Temperature effect on threshold voltage and optical property of twisted nematic liquid crystal with applied different voltages

In this paper, temperature-dependent birefringence theory of liquid crystal is used to investigate the temperature effect on the threshold voltage. An expression for describing the non-linear relationship between the threshold voltage and temperature is deduced. In addition, we theoretically discuss the temperature effect on the transmitted ratio of the namatic twisted liquid crystal without the applied voltage and with the applied voltage. It is found that the transmitted ratio is decreased linearly as temperature is increased when the liquid crystal is not applied with voltage, but the transmitted ratio is increased linearly as temperature is increased when the liquid crystal is applied with voltage. The threshold voltages and the transmitted ratio are measured at different temperatures. The experimental data are consistent with the theoretical calculated results.     

DNA aggregation and cleavage in CGE induced by high electric field in aqueous solution accompanying electrokinetic sample injection

The phenomenon of peak area decrease due to high injection voltage (V_inj, e.g. 10–30 kV, 200–600 V/cm in the 50 cm capillary) was found in the analysis of very dilute DNA fragments (<0.2 mg/L) by using high‐sensitive electrokinetic supercharging‐CGE. The possibility of DNA cleavage in aqueous solution was suggested, in addition to the aggregation phenomenon that is already known. The analysis of intentionally voltage‐affected fragments (at 200 V/cm) also showed decreased peak areas depending on the time of the voltage being applied. Computer simulation suggested that a high electric field (a few kV/cm or more) could be generated partly between the electrode and the capillary end during electrokinetic injection (EKI) process. After thorough experimental verification, it was found that the factors affecting the damage during EKI were the magnitude of electric field, the distance between tips of electrode and capillary (D_e/c), sample concentration and traveling time during EKI in sample vials. Furthermore, these factors are correlating with each other. A low conductivity of diluted sample would cause a high electric field (over a few hundred volts per centimeter), while the longer D_e/c results in a longer traveling time during EKI, which may cause a larger degree of damage (aggregation and cleavage) on the DNA fragments. As an important practical implication of this study, when the dilute DNA fragments (sub mg/L) are to be analyzed by CGE using EKI, injection voltage should be kept as low as possible.     

Orientational and electro-optical properties of liquid crystal aligned with a directly spinnable carbon nanotube web

We investigated the orientational and electro-optical properties of a nematic liquid crystal (LC) aligned with a directly spinnable carbon nanotube (CNT) web functioning both as an electrode and as an alignment layer. The LC molecules were uniformly oriented along the drawing direction of the CNT web and the spatially averaged birefringence was comparable to a rubbed polyimide sample. The CNT web sample also showed smaller residual DC and hysteresis compared to the polyimide sample.     

The effect of terminal chain modifications on the mesomorphic properties of 4,4′-disubstituted diphenyldiacetylenes

The typical sidewalls produced in the fabrication of protrusion electrodes are proposed to create a low voltage (4.5 V_rms) and high transmittance (93%) blue-phase liquid crystal display (BP-LCD). The tilted electrodes produce a strong horizontal electrical field that reduces the operating voltage considerably. The common problem of the ‘dead zones’ is solved by reflecting the light onto the electrodes. In order to estimate the phase retardation of the reflected light, a ray tracing simulation program for anisotropic mediums has been developed. The proposed device is more competitive than vertical field switching based BP-LCD and also, has the advantages of protruded in-plane-switching structures. These facts make this technology a potential candidate for the next generation of BP-LCDs.     

ZnO纳米线基MWNTs/PVDF复合热电材料的制备及特性研究

将不同比例的多壁碳管(MWNTs)与聚偏二氟乙烯(PVDF)聚合物混合后,喷涂于n型ZnO半导体纳米线阵列上,制备了一种新型ZnO纳米线基MWNTs/PVDF热电复合材料.与以往采用价格昂贵的p型与n型单壁碳纳米管(SWNTs)与聚合物混合制备的复合热电材料特性相比,这种新型热电复合材料在降低制造成本的同时,利用分散于聚合物中MWNTs的一维电子传输特性及形成的大量界面势垒,加上ZnO半导体纳米线具有的较高载流子密度与迁移率,提高了复合热电材料中电子的输运特性,增加了材料对声子的散射强度.测试发现,在一定的温度梯度下,随着MWNTs添加质量百分比的增加,热电材料的温差电动势和电导率也随之增加,但其Seebeck系数变化量不大.研究表明,这种热电材料有望替代采用p型与n型SWNTs构建的SWNTs/PVDF复合热电材料.研究结果对开发超轻、无毒、廉价、可应用于各种微纳电子领域的新型电源具有重要的参考价值.     

q value and parent energy optimization using a low-voltage ionization approach increases resolution in linear ion trap mass spectrometry

In this work, the isolation step in the linear ion trap was performed using different “q values” conditions at a low collision-induced dissociation (CID) energy leading to the parent ion resolution improvements, reasonably due to better ion energy distribution. According to the results, we obtained a greater resolution and mass accuracy operating in both traditional electrospray and low voltage ionization near the q value = 0.778 and with a CID energy of 10%. This effect was evaluated with low-molecular-mass compounds (skatole and arginine). The proposed optimization yielded a superior instrument performance without adding technological complexity to mass spectrometry analyses.     

Progress on High Voltage PEO-based Polymer Solid Electrolytes in Lithium Batteries

Polymer electrolytes have attracted great interest for next-generation lithium-based batteries on account of safety and high energy density. In this review, we assess recent progress on the design of poly(ethylene oxide)(PEO)-based solid polymer electrolytes in high voltage lithium batteries and identify possible side reactions between PEO-based electrolytes and existing cathodes. We provide an overview of the ways to enhance high voltage resistance of PEO-based electrolytes. Those include components blend, molecular design and interface modification. With these efforts, we want to present new insights into rational design of PEO-based electrolytes to develop solid-state lithium batteries for advanced performance.     

Electric field induced metal–insulator transition in VO2 thin film based on FTO/VO2/FTO structure

A VO₂ thin film has been prepared using a DC magnetron sputtering method and annealing on an F-doped SnO₂ (FTO) conductive glass substrate. The FTO/VO₂/FTO structure was fabricated using photolithography and a chemical etching process. The temperature dependence of the I–V hysteresis loop for the FTO/VO₂/FTO structure has been analyzed. The threshold voltage decreases with increasing temperature, with a value of 9.2 V at 20 °C. The maximum transmission modulation value of the FTO/VO₂/FTO structure is 31.4% under various temperatures and voltages. Optical modulation can be realized in the structure by applying an electric field.     

The effect of applied negative bias voltage on the structure of Ti-doped a-C:H films deposited by FCVA

Ti-doped hydrogenated diamond-like carbon (DLC) films were deposited on Si(1 0 0) substrates by a filtered cathodic vacuum arc (FCVA) method using Ar and CH₄ as the feedstock. The composition and microstructure of the films were investigated by Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and IR spectroscopy. The internal stress was determined by the radius of curvature technique. The influence of the bias voltage on the microstructure of the as-deposited films was investigated. It was found that the graphite-like bonds was dominated in the Ti-doped DLC film deposited at 0 V bias voltage. When bias voltage was increased to −150 V, more diamond-like bond were produced and the sp³ content in film reached the maximum value, after which it decreased and more graphite-like bonds feature produced with further increase of the negative bias voltage. The compressive internal in the Ti-doped DLC films also exhibited a maximum value at −150 V bias voltage. IR results indicated that CH bonded intensity reduced, and H atoms bonded with C atoms were substituted for the Ti atoms as the negative bias voltage increasing. All the composition and microstructure change can be explained by considering the plasma conditions and the effect of negative bias voltage applied to the substrate.