinear scattering that has not been studied before - along with an investigation of the primary mechanism of echogenicity. Both components are critical for developing viable clinical applications of ELIP. Mannitol, a cryoprotectant, added during the preparation of ELIP is commonly believed to be critical in making them echogenic. Accordingly, here ELIP prepared with varying amount of mannitol concentration are investigated for their pressure dependent linear and non-linear scattered responses. The average diameter of these liposomes is measured to be 125-185 nm. But they have a broad size distribution including liposomes with diameters over a micro-meter as observed by TEM and AFM. These larger liposomes are critical for the overall echogenicity. Attenuation through liposomal solution is measured with four different transducers (central frequencies 2.25, 3.5, 5, 10 MHz). Measured attenuation increases linearly with liposome concentration indicating absence of acoustic interactions between liposomes. Due to the broad size distribution, the attenuation shows a flat response without a distinct peak in the range of frequencies (1-12 MHz) investigated. A 15-20 dB enhancement with 1.67 μg/ml of lipids is observed both for the scattered fundamental and the second harmonic responses at 3.5 MHz excitation frequency and 50-800 kPa amplitude. It demonstrates the efficacy of ELIP for fundamental as well as harmonic ultrasound imaging. The scattered response however does not show any distinct subharmonic peak for the acoustic excitation parameters studied. Small amount of mannitol proves critical for echogenicity. However, mannitol concentration above 100 mM shows no effect.     

Ultra smooth NiO thin films on flexible plastic (PET) substrate at room temperature by RF magnetron sputtering and effect of oxygen partial pressure on their properties

Transparent p-type nickel oxide thin films were grown on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) and glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering technique in argon + oxygen atmosphere with different oxygen partial pressures at room temperature. The morphology of the NiO thin films grown on PET and glass substrates was studied by atomic force microscope. The rms surface roughnesses of the films were in the range 0.63-0.65 nm. These ultra smooth nanocrystalline NiO thin films are useful for many applications. High resolution transmission electron microscopic studies revealed that the grains of NiO films on the highly flexible PET substrate were purely crystalline and spherical in shape with diameters 8-10 nm. XRD analysis also supported these results. NiO films grown on the PET substrates were found to have better crystalline quality with fewer defects than those on the glass substrates. The sheet resistances of the NiO films deposited on PET and glass substrates were not much different; having values 5.1 and 5.3 kΩ/□ and decreased to 3.05, 3.1 kΩ/□ respectively with increasing oxygen partial pressure. The thicknesses of the films on both substrates were ∼700 nm. It was also noted that further increase in oxygen partial pressure caused increase in resistivity due to formation of defects in NiO.     

On the sensitivity of the energy of vanishing flow towards mass asymmetry of colliding nuclei

We demonstrate the role of the mass asymmetry in the energy of vanishing flow by studying asymmetric reactions throughout the periodic table and over entire colliding geometry. Our results, which are almost independent of the system size and as well as of the colliding geometries indicate a sizable effect of the asymmetry of the reaction on the energy of vanishing flow.     

Role of the mass asymmetry of reaction on the geometry of vanishing flow

We study the transverse flow throughout the mass asymmetry range as a function of the impact parameter, keeping the total mass of the system fixed. We find that the geometry of vanishing flow (GVF) i.e. the impact parameter at which flow vanishes and its mass dependence is quite sensitive to the mass asymmetry of the reaction. With increase in the mass asymmetry, the value of GVF decreases, while its mass dependence increases. Our results indicate the sizable role of mass asymmetry on GVF as on balance energy.     

Controlled delocalization of electronic states in a multi-strand quasiperiodic lattice

Finite strips, composed of a periodic stacking of infinite quasiperiodic Fibonacci chains, have been investigated in terms of their electronic properties. The system is described by a tight binding Hamiltonian. The eigenvalue spectrum of such a multi-strand quasiperiodic network is found to be sensitive on the mutual values of the intra-strand and inter-strand tunnel hoppings, whose distribution displays a unique three-subband self-similar pattern in a parameter subspace. In addition, it is observed that special numerical correlations between the nearest and the next-nearest neighbor hopping integrals can render a substantial part of the energy spectrum absolutely continuous. Extended, Bloch like functions populate the above continuous zones, signalling a complete delocalization of single particle states even in such a non-translationally invariant system, and more importantly, a phenomenon that can be engineered by tuning the relative strengths of the hopping parameters. A commutation relation between the potential and the hopping matrices enables us to work out the precise correlation which helps to engineer the extended eigenfunctions and determine the band positions at will.     

Masslessness of the up quark and η→3π0 decay

We explore new implications for the m_u=0 hypothesis and show that the decay rate for η→3π⁰ is in remarkable agreement with the experiment.     

On the exact revival of Morse oscillator wave packets

Journal of Mathematical Chemistry - The exact analytic expressions of the autocorrelation function and Husimi distribution function for a Morse oscillator wave packet have been derived and we use...