Influence of Dopants in ZnO Films on Defects

The influence of dopants in ZnO films on defects is investigated by slow positron annihilation technique. The results show S that parameters meet S_Al>S_un>S_Ag for Al-doped ZnO films, undoped and Ag-doped ZnO films. Zinc vacancies are found in all ZnO films with different dopants. According to S parameter and the same defect type, it can be induced that the zinc vacancy concentration is the highest in the Al-doped ZnO film, and it is the least in the Ag-doped ZnO film. When Al atoms are doped in the ZnO films grown on silicon substrates, Zn vacancies increase as compared to the undoped and Ag-doped ZnO films. The dopant concentration could determine the position of Fermi level in materials, while defect formation energy of zinc vacancy strongly depends on the position of Fermi level, so its concentration varies with dopant element and dopant concentration.     

Conduction switching in aluminum nitride thin films containing Al nanocrystals

Conduction switching, i.e., a sharp change in the conduction from a lower-conductance state to a higher-conductance state or vice versa in aluminum nitride thin films embedded with Al nanocrystals (nc–Al) has been observed in the ramped-voltage and ramped-current current–voltage (I–V) measurements and the time-domain current measurement as well. Each state is well defined and its I–V characteristic follows a power law. It is observed that the conductance decreases (or increases) with charging (or discharging) in the nc–Al. It is shown that the conduction switching is due to the charging and discharging in the nc–Al at certain strategic sites. With the connecting (or breaking) of some conductive tunneling paths formed by the uncharged nc–Al due to the discharging (or charging) in the nc–Al at the strategic sites, a conduction switching occurs.     

Vehicular motion on a selected path in a 2d traffic network controlled by signals

We study the dynamic behavior of vehicular traffic through a series of traffic lights on selected paths in a two-dimensional (2d) traffic network. The city traffic network is made of one-way perpendicular streets arranged in a square lattice with traffic signals where vertical streets are oriented upwards and horizontal streets are oriented rightwards. A vehicle moves through the series of signals on a path selected by the driver. The selected path is one of the straight, zigzag, and random paths in a 2d traffic network. The vehicular motion on a selected path is presented by the nonlinear-map model. Vehicular traffic exhibits very complex behavior with varying selected paths, cycle times, and vehicular density. The dependence of the arrival time on cycle time, selected path, and density is clarified for 2d city traffic.     

Green-light paths in city traffic controlled by signals

When a vehicle moves through a series of green lights with avoiding red signals in the traffic network, the travel time has a minimal value and the vehicle draws a characteristic trajectory. We study the trajectories (green-light paths) of a vehicle for various values of both cycle time and split at the synchronized and random-phase strategies. The trajectory depends highly on both signal's characteristics and control strategy. We clarify the dependence of green-light paths on both cycle time and split. At the random phase strategy, the vehicle draws a trajectory of the random walk. It is shown where the vehicle arrives if a driver selects the green-light path.     

A D’Alembert Formula for Flat Surfaces in the 3-Sphere

We find all the flat surfaces in the unit 3-sphere $\mathbb{S}^{3}We find all the flat surfaces in the unit 3-sphere that pass through a given regular curve of with a prescribed tangent plane distribution along this curve. The formula that solves this problem may be seen as a geometric analogue of the classical D’Alembert formula that solves the Cauchy problem for the homogeneous wave equation. We also provide several applications of this geometric D’Alembert formula, including a classification of the flat M?bius strips of  .      

Positron annihilation lifetime studies on La0.5Pb0.5Mn1−yCryO3

Concentration dependent positron annihilation lifetime (PAL) measurements on Cr doped La_0.5Pb_0.5Mn_1−yCr_yO₃ (y=0.075, 0.15, 0.3, 0.35, 0.45) samples showing metal-insulator transitions (MIT) between 178 and 276 K (depending on y) reveal anomalous variation of average and bulk PAL, τ_av and τ_B, respectively, around y=0.35. Such anomaly has not, however, been observed from the corresponding magnetic susceptibility and resistivity data. Interestingly, the model parameters (polaron radius, number of ion sites per unit volume) obtained from fitting the high temperature (above MIT, T_p) resistivity data with small polaron hopping model show the signature of the said anomaly around the same concentration. Nonlinear variations of τ_av and τ_B support the existence of small polarons (T>T_p) which act as defect centers in such rare-earth manganites. Analysis of X-ray diffraction pattern confirms a change of lattice parameters indicating a structural transformation from rhombohedral (for y≤0.30) to orthorhombic (for y≥0.35) in the present system.     

Positron mobility in anthracene

We have measured the positron mobility in a sample of scintillation grade anthracene at two temperatures. We obtain at 300 K: =(26.0±0.9±2.6) cm²V^–1s^–1 and at 77 K: =(33.4±1.1±3.3) cm²V^–1s^–1, where the first error estimate is statistical and the second is systematic. We have also made preliminary measurements on a highly purified sample that yields =(130±3±20) cm² V^–1 s^–1 at 300 K. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that the positron is scattered from both impurities and acoustic phonons in the first sample, and predominantly from photons in the second. It appears that positrons in pure anthracene crystals are delocalized and have a mean free path of about 85 Å at room temperature.     

Microstructure of polycarbonate seen by positrons as an in-situ probe

Positron Annihilation Lifetime Spectroscopy (PALS) is used to probe the micro-structural changes in the polymer polycarbonate in terms of the changes in free volume hole size and their content as a function of temperature. The measured spectra are best fitted to three lifetime component analysis. The average hole size in the amorphous regions is determined from the measured Ortho Positronium (O-Ps) lifetime ₃ by following the treatment of Nakanishi et al. On the other hand, information about defects in the crystalline regions is revealed by trapped positrons lifetime ₂. In this polymer the average hole radius varies from 2.71 Å to 2.77 Å. The present study indicates that this polymer has a glass transition temperature of 152°C. Further, we have calculated the trapping rates in the ordered and disordered regions of the polymer based on Goldanskii's kinetic equations and an attempt is made for the first time to estimate the activation energy in the amorphous and crystalline regions separately.     

Analysis of positron diffusion data

In this paper we present and discuss experimental methods to determine the positron diffusion coefficient from slow positron beam measurements. We also evaluate the use of the annihilation line Doppler-broadening technique in positron diffusion measurements, as compared on the more commonly used method of positronium fraction. The effects of incomplete positron thermalization and uncertainties of the positron implantation profile at low-positron incident energies to the measured data are discussed. We apply the presented methods to the model case of A1(110) system in the temperature range from 20 to 500 K. This data shows that Doppler-broadening and positronium fraction measurements give consistent results for the positron diffusion coefficient in A1(110), where D₊(300 K) = 1.7(2) cm²/s with the temperature dependence D₊ T ^–0.62(3).     

Positron lifetime and Doppler-broadening measurements in noble metals and their alloys

Positron annihilation measurements in pure copper and silver as well as in the alloysCuGe,CuIn,CuSb, andAgSb have been performed. Most of the measurements have been carried out in thermal equilibrium. In this way it is possible to deduce vacancy formation — and vacancy — solute atom binding energies. ForCuIn alloys with 3.3 at.% and 7.1 at.% indium precipitation effects have been studied.This paper is based upon a talk given by W.L.-T. at the Int. Symp. Production of Low-Energy Positrons with Accelerators and Applications Justus-Liebig-Universität Giessen (1986)