Progress of microscopic thermoelectric effects studied by micro- and nano-thermometric techniques

Heat dissipation is one of the most serious problems in modern integrated electronics with the continuously decreasing devices size. Large portion of the consumed power is inevitably dissipated in the form of waste heat which not only restricts the device energy-efficiency performance itself, but also leads to severe environment problems and energy crisis. Thermoelectric Seebeck effect is a green energy-recycling method, while thermoelectric Peltier effect can be employed for heat management by actively cooling overheated devices, where passive cooling by heat conduction is not sufficiently enough. However, the technological applications of thermoelectricity are limited so far by their very low conversion efficiencies and lack of deep understanding of thermoelectricity in microscopic levels. Probing and managing the thermoelectricity is therefore fundamentally important particularly in nanoscale. In this short review, we will first briefly introduce the microscopic techniques for studying nanoscale thermoelectricity, focusing mainly on scanning thermal microscopy (SThM). SThM is a powerful tool for mapping the lattice heat with nanometer spatial resolution and hence detecting the nanoscale thermal transport and dissipation processes. Then we will review recent experiments utilizing these techniques to investigate thermoelectricity in various nanomaterial systems including both (two-material) heterojunctions and (single-material) homojunctions with tailored Seebeck coefficients, and also spin Seebeck and Peltier effects in magnetic materials. Next, we will provide a perspective on the promising applications of our recently developed Scanning Noise Microscope (SNoiM) for directly probing the non-equilibrium transporting hot charges (instead of lattice heat) in thermoelectric devices. SNoiM together with SThM are expected to be able to provide more complete and comprehensive understanding to the microscopic mechanisms in thermoelectrics. Finally, we make a conclusion and outlook on the future development of microscopic studies in thermoelectrics.     

Thermal neutron polarisation

The basic principle for the production of polarised thermal neutrons is discussed and the choice of various crystal monochromators surveyed. Brief mention of broad-spectrum polarisers is made. The application of polarised neutrons to the study of magnetisation density distributions in magnetic crystals, the dynamic concept of polarisation, principle and use of polarisation analysis, the neutron spin-echo technique are discussed.     

Properties of train traffic flow in a moving block system

The development direction of railways is toward the improvement of capacity and service quality, where the service quality includes safety, schedule, high speed, and comfort. In light of the existing cellular automaton models, in this paper, we develop a model to analyze the mixed running processes of trains with maximal speeds of 500 km/h and 350 km/h respectively in the moving block system. In the proposed model, we establish some sound rules to control the running processes of a train, where the rules include the departure rules in the intermediate stations, the overtaking rules, and the conditions of speed limitation for a train stopping at a station or passing through a station. With the consideration of the mixed ratio and the distance between two adjacent stations, the properties of the train traffic flow (including capacity and average speed) are simulated. The numerical results show that the interactions among different trains will affect the capacity, and a proper increase of the spatial distance between two adjacent stations can enhance the capacity and the average speed under the moving block.     

咪唑类氮氧自由基的ESR波谱的酸度相关性-pH自旋探针应用研究之一

根据咪唑类氮氧自由基的结构特性合成了一系列的pH自旅探针,其ESR波谱参数均在一定范围内与介质的酸性呈明显的相关性.可望为较精确地测量化学胶束、细胞等微观体系的pH值开辟一个新的途径.本文研究了灵敏变化的pH范围与取代基的关系,得到了5种自旅探针的ESR参数-pH曲线、pKa值以及Hanmmett相关图,分析了如何通过改变取代基合成出不同pH变化范围并适用于不同生物和化学体系的pH自旅探针,最终达到付诸应用的目的.     

Structure, spin reorientation and M(o)ssbauer effect studies of Tb0.3Dy0.7(Fe1-xAlx)1.95 alloys

The effect of Al substitution for Fe on crystal structure, magnetostriction and spontaneous magnetostriction, anisotropy and spin reorientation of a series of polycrystalline Tb0.3Dy0.7(Fe1-xAlx)1.95 alloys (x = 0, 0.05, 0.1, 0.15, 0.20, 0.25, 0.30, 0.35) at room temperature and 77 K was investigated systematically. It was found that the primary phase of Tb0.3Dy0.7(Fe1-xAlx)1.95 is the MgCu2-type cubic Laves phase structure when x < 0.4 and the lattice constant a of Tb0.3Dy0.7(Fe1-xAlx)1.95 increases approximately and monotonically with the increase of x. The substitution of Al leads to the fact that the magnetostriction ( inceases slightly in a low magnetic field (H ≤ 40 kA/m), but decreases sharply and is easily close to saturation in a high applied field as x increases, showing that a small amount of Al substitution is beneficial to a decrease in the magnetocrystalline anisotropy. It was also found that the spontaneous magnetostriction (ζ)111 decreases greatly with x increasing. The analysis of the M(o)ssbauer spectra indicated that the easy magnetization direction in the {110} plane deviates slightly from the main axis of symmetry with the changes of composition and temperature, namely spin reorientation. A small amount of non-magnetic phase exists for x = 0.15 in Tb0.3Dy0.7(Fe1-xAlx)1.95 alloys and the alloys become paramagnetic for x > 0.15 at room temperture, but at 77 K the alloys still remain magnetic phase even for x = 0.2. At room temperature and 77 K, the hyperfine field decreases and the isomer shifts increase with Al concentration increasing.     

基于储量结构变化的油田开发指标预测与优化数学模型研究

大型油田开发过程中,随着不同类型新储量的不断投入,地质储量结构发生变化,表征油田整体开发技术与经济效果的关键性指标,如产量、可采储量、采收率、储采比、开发成本与操作成本等等也随之改变,其变化规律可用一套数学模型来描述。在开发指标预测基础上,运用多属性决策方法如TOPSIS,可以实现新投产区块组合方案的优选。应用实例表明,本文方法实用、操作性强,可以为油区开发决策提供重要方法与手段。     

稀土元素三角格子体系中的阻挫磁性与量子涨落

稀土元素三角格子阻挫体系在近几年受到了广泛的关注,稀土元素中存在较强的自旋轨道耦合作用,容易形成各向异性的磁相互作用,结合复杂的晶体场结构,可以产生很多新奇的物理性质,实现包括量子自旋液体、内禀量子伊辛磁体和隐藏序在内的一系列新奇量子态。文章以最近的中子散射研究为例,介绍稀土元素三角格子体系中的新奇磁关联与量子涨落现象。     

Dependence of Spin-orbit Parameters in Al_xGa_(1-x)N/GaN Quantum Wells on the Al Composition of the Barrier

In this paper, we obtain considerable spin-orbit (SO) parameters in AlxGa1-xN/GaN quantum wells (QWs) with sheet carrier concentration Ns=120×1011/cm2 . With increasing Al content (x) of the barrier, the SO parameters increase as a whole, and the two major contributions are found to be the decrease of the expansion region of the envelope functions and the increase of the polarized electric field in the well. Compared with the Rashba parameters for the first two subbands, the intersubband SO parameter is a bit smaller and varies more slowly with x. The results indicate the SO parameters, especially the Rashba parameters can be engineered by the Al composition of the barrier, which may be helpful to the spin manipulation of III-nitride low-dimensional heterostructures.     

Stroboscopic microscopy—direct imaging of structure development and phase separation during spin‐coating

Spin‐coated polymer blends possess a rich variety of accessible non‐equilibrium morphologies, formed through a process of phase separation and self‐assembly, the complexities of which remain incompletely understood. The technique of stroboscopic microscopy has now been developed to allow direct observations of microscopic and mesoscopic morphological development during spin‐coating and has afforded unequivocal information regarding morphological development. The technique so far has three modes of operation providing information on topographical, compositional, and crystal development. In this review, we look at the technique's development, its applications and comment on the future potential for this technique. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2014 , 52, 17–25