Orientational instability of nematic liquid crystal in a homeotropic cell with boundary conditions controlled by an electric field

We study the orientational instability of the director in a homeotropic nematic liquid crystal (NLC) cell in a DC electric field. The electric field is applied along or perpendicular to a cell surface depending on whether anisotropy of dielectric permittivity of NLC is positive or negative. The easy axis on one of the cell polymer substrates is allowed to deviate in perpendicular to the substrate plane due to the influence of the NLC and the electric field. It was established that the orientational instability of the director can have a threshold as well as be thresholdless which depends on the character of the coupling of the easy axis with the electric field. The temporal behaviour of a director and the easy axis during transition to the stationary state after turning on electric field and returning to the initial homogeneous state after turning off the field was investigated. In the case of the negative anisotropy of the static permittivity, the comparison of experimental and calculated time dependences of the easy axis reorientation angle let us to estimate values of the mobile easy axis viscosity coefficient and coupling parameter describing the coupling between the easy axis and the electric field.     

Considerations in the determination of orientational order parameters from X-ray scattering experiments

An assessment of the data processing and analysis methods used to obtain the second- and fourth-rank orientational order parameters of liquid crystals from X-ray scattering experiments has been carried out, using experimental data from four extensively studied alkyl-cyanobiphenyls and calculated data generated from two general types of theoretical orientational distribution function. The application of a background subtraction and two different baseline correction methods to the scattering profiles is assessed, along with three different methods to analyse the processed data. The choice of baseline correction method is shown to have a significant effect: an offset to zero overestimates the order parameters from the experimental and calculated data sets, particularly for lower order parameters arising from broad distributions, whereas an offset to a value estimated from regions of low scattering intensity provides experimental values close to those reported from other experimental techniques. By contrast, the three different analysis methods are shown generally to result in relatively small absolute differences between the order parameters. We outline a straightforward general approach to experimental X-ray scattering data processing and analysis for uniaxial phases that results in order parameters that match well with those reported using other experimental techniques.     

Band gap and band offsets of GaNAsBi lattice matched to GaAs substrate

In this paper, we calculate the band gap and the band discontinuities of a GaN _y AsBi _x structure lattice matched to GaAs substrate using the conduction and the valence band anticrossing models at the same time. The results obtained show a good agreement with experiment. The nitrogen and the bismuth concentrations leading to a wavelength emission of 1.55 μm have been determined (x = 3.5%, y = 2%). This structure shows a good electron confinement resulting in a high characteristic temperature.     

Passive signal enhancement in spatially offset Raman spectroscopy

We demonstrate experimentally, for the first time, the feasibility of enhancing signals in Spatially Offset Raman Spectroscopy (SORS) using a dielectric bandpass filter, building on our earlier experimental work on the enhancement of transmission Raman signals. The method is shown to lead to the enhancement of both the surface and subsurface Raman layer signal improving the signal‐to‐noise ratio of Raman spectra from the deep areas of samples, thus enhancing the technique's sensitivity and penetration depth. The filter is placed over the laser illumination zone, on the sample surface acting as a ‘unidirectional’ mirror transmitting the collimated laser beam on one side and reflecting photons escaping from the sample back into it. This enhances the degree of coupling of laser radiation into the medium and associated generated Raman signal. The feasibility study was performed on a two‐layer sample with the second layer located at the limit of the penetration depth of the method for this sample. The sample consisted of a 2.2‐mm over‐layer of a thinned paracetamol tablet followed by a 2‐mm layer of trans‐stilbene powder. The Raman signal was collected from a spatially offset region through a hole fabricated within the filter. The experiments demonstrate the presence of an enhancement of the Raman signal from both the layers by a factor of 4.4–4.5 and the improved signal‐to‐noise ratio of sublayer signal by a factor of 2.2, in agreement with photon shot noise dominated signal. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

抛物面反射镜光轴的确定

介绍了一种确定抛物面反射镜光轴的新方法。当抛物面反射镜绕着机械旋转轴旋转时,利用2束平行光(一束与机械旋转轴平行的光和一束与机械旋转轴成一定角度的斜平行光)经抛物面反射镜反射的像点运动,调整抛物面反射镜的位置,使光轴与机械旋转轴重合。理论分析结果表明：其定轴的倾斜误差不大于1′,平移误差不大于5μm。该方法可用于抛物面反射镜检验,也可用于抛物面反射镜的调校工艺中。     

含BN旋转轴的光驱动分子马达的理论设计和机理研究

依据B=N键与C=C键的电子结构相似性,以Feringa型二苯乙烯型光驱动分子马达（CC-stilbene）为母体,设计了含极性旋转轴的模型马达BN-stilbene.CASPT2//CASSCF计算结果表明,优化所得的BN-stilbene分子的基态存在四个与CC-stilbene马达结构相似、相对能量一致的螺旋异构体;B=N极性共价双键对BN-stilbene的基态和激发态电子结构有显著影响.对BN-stilbene模型马达的工作机理研究表明,极性旋转轴的引入使得BN-stilbene中S₁/S₀-CI与激发态中间体构型更加相似且能量更低,同时可增加旋转的驱动力,起到改进分子马达光异构化过程的单向性的目的.     

Four supramolecular isomers of dichloridobis(1,10‐phenanthroline)cobalt(II): synthesis,structure characterization and isomerization

Crystal engineering can be described as the understanding of intermolecular interactions in the context of crystal packing and the utilization of such understanding to design new solids with desired physical and chemical properties. Free‐energy differences between supramolecular isomers are generally small and minor changes in the crystallization conditions may result in the occurrence of new isomers. The study of supramolecular isomerism will help us to understand the mechanism of crystallization, a very central concept of crystal engineering. Two supramolecular isomers of dichloridobis(1,10‐phenanthroline‐κ²N,N′)cobalt(II), [CoCl₂(C₁₂H₈N₂)₂], i.e. (IA) (orthorhombic) and (IB) (monoclinic), and two supramolecular isomers of dichloridobis(1,10‐phenanthroline‐κ²N,N′)cobalt(II) N,N‐dimethylformamide monosolvate, [CoCl₂(C₁₂H₈N₂)₂]·C₃H₇NO, i.e. (IIA) (orthorhombic) and (IIB) (monoclinic), were synthesized in dimethylformamide (DMF) and structurally characterized. Of these, (IA) and (IIA) have been prepared and structurally characterized previously [Li et al. (2007). Acta Cryst. E 63 , m1880–m1880; Cai et al. (2008). Acta Cryst. E 64 , m1328–m1329]. We found that the heating rate is a key factor for the crystallization of (IA) or (IB), while the temperature difference is responsible for the crystallization of (IIA) or (IIB). Based on the crystallization conditions, isomerization behaviour, the KPI (Kitajgorodskij packing index) values and the density data, (IB) and (IIA) are assigned as the thermodynamic and stable kinetic isomers, respectively, while (IA) and (IIB) are assigned as the metastable kinetic products. The 1,10‐phenanthroline (phen) ligands interact with each other through offset face‐to‐face (OFF) π–π stacking in (IB) and (IIB), but by edge‐to‐face (EF) C—H...π interactions in (IA) and (IIA). Meanwhile, the DMF molecules in (IIB) connect to neighbouring [CoCl₂(phen)₂] units through two C—H...Cl hydrogen bonds, whereas there are no obvious interactions between DMF molecules and [CoCl₂(phen)₂] units in (IIA). Since OFF π–π stacking is generally stronger than EF C—H...π interactions for transition‐metal complexes with nitrogen‐containing aromatic ligands, (IIA) is among the uncommon examples that are stable and densely packed but that do not following Etter's intermolecular interaction hierarchy.     

扭摆法测转动惯量实验装置的研究

传统的扭摆法测转动惯量多使用单线摆、三线摆等,针对传统的扭摆法测转动惯量装置的一些缺陷,比如由于产生摆动、计时方法不科学使计时结果不准确、装置不能保持在水平面上转动等造成的测量误差较大的问题,研究制造了一种新的实验装置。这套装置用涡卷弹簧提供扭摆的动力,用光电对管配合单片机进行精确计时,并且采用了变面接触为线接触等多种减小摩擦的设计来提高测量精度,使误差大大减小了。整套装置具有测量结果精确、操作简单、体积小、能测量不规则的及难以直立的物体的转动惯量、能很好地验证平行轴定理等优点。     

CW-COIL输出功率与输出孔径及光轴位置之间的依赖关系

 氧碘化学激光器由于复杂的动力学因素,激光介质的增益分布通常是不均匀的,这就使得激光输出功率并不完全随着激光输出孔径成线性增加,也由于这种增益分布的不均匀性,即使在激光输出孔径不变的情况下,激光输出功率也会随着光轴位置的改变而发生变化。为此,在激光器工作参数固定条件下,通过实验描述了激光输出功率与激光输出孔径及光轴位置之间存在着的一定的依赖关系。     

光波导三向力触觉传感技术及信号处理

本文阐述了一种新的光波导型三向力触觉传感器的工作原理和基本结构,并设计了实验系统。这种传感器由一个橡胶垫和一个光波导路等组成,在橡胶垫的一侧制作圆柱触头阵列,在其另一侧制作圆锥触头阵列,使得每个圆柱触头下面分布2×2个圆锥触头。圆柱触头与施力的物体接触,而圆锥触头与光波导板接触。施加到圆柱触头上的力的三个分量可以通过该圆柱触头所对应的2×2个圆锥触头与光波导板接触时溢出的光斑面积确定。通过CCD摄取此光斑送入计算机进行图象处理,从而可求出光斑面积大小。实验结果显示了力的三个分量能通过圆锥触头的四个接触面积求出。