A study on the interior microstructures of working Sn particle electrode of Li-ion batteries by in situ X-ray transmission microscopy

The interior microstructures of Sn particles developed during electrochemical lithiation/de-lithiation have been revealed by in situ X-ray transmission microscopy (TXM). The Li-alloying particles exhibited the formation of core–shell internal structure along with crack formation within the lithiated zone during the first lithiation. The extent and speed of the expansion process was shown to be a strong function of particle size. Upon completion of the first de-lithiaiton, the particles only partially (～10%) contracted, while re-crystallization of Sn continued to take place within the interior of the particles during a following idle period. The re-crystallization process alleviated the pulverization problem and led to the formation of porous Sn particles, which exhibited remarkably attenuated dimensional variations during subsequent cycles.     

Electroosmotic flow velocity measurements in a square microchannel

Experiments were performed using a microparticle image velocimetry (MPIV) for 2D velocity distributions of electroosmotically driven flows in a 40-mm-long microchannel with a square cross section of 200×200 μm. Electroosmotic flow (EOF) bulk fluid velocity measurements were made in a range of streamwise electric field strengths from 5 to 25 kV/m. A series of seed particle calibration tests can be made in a 200×120×24,000-μm untreated polydimethyl siloxane (PDMS channel incorporating MPIV to determine the electrophoretic mobilities in aqueous buffer solutions of 1× TAE, 1× TBE, 10 mM NaCl, and 10 mM borate. A linear/nonlinear (due to Joule heating) flow rate increase with applied field was obtained and compared with those of previous studies. A parametric study, with extensive measurements, was performed with different electric field strength and buffer solution concentration under a constant zeta potential at wall for each buffer. The characteristics of EOF in square microchannels were thus investigated. Finally, a composite correlation of the relevant parameters was developed in the form of within ±1% accuracy for 99% of the experimental data.     

Applications of the finite difference mode solution method to photonic crystal structures

The finite difference waveguide mode solution method, which has been popularly employed in the study of waveguide modes on various optical and dielectric waveguides, is utilized to calculate the modal characteristics of photonic crystal fibers (PCFs) and planar photonic crystal waveguides and the band diagrams of two-dimensional photonic crystals. Vector guided modes on both PCFs based on the total internal reflection guiding mechanism ('holey fibers') and those resulting from photonic band gap effect are accurately computed, with their effective indexes and field distributions compared with other methods. Calculated dispersion of a single-core holey fiber and coupled-power behavior of a two-core holey fiber are found to agree with measured results. For applications to band diagram calculation and planar photonic crystal waveguide analysis, the finite difference scheme is modified simply by imposing suitable periodic boundary condition. Numerical results for air-column crystals and dielectric-rod crystals are both found to agree well with calculations using other methods.     

Modelling of optical fibre couplers with weakly fused asymmetrical cross-sections based on superposition of normal modes

Wavelength-flattened optical fibre couplers can be designed by employing guided cores with different dimensions. We perform modelling of such couplers with weakly fused cross-sections based on accurate modal analysis and superposition of normal modes. Vectorial normal modes on asymmetrical weakly fused couplers involving touching fibres with different radii are solved by the circular harmonics expansion method; thus our model can treat the effects of different polarizations. The step approximation is adopted in modelling the tapered structure.     

Development and characterizations of PVdF-PEMA gel polymer electrolytes

A new class of gel polymer electrolytes comprising the blend of poly(ethyl methacrylate) (PEMA) and poly(vinylidene fluoride), the mixture of ethylene carbonate and propylene carbonate as a plasticizer, and lithium perchlorate (LiClO₄) as a salt was prepared using solvent casting technique. The formation of polymer–salt complexes has been confirmed by XRD analysis. Morphological and thermal studies have been performed using SEM and DMA analyses. A comparative look between PEMA and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) electrolytes has showed that PEMA electrolytes exhibited better electrochemical performances than PMMA electrolytes, despites its lower conductivity.     

High-temperature carbon-coated aluminum current collector for enhanced power performance of LiFePO4 electrode of Li-ion batteries

The charge/discharge capacity and cycle stability at high C-rate of LiFePo₄ (LFPO) electrodes using three types of Al current collectors, including smooth un-etched Al foil, anodization-etched Al foil, and the etched Al foil covered with a conformal C coating grown at 600 °C in CH₄, were investigated. The results unequivocally demonstrate the strong effects exerted by the surface structure and composition of the Al current collectors on the power performance. In particular, the use of the C-coated current collector not only remarkably increases the power-delivering capability, by 3–7-fold based on different comparison criteria, of the LFPO electrode, but also greatly enhances its cycle stability under high C-rate (5C). The rate enhancement exceeds that of a low-temperature organic-bound C-coating reported in the literature. The enhancements are consistent with observed reduction in overall charge-transfer resistance, which can be attributed to the removal of the native insulating oxide surface layer of the current collector and to the improved adhesion at the active layer/current collector interface. This current collector is also applicable to other cathode and anode (e.g., Li₄Ti₅O₁₂) materials of Li-ion batteries for the same beneficial effects.     

Highly Sensitive,Robust, and Recyclable TiO2/AgNP Substrate for SERS Detection

Label-free biosensors provide an important platform for detecting chemical and biological substances without needing extra labeling agents. Unlike surface-based techniques such as surface plasmon resonance (SPR), interference, and ellipsometry, surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) possesses the advantage of monitoring analytes both on surfaces and in solutions. Increasing the SERS enhancement is crucial to preparing high-quality substrates without quickly losing their stability, sensitivity, and repeatability. However, fabrication methods based on wet chemistry, nanoimprint lithography, spark discharge, and laser ablation have drawbacks of waste of time, complicated processes, or nonreproducibility in surface topography. This study reports the preparation of recyclable TiO₂/Ag nanoparticle (AgNP) substrates by using simple arc ion plating and direct-current (dc) magnetron sputtering technologies. The deposited anatase-phased TiO₂ ensured the photocatalytic degradation of analytes. By measuring the Raman spectra of rhodamine 6G (R6G) in titrated concentrations, a limit of detection (LOD) of 10⁻⁸ M and a SERS enhancement factor (EF) of 1.01 × 10⁹ were attained. Self-cleaning was performed via UV irradiation, and recyclability was achieved after at least five cycles of detection and degradation. The proposed TiO₂/AgNP substrates have the potential to serve as eco-friendly SERS enhancers for label-free detection of various chemical and biological substances.     

Chemical constituents from the leaves of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Cinnamomum reticulatum</Emphasis>

Reticuol, a novel Cinnamomum sesquiterpenoid, has been isolated from Cinnamomum reticulatum Hay (Lauraceae), together with eight known compounds, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, isoanwulignan, 2,6-dimethyl1,7-octadiene-3,6-diol, a-tocopheryl quinone, kaempferol-3-O-(2″,4″-di-E-p-coumaroyl)-α-L-rhamnopyranoside, kaempferol-3-O-(3″,4″-di-E-p-coumaroyl)-α-L-rhamnopyranoside, pheophorbide a, and aristophyll C. The structure of reticuol was determined on the basis of spectroscopic analysis.     

A new amide from the stems of Cinnamomum reticulatum Hay

Cinnaretamine, a new amide, has been isolated from Cinnamomum reticulatum Hay (Lauraceae), together with six known compounds, N-trans-feruloylmethoxytyramine, N-cis-feruloylmethoxytyramine, (+)-syringaresinol, p-hydroxybenzoic acid, syringic acid and vanillic acid. The structure of cinnaretamine was determined on the basis of spectroscopic analysis.