Solid-state structure of polypeptide-based rod-coil block copolymers: Folding of helices

This work compares the solid-state structures of films made from a polystyrene-poly(Z-L-lysine) (1) and a polystyrene-poly(-benzyl-L-glutamate) (2) block copolymer, both having virtually the same numbers of repeating units and block length ratios. Small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) revealed a hexagonal-in-undulated lamellar morphology for both films. The long-period and the thickness of layers obtained for 2 were by a factor of three smaller as compared to 1, indicating that PBLGlu helices were folded twice, whereas PZLLys helices were fully stretched. Another difference shows up in the packing of helices, the level of ordering being considerably lower in 2. This might be due to spatial restrictions in the proper alignment of back-folded helical segments.     

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy investigations of Si in non-stoichiometric SiNx LPCVD multilayered coatings

Si nanocrystals were formed in the non-stoichiometric Si-enriched SiN_x low-pressure chemical vapor deposited (LPCVD) coatings on Si wafers treated by various modes. The coating structure as a function of technological conditions was investigated by ellipsometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) depth profiling. It was found that nanocomposites on base of SiN_x films enriched by Si have a complex multilayered structure varying in dependence of deposition and annealing parameters. Analysis of the XPS spectra and Si 2s peaks shows the existence and quantity of four chemical structures corresponding to the Si–O, Si–N states, nanocrystalline and amorphous Si. The XPS results show evolution of the chemical structure of silicon nitride and formation of Si nanocrystals. It was found:

• The LPCVD technology of nanocrystals formation allows to get enough high concentration of Si nanocrystals on different depths from the sample surface.

• The volume fraction of nanocrystalline and amorphous Si is changed with depth; this relation depends from SiN_x composition and annealing parameters.

• XPS detects these two phase compositions of Si nanoparticles in SiN_x and SiO₂ layers. The ellipsometry, HR-TEM, and XPS results are in good agreement.

新型全固态激光器作用过程中的激光参数分析

对影响LD泵浦的Nd∶GdVO4,Nd∶YVO4和Nd∶YAG激光器输出特性的增益介质长度、腔内损耗、输出镜透过率、泵浦光和振荡光的光斑大小进行了分析和数值模拟。当腔内固有损耗为2%,输出镜透过率为10%时,Nd∶Gd-VO4,Nd∶YVO4和Nd∶YAG晶体的振荡阈值分别为1.77W、0.55W和3.34W。在25W泵浦功率下,利用1mm长的Nd∶GdVO4,Nd∶YVO4和Nd∶YAG晶体可分别得到13.17W,13.26W和8.43W的输出功率,相应的输出镜最佳透过率分别为24%,44%和16%。     

Pressure-Induced Shifts of R1 and R2 Lines of YAG:Cr3+

By means of improved ligand-field theory, the "pure electronic" pressure-induced shifts (PS's) and the PS's due to electron-phonon interaction (EPI) of R1 line and R2 line of YAG:Cr3 have been calculated, respectively.The calculated results are in very good agreement with the experimental data. It is demonstrated that the admixture of |t22(3T1)e4T2> and |t322E> bases in the wavefunction of R1 level of YAG:Cr3 and its change with pressure play a key role for the PS of R1 line. The behaviors of the "pure electronic" PS of R1 line and the PS of R1 line due to EPI are different. It is the combined effect of them that gives rise to the total PS of R1 line, which has satisfactorily explained the experimental results. The systematic analyses and comparisons between the feature of R1-line PS of YAG:Cr3 and the ones of three laser crystals (GSGG:Cr3 , GGG:Cr3 and ruby) have been made, and the origin of the difference between them has been revealed.     

Photonic crystal beam splitters

In this work, the beam splitter with two input ports and two output ports in two-dimensional photonic crystals is studied through the finite-difference time-domain method. The beam splitter consists of two orthogonally cross line defects. The diameter of the two diagonal air holes at the intersection of the two line defects was modified. The input light can be identically divided into the two output ports. The beam splitters can be applied in the photonic crystal Mach-Zehnder interferometers or photonic crystal optical switches.     

Coupled mode analysis of in-plane channel drop filters with resonant mirrors

A channel drop filter system that consists of two waveguides and three cavities is studied. One cavity couples with both waveguides, while the other two work as resonant mirrors to reflect the selected channel back into the system. The operation of this configuration is analyzed, using coupled mode theory. The conditions to achieve 100% in-plane channel transfer are derived. A method to suppress the side lobes of reflection and backward drop is also proposed. The direct coupling between the cavities is not required. The analysis is verified by two-dimensional finite difference time domain simulations in 2D hexagonal photonic crystals.     

Frustration between syn- and anticlinicity in mixtures of chiral and non-chiral tilted smectic-C-type liquid crystals

We study the effects of mixing ferroelectric and antiferroelectric liquid-crystal compounds (FLCs and AFLCs) when the former are strictly synclinic and the latter strictly anticlinic, i.e. one mixture component exhibits only SmC* and the other only SmC a* as tilted phase. Three different paths between syn- and anticlinicity were detected: transition directly between SmC* and SmC a*, transition via the SmC_β* and SmC_γ* subphases, or by “escaping” the clinicity frustration by reducing the tilt to zero, i.e. the SmA* phase is extended downwards in temperature, separating SmC* from SmC a* in the phase diagram. The most common path is the one via the subphases, demonstrating that these phases appear as a result of frustration between syn- and anticlinic and, consequently, between syn- and antipolar order. For assessing the role of chirality, we also replaced the FLC with non-chiral synclinics. With one of the AFLCs, the route via supbhases was detected even in this case, suggesting that chirality --although necessary-- does not have quite the importance that has previously been attributed to the appearance of the subphases. The path chosen in the mixture study seemed to be determined mainly by the synclinic component, the subphase induction occurring only when the SmA*-SmC* transition was second order.     

A phenomenological theory of the isotropic to chiral smectic-C phase transition

In this paper we discuss the direct isotropic to chiral smectic-C phase transition on the basis of a phenomenological theory. The model free energy is written in terms of the coupled order parameters including the spontaneous polarization. We present a detailed analysis of the different phases that can occur and analyze the question under which conditions a direct isotropic to chiral smectic-C phase transition is possible when compared to other phase transitions. On the basis of this model the isotropic-smectic-C^* transition is always of first order. The theoretical predictions are compared with the available experimental results.-1     

Electronic,structural and magnetic properties of TbO under pressure: FP-LAPW study

ABSTRACT

Using the framework of the density functional theory, we calculated electronic, magnetic and structural properties of terbium oxide (TbO) in rocksalt (RS), cesium chloride (CsCl) and zincblende (ZB). Full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method within the local spin density approximation (LSDA) and generalized gradient (PBE-GGA) approximations are used. Magnetic and non-magnetic calculations are performed and a modified version of Becke and Johnson (mBJ) exchange potential has been used to calculate the band gaps. We found that, although TbO is stable in a ferromagnetic state, it is stable in RS phase at ambient condition. Both LSDA and PBE-GGA calculations revealed that the three structures are metallic. However, using the mBJ calculation, it is clear that RS and CsCl phases of TbO compound are metallic, while ZB phase is found to be an insulator in the spin-up case and a semiconductor in the spin-down case at ambient pressure.     

Enhancement of the SHG efficiency in a doubly resonant 2D-photonic crystal microcavity

In this paper we discuss the conditions to obtain the enhancement of second harmonic generation in a two-dimensional circular photonic crystal AlGaAs cavity. The photonic crystal circular cavity offers the possibility of having high-Q resonance modes with respect to those obtained with other types of photonic crystal lattices. The crystallographic cut of the AlGaAs provides a strong nonlinear coupling between a transverse-magnetic (TM) polarized resonant mode at the fundamental wavelength and a transverse-electric (TE) polarized resonant mode at second harmonic wavelength. The double resonance condition leads to a strong improvement of the second harmonic generation process. A preliminary linear analysis has been performed by using the finite-difference time-domain method, which includes the dispersive response of the material, modeled using the well-known one-pole pair Lorentzian function.