Synthesis and characterization of magnesium oxide nanocrystallites and probing the vacancy-type defects through positron annihilation studies

Magnesium oxide nanocrystallites exhibit certain abnormal characteristics when compared to those of other wide band gap oxide semiconductors in the sense they are most prone to water absorption and formation of a hydroxide layer on the surface. The problem can be rectified by heating and pure nanocrystallites can be synthesized with controllable sizes. Inevitably the defect properties are distinctly divided between two stages, the one with the hydroxide layer (region I) and the other after the removal of the layer by annealing (region II). The lattice parameters, the optical band gap and even the positron annihilation characteristics are conspicuous by their distinct behavior in the two stages of the surface configurations of nanoparticles. While region I was specific with the formation of positronium-hydrogen complexes that drastically altered the defect-specific positron lifetimes, pick-off annihilation of orthopositronium atoms marked region II. The vacancy clusters within the nanocrystallites also trapped positrons. They agglomerated due to the effect of the higher temperatures and resulted in the growth of the nanocrystallites. The coincidence Doppler broadening spectroscopic measurements supported these findings and all the more indicated the trapping of positrons additionally into the neutral divacancies and negatively charged trivacancies. This is apart from the Mg²⁺ monovacancies which acted as the dominant trapping centers for positrons.     

高压下LiYF4晶体光学性质的第一性原理研究

本文采用第一性原理方法,在100 GPa的压力范围内, 计算了LiYF4理想晶体和含空位点缺陷晶体的光学性质.吸收谱数据表明,在100 GPa范围内,压力和相变因素的存在不会改变LiYF4晶体在250-1000 nm的波段内没有光吸收的事实. 氟、钇空位点缺陷的出现会使得LiYF4的吸收边蓝移,而锂空位点缺陷将导致它的吸收边微弱红移(但在250-1000 nm的波段内它仍不具有光吸收行为).波长在532 nm处的折射率数据显示, 在LiYF4的三个结构相区,其折射率均随压力的增加而增大. LiYF4从白钨矿结构到褐钇铌矿结构的相变会使得其折射率略微增加,但从褐钇铌矿结构到类黑钨矿结构的相变将导致其折射率显著降低. 同时,空位缺陷的存在将引起LiYF4的折射率明显增大. 分析指明,LiYF4有成为冲击窗口材料的可能. 本文所获得的信息对未来的实验研究有参考作用.     

Effects of particle size, shape and crystal structure on the formation energy of Schottky vacancies in free-standing metal nanoparticles: A model study

A simplified model based on cohesive energy is proposed to estimate the formation energy of Schottky vacancies (VFE) in free-standing metal nanoparticles with BCC and FCC crystal structures. To study the effect of particle size and shape, the surface energy, elastic contraction and average coordination number of particles at the surface and core was considered. It is shown that the energy of vacancy formation in FCC nanoparticles increases with decreasing the size while the effect of particle shape (sphere, cubic and icosahedral) is marginal. In spite of this behavior, BCC nanoparticles exhibit a critical particle size at around 25 Å, at which a minimum VFE is attained. Additionally, the energy of vacancy formation is notably lower for BCC nanoparticles with cubic shape than spherical ones. The application of the developed model is shown for free-standing Fe and Cu nanoparticles.     

空位和B掺杂对Si在石墨烯上吸附的影响

利用基于密度泛函理论的第一性原理计算了空位和B替位掺杂对Si在石墨烯上吸附的影响. 结果表明: 对完整的石墨烯结构, Si吸附在桥位最稳定, Si吸附改变了石墨烯中C原子的自旋性质; 空位和B替位掺杂均加强了Si在缺陷处的吸附, 空位对Si在石墨烯上吸附的影响相对较大; B掺杂改变了Si的稳定吸附位置(由桥位移到顶位); Si在空位和B掺杂石墨烯上吸附, 体系不具有磁性; B掺杂提高了石墨烯体系的导电性能; 单空位缺陷不易形成, 结构不稳定, B掺杂结构相对较稳定.     

高压下BaF2光学性质的模拟计算

探寻新的冲击窗口材料是高压科学领域中的一个重要课题.为此,在100 GPa范围内,通过第一性原理方法计算了BaF₂晶体的吸收谱以及在532 nm处的折射率.结果表明:1)压力和结构相变因素不会引起BaF₂晶体在可见光区域出现光吸收;氟和钡空位点缺陷的存在将使得BaF₂吸收谱的吸收边红移,但这些红移行为不会导致该材料在可见光区域内出现光吸收的现象,由此可以初步推测,BaF₂晶体有成为冲击窗口材料的可能. 2) BaF₂的折射率在其三个结构相区都随压力的增大而增大,并且BaF₂的高压相变也使得其折射率升高;钡空位点缺陷的存在将导致其折射率减小,而氟空位点缺陷却引起其折射率增加.     

An initial study of the growth and defect analysis on hydrated 2-benzoyl benzoic acid crystal

In the present study, single crystals of hydrated 2-benzoyl benzoic acid were grown by the slow evaporation solution growth method. Single crystal and powder X-ray diffraction studies confirm the triclinic structure of the grown crystals. The defect in crystalline perfection has been defined by rocking curve analysis. The FTIR spectrum of the crystal displays carbonyl stretching of the carboxylic group at 1685 cm^?1 and of keto group at 1661 cm^?1. It shows a merged medium band around 3450 cm^?1 due to OH stretching and does not distinguish clearly between OH of COOH and H₂O held up in the crystal. The existence of additional bands appears at 1590 cm^?1 due to vibration of H₂O in the compound. The photoluminescence excitation studies were carried out for the grown crystals for wide wavelength range between 300 nm and 700 nm at room temperature. The range of percentage of optical absorption of the crystal has been ascertained by UV?vis spectral characterization. The mechanical strength has been determined by Vickers's microhardness measurement for different loads with constant dwell time.     

Competition between ferromagnetic and anti-ferromagnetic couplings in Co doped ZnO with vacancies and Ga co-dopants

Spin-polarized first-principles electronic structure and total energy calculations have been performed to better understand the magnetic properties of Co doped ZnO (ZnO:Co) with vacancies and Ga co-dopants. The paramagnetic state of ZnO:Co, in which Co ions lose their magnetic moments, has been found to be unstable. The total energy results show that acceptor-like Zn vacancies and donor-like Ga co-dopants render the anti-ferromagnetic (AFM) and ferromagnetic (FM) states to be more favorable, respectively. With O vacancies, ZnO:Co has been found to be in the weak FM state. These magnetic properties can be understood by the calculated O- and Zn-vacancies and Ga co-dopant induced changes of the electronic structure, which suggest that AFM and FM Co-Co couplings are mediated by O 2p-Co majority (↑)-spin 3d hybridized states in the valence band of ZnO and O-vacancy-derived p states or Ga sp states in the ZnO band gap, respectively. For ZnO:Co with Zn vacancies (Ga co-dopants) the AFM (FM) coupling outweighs the FM (AFM) coupling and results in the AFM (FM) state, while for ZnO:Co with O vacancies, both the FM and AFM couplings are enhanced by similar degrees and result in the weak FM state. This study reveals a competition between FM and AFM couplings in ZnO:Co with vacancies and Ga co-dopants, the detailed balancing between which determines the magnetic properties of these materials.     

Crystallographically-based analysis of the NMR spectra of maghemite

All possible iron environments with respect to nearest neighbour vacancies in vacancy-ordered and vacancy-disordered maghemite have been evaluated and used as the foundation for a crystallographically-based analysis of the published NMR spectra of maghemite. The spectral components have been assigned to particular configurations and excellent agreement obtained in comparing predicted spectra with published spectra taken in applied magnetic fields. The broadness of the published NMR lines has been explained by calculations of the magnetic dipole fields at the various iron sites and consideration of the supertransferred hyperfine fields.     

Multiscale diffusion method for simulations of long-time defect evolution with application to dislocation climb

In many problems of interest to materials scientists and engineers, the evolution of crystalline extended defects (dislocations, cracks, grain boundaries, interfaces, voids, precipitates) is controlled by the flow of point defects (interstitial/substitutional atoms and/or vacancies) through the crystal into the extended defect. Precise modeling of this behavior requires fully atomistic methods in and around the extended defect, but the flow of point defects entering the defect region can be treated by coarse-grained methods. Here, a multiscale algorithm is presented to provide this coupling. Specifically, direct accelerated molecular dynamics (AMD) of extended defect evolution is coupled to a diffusing point defect concentration field that captures the long spatial and temporal scales of point defect motion in the presence of the internal stress fields generated by the evolving defect. The algorithm is applied to study vacancy absorption into an edge dislocation in aluminum where vacancy accumulation in the core leads to nucleation of a double-jog that then operates as a sink for additional vacancies; this corresponds to the initial stages of dislocation climb modeled with explicit atomistic resolution. The method is general and so can be applied to many other problems associated with nucleation, growth, and reaction due to accumulation of point defects in crystalline materials.     

空位缺陷对单层硅烯薄膜力学性能的影响

采用基于分子动力学理论的Forcite模拟软件包对含不同浓度的单、双空位缺陷硅烯薄膜的超晶胞体系进行优化,并对其力学性能进行了计算和分析.结果表明:随着空位缺陷浓度的增加,硅烯薄膜的拉梅常数、泊松比、体弹模量和剪切模量呈线性递减趋势,而由于空位缺陷附近键长的缩减导致硅烯薄膜"硬化"与空位缺陷浓度的增加导致硅烯晶格中硅原子密度降低,两种体制的竞争使得硅烯杨氏模量表现出先升高在降低的趋势.