Effect of ultrasonic irradiation on structure and electrochemical properties of LiMn2O4 thin films cathode material for Li-ion micro-batteries

Two kinds of spinel LiMn₂O₄ thin film for lithium ion micro-batteries were successfully prepared on polycrystal Pt substrates by spin coating methods, which were carried out under ultrasonic irradiation (USG) and magnetic stirring (MSG), respectively. The microstructures and electrochemical performance of LiMn₂O₄ thin films were characterized by thermogravimetry analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and galvanostatic charge-discharge measurements. It was found that the crystalline structure of USG samples grew better than that of the MSG samples. At the same time, higher discharge capacity and better cycle stability were obtained for the LiMn₂O₄ thin films of USG at the current density of 50 μAh/cm² between 3.0 and 4.3 V. The 1st discharge capacity was 57.8 μAh/cm²-μm for USG thin films and 51.7 μAh/cm²-μm for MSG thin films. After 50 cycles, 91.4% and 69% of discharge capacity could be retained respectively, indicating that ultrasonic irradiation condition during spin coating was more suitable for preparing spinel LiMn₂O₄ thin films with better electrode performance for lithium ion micro-batteries.     

Oscillatory expression and variability in p53 regulatory network

The effect of delay, nonlinearity and noise on oscillatory motion is of permanent interest for theoretical and experimental research. Here we explore a negative feedback loop between p53 and Mdm2 with a time delay, which is a key circuit in the response of cells to damage. This circuit shows noisy sustained oscillations in individual human cells following DNA damage, and damped oscillations at the cell population level. We demonstrate the effect of delay on the oscillation, and the correlation in time course. In a multi-species system, the events at different time points which span a time delay are coupled even when the delay is large compared with the other characteristic times of the system. We also clarify that the dynamics at the single-cell level appears to be coherent resonance, and the origin of the damped oscillation at the macroscopic level out of the sustained ones at the single-cell level can be ascribed to the dephasing process which is induced by the interplay between nonlinearity and noise. The findings are consistent with experimental observations and advance our understanding of the dynamics of the p53 network.     

Correlation between structural and optical properties of ion beam synthesized β-FeSi2 precipitates in Si

The structural and optical properties of β-FeSi₂ precipitates produced by ion beam synthesis have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy, photoluminescence (PL) analysis and near infrared transmission measurements. The PL spectrum of β-FeSi₂ precipitates in a dislocation free sample has been observed to consist of a sharp line at 1.54 μm and a weak peak at 1.46 μm. Optical transmission measurements showed a direct band gap about 0.8 eV smaller than in continuous β-FeSi₂ film. Calculation of the electronic bands of β-FeSi₂ for different values of the lattice parameters indicates that this reduction can be ascribed to band distortion provided by the lattice strain.     

Methane activation over Ag-exchanged ZSM-5 zeolites: A theoretical study

Methane activation catalyzed over Ag-exchanged ZSM-5 zeolites was investigated by using the density functional theory (DFT) with a cluster model. Two different pathways were taken into account in this work: the “alkyl” and the “carbenium” pathways. The activation barriers obtained are 34.09 and 66.63 kcal/mol for the “alkyl” and the “carbenium” pathway, respectively. The calculated results show that the activation barrier of the “alkyl” pathway is smaller than that of “carbenium” pathway. Consequently, the “alkyl” pathway is the preferential reaction pathway. A new mechanism of methane conversion in the presence of ethene was proposed. In the catalytic cycle, the initial step of methane activation proceeds with the “alkyl” pathway and the Ag⁺ cation acts as an acceptor of the methyl group, then ethene reacts with the Ag⁺CH₃⁻ group to form propene. In addition, it is found that the Ag⁺ cations play an important role in the methane activation, compared with the reaction of methane activation over H-ZSM-5.     

Multicomponental Fluorimetric Determination of Aluminium, Gallium and Indium

For the fast characteristics of mixtures of Aluminium, Gallium and Indium the fluorimetric evaluation in the form of complexes with 8-Hydroxyquinoline-5-sulphonic acid is described at selected pH. The highly collinear correlated fluorescent spectra and their first derivation were evaluated under various experimental conditions with the Multiple Linear Regression (MLR), Partial Least Squares (PLS) methods and Kalman filtering. When comparing the results, the PLS gives the least relative prediction errors under optimal conditions, 5.6–15.9% for the concentration range of Al 0.025–0.2 μg cm⁻³, Ga 0.1–0.8 μg cm⁻³ and In 0.1–0.8 μg cm⁻³ in the mixture.     

Super-hydrophilic properties of TiO2-DLC nanocomposite films fabricated by the simple electrochemical process

Anatase TiO₂ nanoparticles incorporated DLC films were successfully deposited on single crystalline silicon substrates by the electrolysis of TiO₂-methanol solution under ambient atmospheric pressure and low temperature. Anatase TiO₂ nanoparticles were embedded into amorphous carbon matrix, forming the typical nanocrystalline/amorphous nanocomposite films, confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). TiO₂ incorporation effectively increased the sp³-hybridized carbon concentration in the composite film, and further regulated the microstructure and surface morphology. Furthermore, the static contact testing completely displayed, TiO₂ incorporation got the composite films super-hydrophilic, which fundamentally improved the wetting ability of DLC film.     

Effect of C60 ion sputtering on the compositional depth profiling in XPS for Li(Ni,Co,Mn)O2 electrodes

The performance of a Li-ion cell strongly depends on the solid-electrolyte interface (SEI) on electrodes. The depth distribution of composition in SEI is normally determined by means of X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) via Ar ion sputtering. Recently, a new kind of ion gun using C60 ions as sputtering source was introduced. In this report, a comparison between the effects of these two kinds of ion guns on the quantification of Li(Ni,Co,Mn)O₂ electrodes was made. It was found that the C60 ion gun is more suitable for analyzing the composition and chemical state of Li(Ni,Co,Mn)O₂ electrode since that it causes lower chemical damage in the superficial layer.     

Structural studies of AgSbTe2 under pressure: Experimental and theoretical analyses

The crystal structure of AgSbTe₂ has been refined using first-principles calculations, from which the ordering of the cations, Ag and Sb, was confirmed. The spontaneous formation of two (D4 and L1₁) phases at ambient and elevated pressure was demonstrated theoretically. The compound was also prepared and its high-pressure structural deformation sequence, ranging from ambient to 50.9 GPa, was observed with synchrotron radiation at room temperature. The compound underwent a pressure-induced amorphization (PIA) at 24.6 GPa and then started recrystallizing at 49.2 GPa. The bulk modulus (B₀) and pressure derivative of the bulk modulus (B_p) were determined experimentally to be 56.3 ± 5.1 GPa and 4.3 ± 0.8, respectively. We suggest that large displacements of Te atoms to Ag vacancy positions are responsible for PIA and the recrystallization.     

Growth and spectral properties of Yb:Ca0.28Ba0.72Nb2O6 disordered crystal

The growth, XRD patterns, spectral properties, and fluorescence decays of Yb:Ca_0.28Ba_0.72Nb₂O₆ (Yb:CBN) with doping concentration of 1 at.% and 5 at.% were studied. The peak absorption cross-section and the emission cross-section were calculated. Larger Stark splitting of Yb:CBN offers the prospect of the quasi-four level laser operation.     

Spin-1/2 Maxwell Fields

Requiring covariance of Maxwell's equations without a priori imposing charge invariance allows for both spin-1 and spin-1/2 transformations of the complete Maxwell field and current. The spin-1/2 case yields new transformation rules, with new invariants, for all traditional Maxwell field and source quantities. The accompanying spin-1/2 representations of the Lorentz group employ the Minkowski metric, and consequently the primary spin-1/2 Maxwell invariants are also spin-1 invariants; for example, ²–A ², E ²–B ²+2i EB–(₀ +A)². The associated Maxwell Lagrangian density is also the same for both spin-1 and spin-1/2 fields. However, in the spin-1/2 case, standard field and source quantities are complex and both charge and gauge invariance are lost. Requiring the potentials to satisfy the Klein–Gordon equation equates the Maxwell and field-potential equations with two Dirac equations of the Klein–Gordon mass, and thus one complex Klein–Gordon Maxwell field describes either two real vector fields or two Dirac fields, all of the same mass.