Magnetotransport and magnetic properties of InAs/Mn digital alloys

We have investigated the magnetic and magneto-transport properties of a systematic sequence of five InAs/Mn digital alloys grown by a combination of molecular beam epitaxy and atomic layer epitaxy. The samples consist of 30 periods of Mn fractional monolayers (ML) (0.17–0.5 ML) separated by 14 ML thick InAs spacer layers in a superlattice configuration. Four samples show n-type electrical conduction while the fifth (0.25 ML Mn) is p-type. Squid magnetization measurements performed on these samples show remnant magnetization above room temperature, which is apparently related to a second phase.     

Electrical characterization of low temperature deposited TiO2 films on strained-SiGe layers

Thin films of titanium dioxide have been deposited on strained Si_0.82Ge_0.18 epitaxial layers using titanium tetrakis-isopropoxide [TTIP, Ti(O-i-C₃H₇)₄] and oxygen by microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The films have been characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Dielectric constant, equivalent oxide thickness (EOT), interface state density (D_it), fixed oxide charge density (Q_f/q) and flat-band voltage (V_FB) of as-deposited films were found to be 13.2, 40.6 Å, 6×10¹¹ eV⁻¹ cm⁻², 3.1×10¹¹ cm⁻² and −1.4 V, respectively. The capacitance–voltage (C–V), current–voltage (I–V) characteristics and charge trapping behavior of the films under constant current stressing exhibit an excellent interface quality and high dielectric reliability making the films suitable for microelectronic applications.     

An Experimental Investigation into the Acoustic Characteristics of Fluid-filled Porous Structures—A Simplified Model of the Human Skull Cancellous Structure

In nature, shape and structure evolve from the struggle for better performance. Often, biological structures combine multiple beneficial properties, making research into mimicking them very complex. Presented here is a summary of observations from a series of experiments performed on a material that closely resembles the human skull bone’s cancellous structure under acoustic loads. Transmission loss through flat and curved open-cell polyurethane foam samples is observed using air and water as the two interstitial fluids. Reduction in strength and stiffness caused by porosity can be recovered partially by filling the interstitial pores with a fluid. The test findings demonstrate the influence of the interstitial fluid on the mechanical characteristics of a porous structure in a quantitative manner. It is also demonstrated that the transmission loss does not depend only on the mass per unit area of the structure as predicted by acoustic mass law. Current tests also demonstrate that the transmission loss is more sensitive to the interstitial fluid than the shape and support conditions of the structures. Test observations thus support the concepts of “moisture-sensitivity of biological design” and the “law of hierarchy in natural design”.     

Effect of Pressure on Fluid Damping in MEMS Torsional Resonators with Flow Ranging from Continuum to Molecular Regime

High quality factor of dynamic structures at micro and nano scale is exploited in various applications of micro electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) and nano electro-mechanical system. The quality factor of such devices can be very high in vacuum. However, when vacuum is not desirable or not possible, the tiny structures must vibrate in air or some other gas at pressure levels that may vary from atmospheric to low vacuum. The interaction of the surrounding fluid with the vibrating structure leads to dissipation, thus bringing down the quality factor. Depending on the ambient fluid pressure or the gap between the vibrating and the fixed structure, the fluid motion can range from continuum flow to molecular flow giving a wide range of dissipation. The relevant fluid flow characteristics are determined by the Knudsen number which is the ratio of the mean free path of the gas molecule to the characteristic flow length of the device. This number is very small for continuum flow and reasonably big for molecular flow. In this paper, we study the effect of fluid pressure on the quality factor by carrying out experiments on a MEMS device that consists of a double gimbaled torsional resonator. Such devices are commonly used in optical cross-connects and switches. We only vary fluid pressure to make the Knudsen number go through the entire range of continuum flow, slip flow, transition flow, and molecular flow. We experimentally determine the quality factor of the torsional resonator at different air pressures ranging from 760 Torr to 0.001 Torr. The variation of this pressure over six orders of magnitude ensures required rarefaction to range over all flow conditions. Finally, we get the variation of quality factor with pressure. The result indicates that the quality factor, Q, follows a power law, Q ∝P ^–r , with different values of the exponent r in different flow regimes. In the second part of the paper, we propose the use of effective viscosity for considering velocity slip conditions in solving Navier–Stokes equation numerically. This concept is validated with analytical results for a simple case and then compared with the experimental results presented in this paper. The study shows that the effective viscosity concept can be used effectively even for the molecular regime if the air-gap to length ratio is sufficiently small (h ₀/L<0.01). As this ratio increases, the range of validity decreases.     

Simulation of the instability of an accelerating gaseous envelope

The development of perturbations of the parameters of a dense gaseous envelope traveling with an acceleration driven by a difference in the pressures on either side is investigated numerically. Plane and axisymmetric time-dependent flows of a compressible medium are considered. The effect of both the density of the envelope and the form of the initial perturbations of its shape and motion on the mass cumulation in the compactions formed is studied. The evolutions of the perturbations of a layer and the surface of a contact discontinuity accelerated by an impinging plane shock wave are compared.     

Iteration scheme for accelerometer unit calibration by a guaranteeing approach

Methods for accelerometer unit calibration are usually based on sufficiently strict requirements on the knowledge of the gravity orientation with respect to the unit (of the order of fractions of an arc minute). But it is not always possible to know the orientation with such high accuracy. In the present paper, we consider an approach to accelerometer unit calibration for whose implementation it suffices to have rough angular information (of the order of tens of arc minutes). We use a guaranteeing approach to calculate optimal schemes calibration experiments and propose an iterative scheme of calibration.     

Features of light attenuation in crystals under violation of the Bouguer law

A computer simulation and measurements of the light transmittance of germanium and paratellurite crystals of different thickness were used to show that, at scattering probabilities of photons comparable to their absorption probabilities, the standard methods for calculating light extinction coefficients on the basis of the Bouguer law lead to rough errors in estimation of the optical quality of a material.     

Similar quartz crystallographic textures in rocks of continental earth’s crust (by neutron diffraction data): II. Quartz textures in monophase rocks

The types of quartz textures found in a large collection of multiphase rocks from different regions of the earth are analyzed. Crystallographic textures of granulite, amphibolite, slate, and gneiss samples are measured, classified, and compared with the similar textures of monomineral rocks.     

A retractable structure based on Bricard linkages and rotating rings of tetrahedra

Retractable structures which alter their geometries according to practical requirements are widely used in roof structures of stadiums for their versatility. A retractable structure based on threefold-symmetric Bricard linkages and rotating rings of tetrahedra is proposed and developed in this paper. By replacing each link of a threefold-symmetric Bricard linkage with a tetrahedron, a retractable structure is obtained which can repeatedly open and close by rotating the tetrahedra. The geometric relationship between the retractable structure and the threefold-symmetric Bricard linkage is derived and ranges of main geometric parameters are determined to ensure a continuous and smooth movement in the deployment of the structure. Then the relative displacement of the support and the open rate of the structure, two main parameters concerned in practical applications, are investigated. Preferred ranges of main geometric parameters are proposed and a physical model is manufactured to verify them. A discussion on some possible improvements and modifications of the structure is also presented.