Highly efficient optically pumped cesium vapor laser

We have demonstrated an optically pumped continuous wave Cs vapor laser with an input power to output power slope efficiency of 81%. The laser power was 0.35 W for an input power of 0.57 W, yielding an overall optical efficiency of 63%.     

Electron-stimulated desorption of potassium and cesium atoms from oxidized molybdenum surfaces

The electron-stimulated desorption (ESD) yields and energy distributions for potassium (K) and cesium (Cs) atoms have been measured from K and Cs layers adsorbed at 300 K on oxidized molybdenum surfaces with various degrees of oxidation. The measurements were carried out using a time-of-flight method and surface ionization detector. The ESD appearance threshold for K and Cs atoms is independent of the molybdenum oxidation state and is close to the oxygen 2s level ionization energy of 25 eV. Additional thresholds for both K and Cs atoms are observed at about 40 and 70 eV in ESD from layers adsorbed on an oxygen monolayer-covered molybdenum surface; they are associated with resonance processes involving Mo 4p and 4s excitations. The ESD energy distributions for K and Cs atoms consist of single peaks. The most probable kinetic energy of atoms decreases in going from cesium to potassium and with increasing adsorbed metal concentration; it lies in the energy range around 0.35 eV. The K and Cs atom ESD energy distributions from adlayers on an oxygen monolayer-covered molybdenum surface are extended toward very low kinetic energies. The data can be interpreted by means of the Auger stimulated desorption model, in which neutralization of adsorbed alkali-metal ions occurs after filling of holes created by incident electrons in the O 2s, Mo 4s or Mo 4p levels.     

Rare gas coadsorption with Cs or K on Ag(111)

Rare gas (RG) coadsorption with submonolayer amounts of Cs or K on Ag(111) was studied using low-energy electron diffraction (LEED). A crossover in the alkali-RG interaction from repulsive to attractive was observed as a function of alkali species and of alkali coverage. The K---RG interaction was observed to be repulsive at all coverages, while the Cs---RG interaction was observed to be attractive at low Cs coverages and apparently repulsive at high Cs coverages. For the K + RG adsorption system, desorption data were analyzed to determine the spreading pressure in the alkali layer, thus showing that RG can be used as a 2D manometer in some coadsorption systems. From the spreading pressure it is possible to obtain some information about the properties of the adsorbed alkali such as the energy differences between commensurate and incommensurate phases. We also demonstrate that work function measurements from such coadsorption systems do not necessarily have a simple interpretation.     

Band gap engineering at surfaces of insulating films by adsorption of organic molecules

Adsorption of simple organic molecules on wide band gap insulators is a versatile tool to introduce unoccupied electronic states in the band gap at the surface. Relative energetic positions, varied also by intra-molecular interactions of functional side groups, determine the effective band gap. Specific examples used here are adsorbed molecules of benzoic acid and of its OH-substituted derivates (salicylic acid, etc.) on NaCl, KCl and on MgSO₄ · H₂O. These acids are mainly physisorbed on NaCl and KCl, whereas on MgSO₄ · H₂O chemical bond formation is found. Ab initio and semi-empirical calculations are used in order to identify mechanisms of surface-molecule as well as intra-molecular interactions.     

X-ray diffraction studies of RbBr-RbI mixed crystals

Mixed crystals of RbBr and RbI have been prepared from melt. Using an X-ray diffractometer powder patterns have been recorded. The lattice constants show slightly positive deviations from Vegard’s law. From the integrated intensities, the mean Debye-Waller factor has been determined. The Debye-Waller factor shows a highly non-linear composition dependence with positive deviations from linearity, the values for intermediate compositions exceeding those for the end members. The Debye temperatures calculated from the Debye-Waller factors show a non-linear composition dependence with negative deviations from linearity.     

Sodium adsorption on a Ge(100)-(2 × 1) surface

The adsorption of Na on a Ge(100)-(2 × 1) surface has been studied by means of AES, LEED, EELS, TPD and work-function measurements. In the submonolayer coverage region the coverage dependencies of the desorption activation energy E(Θ) and desorption frequency v(Θ) have been determined using the threshold TPD method. Our experimental data show that after the completion of the first Na layer, 3D crystallites develop on the Na/Ge(100) surface (Stranski-Krastanov growth mode). For Θ > 1 ML, formation, followed by decomposition of a certain Na---Ge surface compound occurs in the temperature range 410–550 K.     

Photoinduced processes on alkali covered surfaces: NO desorption from K/Cr2O3(0001)

We have studied the ultraviolet laser induced desorption of NO/Cr₂O₃(0001), K/Cr₂O₃(0001) and the coadsorbate system NO/K/Cr₂O₃(0001) using resonance enhanced multiphoton ionization spectroscopy for state selective detection of the desorbing species after excitation with nanosecond laser pulses. The goal of our experiments was to study the influence of surface electronic modifications via alkali adsorption on the photodynamics of a simple molecule. The photochemistry of the isolated and the coadsorbate systems is strongly dependent on the coverage of the diverse components. In this paper we shall mainly focus on data for the low coverage regime of potassium. From the two adsorbate species of NO, a chemisorbed and a physisorbed species, we present data of the chemisorbed species. The velocity distributions show a strong dependence on the excitation energy which we interpret on the basis of electron energy loss spectra as being due to surface charge transfer states. This is corroborated with our coadsorption experiments with low coverages of potassium which alter the velocity distributions.     

Capillary electrophoresis of organic and inorganic cations with indirect UV detection

Summary The determination of alkali and alkaline earth metal ions by capillary electrophoresis using indirect UV detection is described. With the identical system it is also possible to determine short chain aliphatic amines and alkanol amines within 4 minutes. Indirect UV detection is achieved at 214 nm with a background electrolyte containing 5 mmol L^–1 imidazole. Linear calibration curves could be obtained for peak areas between 0.5 and 10 ppm. The detection limits are around 0.1 ppm (corresponding to 10 fmol in about 10 nL sample volume) for all cations and amines and 0.05 ppm for lithium. Practical applications demonstrate the applicability of this system in routine analysis.     

Fabrication of hierarchical ZnSAPO-34 by alkali treatment with improved catalytic performance in the methanol-to-olefin reaction

A series of hierarchical ZnSAPO-34 zeolites were synthesized by treatment with different concentrations of tetraethylammonium hydroxide (TEAOH) solutions. The synthesized samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), temperature-programmed desorption, Fourier transform infrared, and N₂ adsorption and desorption techniques and studied as catalysts for the methanol to olefin reaction. The characterization results reveal that the crystal size of ZnSAPO-34 is greatly reduced compared with the parent SAPO-34 owing to the incorporation of Zn. Hierarchical pores with the sizes up to the macropore level in the ZnSAPO-34 zeolites are created with the post-treatment of TEAOH. The acid strength and the amounts of the strong acid of the hierarchical ZnSAPO-34 zeolites decrease after the post-treatment because TEAOH preferentially extracts Si species from the zeolite. The hierarchical ZnSAPO-34 zeolites exhibit superior catalytic performance than that of the parent ZnSAPO-34, owing to the shortened transportation distance and the appropriate acidity of the treated samples.     

Mesoporous Co3O4 Nanobundle Electrocatalysts

Tailoring metal oxide nanostructures with mesoporous architectures is vital to improve their electrocatalytic performance. Herein, we demonstrate the synthesis of 2D mesoporous Co₃O₄ (meso‐Co₃O₄) nanobundles with uniform shape and size by employing a hard‐template method. In this study, the incipient wetness impregnation technique has been chosen for loading metal precursor into the silica hard template (SBA‐15). The results reveal that the concentration of a saturated precursor solution plays a vital role in mesostructured ordering, as well as the size and shape of the final meso‐Co₃O₄ product. The optimized precursor concentration allows us to synthesize ordered meso‐Co₃O₄ with four to seven nanowires in each particle. The meso‐Co₃O₄ structure exhibits excellent electrocatalytic activity for both glucose and water oxidation reactions.