Sample records for cu seed layer

  1. Effect of the seed layer on the Y0.5Gd0.5Ba2Cu3O7-σ film fabricated by PLD

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yao, Yanjie; Wang, Wei; Liu, Linfei; Lu, Saidan; Wu, Xiang; Zheng, Tong; Liu, Shunfan; Li, Yijie

    2018-06-01

    The surface morphology and internal residual stress have influence on the critical current density (Jc) of REBa2Cu3O7-σ (REBCO) coated conductor. In order to modulate them, a series of Y0.5Gd0.5Ba2Cu3O7-σ (YGBCO) films were prepared by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) through introducing a seed layer in this paper. The thicknesses of seed layer changes from about 2 nm to 30 nm. For comparison, a standard sample without seed layer was fabricated at the same deposition condition. The surface morphology was illustrated by Scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The surface roughness was scanned by Atomic force microscopy (AFM). The microstructure and internal strain were measured by X-ray Diffraction (XRD). DC four-probe method was used to measure the critical current of the samples at 77 K and self-field. As a result, all samples have high Jc of about 4 MA/cm2, while the self-field Jc of the YGBCO films can be promoted by the seed layer. The results of our research work are as follows. First of all, seed layer makes the deposition of the YGBCO layer much easier to control. By this way, we can decrease the surface roughness of the samples. Furthermore, the internal residual stress of the YGBCO films with seed layer decrease. Finally, the best thickness of the seed layer was found by summarizing and analyzing the conditions of seed layer.

  2. Formation of qualified BaHfO3 doped Y0.5Gd0.5Ba2Cu3O7-δ film on CeO2 buffered IBAD-MgO tape by self-seeding pulsed laser deposition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Linfei; Wang, Wei; Yao, Yanjie; Wu, Xiang; Lu, Saidan; Li, Yijie

    2018-05-01

    Improvement in the in-filed transport properties of REBa2Cu3O7-δ (RE = rare earth elements, REBCO) coated conductor is needed to meet the performance requirements for various practical applications, which can be accomplished by introducing artificial pinning centers (APCs), such as second phase dopant. However, with increasing dopant level the critical current density Jc at 77 K in zero applied magnetic field decreases. In this paper, in order to improve Jc we propose a seed layer technique. 5 mol% BaHfO3 (BHO) doped Y0.5Gd0.5Ba2Cu3O7-δ (YGBCO) epilayer with an inserted seed layer was grown on CeO2 buffered ion beam assisted deposition MgO (IBAD-MgO) tape by pulsed laser deposition. The effect of the conditions employed to prepare the seed layer, including tape moving speed and chemical composition, on the quality of 5 mol% BHO doped YGBCO epilayer was systematically investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) observations. It was found that all the samples with seed layer have higher Jc (77 K, self-field) than the 5 mol% BHO doped YGBCO film without seed layer. The seed layer could inhibit deterioration of the Jc at 77 K and self-filed. Especially, the self-seed layer (5 mol% BHO doped YGBCO seed layer) was more effective in improving the crystal quality, surface morphology and superconducting performance. At 4.2 K, the 5 mol% BHO doped YGBCO film with 4 nm thick self-seed layer had a very high flux pinning force density Fp of 860 GN/m3 for B//c under a 9 T field, and more importantly, the peak of the Fp curve was not observed.

  3. Strain relaxation in nm-thick Cu and Cu-alloy films bonded to a rigid substrate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Herrmann, Ashley Ann Elizabeth

    In the wide scope of modern technology, nm-thick metallic films are increasingly used as lubrication layers, optical coatings, plating seeds, diffusion barriers, adhesion layers, metal contacts, reaction catalyzers, etc. A prominent example is the use of nm-thick Cu films as electroplating seed layers in the manufacturing of integrated circuits (ICs). These high density circuits are linked by on-chip copper interconnects, which are manufactured by filling Cu into narrow trenches by electroplating. The Cu fill by electroplating requires a thin Cu seed deposited onto high-aspect-ratio trenches. In modern ICs, these trenches are approaching 10 nm or less in width, and the seed layers less than 1 nm in thickness. Since nm-thick Cu seed layers are prone to agglomeration or delamination, achieving uniform, stable and highly-conductive ultra-thin seeds has become a major manufacturing challenge. A fundamental understanding of the strain behavior and thermal stability of nm-thick metal films adhered to a rigid substrate is thus critically needed. In this study, we focus on understanding the deformation modes of nm-thick Cu and Cu-alloy films bonded to a rigid Si substrate and under compressive stress. The strengthening of Cu films through alloying is also studied. In-situ transport measurements are used to monitor the deformation of such films as they are heated from room temperature to 400 °C. Ex-situ AFM is then used to help characterize the mode of strain relaxation. The relaxation modes are known to be sensitive to the wetting and adhesive properties of the film-substrate interface. We use four different liners (Ta, Ru, Mo and Co), interposed between the film and substrate to provide a wide range of interfacial properties to study their effect on the film's thermal stability. Our measurements indicate that when the film/liner interfacial energy is low, grain growth is the dominant relaxation mechanism. As the interface energy increases, grain growth is suppressed, and the strain is relaxed through hillock/island formation instead. The kinetics-limiting parameters for these relaxation modes are identified and used to simulate their kinetics, and a deformation map is then constructed to delineate the conditions under which each mode would prevail. Such a deformation map would prove useful when one seeks to optimize the thermal stability or other mechanical properties in any ultra-thin film system.

  4. Step-by-step seeding procedure for preparing HKUST-1 membrane on porous α-alumina support.

    PubMed

    Nan, Jiangpu; Dong, Xueliang; Wang, Wenjin; Jin, Wanqin; Xu, Nanping

    2011-04-19

    Metal-organic framework (MOF) membranes have attracted considerable attention because of their striking advantages in small-molecule separation. The preparation of an integrated MOF membrane is still a major challenge. Depositing a uniform seed layer on a support for secondary growth is a main route to obtaining an integrated MOF membrane. A novel seeding method to prepare HKUST-1 (known as Cu(3)(btc)(2)) membranes on porous α-alumina supports is reported. The in situ production of the seed layer was realized in step-by-step fashion via the coordination of H(3)btc and Cu(2+) on an α-alumina support. The formation process of the seed layer was observed by ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy. An integrated HKUST-1 membrane could be synthesized by the secondary hydrothermal growth on the seeded support. The gas permeation performance of the membrane was evaluated. © 2011 American Chemical Society

  5. Effect of deposition temperature on thermal stabilities of copper-carbon films in barrier-less Cu metallization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhu, Huan; Fu, Zhiqiang; Xie, Qi; Yue, Wen; Wang, Chengbiao; Kang, Jiajie; Zhu, Lina

    2018-01-01

    Copper-carbon alloy films have been applied in barrier-less Cu metallization as seed layers for improving the thermal stabilities. The effect of the deposition temperature on the microstructure and properties of C-doped Cu films on Si substrates was investigated. The films were prepared by ion beam-assisted deposition at various deposition temperatures by co-sputtering of Cu and graphite targets. No inter-diffusion between Cu and Si was observed in Cu(C) films throughout this experiment, because XRD patterns corresponding to their deep-level reaction product, namely, Cu3Si, were not observed in XRD patterns and EDS results of Cu(C) films. Amorphous carbon layer and SiC layer were found in the interface of Cu(C) as-deposited films when deposition temperature rose to 100 °C by TEM, high-resolution image and Fourier transformation pattern. The Cu(C) films deposited at 100 °C had the best thermal stabilities and the lowest electrical resistivity of 4.44 μW cm after annealing at 400 °C for 1 h. Cu agglomeration was observed in Cu(C) alloy films with deposition temperatures of 200, 300 and 400 °C, and the most serious agglomeration occurred in Cu(C) films deposited at 200 °C. Undesired Cu agglomeration resulted in a sharp increase in the resistivity after annealing at 300 °C for 1 h. The deposition temperature of 100 °C reflected the superior thermal stabilities of Cu(C) seed layers compared with those of other layers.

  6. The Impact of Seed Layer Structure on the Recrystallization of ECD Cu and its Alloys

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    O'Brien, Brendan B.

    Despite the significant improvements originally offered by the use of Cu over Al as the interconnect material for semiconductor devices, the continued down-scaling of interconnects has presented significant challenges for semiconductor engineers. As the metal line widths shrink, both the conductivity and reliability of lines decrease due to a stubbornly fine-grained microstructure in narrow lines. Understanding microstructural transformation of the ECD Cu in narrow features which leads to this polygranular microstructure is the first focus of this dissertation. As in the case of Cu films, the underlying seed layer strongly influences progress of transformation. Unlike films, however, the seed layer is not homogenous in patterned substrates, but differs according to the size of the trench and the location within the trench (field, bottom, and sidewall). Based on these findings, and the known influence of texture on the transformation of ECD Cu, a rapid trench initiated transformation process was posited for narrow interconnect lines. Time-resolved TEM observation of the ECD Cu in 48 nm lines during the transformation process confirmed the hypothesis. In fact, the TEM images revealed that the transformation was even faster than anticipated, and that the microstructure of the Cu inside the lines was stagnant after a mere 1.5 hours at room temperature. Studies of the transformation at elevated temperatures found that, despite anneals at 250°C for up to an hour, the grain size distribution for the Cu in narrow lines for all times converged, whether annealed at room temperature or 250°C. These data suggest that process was being driven by the 'consumable' internal energy stored in the as-plated microstructure. This is different than the transformation of the overburden, which is driven by a competition between surface energy and internal stress buildup due to film densification and relief due to the secondary growth of a 200 texture component. Based on these findings, two methods for manipulating the microstructure of the ECD Cu in the narrow lines were explored, including changes to the seed layer through ion implantation, and altering the as-plated Cu microstructure through co-ECD of alloys. The influence on the microstructure and applicability of both of these techniques to BEOL processing will also be discussed.

  7. Effect of ultra-thin liner materials on copper nucleation/wetting and copper grain growth

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mueller, Justin E.

    One of the key challenges facing future integrated circuit copper (Cu) interconnect manufacturing is to achieve uniform coverage of PVD Cu seed layer at minimum thickness on a liner and barrier. We have therefore characterized the nucleation and wetting of PVD Cu on various liner surfaces by monitoring in-situ the film's electrical conductance during the initial stages of deposition (0 to 25 nm). Our results showed that the Cu wetting is sensitive to the Cu/liner interfacial properties, while the nucleation depends on the liner microstructure. It was found that a ruthenium (Ru) liner has a good Cu wetting characteristic and allows at the onset nearly layer by layer Cu growth. Because of good wetting, Cu growth is not significantly affected by Ru liner grain size. Tantalum (Ta), however, exhibits poor Cu wetting, which results in an initial stage of three dimensional island growth of Cu. In this case, Cu island coalescing occurs sooner, at a smaller Cu film thickness, when the nucleation site density is increased with a smaller grain size Ta liner. To optimize the seed layer's conductance and step coverage, a liner with combined properties of Ta (for adhesion and barrier formation) and Ru (for wetting and grain growth) may be desired. A hybrid magnetron target has been developed for depositing TaRu liner films at various compositions. The microstructure of the compound liners and their effects on the overgrown Cu seed layer over a wide range of TaRu composition is presented. It was found that below 80% Ru concentration, TaRu films are amorphous. An amorphous liner results in poor Cu nucleation as compared with a crystalline Ta or Ru liner. A comparison of the microstructure of thin Cu films deposited on bcc alpha-Ta and tetragonal beta-Ta surfaces has been carried out. Cu resistivity is lower by 10-15%, accompanied by larger Cu grain size, in as-deposited Cu films of various thickness' (30-120 nm) on beta-Ta as compared to those deposited on alpha-Ta. This is due to the presence of an epitaxial relationship between Cu (111) and beta-Ta (002) planes. After annealing, the difference was only seen in films thinner than 60 nm. Results were confirmed when Cu film resistance was measured in-situ during deposition on each phase of Ta liner. Serpentine interconnect line structures of various line widths and aspect ratios were fabricated using either alpha- or beta-Ta liners, and subjected to a similar heat treatment. Results showed a similar ˜10% lower resistivity in the thinnest interconnects (˜40 nm) when a beta-Ta liner was used.

  8. The role of the (111) texture on the exchange bias and interlayer coupling effects observed in sputtered NiFe/IrMn/Co trilayers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Castro, I. L.; Nascimento, V. P.; Passamani, E. C.

    2013-05-28

    Magnetic properties of sputtered NiFe/IrMn/Co trilayers grown on different seed layers (Cu or Ta) deposited on Si (100) substrates were investigated by magnetometry and ferromagnetic resonance measurements. Exchange bias effect and magnetic spring behavior have been studied by changing the IrMn thickness. As shown by X-ray diffraction, Ta and Cu seed layers provoke different degrees of (111) fcc-texture that directly affect the exchange bias and indirectly modify the exchange spring coupling behavior. Increasing the IrMn thickness, it was observed that the coupling angle between the Co and NiFe ferromagnetic layers increases for the Cu seed system, but it reduces formore » the Ta case. The results were explained considering (i) different anisotropies of the Co and IrMn layers induced by the different degree of the (111) texture and (ii) the distinct exchange bias set at the NiFe/IrMn and IrMn/Co interfaces in both systems. The NiFe and Co interlayer coupling angle is strongly correlated with both exchange bias and exchange magnetic spring phenomena. It was also shown that the highest exchange bias field occurs when an unstressed L1{sub 2} IrMn structure is stabilized.« less

  9. Utility of reactively sputtered CuN{sub x} films in spintronics devices

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Fang Yeyu; Persson, J.; NanOsc AB, Electrum 205, 164 40 Kista

    2012-04-01

    We have studied nitrified copper (CuN{sub x}) thin films grown by reactive sputtering in the context of spintronic devices. The Ar-to-N{sub 2} flow ratio enables tunability of the electrical resistivity and surface roughness of the CuN{sub x} films, with the former increasing to nearly 20 times that of Cu, and the latter reduced to the atomic scale. Incorporating this into a Ta/CuN{sub x}/Ta seed stack for spin valves improves the current-in-plane (CIP) magnetoresistance; maximum magnetoresistance results with CuN{sub x} seed layer and Cu interlayer. Finally, finite element modeling results are presented that suggest the use of CuN{sub x} in nanocontactmore » spin torque oscillators can enhance current densities by limiting the current spread through the device. This may positively impact threshold currents, power requirements, and device reliability.« less

  10. Remote catalyzation for direct formation of graphene layers on oxides.

    PubMed

    Teng, Po-Yuan; Lu, Chun-Chieh; Akiyama-Hasegawa, Kotone; Lin, Yung-Chang; Yeh, Chao-Hui; Suenaga, Kazu; Chiu, Po-Wen

    2012-03-14

    Direct deposition of high-quality graphene layers on insulating substrates such as SiO(2) paves the way toward the development of graphene-based high-speed electronics. Here, we describe a novel growth technique that enables the direct deposition of graphene layers on SiO(2) with crystalline quality potentially comparable to graphene grown on Cu foils using chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Rather than using Cu foils as substrates, our approach uses them to provide subliming Cu atoms in the CVD process. The prime feature of the proposed technique is remote catalyzation using floating Cu and H atoms for the decomposition of hydrocarbons. This allows for the direct graphitization of carbon radicals on oxide surfaces, forming isolated low-defect graphene layers without the need for postgrowth etching or evaporation of the metal catalyst. The defect density of the resulting graphene layers can be significantly reduced by tuning growth parameters such as the gas ratios, Cu surface areas, and substrate-to-Cu distance. Under optimized conditions, graphene layers with nondiscernible Raman D peaks can be obtained when predeposited graphite flakes are used as seeds for extended growth. © 2012 American Chemical Society

  11. Interplay between interface structure and magnetism in NiFe/Cu/Ni-based pseudo-spin valves

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Loving, Melissa G.; Ambrose, Thomas F.; Ermer, Henry; Miller, Don; Naaman, Ofer

    2018-05-01

    Magnetic pseudo spin valves (PSVs) with superconducting Nb electrodes, have been leading candidates for an energy-efficient memory solution compatible with cryogenic operation of ultra-low power superconducting logic. Integration of these PSV Josephson junctions in a standard multi-layer Nb process requires growing high-quality thin magnetic films on a thick Nb bottom electrode (i.e. ≥1.5kÅ, to achieve bulk superconducting properties). However, as deposited, 1.5kÅ Nb exhibits a rough surface with a characteristic rice grain morphology, which severely degrades the switching properties of subsequently deposited PSVs. Therefore, in order to achieve coherent switching throughout a PSV, the Nb interface must be modified. Here, we demonstrate that the Nb surface morphology and PSV crystallinity can be altered with the incorporation of separate 50Å Cu or 100Å Al/50Å Cu non-magnetic seed layers, and demonstrate their impact on the magnetic switching of a 15Å Ni80Fe20/50Å Cu/20Å Ni PSV, at both room temperature and at 10 K. Most notably, these results show that the incorporation of an Al seed layer leads to an improved face centered cubic templating through the bulk of the PSV, and ultimately to superior magnetic switching.

  12. Activation of amino-based monolayers for electroless metallization of high-aspect-ratio through-silicon vias by using a simple ultrasonic-assisted plating solution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Sung-Te; Cheng, Yu-Syun; Chang, Yiu-Hsiang; Yang, Tzu-Ming; Lee, Jyun-Ting; Chen, Giin-Shan

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, we present the method and results of electroless plating of through-silicon via (TSV) contacts using Ni nanoparticle seeds on self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). This approach where the nanoparticles are evenly distributed and stabilized on the SAM allows the successive electroless metallization schemes such as Co-alloy barrier and Cu plug used typically in TSV as interconnects. The seeding was tested on SiO2 layers with surfaces functionalized by an amino-based aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTMS) SAM. APTMS-SAM after a suitable SC-1 treatment yielded a remarkably good barrier layer, with high adhesion strength (70 MPa) and low electrical resistivity (28 μΩ-cm). Moreover, the SAM assisted seeding protocol was followed by an ultrasonic-assisted (or mechanically agitated) electroless-plating stage together with a relatively simple plating solution. Conformal plating of Co-alloy barrier and seem/void-free Cu-plug filling into high-aspect-ratio TSVs (>10) was only achieved by using an ultrasonic-assisted plating process. The SAM layers were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to elucidate the surface functionalization effect.

  13. Hybrid copper complex-derived conductive patterns printed on polyimide substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Byoungyoon; Jeong, Sooncheol; Kim, Yoonhyun; Jeong, Inbum; Woo, Kyoohee; Moon, Jooho

    2012-06-01

    We synthesized new copper complexes that can be readily converted into highly conductive Cu film. Mechanochemical milling of copper (I) oxide suspended in formic acid resulted in the submicron-sized Cu formate together Cu nanoparticles. The submicrometer-sized Cu formates are reactive toward inter-particle sintering and metallic Cu seeds present in the Cu complexes assist their decomposition and the nucleation of Cu. The hybrid copper complex film printed on polyimide substrate is decomposed into dense and uniform Cu layer after annealing at 250 °C for 30 min under nitrogen atmosphere. The resulting Cu film exhibited a low resistivity of 8.2 μΩ·cm and good adhesion characteristics.

  14. Copper Oxide Thin Films through Solution Based Methods for Electrical Energy Conversion and Storage

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhu, Changqiong

    Copper oxides (Cu2O and CuO), composed of non-toxic and earth abundant elements, are promising materials for electrical energy generation and storage devices. Solution based techniques for creating thin films of these materials, such as electrodeposition, are important to understand and develop because of their potential for realizing substantial energy savings compared to traditional fabrication methods. Cuprous oxide (Cu2O), with its direct band gap, is a p-type semiconductor that is well suited for creating solution-processed photovoltaic devices (solar cells); several key advancements made toward this application are the primary focus of this thesis. Electrodeposition of single-phase, crystalline Cu2O thin films is demonstrated using previously unexplored, acidic lactate/Cu2+ solutions, which has provided additional understanding of the impacts of growth solution chemistry on film formation. The influence of pH on the resulting Cu2O thin film properties is revealed by using the same ligand (sodium lactate) at various solution pH values. Cu2O films grown from acidic lactate solutions can exhibit a distinctive flowerlike, dendritic morphology, in contrast to the faceted, dense films obtained using alkaline lactate solutions. Relative speciation distributions of the various metal complex ions present under different growth conditions are calculated using reported equilibrium association constants and experimentally supported by UV-Visible absorption spectroscopy. Dependence of thin film morphology on the lactate/Cu2+ molar ratio and applied potential is described. Cu2O/eutectic gallium-indium Schottky junction devices are formed and devices are tested under monochromatic green LED illumination. Further surface examination of the Cu2O films using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveals the fact that films grown from acidic lactate solution with a small lactate/Cu2+ molar ratio, which exhibit improved photovoltaic performance compared to films grown from basic lactate solution with a large lactate/Cu2+ molar ratio, are sodium-free. This finding stands in contrast to the observation that films grown in basic solution contain a significant amount of sodium impurity at their top surfaces. Therefore, it is concluded that the sodium impurities present in films grown from basic lactate solutions are detrimental to overall photovoltaic device performance by introducing interface traps and recombination centers for charge carriers, which suggests that removing these impurities may be a promising strategy for improving Cu2O based solar cells. It has been found that impurities at the surface of electrodeposited p-Cu2O films can be efficiently removed through the use of concentrated aqueous ammonia solution as a wet etching agent. The performance of Cu 2O homojunction photovoltaic devices incorporating etched p-Cu 2O as the bottom layer is higher compared to devices with as-deposited p-Cu2O layers due to an improvement of the homojunction interface quality. Reducing the density of defect states that act as carrier recombination centers is found to lead to larger open circuit voltages. Zinc-doped cuprous oxide (Zn:Cu2O) thin films have also been prepared via single step electrodeposition from an aqueous solution containing sodium perchlorate. The Zn/Cu molar ratio in the Cu2O films can be tuned by adjusting the magnitude of the applied potential and the sodium perchlorate concentration. Electrical characterization reveals that zinc dopants increase the Fermi level in Zn:Cu2O films, enabling a three-fold improvement in the power conversion efficiency of a fully electrodeposited Cu2O homojunction photovoltaic device. Complementary to the development of Cu2O based photovoltaic devices, the use of solution deposited cupric oxide (CuO) thin films for capacitive energy storage has also been investigated. A seed layer-assisted chemical bath deposition (SCBD) method has been developed to create high quality CuO thin films on transparent conductive electrode (ITO)/glass substrates. A CuO seed layer is formed by the electrodeposition of Cu2O on ITO electrode for 10 s, followed by a brief (15 min) heating step to convert the Cu 2O to CuO. The seed layer is found to be essential for the growth of micrometer-thick, adherent CuO thin films on ITO-coated glass, as no films were observed to form on substrates without a seed layer. The addition of sodium lactate to the SCBD solution can be used to tune the morphology and relative crystallinity of the CuO films. A highly crystalline CuO film has been deposited from a solution without sodium lactate, while a largely amorphous CuO film was realized using lactate/Cu2+ molar ratio equal to 1.0. The CuO film with greater amorphous character exhibited a significantly larger specific capacitance as a redox active electrode compared to the crystalline film (2700 mF/g vs. 96 mF/g).

  15. Application of cluster-plus-glue-atom model to barrierless Cu–Ni–Ti and Cu–Ni–Ta films

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Li, Xiaona, E-mail: lixiaona@dlut.edu.cn; Ding, Jianxin; Wang, Miao

    To improve the thermal stability of copper and avoid its diffusion into surrounding dielectrics or interfacial reactions with them, the authors applied the cluster-plus-glue-atom model to investigate barrierless Cu–Ni–M (M = Ti or Ta) seed layers. The dissolution of the third element (Ti or Ta) in the Cu lattice with the aid of Ni significantly improved the thermal stability of the Cu seed layer. The appropriate M/Ni (M = Ti or Ta) ratio was selected to obtain a low resistivity: the resistivity was as low as 2.5 μΩ cm for the (Ti{sub 1.5/13.5}Ni{sub 12/13.5}){sub 0.3}Cu{sub 99.7} film and 2.8 μΩ cm for the (Ta{sub 1.1/13.1}Ni{sub 12/13.1}){submore » 0.4}Cu{sub 99.6} film after annealing at 500 °C for 1 h. After annealing at 500 °C for 40 h, the two films remained stable without forming a Cu{sub 3}Si compound. The authors confirmed that the range of applications of the cluster-plus-glue-atom model could be extended. Therefore, a third element M with negative enthalpies of mixing with both Cu and Ni could be selected, under the premise that the mixing enthalpy of M–Ni is more negative than that of M–Cu.« less

  16. Preparation of graphene on Cu foils by ion implantation with negative carbon clusters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Hui; Shang, Yan-Xia; Zhang, Zao-Di; Wang, Ze-Song; Zhang, Rui; Fu, De-Jun

    2015-01-01

    We report on few-layer graphene synthesized on Cu foils by ion implantation using negative carbon cluster ions, followed by annealing at 950 °C in vacuum. Raman spectroscopy reveals IG/I2D values varying from 1.55 to 2.38 depending on energy and dose of the cluster ions, indicating formation of multilayer graphene. The measurements show that the samples with more graphene layers have fewer defects. This is interpreted by graphene growth seeded by the first layers formed via outward diffusion of C from the Cu foil, though nonlinear damage and smoothing effects also play a role. Cluster ion implantation overcomes the solubility limit of carbon in Cu, providing a technique for multilayer graphene synthesis. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11105100, 11205116, and 11375135) and the State Key Laboratory of Advanced Welding and Joining, Harbin Institute of Technology, China (Grant No. AWJ-M13-03).

  17. Application of Self-Assembled Monolayers to the Electroless Metallization of High Aspect Ratio Vias for Microelectronics

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bernasconi, R.; Molazemhosseini, A.; Cervati, M.; Armini, S.; Magagnin, L.

    2016-10-01

    All-wet electroless metallization of through-silicon vias (TSVs) with a width of 5 μm and a 1:10 aspect ratio was carried out. Immersion in a n-(2-aminoethyl) 3-aminopropyl-trimethoxysilane (AEAPTMS) self-assembled monolayer (SAM) was used to enhance the adhesion between the metal film and substrate. Contact angle variation and atomic force microscopy were used to verify the formation of a SAM layer. A PdCl2 solution was later used to activate the silanized substrates, exploiting the affinity of the -NH3 functional group of AEAPTMS to palladium. A nickel-phosphorus-boron electroless bath was employed to deposit the first barrier layer onto silicon. The NiPB growth rate was evaluated on flat silicon wafers, while the structure of the coating obtained was investigated via glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy. Cross-sectional scanning electron microscope observations were carried out on metallized TSVs to characterize the NiPB seed, the Cu seed layer deposited with a second electroless step, and the Cu superfilling obtained with a commercial solution. Complete filling of TSV was achieved.

  18. Enhanced spin-valve giant magneto-resistance in non-exchange biased sandwich films

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mao, M; Cerjan, C; Law, B

    2000-02-17

    A large giant magnetoresistance (GMR) value of 7.5% has been measured in simple NiFeCo(1)/Cu/NiFeCo(2) sandwich films grown on a 30 {angstrom} Cr seed layer. This spin-valve GMR effect is consistent with the differential switching of the two NiFeCo layers due to an enhanced coercivity of the NiFeCo(1) layer grown on the Cr seed layer. A change in growth texture of the NiFeCo(1) layer from fcc (111) to bcc (110) crystallographic orientation leads to an increase in magnetic anisotropy and an enhancement in coercivity. The GMR value increases to 8.7% when a thin CoFe interfacial enhancing layer is incorporated. Further enhancementmore » in GMR values up to 14% is seen in the sandwich films by nano-oxide layer formation. The specular reflection at oxide/magnetic layer interface further extends the mean free path of spin-polarized electrons.« less

  19. Method of fabricating high-efficiency Cu(In,Ga)(SeS).sub.2 thin films for solar cells

    DOEpatents

    Noufi, Rommel; Gabor, Andrew M.; Tuttle, John R.; Tennant, Andrew L.; Contreras, Miguel A.; Albin, David S.; Carapella, Jeffrey J.

    1995-01-01

    A process for producing a slightly Cu-poor thin film of Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S).sub.2 comprises depositing a first layer of (In,Ga).sub.x (Se,S).sub.y followed by depositing just enough Cu+(Se,S) or Cu.sub.x (Se,S) to produce the desired slightly Cu-poor material. In a variation, most, but not all, (about 90 to 99%) of the (In,Ga).sub.x (Se,S).sub.y is deposited first, followed by deposition of all the Cu+(Se,S) or Cu.sub.x (Se,S) to go near stoichiometric, possibly or even preferably slightly Cu-rich, and then in turn followed by deposition of the remainder (about 1 to 10%) of the (In,Ga).sub.x (Se,S).sub.y to end with a slightly Cu-poor composition. In yet another variation, a small portion (about 1 to 10%) of the (In,Ga).sub.x (Se,S).sub.y is first deposited as a seed layer, followed by deposition of all of the Cu+(Se,S) or Cu.sub.x (Se,S) to make a very Cu-rich mixture, and then followed deposition of the remainder of the (In,Ga).sub.x (Se,S).sub.y to go slightly Cu-poor in the final Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S).sub.2 thin film.

  20. Method of fabricating high-efficiency Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S){sub 2} thin films for solar cells

    DOEpatents

    Noufi, R.; Gabor, A.M.; Tuttle, J.R.; Tennant, A.L.; Contreras, M.A.; Albin, D.S.; Carapella, J.J.

    1995-08-15

    A process for producing a slightly Cu-poor thin film of Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S){sub 2} comprises depositing a first layer of (In,Ga){sub x} (Se,S){sub y} followed by depositing just enough Cu+(Se,S) or Cu{sub x} (Se,S) to produce the desired slightly Cu-poor material. In a variation, most, but not all, (about 90 to 99%) of the (In,Ga){sub x} (Se,S){sub y} is deposited first, followed by deposition of all the Cu+(Se,S) or Cu{sub x} (Se,S) to go near stoichiometric, possibly or even preferably slightly Cu-rich, and then in turn followed by deposition of the remainder (about 1 to 10%) of the (In,Ga){sub x} (Se,S){sub y} to end with a slightly Cu-poor composition. In yet another variation, a small portion (about 1 to 10%) of the (In,Ga){sub x} (Se,S){sub y} is first deposited as a seed layer, followed by deposition of all of the Cu+(Se,S) or Cu{sub x} (Se,S) to make a very Cu-rich mixture, and then followed deposition of the remainder of the (In,Ga){sub x} (Se,S){sub y} to go slightly Cu-poor in the final Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S){sub 2} thin film. 5 figs.

  1. Manganese containing layer for magnetic recording media

    DOEpatents

    Lambeth, David N.; Lee, Li-Lien; Laughlin, David E.

    1999-01-01

    The present invention provides for a magnetic recording media incorporating Mn-containing layers between a substrate and a magnetic layer to provide media having increased coercivity and lower noise. The Mn-containing layer can be incorporated in a rotating, translating or stationary recording media to operate in conjunction with magnetic transducing heads for recording and reading of magnetic data, as well as other applications. The magnetic recording medium of the invention preferably includes a Co or Co alloy film magnetic layer, and Mn-containing layer, preferably comprised of VMn, TiMn, MnZn, CrMnMo, CrMnW, CrMnV, and CrMnTi, and most preferably a CrMn alloy, disposed between the substrate and the magnetic layer to promote an epitaxial crystalline structure in the magnetic layer. The medium can further include seed layers, preferably polycrystalline MgO for longitudinal media, underlayers, and intermediate layers. Underlayers and intermediate layers are comprised of materials having either an A2 structure or a B2-ordered crystalline structure disposed between the seed layer and the magnetic layer. Materials having an A2 structure are preferably Cr or Cr alloys, such as CrV, CrMo, CrW and CrTi. Materials having a B2-ordered structure having a lattice constant that is substantially comparable to that of Cr, such as those preferably selected from the group consisting of NiAl, AILCo, FeAl, FeTi, CoFe, CoTi, CoHf, CoZr, NiTi, CuBe, CuZn, A-LMn, AlRe, AgMg, and Al.sub.2 FeMn.sub.2, and is most preferably FeAl or NiAl.

  2. Effect Of Impurity On Cu Electromigration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, C.-K.; Angyal, M.; Baker, B. C.; Bonilla, G.; Cabral, C.; Canaperi, D. F.; Choi, S.; Clevenger, L.; Edelstein, D.; Gignac, L.; Huang, E.; Kelly, J.; Kim, B. Y.; Kyei-Fordjour, V.; Manikonda, S. L.; Maniscalco, J.; Mittal, S.; Nogami, T.; Parks, C.; Rosenberg, R.; Simon, A.; Xu, Y.; Vo, T. A.; Witt, C.

    2010-11-01

    The impact of the existence of Cu grain boundaries on the degradation of Cu interconnect lifetime at the 45 nm technology node and beyond has suggested that improved electromigra-tion in Cu grain boundaries has become increasingly important. In this paper, solute effects of non-metallic (C, Cl, O and S) and metallic (Al, Co, In, Mg, Sn, and Ti) impurities on Cu elec-tromigration were investigated. The Cu alloy interconnects were fabricated by adjusting Cu electroplating solutions or by depositing a Cu alloy seed, a thin film layer of impurity, an alloy liner, or a metal cap. A large variation of Cu grain structure in the samples was achieved by adjusting the wafer fabrication process steps. The non-metallic impurities were found to be less than 0.1% in the electroplated Cu with no effect on Cu electromigration lifetimes. Most of the metallic impurities reduced Cu interface and grain boundary mass flows and enhanced Cu lifetime, but Al, Co, and Mg impurities did not mitigate Cu grain boundary diffusion.

  3. Copper oxide nanoparticles and bulk copper oxide, combined with indole-3-acetic acid, alter aluminum, boron, and iron in Pisum sativum seeds.

    PubMed

    Ochoa, Loren; Zuverza-Mena, Nubia; Medina-Velo, Illya A; Flores-Margez, Juan Pedro; Peralta-Videa, José R; Gardea-Torresdey, Jorge L

    2018-09-01

    The interaction of CuO nanoparticles (nCuO), a potential nanopesticide, with the growth hormone indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) is not well understood. This study aimed to evaluate the nutritional components in seeds of green pea (Pisum sativum) cultivated in soil amended with nCuO at 50 or 100mgkg -1 , with/without IAA at 10 or 100μM. Similar treatments including bulk CuO (bCuO) and CuCl 2 were set as controls. Bulk CuO at 50mgkg -1 reduced seed yield (52%), compared with control. Bulk CuO at 50mgkg -1 and nCuO at 100mgkg -1 , plus IAA at 100μM, increased iron in seeds (41 and 42%, respectively), while nCuO at 50mgkg -1 , plus IAA at 100μM reduced boron (80%, respect to control and 63%, respect to IAA at 100μM). IAA, at 10μM increased seed protein (33%), compared with control (p≤0.05). At both concentrations IAA increased sugar in seeds (20%). Overall, nCuO, plus IAA at 10μM, does not affect the production or nutritional quality of green pea seeds. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  4. SELDI-TOF MS-based discovery of a biomarker in Cucumis sativus seeds exposed to CuO nanoparticles.

    PubMed

    Moon, Young-Sun; Park, Eun-Sil; Kim, Tae-Oh; Lee, Hoi-Seon; Lee, Sung-Eun

    2014-11-01

    Metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) can inhibit plant seed germination and root elongation via the release of metal ions. In the present study, two acute phytotoxicity tests, seed germination and root elongation tests, were conducted on cucumber seeds (Cucumis sativus) treated with bulk copper oxide (CuO) and CuO NPs. Two concentrations of bulk CuO and CuO NPs, 200 and 600ppm, were used to test the inhibition rate of root germination; both concentrations of bulk CuO weakly inhibited seed germination, whereas CuO NPs significantly inhibited germination, showing a low germination rate of 23.3% at 600ppm. Root elongation tests demonstrated that CuO NPs were much stronger inhibitors than bulk CuO. SELDI-TOF MS analysis showed that 34 proteins were differentially expressed in cucumber seeds after exposure to CuO NPs, with the expression patterns of at least 9 proteins highly differing from those in seeds treated with bulk CuO and in control plants. Therefore, these 9 proteins were used to identify CuO NP-specific biomarkers in cucumber plants exposed to CuO NPs. A 5977-m/z protein was the most distinguishable biomarker for determining phytotoxicity by CuO NPs. Principal component analysis (PCA) of the SELDI-TOF MS results showed variability in the modes of inhibitory action on cucumber seeds and roots. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that the phytotoxic effect of metal oxide NPs on plants is not caused by the same mode of action as other toxins. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  5. Zirconium Phosphate Supported MOF Nanoplatelets.

    PubMed

    Kan, Yuwei; Clearfield, Abraham

    2016-06-06

    We report a rare example of the preparation of HKUST-1 metal-organic framework nanoplatelets through a step-by-step seeding procedure. Sodium ion exchanged zirconium phosphate, NaZrP, nanoplatelets were judiciously selected as support for layer-by-layer (LBL) assembly of Cu(II) and benzene-1,3,5-tricarboxylic acid (H3BTC) linkers. The first layer of Cu(II) is attached to the surface of zirconium phosphate through covalent interaction. The successive LBL growth of HKUST-1 film is then realized by soaking the NaZrP nanoplatelets in ethanolic solutions of cupric acetate and H3BTC, respectively. The amount of assembled HKUST-1 can be readily controlled by varying the number of growth cycles, which was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and gas adsorption analyses. The successful construction of HKUST-1 on NaZrP was also supported by its catalytic performance for the oxidation of cyclohexene.

  6. Single domain YBa2Cu3Oy thick films on metallic substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reddy, E. S.; Noudem, J. G.; Goodilin, E. A.; Tarka, M.; Schmitz, G. J.

    2003-03-01

    The fabrication of single domain YBa2Cu3Oy (123) thick films (10-100 mum) on metallic substrates is reported. The process involves the formation of the 123 phase by a peritectic reaction between an air-brushed dense Y2BaCuO5 (211) layer on a Ag12Pd substrate and infiltrated liquid phases containing barium cuprates and copper oxides. Single domain growth is achieved by seeding the green films with a c-axis oriented NdBa2Cu3Oy crystal prior to processing. The maximum processing temperatures are lowered to 970 °C by modifying the characteristics of the liquid phases meant for infiltration by addition of Ag powder. The fabrication technique, processing conditions for single domain growth and the resulting microstructures are discussed.

  7. New Cu(GeNx) film in barrierless metallization for LED heat dissipation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Chon-Hsin

    2015-05-01

    In this study, we explore new Cu(Ge) and Cu(GeNx) films for LED heat dissipation. The films are Cu-alloy seed layers, fabricated by co-sputtering Cu and Ge in an Ar or N2 atmosphere on either Ta/Al2O3 or polyimide substrates. The Cu alloy films are then annealed at 600 and 730 °C, respectively, for 1 h without notable Cu oxide formation at the Cu-Ta/Al2O3 interface. No Cu oxide is formed at the Cu-polyimide interface either after annealing the films at 310 °C for 1 h. The film formed atop an Al2O3 substrate contains a trace amount of GeNx and is thermally stable up to 730 °C, and the film formed atop a polyimide substrate is thermally stable up to 310 °C, both exhibiting a low resistivity and a high thermal conductivity. Such a thermal feature makes the Cu(GeNx) film a good candidate material in barrierless metallization for many industrial applications, such as LED heat sinks.

  8. Endophytic bacteria take the challenge to improve Cu phytoextraction by sunflower.

    PubMed

    Kolbas, Aliaksandr; Kidd, Petra; Guinberteau, Jacques; Jaunatre, Renaud; Herzig, Rolf; Mench, Michel

    2015-04-01

    Endophytic bacteria from roots and crude seed extracts of a Cu-tolerant population of Agrostis capillaris were inoculated to a sunflower metal-tolerant mutant line, and their influence on Cu tolerance and phytoextraction was assessed using a Cu-contaminated soil series. Ten endophytic bacterial strains isolated from surface-sterilized A. capillaris roots were mixed to prepare the root endophyte inoculant (RE). In parallel, surface-sterilized seeds of A. capillaris were crushed in MgSO4 to prepare a crude seed extract containing seed endophytes (SE). An aliquot of this seed extract was filtered at 0.2 μm to obtain a bacterial cell-free seed extract (SEF). After surface sterilization, germinated sunflower seeds were separately treated with one of five modalities: no treatment (C), immersion in MgSO4 (CMg) or SEF solutions and inoculation with RE or SE. All plants were cultivated on a Cu-contaminated soil series (13-1020 mg Cu kg(-1)). Cultivable RE strains were mostly members of the Pseudomonas genera, and one strain was closely related to Labrys sp. The cultivable SE strains belonged mainly to the Bacillus genera and some members of the Rhodococcus genera. The treatment effects depended on the soil Cu concentration. Both SE and SEF plants had a higher Cu tolerance in the 13-517 mg Cu kg(-1) soil range as reflected by increased shoot and root DW yields compared to control plants. This was accompanied by a slight decrease in shoot Cu concentration and increase in root Cu concentration. Shoot and root DW yields were more promoted by SE than SEF in the 13-114 mg Cu kg(-1) soil range, which could reflect the influence of seed-located bacterial endophytes. At intermediate soil Cu (416-818 mg Cu kg(-1) soil), the RE and CMg plants had lower shoot Cu concentrations than the control, SE and SEF plants. At high total soil Cu (617-1020 mg Cu kg(-1)), root DW yield of RE plants slightly increased and their root Cu concentration rose by up to 1.9-fold. In terms of phytoextraction efficiency, shoot Cu removal was increased for sunflower plants inoculated with crude and bacterial cell-free seed extracts by 1.3- to 2.2-fold in the 13-416 mg Cu kg(-1) soil range. Such increase was mainly driven by an enhanced shoot DW yield. The number and distribution of endophytic bacteria in the harvested sunflower tissues must be further examined.

  9. Review of the Potential of the Ni/Cu Plating Technique for Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells

    PubMed Central

    Rehman, Atteq ur; Lee, Soo Hong

    2014-01-01

    Developing a better method for the metallization of silicon solar cells is integral part of realizing superior efficiency. Currently, contact realization using screen printing is the leading technology in the silicon based photovoltaic industry, as it is simple and fast. However, the problem with metallization of this kind is that it has a lower aspect ratio and higher contact resistance, which limits solar cell efficiency. The mounting cost of silver pastes and decreasing silicon wafer thicknesses encourages silicon solar cell manufacturers to develop fresh metallization techniques involving a lower quantity of silver usage and not relying pressing process of screen printing. In recent times nickel/copper (Ni/Cu) based metal plating has emerged as a metallization method that may solve these issues. This paper offers a detailed review and understanding of a Ni/Cu based plating technique for silicon solar cells. The formation of a Ni seed layer by adopting various deposition techniques and a Cu conducting layer using a light induced plating (LIP) process are appraised. Unlike screen-printed metallization, a step involving patterning is crucial for opening the masking layer. Consequently, experimental procedures involving patterning methods are also explicated. Lastly, the issues of adhesion, back ground plating, process complexity and reliability for industrial applications are also addressed. PMID:28788516

  10. Review of the Potential of the Ni/Cu Plating Technique for Crystalline Silicon Solar Cells.

    PubMed

    Rehman, Atteq Ur; Lee, Soo Hong

    2014-02-18

    Developing a better method for the metallization of silicon solar cells is integral part of realizing superior efficiency. Currently, contact realization using screen printing is the leading technology in the silicon based photovoltaic industry, as it is simple and fast. However, the problem with metallization of this kind is that it has a lower aspect ratio and higher contact resistance, which limits solar cell efficiency. The mounting cost of silver pastes and decreasing silicon wafer thicknesses encourages silicon solar cell manufacturers to develop fresh metallization techniques involving a lower quantity of silver usage and not relying pressing process of screen printing. In recent times nickel/copper (Ni/Cu) based metal plating has emerged as a metallization method that may solve these issues. This paper offers a detailed review and understanding of a Ni/Cu based plating technique for silicon solar cells. The formation of a Ni seed layer by adopting various deposition techniques and a Cu conducting layer using a light induced plating (LIP) process are appraised. Unlike screen-printed metallization, a step involving patterning is crucial for opening the masking layer. Consequently, experimental procedures involving patterning methods are also explicated. Lastly, the issues of adhesion, back ground plating, process complexity and reliability for industrial applications are also addressed.

  11. WE-DE-201-12: Thermal and Dosimetric Properties of a Ferrite-Based Thermo-Brachytherapy Seed

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Warrell, G; Shvydka, D; Parsai, E I

    Purpose: The novel thermo-brachytherapy (TB) seed provides a simple means of adding hyperthermia to LDR prostate permanent implant brachytherapy. The high blood perfusion rate (BPR) within the prostate motivates the use of the ferrite and conductive outer layer design for the seed cores. We describe the results of computational analyses of the thermal properties of this ferrite-based TB seed in modelled patient-specific anatomy, as well as studies of the interseed and scatter (ISA) effect. Methods: The anatomies (including the thermophysical properties of the main tissue types) and seed distributions of 6 prostate patients who had been treated with LDR brachytherapymore » seeds were modelled in the finite element analysis software COMSOL, using ferrite-based TB and additional hyperthermia-only (HT-only) seeds. The resulting temperature distributions were compared to those computed for patient-specific seed distributions, but in uniform anatomy with a constant blood perfusion rate. The ISA effect was quantified in the Monte Carlo software package MCNP5. Results: Compared with temperature distributions calculated in modelled uniform tissue, temperature distributions in the patient-specific anatomy were higher and more heterogeneous. Moreover, the maximum temperature to the rectal wall was typically ∼1 °C greater for patient-specific anatomy than for uniform anatomy. The ISA effect of the TB and HT-only seeds caused a reduction in D90 similar to that found for previously-investigated NiCu-based seeds, but of a slightly smaller magnitude. Conclusion: The differences between temperature distributions computed for uniform and patient-specific anatomy for ferrite-based seeds are significant enough that heterogeneous anatomy should be considered. Both types of modelling indicate that ferrite-based seeds provide sufficiently high and uniform hyperthermia to the prostate, without excessively heating surrounding tissues. The ISA effect of these seeds is slightly less than that for the previously-presented NiCu-based seeds.« less

  12. Large single domain 123 material produced by seeding with single crystal rare earth barium copper oxide single crystals

    DOEpatents

    Todt, V.; Miller, D.J.; Shi, D.; Sengupta, S.

    1998-07-07

    A method of fabricating bulk YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x} where compressed powder oxides and/or carbonates of Y and Ba and Cu present in mole ratios to form YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x} are heated in the presence of a Nd{sub 1+x}Ba{sub 2{minus}x}Cu{sub 3}O{sub y} seed crystal to a temperature sufficient to form a liquid phase in the YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x} while maintaining the seed crystal solid. The materials are slowly cooled to provide a YBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub x} material having a predetermined number of domains between 1 and 5. Crack-free single domain materials can be formed using either plate shaped seed crystals or cube shaped seed crystals with a pedestal of preferential orientation material. 7 figs.

  13. Large single domain 123 material produced by seeding with single crystal rare earth barium copper oxide single crystals

    DOEpatents

    Todt, Volker; Miller, Dean J.; Shi, Donglu; Sengupta, Suvankar

    1998-01-01

    A method of fabricating bulk YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x where compressed powder oxides and/or carbonates of Y and Ba and Cu present in mole ratios to form YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x are heated in the presence of a Nd.sub.1+x Ba.sub.2-x Cu.sub.3 O.sub.y seed crystal to a temperature sufficient to form a liquid phase in the YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x while maintaining the seed crystal solid. The materials are slowly cooled to provide a YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x material having a predetermined number of domains between 1 and 5. Crack-free single domain materials can be formed using either plate shaped seed crystals or cube shaped seed crystals with a pedestal of preferential orientation material.

  14. A Study on Characterization of Light-Induced Electroless Plated Ni Seed Layer and Silicide Formation for Solar Cell Application

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Takaloo, Ashkan Vakilipour; Joo, Seung Ki; Es, Firat; Turan, Rasit; Lee, Doo Won

    2018-03-01

    Light-induced electroless plating (LIEP) is an easy and inexpensive method that has been widely used for seed layer deposition of Nickel/Copper (Ni/Cu)-based metallization in the solar cell. In this study, material characterization aspects of the Ni seed layer and Ni silicide formation at different bath conditions and annealing temperatures on the n-side of a silicon diode structure have been examined to achieve the optimum cell contacts. The effects of morphology and chemical composition of Ni film on its electrical conductivity were evaluated and described by a quantum mechanical model. It has been found that correlation exists between the theoretical and experimental conductivity of Ni film. Residual stress and phase transformation of Ni silicide as a function of annealing temperature were evaluated using Raman and XRD techniques. Finally, transmission line measurement (TLM) technique was employed to determine the contact resistance of Ni/Si stack after thermal treatment and to understand its correlation with the chemical-structural properties. Results indicated that low electrical resistive mono-silicide (NiSi) phase as low as 5 mΩ.cm2 was obtained.

  15. Penta-Twinned Copper Nanorods: Facile Synthesis via Seed-Mediated Growth and Their Tunable Plasmonic Properties

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Luo, Ming; Ruditskiy, Aleksey; Peng, Hsin-Chieh

    When seed-mediated growth is used as a versatile approach to the synthesis of penta-twinned Cu nanorods with uniform diameters and controllable aspect ratios is reported. The success of this approach relies on our recent synthesis of uniform Pd decahedra, with sizes in the range of 6–20 nm. The Pd decahedral seeds can direct the heterogeneous nucleation and growth of Cu along the fivefold axis to produce nanorods with uniform diameters defined by the lateral dimension of the original seeds. Due to a large mismatch in the lattice constants between Cu and Pd (7.1%), the deposited Cu is forced to growmore » along one side of the Pd decahedral seed, generating a nanorod with an asymmetric distribution of Cu, with the Pd seed situated at one of the two ends. According to extinction spectra, the as-obtained Cu nanorods can be stored in water under the ambient conditions for at least six months without noticeable degradation. The resulting stability allows us to systematically investigate the size-dependent surface plasmon resonance properties of the penta-twinned Cu nanorods. With the nanorod transverse modes positioned at 560 nm, the longitudinal modes can be readily tuned from the visible to the near-infrared region by controlling the aspect ratio.« less

  16. Penta-Twinned Copper Nanorods: Facile Synthesis via Seed-Mediated Growth and Their Tunable Plasmonic Properties

    DOE PAGES

    Luo, Ming; Ruditskiy, Aleksey; Peng, Hsin-Chieh; ...

    2016-01-07

    When seed-mediated growth is used as a versatile approach to the synthesis of penta-twinned Cu nanorods with uniform diameters and controllable aspect ratios is reported. The success of this approach relies on our recent synthesis of uniform Pd decahedra, with sizes in the range of 6–20 nm. The Pd decahedral seeds can direct the heterogeneous nucleation and growth of Cu along the fivefold axis to produce nanorods with uniform diameters defined by the lateral dimension of the original seeds. Due to a large mismatch in the lattice constants between Cu and Pd (7.1%), the deposited Cu is forced to growmore » along one side of the Pd decahedral seed, generating a nanorod with an asymmetric distribution of Cu, with the Pd seed situated at one of the two ends. According to extinction spectra, the as-obtained Cu nanorods can be stored in water under the ambient conditions for at least six months without noticeable degradation. The resulting stability allows us to systematically investigate the size-dependent surface plasmon resonance properties of the penta-twinned Cu nanorods. With the nanorod transverse modes positioned at 560 nm, the longitudinal modes can be readily tuned from the visible to the near-infrared region by controlling the aspect ratio.« less

  17. Seed crystals with improved properties for melt processing superconductors for practical applications

    DOEpatents

    Veal, Boyd W.; Paulikas, Arvydas; Balachandran, Uthamalingam; Zhong, Wei

    1997-01-01

    A method of fabricating bulk superconducting material including RBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta. comprising heating compressed powder oxides and/or carbonates of R and Ba and Cu present in mole ratios to form RBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta. in physical contact with an oxide single crystal seed to a temperature sufficient to form a liquid phase in the RBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta. while maintaining the single crystal seed solid to grow the superconducting material and thereafter cooling to provide a material including RBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta.. R is a rare earth or Y or La and the single crystal seed has a lattice mismatch with RBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7-.delta. of less than about 2% at the growth temperature. The starting material may be such that the final product contains a minor amount of R.sub.2 BaCuO.sub.5.

  18. Methane alleviates copper-induced seed germination inhibition and oxidative stress in Medicago sativa.

    PubMed

    Samma, Muhammad Kaleem; Zhou, Heng; Cui, Weiti; Zhu, Kaikai; Zhang, Jing; Shen, Wenbiao

    2017-02-01

    Recent results discovered the protective roles of methane (CH 4 ) against oxidative stress in animals. However, the possible physiological roles of CH 4 in plants are still unknown. By using physiological, histochemical and molecular approaches, the beneficial role of CH 4 in germinating alfalfa seeds upon copper (Cu) stress was evaluated. Endogenous production of CH 4 was significantly increased in Cu-stressed alfalfa seeds, which was mimicked by 0.39 mM CH 4 . The pretreatment with CH 4 significantly alleviated the inhibition of seed germination and seedling growth induced by Cu stress. Cu accumulation was obviously blocked as well. Meanwhile, α/β amylase activities and sugar contents were increased, all of which were consistent with the alleviation of seed germination inhibition triggered by CH 4 . The Cu-triggered oxidative stress was also mitigated, which was confirmed by the decrease of lipid peroxidation and reduction of Cu-induced loss of plasma membrane integrity in CH 4 -pretreated alfalfa seedlings. The results of antioxidant enzymes, including ascorbate peroxidase (APX), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and guaiacol peroxidase (POD) total or isozymatic activities, and corresponding transcripts (APX1/2, Cu/Zn SOD and Mn-SOD), indicated that CH 4 reestablished cellular redox homeostasis. Further, Cu-induced proline accumulation was partly impaired by CH 4 , which was supported by the alternation of proline metabolism. Together, these results indicated that CH 4 performs an advantageous effect on the alleviation of seed germination inhibition caused by Cu stress, and reestablishment of redox homeostasis mainly via increasing antioxidant defence.

  19. Detection of esophageal cancer cell by photoelectrochemical Cu2O/ZnO biosensor (Conference Presentation)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hsu, Chao-Hsin; Chu, Cheng-Hsun; Chen, Weichung; Wu, I.-Chen; Wu, Ming Tsang; Kuo, Chie-Tong; Tsiang, Raymond Chien-Chao; Wang, Hsiang-Chen

    2016-03-01

    We have demonstrated a Cu2O/ZnO nanorods (NRs) array p-n heterostructures photoelectrochemical biosensor. The electrodeposition of Cu2O at pH 12 acquired the preferably (111) lattice planes, resulting in the largest interfacial electric field between Cu2O and ZnO, which finally led to the highest separation efficiency of photogenerated charge carriers. High verticality ZnO nanorods by seed layer and thermal annealing assist the hydrothermal growth. The optimized Cu2O/ZnO NRs array p-n heterostructures exhibited enhanced PEC performance, such as elevated photocurrent and photoconversion efficiency, as well as excellent sensing performance for the sensitive detection of four strains of different races and different degree of cancer cell which made the device self-powered. We got spectral response characteristics and operating wavelength range of biosensor, and to verify the biological characteristics of cancer cells wafer react with different stages of cancer characterized by a cancer measured reaction experiment.

  20. Near-Infrared-Emitting CuInS2/ZnS Dot-in-Rod Colloidal Heteronanorods by Seeded Growth

    PubMed Central

    2018-01-01

    Synthesis protocols for anisotropic CuInX2 (X = S, Se, Te)-based heteronanocrystals (HNCs) are scarce due to the difficulty in balancing the reactivities of multiple precursors and the high solid-state diffusion rates of the cations involved in the CuInX2 lattice. In this work, we report a multistep seeded growth synthesis protocol that yields colloidal wurtzite CuInS2/ZnS dot core/rod shell HNCs with photoluminescence in the NIR (∼800 nm). The wurtzite CuInS2 NCs used as seeds are obtained by topotactic partial Cu+ for In3+ cation exchange in template Cu2–xS NCs. The seed NCs are injected in a hot solution of zinc oleate and hexadecylamine in octadecene, 20 s after the injection of sulfur in octadecene. This results in heteroepitaxial growth of wurtzite ZnS primarily on the Sulfur-terminated polar facet of the CuInS2 seed NCs, the other facets being overcoated only by a thin (∼1 monolayer) shell. The fast (∼21 nm/min) asymmetric axial growth of the nanorod proceeds by addition of [ZnS] monomer units, so that the polarity of the terminal (002) facet is preserved throughout the growth. The delayed injection of the CuInS2 seed NCs is crucial to allow the concentration of [ZnS] monomers to build up, thereby maximizing the anisotropic heteroepitaxial growth rates while minimizing the rates of competing processes (etching, cation exchange, alloying). Nevertheless, a mild etching still occurred, likely prior to the onset of heteroepitaxial overgrowth, shrinking the core size from 5.5 to ∼4 nm. The insights provided by this work open up new possibilities in designing multifunctional Cu-chalcogenide based colloidal heteronanocrystals. PMID:29569443

  1. Chemical and microscopic characterization of outer seed coats of fossil and extant water plants

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van Bergen, P. F.; Goñi, M.; Collinson, M. E.; Barrie, P. J.; Damsté, J. S. Sinninghe; De Leeuw, J. W.

    1994-09-01

    Sclerotic outer seed coat layers (testae) of three fossil and two extant water plant species were analyzed using scanning electron and light microscopy in addition to Curie-point pyrolysis, solid state 13C NMR, and CuO oxidation. Comparison between the chemical results from the fossil and extant samples reveals that the original resistant constituents in the sclerotic testae are native lignin-celluloses which are transformed to polyphenol macromolecules recognized in the fossil samples. The combination of microscopic and chemical data provides new insights regarding the early diagenetic processes by which lignin-cellulose-containing plant remains may have been transformed. In particular, the unaltered morphology in combination with major chemical modifications is used as the basis to postulate the timing and nature of lignin transformations. The combination of pyrolysis, solid state 13C NMR, and CuO oxidation is shown to be a powerful tool to characterize the chemical structure of testae of fossil and extant water plants.

  2. Preferentially oriented, High temperature superconductors by seeding and a method for their preparation

    DOEpatents

    Lee, Dominic F.; Kroeger, Donald M.; Goyal, Amit

    2001-01-01

    A multi-domained bulk REBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x with low-angle domain boundaries which resembles a quasi-single domained material and a method for producing the same comprising arranging multiple seeds, which can be small single crystals, single domained melt-textured REBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x pieces, textured substrates comprised of grains with low misorientation angles, or thick film REBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x deposited on such textured substrate, such seeds being tailored for various REBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x compounds, in specific pattern and relative seed orientations on a superconductor precursor material which may be placed in contact with a porous substrate so as to reduce the amount of liquid phase in the melt. Because seeds can be arranged in virtually any pattern, high quality REBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.x elements of virtually unlimited size and complex geometry can be fabricated.

  3. Kinetic studies of adsorption of Cu (II) from aqueous solution by coriander seeds (Coriandrum Sativum)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kadiri, L.; Lebkiri, A.; Rifi, E. H.; Ouass, A.; Essaadaoui, Y.; Lebkiri, I.; Hamad, H.

    2018-05-01

    The adsorption of copper ions Cu2+ by Coriandrum Sativum seeds (CSS) from aqueous solution was studied in order to highlight the importance of coriander seeds as a potential tool in the treatment of wastewaters containing heavy metals. The kinetic studies of adsorption of Cu (II) were discussed using the spectroscopic technique "Inducting Coupled Plasma" (ICP). The effects of initial copper ion concentration and contact time were determined. All results show that coriander seeds have, over their culinary and medicinal benefits, a significant adsorbent power of copper ions.

  4. Application Of Ti-Based Self-Formation Barrier Layers To Cu Dual-Damascene Interconnects

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ito, Kazuhiro; Ohmori, Kazuyuki; Kohama, Kazuyuki; Mori, Kenichi; Maekawa, Kazuyoshi; Asai, Koyu; Murakami, Masanori

    2010-11-01

    Cu interconnects have been used extensively in ULSI devices. However, large resistance-capacitance delay and poor device reliability have been critical issues as the device feature size has reduced to nanometer scale. In order to achieve low resistance and high reliability of Cu interconnects, we have applied a thin Ti-based self-formed barrier (SFB) using Cu(Ti) alloy seed to 45nm-node dual damascene interconnects and evaluated its performance. The line resistance and via resistance decreased significantly, compared with those of conventional Ta/TaN barriers. The stress migration performance was also drastically improved using the SFB process. A performance of time dependent dielectric breakdown revealed superior endurance. These results suggest that the Ti-based SFB process is one of the most promising candidates for advanced Cu interconnects. TEM and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy observations for characterization of the Ti-based SFB structure were also performed. The Ti-based SFB consisted of mainly amorphous Ti oxides. Amorphous or crystalline Ti compounds such as TiC, TiN, and TiSi formed beneath Cu alloy films, and the formation varied with dielectric.

  5. Arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi facilitate rapid adaptation of Elsholtzia splendens to copper.

    PubMed

    Li, Junmin; Liang, Huijuan; Yan, Ming; Chen, Luxi; Zhang, Huating; Liu, Jie; Wang, Suizi; Jin, Zexin

    2017-12-01

    Closely associated microbes have been shown to drive local adaptation of plants. However, few studies provide direct evidence, disclosing the role of arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi (AMF) in their rapid adaptation of plants toward heavy metal tolerance. Elsholtzia splendens is a Cu-tolerant plant that was used as a model plant to study seed morphological traits as well as traits related to seed germination and seedling growth. This was achieved after acclimation for two generations with 1000mg/kg CuSO 4 in either absence or presence of AMF. In the absence of AMF, acclimation to Cu for two generations significantly decreased surface area, perimeter length, and perimeter width of E. splendens seeds, as well as seedling survival rate and fresh weight of the radicle of seedlings. However, in the presence of AMF, both the germination rate and the germination index of E. splendens seeds as well as the fresh weights of hypocotyl and radicle significantly increased. These results revealed that after Cu acclimation treatment, seeds and seedlings that had been inoculated with AMF outperformed those without AMF inoculation under Cu addition, indicating that AMF can facilitate rapid adaptation of E. splendens to Cu stress. In addition, two generations of Cu acclimation under AMF absence significantly increased radicle length, while amplitude increased under AMF presence, indicating that the direct adaptive plasticity response of radicle length to Cu stress helps with the Cu stress adaptation of E. splendens. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Synthesis and characterization of Cu3(BTC)2 membranes by thermal spray seeding and secondary growth.

    PubMed

    Noh, Seung-Jun; Kwon, Hyuk Taek; Kim, Jinsoo

    2013-08-01

    Crack-free Cu3(BTC)2 membranes were successfully prepared by thermal spray seeding and secondary growth method. Thermal spray seeding method, combining thermal seeding and pressurized spraying, uniformly distributed seed solution on the support, anchoring seed crystals tightly on the support. After secondary growth of the seeded support in the autoclave, continuous crack-free membrane was obtained by controlling cooling and drying steps. The gas permeation test was conducted at various temperatures using H2, CO2, CH4 and N2 gases.

  7. Seed crystals with improved properties for melt processing superconductors for practical applications

    DOEpatents

    Veal, B.W.; Paulikas, A.; Balachandran, U.; Zhong, W.

    1997-03-18

    A method of fabricating bulk superconducting material is disclosed including RBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7{minus}{delta}} comprising heating compressed powder oxides and/or carbonates of R and Ba and Cu present in mole ratios to form RBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7{minus}{delta}} in physical contact with an oxide single crystal seed to a temperature sufficient to form a liquid phase in the RBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7{minus}{delta}} while maintaining the single crystal seed solid to grow the superconducting material and thereafter cooling to provide a material including RBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7{minus}{delta}}. R is a rare earth or Y or La and the single crystal seed has a lattice mismatch with RBa{sub 2}Cu{sub 3}O{sub 7{minus}{delta}} of less than about 2% at the growth temperature. The starting material may be such that the final product contains a minor amount of R{sub 2}BaCuO{sub 5}.

  8. Cu-doped ZnO nanorod arrays: the effects of copper precursor and concentration

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Cu-doped ZnO nanorods have been grown at 90°C for 90 min onto a quartz substrate pre-coated with a ZnO seed layer using a hydrothermal method. The influence of copper (Cu) precursor and concentration on the structural, morphological, and optical properties of ZnO nanorods was investigated. X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the nanorods grown are highly crystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite crystal structure grown along the c-axis. The lattice strain is found to be compressive for all samples, where a minimum compressive strain of −0.114% was obtained when 1 at.% Cu was added from Cu(NO3)2. Scanning electron microscopy was used to investigate morphologies and the diameters of the grown nanorods. The morphological properties of the Cu-doped ZnO nanorods were influenced significantly by the presence of Cu impurities. Near-band edge (NBE) and a broad blue-green emission bands at around 378 and 545 nm, respectively, were observed in the photoluminescence spectra for all samples. The transmittance characteristics showed a slight increase in the visible range, where the total transmittance increased from approximately 80% for the nanorods doped with Cu(CH3COO)2 to approximately 90% for the nanorods that were doped with Cu(NO3)2. PMID:24855460

  9. Novel configuration of processing bulk textured YB 2Cu 3O 7-x superconductor by seeded infiltration growth method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cao, Haitao; Moutalbi, Nahed; Harnois, Christelle; Hu, Rui; Li, Jinshan; Zhou, Lian; Noudem, Jacques G.

    2010-01-01

    Mono-domain YBa 2Cu 3O 7-x (Y123) bulk superconductors have been processed using seeded infiltration growth technique (SIG). The combination of melt infiltrated liquid source (Ba 3Cu 5O 8) into the Y 2BaCuO 5 (Y211) pre-form and the nucleation of Y123 domain from SmBa 2Cu 3O 7 crystal seed has been investigated. The different configurations of SIG process were compared in this study. In addition, the effect of the starting Y211 particles size has been studied. The results reveal that, the Y211 particle size and different configurations strongly influence the properties of the final bulk superconductor sample.

  10. Magnetic properties of Co/Ni grain boundaries after annealing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Coutts, Chris; Arora, Monika; Hübner, René; Heinrich, Bret; Girt, Erol

    2018-05-01

    Magnetic and microstructural properties of <111> textured Cu/N×[Co/Ni] films are studied as a function of the number of bilayer repeats N and annealing temperature. M(H) loop measurements show that coercivity, Hc, increases with annealing temperature and that the slope of the saturation curve at Hc has a larger reduction for smaller N. An increase of the magnetic anisotropy (Ku) to saturation magnetization (Ms) ratio after annealing N×[Co/Ni] with N < 15 only partially describes the increase to Hc. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analyses performed in scanning transmission electron microscopy mode across cross-sections of as-deposited and annealed Cu/16×[Co/Ni] films show that Cu diffuses from the seed layer into grain boundaries of Co/Ni. Diffusion of Cu reduces exchange coupling (Hex) between the magnetic grains and explains the increase in Hc. Additionally, the difference in the slope of the M(H) curves at Hc between the thick (N = 16) and thin (N = 4) magnetic multilayers is due to Cu diffusion more effectively decoupling magnetic grains in the thinner multilayer.

  11. Method for preparing preferentially oriented, high temperature superconductors using solution reagents

    DOEpatents

    Lee, Dominic F.; Kroeger, Donald M.; Goyal, Amit

    2002-01-01

    A multi-domained bulk REBa.sub.2 CU.sub.3 O.sub.x with low-angle domain boundaries which resemble a quasi-single domained material and a method for producing the same comprising arranging multiple seeds, which can be small single crystals, single domained melt-textured REBa.sub.2 CU.sub.3 O.sub.x pieces, textured substrates comprises of grains with low misorientation angles, or thick film REBa.sub.2 CU.sub.3 O.sub.x deposited on such textured substrate, such seeds being tailored for various REBa.sub.2 CU.sub.3 O.sub.x compounds, in specific pattern and relative seed orientations on a superconductor precursor material which may be placed in contact with a porous substrate so as to reduce the amount of liquid phase in the melt. Because seeds can be arranged in virtually any pattern, high quality REBa.sub.2 CU.sub.3 O.sub.x elements of virtually unlimited size and complex geometry can be fabricated.

  12. Hot seeding for the growth of c-axis-oriented Nd-Ba-Cu-O

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chauhan, H. S.; Murakami, M.

    2000-06-01

    The fabrication of large single-grain RE-Ba-Cu-O (RE denotes rare earth elements) is essential for bulk applications. In the present study, we report on a hot-seeding method for growing Nd-Ba-Cu-O with Nd123 seed crystals. We made an arrangement, in which the Nd123 seed crystal can be transported to the centre of the furnace with a rod through a hole in a rubber cork and insulating stopper. The seed was placed in a small dip made in the rod, which can be turned to drop the seed on the sample. The advantage of this method is that perturbation in the growth conditions such as temperature and oxygen partial pressure can be minimized. Using this method we could grow large single-domain c-axis-oriented samples with the surface area larger than 3 cm×3 cm.

  13. Enhanced thermal stability of Cu alloy films by strong interaction between Ni and Zr (or Fe)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zheng, Yuehong; Li, Xiaona; Cheng, Xiaotian; Li, Zhuming; Liu, Yubo; Dong, Chuang

    2018-04-01

    Low resistivity, phase stability and nonreactivity with surrounding dielectrics are the key to the application of Cu to ultra-large-scale integrated circuits. Here, a stable solid solution cluster model was introduced to design the composition of barrierless Cu-Ni-Zr (or Fe) seed layers. The third elements Fe and Zr were dissolved into Cu via a second element Ni, which is soluble in both Cu and Zr (or Fe). The films were prepared by magnetron sputtering on the single-crystal p-Si (1 0 0) wafers. Since the diffusion characteristics of the alloying elements are different, the effects of the strong interaction between Ni and Zr (or Fe) on the film’s stability and resistivity were studied. The results showed that a proper addition of Zr-Ni (Zr/Ni  ⩽  0.6/12) into Cu could form a large negative lattice distortion, which inhibits Cu-Si interdiffusion and enhances the stability of Cu film. When Fe-Ni was co-added into Cu, the lattice distortion of Cu reached a lower value, 0.0029 Å  ⩽  |Δa|  ⩽  0.0046 Å, and the films showed poor stability. Therefore, when the model is applied to the composition design of the films, the strong interaction between the elements and the addition ratio should be taken into consideration.

  14. Live Site Demonstrations: Former Camp Beale Demonstration of MetalMapper Static Data Acquisition and Data Analysis

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-05-01

    tilted metamorphic rock . Typically, the surface layer of the soil is a brown gravelly silt with sand, about 4 inches thick. The subsoil is yellowish red...site setup, the placement of 200 seed items for use in measuring the capabilities of the advanced EMI sensors tested, the subsequent collection of...advanced sensors. The second team was responsible for the cued survey of 1,491 of the 2,143 targets using the MetalMapper, one of the advanced

  15. Cu-Chitosan Nanoparticle Mediated Sustainable Approach To Enhance Seedling Growth in Maize by Mobilizing Reserved Food.

    PubMed

    Saharan, Vinod; Kumaraswamy, R V; Choudhary, Ram Chandra; Kumari, Sarita; Pal, Ajay; Raliya, Ramesh; Biswas, Pratim

    2016-08-10

    Food crop seedlings often have susceptibility to various abiotic and biotic stresses. Therefore, in the present study, we investigated the impact of Cu-chitosan nanoparticles (NPs) on physiological and biochemical changes during maize seedling growth. Higher values of percent germination, shoot and root length, root number, seedling length, fresh and dry weight, and seed vigor index were obtained at 0.04-0.12% concentrations of Cu-chitosan NPs as compared to water, CuSO4, and bulk chitosan treatments. Cu-chitosan NPs at the same concentrations induced the activities of α-amylase and protease enzymes and also increased the total protein content in germinating seeds. The increased activities of α-amylase and protease enzymes corroborated with decreased content of starch and protein, respectively, in the germinating seeds. Cu-chitosan NPs at 0.16% and CuSO4 at 0.01% concentrations showed inhibitory effect on seedling growth. The observed results on seedling growth could be explained by the toxicity of excess Cu and growth promotory effect of Cu-chitosan NPs. Physiological and biochemical studies suggest that Cu-chitosan NPs enhance the seedling growth of maize by mobilizing the reserved food, primarily starch, through the higher activity of α-amylase.

  16. Copper toxicity and date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) seedling tolerance: Monitoring of related biomarkers.

    PubMed

    Chaâbene, Zayneb; Hakim, Imen Rekik; Rorat, Agnieszka; Elleuch, Amine; Mejdoub, Hafedh; Vandenbulcke, Franck

    2018-03-01

    Date palm (Phoenix dactylifera) seeds were exposed to different copper (Cu) solutions to examine plant stress responses. Low Cu concentrations (0.02 and 0.2 mM) caused an increase of seed germination, whereas higher Cu amounts (2 mM) significantly inhibited seed germination, delayed hypocotyl elongation, increased seedling mortality, and reduced the germination index by more than 90%. Metal-related toxicity symptoms appeared after 15 d of 2 mM of Cu exposure. Biochemical activities such as amylase activity and redox balance elements were examined to study the relationship between external Cu amount and internal plant response. The present study showed that amylolytic activity was dose- and time-dependent. Likewise, H 2 O 2 production increased after exposure to Cu, which was correlated with thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) accumulation. Furthermore at low Cu concentrations, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities increased, suggesting that date palm seed stimulated its metal homeostasis networks. However, the highest cupric ion amounts increased cell oxidant accumulation and reduced enzyme production. Gene expression level measures of P. dactylifera phytochelatin synthase (Pdpcs) and P. dactylifera metallothionein (Pdmt) encoding genes have been carried out to investigate the implication of PdPCS and PdMT proteins in Cu homeostasis and/or its sequestration. Phoenix dactylifera metallothionein induction reached a peak after 30 d of exposure to 0.2 mM of Cu. However, it was down-regulated in plants exposed to higher Cu concentrations. In the same conditions, Pdpcs was overexpressed during 1 mo of exposure before it decreased thereafter. These observations provide a new insight into date palm cell response to Cu, a metal that can be toxic but that is also an essential element. Environ Toxicol Chem 2018;37:797-806. © 2017 SETAC. © 2017 SETAC.

  17. Colloidal synthesis of Cu-ZnO and Cu@CuNi-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals with controlled morphologies and multifunctional properties

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zeng, Deqian; Gong, Pingyun; Chen, Yuanzhi; Zhang, Qinfu; Xie, Qingshui; Peng, Dong-Liang

    2016-06-01

    Metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals have received extensive attention owing to their multiple functionalities which can find wide technological applications. The utilization of low-cost non-noble metals to construct novel metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals is important and meaningful for their large-scale applications. In this study, a facile solution approach is developed for the synthesis of Cu-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals with well-controlled morphologies, including nanomultipods, core-shell nanoparticles, nanopyramids and core-shell nanowires. In the synthetic strategy, Cu nanocrystals formed in situ serve as seeds for the heterogeneous nucleation and growth of ZnO, and it eventually forms various Cu-ZnO hetero-nanostructures under different reaction conditions. These hybrid nanocrystals possess well-defined and stable heterostructure junctions. The ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectra reveal morphology-dependent surface plasmon resonance absorption of Cu and the band gap absorption of ZnO. Furthermore, we construct a novel Cu@CuNi-ZnO ternary hetero-nanostructure by incorporating the magnetic metal Ni into the pre-synthesized colloidal Cu nanocrystals. Such hybrid nanocrystals possess a magnetic Cu-Ni intermediate layer between the ZnO shell and the Cu core, and exhibit ferromagnetic/superparamagnetic properties which expand their functionalities. Finally, enhanced photocatalytic activities are observed in the as-prepared non-noble metal-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals. This study not only provides an economical way to prepare high-quality morphology-controlled Cu-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals for potential applications in the fields of photocatalysis and photovoltaic devices, but also opens up new opportunities in designing ternary non-noble metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals with multifunctionalities.Metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals have received extensive attention owing to their multiple functionalities which can find wide technological applications. The utilization of low-cost non-noble metals to construct novel metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals is important and meaningful for their large-scale applications. In this study, a facile solution approach is developed for the synthesis of Cu-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals with well-controlled morphologies, including nanomultipods, core-shell nanoparticles, nanopyramids and core-shell nanowires. In the synthetic strategy, Cu nanocrystals formed in situ serve as seeds for the heterogeneous nucleation and growth of ZnO, and it eventually forms various Cu-ZnO hetero-nanostructures under different reaction conditions. These hybrid nanocrystals possess well-defined and stable heterostructure junctions. The ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectra reveal morphology-dependent surface plasmon resonance absorption of Cu and the band gap absorption of ZnO. Furthermore, we construct a novel Cu@CuNi-ZnO ternary hetero-nanostructure by incorporating the magnetic metal Ni into the pre-synthesized colloidal Cu nanocrystals. Such hybrid nanocrystals possess a magnetic Cu-Ni intermediate layer between the ZnO shell and the Cu core, and exhibit ferromagnetic/superparamagnetic properties which expand their functionalities. Finally, enhanced photocatalytic activities are observed in the as-prepared non-noble metal-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals. This study not only provides an economical way to prepare high-quality morphology-controlled Cu-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals for potential applications in the fields of photocatalysis and photovoltaic devices, but also opens up new opportunities in designing ternary non-noble metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals with multifunctionalities. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available: Synthesis and TEM images of pure ZnO nanocrystals. Photocatalytic testing procedures and degradation curves. SEM and TEM images, SAED pattern and EDS spectra and maps of parts of Cu-ZnO hybrid samples. A schematic image of coincident lattice matching between Cu and ZnO. STEM-EDS elemental maps and XRD pattern of the Cu@CuNi-ZnO sample. Comparative synthetic parameters. See DOI: 10.1039/c6nr02055k

  18. Gd Ba Cu O bulk superconductors fabricated by a seeded infiltration growth technique under reduced oxygen partial pressure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Iida, K.; Babu, N. H.; Shi, Y. H.; Cardwell, D. A.; Murakami, M.

    2006-06-01

    Single-grain Gd-Ba-Cu-O (GdBCO) bulk superconductors have been grown by a seeded infiltration and growth (SIG) technique under a 1% O2+N2 atmosphere using a generic MgO-doped Nd-Ba-Cu-O (MgO-NdBCO) seed placed on the sample surface at room temperature (the so-called the cold-seeding method). Partial melting of the MgO-NdBCO seeds fabricated in air under notionally identical thermal processing conditions, however, limited the reliability of this bulk GdBCO single-grain process. The observed seed decomposition is attributed to the dependence of the peritectic temperature Tp of MgO-doped Nd1+xBa2-xCu3Oy solid solution (MgO-doped Nd-123ss, where ss indicates solid solution) compounds on both oxygen partial pressure during the melt process and the level of solid solution (x). The peritectic decomposition temperature of MgO-doped Nd-123ss, with x ranging from 0 to 0.5 under p(O2) = 1.00 atm, was observed to remain constant at 1120 °C. Tp was observed to decrease linearly as a function of solid solution level, on the other hand, under oxygen partial pressures of both p(O2) = 0.21 and 0.01 atm. Based on these results, MgO-doped NdBCO seed crystals should be grown under reduced oxygen partial pressure in order to obtain a stable MgO-doped NdBCO seed crystal suitable for cold-seeding processes of large-grain (RE)BCO bulk superconductors (where RE is a rare earth element).

  19. Influence of salicylic acid pretreatment on seeds germination and some defence mechanisms of Zea mays plants under copper stress.

    PubMed

    Moravcová, Šárka; Tůma, Jiří; Dučaiová, Zuzana Kovalíková; Waligórski, Piotr; Kula, Monika; Saja, Diana; Słomka, Aneta; Bąba, Wojciech; Libik-Konieczny, Marta

    2018-01-01

    The study was focused on the influence of salicylic acid (SA) on maize seeds germination and on some physiological and biochemical processes in maize plants growing in the hydroponic culture under copper (Cu) stress. A significant influence of SA pretreatment on the advanced induction of the maize seeds metabolic activity and the level of the endogenous SA in germinated seeds and developing roots have been stated. Although, the ability of maize seeds to uptake SA and accumulate it in the germinated roots was confirmed, the growth inhibition of Cu-stressed maize seedlings was not ameliorated by SA seeds pretreatment. Cu-stressed plants exhibited a decrease in the photosynthetic pigment concentration and the increase in non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) - an indicator of an excess energy in PSII antenna assemblies lost as a heat. The amelioration effect of SA application was found only for carotenoids content which increased in stressed plants. It was also shown that maize roots growing in stress conditions significantly differed in the chemical composition in comparison to the roots of control plants, but the SA pretreatment did not affect these differences. On the other hand, it was found that SA seed pretreatment significantly influenced the ability of stressed plants to accumulate copper in the roots. It was stated that a higher level of exogenous SA application led to a lower accumulation of Cu ions in maize roots. Cu-stressed plants exhibited higher oxidative stress in roots than in leaves which was manifested as an increase in the concentration of hydrogen peroxide due to stress factor application. We observed an increase in catalase (CAT) activity in leaves of Cu-stressed plants which corresponded with a lower H 2 O 2 content when compared with roots where the hydrogen peroxide level was higher, and the inhibition of the CAT activity was found. Furthermore, we found that the SA seed pretreatment led to a decrease in the H 2 O 2 content in the roots of the Cu-stressed plants, but it did not influence the H 2 O 2 level in leaves. The increase in hydrogen peroxide content in the roots of Cu-stressed plants correlated with a higher activity of the MnSODI and MnSODII isoforms. It was found that SA pretreatment caused a decrease in MnSODII activity accompanied by the decrease in H 2 O 2 concentration. Achieved results indicated also that the changes in the chemical composition of the root tissue under copper stress constituted protection mechanisms of blocking copper flow into other plant organs. However, it might be assumed that the root tissue remodelling under Cu stress did not only prevent against the Cu ions uptake but also limited the absorption of minerals required for the normal growth leading to the inhibition of the plant development. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  20. A robust seeding technique for the growth of single grain (RE)BCO and (RE)BCO-Ag bulk superconductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Namburi, Devendra K.; Shi, Yunhua; Dennis, Anthony R.; Durrell, John H.; Cardwell, David A.

    2018-04-01

    Bulk, single grains of RE-Ba-Cu-O [(RE)BCO] high temperature superconductors have significant potential for a wide range of applications, including trapped field magnets, energy storage flywheels, superconducting mixers and magnetic separators. One of the main challenges in the production of these materials by the so-called top seeded melt growth technique is the reliable seeding of large, single grains, which are required for high field applications. A chemically aggressive liquid phase comprising of BaCuO2 and CuO is generated during the single grain growth process, which comes into direct contact with the seed crystal either instantaneously or via infiltration through a buffer pellet, if employed in the process. This can cause either partial or complete melting of the seed, leading subsequently to growth failure. Here, the underlying mechanisms of seed crystal melting and the role of seed porosity in the single grain growth process are investigated. We identify seed porosity as a key limitation in the reliable and successful fabrication of large grain (RE)BCO bulk superconductors for the first time, and propose the use of Mg-doped NdBCO generic seeds fabricated via the infiltration growth technique to reduce the effects of seed porosity on the melt growth process. Finally, we demonstrate that the use of such seeds leads to better resistance to melting during the single grain growth process, and therefore to a more reliable fabrication technique.

  1. Seed-mediated synthesis of ultra-long copper nanowires and their application as transparent conducting electrodes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Hyunhong; Choi, Seong-Hyeon; Kim, Mijung; Park, Jang-Ung; Bae, Joonwon; Park, Jongnam

    2017-11-01

    Owing to a recent push toward one-dimensional nanomaterials, in this study, we report a seed-mediated synthetic strategy for copper nanowires (Cu NWs) production involving thermal decomposition of metal-surfactant complexes in an organic medium. Ultra-long Cu NWs with a high aspect ratio and uniform diameter were obtained by separating nucleation and growth steps. The underlying mechanism for nanowire formation was investigated, in addition, properties of the obtained Cu NWs were also characterized using diverse analysis techniques. The performance of resulting Cu NWs as transparent electrodes was demonstrated for potential application. This article can provide information on both new synthetic pathway and potential use of Cu NWs.

  2. Structures of Cu surfaces developing in benzotriazole solutions: Effect of pH

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kondoh, Eiichi; Kawakami, Tatsuya; Watanabe, Mitsuhiro; Jin, Linhua; Hamada, Satomi; Shima, Shohei; Hiyama, Hirokuni

    2017-07-01

    The effect of pH on layer formation onto clean Cu surfaces in benzotriazole (BTA) aqueous solutions was studied by in situ spectroscopic ellipsometry. The effect of H2O2 addition was also investigated. Time changes in the ellipsometric parameters Ψ and Δ, which correspond to the structural changes of the layers on Cu, were discussed. In acidic solutions, a BTA or a Cu-BTA complex layer grows directly on Cu. The out-diffusion of Cu is suppressed at the Cu layer interface. When H2O2 was mixed, the Cu surface is eroded in acidic solutions. In alkaline solutions, the BTA layer grows on the oxidized Cu layer, or no growth occurs, depending on the composition of the solutions. In neutral solutions, the Cu-BTA complex layer forms on Cu, and the uncovered part is oxidized in the presence of H2O2.

  3. Rice seed toxicity tests for organic and inorganic substances

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wang, W.

    1994-01-01

    Plant seed toxicity tests can be used to evaluate hazardous waste sites and to assess toxicity of complex effluents and industrial chemicals. Conventional plant seed toxicity tests are performed using culture dishes containing filter paper. Some reports indicate that filter papers might interfere with the toxicity of inorganic substances. In this study, a plastic seed tray was used. Rice was used as the test species. A comparison of results in the literature and this study revealed that variation of test species, methods, exposure duration, and other factors may affect the test results. The results of this study showed that the order of decreasing toxicity of metal ions was Cu>Ag>Ni>Cd>Cr(VI)>Pb>Zn>Mn>NaF for rice. The test results were similar to those reported in the literature for lettuce Ag>Ni>Cd,Cu>Cr (VI)>Zn>Mn, millet Cu,Ni>Cd>Cr(VI)>Zn>Mn, and ryegrass Cu>Ni>Mn>>Pb>Cd>Zn> Al>Hg>Cr>Fe. The order of decreasing toxicity of organic herbicides was paraquat, 2,4-D>>glyphosate>bromacil.

  4. Colloidal synthesis of Cu-ZnO and Cu@CuNi-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals with controlled morphologies and multifunctional properties.

    PubMed

    Zeng, Deqian; Gong, Pingyun; Chen, Yuanzhi; Zhang, Qinfu; Xie, Qingshui; Peng, Dong-Liang

    2016-06-02

    Metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals have received extensive attention owing to their multiple functionalities which can find wide technological applications. The utilization of low-cost non-noble metals to construct novel metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals is important and meaningful for their large-scale applications. In this study, a facile solution approach is developed for the synthesis of Cu-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals with well-controlled morphologies, including nanomultipods, core-shell nanoparticles, nanopyramids and core-shell nanowires. In the synthetic strategy, Cu nanocrystals formed in situ serve as seeds for the heterogeneous nucleation and growth of ZnO, and it eventually forms various Cu-ZnO hetero-nanostructures under different reaction conditions. These hybrid nanocrystals possess well-defined and stable heterostructure junctions. The ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectra reveal morphology-dependent surface plasmon resonance absorption of Cu and the band gap absorption of ZnO. Furthermore, we construct a novel Cu@CuNi-ZnO ternary hetero-nanostructure by incorporating the magnetic metal Ni into the pre-synthesized colloidal Cu nanocrystals. Such hybrid nanocrystals possess a magnetic Cu-Ni intermediate layer between the ZnO shell and the Cu core, and exhibit ferromagnetic/superparamagnetic properties which expand their functionalities. Finally, enhanced photocatalytic activities are observed in the as-prepared non-noble metal-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals. This study not only provides an economical way to prepare high-quality morphology-controlled Cu-ZnO hybrid nanocrystals for potential applications in the fields of photocatalysis and photovoltaic devices, but also opens up new opportunities in designing ternary non-noble metal-semiconductor hybrid nanocrystals with multifunctionalities.

  5. Exogenous Glutathione Enhances Mercury Tolerance by Inhibiting Mercury Entry into Plant Cells

    PubMed Central

    Kim, Yeon-Ok; Bae, Hyeun-Jong; Cho, Eunjin; Kang, Hunseung

    2017-01-01

    Despite the increasing understanding of the crucial roles of glutathione (GSH) in cellular defense against heavy metal stress as well as oxidative stress, little is known about the functional role of exogenous GSH in mercury (Hg) tolerance in plants. Here, we provide compelling evidence that GSH contributes to Hg tolerance in diverse plants. Exogenous GSH did not mitigate the toxicity of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), or zinc (Zn), whereas application of exogenous GSH significantly promoted Hg tolerance during seed germination and seedling growth of Arabidopsis thaliana, tobacco, and pepper. By contrast, addition of buthionine sulfoximine, an inhibitor of GSH biosynthesis, severely retarded seed germination and seedling growth of the plants in the presence of Hg. The effect of exogenous GSH on Hg specific tolerance was also evident in the presence of other heavy metals, such as Cd, Cu, and Zn, together with Hg. GSH treatment significantly decreased H2O2 and O2- levels and lipid peroxidation, but increased chlorophyll content in the presence of Hg. Importantly, GSH treatment resulted in significantly less accumulation of Hg in Arabidopsis plants, and thin layer chromatography and nuclear magnetic resonance analysis revealed that GSH had much stronger binding affinity to Hg than to Cd, Cu, or Zn, suggesting that tight binding of GSH to Hg impedes Hg uptake, leading to low Hg accumulation in plant cells. Collectively, the present findings reveal that GSH is a potent molecule capable of conferring Hg tolerance by inhibiting Hg accumulation in plants. PMID:28507557

  6. Characterization of Cu buffer layers for growth of L10-FeNi thin films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mizuguchi, M.; Sekiya, S.; Takanashi, K.

    2010-05-01

    A Cu(001) layer was fabricated on a Au(001) layer to investigate the use of Cu as a buffer layer for growing L10-FeNi thin films. The epitaxial growth of a Cu buffer layer was observed using reflection high-energy electron diffraction. The flatness of the layer improved drastically with an increase in the substrate temperature although the layer was an alloy (AuCu3). An FeNi thin film was epitaxially grown on the AuCu3 buffer layer by alternate monatomic layer deposition and the formation of an L10-FeNi ordered alloy was expected. The AuCu3 buffer layer is thus a promising candidate material for the growth of L10-FeNi thin films.

  7. Thickness effect of Gd2Zr2O7 buffer layer on performance of YBa2Cu3O7-δ coated conductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qiu, Wenbin; Fan, Feng; Lu, Yuming; Liu, Zhiyong; Bai, Chuanyi; Guo, Yanqun; Cai, Chuanbing

    2014-12-01

    Bilayer buffer architecture of Gd2Zr2O7 (GZO)/Y2O3 was prepared on the biaxially textured tape of Ni-5 at% W (NiW) by reactive sputtering deposition technique. The buffer layer of GZO films were deposited with different thicknesses on Y2O3 seeding layer with a given thickness of 20 nm. According to the results of φ-scan, the in-plane FWHMs of GZO films decreased and then reversed with increasing thickness of GZO, which corresponded with the in-plane FWHMs and superconducting properties of YBa2Cu3O7-δ (YBCO) films. Reflection High-Energy Electron Diffraction (RHEED) was carried out to examine the surface texture of GZO films and the deteriorated surface alignment was found for thicker films. The thickness effect of GZO on performance of YBCO is the coupling result of surface texture and blocking effect caused by thickness. With the balance of these two factors, the YBCO/GZO(120 nm)/Y2O3/NiW architecture exhibit relatively high performance with the transition temperature Tc of 92 K, a transition width ΔTc below 1 K, and a critical current density Jc of 0.65 MA/cm2.

  8. Study of annealing effect on the growth of ZnO nanorods on ZnO seed layers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sannakashappanavar, Basavaraj S.; Pattanashetti, Nandini A.; Byrareddy, C. R.; Yadav, Aniruddh Bahadur

    2018-04-01

    A zinc oxide (ZnO) seed layer was deposited on the SiO2/Si substrate by RF sputtering. To study the effect of annealing, the seed layers were classified into annealed and unannealed thin films. Annealing of the seed layers was carried at 450°C. Surface morphology of the seed layers were studied by Atomic force microscopy. ZnO nanorods were then grown on both the types of seed layer by hydrothermal method. The morphology and the structural properties of the nanorods were characterized by X-ray diffraction and Scanning electron microscopy. The effect of seed layer annealing on the growth and orientation of the ZnO nanorods were clearly examined on comparing with the nanorods grown on unannealed seed layer. The nanorods grown on annealed seed layers were found to be well aligned and oriented. Further, the I-V characteristic study was carried out on these aligned nanorods. The results supports positively for the future work to further enhance the properties of developed nanorods for their wide applications in electronic and optoelectronic devices.

  9. CeO2-CuO/Cu2O/Cu monolithic catalysts with three-kind morphologies Cu2O layers for preferential CO oxidation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jing, Guojuan; Zhang, Xuejiao; Zhang, Aiai; Li, Meng; Zeng, Shanghong; Xu, Changjin; Su, Haiquan

    2018-03-01

    The supports of copper slices with three-kind morphologies Cu2O layers were prepared by the hydrothermal method. The Cu2O layers are rod-like structure, three-dimensional reticular and porous morphology as well as flower-like morphology, respectively. The CeO2-CuO/Cu2O/Cu monolithic catalysts present porous and network structure or foam morphology after loading CeO2 and CuO. Cu and Ce elements are uniformly dispersed onto the support surface. It is found that the monolithic catalyst with flower-like Cu2O layer displays better low-temperature activity because of highly-dispersed CuO and high Olatt concentration. The monolithic catalysts with rod-like or reticular-morphology Cu2O layers present high-temperature activity due to larger CuO crystallite sizes and good synergistic effect at copper-ceria interfacial sites. The as-prepared CeO2-CuO/Cu2O/Cu monolithic catalysts show good performance in the CO-PROX reaction. The generation of Cu2O layers with three-kind morphologies is beneficial to the loading and dispersion of copper oxides and ceria.

  10. Copper toxicity and bioaccumulation in Chinese cabbage (Brassica pekinensis Rupr.).

    PubMed

    Xiong, Zhi-Ting; Wang, Hai

    2005-04-01

    Copper is among the major heavy metal contaminants in the environment with various anthropogenic and natural sources. Human health risk from heavy metal bioaccumulation in vegetables has been a subject of growing concern in recent years. To investigate Cu phytotoxic effects and bioaccumulation in the popular vegetable Chinese cabbage (Brassica pekinensis Rupr) as well as the implications for human health due to Cu in the vegetable supply, seed germination and pot culture experiments with this vegetable were carried out. Six levels (0, 0.008, 0.031, 0.125, 0.5, and 2.0 mM/L) and 3 levels (0, 0.2, and 1.0 mM/kg) of Cu treatments were performed for the seed germination and pot culture experiments, respectively. The LC(50) of Cu for seed germination of Chinese cabbage was 0.348 mM/L. In the pot culture experiments, Cu treatments significantly increased electrolyte leakage and peroxidase activity of shoot tissues, demonstrating Cu phytotoxicity to the plants. On the other hand, Cu treatments significantly stimulated, instead of reduced, chlorophyll content. Cu treatments did not show a significant effect on shoot biomass. Compared to the control, Cu treatments significantly elevated the Cu content of the shoots-9.9, 42.5, and 119.0 mg/kg (DW) of Cu were detected in the 0, 0.2, and 1.0 mM/kg treatments, respectively. These results showed that although the plants accumulated an elevated copper content and suffered damage to some extent under Cu treatment, they looked healthy. It was suggested that Chinese cabbage with an elevated Cu content and without showing visible symptoms of damage possibly could cause a risk to human health from the transfer of the metal in food.

  11. Surface potential driven dissolution phenomena of [0 0 0 1]-oriented ZnO nanorods grown from ZnO and Pt seed layers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Seo, Youngmi; Kim, Jung Hyeun

    2011-06-01

    Highly oriented ZnO nanorods are synthesized hydrothermally on ZnO and Pt seed layers, and they are dissolved in KOH solution. The rods grown on ZnO seed layer show uniform dissolution, but those grown on Pt seed layer are rod-selectively dissolved. The ZnO nanorods from both seed layers show the same crystalline structure through XRD and Raman spectrometer data. However, the surface potential analysis reveals big difference for ZnO and Pt seed cases. The surface potential distribution is very uniform for the ZnO seed case, but it is much fluctuated on the Pt seed case. It suggests that the rod-selective dissolution phenomena on Pt seed case are likely due to the surface energy difference.

  12. Dendritic Core-Frame and Frame Multimetallic Rhombic Dodecahedra: A Comparison Study of Composition and Structure Effects on Electrocatalysis of Methanol Oxidation

    DOE PAGES

    Mathurin, Leanne E.; Tao, Jing; Xin, Huolin; ...

    2017-11-03

    The composition and structure of multimetallic nanostructures can be tailored to enhance electrocatalytic properties. This work reports a seed-mediated synthesis of novel multimetallic dendritic core-frame and frame nanostructures with a rhombic dodecahedral shape for enhanced methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). The synthesis involves in situ formation of Cu seeds and the subsequent selective deposition of Pt and Ru on the edges and vertices of the Cu seeds to generate CuPt and CuPtRu dendritic core-frame nanostructures. The core-frame nanostructures undergo a post acetic acid etching process to form the frame nanostructures. While transmission electron microscopy reveals the morphology and elemental distribution ofmore » the nanostructures, X-ray diffraction patterns confirm the alloy compositions of dendritic frames for both the core-frame and frame nanostructures. Compared to the bimetallic CuPt nanostructures, the trimetallic CuPtRu nanostructures lower the onset potential and completely suppress the peak current in the reverse scan for MOR. The CuPtRu alloyed frame nanostructures are the best to prevent Ru leaching compared to the CuPtRu core-frame nanostructures and PtRu catalysts. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals that all three elements become more electron rich in the frame nanostructures. Thus, further refining the composition ratio of the CuPtRu alloyed dendritic frame nanostructures can lead to more efficient catalysts at a lower cost for MOR.« less

  13. Dendritic Core-Frame and Frame Multimetallic Rhombic Dodecahedra: A Comparison Study of Composition and Structure Effects on Electrocatalysis of Methanol Oxidation

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mathurin, Leanne E.; Tao, Jing; Xin, Huolin

    The composition and structure of multimetallic nanostructures can be tailored to enhance electrocatalytic properties. This work reports a seed-mediated synthesis of novel multimetallic dendritic core-frame and frame nanostructures with a rhombic dodecahedral shape for enhanced methanol oxidation reaction (MOR). The synthesis involves in situ formation of Cu seeds and the subsequent selective deposition of Pt and Ru on the edges and vertices of the Cu seeds to generate CuPt and CuPtRu dendritic core-frame nanostructures. The core-frame nanostructures undergo a post acetic acid etching process to form the frame nanostructures. While transmission electron microscopy reveals the morphology and elemental distribution ofmore » the nanostructures, X-ray diffraction patterns confirm the alloy compositions of dendritic frames for both the core-frame and frame nanostructures. Compared to the bimetallic CuPt nanostructures, the trimetallic CuPtRu nanostructures lower the onset potential and completely suppress the peak current in the reverse scan for MOR. The CuPtRu alloyed frame nanostructures are the best to prevent Ru leaching compared to the CuPtRu core-frame nanostructures and PtRu catalysts. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals that all three elements become more electron rich in the frame nanostructures. Thus, further refining the composition ratio of the CuPtRu alloyed dendritic frame nanostructures can lead to more efficient catalysts at a lower cost for MOR.« less

  14. Metal deposition using seed layers

    DOEpatents

    Feng, Hsein-Ping; Chen, Gang; Bo, Yu; Ren, Zhifeng; Chen, Shuo; Poudel, Bed

    2013-11-12

    Methods of forming a conductive metal layers on substrates are disclosed which employ a seed layer to enhance bonding, especially to smooth, low-roughness or hydrophobic substrates. In one aspect of the invention, the seed layer can be formed by applying nanoparticles onto a surface of the substrate; and the metallization is achieved by electroplating an electrically conducting metal onto the seed layer, whereby the nanoparticles serve as nucleation sites for metal deposition. In another approach, the seed layer can be formed by a self-assembling linker material, such as a sulfur-containing silane material.

  15. Structural properties and diffusion processes of the Cu 3Au (0 0 1) surface

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Fang; Zhang, Jian-Min; Zhang, Yan; Ji, Vincent

    2010-09-01

    The surface relaxation and surface energy of both the mixed AuCu and pure Cu terminated Cu 3Au (0 0 1) surfaces are simulated and calculated by using the modified analytical embedded-atom method. We find that the mixed AuCu termination is energetically preferred over the pure Cu termination thereby the mono-vacancy diffusion is also investigated in the topmost few layers of the mixed AuCu terminated Cu 3Au (0 0 1) surface. In the mixed AuCu terminated surface the relaxed Au atoms are raised above Cu atoms for 0.13 Å in the topmost layer. All the surface atoms displace outwards, this effect occurs in the first three layers and changes the first two inter-layer spacing. For mono-vacancy migration in the first layer, the migration energies of Au and Cu mono-vacancy via two-type in-plane displace: the nearest neighbor jump (NNJ) and the second nearest neighbor jump (2NNJ), are calculated and the results show that the NNJ requires a much lower energy than 2NNJ. For the evolution of the energy requirements for successive nearest neighbor jumps (SNNJ) along three different paths: circularity, zigzag and beeline, we find that the circularity path is preferred over the other two paths due to its minimum energy barriers and final energies. In the second layer, the NN jumps in intra- and inter-layer of the Cu mono-vacancy are investigated. The calculated energy barriers and final energies show that the vacancy prefer jump up to a proximate Cu site. This replacement between the Cu vacancy in the second layer and Cu atom in the first layer is remunerative for the Au atoms enrichment in the topmost layer.

  16. X-ray Spectroscopy Uncovering the Effects of Cu Based Nanoparticle Concentration and Structure on Phaseolus vulgaris Germination and Seedling Development.

    PubMed

    Duran, Nádia M; Savassa, Susilaine M; Lima, Rafael Giovanini de; de Almeida, Eduardo; Linhares, Francisco S; van Gestel, Cornelis A M; Pereira de Carvalho, Hudson W

    2017-09-13

    Nanoparticles properties such as solubility, tunable surface charges, and singular reactivity might be explored to improve the performance of fertilizers. Nevertheless, these unique properties may also bring risks to the environment since the fate of nanoparticles is poorly understood. This study investigated the impact of a range of CuO nanoparticles sizes and concentrations on the germination and seedling development of Phaseolus vulgaris L. Nanoparticles did not affect seed germination, but seedling weight gain was promoted by 100 mg Cu L -1 and inhibited by 1 000 mg Cu L -1 of 25 nm CuO and CuSO 4 . Most of the Cu taken up remained in the seed coat with Cu hotspots in the hilum. X-ray absorption spectroscopy unraveled that most of the Cu remained in its pristine form. The higher surface reactivity of the 25 nm CuO nanoparticles might be responsible for its deleterious effects. The present study therefore highlights the importance of the nanoparticle structure for its physiological impacts.

  17. Nanoporous Al sandwich foils using size effect of Al layer thickness during Cu/Al/Cu laminate rolling

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yu, Hailiang; Lu, Cheng; Tieu, A. Kiet; Li, Huijun; Godbole, Ajit; Kong, Charlie

    2018-06-01

    The roll bonding technique is one of the most widely used methods to produce metal laminate sheets. Such sheets offer interesting research opportunities for both scientists and engineers. In this paper, we report on an experimental investigation of the 'thickness effect' during laminate rolling for the first time. Using a four-high multifunction rolling mill, Cu/Al/Cu laminate sheets were fabricated with a range of thicknesses (16, 40, 70 and 130 μm) of the Al layer. The thickness of the Cu sheets was a constant 300 μm. After rolling, TEM images show good bonding quality between the Cu and Al layers. However, there are many nanoscale pores in the Al layer. The fraction of nanoscale pores in the Al layer increases with a reduction in the Al layer thickness. The finite element method was used to simulate the Cu/Al/Cu rolling process. The simulation results reveal the effect of the Al layer thickness on the deformation characteristics of the Cu/Al/Cu laminate. Finally, we propose that the size effect of the Al layer thickness during Cu/Al/Cu laminate rolling may offer a method to fabricate 'nanoporous' Al sandwich laminate foils. Such foils can be used in electromagnetic shielding of electrical devices and noisy shielding of building.

  18. Multilayer Transparent Top Electrode for Solution Processed Perovskite/Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S)2 Four Terminal Tandem Solar Cells.

    PubMed

    Yang, Yang Michael; Chen, Qi; Hsieh, Yao-Tsung; Song, Tze-Bin; Marco, Nicholas De; Zhou, Huanping; Yang, Yang

    2015-07-28

    Halide perovskites (PVSK) have attracted much attention in recent years due to their high potential as a next generation solar cell material. To further improve perovskites progress toward a state-of-the-art technology, it is desirable to create a tandem structure in which perovskite may be stacked with a current prevailing solar cell such as silicon (Si) or Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S)2 (CIGS). The transparent top electrode is one of the key components as well as challenges to realize such tandem structure. Herein, we develop a multilayer transparent top electrode for perovskite photovoltaic devices delivering an 11.5% efficiency in top illumination mode. The transparent electrode is based on a dielectric/metal/dielectric structure, featuring an ultrathin gold seeded silver layer. A four terminal tandem solar cell employing solution processed CIGS and perovskite cells is also demonstrated with over 15% efficiency.

  19. Method of synthesizing and growing copper-indium-diselenide (CuInSe.sub.2) crystals

    DOEpatents

    Ciszek, Theodore F.

    1987-01-01

    A process for preparing CuInSe.sub.2 crystals includes melting a sufficient quantity of B.sub.2 O.sub.3 along with stoichiometric quantities of Cu, In, and Se in a crucible in a high pressure atmosphere of inert gas to encapsulate the CuInSe.sub.2 melt and confine the Se to the crucible. Additional Se in the range of 1.8 to 2.2 percent over the stoichiometric quantity is preferred to make up for small amounts of Se lost in the process. The crystal is grown by inserting a seed crystal through the B.sub.2 O.sub.3 encapsulate into contact with the CuInSe.sub.2 melt and withdrawing the seed upwardly to grow the crystal thereon from the melt.

  20. 7 CFR 52.1851 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1851...-Raisins with Seeds § 52.1851 Sizes of raisins with seeds—layer or cluster. The size of Layer or Cluster... measurement as applicable to layer or cluster raisins with seeds are: (a) 3 Crown size or larger. “3 Crown...

  1. Cu/Cu2O nanocomposite films as a p-type modified layer for efficient perovskite solar cells.

    PubMed

    Chen, You-Jyun; Li, Ming-Hsien; Huang, Jung-Chun-Andrew; Chen, Peter

    2018-05-16

    Cu/Cu 2 O films grown by ion beam sputtering were used as p-type modified layers to improve the efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with an n-i-p heterojunction structure. The ratio of Cu to Cu 2 O in the films can be tuned by the oxygen flow ratio (O 2 /(O 2  + Ar)) during the sputtering of copper. Auger electron spectroscopy was performed to determine the elemental composition and chemical state of Cu in the films. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy revealed that the valence band maximum of the p-type Cu/Cu 2 O matches well with the perovskite. The Cu/Cu 2 O film not only acts as a p-type modified layer but also plays the role of an electron blocking buffer layer. By introducing the p-type Cu/Cu 2 O films between the low-mobility hole transport material, spiro-OMeTAD, and the Ag electrode in the PSCs, the device durability and power conversion efficiency (PCE) were effectively improved as compared to the reference devices without the Cu/Cu 2 O interlayer. The enhanced PCE is mainly attributed to the high hole mobility of the p-type Cu/Cu 2 O film. Additionally, the Cu/Cu 2 O film serves as a protective layer against the penetration of humidity and Ag into the perovskite active layer.

  2. Copper phytoextraction in tandem with oilseed production using commercial cultivars and mutant lines of sunflower.

    PubMed

    Kolbas, A; Mench, M; Herzig, R; Nehnevajova, E; Bes, C M

    2011-01-01

    Use of sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) for Cu phytoextraction and oilseed production on Cu-contaminated topsoils was investigated in afield trial at a former wood preservation site. Six commercial cultivars and two mutant lines were cultivated in plots with and without the addition of compost (5% w/w) and dolomitic limestone (0.2% w/w). Total soil Cu ranged from 163 to 1170 mg kg(-1). In soil solutions, Cu concentration varied between 0.16-0.93 mg L(-1). The amendment increased soil pH, reduced Cu exposure and promoted sunflower growth. Stem length, shoot and capitulum biomasses, seed yield, and shoot and leaf Cu concentrations were measured. At low total soil Cu, shoot Cu mineralomass was higher in commercial cultivars, Le., Salut, Energic, and Countri, whereas competition and shading affected morphological traits of mutants. Based on shoot yield (7 Mg DW ha(-1)) and Cu concentration, the highest removal was 59 g Cu ha(-1). At high total soil Cu, shoot Cu mineralomass peaked for mutants (e.g., 52 g Cu ha(-1) for Mutant 1 line) and cultivars Energic and Countri. Energic seed yield (3.9 Mg air-DW ha(-1)) would be sufficient to produce oil Phenotype traits and shoot Cu removal depended on sunflower types and Cu exposure.

  3. Canopy position has a profound effect on soybean seed composition

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Although soybean seeds appear homogenous their composition (protein, oil and mineral concentrations) can vary significantly with canopy position. Seeds produced at the top of the canopy have higher concentrations of protein but less oil and minerals such as Mg, Fe, and Cu compared to seeds produced ...

  4. Chemical solution seed layer for rabits tapes

    DOEpatents

    Goyal, Amit; Paranthaman, Mariappan; Wee, Sung-Hun

    2014-06-10

    A method for making a superconducting article includes the steps of providing a biaxially textured substrate. A seed layer is then deposited. The seed layer includes a double perovskite of the formula A.sub.2B'B''O.sub.6, where A is rare earth or alkaline earth metal and B' and B'' are different rare earth or transition metal cations. A superconductor layer is grown epitaxially such that the superconductor layer is supported by the seed layer.

  5. Size-dependent disorder-order transformation in the synthesis of monodisperse intermetallic PdCu nanocatalysts

    DOE PAGES

    Wang, Chenyu; Chen, Dennis P.; Unocic, Raymond R.; ...

    2016-05-23

    The high performance of Pd-based intermetallic nanocatalysts has the potential to replace Pt-containing catalysts for fuel-cell reactions. Conventionally, intermetallic particles are obtained through the annealing of nanoparticles of a random alloy distribution. However, this method inevitably leads to sintering of the nanoparticles and generates polydisperse samples. Here, monodisperse PdCu nanoparticles with the ordered B2 phase were synthesized by seed-mediated co-reduction using PdCu nanoparticle seeds with a random alloy distribution (A1 phase). A time-evolution study suggests that the particles must overcome a size-dependent activation barrier for the ordering process to occur. Characterization of the as-prepared PdCu B2 nanoparticles by electron microscopymore » techniques revealed surface segregation of Pd as a thin shell over the PdCu core. The ordered nanoparticles exhibit superior activity and durability for the oxygen reduction reaction in comparison with PdCu A1 nanoparticles. This seed-mediated co-reduction strategy produced monodisperse nanoparticles ideally suited for structure–activity studies. Furthermore, the study of their growth mechanism provides insights into the size dependence of disorder–order transformations of bimetallic alloys at the nanoscale, which should enable the design of synthetic strategies toward other intermetallic systems.« less

  6. Investigation of magnetization dynamics damping in Ni80Fe20/Nd-Cu bilayer at room temperature

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fan, Wei; Fu, Qiang; Qian, Qian; Chen, Qian; Liu, Wanling; Zhou, Xiaochao; Yuan, Honglei; Yue, Jinjin; Huang, Zhaocong; Jiang, Sheng; Kou, Zhaoxia; Zhai, Ya

    2018-05-01

    Focusing on the Ni80Fe20 (Py)/Nd-Cu bilayers, the magnetization dynamic damping from spin pumping effect is investigated systematically by doping itinerant Cu in rear earth metal Nd. Various Ta/Py/Nd1-xCux/Ta/Si films with x = 0%, 16%, 38%, 46% and 58% are prepared by magnetron sputtering. For every content of Cu, the thickness of Nd-Cu layer is changed from 1 nm to 32 nm. The damping coefficient increases with increasing the thickness of Nd-Cu layer, which shows the trend of the spin pumping behavior. Also, with increasing Cu concentration in the Nd-Cu layer, the damping coefficient decreases, implying that the spin-orbit coupling in Nd-Cu layer is indeed cut down by high itinerant of Cu dopants. It is interesting that the spin diffusion length (λSD) in the Nd-Cu layer for different Cu dopants is not found to increase monotonously.

  7. Preparation of Copper and Chromium Alloyed Layers on Pure Titanium by Plasma Surface Alloying Technology

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    He, Xiaojing; Li, Meng; Wang, Huizhen; Zhang, Xiangyu; Tang, Bin

    2015-05-01

    Cu-Cr alloyed layers with different Cu and Cr contents on pure titanium were obtained by means of plasma surface alloying technology. The microstructure, chemical composition and phase composition of Cu-Cr alloyed layers were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD), respectively. The experimental results demonstrate that the alloyed layers are bonded strongly to pure titanium substrate and consist of unbound Ti, CuTi, Cu3Ti, CuTi3 and Cr2Ti. The thickness of Cu5Cr5 and Cu7Cr3 alloyed layer are about 18 μm and 28 μm, respectively. The antibacterial properties against gram-negative Escherichia coli (E.coli, ATCC10536) and gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus, ATCC6538) of untreated pure titanium and Cu-Cr alloyed specimen were investigated by live/dead fluorescence staining method. The study shows that Cu-Cr alloyed layers exhibit excellent antibacterial activities against both E.coli and S.aureus within 24 h, which may be attributed to the formation of Cu-containing phases.

  8. The Seed Semipermeable Layer and Its Relation to Seed Quality Assessment in Four Grass Species.

    PubMed

    Lv, Yan Y; He, Xue Q; Hu, Xiao W; Wang, Yan R

    2017-01-01

    The existence of a semipermeable layer in grass seeds has been extensively reported, yet knowledge of its influence on tests for seed viability and vigor that depend upon measurement of electrical conductivity (EC) is limited. This study determined the presence and location of the semipermeable layer, and its relation to seed viability and vigor assessment, in seeds of four important grass species- Elymus nutans Griseb., Lolium perenne L., Leymus chinensis (Trin.) Tzvel., and Avena sativa L. Intact seeds of E. nutans, Lolium perenne , and Leymus chinensis exhibited little staining with triphenyl tetrazolium chloride (TTC), and there were no differences in EC between seeds with different germination percentage (GP) ( P > 0.05). After piercing the seed coat, however, all three species displayed positive staining with TTC, along with a significant negative correlation between EC and GP ( E. nutans : R 2 = 0.7708; Lolium perenne : R 2 = 0.8414; Leymus chinensis : R 2 = 0.859; P < 0.01). In contrast, both intact and pierced seeds of A. sativa possessed a permeable seed coat that showed positive staining with TTC and EC values that were significantly negatively correlated with GP [ R 2 = 0.9071 (intact) and 0.9597 (pierced); P < 0.01]. In commercial seed lots of A. sativa , a field emergence test indicated that EC showed a significant negative correlation with field emergence at two sowing dates ( R 2 = 0.6069, P < 0.01 and 0.5316, P < 0.05). Analysis of seed coat permeability revealed the presence of a semipermeable layer located in the seed coat adjacent to the endosperm in E. nutans, Lolium perenne , and Leymus chinensis ; however, no semipermeable layer was observed in A. sativa. This is the first report of the absence of a semipermeable layer in a grass species. The existence of a semipermeable layer is one of the most important factors affecting seed viability and vigor testing (based on EC measurement) in E. nutans, Lolium perenne , and Leymus chinensis . Increasing the permeability of the semipermeable layer, e.g., by piercing the seed coat, may permit the use of EC measurement to assess seed vigor in species that possess such a layer.

  9. In situ imaging of microstructure formation in electronic interconnections

    PubMed Central

    Salleh, M. A. A. Mohd; Gourlay, C. M.; Xian, J. W.; Belyakov, S. A.; Yasuda, H.; McDonald, S. D.; Nogita, K.

    2017-01-01

    The development of microstructure during melting, reactive wetting and solidification of solder pastes on Cu-plated printed circuit boards has been studied by synchrotron radiography. Using Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu/Cu and Sn-0.7Cu/Cu as examples, we show that the interfacial Cu6Sn5 layer is present within 0.05 s of wetting, and explore the kinetics of flux void formation at the interface between the liquid and the Cu6Sn5 layer. Quantification of the nucleation locations and anisotropic growth kinetics of primary Cu6Sn5 crystals reveals a competition between the nucleation of Cu6Sn5 in the liquid versus growth of Cu6Sn5 from the existing Cu6Sn5 layer. Direct imaging confirms that the β-Sn nucleates at/near the Cu6Sn5 layer in Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu/Cu joints. PMID:28079120

  10. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wang, Chenyu; Chen, Dennis P.; Unocic, Raymond R.

    The high performance of Pd-based intermetallic nanocatalysts has the potential to replace Pt-containing catalysts for fuel-cell reactions. Conventionally, intermetallic particles are obtained through the annealing of nanoparticles of a random alloy distribution. However, this method inevitably leads to sintering of the nanoparticles and generates polydisperse samples. Here, monodisperse PdCu nanoparticles with the ordered B2 phase were synthesized by seed-mediated co-reduction using PdCu nanoparticle seeds with a random alloy distribution (A1 phase). A time-evolution study suggests that the particles must overcome a size-dependent activation barrier for the ordering process to occur. Characterization of the as-prepared PdCu B2 nanoparticles by electron microscopymore » techniques revealed surface segregation of Pd as a thin shell over the PdCu core. The ordered nanoparticles exhibit superior activity and durability for the oxygen reduction reaction in comparison with PdCu A1 nanoparticles. This seed-mediated co-reduction strategy produced monodisperse nanoparticles ideally suited for structure–activity studies. Furthermore, the study of their growth mechanism provides insights into the size dependence of disorder–order transformations of bimetallic alloys at the nanoscale, which should enable the design of synthetic strategies toward other intermetallic systems.« less

  11. Role of Cu layer thickness on the magnetic anisotropy of pulsed electrodeposited Ni/Cu/Ni tri-layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dhanapal, K.; Prabhu, D.; Gopalan, R.; Narayanan, V.; Stephen, A.

    2017-07-01

    The Ni/Cu/Ni tri-layer film with different thickness of Cu layer was deposited using pulsed electrodeposition method. The XRD pattern of all the films show the formation of fcc structure of nickel and copper. This shows the orientated growth in the (2 2 0) plane of the layered films as calculated from the relative intensity ratio. The layer formation in the films were observed from cross sectional view using FE-SEM and confirms the decrease in Cu layer thickness with decreasing deposition time. The magnetic anisotropy behaviour was measured using VSM with two different orientations of layered film. This shows that increasing anisotropy energy with decreasing Cu layer thickness and a maximum of  -5.13  ×  104 J m-3 is observed for copper deposited for 1 min. From the K eff.t versus t plot, development of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in the layered system is predicted below 0.38 µm copper layer thickness.

  12. Ni Nanobuffer Layer Provides Light-Weight CNT/Cu Fibers with Superior Robustness, Conductivity, and Ampacity.

    PubMed

    Zou, Jingyun; Liu, Dandan; Zhao, Jingna; Hou, Ligan; Liu, Tong; Zhang, Xiaohua; Zhao, Yonghao; Zhu, Yuntian T; Li, Qingwen

    2018-03-07

    Carbon nanotube (CNT) fiber has not shown its advantage as next-generation light-weight conductor due to the large contact resistance between CNTs, as reflected by its low conductivity and ampacity. Coating CNT fiber with a metal layer like Cu has become an effective solution to this problem. However, the weak CNT-Cu interfacial bonding significantly limits the mechanical and electrical performances. Here, we report that a strong CNT-Cu interface can be formed by introducing a Ni nanobuffer layer before depositing the Cu layer. The Ni nanobuffer layer remarkably promotes the load and heat transfer efficiencies between the CNT fiber and Cu layer and improves the quality of the deposited Cu layer. As a result, the new composite fiber with a 2 μm thick Cu layer can exhibit a superhigh effective strength >800 MPa, electrical conductivity >2 × 10 7 S/m, and ampacity >1 × 10 5 A/cm 2 . The composite fiber can also sustain 10 000 times of bending and continuously work for 100 h at 90% ampacity.

  13. Characterization and structural analysis of wild type and a non-abscission mutant at the development funiculus (Def) locus in Pisum sativum L.

    PubMed

    Ayeh, Kwadwo Owusu; Lee, YeonKyeong; Ambrose, Mike J; Hvoslef-Eide, Anne Kathrine

    2009-06-23

    In pea seeds (Pisum sativum L.), the Def locus defines an abscission event where the seed separates from the funicle through the intervening hilum region at maturity. A spontaneous mutation at this locus results in the seed failing to abscise from the funicle as occurs in wild type peas. In this work, structural differences between wild type peas that developed a distinct abscission zone (AZ) between the funicle and the seed coat and non-abscission def mutant were characterized. A clear abscission event was observed in wild type pea seeds that were associated with a distinct double palisade layers at the junction between the seed coat and funicle. Generally, mature seeds fully developed an AZ, which was not present in young wild type seeds. The AZ was formed exactly below the counter palisade layer. In contrast, the palisade layers at the junction of the seed coat and funicle were completely absent in the def mutant pea seeds and the cells in this region were seen to be extensions of surrounding parenchymatous cells. The Def wild type developed a distinct AZ associated with palisade layer and counterpalisade layer at the junction of the seed coat and funicle while the def mutant pea seed showed non-abscission and an absence of the double palisade layers in the same region. We conclude that the presence of the double palisade layer in the hilum of the wild type pea seeds plays an important structural role in AZ formation by delimiting the specific region between the seed coat and the funicle and may play a structural role in the AZ formation and subsequent detachment of the seed from the funicle.

  14. Effects of Sn Layer Orientation on the Evolution of Cu/Sn Interfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sun, Menglong; Zhao, Zhangjian; Hu, Fengtian; Hu, Anmin; Li, Ming; Ling, Huiqin; Hang, Tao

    2018-03-01

    The effects of Sn layer orientation on the evolution of Cu/Sn joint interfaces were investigated. Three Sn layers possessing (112), (321) and (420) orientations were electroplated on polycrystalline Cu substrates respectively. The orientations of Sn layer preserved during reflowing at 250 °C for 10 s. After aging at 150 °C for different time, the interfacial microstructures were observed from the cross-section and top-view. The alignment between the c-axis of Sn and Cu diffusion direction significantly sped up the Cu diffusion, leading to the thickest intermetallic compound layer formed in (112) joint. Two types of voids, namely, intracrystalline voids and grain islanding caused intercrystalline voids generated at Cu/Cu3Sn interfaces due to the different interdiffusion coefficients of Cu and Sn (112) oriented Sn/Cu joint produced many more voids than (321) joint, and no voids were detected in (420) joint. Therefore, to enhance the reliability of solder joints, using (420) oriented Sn as solder layer could be an efficient way.

  15. Depth Profile of Induced Magnetic Polarization in Cu Layers of Co/Cu(111) Metallic Superlattices by Resonant X-ray Magnetic Scattering at the Cu K Absorption Edge

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Uegaki, Shin; Yoshida, Akihiro; Hosoito, Nobuyoshi

    2015-03-01

    We investigated induced spin polarization of 4p conduction electrons in Cu layers of antiferromagnetically (AFM) and ferromagnetically (FM) coupled Co/Cu(111) metallic superlattices by resonant X-ray magnetic scattering at the Cu K absorption edge. Magnetic reflectivity profiles of the two superlattices were measured in the magnetic saturation state with circularly polarized synchrotron radiation X-rays at 8985 eV. Depth profiles of the resonant magnetic scattering length of Cu, which corresponds to the induced spin polarization of Cu, were evaluated in the two Co/Cu superlattices by analyzing the observed magnetic reflectivity profiles. We demonstrated that the spin polarization induced in the Cu layer was distributed around the Co/Cu interfaces with an attenuation length of several Å in both AFM and FM coupled superlattices. The uniform component, which exists in Au layers of Fe/Au(001) superlattices, was not found in the depth distribution of induced magnetic polarization in the Cu layers of Co/Cu(111) superlattices.

  16. Copper absorption from foods labelled intrinsically and extrinsically with Cu-65 stable isotope.

    PubMed

    Harvey, L J; Dainty, J R; Beattie, J H; Majsak-Newman, G; Wharf, S G; Reid, M D; Fairweather-Tait, S J

    2005-03-01

    To determine copper absorption from copper containing foods labelled either intrinsically or extrinsically with a highly enriched Cu-65 stable isotope label. A longitudinal cross-over study. The study was conducted at the Institute of Food Research, Human Nutrition Unit, Norwich, UK. Subjects were recruited locally via advertisements placed around the Norwich Research Park. A total of 10 volunteers (nine female, one male) took part in the study, but not all volunteers completed each of the test meals. A highly enriched Cu-65 stable isotope label was administered to volunteers in the form of a reference dose or in breakfast test meals consisting of red wine, soya beans, mushrooms or sunflower seeds. Faecal monitoring and mass spectrometry techniques were used to estimate the relative quantities of copper absorbed from the different test meals. True copper absorption from the reference dose (54%) was similar to extrinsically labelled red wine (49%) and intrinsically labelled sunflower seeds (52%), but significantly higher than extrinsically labelled mushrooms (35%), intrinsically (29%) and extrinsically (15%) labelled soya beans and extrinsically labelled sunflower seed (32%) test meals. The use of Cu-65 extrinsic labels in copper absorption studies requires validation according to the food being examined; intrinsic and extrinsic labelling produced significantly different results for sunflower seeds.

  17. Materials science and integration bases for fabrication of (BaxSr1-x)TiO3 thin film capacitors with layered Cu-based electrodes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fan, W.; Kabius, B.; Hiller, J. M.; Saha, S.; Carlisle, J. A.; Auciello, O.; Chang, R. P. H.; Ramesh, R.

    2003-11-01

    The synthesis and fundamental material properties of layered TiAl/Cu/Ta electrodes were investigated to achieve the integration of Cu electrodes with high-dielectric constant (κ) oxide thin films for application to the fabrication of high-frequency devices. The Ta layer is an excellent diffusion barrier to inhibit deleterious Cu diffusion into the Si substrate, while the TiAl layer provides an excellent barrier against oxygen diffusion into the Cu layer to inhibit Cu oxidation during the growth of the high-κ layer in an oxygen atmosphere. Polycrystalline (BaxSr1-x)TiO3 (BST) thin films were grown on the Cu-based bottom electrode by rf magnetron sputtering at temperatures in the range 400-600 °C in oxygen, to investigate the performance of BST/Cu-based capacitors. Characterization of the Cu-based layered structure using surface analytical methods showed that two amorphous oxide layers were formed on both sides of the TiAl barrier, such that the oxide layer on the free surface of the TiAl layer correlates with TiAlOx, while the oxide layer at the TiAl/Cu interface is an Al2O3-rich layer. This double amorphous barrier layer structure effectively prevents oxygen penetration towards the underlying Cu and Ta layers. The TiAlOx interfacial layer, which has a relatively low dielectric constant compared with BST, reduced the total capacitance of the BST thin film capacitors. In addition, the layered electrode-oxide interface roughening observed during the growth of BST films at high temperature, due to copper grain growth, resulted in large dielectric loss on the fabricated BST capacitors. These problems were solved by growing the BST layer at 450 °C followed by a rapid thermal annealing at 700 °C. This process significantly reduced the thickness of the TiAlOx layer and interface roughness resulting in BST capacitors exhibiting properties suitable for the fabrication of high-performance high-frequency devices. In summary, relatively high dielectric constant (280), low dielectric loss (0.007), and low leakage current (<2×10-8 A/cm2 at 100 kV/cm) were achieved for BST thin film capacitors with Cu-based electrodes.

  18. Nano-oxide-layer insertion and specular effects in spin valves: Experiment and theory

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, L.; Qiu, J. J.; McMahon, W. J.; Li, K. B.; Wu, Y. H.

    2004-06-01

    We report a systematic study of NOL (nano-oxide-layer) insertion and specular effects on the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) of single, synthetic, and dual spin valves, using a semiclassical Boltzmann theory. It is confirmed that the GMR ratio is enhanced by NOL insertion inside the pinned layer or after the free layer. The enhancements are primarily due to the contribution of the majority carriers. The NOL insertions inside the inactive layers of spin valves such as the seed, under, and capping layers reduce the GMR ratio. Though introducing a NOL before or after the Cu spacer would, in principle, significantly suppress the GMR ratio due to the blocking effect or the average effect of different spin channels, large positive or negative (inverse) GMR is found by assuming spin-dependent NOL specular reflections. We have also demonstrated that specular reflection, even beyond a capping layer, may result in reduction of GMR. Upon appropriate NOL insertion, the amplitude of curve of GMR versus thickness of individual layer of spin valves may be generally enhanced, but the shape may change, depending on whether the distance of the NOL to the layer is small or large (distance effect). Finally, it is found that most results obtained for the single realistic spin valves are applicable to synthetic and dual spin valves.

  19. Effects of Cr-N-ZrO 2 seed layer formed on glass substrates for longitudinal recording media

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Suzuki, Hiroyuki; Djayaprawira, David D.; Takahashi, Yoshio; Ishikawa, Akira; Ono, Toshinori; Yahisa, Yotsuo

    1999-03-01

    Effects of Cr-N-ZrO 2 seed layer deposited on glass substrates before the deposition of C/Co-Cr-Pt/Cr-Ti layers for longitudinal recording media have been investigated. The product of v and Is, the activation volume and the saturation magnetization per unit volume, media noise Nd and S0/ Nd, which is the half value of peak-to-peak output voltage of an isolated pulse over Nd at 11.8 kFC/mm, are evaluated. We find that vIs is decreased by adding N and ZrO 2 to Cr seed layer. Nd is reduced as vIs decreases by adding nitrogen to the Cr seed layer. This is mainly due to the decreased grain sizes of both Cr-Ti underlayer and Co-Cr-Pt magnetic layer. The Nd is further reduced by the addition of ZrO 2 to the Cr-N seed layer. Highest S0/ Nd is achieved for the media with Cr-N-ZrO 2 seed layer. On the other hand, the media with Cr-ZrO 2 seed layer deposited without nitrogen show the higher Nd. Therefore the decrease of the grain size by addition of nitrogen into Ar is essential to reduce Nd, and the ZrO 2 addition to the Cr-N seed layer seems to enhance the effect of grain size reduction by nitrogen addition.

  20. Effect of Pb content and solution concentration of Pb{sub x}TiO{sub 3} seed layer on (100)-texture and ferroelectric/dielectric behavior of PZT (52/48) thin films

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhong, Jian; Batra, Vaishali; Han, Hui

    The effect of Pb content and solution concentration of lead titanate (Pb{sub x}TiO{sub 3}) seed layer on the texture and electric properties of Pb{sub 1.1}(Zr{sub 0.52},Ti{sub 0.48})O{sub 3} (PZT) thin films was investigated. A variety of seed layers (y Pb{sub x}TiO{sub 3}) with varying solution concentration (y = 0.02, 0.05, 0.1, and 0.2 M) and Pb content (x = 1.0, 1.05, 1.1, and 1.2) was deposited on Pt/TiO{sub 2}/SiO{sub 2}/Si substrates using chemical-solution deposition method. PZT films were then deposited on these seed layers using the same process. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy investigations of the seed layers confirm change in crystal structuremore » with variation in the solution properties. XRD studies of PZT films deposited on seed layers demonstrate that the seed layer helps in enhancing (100)-texture and suppressing (111)-texture. It was observed that PZT films prepared on seed layers with lower solution concentrations results in highly (100)-textured films, which further helps to improve the electric properties. The polarization and dielectric constant of the PZT films were seen to increase while the coercive field decreased with increase in (100)-texture. Irrespective of the seed layer solution concentration, higher Pb content in the seed layer deteriorates the PZT film properties. Ninety-five percent to ninety-six percent (100)-texture was obtained from thin PZT films deposited on seed layers of 0.02 M solution concentration with 1.05 and 1.10 Pb contents, which is higher than the values reported for thick PZT films. Optimization of both Pb content and solution concentration of the seed layer is a promising route to achieve highly (100)-textured PZT films with improved electric properties.« less

  1. Influence of copper morphology in forming nucleation seeds for graphene growth.

    PubMed

    Han, Gang Hee; Güneş, Fethullah; Bae, Jung Jun; Kim, Eun Sung; Chae, Seung Jin; Shin, Hyeon-Jin; Choi, Jae-Young; Pribat, Didier; Lee, Young Hee

    2011-10-12

    We report that highly crystalline graphene can be obtained from well-controlled surface morphology of the copper substrate. Flat copper surface was prepared by using a chemical mechanical polishing method. At early growth stage, the density of graphene nucleation seeds from polished Cu film was much lower and the domain sizes of graphene flakes were larger than those from unpolished Cu film. At later growth stage, these domains were stitched together to form monolayer graphene, where the orientation of each domain crystal was unexpectedly not much different from each other. We also found that grain boundaries and intentionally formed scratched area play an important role for nucleation seeds. Although the best monolayer graphene was grown from polished Cu with a low sheet resistance of 260 Ω/sq, a small portion of multilayers were also formed near the impurity particles or locally protruded parts.

  2. Microwave Synthesized ZnO Nanorod Arrays for UV Sensors: A Seed Layer Annealing Temperature Study.

    PubMed

    Pimentel, Ana; Ferreira, Sofia Henriques; Nunes, Daniela; Calmeiro, Tomas; Martins, Rodrigo; Fortunato, Elvira

    2016-04-20

    The present work reports the influence of zinc oxide (ZnO) seed layer annealing temperature on structural, optical and electrical properties of ZnO nanorod arrays, synthesized by hydrothermal method assisted by microwave radiation, to be used as UV sensors. The ZnO seed layer was produced using the spin-coating method and several annealing temperatures, ranging from 100 to 500 °C, have been tested. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and spectrophotometry measurements have been used to investigate the structure, morphology, and optical properties variations of the produced ZnO nanorod arrays regarding the seed layer annealing temperatures employed. After the growth of ZnO nanorod arrays, the whole structure was tested as UV sensors, showing an increase in the sensitivity with the increase of seed layer annealing temperature. The UV sensor response of ZnO nanorod arrays produced with the seed layer annealed temperature of 500 °C was 50 times superior to the ones produced with a seed layer annealed at 100 °C.

  3. Microwave Synthesized ZnO Nanorod Arrays for UV Sensors: A Seed Layer Annealing Temperature Study

    PubMed Central

    Pimentel, Ana; Ferreira, Sofia Henriques; Nunes, Daniela; Calmeiro, Tomas; Martins, Rodrigo; Fortunato, Elvira

    2016-01-01

    The present work reports the influence of zinc oxide (ZnO) seed layer annealing temperature on structural, optical and electrical properties of ZnO nanorod arrays, synthesized by hydrothermal method assisted by microwave radiation, to be used as UV sensors. The ZnO seed layer was produced using the spin-coating method and several annealing temperatures, ranging from 100 to 500 °C, have been tested. X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and spectrophotometry measurements have been used to investigate the structure, morphology, and optical properties variations of the produced ZnO nanorod arrays regarding the seed layer annealing temperatures employed. After the growth of ZnO nanorod arrays, the whole structure was tested as UV sensors, showing an increase in the sensitivity with the increase of seed layer annealing temperature. The UV sensor response of ZnO nanorod arrays produced with the seed layer annealed temperature of 500 °C was 50 times superior to the ones produced with a seed layer annealed at 100 °C. PMID:28773423

  4. Multi-layered chalcogenides with potential for magnetism and superconductivity

    DOE PAGES

    Li, Li; Parker, David S.; dela Cruz, Clarina R.; ...

    2016-10-24

    Layered thallium copper chalcogenides can form single, double, or triple layers of Cu– Ch separated by Tl sheets. Here we report on the preparation and properties of Tl-based materials of TlCu 2Se 2, TlCu 4S 3, TlCu 4Se 3 and TlCu 6S 4. Having no long-range magnetism for these materials is quite surprising considering the possibilities of inter- and intra-layer exchange interactions through Cu 3 d, and we measure by magnetic susceptibility and confirm by neutron diffraction. First principles density-functional theory calculations for both the single-layer TlCu 2Se 2 (isostructural to the ‘122’ iron-based superconductors) and the double-layer TlCu 4Semore » 3 suggest a lack of Fermi-level spectral weight that is needed to drive a magnetic or superconducting instability. Furthermore, for multiple structural layers with Fe, there is much greater likelihood for magnetism and superconductivity.« less

  5. Method of synthesizing and growing copper-indium-diselenide (CuInSe/sub 2/) crystals

    DOEpatents

    Ciszek, T.F.

    1984-11-29

    A process for preparing CuInSe/sub 2/ crystals includes melting a sufficient quantity of B/sub 2/O/sub 2/ along with stochiometric quantities of Cu, In, and Se in a crucible in a high-pressure atmosphere of inert gas to encapsulate the CuInSe/sub 2/ melt and confine the Se to the crucible. Additional Se in the range of 1.8 to 2.2% over the stochiometric quantity is preferred to make up for small amounts of Se lost in the process. The melt can then be cooled slowly to form the crystal as direct solidification, or the crystal can be grown by inserting a seed crystal through the B/sub 2/O/sub 3/ encapsulate into contact with the CuInSe/sub 2/ melt and withdrawing the seed upwardly to grow the crystal thereon from the melt.

  6. Method for forming silver-copper mixed kesterite semiconductor film

    DOEpatents

    Gershon, Talia S.; Gunawan, Oki; Lee, Yun S.; Mankad, Ravin

    2018-01-23

    After forming a layer of a Cu-deficient kesterite compound having the formula Cu.sub.2-xZn.sub.1+xSn(S.sub.ySe.sub.1-y).sub.4, wherein 0

  7. Transcriptional regulation of abscisic acid signal core components during cucumber seed germination and under Cu²⁺, Zn²⁺, NaCl and simulated acid rain stresses.

    PubMed

    Wang, Yanping; Wang, Ya; Kai, Wenbin; Zhao, Bo; Chen, Pei; Sun, Liang; Ji, Kai; Li, Qian; Dai, Shengjie; Sun, Yufei; Wang, Yidong; Pei, Yuelin; Leng, Ping

    2014-03-01

    Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important phytohormone that regulates lots of physiological and biochemical processes in plant life cycle, especially in seed germination and stress responses. For exploring the transcriptional regulation of ABA signal transduction during cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) seed germination and under Cu(2+), Zn(2+), NaCl and simulated acid rain stresses, nine CsPYLs, three group A CsPP2Cs and two subclass III CsSnRK2s were identified from cucumber genome, which respectively showed high sequence similarities and highly conserved domains with homologous genes in Arabidopsis. Based on Real-time PCR analysis, most of the tested genes' expression decreased during cucumber seed germination, which was in accordance with the ABA level variation. In addition, according to the absolute expression, CsPYL1, CsPYL3, CsPP2C5, CsABI1, CsSnRK2.3 and CsSnRK2.4 were highly expressed, indicating that they may play more important roles in ABA signaling during cucumber seed germination. Moreover, most of these highly expressed genes, except CsPYL3, were up-regulated by ABA treatment. Meanwhile, most of the tested genes' expression dramatically changed at the initial water uptake phase, indicating that this period may be critical in the regulation of ABA on seed germination. Under Cu(2+), Zn(2+), NaCl and simulated acid rain stresses, cucumber seed germination percentage decreased and ABA content increased. Meanwhile, the expression of ABA signal transduction core components genes showed specific response to a particular stress and was not always consist with ABA variation. Generally, the expression of CsPYL1, CsPYL3, CsABI1, CsSnRK2.3 and CsSnRK2.4 was sensitive to 120 mM NaCl and 0.5 mM Cu(2+) treatments. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

  8. Effect of Ag as a surfactant on the thermal stability in Cu/Co multilayers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gupta, M.; Gupta, A.; Amir, S. M.; Stahn, J.; Zegenhagen, J.

    2010-02-01

    In the present work we studied the effect of Ag as a surfactant in Cu/Co multilayers prepared by ion beam sputtering. Two identical samples of Cu/Co multilayers with 0.2nm Ag on a Cu buffer layer and without this Ag layer were deposited on Si substrates. It is known that Cu has a lower free energy than Co, and therefore, the Cu/Co interfaces are not symmetric. Addition of Ag alters the kinetics and thermodynamics of the growth and triggers the layer by layer growth as Ag floats on the growing front balancing the surface free energy of Cu and Co. It was found that with addition of Ag surfactant the thermal stability of Cu/Co multilayer improves.

  9. Kinetics modelling of Cu(II) biosorption on to coconut shell and Moringa oleifera seeds from tropical regions.

    PubMed

    Acheampong, Mike A; Pereira, Joana P C; Meulepas, Roel J W; Lens, Piet N L

    2012-01-01

    Adsorption kinetic studies are of great significance in evaluating the performance of a given adsorbent and gaining insight into the underlying mechanism. This work investigated the sorption kinetics of Cu(II) on to coconut shell and Moringa oleifera seeds using batch techniques. To understand the mechanisms of the biosorption process and the potential rate-controlling steps, kinetic models were used to fit the experimental data. The results indicate that kinetic data were best described by the pseudo-second-order model with correlation coefficients (R2) of 0.9974 and 0.9958 for the coconut shell and Moringa oleifera seeds, respectively. The initial sorption rates obtained for coconut shell and Moringa oleifera seeds were 9.6395 x 10(-3) and 8.3292 x 10(-2) mg g(-1) min(-1), respectively. The values of the mass transfer coefficients obtained for coconut shell (1.2106 x 10(-3) cm s(-1)) and Moringa oleifera seeds (8.965 x 10(-4) cm s(-1)) indicate that the transport of Cu(II) from the bulk liquid to the solid phase was quite fast for both materials investigated. The results indicate that intraparticle diffusion controls the rate of sorption in this study; however, film diffusion cannot be neglected, especially at the initial stage of sorption.

  10. Flower-like ZnO nanorod arrays grown on HF-etched Si (111): constraining relation between ZnO seed layer and Si (111)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Brahma, Sanjaya; Liu, C.-W.; Huang, R.-J.; Chang, S.-J.; Lo, K.-Y.

    2015-11-01

    We demonstrate the formation of self-assembled homogenous flower-like ZnO nanorods over a ZnO seed layer deposited on a HF-etched Si (111) substrate. The typical flower-like morphology of ZnO nanorod arrays is ascribed to the formation of the island-like seed layer which is deposited by the drop method followed by annealing at 300 °C. The island-like ZnO seed layer consists of larger ZnO grains, and is built by constraining of the Si (111) surface due to pattern matching. Pattern matching of Si with ZnO determines the shape and size of the seed layer and this controls the final morphology of ZnO nanorods to be either flower like or vertically aligned. The high quality of the island-like ZnO seed layer enhances the diameter and length of ZnO nanorods. Besides, while the amorphous layer formed during the annealing process would influence the strained ZnO grain, that subsequent amorphous layer will not block the constraining between the ZnO grain and the substrate.

  11. Effect of an Electrochemically Oxidized ZnO Seed Layer on ZnO Nanorods Grown by using Electrodeposition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jeon, Woosung; Leem, Jae-Young

    2018-05-01

    ZnO nanorods were prepared on a Si substrate with and without a ZnO seed layer formed by electro-oxidation to investigate the effect of the seed layer on their growth. The ZnO nanorods grown on the ZnO seed layer had top surfaces that were flat whereas those grown without it had rough top surfaces, as observed in field-emission scanning electron microscopy images. In the Xray diffraction analysis, all ZnO nanorods showed preferential orientation with the (002) plane. In the case of ZnO nanorods prepared with a ZnO seed layer, the residual stress decreased, and the full width at half maximum of the ZnO (002) plane peak decreased. The photoluminescence spectra show a strong and narrow near-band-edge emission peak and high near-band-edge emission to deep-level emission peak ratio for the ZnO nanorods prepared with the seed layer. With respect to the photoresponse properties, the ZnO nanorods grown with the ZnO seed layer showed higher responsivity and faster rise/decay curves than those grown without it. Thus, the ZnO seed layer formed by electro-oxidation improves the structural, optical, and photoresponse properties of the ZnO nanorods formed on it. This method could serve as a new route for improving the properties of optoelectronic devices.

  12. Development of High-Speed Copper Chemical Mechanical Polishing Slurry for Through Silicon Via Application Based on Friction Analysis Using Atomic Force Microscope

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Amanokura, Jin; Ono, Hiroshi; Hombo, Kyoko

    2011-05-01

    In order to obtain a high-speed copper chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process for through silicon vias (TSV) application, we developed a new Cu CMP slurry through friction analysis of Cu reaction layer by an atomic force microscope (AFM) technique. A lateral modulation friction force microscope (LM-FFM) is able to measure the friction value properly giving a vibration to the layer. We evaluated the torsional displacement between the probe of the LM-FFM and the Cu reaction layer under a 5 nm vibration to cancel the shape effect of the Cu reaction layer. The developed Cu CMP slurry forms a frictionally easy-removable Cu reaction layer.

  13. Electron Scattering at Surfaces of Epitaxial Metal Layers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chawla, Jasmeet Singh

    In the field of electron transport in metal films and wires, the 'size effect' refers to the increase in the resistivity of the films and wires as their critical dimensions (thickness of film, width and height of wires) approach or become less than the electron mean free path lambda, which is, for example, 39 nm for bulk copper at room temperature. This size-effect is currently of great concern to the semiconductor industry because the continued downscaling of feature sizes has already lead to Cu interconnect wires in this size effect regime, with a reported 2.5 times higher resistivity for 40 nm wide Cu wires than for bulk Cu. Silver is a possible alternate material for interconnect wires and titanium nitride is proposed as a gate metal in novel field-effect-transistors. Therefore, it is important to develop an understanding of how the growth, the surface morphology, and the microstructure of ultrathin (few nanometers) Cu, Ag and TiN layers affect their electrical properties. This dissertation aims to advance the scientific knowledge of electron scattering at surfaces (external surfaces and grain boundaries), that are, the primary reasons for the size-effect in metal conductors. The effect of surface and grain boundary scattering on the resistivity of Cu thin films and nanowires is separately quantified using (i) in situ transport measurements on single-crystal, atomically smooth Cu(001) layers, (ii) textured polycrystalline Cu(111) layers and patterned wires with independently varying grain size, thickness and line width, and (iii) in situ grown interfaces including Cu-Ta, Cu-MgO, Cu-vacuum and Cu-oxygen. In addition, the electron surface scattering is also measured in situ for single-crystal Ag(001), (111) twinned epitaxial Ag(001), and single-crystal TiN(001) layers. Cu(001), Ag(001), and TiN(001) layers with a minimum continuous thickness of 4, 3.5 and 1.8 nm, respectively, are grown by ultra-high vacuum magnetron sputter deposition on MgO(001) substrates with and without thin epitaxial TiN(001) wetting layers and are studied for structure, crystalline quality, surface morphology, density and composition by a combination of x-ray diffraction theta-2theta scans, o-rocking curves, pole figures, reciprocal space mapping, Rutherford backscattering, x-ray reflectometry and transmission electron microscopy. The TiN(001) surface suppresses Cu and Ag dewetting, yielding lower defect density, no twinning, and smaller surface roughness than if grown on MgO(001). Textured polycrystalline Cu(111) layers 25-50-nm-thick are deposited on a stack of 7.5-nm-Ta on SiO2/Si(001), and subsequent in situ annealing at 350°C followed by sputter etching in Ar plasma yields Cu layers with independently variable thickness and grain size. Cu nanowires, 75 to 350 nm wide, are fabricated from Cu layers with different average grain size using a subtractive patterning process. In situ electron transport measurements at room temperature in vacuum and at 77 K in liquid nitrogen for single-crystal Cu and Ag layers is consistent with the Fuchs-Sondheimer (FS) model and indicates specular scattering at the metal-vacuum boundary with an average specularity parameter p = 0.8 and 0.6, respectively. In contrast, layers measured ex situ show diffuse surface scattering due to sub-monolayer oxidation. Also, addition of Ta atoms on Cu(001) surface perturbs the smooth interface potential and results in completely diffuse scattering at the Cu-Ta interface, and in turn, a higher resistivity of single-crystal Cu layers. In situ exposure of Cu(001) layers to O2 between 10 -3 and 105 Pa-s results in a sequential increase, decrease and increase of the electrical resistance which is attributed to specular surface scattering for clean Cu(001) and for surfaces with a complete adsorbed monolayer, but diffuse scattering at partial coverage and after chemical oxidation. Electron transport measurements for polycrystalline Cu layers and wires show a 10-15% and 7-9% decrease in resistivity, respectively, when increasing the average lateral grain size by a factor of 1.8. The maximum resistivity decrease that can be achieved by increasing the grain size of polycrystalline Cu layers with an average grain size approximately ˜2.5x the layer thickness is 20-26%.

  14. Multi-phase back contacts for CIS solar cells

    DOEpatents

    Rockett, A.A.; Yang, L.C.

    1995-12-19

    Multi-phase, single layer, non-interdiffusing M-Mo back contact metallized films, where M is selected from Cu, Ga, or mixtures thereof, for CIS cells are deposited by a sputtering process on suitable substrates, preferably glass or alumina, to prevent delamination of the CIS from the back contact layer. Typical CIS compositions include CuXSe{sub 2} where X is In or/and Ga. The multi-phase mixture is deposited on the substrate in a manner to provide a columnar microstructure, with micro-vein Cu or/and Ga regions which partially or fully vertically penetrate the entire back contact layer. The CIS semiconductor layer is then deposited by hybrid sputtering and evaporation process. The Cu/Ga-Mo deposition is controlled to produce the single layer two-phase columnar morphology with controllable Cu or Ga vein size less than about 0.01 microns in width. During the subsequent deposition of the CIS layer, the columnar Cu/Ga regions within the molybdenum of the Cu/Ga-Mo back layer tend to partially leach out, and are replaced by columns of CIS. Narrower Cu and/or Ga regions, and those with fewer inner connections between regions, leach out more slowly during the subsequent CIS deposition. This gives a good mechanical and electrical interlock of the CIS layer into the Cu/Ga-Mo back layer. Solar cells employing In-rich CIS semiconductors bonded to the multi-phase columnar microstructure back layer of this invention exhibit vastly improved photo-electrical conversion on the order of 17% greater than Mo alone, improved uniformity of output across the face of the cell, and greater Fill Factor. 15 figs.

  15. Multi-phase back contacts for CIS solar cells

    DOEpatents

    Rockett, Angus A.; Yang, Li-Chung

    1995-01-01

    Multi-phase, single layer, non-interdiffusing M-Mo back contact metallized films, where M is selected from Cu, Ga, or mixtures thereof, for CIS cells are deposited by a sputtering process on suitable substrates, preferably glass or alumina, to prevent delamination of the CIS from the back contact layer. Typical CIS compositions include CuXSe.sub.2 where X is In or/and Ga. The multi-phase mixture is deposited on the substrate in a manner to provide a columnar microstructure, with micro-vein Cu or/and Ga regions which partially or fully vertically penetrate the entire back contact layer. The CIS semiconductor layer is then deposited by hybrid sputtering and evaporation process. The Cu/Ga-Mo deposition is controlled to produce the single layer two-phase columnar morphology with controllable Cu or Ga vein size less than about 0.01 microns in width. During the subsequent deposition of the CIS layer, the columnar Cu/Ga regions within the molybdenum of the Cu/Ga-Mo back layer tend to partially leach out, and are replaced by columns of CIS. Narrower Cu and/or Ga regions, and those with fewer inner connections between regions, leach out more slowly during the subsequent CIS deposition. This gives a good mechanical and electrical interlock of the CIS layer into the Cu/Ga-Mo back layer. Solar cells employing In-rich CIS semiconductors bonded to the multi-phase columnar microstructure back layer of this invention exhibit vastly improved photo-electrical conversion on the order of 17% greater than Mo alone, improved uniformity of output across the face of the cell, and greater Fill Factor.

  16. Exhibition of veiled features in diffusion bonding of titanium alloy and stainless steel via copper

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thirunavukarasu, Gopinath; Kundu, Sukumar; Laha, Tapas; Roy, Deb; Chatterjee, Subrata

    2017-11-01

    An investigation was carried out to know the extent of influence of bonding-time on the interface structure and mechanical properties of diffusion bonding (DB) of TiA|Cu|SS. DB of Ti6Al4V (TiA) and 304 stainless steel (SS) using pure copper (Cu) of 200-μm thickness were processed in vacuum using 4-MPa bonding-pressure at 1123 K from 15 to 120 min in steps of 15 min. Preparation of DB was not possible when bonding-time was less than 60 min as the bonding at Cu|SS interface was unsuccessful in spite of effective bonding at TiA|Cu interface; however, successful DB were produced when the bonding-time was 60 min and beyond. DB processed for 60 and 75 min (classified as shorter bonding-time interval) showed distinctive characteristics (structural, mechanical, and fractural) as compared to the DB processed for 90, 105, and 120 min (classified as longer bonding-time interval). DB processed for 60 and 75 min exhibited layer-wise Cu-Ti-based intermetallics at TiA|Cu interface, whereas Cu|SS interface was completely free from reaction products. The layer-wise structure of Cu-Ti-based intermetallics were not observed at TiA|Cu interface in the DB processed for longer bonding-time; however, the Cu|SS interface had layer-wise ternary intermetallic compounds (T1, T2, and T3) of Cu-Fe-Ti-based along with σ phase depending upon the bonding-time chosen. Diffusivity of Ti-atoms in Cu-layer (DTi in Cu-layer) was much greater than the diffusivity of Fe-atoms in Cu-layer (DFe in Cu-layer). Ti-atoms reached Cu|SS interface but Fe-atoms were unable to reach TiA|Cu interface. It was observed that DB fractured at Cu|SS interface when processed for shorter bonding-time interval, whereas the DB processed for longer bonding-time interval fractured apparently at the middle of Cu-foil region predominantly due to the existence of brittle Cu-Fe-Ti-based intermetallics.

  17. Effect of Ni addition to the Cu substrate on the interfacial reaction and IMC growth with Sn3.0Ag0.5Cu solder

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Xudong; Hu, Xiaowu; Jiang, Xiongxin; Li, Yulong

    2018-04-01

    The formation and growth of intermetallic compound (IMC) layer at the interface between Sn3.0Ag0.5Cu (SAC305) solder and Cu- xNi ( x = 0, 0.5, 1.5, 5, 10 wt%) substrate during reflowing and aging were investigated. The soldering was conducted at 270 °C using reflowing method, following by aging treatment at 150 °C for up to 360 h. The experimental results indicated that the total thickness of IMC increased with increasing aging time. The scallop-like Cu6Sn5 and planar-like Cu3Sn IMC layer were observed between SAC305 solder and purely Cu substrate. As the content of Ni element in Cu substrate was 0.5% or 1.5%, the scallop-like Cu6Sn5 and planar-like Cu3Sn IMC layer were still found between solder and Cu-Ni substrate and the total thickness of IMC layer decreased with the increasing Ni content. Besides, when the Ni content was up to 5%, the long prismatic (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 phase was the only product between solder and substrate and the total thickness of IMC layer increased significantly. Interestingly, the total thickness of IMC decreased slightly as the Ni addition was up to 10%. In the end, the grains of interfacial IMC layer became coarser with aging time increasing while the addition of Ni in Cu substrate could refine IMC grains.

  18. Proposed suitable electron reflector layer materials for thin-film CuIn1-xGaxSe2 solar cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sharbati, Samaneh; Gharibshahian, Iman; Orouji, Ali A.

    2018-01-01

    This paper investigates the electrical properties of electron reflector layer to survey materials as an electron reflector (ER) for chalcopyrite CuInGaSe solar cells. The purpose is optimizing the conduction-band and valence-band offsets at ER layer/CIGS junction that can effectively reduce the electron recombination near the back contact. In this work, an initial device model based on an experimental solar cell is established, then the properties of a solar cell with electron reflector layer are physically analyzed. The electron reflector layer numerically applied to baseline model of thin-film CIGS cell fabricated by ZSW (efficiency = 20.3%). The improvement of efficiency is achievable by electron reflector layer materials with Eg > 1.3 eV and -0.3 < Δχ < 0.7, depends on bandgap. Our simulations examine various electron reflector layer materials and conclude the most suitable electron reflector layer for this real CIGS solar cells. ZnSnP2, CdSiAs2, GaAs, CdTe, Cu2ZnSnS4, InP, CuO, Pb10Ag3Sb11S28, CuIn5S8, SnS, PbCuSbS3, Cu3AsS4 as well as CuIn1-xGaxSe (x > 0.5) are efficient electron reflector layer materials, so the potential improvement in efficiency obtained relative gain of 5%.

  19. Effect of Mass Proportion of Municipal Solid Waste Incinerator Bottom Ash Layer to Municipal Solid Waste Layer on the Cu and Zn Discharge from Landfill.

    PubMed

    Kong, Qingna; Yao, Jun; Qiu, Zhanhong; Shen, Dongsheng

    2016-01-01

    Municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) bottom ash is often used as the protection layer for the geomembrane and intermediate layer in the landfill. In this study, three sets of simulated landfills with different mass proportion of MSWI bottom ash layer to municipal solid waste (MSW) layer were operated. Cu and Zn concentrations in the leachates and MSW were monitored to investigate the effect of MSWI bottom ash layer on the Cu and Zn discharge from the landfill. The results showed that the Zn discharge was dependent on the mass proportion of MSWI bottom ash layer. The pH of landfill was not notably increased when the mass proportion of MSWI bottom ash layer to MSW layer was 1 : 9, resulting in the enhancement of the Zn discharge. However, Zn discharge was mitigated when the mass proportion was 2 : 8, as the pH of landfill was notably promoted. The discharge of Cu was not dependent on the mass proportion, due to the great affinity of Cu to organic matter. Moreover, Cu and Zn contents of the sub-MSW layer increased due to the MSWI bottom ash layer. Therefore, the MSWI bottom ash layer can increase the potential environmental threat of the landfill.

  20. Developmental patterning of sub-epidermal cells in the outer integument of Arabidopsis seeds

    PubMed Central

    Fiume, Elisa; Coen, Olivier; Xu, Wenjia; Lepiniec, Loïc

    2017-01-01

    The seed, the reproductive unit of angiosperms, is generally protected by the seed coat. The seed coat is made of one or two integuments, each comprising two epidermal cells layers and, in some cases, extra sub-epidermal cell layers. The thickness of the seed-coat affects several aspects of seed biology such as dormancy, germination and mortality. In Arabidopsis, the inner integument displays one or two sub-epidermal cell layers that originate from periclinal cell divisions of the innermost epidermal cell layer. By contrast, the outer integument was considered to be two-cell layered. Here, we show that sub-epidermal chalazal cells grow in between the epidermal outer integument cell layers to create an incomplete three-cell layered outer integument. We found that the MADS box transcription factor TRANSPARENT TESTA 16 represses growth of the chalaza and formation of sub-epidermal outer integument cells. Finally, we demonstrate that sub-epidermal cells of the outer and inner integument respond differently to the repressive mechanism mediated by FERTILIZATION INDEPENDENT SEED Polycomb group proteins and to fertilization signals. Our data suggest that integument cell origin rather than sub-epidermal cell position underlies different responses to fertilization. PMID:29141031

  1. Alloying effect of copper on the corrosion properties of low-alloy steel for flue gas desulfurization system

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Seon-Hong; Park, Sun-Ah; Kim, Jung-Gu; Shin, Kee-Sam; He, Yinsheng

    2015-03-01

    The alloying effect of Cu for a flue gas desulfurization materials was investigated using the electrochemical methods in the modified green death solution and the surface analyses. The test results demonstrated that the densely formed rust layer with high metallic Cu content improves the corrosion resistance of Cu-containing steel in the flue gas desulfurization (FGD) environment. The rust layer on the surface of the 0.02 wt% Cu steel, which has an insufficient Cu content, was less protective than others. The 0.05 wt% Cu steel represented the highest corrosion resistance due to the formation of the densely formed rust layer with optimum Cu content. Because the free standing Cu2S precipitates had the insoluble characteristic in highly acidic solution, it produced the relatively porous Cu-enriched layer on the 0.08 wt% Cu steel surface. From these phenomena, the corrosion resistance of specimen decreased as the Cu content of specimen increased from 0.05 wt% to 0.08 wt%.

  2. Effect of immersion time in a modified green death solution on the rust layer of Cu-containing low-alloy steel

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Seon-Hong; Kwon, Min-Seok; Kim, Jung-Gu

    2017-01-01

    The corrosion resistance of low-alloy steel containing 0.35 wt% copper, as a function of immersion time in a modified green death solution, was investigated using electrochemical methods and surface analysis. After 30 min of immersion, the steel surface was covered with a Cu-enriched film. Improvement of the film properties and increases in the corrosion resistance were realized for the immersion time up to 6 h due to the development of the Cu-enriched layer. However, the Cu particle was formed in the Cu-enriched layer for the immersion time beyond 6 h. Since the formation of the Cu particle generated a Cu-depletion region, micro-galvanic corrosion between the Cu particle and the Cu-depletion region lead to the localized film breakdown on the surface film. The localized film breakdown, which decreased the corrosion properties of the Cu-containing steel, was accelerated by the continuous formation of Cu particles in the rust layer.

  3. Investigations into the impact of various substrates and ZnO ultra thin seed layers prepared by atomic layer deposition on growth of ZnO nanowire array

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    The impact of various substrates and zinc oxide (ZnO) ultra thin seed layers prepared by atomic layer deposition on the geometric morphology of subsequent ZnO nanowire arrays (NWs) fabricated by the hydrothermal method was investigated. The investigated substrates included B-doped ZnO films, indium tin oxide films, single crystal silicon (111), and glass sheets. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction measurements revealed that the geometry and aligment of the NWs were controlled by surface topography of the substrates and thickness of the ZnO seed layers, respectively. According to atomic force microscopy data, we suggest that the substrate, fluctuate amplitude and fluctuate frequency of roughness on ZnO seed layers have a great impact on the alignment of the resulting NWs, whereas the influence of the seed layers' texture was negligible. PMID:22759838

  4. Electronic absorption band broadening and surface roughening of phthalocyanine double layers by saturated solvent vapor treatment

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kim, Jinhyun; Yim, Sanggyu, E-mail: sgyim@kookmin.ac.kr

    2012-10-15

    Variations in the electronic absorption (EA) and surface morphology of three types of phthalocyanine (Pc) thin film systems, i.e. copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) single layer, zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) single layer, and ZnPc on CuPc (CuPc/ZnPc) double layer film, treated with saturated acetone vapor were investigated. For the treated CuPc single layer film, the surface roughness slightly increased and bundles of nanorods were formed, while the EA varied little. In contrast, for the ZnPc single layer film, the relatively high solubility of ZnPc led to a considerable shift in the absorption bands as well as a large increase in the surface roughnessmore » and formation of long and wide nano-beams, indicating a part of the ZnPc molecules dissolved in acetone, which altered their molecular stacking. For the CuPc/ZnPc film, the saturated acetone vapor treatment resulted in morphological changes in mainly the upper ZnPc layer due to the significantly low solubility of the underlying CuPc layer. The treatment also broadened the EA band, which involved a combination of unchanged CuPc and changed ZnPc absorption.« less

  5. 7 CFR 52.1842 - Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with... Raisins 1 § 52.1842 Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds. Raisins with Seeds that are referred to as Layer or Cluster raisins means that the raisins have not been detached from the...

  6. Giant magnetoresistance (GMR) behavior of electrodeposited NiFe/Cu multilayers: Dependence of non-magnetic and magnetic layer thicknesses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kuru, Hilal; Kockar, Hakan; Alper, Mursel

    2017-12-01

    Giant magnetoresistance (GMR) behavior in electrodeposited NiFe/Cu multilayers was investigated as a function of non-magnetic (Cu) and ferromagnetic (NiFe) layer thicknesses, respectively. Prior to the GMR analysis, structural and magnetic analyses of the multilayers were also studied. The elemental analysis of the multilayers indicated that the Cu and Ni content in the multilayers increase with increasing Cu and NiFe layer thickness, respectively. The structural studies by X-ray diffraction revealed that all multilayers have face centred cubic structure with preferred (1 1 0) crystal orientation as their substrates. The magnetic properties studied with the vibrating sample magnetometer showed that the magnetizations of the samples are significantly affected by the layer thicknesses. Saturation magnetisation, Ms increases from 45 to 225 emu/cm3 with increasing NiFe layer thickness. The increase in the Ni content of the multilayers with a small Fe content causes an increase in the Ms. And, the coercivities ranging from 2 to 24 Oe are between the soft and hard magnetic properties. Also, the magnetic easy axis of the multilayers was found to be in the film plane. Magnetoresistance measurements showed that all multilayers exhibited the GMR behavior. The GMR magnitude increases with increasing Cu layer thickness and reaches its maximum value of 10% at the Cu layer thickness of 1 nm, then it decreases. And similarly, the GMR magnitude increases and reaches highest value of pure GMR (10%) for the NiFe layer thickness of 3 nm, and beyond this point GMR decreases with increasing NiFe layer thickness. Some small component of the anisotropic magnetoresistance was also observed at thin Cu and thick NiFe layer thicknesses. It is seen that the highest GMR values up to 10% were obtained in electrodeposited NiFe/Cu multilayers up to now. The structural, magnetic and magnetoresistance properties of the NiFe/Cu were reported via the variations of the thicknesses of Cu and NiFe layers with stressing the role of layer thicknesses on the high GMR behavior.

  7. Influence of substrates and rutile seed layers on the assembly of hydrothermally grown rutile TiO2 nanorod arrays

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kalb, Julian; Dorman, James A.; Folger, Alena; Gerigk, Melanie; Knittel, Vanessa; Plüisch, Claudia S.; Trepka, Bastian; Lehr, Daniela; Chua, Emily; Goodge, Berit H.; Wittemann, Alexander; Scheu, Christina; Polarz, Sebastian; Schmidt-Mende, Lukas

    2018-07-01

    Rutile TiO2 nanorod arrays (NRAs) are applicable in various prospective technologies. Hydrothermal methods present a simple technique to fabricate such NRAs. In this report, we present the fabrication of seed layers for the hydrothermal growth of rutile TiO2 nanorods via sputter deposition, electron-beam evaporation, and sol-gel method and study the influence of each on the growth behavior. To satisfy the requirements of numerous applications, p-type silicon, platinum, levitating carbon membranes, a template made of polystyrene spheres, and commercial fluorine tin oxide (FTO) were employed as substrates. We document the structural properties of the TiO2 seed layers and describe the relationship between the characteristics of the seed crystals, the growth evolution, and the appearance of as-grown nanorods. Various growth stages of rutile TiO2 nanorods are compared depending on whether they are grown on polycrystalline TiO2 or FTO seed layers. In both cases, a homogenous TiO2 bottom layer is formed at the seed layer/substrate interface, which is essential for electronic applications such as hybrid solar cells. Detached NRAs illustrate the effect of rutile FTO and TiO2 on the porosity of this bottom layer. Further details about the formation process of this layer are obtained from the growth on confined seed layers fabricated by electron-beam lithography.

  8. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Srivastava, Himanshu; Ganguli, Tapas; Deb, S. K.

    The in-situ growth of CuO nanowires was studied by Energy Dispersive X-ray Diffraction (EDXRD) to observe the mechanism of growth. The study was carried out for comparison at two temperatures—at 500 °C, the optimum temperature of the nanowires growth, and at 300 °C just below the temperature range of the growth. The in situ observation revealed the successive oxidation of Cu foil to Cu{sub 2}O layer and finally to CuO layer. Further analysis showed the presence of a compressive stress in CuO layer due to interface at CuO and Cu{sub 2}O layers. The compressive stress was found to increase withmore » the growth of the nanowires at 500 °C while it relaxed with the growth of CuO layer at 300 °C. The present results do not support the existing model of stress relaxation induced growth of nanowires. Based on the detailed Transmission Electron Microscope, Scanning Electron Microscope, and EDXRD results, a microstructure based growth model has been suggested.« less

  9. ZnO/Cu(InGa)Se.sub.2 solar cells prepared by vapor phase Zn doping

    DOEpatents

    Ramanathan, Kannan; Hasoon, Falah S.; Asher, Sarah E.; Dolan, James; Keane, James C.

    2007-02-20

    A process for making a thin film ZnO/Cu(InGa)Se.sub.2 solar cell without depositing a buffer layer and by Zn doping from a vapor phase, comprising: depositing Cu(InGa)Se.sub.2 layer on a metal back contact deposited on a glass substrate; heating the Cu(InGa)Se.sub.2 layer on the metal back contact on the glass substrate to a temperature range between about 100.degree. C. to about 250.degree. C.; subjecting the heated layer of Cu(InGa)Se.sub.2 to an evaporant species from a Zn compound; and sputter depositing ZnO on the Zn compound evaporant species treated layer of Cu(InGa)Se.sub.2.

  10. Cyclic Thermal Stress-Induced Degradation of Cu Metallization on Si3N4 Substrate at -40°C to 300°C

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lang, Fengqun; Yamaguchi, Hiroshi; Nakagawa, Hiroshi; Sato, Hiroshi

    2015-01-01

    The high-temperature reliability of active metal brazed copper (AMC) on Si3N4 ceramic substrates used for fabricating SiC high-temperature power modules was investigated under harsh environments. The AMC substrate underwent isothermal storage at 300°C for up to 3000 h and a thermal cycling test at -40°C to 300°C for up to 3000 cycles. During isothermal storage at 300°C, the AMC substrate exhibited high reliability, characterized by very little deformation of the copper (Cu) layer, low crack growth, and low oxidation rate of the Cu layer. Under thermal cycling conditions at -40°C to 300°C, no detachment of the Cu layer was observed even after the maximum 3000 cycles of the experiment. However, serious deformation of the Cu layer occurred and progressed as the number of thermal cycles increased, thus significantly roughening the surface of the Cu metallized layer. The cyclic thermal stress led to a significant increase in the crack growth and oxidation of the Cu layer. The maximum depth of the copper oxides reached up to 5/6 of the Cu thickness. The deformation of the Cu layer was the main cause of the decrease of the bond strength under thermal cycling conditions. The shear strength of the SiC chips bonded on the AMC substrate with a Au-12 wt.%Ge solder decreased from the original 83 MPa to 14 MPa after 3000 cycles. Therefore, the cyclic thermal stress destroyed the Cu oxides and enhanced the oxidation of the Cu layer.

  11. Changing the thickness of two layers: i-ZnO nanorods, p-Cu2O and its influence on the carriers transport mechanism of the p-Cu2O/i-ZnO nanorods/n-IGZO heterojunction.

    PubMed

    Ke, Nguyen Huu; Trinh, Le Thi Tuyet; Phung, Pham Kim; Loan, Phan Thi Kieu; Tuan, Dao Anh; Truong, Nguyen Huu; Tran, Cao Vinh; Hung, Le Vu Tuan

    2016-01-01

    In this study, two layers: i-ZnO nanorods and p-Cu2O were fabricated by electrochemical deposition. The fabricating process was the initial formation of ZnO nanorods layer on the n-IGZO thin film which was prepared by sputtering method, then a p-Cu2O layer was deposited on top of rods to form the p-Cu2O/i-ZnO nanorods/n-ZnO heterojunction. The XRD, SEM, UV-VIS, I-V characteristics methods were used to define structure, optical and electrical properties of these heterojunction layers. The fabricating conditions and thickness of the Cu2O layers significantly affected to the formation, microstructure, electrical and optical properties of the junction. The length of i-ZnO nanorods layer in the structure of the heterojunction has strongly affected to the carriers transport mechanism and performance of this heterojunction.

  12. Developmental patterning of the sub-epidermal integument cell layer in Arabidopsis seeds

    PubMed Central

    Coen, Olivier; Fiume, Elisa; Xu, Wenjia; De Vos, Delphine; Lu, Jing; Pechoux, Christine; Lepiniec, Loïc

    2017-01-01

    Angiosperm seed development is a paradigm of tissue cross-talk. Proper seed formation requires spatial and temporal coordination of the fertilization products – embryo and endosperm – and the surrounding seed coat maternal tissue. In early Arabidopsis seed development, all seed integuments were thought to respond homogenously to endosperm growth. Here, we show that the sub-epidermal integument cell layer has a unique developmental program. We characterized the cell patterning of the sub-epidermal integument cell layer, which initiates a previously uncharacterized extra cell layer, and identified TRANSPARENT TESTA 16 and SEEDSTICK MADS box transcription factors as master regulators of its polar development and cell architecture. Our data indicate that the differentiation of the sub-epidermal integument cell layer is insensitive to endosperm growth alone and to the repressive mechanism established by FERTILIZATION INDEPENDENT ENDOSPERM and MULTICOPY SUPPRESSOR OF IRA1 Polycomb group proteins. This work demonstrates the different responses of epidermal and sub-epidermal integument cell layers to fertilization. PMID:28348169

  13. Structural and optical properties of ZnO nanorods on Mg0.2Zn0.8O seed layers grown by hydrothermal method.

    PubMed

    Kim, Min Su; Kim, Do Yeob; Kim, Sung-O; Leem, Jae-Young

    2013-05-01

    ZnO nanorods were grown on the Mg0.2Zn0.8O seed layers with different thickness by hydrothermal method. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and photoluminescence (PL) were carried out to investigate the effects of the Mg0.2Zn0.8O seed layer thickness on the structural and the optical properties of the ZnO nanorods. The residual stress in the Mg0.2Zn0.8O seed layers was depended on the thickness while the texture coefficient of the Mg0.2Zn0.8O seed layers was not affected significantly. The smaller full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the ZnO (002) diffraction and near-band-edge emission (NBE) peak and the larger average grain size were observed from the ZnO nanorods grown on the Mg0.2Zn0.8O seed layers with 5 layers (thickness of 350 nm), which indicate the enhancement the structural and the optical properties of the ZnO nanorods.

  14. Growth mechanism, surface and optical properties of ZnO nanostructures deposited on various Au-seeded thickness obtained by mist-atomization

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Afaah, A. N., E-mail: afaahabdullah@yahoo.com; Aadila, A., E-mail: aadilaazizali@gmail.com; Asib, N. A. M., E-mail: amierahasib@yahoo.com

    2016-07-06

    In this paper, growth mechanisms of ZnO nanostructures on non-seeded glass, 6 nm and 12 nm Au seed layer obtained by mist-atomization was proposed. ZnO films were successfully deposited on glass substrate with different thickness of Au seed layer i.e. 6 nm and 12 nm. The surface and optical properties of the prepared samples were investigated using Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and photoluminescence (PL). FESEM micrograph show that ZnO nanostructure deposited on 6 nm Au seed layer has uniform formation and well distributed. From PL spectroscopy, the UV emission shows that ZnO deposited on 6 nm Au seedmore » layer has the more intense UV intensity which proved that high crystal quality of nanostructured ZnO deposited on 6 nm Au seed layer.« less

  15. Fruit and seed heteromorphism in the cold desert annual ephemeral Diptychocarpus strictus (Brassicaceae) and possible adaptive significance.

    PubMed

    Lu, Juanjuan; Tan, Dunyan; Baskin, Jerry M; Baskin, Carol C

    2010-06-01

    Diptychocarpus strictus is an annual ephemeral in the cold desert of northwest China that produces heteromorphic fruits and seeds. The primary aims of this study were to characterize the morphology and anatomy of fruits and seeds of this species and compare the role of fruit and seed heteromorphism in dispersal and germination. Shape, size, mass and dispersal of siliques and seeds and the thickness of the mucilage layer on seeds were measured, and the anatomy of siliques and seeds, the role of seed mucilage in water absorption/dehydration, germination and adherence of seeds to soil particles, the role of pericarp of lower siliques in seed dormancy and seed after-ripening and germination phenology were studied using standard procedures. Plants produce dehiscent upper siliques with a thin pericarp containing seeds with large wings and a thick mucilage layer and indehiscent lower siliques with a thick pericarp containing nearly wingless seeds with a thin mucilage layer. The dispersal ability of seeds from the upper siliques was much greater than that of intact lower siliques. Mucilage increased the amount of water absorbed by seeds and decreased the rate of dehydration. Seeds with a thick mucilage layer adhered to soil particles much better than those with a thin mucilage layer or those from which mucilage had been removed. Fresh seeds were physiologically dormant and after-ripened during summer. Non-dormant seeds germinated to high percentages in light and in darkness. Germination of seeds from upper siliques is delayed until spring primarily by drought in summer and autumn, whereas the thick, indehiscent pericarp prevents germination for >1 year of seeds retained in lower siliques. The life cycle of D. strictus is morphologically and physiologically adapted to the cold desert environment in time and space via a combination of characters associated with fruit and seed heteromorphism.

  16. Seed layer effect on different properties and UV detection capability of hydrothermally grown ZnO nanorods over SiO2/p-Si substrate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sannakashappanavar, Basavaraj S.; Byrareddy, C. R.; Kumar, Pesala Sudheer; Yadav, Aniruddh Bahadur

    2018-05-01

    Hydrothermally grown one dimensional ZnO nanostructures are among the most widely used semiconductor materials to build high-efficiency electronic devices for various applications. Few researchers have addressed the growth mechanism and effect of ZnO seed layer on different properties of ZnO nanorods grown by hydrothermal method, instead, no one has synthesized ZnO nanorod over SiO2/p-Si substrate. The aim of this study is to study the effect of ZnO seed layer and the growth mechanism of ZnO nanorods over SiO2/p-Si substrate. To achieve the goal, we have synthesized ZnO nanorods over different thickness ZnO seed layers by using the hydrothermal method on SiO2/p-Si substrate. The effects of c-plane area ratio were identified for the growth rate of c-plane, reaction rate constant and stagnant layer thickness also calculated by using a modified rate growth equation. We have identified maximum seed layer thickness for the growth of vertical ZnO nanorod. A step dislocation in the ZnO nanorods grown on 150and 200 nm thick seed layers was observed, the magnitude of Burges vector was calculated for this disorder. The seed layer and ZnO nanorods were characterized by AFM, XPS, UV-visible, XRD (X-ray diffraction, and SEM(scanning electron microscope). To justify the application of the grown ZnO nanorods Ti/Au was deposited over ZnO nanorods grown over all seed layers for the fabrication of photoconductor type UV detector.

  17. 7 CFR 52.1853 - Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... quality of Layer or Cluster Raisins with Seeds that have similar varietal characteristics; that have a... outlined in Table III of this subpart. (b) “U.S. Grade B” is the quality of Layer or Cluster Raisins with.... (c) “Substandard” is the quality of Layer or Cluster Raisins with Seeds that fail to meet the...

  18. Effect of Mass Proportion of Municipal Solid Waste Incinerator Bottom Ash Layer to Municipal Solid Waste Layer on the Cu and Zn Discharge from Landfill

    PubMed Central

    Kong, Qingna; Qiu, Zhanhong; Shen, Dongsheng

    2016-01-01

    Municipal solid waste incinerator (MSWI) bottom ash is often used as the protection layer for the geomembrane and intermediate layer in the landfill. In this study, three sets of simulated landfills with different mass proportion of MSWI bottom ash layer to municipal solid waste (MSW) layer were operated. Cu and Zn concentrations in the leachates and MSW were monitored to investigate the effect of MSWI bottom ash layer on the Cu and Zn discharge from the landfill. The results showed that the Zn discharge was dependent on the mass proportion of MSWI bottom ash layer. The pH of landfill was not notably increased when the mass proportion of MSWI bottom ash layer to MSW layer was 1 : 9, resulting in the enhancement of the Zn discharge. However, Zn discharge was mitigated when the mass proportion was 2 : 8, as the pH of landfill was notably promoted. The discharge of Cu was not dependent on the mass proportion, due to the great affinity of Cu to organic matter. Moreover, Cu and Zn contents of the sub-MSW layer increased due to the MSWI bottom ash layer. Therefore, the MSWI bottom ash layer can increase the potential environmental threat of the landfill. PMID:28044139

  19. Seed morphology, germination phenology, and capacity to form a seed bank in six herbaceous layer apiaceae species of the eastern deciduous forest

    Treesearch

    Tracy S. Hawkins; Jerry M. Baskin; Carol C. Baskin

    2007-01-01

    We compared seed mass, seed morphology, and long-term germination phenology of three monocarpic (MI and three polycarpic (P) Apiaceae species of the herbaceous layer of the Eastern Deciduous Forest. Seeds (mericarps) of the six species differed considerably in mass, shape, and ornamentation. Mean seed masses were ranked Cryptotaenia canadensis (M)...

  20. Fluctuation-induced conductivity in melt-textured Pr-doped YBa2Cu3O7-δ composite superconductor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Opata, Yuri Aparecido; Monteiro, João Frederico Haas Leandro; Siqueira, Ezequiel Costa; Rodrigues, Pedro Júnior; Jurelo, Alcione Roberto

    2018-04-01

    In this study, the effects of thermal fluctuations on the electrical conductivity in melt-textured YBa2Cu3O7-δ, Y0.95Pr0.05Ba2Cu3O7-δ and (YBa2Cu3O7-δ)0.95-(PrBa2Cu3O7-δ)0.05 composite superconductor were considered. The composite superconductor samples were prepared through the top seeding method using melt-textured NdBa2Cu3O7-d seeds. The resistivity measurements were performed with a low-frequency, low-current AC technique in order to extract the temperature derivative and analyze the influence of the praseodymium ion on the normal superconductor transition and consequently on the fluctuation regimes. The results show that the resistive transition is a two-step process. In the normal phase, above the critical temperature, Gaussian and critical fluctuation regimes were identified, while below the critical temperature, in the regime near the approach to the zero-resistance state, the fluctuation conductivity diverges as expected in a paracoherent-coherent transition.

  1. Effect of Ti seed layers on structure of self-organized epitaxial face-centered-cubic-Ag(001) oriented nanodots

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kamiko, M.; Nose, K.; Suenaga, R.

    2013-12-28

    The influence of Ti seed layers on the structure of self-organized Ag nanodots, obtained with a Ti seed-layer-assisted thermal agglomeration method, has been investigated. The samples were grown on MgO(001) single crystal substrates by RF magnetron sputter deposition. The samples were deposited at room temperature and post-annealed at 350 °C for 4 h while maintaining the chamber vacuum conditions. The results of atomic force microscopy (AFM) observations indicated that the insertion of the Ti seed layer (0.6–5.0 nm) between the MgO substrate and Ag layer promotes the agglomeration process, forming the nanodot array. Comparisons between the AFM images revealed thatmore » the size of the Ag nanodots was increased with an increase in the Ti seed layer thickness. The atomic concentration of the film surface was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The XPS result suggested that the nanodot surface mainly consisted of Ag. Moreover, X-ray diffraction results proved that the initial deposition of the Ti seed layer (0.6–5.0 nm) onto MgO(001) prior to the Ag deposition yielded high-quality fcc-Ag(001) oriented epitaxial nanodots. The optical absorbance spectra of the fabricated Ag nanodots with various Ti seed layer thicknesses were obtained in the visible light range.« less

  2. Evaluation of Exotically-Derived Soybean Breeding Lines for Seed Yield, Germination, Damage, and Composition under Dryland Production in the Midsouthern USA

    PubMed Central

    Bellaloui, Nacer; Smith, James R.; Mengistu, Alemu; Ray, Jeffery D.; Gillen, Anne M.

    2017-01-01

    Although the Early Soybean Production System (ESPS) in the Midsouthern USA increased seed yield under irrigated and non-irrigated conditions, heat stress and drought still lead to poor seed quality in heat sensitive soybean cultivars. Our breeding goal was to identify breeding lines that possess high germination, nutritional quality, and yield potential under high heat and dryland production conditions. Our hypothesis was that breeding lines derived from exotic germplasm might possess physiological and genetic traits allowing for higher seed germinability under high heat conditions. In a 2-year field experiment, breeding lines derived from exotic soybean accessions, previously selected for adaptability to the ESPS in maturity groups (MG) III and IV, were grown under non-irrigated conditions. Results showed that three exotic breeding lines had consistently superior germination across 2 years. These lines had a mean germination percentage of >80%. Two (25-1-1-4-1-1 and 34-3-1-2-4-1) out of the three lines with ≥80% germination in both years maintained high seed protein, oleic acid, N, P, K, B, Cu, and Mo in both years. Significant (P < 0.05) positive correlations were found between germination and oleic acid and with K and Cu in both years. Significant negative correlations were found between germination and linoleic acid, Ca, and hard seed in both years. There were positive correlations between germination and N, P, B, Mo, and palmitic acid only in 2013. A negative correlation was found between germination and green seed damage and linolenic acid in 2013 only. Seed wrinkling was significantly negatively correlated with germination in 2012 only. A lower content of Ca in the seed of high germinability genotypes may explain the lower rates of hard seed in those lines, which could lead to higher germination. Many of the differences in yield, germination, diseases, and seed composition between years are likely due to heat and rainfall differences between years. The results also showed the potential roles of seed minerals, especially K, Ca, B, Cu, and Mo, in maintaining high seed quality. The knowledge gained from this research will help breeders to select for soybean with high seed nutritional qualities and high germinability. PMID:28289420

  3. Adsorption, hydrogenation and dehydrogenation of C2H on a CoCu bimetallic layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Donghai; Yuan, Jinyun; Yang, Baocheng; Chen, Houyang

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, adsorption, hydrogenation and dehydrogenation of C2H on a single atomic layer of bimetallic CoCu were investigated using first-principles calculations. The CoCu bimetallic layer is formed by Cu replacement of partial Co atoms on the top layer of a Co(111) surface. Our adsorption and reaction results showed those sites, which have stronger adsorption energy of C2H, possess higher reactivity. The bimetallic layer possesses higher reactivity than either of the pure monometallic layer. A mechanism of higher reactivity of the bimetallic layer is proposed and identified, i.e. in the bimetallic catalyst, the catalytic performance of one component is promoted by the second component, and in our work, the catalytic performance of Co atoms in the bimetallic layer are improved by introducing Cu atoms, lowing the activation barrier of the reaction of C2H. The bimetallic layer could tune adsorption and reaction of C2H by modulating the ratio of Co and Cu. Results of adsorption energies and adsorption configurations reveal that C2H prefers to be adsorbed in parallel on both the pure Co metallic and CoCu bimetallic layers, and Co atoms in subsurface which support the metallic or bimetallic layer have little effect on C2H adsorption. For hydrogenation reactions, the products greatly depend on the concentration and initial positions of hydrogen atoms, and the C2H hydrogenation forming acetylene is more favorable than forming vinylidene in both thermodynamics and kinetics. This study would provide fundamental guidance for hydrocarbon reactions on Co-based and/or Cu-based bimetallic surface chemistry and for development of new bimetallic catalysts.

  4. Highly (002) textured large grain bcc Cr{sub 80}Mn{sub 20} seed layer on Cr{sub 50}Ti{sub 50} amorphous layer for FePt-C granular film

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Jeon, Seong-Jae, E-mail: jsjigst@ecei.tohoku.ac.jp; Saito, Shin; Hinata, Shintaro

    Effect of bcc Cr{sub 80}Mn{sub 20} seed layer and Cr{sub 50}Ti{sub 50} amorphous texture inducing layer on the heteroepitaxy system in FePt-C granular film was studied by introducing a new concept of the layered structure. The concept suggested that the large grain seed layer in which the crystallographic texture was initially formed on an amorphous layer in the layered structure can reduce the angular distribution of (002) c-axis crystal orientation in the FePt-C granular film owing to heteroepitaxial growth. Structure analysis by X-ray diffraction revealed that (1) when the substrate heating temperature was elevated from 300 °C to 500 °C, grain sizemore » in the seed layer increased from 9.8 nm to 11.6 nm, and then decreased with further increasing the substrate temperature. The reduction of the grain size over 500 °C corresponds to the crystallization of the amorphous texture inducing layer, (2) when the grain size increased from 9.8 nm to 11.6 nm, the angular distribution of the (002) orientation in the seed layer dramatically decreased from 13.7° to 4.1°. It was shown that the large grain seed layer increased the perpendicular hysteresis in FePt-C granular film.« less

  5. Cu, Zn and Mn uptake and redistribution in Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and wine: effect of soil metal content and plant vigor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Concepción Ramos, Maria; Romero, María Paz

    2015-04-01

    This study investigated the influence of leaf thinning on micronutrient (Cu, Zn and Mn) uptake and distribution in grape tissues, in a 16 year-old Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard. The analysis was carried out in two plots with differences in vigor (P1- high and P2-low) grown in calcareous soils. Vigour was analysed by the NDVI values. In each plot, two treatments (with and without leaf thinning after bloom) were applied. Total and the CaCl2-DTPA extractable fraction of these micronutrients were evaluated. Nutrient concentration in petiole were evaluated from veraison to harvest as well as the concentration of those elements in seeds and skins at ripening and in wines elaborated with grapes grown in each plot and treatment in 2013. Their relationships were evaluated. The soil extractable fraction did not give a good correlation with petiole concentrations. However, Mn in petiole was strongly correlated with soil total Mn. Cu and Zn had higher concentration at veraison than at harvest, while for Mn it was the opposite. Cu concentration in petiole and seeds was greater in the most vigorous plots, but there were not clear differences between treatments. Cu in seeds and skins correlated significantly but there was not correlation with Cu in petiole. Zn concentration in skins was quite similar in both plots, but with higher values in vines without leaf thinning. Zn concentrations in skins were correlated with Zn in petiole but no significant correlation was found with Zn in seeds. Higher concentrations were found in the no thinning treatment in skins. For Mn, petiole concentrations were greater in the high vigorous plot and in the leaf thinning treatment. However, petiole Zn concentrations were greater in the less vigorous plot and without clear effect of leaf thinning. Mn concentration in skins was greater in the less vigorous vines in both treatments and it was inversely correlated with Mn in seeds, but there were no significant correlation between them and Mn in petiole. In wine, significant differences between both plots were found for Cu and Zn, with greater values in the most vigorous vines and with some differences in the wines elaborated with grapes from the leaf thinning treatment and without it. Cu levels in wine ranged between 0.78 and 0.96 mg/l in plot 1 and between 0.28 and 0.44 mg/L in plot 2, respectively for the areas with and without leaf thinning. For Zn, levels ranged between 0.76 and 0.74 in plot 1and between 0.24 and 0.22 mg/L in plot 2. However, no differences were found between plots for Mn. Mn levels in wine ranged between 1 and 1.9 mg/L in plot 1 and between 1.12 and 1.2 mg/L in plot 2. This behavior was similar to that found in the skins and seed analysis.

  6. Hierarchical concave layered triangular PtCu alloy nanostructures: rational integration of dendritic nanostructures for efficient formic acid electrooxidation.

    PubMed

    Wu, Fengxia; Lai, Jianping; Zhang, Ling; Niu, Wenxin; Lou, Baohua; Luque, Rafael; Xu, Guobao

    2018-05-08

    The rational construction of multi-dimensional layered noble metal nanostructures is a great challenge since noble metals are not layer-structured materials. Herein, we report a one-pot hydrothermal synthetic method for PtCu hierarchical concave layered triangular (HCLT) nanostructures using dl-carnitine, KI, poly(vinylpyrrolidone), CuCl2, and H2PtCl6. The PtCu HCLT nanostructure is comprised of multilayered triangular dendrites. Its layer number is tunable by changing dl-carnitine concentrations, and the concavity/convexity of the PtCu triangle nanostructures is tunable by changing the H2PtCl6/CuCl2 ratio or KI concentrations. Hierarchical trigonal bipyramid nanoframes are also obtained under certain conditions. Because of its advantageous nanostructure and bimetallic synergetic effect, the obtained PtCu HCLT nanostructure exhibits enhanced electrocatalytic activity and prolonged stability to formic acid oxidation compared to commercial Pt black, Pd/C and some other nanostructures.

  7. Artificially layered films of CuBa{sub 2} (Ca{sub 1{minus}x}Sr{sub x}){sub n{minus}1}Cu{sub n}O{sub y} grown using pulsed laser deposition

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Aruta, C.; Balestrino, G.; Martellucci, S.

    We have shown that the pulsed laser deposition technique (PLD) can be successfully used to grow artificially layered films of the CuBa{sub 2}(Ca{sub 1{minus}x}Sr{sub x}){sub n{minus}1}Cu{sub n}O{sub y} compound using only two targets having nominal composition BaCuO{sub y} and (Ca{sub 1{minus}x}Sr{sub x})CuO{sub y}, respectively. n was varied between 2 and 5. We have demonstrated, by a kinematic analysis of the x-ray diffraction spectra that the average random discrete thickness fluctuations which affect both the BaCuO{sub y} and (Ca{sub 1{minus}x}Sr{sub x})CuO{sub y} layers are much smaller than one atomic layer. Such features are confirmed by the appearance of sharp peaks evenmore » for the n=2 artificially layered structure where only one (Ca{sub 1{minus}x}Sr{sub x})CuO{sub y} cell is deposited in the stacking sequence. These results show that truly new structures can be obtained by a layer by layer deposition technique with a low interfacial disorder and give strong support to the idea of synthesizing new artificial high T{sub c} structures by the PLD technique.{copyright} {ital 1997 American Institute of Physics.}« less

  8. Microstructure and Interfacial Reactions During Vacuum Brazing of Stainless Steel to Titanium Using Ag-28 pct Cu Alloy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Laik, A.; Shirzadi, A. A.; Sharma, G.; Tewari, R.; Jayakumar, T.; Dey, G. K.

    2015-02-01

    Microstructural evolution and interfacial reactions during vacuum brazing of grade-2 Ti and 304L-type stainless steel (SS) using eutectic alloy Ag-28 wt pct Cu were investigated. A thin Ni-depleted zone of -Fe(Cr, Ni) solid solution formed on the SS-side of the braze zone (BZ). Cu from the braze alloy, in combination with the dissolved Fe and Ti from the base materials, formed a layer of ternary compound , adjacent to Ti in the BZ. In addition, four binary intermetallic compounds, CuTi, CuTi, CuTi and CuTi formed as parallel contiguous layers in the BZ. The unreacted Ag solidified as islands within the layers of CuTi and CuTi. Formation of an amorphous phase at certain locations in the BZ could be revealed. The -Ti(Cu) layer, formed due to diffusion of Cu into Ti-based material, transformed to an -Ti + CuTi eutectoid with lamellar morphology. Tensile test showed that the brazed joints had strength of 112 MPa and failed at the BZ. The possible sequence of events that led to the final microstructure and the mode of failure of these joints were delineated.

  9. Dependence of seed layer thickness on sensitivity of nano-ZnO cholesterol biosensor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Yang-Ming; Wang, Po-Chin; Tang, Jian-Fu; Chu, Sheng-Yuan

    2017-01-01

    The anemone-like ZnO nanostructures have been synthesized by hydrothermal method and were further adsorbed immobilized cholesterol oxidase (ChOx) as a nano-biosensor. In this study, the sensitivity of biosensor were improved by varying the thickness of the ZnO seed layer. The SEM analysis showed changes in thickness of seed layer will not affect the morphologies of anemone-like ZnO nanostructures. The X-ray Diffraction patterns showed that the (002) plane of anemone-like ZnO grown on various thickness of the seed layer was more prouded than other crystal plane. Abioelectrode (ChOx/ZnO/ITO/glass) grown on the 30nm of ZnO seed layer with high sensitivity of 57.533μAmM-1cm-2 (1.488 μA (mg/dl) -1cm-2), a wide sensitive range from 25 to 500 mg/dl. It is concluded that the thinner sputtered ZnO seed layer for growing anemone-like ZnO nanostructure can effectively improve the sensitivity of the ZnO biosensor.

  10. Cu6Sn5 Whiskers Precipitated in Sn3.0Ag0.5Cu/Cu Interconnection in Concentrator Silicon Solar Cells Solder Layer

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Liang; Liu, Zhi-quan; Yang, Fan; Zhong, Su-juan

    2017-01-01

    Cu6Sn5 whiskers precipitated in Sn3.0Ag0.5Cu/Cu interconnection in concentrator silicon solar cells solder layer were found and investigated after reflow soldering and during aging. Ag3Sn fibers can be observed around Cu6Sn5 whiskers in the matrix microstructure, which can play an active effect on the reliability of interconnection. Different morphologies of Cu6Sn5 whiskers can be observed, and hexagonal rod structure is the main morphology of Cu6Sn5 whiskers. A hollow structure can be observed in hexagonal Cu6Sn5 whiskers, and a screw dislocation mechanism was used to represent the Cu6Sn5 growth. Based on mechanical property testing and finite element simulation, Cu6Sn5 whiskers were regarded as having a negative effect on the durability of Sn3.0Ag0.5Cu/Cu interconnection in concentrator silicon solar cells solder layer. PMID:28772686

  11. Green synthesis of Pd/CuO nanoparticles by Theobroma cacao L. seeds extract and their catalytic performance for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol and phosphine-free Heck coupling reaction under aerobic conditions.

    PubMed

    Nasrollahzadeh, Mahmoud; Sajadi, S Mohammad; Rostami-Vartooni, Akbar; Bagherzadeh, Mojtaba

    2015-06-15

    We report the green synthesis of palladium/CuO nanoparticles (Pd/CuO NPs) using Theobroma cacao L. seeds extract and their catalytic activity for the reduction of 4-nitrophenol and Heck coupling reaction under aerobic conditions. The catalyst was characterized using the powder XRD, TEM, EDS, UV-vis and FT-IR. This method has the advantages of high yields, elimination of surfactant, ligand and homogeneous catalysts, simple methodology and easy work up. The catalyst can be recovered from the reaction mixture and reused several times without any significant loss of catalytic activity. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  12. Magnetic and structural characterization of high anisotropy cobalt-rich alloys: Thin films and patterns

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zana, Iulica

    In this dissertation the structural and magnetic characterization of high anisotropy Co-rich alloys for magnetic recording and MEMS applications has been carried out. The potential of Co78Sm22 as an ultra-high density recording medium was explored through comprehensive static and dynamic magnetic measurements. It was found out that hard magnetic properties (Hc = 4.5 kOe) can be achieved when CoSm is sputter-deposited on Cr80V 20 underlayer, comparable with those reported for state-of-the-art media at the end of 2002. Furthermore, the chemical stability and reliability of CoSm thin films was studied through combined accelerated aging and electrochemical methods. It was found out that CoSm thin films are more reactive than current recording media (CoPt), and a layer of Si3N4 of at least 6 nm provides satisfactory protection. Electrodeposition of Co80Pt20 onto highly textured Cu seed layer with either {100} or {111} orientation was studied. The influence of Cu texture and plating current density (cd) on the growth, morphology, microstructure, and magnetic properties of the CoPt films was investigated. Epitaxial CoPt thin films with uniform composition across the film thickness were deposited. The microstructure consists in fcc matrix and hcp matrix when plated on Cu(100) and Cu(111), respectively. CoPt hcp single phase films with c-axis normal to the substrate were grown on Cu(111) when plated at cd = 50 mA/cm2. As opposed to the films plated on Cu(100) which show a mostly in-plane magnetic anisotropy, the films plated on Cu(111) develop a well defined perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) due to the hcp phase with the c-axis normal to the substrate, which yields coercivities as high as 6.1 kOe. The origin of the high PMA was found to lie in the magnetocrystalline anisotropy. CoPt micromagnets have been successfully fabricated by the electrodeposition-through-mask method, which despite the small aspect ratio show a definite PMA. The PMA, together with the hard magnetic properties measured (Hc = 4.7 kOe) demonstrate a strong potential for the utilization of these materials in the MEMS area.

  13. Fabrication of CIS Absorber Layers with Different Thicknesses Using A Non-Vacuum Spray Coating Method.

    PubMed

    Diao, Chien-Chen; Kuo, Hsin-Hui; Tzou, Wen-Cheng; Chen, Yen-Lin; Yang, Cheng-Fu

    2014-01-03

    In this study, a new thin-film deposition process, spray coating method (SPM), was investigated to deposit the high-densified CuInSe₂ absorber layers. The spray coating method developed in this study was a non-vacuum process, based on dispersed nano-scale CuInSe₂ precursor and could offer a simple, inexpensive, and alternative formation technology for CuInSe₂ absorber layers. After spraying on Mo/glass substrates, the CuInSe₂ thin films were annealed at 550 °C by changing the annealing time from 5 min to 30 min in a selenization furnace, using N₂ as atmosphere. When the CuInSe₂ thin films were annealed, without extra Se or H₂Se gas used as the compensation source during the annealing process. The aim of this project was to investigate the influence of annealing time on the densification and crystallization of the CuInSe₂ absorber layers to optimize the quality for cost effective solar cell production. The thickness of the CuInSe₂ absorber layers could be controlled as the volume of used dispersed CuInSe₂-isopropyl alcohol solution was controlled. In this work, X-ray diffraction patterns, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and Hall parameter measurements were performed in order to verify the quality of the CuInSe₂ absorber layers obtained by the Spray Coating Method.

  14. Two-Step Physical Deposition of a Compact CuI Hole-Transport Layer and the Formation of an Interfacial Species in Perovskite Solar Cells.

    PubMed

    Gharibzadeh, Saba; Nejand, Bahram Abdollahi; Moshaii, Ahmad; Mohammadian, Nasim; Alizadeh, Amir Hossein; Mohammadpour, Rahele; Ahmadi, Vahid; Alizadeh, Abdolali

    2016-08-09

    A simple and practical approach is introduced for the deposition of CuI as an inexpensive inorganic hole-transport material (HTM) for the fabrication of low cost perovskite solar cells (PSCs) by gas-solid phase transformation of Cu to CuI. The method provides a uniform and well-controlled CuI layer with large grains and good compactness that prevents the direct connection between the contact electrodes. Solar cells prepared with CuI as the HTM with Au electrodes displays an exceptionally high short-circuit current density of 32 mA cm(-2) , owing to an interfacial species formed between the perovskite and the Cu resulting in a long wavelength contribution to the incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency (IPCE), and an overall power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 7.4 %. The growth of crystalline and uniform CuI on a low roughness perovskite layer leads to remarkably high charge extraction in the cells, which originates from the high hole mobility of CuI in addition to a large number of contact points between CuI and the perovskite layer. In addition, the solvent-free method has no damaging side effect on the perovskite layer, which makes it an appropriate method for large scale applications of CuI in perovskite solar cells. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  15. Improved ohmic contact of Ga-Doped ZnO to p-GaN by using copper sulfide intermediate layers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gu, Wen; Xu, Tao; Zhang, Jianhua

    2013-11-01

    Copper sulfide (CuS) was used as the intermediate layer to build ohmic contact of Ga-Doped ZnO (GZO) transparent conduction layer (TCL) to p-GaN. The CuS and GZO layers were prepared by thermal evaporation and RF magnetron sputtering, respectively. Although the GZO-only contacts to p-GaN exhibit nonlinear behavior, ohmic contact with a specific contact resistance of 1.6 × 10-2 Ω cm2 has been realized by inserting 3 nm CuS layer between GZO and p-GaN. The optical transmittance of CuS/GZO film was measured to be higher than 80% in the range of 450-600 nm wavelength. The possible mechanism for the ohmic contact behavior can be attributed to the increased hole concentration of p-GaN surface induced by CuS films after annealing. The forward voltage of LEDs with CuS/GZO TCL has been reduced by 1.7 V at 20 mA and the output power has been increased by 29.6% at 100 mA compared with LEDs without CuS interlayer. These results indicated that using CuS intermediate layer could be a potential ohmic contact method to realize high-efficiency LEDs.

  16. MgO buffer layers on rolled nickel or copper as superconductor substrates

    DOEpatents

    Paranthaman, Mariappan; Goyal, Amit; Kroeger, Donald M.; List, III, Frederic A.

    2001-01-01

    Buffer layer architectures are epitaxially deposited on biaxially-textured rolled-Ni and/or Cu substrates for high current conductors, and more particularly buffer layer architectures such as MgO/Ag/Pt/Ni, MgO/Ag/Pd/Ni, MgO/Ag/Ni, MgO/Ag/Pd/Cu, MgO/Ag/Pt/Cu, and MgO/Ag/Cu. Techniques used to deposit these buffer layers include electron beam evaporation, thermal evaporation, rf magnetron sputtering, pulsed laser deposition, metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), combustion CVD, and spray pyrolysis.

  17. Method for making MgO buffer layers on rolled nickel or copper as superconductor substrates

    DOEpatents

    Paranthaman, Mariappan; Goyal, Amit; Kroeger, Donald M.; List, III, Frederic A.

    2002-01-01

    Buffer layer architectures are epitaxially deposited on biaxially-textured rolled-Ni and/or Cu substrates for high current conductors, and more particularly buffer layer architectures such as MgO/Ag/Pt/Ni, MgO/Ag/Pd/Ni, MgO/Ag/Ni, MgO/Ag/Pd/Cu, MgO/Ag/Pt/Cu, and MgO/Ag/Cu. Techniques used to deposit these buffer layers include electron beam evaporation, thermal evaporation, rf magnetron sputtering, pulsed laser deposition, metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), combustion CVD, and spray pyrolysis.

  18. Critical CuI buffer layer surface density for organic molecular crystal orientation change

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ahn, Kwangseok; Kim, Jong Beom; Lee, Dong Ryeol, E-mail: drlee@ssu.ac.kr

    We have determined the critical surface density of the CuI buffer layer inserted to change the preferred orientation of copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) crystals grown on the buffer layer. X-ray reflectivity measurements were performed to obtain the density profiles of the buffer layers and out-of-plane and 2D grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction measurements were performed to determine the preferred orientations of the molecular crystals. Remarkably, it was found that the preferred orientation of the CuPc film is completely changed from edge-on (1 0 0) to face-on (1 1 −2) by a CuI buffer layer with a very low surface density, so low thatmore » a large proportion of the substrate surface is bare.« less

  19. Efficient semitransparent perovskite solar cells for 23.0%-efficiency perovskite/silicon four-terminal tandem cells

    DOE PAGES

    Chen, Bo; Bai, Yang; Yu, Zhengshan; ...

    2016-07-19

    Here, we have investigated semi-transparent perovskite solar cells and infrared enhanced silicon heterojunction cells for high-efficiency tandem devices. A semi-transparent metal electrode with good electrical conductivity and optical transparency has been fabricated by thermal evaporation of 7 nm of Au onto a 1-nm-thick Cu seed layer. For this electrode to reach its full potential, MAPbI3 thin films were formed by a modified one-step spin-coating method, resulting in a smooth layer that allowed the subsequent metal thin film to remain continuous. The fabricated semi-transparent perovskite solar cells demonstrated 16.5% efficiency under one-sun illumination, and were coupled with infrared-enhanced silicon heterojunction cellsmore » tuned specifically for perovskite/Si tandem devices. A double-layer antireflection coating at the front side and MgF2 reflector at rear side of the silicon heterojunction cells reduced parasitic absorption of near-infrared light, leading to 6.5% efficiency after filtering with a perovskite device and 23.0% summed efficiency for the perovskite/Si tandem device.« less

  20. Efficient semitransparent perovskite solar cells for 23.0%-efficiency perovskite/silicon four-terminal tandem cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Chen, Bo; Bai, Yang; Yu, Zhengshan

    Here, we have investigated semi-transparent perovskite solar cells and infrared enhanced silicon heterojunction cells for high-efficiency tandem devices. A semi-transparent metal electrode with good electrical conductivity and optical transparency has been fabricated by thermal evaporation of 7 nm of Au onto a 1-nm-thick Cu seed layer. For this electrode to reach its full potential, MAPbI3 thin films were formed by a modified one-step spin-coating method, resulting in a smooth layer that allowed the subsequent metal thin film to remain continuous. The fabricated semi-transparent perovskite solar cells demonstrated 16.5% efficiency under one-sun illumination, and were coupled with infrared-enhanced silicon heterojunction cellsmore » tuned specifically for perovskite/Si tandem devices. A double-layer antireflection coating at the front side and MgF2 reflector at rear side of the silicon heterojunction cells reduced parasitic absorption of near-infrared light, leading to 6.5% efficiency after filtering with a perovskite device and 23.0% summed efficiency for the perovskite/Si tandem device.« less

  1. Growth and characterization of thin Cu-phthalocyanine films on MgO(001) layer for organic light-emitting diodes

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Surface morphology and thermal stability of Cu-phthalocyanine (CuPc) films grown on an epitaxially grown MgO(001) layer were investigated by using atomic force microscope and X-ray diffractometer. The (002) textured β phase of CuPc films were prepared at room temperature beyond the epitaxial MgO/Fe/MgO(001) buffer layer by the vacuum deposition technique. The CuPc structure remained stable even after post-annealing at 350°C for 1 h under vacuum, which is an important advantage of device fabrication. In order to improve the device performance, we investigated also current-voltage-luminescence characteristics for the new top-emitting organic light-emitting diodes with different thicknesses of CuPc layer. PMID:23181826

  2. Growth and characterization of thin Cu-phthalocyanine films on MgO(001) layer for organic light-emitting diodes.

    PubMed

    Bae, Yu Jeong; Lee, Nyun Jong; Kim, Tae Hee; Cho, Hyunduck; Lee, Changhee; Fleet, Luke; Hirohata, Atsufumi

    2012-11-26

    Surface morphology and thermal stability of Cu-phthalocyanine (CuPc) films grown on an epitaxially grown MgO(001) layer were investigated by using atomic force microscope and X-ray diffractometer. The (002) textured β phase of CuPc films were prepared at room temperature beyond the epitaxial MgO/Fe/MgO(001) buffer layer by the vacuum deposition technique. The CuPc structure remained stable even after post-annealing at 350°C for 1 h under vacuum, which is an important advantage of device fabrication. In order to improve the device performance, we investigated also current-voltage-luminescence characteristics for the new top-emitting organic light-emitting diodes with different thicknesses of CuPc layer.

  3. Effect of NiFeCr seed and capping layers on exchange bias and planar Hall voltage response of NiFe/Au/IrMn trilayer structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Talantsev, Artem; Elzwawy, Amir; Kim, CheolGi

    2018-05-01

    Thin films and cross junctions, based on NiFe/Au/IrMn structures, were grown on Ta and NiFeCr seed layers by magnetron sputtering. The effects of substitution of Ta with NiFeCr in seed and capping layers on an exchange bias field are studied. A threefold improvement of the exchange bias value in the structures, grown with NiFeCr seed and capping layers, is demonstrated. The reasons for this effect are discussed. Formation of clusters in the NiFeCr capping layer is proved by atomic force microscopy technique. Ta replacement on NiFeCr in the capping layer results in the enhancement of magnetoresistive response and a reduction of noise.

  4. Practical considerations for maximizing heat production in a novel thermobrachytherapy seed prototype

    PubMed Central

    Gautam, Bhoj; Warrell, Gregory; Shvydka, Diana; Subramanian, Manny; Ishmael Parsai, E.

    2014-01-01

    Purpose: A combination of hyperthermia and radiation in the treatment of cancer has been proven to provide better tumor control than radiation administered as a monomodality, without an increase in complications or serious toxicities. Moreover, concurrent administration of hyperthermia and radiation displays synergistic enhancement, resulting in greater tumor cell killing than hyperthermia and radiation delivered separately. The authors have designed a new thermobrachytherapy (TB) seed, which serves as a source of both radiation and heat for concurrent brachytherapy and hyperthermia treatments when implanted in solid tumors. This innovative seed, similar in size and geometry to conventional seeds, will have self-regulating thermal properties. Methods: The new seed's geometry is based on the standard BEST Model 2301 125I seed, resulting in very similar dosimetric properties. The TB seed generates heat when placed in an oscillating magnetic field via induction heating of a ferromagnetic Ni–Cu alloy core that replaces the tungsten radiographic marker of the standard Model 2301. The alloy composition is selected to undergo a Curie transition near 50 °C, drastically decreasing power production at higher temperatures and providing for temperature self-regulation. Here, the authors present experimental studies of the magnetic properties of Ni–Cu alloy material, the visibility of TB seeds in radiographic imaging, and the ability of seed prototypes to uniformly heat tissue to a desirable temperature. Moreover, analyses are presented of magnetic shielding and thermal expansion of the TB seed, as well as matching of radiation dose to temperature distributions for a short interseed distance in a given treatment volume. Results: Annealing the Ni–Cu alloy has a significant effect on its magnetization properties, increasing the sharpness of the Curie transition. The TB seed preserves the radiographic properties of the BEST 2301 seed in both plain x rays and CT images, and a preliminary experiment demonstrates thermal self-regulation and adequate heating of a tissue-mimicking phantom by seed prototypes. The effect of self-shielding of the seed against the external magnetic field is small, and only minor thermal stress is induced in heating of the seeds from room temperature to well above the seed operating temperature. With proper selection of magnetic field parameters, the thermal dose distribution of an arrangement of TB and hyperthermia-only seeds may be made to match with its radiation dose distribution. Conclusions: The presented analyses address several practical considerations for manufacturing of the proposed TB seeds and identify critical issues for the prototype implementation. The authors’ preliminary experiments demonstrate close agreement with the modeling results, confirming the feasibility of combining sources of heat and radiation into a single thermobrachytherapy seed. PMID:24506651

  5. Practical considerations for maximizing heat production in a novel thermobrachytherapy seed prototype

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gautam, Bhoj; Warrell, Gregory; Shvydka, Diana

    2014-02-15

    Purpose: A combination of hyperthermia and radiation in the treatment of cancer has been proven to provide better tumor control than radiation administered as a monomodality, without an increase in complications or serious toxicities. Moreover, concurrent administration of hyperthermia and radiation displays synergistic enhancement, resulting in greater tumor cell killing than hyperthermia and radiation delivered separately. The authors have designed a new thermobrachytherapy (TB) seed, which serves as a source of both radiation and heat for concurrent brachytherapy and hyperthermia treatments when implanted in solid tumors. This innovative seed, similar in size and geometry to conventional seeds, will have self-regulatingmore » thermal properties. Methods: The new seed's geometry is based on the standard BEST Model 2301{sup 125}I seed, resulting in very similar dosimetric properties. The TB seed generates heat when placed in an oscillating magnetic field via induction heating of a ferromagnetic Ni–Cu alloy core that replaces the tungsten radiographic marker of the standard Model 2301. The alloy composition is selected to undergo a Curie transition near 50 °C, drastically decreasing power production at higher temperatures and providing for temperature self-regulation. Here, the authors present experimental studies of the magnetic properties of Ni–Cu alloy material, the visibility of TB seeds in radiographic imaging, and the ability of seed prototypes to uniformly heat tissue to a desirable temperature. Moreover, analyses are presented of magnetic shielding and thermal expansion of the TB seed, as well as matching of radiation dose to temperature distributions for a short interseed distance in a given treatment volume. Results: Annealing the Ni–Cu alloy has a significant effect on its magnetization properties, increasing the sharpness of the Curie transition. The TB seed preserves the radiographic properties of the BEST 2301 seed in both plain x rays and CT images, and a preliminary experiment demonstrates thermal self-regulation and adequate heating of a tissue-mimicking phantom by seed prototypes. The effect of self-shielding of the seed against the external magnetic field is small, and only minor thermal stress is induced in heating of the seeds from room temperature to well above the seed operating temperature. With proper selection of magnetic field parameters, the thermal dose distribution of an arrangement of TB and hyperthermia-only seeds may be made to match with its radiation dose distribution. Conclusions: The presented analyses address several practical considerations for manufacturing of the proposed TB seeds and identify critical issues for the prototype implementation. The authors’ preliminary experiments demonstrate close agreement with the modeling results, confirming the feasibility of combining sources of heat and radiation into a single thermobrachytherapy seed.« less

  6. Practical considerations for maximizing heat production in a novel thermobrachytherapy seed prototype

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gautam, Bhoj; Warrell, Gregory; Shvydka, Diana

    Purpose: A combination of hyperthermia and radiation in the treatment of cancer has been proven to provide better tumor control than radiation administered as a monomodality, without an increase in complications or serious toxicities. Moreover, concurrent administration of hyperthermia and radiation displays synergistic enhancement, resulting in greater tumor cell killing than hyperthermia and radiation delivered separately. The authors have designed a new thermobrachytherapy (TB) seed, which serves as a source of both radiation and heat for concurrent brachytherapy and hyperthermia treatments when implanted in solid tumors. This innovative seed, similar in size and geometry to conventional seeds, will have self-regulatingmore » thermal properties. Methods: The new seed's geometry is based on the standard BEST Model 2301{sup 125}I seed, resulting in very similar dosimetric properties. The TB seed generates heat when placed in an oscillating magnetic field via induction heating of a ferromagnetic Ni–Cu alloy core that replaces the tungsten radiographic marker of the standard Model 2301. The alloy composition is selected to undergo a Curie transition near 50 °C, drastically decreasing power production at higher temperatures and providing for temperature self-regulation. Here, the authors present experimental studies of the magnetic properties of Ni–Cu alloy material, the visibility of TB seeds in radiographic imaging, and the ability of seed prototypes to uniformly heat tissue to a desirable temperature. Moreover, analyses are presented of magnetic shielding and thermal expansion of the TB seed, as well as matching of radiation dose to temperature distributions for a short interseed distance in a given treatment volume. Results: Annealing the Ni–Cu alloy has a significant effect on its magnetization properties, increasing the sharpness of the Curie transition. The TB seed preserves the radiographic properties of the BEST 2301 seed in both plain x rays and CT images, and a preliminary experiment demonstrates thermal self-regulation and adequate heating of a tissue-mimicking phantom by seed prototypes. The effect of self-shielding of the seed against the external magnetic field is small, and only minor thermal stress is induced in heating of the seeds from room temperature to well above the seed operating temperature. With proper selection of magnetic field parameters, the thermal dose distribution of an arrangement of TB and hyperthermia-only seeds may be made to match with its radiation dose distribution. Conclusions: The presented analyses address several practical considerations for manufacturing of the proposed TB seeds and identify critical issues for the prototype implementation. The authors’ preliminary experiments demonstrate close agreement with the modeling results, confirming the feasibility of combining sources of heat and radiation into a single thermobrachytherapy seed.« less

  7. Effect of ZnO seed layer on the morphology and optical properties of ZnO nanorods grown on GaN buffer layers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nandi, R., E-mail: rajunandi@iitb.ac.in; Mohan, S., E-mail: rajunandi@iitb.ac.in; Major, S. S.

    2014-04-24

    ZnO nanorods were grown by chemical bath deposition on sputtered, polycrystalline GaN buffer layers with and without ZnO seed layer. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction show that the ZnO nanorods on GaN buffer layers are not vertically well aligned. Photoluminescence spectrum of ZnO nanorods grown on GaN buffer layer, however exhibits a much stronger near-band-edge emission and negligible defect emission, compared to the nanorods grown on ZnO buffer layer. These features are attributed to gallium incorporation at the ZnO-GaN interface. The introduction of a thin (25 nm) ZnO seed layer on GaN buffer layer significantly improves the morphology andmore » vertical alignment of ZnO-NRs without sacrificing the high optical quality of ZnO nanorods on GaN buffer layer. The presence of a thick (200 nm) ZnO seed layer completely masks the effect of the underlying GaN buffer layer on the morphology and optical properties of nanorods.« less

  8. Transient and modulated charge separation at CuInSe2/C60 and CuInSe2/ZnPc hybrid interfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    von Morzé, Natascha; Dittrich, Thomas; Calvet, Wolfram; Lauermann, Iver; Rusu, Marin

    2017-02-01

    Spectral dependent charge transfer and exciton dissociation have been investigated at hybrid interfaces between inorganic polycrystalline CuInSe2 (untreated and Na-conditioned) thin films and organic C60 as well as zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) layers by transient and modulated surface photovoltage measurements. The stoichiometry and electronic properties of the bare CuInSe2 surface were characterized by photoelectron spectroscopy which revealed a Cu-poor phase with n-type features. After the deposition of the C60 layer, a strong band bending at the CuInSe2 surface was observed. Evidence for dissociation of excitons followed by charge separation was found at the CuInSe2/ZnPc interface. The Cu-poor layer at the CuInSe2 surface was found to be crucial for transient and modulated charge separation at CuInSe2/organic hybrid interfaces.

  9. Magnetic anisotropy and magnetization reversal in Co/Cu multilayers nanowires

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ahmad, Naeem; Chen, J. Y.; Shi, D. W.; Iqbal, Javed; Han, Xiufeng

    2012-04-01

    The Co/Cu multilayer nanowires fabricated in an array using anodized aluminum oxide (AAO) template by electrodeposition method, have been investigated. It has been observed that the magnetization reversal mode and magnetic anisotropy depend upon the Co and Cu layer thicknesses. Magnetization reversal occurs by curling mode at around Co = 400 nm and Cu = 10 nm, while for Co = 30 nm and Cu = 60 nm, magnetization reversal occurs by nucleation mode. A change of magnetic anisotropy from out of plane to in plane is observed when thickness of Cu layer tCu = 60 nm and that of Co tCo = 30 nm. Magnetic anisotropy is lost when thickness of the Co layer tCo = 400 nm and that of Cu tCu= 10 nm. Magnetic properties have been explained by the competition among shape anisotropy, magnetostatic interactions and magnetocrystalline anisotropy. Magnetic properties can be tuned accordingly depending upon the thickness of the Co and Cu nanodisks.

  10. Investigation of Trace Element Content in the Seeds, Pulp, and Peel of Mashui Oranges Using Microwave Digestion and ICP-MS Analysis.

    PubMed

    Chen, Lingyun; Shen, Mei; Ma, Ande; Han, Weili

    2018-03-01

    Fresh Mashui orange samples were pretreated with microwave digestion using an HNO 3 -H 2 O 2 system. The levels of Mg, K, Ca, Fe, Mn, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, and Pb in the seeds, pulp, and peel were then determined using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) combined with collision cell technology (CCT) and kinetic energy discrimination (KED). The standard curve coefficient of determinations of the ten tested elements were between 0.9995 and 0.9999. The instrument detection limit was between 0.112 ng/L and 3.05 ng/mL. The method detection limit was between 0.0281 and 763 ng/g. The average recovery rate was between 85.0 and 117%. The current results showed that Mashui oranges are rich in three elements, namely Mg, K, and Ca. The concentrations of K and Ca were significantly higher than that of Mg in the peel. The content of K was the highest in the seeds. Fe, Mn, Cu, and Zn had the second highest concentrations, and Fe was the highest in the seeds, while Cu was the lowest in the peel. As, Cd, and Pb (hazardous elements) had the lowest concentrations of all the tested elements.

  11. Metallicity of Ca 2Cu 6P 5 with single and double copper-pnictide layers

    DOE PAGES

    Li, Li; Parker, David; Chi, Miaofang; ...

    2016-02-16

    We report thermodynamic and transport properties, and also theoretical calculations, for Cu-based compound Ca 2Cu 6P 5 and compare with CaCu 2-δP 2. Both materials have layers of edge-sharing copper pnictide tetrahedral CuP 4, similar to Fe–As and Fe–Se layers (with FeAs 4, FeSe 4) in the iron-based superconductors. Despite the presence of this similar transition-metal pnictide layer, we find that both Ca 2Cu 6P 5 and CaCu 2-δP 2 have temperature-independent magnetic susceptibility and show metallic behavior with no evidence of either magnetic ordering or superconductivity down to 1.8 K CaCu 2-δP 2 is slightly off-stoichiometric, with δ =more » 0.14. Theoretical calculations suggest that unlike Fe 3d-based magnetic materials with a large density of states (DOS) at the Fermi surface, Cu have comparatively low DOS, with the majority of the 3d spectral weight located well below Fermi level. The room-temperature resistivity value of Ca 2Cu 6P 5 is only 9 μΩ-cm, due to a substantial plasma frequency and an inferred electron-phonon coupling λ of 0.073 (significantly smaller than that of metallic Cu). Also, microscopy result shows that Cu–Cu distance along the c-axis within the double layers can be very short (2.5 Å), even shorter than metallic elemental copper bond (2.56 Å). The value of dρ/dT for CaCu 2-δP 2 at 300 K is approximately three times larger than in Ca 2Cu 6P 5, which suggests the likelihood of stronger electron-phonon coupling. Lastly, this study shows that the details of Cu–P layers and bonding are important for their transport characteristics. In addition, it emphasizes the remarkable character of the DOS of ‘122’ iron-based materials, despite much structural similarities.« less

  12. Theoretical study of magnetic layers of nickel on copper; dead or alive?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ernst, A.; Lueders, M.; Temmerman, W. M.; Szotek, Z.; van der Laan, G.

    2000-07-01

    We studied the persistence of magnetism in ultrathin nickel films on copper. Layer-dependent magnetic moments in Ni films on the (001), (110) and (111) surfaces of Cu have been calculated using the Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker Green's function method. The results show that, at temperature T = 0, a single nickel monolayer is ferromagnetic on Cu(001) and Cu(110) but magnetically `dead' on the more closely packed Cu(111) surface. Films of two and more layers of Ni are always ferromagnetic, with the magnetic moment enhanced in the surface layer but strongly reduced in the interface layer. Due to the short screening length, both the effect of the interface and that of the surface are confined to only a few atomic layers.

  13. Effect of alkaline material on phytotoxicity and bioavailability of Cu, Cd, Pb and Zn in stabilized sewage sludge.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Hongling; Ma, Guofeng; Sun, Lina; Li, Huiying

    2017-07-16

    The availability and phytotoxicity of heavy metals in sewage sludge is the key restrictive factor that limits sludge application. In this study, municipal sewage sludge was stabilized by alkaline slag or coal fly ash, then the leaching characteristic and fraction distributions of Cu, Cd, Pb and Zn were studied, and their effects on seed germination, root length, and plant accumulating were compared. The results showed that mixed sewage sludge with alkaline slag and coal fly ash decreased the percentage of available heavy metals in sewage sludge. The percentage of exchangeable Cu, Pb, Zn and Cd in stabilized sewage sludge (S1-S4) was 1.50-8.67 times lower than that in SS-only treatment. Leachate Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn from stabilized SS was much lower than the limit threshold. The addition of alkaline materials to SS reduced the inhibitory effect on seed germination and root growth. Pearson's correlation analysis indicated that there was a significant negative correlation between pH and available heavy metals, while a significant positive correlation between the percentage of exchangeable fraction of heavy metals, the leaching potential, tissue concentration and accumulation of heavy metal and toxicity for seed germination was observed.

  14. A two-dimensional organic–inorganic hybrid compound, poly[(ethylenediamine)tri-μ-oxido-oxidocopper(II)molybdenum(VI)

    PubMed Central

    Gun, Ozgul; VanDerveer, Don; Emirdag-Eanes, Mehtap

    2008-01-01

    A new organic–inorganic two-dimensional hybrid compound, [CuMoO4(C2H8N2)], has been hydro­thermally synthesized at 443 K. The unit cell contains layers composed of CuN2O4 octa­hedra and MoO4 tetra­hedra. Corner-sharing MoO4 and CuN2O4 polyhedra form CuMoO4 bimetallic sites that are joined together through O atoms, forming an edge-sharing Cu2Mo2O4 chain along the c axis. The one-dimensional chains are further linked through bridging O atoms that join the Cu and Mo atoms into respective chains along the b axis, thus establishing layers in the bc plane. The ethyl­enediamine ligand is coordinated to the Cu atom through its two N atoms and is oriented perpendicularly to the two-dimensional –Cu—O—Mo– layers. The average distance between adjacent layers, as calculated by consideration of the closest and furthest distances between two layers, is 8.7 Å. The oxidation states of the Mo and Cu atoms of VI and II, respectively, were confirmed by bond-valence sum calculations. PMID:21200997

  15. Effects of manufactured nano-copper on copper uptake, bioaccumulation and enzyme activities in cowpea grown on soil substrate.

    PubMed

    Ogunkunle, Clement O; Jimoh, Mahboob A; Asogwa, Nnaemeka T; Viswanathan, K; Vishwakarma, Vinita; Fatoba, Paul O

    2018-07-15

    Increased use of nanoparticles-based products in agriculture portends important implications for agriculture. Therefore, the impact of nano-copper particles (<25 nm and 60-80 nm) on Cu uptake, bioaccumulation (roots, leaves and seeds), activity of ascorbate peroxidase (APX), catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR), and lipid peroxidation in leaves and roots of Vigna unguiculata (cowpea) was studied. Plants were exposed to four levels (0, 125, 500 and 1000 mg/kg) of 25 nm or 60-80 nm nano-Cu for 65 days. Results indicated significant (P<.05) uptake of Cu at all nano-Cu levels compared to control, and bioaccumulation increased in seeds by at least 250%. Response of antioxidant enzymes to both nano-Cu types was concentration-dependent. Activity of APX and GR was enhanced in leaves and roots in response to both nano-Cu treatments in similar patterns compared to control. Both nano-Cu increased CAT activity in roots while SOD activity reduced in both leaves and roots. This shows that response of antioxidant enzymes to nano-Cu toxicity was organ-specific in cowpea. Malondialdehyde, a measure of lipid peroxidation, increased at 500 -1000 mg/kg of 25 nm nano-Cu in leaves by average of 8.4%, and 60-80 nm nano-Cu in root by 52.8%, showing particle-size and organ-dependent toxicity of nano-Cu. In conclusion, exposure of cowpea to nano-Cu treatments increased both the uptake and bioaccumulation of Cu, and also promoted the activity of APX and GR in root and leaf tissues of cowpea. Therefore, APX- and GR-activity level could be a useful predictive biomarker of nano-Cu toxicity in cowpea. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  16. Short and long term modulation of tissue minerals concentrations following oral administration of black cumin (Nigella sativa L.) seed oil to laboratory rats.

    PubMed

    Basheer, Irum; Qureshi, Irfan Zia

    2018-01-15

    Nigella sativa, or commonly called black cumin is a small herb of family Ranunculaceae is a well-known medicinal plant but its effects on tissue mineral concentrations of animal bodies is unknown. To study the effect of oral administration of fixed oil of black cumin seeds on tissues mineral content using laboratory rats as experimental model. Experimental animals were exposed to two oral doses of seed oil (60 and 120 ml kg -1 body weight). Short- and long term experiments lasted 24 h and 60 days respectively, with three replicates each. Oil extracted from black cumin seeds was subjected to GC-MS to identify chemical components. Following the wet digestion in nitric acid, samples of whole blood and organs of rats were subjected to atomic absorption spectrophotometry for determination of elements concentrations. Data were compared statistically at p < .05. Compared to control, Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Zn showed decrease, whereas Co, Na, Mg and K demonstrated increase, but Ca showed both increase and decrease in most of the tissues upon short term exposure to low and high doses of black cumin oil. During long term exposure, Cr, Fe, Mn, Cu exhibited decrease; Co, Na, Mg and Ca concentrations demonstrated an upregulation, whereas Ni and Zn showed increase and decrease in most of the tissues. Comparison of short term with long term experiments at low dose revealed increases in Fe, Zn, Cu, Mg, K and Ca, a decrease in Cr, Mn, Ni and Cu in most tissues, but both increase and decrease in Na. At high dose, an increase occurred in Fe, Ni, Zn, K, Ca, Mg, a decrease in Cr, while both increase and decrease in Cu, Co and Na concentrations. Our study demonstrates that oral administration of black cumin seeds oil to laboratory rats significantly alters tissue trace elements and electrolytes concentrations. The study appears beneficial but indicates modulatory role of black cumin oil as regards mineral metabolism with far reaching implications in health and disease. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier GmbH.

  17. Simultaneous enhancement of photovoltage and charge transfer in Cu{sub 2}O-based photocathode using buffer and protective layers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Li, Changli; Delaunay, Jean-Jacques, E-mail: jean@mech.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp; Hisatomi, Takashi

    2016-07-18

    Coating n-type buffer and protective layers on Cu{sub 2}O may be an effective means to improve the photoelectrochemical (PEC) water-splitting performance of Cu{sub 2}O-based photocathodes. In this letter, the functions of the buffer layer and protective layer on Cu{sub 2}O are examined. It is found that a Ga{sub 2}O{sub 3} buffer layer can form a buried junction with Cu{sub 2}O, which inhibits Cu{sub 2}O self-reduction as well as increases the photovoltage through a small conduction band offset between the two semiconductors. The introduction of a TiO{sub 2} thin protective layer not only improves the stability of the photocathode but alsomore » enhances the electron transfer from the photocathode surface into the electrolyte, thus resulting in an increase in photocurrent at positive potentials. These results show that the selection of overlayers with appropriate conduction band positions provides an effective strategy for obtaining a high photovoltage and high photocurrent in PEC systems.« less

  18. Fabrication of CIS Absorber Layers with Different Thicknesses Using A Non-Vacuum Spray Coating Method

    PubMed Central

    Diao, Chien-Chen; Kuo, Hsin-Hui; Tzou, Wen-Cheng; Chen, Yen-Lin; Yang, Cheng-Fu

    2014-01-01

    In this study, a new thin-film deposition process, spray coating method (SPM), was investigated to deposit the high-densified CuInSe2 absorber layers. The spray coating method developed in this study was a non-vacuum process, based on dispersed nano-scale CuInSe2 precursor and could offer a simple, inexpensive, and alternative formation technology for CuInSe2 absorber layers. After spraying on Mo/glass substrates, the CuInSe2 thin films were annealed at 550 °C by changing the annealing time from 5 min to 30 min in a selenization furnace, using N2 as atmosphere. When the CuInSe2 thin films were annealed, without extra Se or H2Se gas used as the compensation source during the annealing process. The aim of this project was to investigate the influence of annealing time on the densification and crystallization of the CuInSe2 absorber layers to optimize the quality for cost effective solar cell production. The thickness of the CuInSe2 absorber layers could be controlled as the volume of used dispersed CuInSe2-isopropyl alcohol solution was controlled. In this work, X-ray diffraction patterns, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and Hall parameter measurements were performed in order to verify the quality of the CuInSe2 absorber layers obtained by the Spray Coating Method. PMID:28788451

  19. H2 gas sensing properties of a ZnO/CuO and ZnO/CuO/Cu2O Heterostructures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ababii, N.; Postica, V.; Hoppe, M.; Adelung, R.; Lupan, O.; Railean, S.; Pauporté, T.; Viana, B.

    2017-03-01

    The most important parameters of gas sensors are sensitivity and especially high selectivity to specific chemical species. To improve these parameters we developed sensor structures based on layered semiconducting oxides, namely CuO/Cu2O, CuO:Zn/Cu2O:Zn, NiO/ZnO. In this work, the ZnO/CuxO (where x = 1, 2) bi-layer heterostructure were grown via a simple synthesis from chemical solution (SCS) at relatively low temperatures (< 95 °C), representing a combination of layered n-type and p-type semiconducting oxides which are widely used as sensing material for gas sensors. The main advantages of the developed device structures are given by simplicity of the synthesis and technological cost-efficiency. Structural investigations showed high crystallinity of synthesized layers confirming the presence of zinc oxide nanostructures on the surface of the copper oxide film deposited on glass substrate. Structural changes in morphology of grown nanostructures induced by post-grown thermal annealing were observed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) investigations, and were studied in detail. The influence of thermal annealing type on the optical properties was also investigated. As an example of practical applications, the ZnO/CuxO bi-layer heterojunctions and ZnO/CuO/Cu2O three-layered structures were integrated into sensor structures and were tested to different types of reducing gases at different operating temperatures (OPT), showing promising results for fabrication of selective gas sensors.

  20. Magnetic behaviour of multisegmented FeCoCu/Cu electrodeposited nanowires

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Núñez, A.; Pérez, L.; Abuín, M.; Araujo, J. P.; Proenca, M. P.

    2017-04-01

    Understanding the magnetic behaviour of multisegmented nanowires (NWs) is a major key for the application of such structures in future devices. In this work, magnetic/non-magnetic arrays of FeCoCu/Cu multilayered NWs electrodeposited in nanoporous alumina templates are studied. Contrarily to most reports on multilayered NWs, the magnetic layer thickness was kept constant (30 nm) and only the non-magnetic layer thickness was changed (0 to 80 nm). This allowed us to tune the interwire and intrawire interactions between the magnetic layers in the NW array creating a three-dimensional (3D) magnetic system without the need to change the template characteristics. Magnetic hysteresis loops, measured with the applied field parallel and perpendicular to the NWs’ long axis, showed the effect of the non-magnetic Cu layer on the overall magnetic properties of the NW arrays. In particular, introducing Cu layers along the magnetic NW axis creates domain wall nucleation sites that facilitate the magnetization reversal of the wires, as seen by the decrease in the parallel coercivity and the reduction of the perpendicular saturation field. By further increasing the Cu layer thickness, the interactions between the magnetic segments, both along the NW axis and of neighbouring NWs, decrease, thus rising again the parallel coercivity and the perpendicular saturation field. This work shows how one can easily tune the parallel and perpendicular magnetic properties of a 3D magnetic layer system by adjusting the non-magnetic layer thickness.

  1. Approaches in controllable generation of artificial pinning center in REBa2Cu3O y -coated conductor for high-flux pinning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yoshida, Y.; Miura, S.; Tsuchiya, Y.; Ichino, Y.; Awaji, S.; Matsumoto, K.; Ichinose, A.

    2017-10-01

    This paper reviews the progress of studies to determine optimum shapes of the artificial pinning center (APC) of REBa2Cu3O y thin films and coated conductors towards superconducting magnets operating at temperatures of 77 K or less. Superconducting properties vary depending on the kind and quantity of BaMO3 materials. Therefore, we study changes in the shapes of nanorods that are due to the difference in the quality of additives and growth temperature. In addition, we aim to control the APC using an optimum shape that matches the operating temperature. In particular, we describe the shape control of nanorods in SmBCO thin films and coated conductors by employing lower temperature growth (LTG) technology using seed layers. From the cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy observations, we confirmed that using the LTG method, the BaHfO3 (BHO) nanorods, which were comparatively thin and short in length, formed a firework structure in the case of SmBCO films with coated conductors. The superconducting properties in the magnetic field of the SmBCO-coated conductor with the optimum amount of BHO showed that {F}{{p}}\\max = 1.6 TN m-3 on a single crystalline substrate and 1.5 TN m-3 on metallic substrate with a biaxially textured MgO layer fabricated by ion-beam assisted deposition method tape 4.2 K.

  2. High performance batch production of LREBa 2Cu 3O y using novel thin film Nd-123 seed

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Muralidhar, M.; Suzuki, K.; Fukumoto, Y.; Ishihara, A.; Tomita, M.

    2011-11-01

    A batch production for fabrication of LREBa2Cu3Oy (LRE: Sm, Gd, NEG) "LRE-123" pellets are developed in air and Ar-1% O2 using a novel thin film Nd-123 seeds grown on MgO crystals. The SEM and XRD results conformed that the quality and orientation of the seed crystals are excellent. On the other hand, new seeds can withstand temperatures >1100 °C, as a result, the cold seeding process was applied even to grow Sm-123 material in Air. The trapped field observed in the best 45 mm single-grain puck of Gd-123 was in the range of 1.35 T and 0.35 T at 77.3 K and 87.3 K, respectively. The average trapped field at 77.3 K in the 24 mm diameter NEG-123 samples batch lies between 0.9 and 1 T. The maximum trapped field of 1.2 T was recorded at the sample surface. Further, the maximum trapped field of 0.23 T at 77 K was recorded in a sample with 16 mm diameter of Sm-123 with 3 mol% BaO2 addition. As a result we made more then 130 single grain pucks within a couple of months. Taking advantage of the single grain batch processed material, we constructed self-made chilled levitation disk, which was used on the open day of railway technical research Institute. More then 150 children stood on the levitation disk and revel the experience of levitation. The present results prove that a high-performance good-quality class of LREBa2Cu3Oy material can be made by using a novel thin film Nd-123 seeds.

  3. Enhancing the stability of copper chromite catalysts for the selective hydrogenation of furfural using ALD overcoating

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhang, Hongbo; Lei, Yu; Kropf, A. Jeremy

    2014-08-01

    The stability of a gas-phase furfural hydrogenation catalyst (CuCr2O4 center dot CuO) was enhanced by depositing a thin Al2O3 layer using atomic layer deposition (ALD). Based on temperature-programed reduction (TPR) measurements, the reduction temperature of Cu was raised significantly, and the activation energy for furfural reduction was decreased following the ALD treatment. Thinner ALD layers yielded higher furfural hydrogenation activities. X-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) spectroscopy studies indicated that Cu1+/Cu-0 are the active species for furfural reduction.

  4. Electrochemical, Structural and Magnetic Analysis of Electrodeposited CoCu/Cu Multilayers: Influence of Cu Layer Deposition Potential

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tekgül, Atakan; Kockar, Hakan; Kuru, Hilal; Alper, Mürsel; ÜnlÜ, C. Gökhan

    2018-03-01

    The electrochemical, structural and magnetic properties of CoCu/Cu multilayers electrodeposited at different cathode potentials were investigated from a single bath. The Cu layer deposition potentials were selected as - 0.3, V - 0.4 V, and - 0.5 V with respect to saturated calomel electrode (SCE) while the Co layer deposition potential was constant at - 1.5 V versus SCE. For the electrochemical analysis, the current-time transients were obtained. The amount of noble non-magnetic (Cu) metal materials decreased with the increase of deposition potentials due to anomalous codeposition. Further, current-time transient curves for the Co layer deposition and capacitance were calculated. In the structural analysis, the multilayers were found to be polycrystalline with both Co and Cu layers adopting the face-centered cubic structure. The (111) peak shifts towards higher angle with the increase of the deposition potentials. Also, the lattice parameters of the multilayers decrease from 0.3669 nm to 0.3610 nm with the increase of the deposition potentials from - 0.3 V to - 0.5 V, which corresponds to the bulk values of Cu and Co, respectively. The electrochemical and structural results demonstrate that the amount of Co atoms increased and the Cu atoms decreased in the layers with the increase of deposition potentials due to anomalous codeposition. For magnetic measurements, the saturation magnetizations, M_s obtained from the magnetic curves of the multilayers were obtained as 212 kA/m, 276 kA/m, and 366 kA/m with - 0.3 V, - 0.4 V, and - 0.5 V versus SCE, respectively. It is seen that the M_s values increased with the increase of the deposition potentials confirming the increase of the Co atoms and decrease of the Cu amount. The results of electrochemical and structural analysis show that the deposition potentials of non-magnetic layers plays important role on the amount of magnetic and non-magnetic materials in the layers and thus on the magnetic properties of the multilayers.

  5. Room temperature growth of ZnO nanorods by hydrothermal synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tateyama, Hiroki; Zhang, Qiyan; Ichikawa, Yo

    2018-05-01

    The effect of seed layer morphology on ZnO nanorod growth at room temperature was studied via hydrothermal synthesis on seed layers with different thicknesses and further annealed at different temperatures. The change in the thickness and annealing temperature enabled us to control over a diameter of ZnO nanorods which are attributed to the changing of crystallinity and roughness of the seed layers.

  6. Enhanced sensitivity to near-infrared with high fill factor in small molecular organic solar cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shim, Hyun-Sub; Kim, Hyo Jung; Kim, Ji Whan; Kim, Sei-Yong; Jeong, Won-Ik; Kim, Tae-Min; Kim, Jang-Joo

    2012-09-01

    High efficiency near-infrared (NIR) absorbing solar cells based on lead phthalocyanine (PbPc) are reported using copper iodide (CuI) as a templating layer to control the crystal structure of PbPc. Devices with CuI inserted between the ITO and PbPc layers exhibit a two times enhancement of the JSC compared to the case in the absence of the CuI layer. This is due to the increase of crystallinity in the molecules grown on the CuI templating layer, which is investigated via an x-ray diffraction study. Moreover, fill factor is also enhanced to 0.63 from 0.57 due to low series resistance although the additional CuI layer is inserted between the ITO and the PbPc layer. As a result, the corrected power conversion efficiency of 2.5% was obtained, which is the highest one reported up to now among the PbPc based solar cells.

  7. In situ study of heavy ion irradiation response of immiscible Cu/Fe multilayers

    DOE PAGES

    Chen, Youxing; Li, Nan; Bufford, Daniel Charles; ...

    2016-04-09

    By providing active defect sinks that capture and annihilate radiation induced defect clusters immiscible metallic multilayers with incoherent interfaces can effectively reduce defect density in ion irradiated metals. Although it is anticipated that defect density within the layers should vary as a function of distance to the layer interface, there is, to date, little in situ TEM evidence to validate this hypothesis. In our study monolithic Cu films and Cu/Fe multilayers with individual layer thickness, h, of 100 and 5 nm were subjected to in situ Cu ion irradiation at room temperature to nominally 1 displacement-per-atom inside a transmission electronmore » microscope. Rapid formation and propagation of defect clusters were observed in monolithic Cu, whereas fewer defects with smaller dimensions were generated in Cu/Fe multilayers with smaller h. Moreover, in situ video shows that the cumulative defect density in Cu/Fe 100 nm multilayers indeed varies, as a function of distance to the layer interfaces, supporting a long postulated hypothesis.« less

  8. Mechanical properties of Cr-Cu coatings produced by electroplating

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Riyadi, Tri Widodo Besar; Sarjito, Masyrukan, Riswan, Ricky Ary

    2017-06-01

    Hard chromium coatings has long been considered as the most used electrodeposited coating in several industrial applications such as in petrochemistry, oil and gas industries. When hard coatings used in fastener components, the sliding contact during fastening operation produces high tensile stresses on the surface which can generate microcracks. For component used in high oxidation and corrosion environment, deep cracks cannot be tolerated. In this work, a laminated structure of Cr-Cu coating was prepared using electroplating on carbon steel substrates. Two baths of chrome and copper electrolyte solutions were prepared to deposit Cr as the first layer and Cu as the second layer. The effect of current voltages on the thickness, hardness and specific wear rate of the Cu layer was investigated. The results show that an increase of the current voltages increased the thickness and hardness of the Cu layer, but reduced the specific wear rate. This study showed that the use of Cu can be a potential candidate as a laminated structure Cr-Cu for chromium plating.

  9. Characterization and device performance of (AgCu)(InGa)Se2 absorber layers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hanket, Gregory; Boyle, Jonathan H.; Shafarman, William N.

    The study of (AgCu)(InGa)Se2 absorber layers is of interest in that Ag-chalcopyrites exhibit both wider bandgaps and lower melting points than their Cu counterparts. (AgCu)(InGa)Se2 absorber layers were deposited over the composition range 0 < Ag/(Ag+Cu) < 1 and 0.3 < Ga/(In+Ga) < 1.0 using a variety of elemental co-evaporation processes. Films were found to be singlephase over the entire composition range, in contrast to prior studies. Devices with Ga content 0.3 < Ga/(In+Ga) <0.5 tolerated Ag incorporation up to Ag/(Ag+Cu) = 0.5 without appreciable performance loss. Ag-containing films with Ga/(In+Ga) = 0.8 showed improved device characteristics over Cu-only controlmore » samples, in particular a 30-40% increase in short-circuit current. An absorber layer with composition Ag/(Ag+Cu) = 0.75 and Ga/(In+Ga) = 0.8 yielded a device with VOC = 890 mV, JSC = 20.5mA/cm2, fill factor = 71.3%, and η = 13.0%.« less

  10. Effect of metal ions on the enzymatic hydrolysis of hemp seed oil by lipase Candida sp. 99-125.

    PubMed

    Lu, Jike; Wang, Pei; Ke, Zhaodi; Liu, Xin; Kang, Qiaozhen; Hao, Limin

    2018-07-15

    In order to study the effect of metal ions on the enzymatic hydrolysis of hemp seed oil by Candida sp. 99-125, the spectroscopy, stability and hydrolytic activity of the biocatalyst were investigated in presence of Ca 2+ , Mg 2+ , Fe 2+ , Fe 3+ , Cu 2+ , Sn 2+ , Pb 2+ , Zn 2+ and Ba 2+ metal ions, respectively. The UV spectroscopy showed that all the metal ions enhanced the absorbance but the decrease of fluorescence intensity was observed. All the metal ions could improve the lipase thermal stability except Cu 2+ and Ba 2+ . Hydrolysis of hemp seed oil proved that Ca 2+ , Fe 3+ , Pb 2+ and Ba 2+ could significantly improve the hydrolytic rate, and metal ions could influence lipase selectivity. The study revealed that metal ions could improve lipase stability, hydrolysis activity in the hydrolytic process of hemp seed oil by Candida sp. 99-125. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Enormous excitonic effects in bulk, mono- and bi- layers of cuprous halides using many-body perturbation technique

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Azhikodan, Dilna; Nautiyal, Tashi

    2017-10-01

    Cuprous halides (CuX with X = Cl, Br, I), intensely studied about four decades ago by experimentalists for excitons, are again drawing attention of researchers recently. Potential of cuprous halide systems for device applications has not yet been fully explored. We go beyond the one-particle picture to capture the two-particle physics (electron-hole interaction to form excitons). We have deployed the full tool kit of many-body perturbation technique, GW approximation + Bethe Salpeter equation, to unfurl the rich excitonic physics of the bulk as well as layers of CuX. The negative spin-orbit contribution at the valence band top in CuCl, compared to CuBr and CuI, is in good agreement with experiments. We note that CuX have exceptionally strong excitons, defying the linear fit (between the excitonic binding energy and band gap) encompassing many semiconductors. The mono- and bi- layers of cuprous halides are predicted to be rich in excitons, with exceptionally large binding energies and the resonance energies in UV/visible region. Hence this work projects CuX layers as good candidates for optoelectronic applications. With advancement of technology, we look forward to experimental realization of CuX layers and harnessing of their rich excitonic potential.

  12. The role of seed bank in the dynamics of understorey in an oak forest in Hungary.

    PubMed

    Koncz, G; Papp, Mária; Török, P; Kotroczó, Zs; Krakomperger, Zs; Matus, G; Tóthmérész, B

    2010-01-01

    We studied the potential role of seed bank in the dynamics of the understorey in a turkey oak-sessile oak forest (Querceteum petraeae-cerris) in Hungary. We used long-term records of the herb layer (1973-2006) and the seed bank composition of 2006 to assess the role of seed bank in the regeneration of herb layer. The total cover of herb layer decreased from 22% (1973) to 6% (1988), and remained low (<10%) till 2006; coinciding with the increasing cover of secondary canopy dominated by Acer campestre. We found a low density seed bank (ca. 1300 seeds/m2). Altogether 33 species were germinated from the soil samples. A few generalist weed species composed the majority of seed bank. It was possible to assign a seed bank type for 19 species; 14 species out of 19 was long-term persistent. We found that the characteristic perennial forest herbs and grasses had only sparse seed bank. The Jaccard similarity between vegetation and seed bank was low (<30%). Our results suggest that the continuous establishment of forest herbs are not based on local persistent seed bank; it should be based on vegetative spreading and/or seed rain.

  13. An Endosperm-Associated Cuticle Is Required for Arabidopsis Seed Viability, Dormancy and Early Control of Germination

    PubMed Central

    Loubery, Sylvain; Utz-Pugin, Anne; Bailly, Christophe; Mène-Saffrané, Laurent; Lopez-Molina, Luis

    2015-01-01

    Cuticular layers and seeds are prominent plant adaptations to terrestrial life that appeared early and late during plant evolution, respectively. The cuticle is a waterproof film covering plant aerial organs preventing excessive water loss and protecting against biotic and abiotic stresses. Cutin, consisting of crosslinked fatty acid monomers, is the most abundant and studied cuticular component. Seeds are dry, metabolically inert structures promoting plant dispersal by keeping the plant embryo in an arrested protected state. In Arabidopsis thaliana seeds, the embryo is surrounded by a single cell endosperm layer itself surrounded by a seed coat layer, the testa. Whole genome analyses lead us to identify cutin biosynthesis genes as regulatory targets of the phytohormones gibberellins (GA) and abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathways that control seed germination. Cutin-containing layers are present in seed coats of numerous species, including Arabidopsis, where they regulate permeability to outer compounds. However, the role of cutin in mature seed physiology and germination remains poorly understood. Here we identify in mature seeds a thick cuticular film covering the entire outer surface of the endosperm. This seed cuticle is defective in cutin-deficient bodyguard1 seeds, which is associated with alterations in endospermic permeability. Furthermore, mutants affected in cutin biosynthesis display low seed dormancy and viability levels, which correlates with higher levels of seed lipid oxidative stress. Upon seed imbibition cutin biosynthesis genes are essential to prevent endosperm cellular expansion and testa rupture in response to low GA synthesis. Taken together, our findings suggest that in the course of land plant evolution cuticular structures were co-opted to achieve key physiological seed properties. PMID:26681322

  14. An Endosperm-Associated Cuticle Is Required for Arabidopsis Seed Viability, Dormancy and Early Control of Germination.

    PubMed

    De Giorgi, Julien; Piskurewicz, Urszula; Loubery, Sylvain; Utz-Pugin, Anne; Bailly, Christophe; Mène-Saffrané, Laurent; Lopez-Molina, Luis

    2015-12-01

    Cuticular layers and seeds are prominent plant adaptations to terrestrial life that appeared early and late during plant evolution, respectively. The cuticle is a waterproof film covering plant aerial organs preventing excessive water loss and protecting against biotic and abiotic stresses. Cutin, consisting of crosslinked fatty acid monomers, is the most abundant and studied cuticular component. Seeds are dry, metabolically inert structures promoting plant dispersal by keeping the plant embryo in an arrested protected state. In Arabidopsis thaliana seeds, the embryo is surrounded by a single cell endosperm layer itself surrounded by a seed coat layer, the testa. Whole genome analyses lead us to identify cutin biosynthesis genes as regulatory targets of the phytohormones gibberellins (GA) and abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathways that control seed germination. Cutin-containing layers are present in seed coats of numerous species, including Arabidopsis, where they regulate permeability to outer compounds. However, the role of cutin in mature seed physiology and germination remains poorly understood. Here we identify in mature seeds a thick cuticular film covering the entire outer surface of the endosperm. This seed cuticle is defective in cutin-deficient bodyguard1 seeds, which is associated with alterations in endospermic permeability. Furthermore, mutants affected in cutin biosynthesis display low seed dormancy and viability levels, which correlates with higher levels of seed lipid oxidative stress. Upon seed imbibition cutin biosynthesis genes are essential to prevent endosperm cellular expansion and testa rupture in response to low GA synthesis. Taken together, our findings suggest that in the course of land plant evolution cuticular structures were co-opted to achieve key physiological seed properties.

  15. Numerical analysis and optimization of Cu2O/TiO2, CuO/TiO2, heterojunction solar cells using SCAPS

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sawicka-Chudy, Paulina; Sibiński, Maciej; Wisz, Grzegorz; Rybak-Wilusz, Elżbieta; Cholewa, Marian

    2018-05-01

    In the presented work, the Cu2O/TiO2 and CuO/TiO2 heterojunction solar cells have been analyzed by the help of Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator (SCAPS). The effects of various layer parameters like thickness and defect density on the cell performance have been studied in details. Numerical analysis showed how the absorber (CuO, Cu2O) and buffer (TiO2) layers thickness influence the short-circuit current density (Jsc) and efficiency (η) of solar cells. Optimized solar cell structures of Cu2O/TiO2 and CuO/TiO2 showed a potential efficiency of ∼9 and ∼23%, respectively, under the AM1.5G spectrum. Additionally, external quantum efficiency (EQE) curves of the CuO/TiO2 and Cu2O/TiO2 solar cells for various layers thickness of TiO2 were calculated and the optical band gap (Eg) for CuO and Cu2O was obtained. Finally, we examined the effects of defect density on the photovoltaic parameters.

  16. Preparation of freestanding GaN wafer by hydride vapor phase epitaxy on porous silicon

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Xian; Li, Peng; Liang, Renrong; Xiao, Lei; Xu, Jun; Wang, Jing

    2018-05-01

    A freestanding GaN wafer was prepared on porous Si (111) substrate using hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE). To avoid undesirable effects of the porous surface on the crystallinity of the GaN, a GaN seed layer was first grown on the Si (111) bare wafer. A pattern with many apertures was fabricated in the GaN seed layer using lithography and etching processes. A porous layer was formed in the Si substrate immediately adjacent to the GaN seed layer by an anodic etching process. A 500-μm-thick GaN film was then grown on the patterned GaN seed layer using HVPE. The GaN film was separated from the Si substrate through the formation of cracks in the porous layer caused by thermal mismatch stress during the cooling stage of the HVPE. Finally, the GaN film was polished to obtain a freestanding GaN wafer.

  17. Effect of protein adsorption on the corrosion behavior of 70Cu-30Ni alloy in artificial seawater.

    PubMed

    Torres Bautista, Blanca E; Carvalho, Maria L; Seyeux, Antoine; Zanna, Sandrine; Cristiani, Pierangela; Tribollet, Bernard; Marcus, Philippe; Frateur, Isabelle

    2014-06-01

    Copper alloys often used in cooling circuits of industrial plants can be affected by biocorrosion induced by biofilm formation. The objective of this work was to study the influence of protein adsorption, which is the first step in biofilm formation, on the electrochemical behavior of 70Cu-30Ni (wt.%) alloy in static artificial seawater and on the chemical composition of oxide layers. For that purpose, electrochemical measurements performed after 1h of immersion were combined to surface analyses. A model is proposed to analyze impedance data. In the presence of bovine serum albumin (BSA, model protein), the anodic charge transfer resistance deduced from EIS data at Ecorr is slightly higher, corresponding to lower corrosion current. Without BSA, two oxidized layers are shown by XPS and ToF-SIMS: an outer layer mainly composed of copper oxide (Cu2O redeposited layer) and an inner layer mainly composed of oxidized nickel, with a global thickness of ~30nm. The presence of BSA leads to a mixed oxide layer (CuO, Cu2O, Ni(OH)2) with a lower thickness (~10nm). Thus, the protein induces a decrease of the dissolution rate at Ecorr and hence a decrease of the amount of redeposited Cu2O and of the oxide layer thickness. © 2013.

  18. Catalyst-free growth of ZnO nanowires on ITO seed/glass by thermal evaporation method: Effects of ITO seed layer thickness

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Alsultany, Forat H., E-mail: foratusm@gmail.com; Ahmed, Naser M.; Hassan, Z.

    A seed/catalyst-free growth of ZnO nanowires (ZnO-NWs) on a glass substrate were successfully fabricated using thermal evaporation technique. These nanowires were grown on ITO seed layers of different thicknesses of 25 and 75 nm, which were deposited on glass substrates by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. Prior to synthesized ITO nanowires, the sputtered ITO seeds were annealed using the continuous wave (CW) CO2 laser at 450 °C in air for 15 min. The effect of seed layer thickness on the morphological, structural, and optical properties of ZnO-NWs were systematically investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM),more » and UV-Vis spectrophotometer.« less

  19. Copper and nickel hexacyanoferrate nanostructures with graphene-coated stainless steel sheets for electrochemical supercapacitors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wu, Mao-Sung; Lyu, Li-Jyun; Syu, Jhih-Hao

    2015-11-01

    Copper and nickel hexacyanoferrate (CuHCF and NiHCF) nanostructures featuring three-dimensional open-framework tunnels are prepared using a solution-based coprecipitation process. CuHCF shows superior supercapacitive behavior than the NiHCF, due to the presence of numerous macropores in CuHCF particles for facilitating the transport of electrolyte. Both CuHCF and NiHCF electrodes with stainless steel (SS) substrate tend to lose their electroactivity towards intercalation/deintercalation of hydrated potassium ions owing to the partial corrosion of SS. Formation of a protective and conductive carbon layer in between SS and CuHCF (NiHCF) film is of paramount importance for improving the irreversible loss of electroactivity. Thin and compact graphene (GN) layer without observable holes in its normal plane is the most effective way to suppress the corrosion of SS compared with porous carbon nanotube and activated carbon layers. Specific capacitance of CuHCF electrode with GN layer (CuHCF/GN/SS) reaches 570 F g-1, which is even better than that of CuHCF with Pt substrate (500 F g-1) at 1 A g-1. The CuHCF/GN/SS exhibits high stability with 96% capacitance retention over 1000 cycles, greater than the CuHCF with Pt (75%).

  20. Studies of surface morphology and optical properties of ZnO nanostructures grown on different molarities of TiO{sub 2} seed layer

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Asib, N. A. M., E-mail: amierahasib@yahoo.com; Afaah, A. N.; Aadila, A.

    Titanium dioxide (TiO{sub 2}) seed layer was prepared by using sol-gel spin-coating technique, followed by growth of 0.01 M of Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures by solution-immersion. The molarities of TiO{sub 2} seed layer were varied from 1.1 M to 0.100 M on glass substrates. The nanostructures thin films were characterized by Field Emission Scanning Electrons Microscope (FESEM), Photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy. FESEM images demonstrate that needle-like ZnO nanostructures are formed on all TiO{sub 2} seed layer. The smallest diameter of needle-like ZnO nanostructures (90.3 nm) were deposited on TiO{sub 2} seed layer of 0.100 M. PL spectramore » of the TiO{sub 2}: ZnO nanostructures thin films show the blue shifted emissions in the UV regions compared to the ZnO thin film. Meanwhile, UV-vis spectra of films display high absorption in the UV region and high trasparency in the visible region. The highest absorbance at UV region was recorded for sample which has 0.100 M of TiO{sub 2} seed layer.« less

  1. Enhancement in light harvesting ability of photoactive layer P3HT: PCBM using CuO nanoparticles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tiwari, D. C.; Dwivedi, Shailendra Kumar; Dipak, Pukhrambam; Chandel, Tarun

    2018-05-01

    In this paper, we have synthesized CuO nanoparticles via precipitation method and incorporated CuO nanoparticles in the P3HT-poly (3-hexyl) thiophene: PCBM-[6, 6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester heterogeneous blend. The ratio of P3HT to CuO in the blend was varied, while maintaining the fixed ratio of PCBM. The UV-visible absorption spectra of P3HT: PCBM photoactive layer containing different weight percentages of CuO nanoparticles showed a clear enhancement in the photo absorption of the active layer. The absorption band starts from 310 nm to 750 nm for P3HT: CuO (NPs):PCBM (0.5:0.5:1). This shows that incorporation of CuO nanoparticles leads to larger absorption band. In addition, the X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows improvement in P3HT crystallinity and the better formation of CuO nanostructures.

  2. Simple electrodepositing of CoFe/Cu multilayers: Effect of ferromagnetic layer thicknesses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tekgül, Atakan; Alper, Mürsel; Kockar, Hakan

    2017-01-01

    The CoFe/Cu magnetic multilayers were produced by changing CoFe ferromagnetic layers from 3 nm to 10 nm using electrodeposition. By now, the thinnest Cu (0.5 nm) layer thicknesses were used to see whether the GMR effect in the multilayers can be obtained or not since the pinning of non-magnetic layer between the ferromagnetic layers is required. For the proper depositions, the cyclic voltammograms was used, and the current-time transients were obtained. The Cu and CoFe layers were deposited at a cathode potential of -0.3 and -1.5 V with respect to saturated calomel electrode, respectively. From the XRD patterns, the multilayers were shown to be fcc crystal structures. For the magnetization measurements, saturation magnetization increases from 160 to 600 kA/m from 3 to 8 nm ferromagnetic layer thicknesses. And, the coercivity values increase until the 8 nm of the CoFe layer thickness. It is seen that the thin Cu layer (fixed at 0.5 nm) and pinholes support the random magnetization orientation and thus all multilayers exhibited the giant magnetoresistance (GMR) effect, and the highest GMR value was observed about 5.5%. And, the variation of GMR field sensitivity was calculated. The results show that the GMR and GMR sensitivity are compatible among the multilayers. The CoFe/Cu magnetic multilayers having GMR properties are used in GMR sensors and hard disk drive of the nano-technological devices.

  3. Electronic properties and morphology of copper oxide/n-type silicon heterostructures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lindberg, P. F.; Gorantla, S. M.; Gunnæs, A. E.; Svensson, B. G.; Monakhov, E. V.

    2017-08-01

    Silicon-based tandem heterojunction solar cells utilizing cuprous oxide (Cu2O) as the top absorber layer show promise for high-efficiency conversion and low production cost. In the present study, single phase Cu2O films have been realized on n-type Si substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering at 400 °C. The obtained Cu2O/Si heterostructures have subsequently been heat treated at temperatures in the 400-700 °C range in Ar flow and extensively characterized by x-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) imaging and electrical techniques. The Cu2O/Si heterojunction exhibits a current rectification of ~5 orders of magnitude between forward and reverse bias voltages. High resolution cross-sectional TEM-images show the presence of a ~2 nm thick interfacial SiO2 layer between Cu2O and the Si substrate. Heat treatments below 550 °C result in gradual improvement of crystallinity, indicated by XRD. At and above 550 °C, partial phase transition to cupric oxide (CuO) occurs followed by a complete transition at 700 °C. No increase or decrease of the SiO2 layer is observed after the heat treatment at 550 °C. Finally, a thin Cu-silicide layer (Cu3Si) emerges below the SiO2 layer upon annealing at 550 °C. This silicide layer influences the lateral current and voltage distributions, as evidenced by an increasing effective area of the heterojunction diodes.

  4. Atomic layer deposition of Cu( i ) oxide films using Cu( ii ) bis(dimethylamino-2-propoxide) and water

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Avila, J. R.; Peters, A. W.; Li, Zhanyong

    2017-01-01

    To grow fIlms of Cu2O, bis-(dimethylamino-2-propoxide)Cu(II), or Cu(dmap), is used as an atomic layer deposition precursor using only water vapor as a co-reactant. Between 110 and 175 °C, a growth rate of 0.12 ± 0.02 Å per cycle was measured using an in situ quartz crystal microbalance (QCM). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirms the growth of metal– oxide films featuring Cu(I).

  5. Diffusion induced atomic islands on the surface of Ni/Cu nanolayers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Takáts, Viktor; Csik, Attila; Hakl, József; Vad, Kálmán

    2018-05-01

    Surface islands formed by grain-boundary diffusion has been studied in Ni/Cu nanolayers by in-situ low energy ion scattering spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning probe microscopy and ex-situ depth profiling based on ion sputtering. In this paper a new experimental approach of measurement of grain-boundary diffusion coefficients is presented. Appearing time of copper atoms diffused through a few nanometer thick nickel layer has been detected by low energy ion scattering spectroscopy with high sensitivity. The grain-boundary diffusion coefficient can be directly calculated from this appearing time without using segregation factors in calculations. The temperature range of 423-463 K insures the pure C-type diffusion kinetic regime. The most important result is that surface coverage of Ni layer by Cu atoms reaches a maximum during annealing and stays constant if the annealing procedure is continued. Scanning probe microscopy measurements show a Volmer-Weber type layer growth of Cu layer on the Ni surface in the form of Cu atomic islands. Depth distribution of Cu in Ni layer has been determined by depth profile analysis.

  6. Spin-filter spin valves with nano-oxide layers for high density recording heads

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Al-Jibouri, Abdul; Hoban, M.; Lu, Z.; Pan, G.

    2002-05-01

    A new spin-filter spin valve with nano-oxide specular layers with structure of Ta/NiFe/IrMn/CoFe/NOL1/CoFe/Cu/CoFetfl/CutCu/NOL2/Ta was deposited using a Nordiko 9606 physical vapor deposition system. The data clearly show that the magnetoresistive (MR) ratio has been significantly improved for spin valves with thinner free layers. The MR ratio remains larger than 12% even when the CoFe free layer is as thin as 1 nm. An optimized MR ratio of ˜15% was obtained when tfl was about 1.2 nm and tCu about 1.5 nm, and was a result of the balance between the increase in the electron mean free path difference and current shunting through the conducting layer. It is also found that the Cu enhancing layer can improve soft magnetic properties of the CoFe free layer due to the low atomic intermixing observed between Co and Cu. The CoFe free layer of 1-4 nm exhibited coercivity of ˜3 Oe after annealing in a static magnetic field. This kind of spin valve with a very thin soft CoFe free layer is particularly attractive for ultra high density read head applications.

  7. Development of Cu Clad Cu-Zr Based Metallic Glass and Its Solderability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Terajima, Takeshi; Kimura, Hisamichi; Inoue, Akihisa

    Soldering is a candidate technique for joining metallic glasses. It can be processed far below the crystallization temperatures of the various metallic glasses so that there is no possibility of crystallization. However, wettability of Cu-Zr based metallic glass by Pb free solder is poor because a strong surface oxide film interferes direct contact between them. To overcome the problem, Cu thin film clad metallic glass was developed. It was preliminary produced by casting a melt of Cu36Zr48Al8Ag8 pre-alloy into Cu mold cavity, inside which Cu thin film with 2 mm in thickness was set on the wall. Cu36Zr48Al8Ag8 metallic glass, whose surface Cu thin film was welded to, was successfully produced. From the microstructure analyses, it was found that reaction layer was formed at the interface between Cu and Cu36Zr48Al8Ag8 metallic glass, however, there was no oxide in the Cu clad layer. Solderability to the metallic glass was drastically increased. The Cu clad layer played an important role to prevent the formation of surface oxide film and consequently improved the solderability.

  8. Separation of spin Seebeck effect and anomalous Nernst effect in Co/Cu/YIG

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Tian, Dai; State Key Laboratory of Surface Physics and Department of Physics, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433; Li, Yufan

    2015-05-25

    The spin Seebeck effect (SSE) and Anomalous Nernst effect (ANE) have been observed in Co/Cu/YIG (yttrium iron garnet) multi-layer structure, where the ferromagnetic insulator YIG acts as the pure spin injector and the ferromagnetic metal Co layer acts as the spin current detector. With the insertion of 5 nm Cu layer, the two ferromagnetic layers are decoupled, thus allowing unambiguous separation of the SSE and ANE contributions under the same experimental conditions in the same sample.

  9. Separation of spin Seebeck effect and anomalous Nernst effect in Co/Cu/YIG

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Tian, Dai; Li, Yufan; Qu, D.

    2015-05-25

    The spin Seebeck effect (SSE) and Anomalous Nernst effect (ANE) have been observed in Co/Cu/YIG (yttrium iron garnet) multi-layer structure, where the ferromagnetic insulator YIG acts as the pure spin injector and the ferromagnetic metal Co layer acts as the spin current detector. With the insertion of 5 nm Cu layer, the two ferromagnetic layers are decoupled, thus allowing unambiguous separation of the SSE and ANE contributions under the same experimental conditions in the same sample.

  10. Corrosion resistance of monolayer hexagonal boron nitride on copper

    PubMed Central

    Mahvash, F.; Eissa, S.; Bordjiba, T.; Tavares, A. C.; Szkopek, T.; Siaj, M.

    2017-01-01

    Hexagonal boron nitride (hBN) is a layered material with high thermal and chemical stability ideal for ultrathin corrosion resistant coatings. Here, we report the corrosion resistance of Cu with hBN grown by chemical vapor deposition (CVD). Cyclic voltammetry measurements reveal that hBN layers inhibit Cu corrosion and oxygen reduction. We find that CVD grown hBN reduces the Cu corrosion rate by one order of magnitude compared to bare Cu, suggesting that this ultrathin layer can be employed as an atomically thin corrosion-inhibition coating. PMID:28191822

  11. Electroless plating Cu-Co-P polyalloy on UV/ozonolysis irradiated polyethylene terephthalate film and its corrosion resistance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hou, Lei; Bi, Siyi; Zhao, Hang; Xu, Yumeng; Mu, Yuhang; Lu, Yinxiang

    2017-05-01

    High corrosion resistant Cu-Co-P coatings were firstly prepared on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate by electroless plating in combination with UV/ozonolysis irradiation under optimized cobalt sulfate heptahydrate concentration, pH value, plating temperature and time. The copper polyalloy/PET composite can be obtained in three steps, namely: (i) the generation of oxygen-containing functionalities (carboxylic groups) onto PET surface through UV irradiation combined with ozone, (ii) Cu seeding catalysts were obtained after being immersed into cupric citrate and NaBH4 solutions subsequently, and (iii) Cu-Co-P polyalloy metallization using electroless plating bath. Attenuated total reflection fourier transformation infrared spectrometer (ATR-FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), water contact angle measurement and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) were utilized to track the surface changes during the whole process. The electroless plating conditions were optimized by an orthogonal experiment (L9(3)4) for Cu-Co-P coating as follows: CoSO4·7H2O addition of 0.08 M, pH value, plating temperature and time were set on 10.0, 35 °C and 25 min, respectively. Under the optimal conditions, copper polyalloy possessed high adhesive strength and the lowest surface resistance (8.06 Ω/sq), while maintaining reliability even after over 1000 times of bending and mechanical stress. The results of scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) measurements showed that Cu-Co-P layer formed on PET surface was imparted with fine uniformity and high compactness. Electrochemical test revealed the optimized Cu-Co-P coatings exhibited high corrosion resistance in NaCl, NaOH and HCl solutions, respectively. The excellent electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness (EMI SE >99.999% at frequency ranging from 30 MHz to 1000 MHz) of copper polyalloy/PET composites was confirmed by the spectrum analyzer. Therefore, this copper polyalloy will have potential applications in microelectronics packaging and coatings for anti-corrosion and electromagnetic interference shielding.

  12. Effect of Mn Nanoparticles on Interfacial Intermetallic Compound Growth in Low-Ag Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu- xMn Solder Joints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Y.; Luo, S. M.; Li, G. Y.; Yang, Z.; Chen, R.; Han, Y.; Hou, C. J.

    2018-02-01

    Interfacial intermetallic compound (IMC) growth between Cu substrates and low-Ag Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu- xMn ( x = 0 wt.%, 0.02 wt.%, 0.05 wt.%, 0.1 wt.%, and 0.15 wt.%) (SAC0307- xMn) solders was investigated under different isothermal aging temperatures of 100°C, 150°C, and 190°C. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was employed to observe the microstructural evolution of the solder joints and measure the IMC layer thickness. The IMC phases were identified by energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction. The results showed that a Cu6Sn5 IMC layer formed in the as-soldered solder joints, while a duplex structure consisting of a Cu6Sn5 IMC layer near the solder matrix and a Cu3Sn IMC layer was observed after isothermal aging. A considerable drop in the IMC layer thickness was observed when 0.1 wt.% Mn nanoparticles were added. Beyond this amount, the thickness of the IMC layer only slightly increases. Adding Mn nanoparticles can increase the activation energy and thus reduce the interdiffusion rates of the Sn and Cu atoms, which suppresses excessive IMC growth. The solder joint containing 0.1 wt.% Mn nanoparticles has the highest activation energy. SEM images revealed that the number of small particles precipitated in the channels between the Cu6Sn5 IMC layers increases with an increasing proportion of Mn nanoparticles. Based on the microstructural evolution of the solder joints, this study revealed that grain boundary pinning is one of the most important mechanisms for IMC growth inhibition when Mn nanoparticles are added.

  13. AIRBORNE BACTERIA IN THE ATMOSPHERIC SURFACE LAYER: TEMPORAL DISTRIBUTION ABOVE A GRASS SEED FIELD

    EPA Science Inventory

    Temporal airborne bacterial concentrations and meteorological conditions were measured above a grass seed field in the Willamette River Valley, near Corvallis, Oregon, in the summer of 1993. he report describes the changes in the atmospheric surface layer over a grass seed field ...

  14. A 3D complex containing novel 2D Cu{sup II}-azido layers: Structure, magnetic properties and effects of 'Non-innocent' reagent

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gao, Xue-Miao; Guo, Qian; Zhao, Jiong-Peng, E-mail: horryzhao@yahoo.com

    A novel copper-azido coordination polymer, [Cu{sub 2}(N{sub 3}){sub 3}(L)]{sub n} (1, HL=pyrazine-2-carboxylic acid), has been synthesized by hydrothermal reaction with 'Non-innocent' reagent in the aqueous solution. In the reaction system, Cu{sup II} ions are avoided to reduce to Cu{sup I} ions due to the existence of Nd{sup III}. It is found that the complex is a 3D structure based on two double EO azido bridged trimmers and octahedron Cu{sup II} ions, in which the azide ligands take on EO and {mu}{sub 1,1,3} mode to form Cu{sup II}-azido 2D layers, furthermore L ligands pillar 2D layers into an infinite 3D frameworkmore » with the Schlaefli symbol of {l_brace}4;6{sup 2}{r_brace}4{l_brace}4{sup 2};6{sup 12};8{sup 10};10{sup 4}{r_brace}{l_brace}4{sup 2};6{sup 4}{r_brace}. Magnetic studies revealed that the interactions between the Cu{sup II} ions in the trimmer are ferromagnetic for the Cu-N-Cu angle nearly 98 Degree-Sign , while the interactions between the trimmer and octahedron Cu{sup II} ion are antiferromgantic and result in an antiferromagnetic state. - Graphical abstract: A 3D complex containing novel 2D Cu{sup II}-azido layers, [Cu{sub 2}(N{sub 3}){sub 3}(L)]{sub n} (HL=pyrazine-2-carboxylic acid), was synthesized by hydrothermal reaction and exhibit interesting structure and magnetic properties. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer 'Non-innocent' reagents plays a key role in the process of formation of this complex. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer 2D layer is formed only by Cu{sup II} ions and azido ligands. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Pyrazine-2-carboxylate ligands reinforce 2D layers and pillar them into an infinite 3D framework. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Magnetic study indicates that alternating FM-AF coupling exists in the complex.« less

  15. Crystal structure and magnetism of layered perovskites compound EuBaCuFeO5

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lal, Surender; Mukherjee, K.; Yadav, C. S.

    2018-04-01

    Layered perovskite compounds have interesting multiferroic properties.YBaCuFeO5 is one of the layered perovskite compounds which have magnetic and dielectric transition above 200 K. The multiferroic properties can be tuned with the replacement of Y with some other rare earth ions. In this manuscript, structural and magnetic properties of layered perovskite compound EuBaCuFeO5 have been investigated. This compound crystallizes in the tetragonal structure with P4mm space group and is iso-structural with YBaCuFeO5. The magnetic transition has been found to shift to 120 K as compared to YBaCuFeO5 which has the transition at 200 K. This shift in the magnetic transition has been ascribed to the decrease in the chemical pressure that relaxes the magnetic moments.

  16. Characterization of Y-Ba-Cu-O thin films and yttria-stabilized zirconia intermediate layers on metal alloys grown by pulsed laser deposition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Reade, R. P.; Mao, X. L.; Russo, R. E.

    1991-08-01

    The use of an intermediate layer is necessary for the growth of YBaCuO thin films on polycrystalline metallic alloys for tape conductor applications. A pulsed laser deposition process to grow controlled-orientation yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) films as intermediate layers on Haynes Alloy No. 230 was developed and characterized. YBaCuO films deposited on these YSZ-coated substrates are primarily c-axis oriented and superconducting as deposited. The best YBaCuO films grow on (001)-oriented YSZ intermediate layers and have Tc (R = 0) = 86.0 K and Jc about 3000 A/sq cm at 77 K.

  17. Optimization of X-ray Absorbers for TES Microcalorimeters

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Iyomoto, Naoko; Sadleir, John E.; Figueroa-Feliciano, Enectali; Saab, Tarek; Bandler, Simon; Kilbourne, Caroline; Chervenak, James; Talley, Dorothy; Finkbeiner, Fred; Brekosky, Regis

    2004-01-01

    We have investigated the thermal, electrical, and structural properties of Bi and BiCu films that are being developed as X-ray absorbers for transition-edge sensor (TES) microcalorimeter arrays for imaging X-ray spectroscopy. Bi could be an ideal material for an X-ray absorber due to its high X-ray stopping power and low heat capacity, but it has a low thermal conductivity, which can result in position dependence of the pulses in the absorber. In order to improve the thermal conductivity, we added Cu layers in between the Bi layers. We measured electrical and thermal conductivities of the films around 0.1 K(sub 1) the operating temperature of the TES calorimeter, to examine the films and to determine the optimal thickness of the Cu layer. From the electrical conductivity measurements, we found that the Cu is more resistive on the Bi than on a Si substrate. Together with an SEM picture of the Bi surface, we concluded that the rough surface of the Bi film makes the Cu layer resistive when the Cu layer is not thick enough t o fill in the roughness. From the thermal conductivity measurements, we determined the thermal diffusion constant to be 2 x l0(exp 3) micrometers squared per microsecond in a film that consists of 2.25 micrometers of Bi and 0.1 micrometers of Cu. We measured the position dependence in the film and found that its thermal diffusion constant is too low to get good energy resolution, because of the resistive Cu layer and/or possibly a very high heat capacity of our Bi films. We show plans to improve the thermal diffusion constant in our BiCu absorbers.

  18. Wsbnd Cu functionally graded material: Low temperature fabrication and mechanical characterization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yusefi, Ali; Parvin, Nader; Mohammadi, Hossein

    2018-04-01

    In this study, we fabricated and characterized a Wsbnd Cu functionally graded material (FGM) with 11 layers, including a pure copper layer. Samples were prepared by mixing a mechanically alloyed Nisbnd Mnsbnd Cu powder with W and Cu powders, stacking the powders, pressing the stacked layers, and finally sintering at 1000 °C. The utilization of a Nisbnd Mnsbnd Cu system may reduce the cost but without losing the good sintering behavior and physical and mechanical properties. The composition of the material was analyzed based on scanning electron microscopy images and by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping, which indicated that in the presence of Ni and Mn, the Cu atoms could diffuse into the W particles. All of the layers had a very high relative density, thereby indicating their densification and excellent sintering behavior. We also found that the porosity values in the Cu phase remained unchanged at approximately 2.39% across the FGM. Mechanical measurements showed that the hardness (72%), modulus of elasticity (61%), and ultimate tensile strength (58%) increased with the W content across the Wsbnd Cu FGM, whereas the fracture toughness (KIC) varied in the opposite manner (minimum of 4.52 MPa/m0.5).

  19. Tomato Seed Coat Permeability to Selected Carbon Nanomaterials and Enhancement of Germination and Seedling Growth

    PubMed Central

    Ratnikova, Tatsiana A.; Rao, Apparao M.; Taylor, Alan G.

    2015-01-01

    Seed coat permeability was examined using a model that tested the effects of soaking tomato (Solanum lycopersicon) seeds in combination with carbon-based nanomaterials (CBNMs) and ultrasonic irradiation (US). Penetration of seed coats to the embryo by CBNMs, as well as CBNMs effects on seed germination and seedling growth, was examined. Two CBNMs, C60(OH)20 (fullerol) and multiwalled nanotubes (MWNTs), were applied at 50 mg/L, and treatment exposure ranged from 0 to 60 minutes. Bright field, fluorescence, and electron microscopy and micro-Raman spectroscopy provided corroborating evidence that neither CBNM was able to penetrate the seed coat. The restriction of nanomaterial (NM) uptake was attributed to the semipermeable layer located at the innermost layer of the seed coat adjacent to the endosperm. Seed treatments using US at 30 or 60 minutes in the presence of MWNTs physically disrupted the seed coat; however, the integrity of the semipermeable layer was not impaired. The germination percentage and seedling length and weight were enhanced in the presence of MWNTs but were not altered by C60(OH)20. The combined exposure of seeds to NMs and US provided insight into the nanoparticle-seed interaction and may serve as a delivery system for enhancing seed germination and early seedling growth. PMID:26495423

  20. Self-assembled monolayer structures of hexadecylamine on Cu surfaces: density-functional theory.

    PubMed

    Liu, Shih-Hsien; Balankura, Tonnam; Fichthorn, Kristen A

    2016-12-07

    We used dispersion-corrected density-functional theory to probe possible structures for adsorbed layers of hexadecylamine (HDA) on Cu(100) and Cu(111). HDA forms self-assembled layers on these surfaces, analogous to alkanethiols on various metal surfaces, and it binds by donating electrons in the amine group to the Cu surface atoms, consistent with experiment. van der Waals interactions between the alkyl tails of HDA molecules are stronger than the interaction between the amine group and the Cu surfaces. Strong HDA-tail interactions lead to coverage-dependent tilting of the HDA layers, such that the tilt angle is larger for lower coverages. At full monolayer coverage, the energetically preferred binding configuration for HDA on Cu(100) is a (5 × 3) pattern - although we cannot rule out incommensurate structures - while the pattern is preferred on Cu(111). A major motivation for this study is to understand the experimentally observed capability of HDA as a capping agent for producing {100}-faceted Cu nanocrystals. Consistent with experiment, we find that HDA binds more strongly to Cu(100) than to Cu(111). This strong binding stems from the capability of HDA to form more densely packed layers on Cu(100), which leads to stronger HDA-tail interactions, as well as the stronger binding of the amine group to Cu(100). We estimate the surface energies of HDA-covered Cu(100) and Cu(111) surfaces and find that these surfaces are nearly isoenergetic. By drawing analogies to previous theoretical work, it seems likely that HDA-covered Cu nanocrystals could have kinetic shapes that primarily express {100} facets, as is seen experimentally.

  1. Fundamental Design based on Current Distribution in Coaxial Multi-Layer Cable-in-Conduit Conductor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hamajima, Takataro; Tsuda, Makoto; Yagai, Tsuyoshi; Takahata, Kazuya; Imagawa, Shinsaku

    An imbalanced current distribution is often observed in cable-in-conduit (CIC) superconductors which are composed of multi-staged, triplet type sub-cables, and hence deteriorates the performance of the coils. Therefore, since it is very important to obtain a homogeneous current distribution in the superconducting strands, we propose a coaxial multi-layer type CIC conductor. We use a circuit model for all layers in the coaxial multi-layer CIC conductor, and derive a generalized formula governing the current distribution as explicit functions of the superconductor construction parameters, such as twist pitch, twist direction, radius of each layer, and number of superconducting (SC) strands and copper (Cu) strands. We apply the formula to design the coaxial multi-layer CIC which has the same number of SC strands and Cu strands of the CIC for Central Solenoid of ITER. We can design three kinds of the coaxial multi-layer CIC depending on distribution of SC and Cu strands on all layers. It is shown that the SC strand volume should be optimized as a function of SC and Cu strand distribution on the layers.

  2. Nonlinear Brillouin amplification of finite-duration seeds in the strong coupling regime

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lehmann, G.; Spatschek, K. H.

    2013-07-01

    Parametric plasma processes received renewed interest in the context of generating ultra-intense and ultra-short laser pulses up to the exawatt-zetawatt regime. Both Raman as well as Brillouin amplifications of seed pulses were proposed. Here, we investigate Brillouin processes in the one-dimensional (1D) backscattering geometry with the help of numerical simulations. For optimal seed amplification, Brillouin scattering is considered in the so called strong coupling (sc) regime. Special emphasis lies on the dependence of the amplification process on the finite duration of the initial seed pulses. First, the standard plane-wave instability predictions are generalized to pulse models, and the changes of initial seed pulse forms due to parametric instabilities are investigated. Three-wave-interaction results are compared to predictions by a new (kinetic) Vlasov code. The calculations are then extended to the nonlinear region with pump depletion. Generation of different seed layers is interpreted by self-similar solutions of the three-wave interaction model. Similar to Raman amplification, shadowing of the rear layers by the leading layers of the seed occurs. The shadowing is more pronounced for initially broad seed pulses. The effect is quantified for Brillouin amplification. Kinetic Vlasov simulations agree with the three-wave interaction predictions and thereby affirm the universal validity of self-similar layer formation during Brillouin seed amplification in the strong coupling regime.

  3. Performance analysis of RF-sputtered ZnO/Si heterojunction UV photodetectors with high photo-responsivity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Satyendra Kumar; Hazra, Purnima; Tripathi, Shweta; Chakrabarti, P.

    2016-03-01

    In this paper, structural, electrical and ultraviolet photodetection parameters of RF sputtered-ZnO/Si heterojunction diodes are analyzed. In this work, ZnO thin film was deposited on bare Si substrate as well as Si substrate coated with ultrathin ZnO seed layer to exhibit the effect of seed layer on device performance. AFM image of as-grown ZnO films have exhibited the uniform growth ZnO film over the whole Si substrate with average roughness of 3.2 nm and 2.83 nm for ZnO with and without seed layer respectively. Stronger peak intensity along (002) direction, as shown in XRD spectra confirm that ZnO film grown on ZnO seed layer is having more stable wurtzite structure. Ti/Al point contacts were deposited on top of the ZnO film and a layer of Al was deposited on bottom of Si substrate for using as ohmic contacts for further device characterization at dark and under UV light of 365 nm wavelength. This process is repeated for both the films sequentially. The photo-responsivity of our proposed devices is calculated as 0.34 A/W for seed layer-mediated devices and 0.26 A/W for devices without seed layer. These values are very high as compare to the reported value of photo-responsivity for same kind of ZnO/Si heterojunction device prototypes prepared by other techniques.

  4. Cuprous Oxide as a Potential Low-Cost Hole-Transport Material for Stable Perovskite Solar Cells.

    PubMed

    Nejand, Bahram Abdollahi; Ahmadi, Vahid; Gharibzadeh, Saba; Shahverdi, Hamid Reza

    2016-02-08

    Inorganic hole-transport materials are commercially desired to decrease the fabrication cost of perovskite solar cells. Here, Cu2O is introduced as a potential hole-transport material for stable, low-cost devices. Considering that Cu2O formation is highly sensitive to the underlying mixture of perovskite precursors and their solvents, we proposed and engineered a technique for reactive magnetron sputtering. The rotational angular deposition of Cu2O yields high surface coverage of the perovskite layer for high rate of charge extraction. Deposition of this Cu2O layer on the pinhole-free perovskite layer produces devices with power conversion efficiency values of up to 8.93%. The engineered Cu2O layers showed uniform, compact, and crack-free surfaces on the perovskite layer without affecting the perovskite structure, which is desired for deposition of the top metal contact and for surface shielding against moisture and mechanical damages. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  5. Effect of oxide insertion layer on resistance switching properties of copper phthalocyanine

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Joshi, Nikhil G.; Pandya, Nirav C.; Joshi, U. S.

    2013-02-01

    Organic memory device showing resistance switching properties is a next-generation of the electrical memory unit. We have investigated the bistable resistance switching in current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of organic diode based on copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) film sandwiched between aluminum (Al) electrodes. Pronounced hysteresis in the I-V curves revealed a resistance switching with on-off ratio of the order of 85%. In order to control the charge injection in the CuPc, nanoscale indium oxide buffer layer was inserted to form Al/CuPc/In2O3/Al device. Analysis of I-V measurements revealed space charge limited switching conduction at the Al/CuPc interface. The traps in the organic layer and charge blocking by oxide insertion layer have been used to explain the absence of resistance switching in the oxide buffer layered memory device cell. Present study offer potential applications for CuPc organic semiconductor in low power non volatile resistive switching memory and logic circuits.

  6. Structural and elemental characterization of high efficiency Cu2ZnSnS4 solar cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Kejia; Shin, Byungha; Reuter, Kathleen B.; Todorov, Teodor; Mitzi, David B.; Guha, Supratik

    2011-01-01

    We have carried out detailed microstructural studies of phase separation and grain boundary composition in Cu2ZnSnS4 based solar cells. The absorber layer was fabricated by thermal evaporation followed by post high temperature annealing on hot plate. We show that inter-reactions between the bottom molybdenum and the Cu2ZnSnS4, besides triggering the formation of interfacial MoSx, results in the out-diffusion of Cu from the Cu2ZnSnS4 layer. Phase separation of Cu2ZnSnS4 into ZnS and a Cu-Sn-S compound is observed at the molybdenum-Cu2ZnSnS4 interface, perhaps as a result of the compositional out-diffusion. Additionally, grain boundaries within the thermally evaporated absorber layer are found to be either Cu-rich or at the expected bulk composition. Such interfacial compound formation and grain boundary chemistry likely contributes to the lower than expected open circuit voltages observed for the Cu2ZnSnS4 devices.

  7. Effects of Additives on Electrochemical Growth of Cu Film on Co/SiO2/Si Substrate by Alternating Underpotential Deposition of Pb and Surface-Limited Redox Replacement by Cu

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fang, J. S.; Lin, L. Y.; Wu, C. L.; Cheng, Y. L.; Chen, G. S.

    2017-11-01

    The effects of additives to an acidic electrolyte for electrochemical deposition of copper film to prevent corrosion of the Co/SiO2/Si substrate have been investigated. A sacrificial Pb layer was formed by underpotential deposition (UPD), then a Cu layer was prepared using surface-limited redox replacement (SLRR) to exchange the UPD-Pb layer in an acidic copper electrolyte with trisodium citrate, sodium perchlorate, and ethylenediamine as additives. The additives significantly affected the replacement of UPD-Pb by Cu and prevented galvanic corrosion of the Co/SiO2/Si substrate in the acidic Cu electrolyte. The results showed that both sodium perchlorate and ethylenediamine reduced the corrosion of the Co substrate and resulted in Cu film with low electrical resistivity. However, residual Pb was present in the Cu film when using trisodium citrate, as the citrate ions slowed copper displacement. The proposed sequential UPD-Pb and SLRR-Cu growth method may enable electrochemical deposition for fabrication of Cu interconnects on Co substrate from acidic Cu electrolyte.

  8. Study of Electromigration-Induced Failures on Cu Pillar Bumps Joined to OSP and ENEPIG Substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hsiao, Yu-Hsiang; Lin, Kwang-Lung; Lee, Chiu-Wen; Shao, Yu-Hsiu; Lai, Yi-Shao

    2012-12-01

    This work studies electromigration (EM)-induced failures on Cu pillar bumps joined to organic solderability preservative (OSP) on Cu substrates (OSP-bumps) and electroless Ni(P)/electroless Pd/immersion Au (ENEPIG) under bump metallurgy (UBM) on Cu substrates (ENEPIG-bumps). Two failure modes (Cu pad consumption and gap formation) were found with OSP-bumps, but only one failure mode (gap formation) was found with ENEPIG-bumps. The main interfacial compound layer was the Cu6Sn5 compound, which suffered significant EM-induced dissolution, eventually resulting in severe Cu pad consumption at the cathode side for OSP-bumps. A (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 layer with strong resistance to EM-induced dissolution exists at the joint interface when a nickel barrier layer is incorporated at the cathode side (Ni or ENEPIG), and these imbalanced atomic fluxes result in the voids and gap formation. OSP-bumps showed better lifetime results than ENEPIG-bumps for several current stressing conditions. The inverse Cu atomic flux ( J Cu,chem) which diffuses from the Cu pad to cathode side retards the formation of voids. The driving force for J Cu,chem comes from the difference in chemical potential between the (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 and Cu6Sn5 phases.

  9. Effects of post-reflow cooling rate and thermal aging on growth behavior of interfacial intermetallic compound between SAC305 solder and Cu substrate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hu, Xiaowu; Xu, Tao; Jiang, Xiongxin; Li, Yulong; Liu, Yi; Min, Zhixian

    2016-04-01

    The interfacial reactions between Cu and Sn3Ag0.5Cu (SAC305) solder reflowed under various cooling rates were investigated. It is found that the cooling rate is an important parameter in solder reflow process because it influences not only microstructure of solder alloy but also the morphology and growth of intermetallic compounds (IMCs) formed between solder and Cu substrate. The experimental results indicate that only scallop-like Cu6Sn5 IMC layer is observed between solder and Cu substrate in case of water cooling and air cooling, while bilayer composed of scallop-like Cu6Sn5 and thin layer-like Cu3Sn is detected under furnace cooling due to sufficient reaction time to form Cu3Sn between Cu6Sn5 IMC and Cu substrate which resulted from slow cooling rate. Samples with different reflow cooling rates were further thermal-aged at 423 K. And it is found that the thickness of IMC increases linearly with square root of aging time. The growth constants of interfacial IMC layer during aging were obtained and compared for different cooling rates, indicating that the IMC layer thickness increased faster in samples under low cooling rate than in the high cooling rate under the same aging condition. The long prismatic grains were formed on the existing interfacial Cu6Sn5 grains to extrude deeply into solder matrix with lower cooling rate and long-term aging, and the Cu6Sn5 grains coarsened linearly with cubic root of aging time.

  10. A novel nonenzymatic amperometric hydrogen peroxide sensor based on CuO@Cu2O nanowires embedded into poly(vinyl alcohol).

    PubMed

    Chirizzi, Daniela; Guascito, Maria Rachele; Filippo, Emanuela; Tepore, Antonio

    2016-01-15

    A new, very simple, rapid and inexpensive nonenzymatic amperometric sensor for hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) detection is proposed. It is based on the immobilization of cupric/cuprous oxide core shell nanowires (CuO@Cu2O-NWs) in a poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrix directly drop casted on a glassy carbon electrode surface to make a CuO@Cu2O core shell like NWs PVA embedded (CuO@Cu2O-NWs/PVA) sensor. CuO nanowires with mean diameters of 120-170nm and length in the range 2-5μm were grown by a simple catalyst-free thermal oxidation process based on resistive heating of pure copper wires at ambient conditions. The oxidation process of the copper wire surface led to the formation of a three layered structure: a thick Cu2O bottom layer, a CuO thin intermediate layer and CuO nanowires. CuO nanowires were carefully scratched from Cu2O layer with a sharp knife, dispersed into ethanol and sonicated. Then, the NWs were embedded in PVA matrix. The morphological and spectroscopic characterization of synthesized CuO-NWs and CuO@Cu2O-NWs/PVA were performed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area diffraction pattern (SAD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. Moreover a complete electrochemical characterization of these new CuO@Cu2O-NWs/PVA modified glassy carbon electrodes was performed by Cyclic Voltammetry (CV) and Cronoamperometry (CA) in phosphate buffer (pH=7; I=0.2) to investigate the sensing properties of this material against H2O2. The electrochemical performances of proposed sensors as high sensitivity, fast response, reproducibility and selectivity make them suitable for the quantitative determination of hydrogen peroxide substrate in batch analysis. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  11. Interfacial reaction and microstructure between the Sn3Ag0.5Cu solder and Cu-Co dual-phase substrate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Chao; Hu, Xiaowu; Jiang, Xiongxin; Li, Yulong

    2018-07-01

    In this study, interfacial reactions and microstructures of the Sn3Ag0.5Cu (SAC305)/Cu- xCo ( x = 0, 30 and 50 wt%) systems were investigated during reflowing at 290 °C and solid-state aging at 150 °C for various time. The effects of different contents of Co in substrate on interfacial reaction in SAC305/Cu- xCo system were discussed. It was found that the addition of Co into pure copper substrate to achieve alloying would effectively inhibit the growth of IMC layers. Comparison among the thickness of the intermetallic compound (IMC) in three kinds of SAC305/Cu-Co systems indicated that the IMC layer of SAC305/Cu joint was thicker than that of the other two types of solder joints. The composition of the SAC305/Cu IMC layers was Cu6Sn5 and Cu3Sn. Three kinds of reaction phases (Cu,Co)6Sn5, (Cu,Co)Sn2 and (Cu,Co)3Sn were found at the interfaces of the SAC305/Cu-30Co and SAC305/Cu-50Co joints. Remarkably the (Cu,Co)Sn2 phase was found adjacent to the Co-rich phase after soldering and eliminated after the aging treatment. While the (Cu,Co)3Sn phase accumulated increasingly adjacent to the substrate with the increased aging time. The results suggested that the Co content increased from 30 to 50 wt% in substrate lead to significant restraint of the growth of interfacial IMC. In addition, the thickness of the interfacial IMC layer was linear with the square root of the aging time during the aging process. The reaction rate between Sn atoms in solder and Cu, Co atoms in substrate was quite different, which lead to the fact that the interface of SAC305/Cu-Co is uneven on the side of substrate after reflowing and aging.

  12. Tetra-methyl substituted copper (II) phthalocyanine as a hole injection enhancer in organic light-emitting diodes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wang, Yu-Long; Xu, Jia-Ju; Lin, Yi-Wei

    2015-10-15

    We have enhanced hole injection and lifetime in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) by incorporating the isomeric metal phthalocyanine, CuMePc, as a hole injection enhancer. The OLED devices containing CuMePc as a hole injection layer (HIL) exhibited higher luminous efficiency and operational lifetime than those using a CuPc layer and without a HIL. The effect of CuMePc thickness on device performance was investigated. Atomic force microscope (AFM) studies revealed that the thin films were smooth and uniform because the mixture of CuMePc isomers depressed crystallization within the layer. This may have caused the observed enhanced hole injection, indicating that CuMePc ismore » a promising HIL material for highly efficient OLEDs.« less

  13. Interactions between C and Cu atoms in single-layer graphene: direct observation and modelling.

    PubMed

    Kano, Emi; Hashimoto, Ayako; Kaneko, Tomoaki; Tajima, Nobuo; Ohno, Takahisa; Takeguchi, Masaki

    2016-01-07

    Metal doping into the graphene lattice has been studied recently to develop novel nanoelectronic devices and to gain an understanding of the catalytic activities of metals in nanocarbon structures. Here we report the direct observation of interactions between Cu atoms and single-layer graphene by transmission electron microscopy. We document stable configurations of Cu atoms in the graphene sheet and unique transformations of graphene promoted by Cu atoms. First-principles calculations based on density functional theory reveal a reduction of energy barrier that caused rotation of C-C bonds near Cu atoms. We discuss two driving forces, electron irradiation and in situ heating, and conclude that the observed transformations were mainly promoted by electron irradiation. Our results suggest that individual Cu atoms can promote reconstruction of single-layer graphene.

  14. Study of Cu2O\\ZnO nanowires heterojunction designed by combining electrodeposition and atomic layer deposition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Makhlouf, Houssin; Weber, Matthieu; Messaoudi, Olfa; Tingry, Sophie; Moret, Matthieu; Briot, Olivier; Chtoutou, Radhouane; Bechelany, Mikhael

    2017-12-01

    Cu2O/ZnO nanowires (NWs) heterojunctions were successfully prepared by combining Atomic layer Deposition (ALD) and Electrochemical Deposition (ECD) processes. The crystallinity, morphology and photoconductivity properties of the Cu2O/ZnO nanostructures have been investigated. The properties of the Cu2O absorber layer and the nanostructured heterojunction were studied in order to understand the mechanisms lying behind the low photoconductivity measured. It has been found that the interface state defects and the high resistivity of Cu2O film were limiting the photovoltaic properties of the prepared devices. The understanding presented in this work is expected to enable the optimization of solar cell devices based on Cu2O/ZnO nanomaterials and improve their overall performance.

  15. Performance enhancement in Sb doped Cu(InGa)Se2 thin film solar cell by e-beam evaporation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Jieyi; Shen, Honglie; Zhai, Zihao; Li, Yufang; Yi, Yunge

    2018-03-01

    To investigate the effects of Sb doping on the structural and electrical properties of Cu(InGa)Se2 (CIGS) thin films and solar cells, CIGS thin films, prepared by e-beam evaporation on soda-lime glass, were doped with lower and upper Sb layers in the precursor stacks respectively. Change of structure and introduction of stress were observed in the CIGS thin films with upper Sb layer in stack through XRD and Raman measurement. Both crystalline quality and compactness of CIGS thin films were improved by the doping of upper Sb layer in stack and the CIGS thin film showed an optimal structural property with 20 nm Sb layer. Movement of Fermi level of the surface of CIGS thin film after doping of upper Sb layer in stack and electrons transfer between Cu/Cu+ redox couple and CIGS thin films, which provided probability for the substitution of Sb for Cu sites at the surface of CIGS thin films, were proposed to explain the migration of Cu from the surface to the bulk of CIGS thin films. The larger barrier at the CIGS/CdS interface after doping of upper Sb layer in stack made contribution to the increase of VOC of CIGS solar cells. The efficiency of CIGS solar cell was improved from 3.3% to 7.2% after doping with 20 nm upper Sb. Compared to the CIGS solar cell with lower Sb layer in stack, in which an additional Cu2-xSe phase was found, the CIGS solar cell with upper Sb layer in stack possessed a higher efficiency.

  16. Efficient CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite/fullerene planar heterojunction hybrid solar cells with oxidized Ni/Au/Cu transparent electrode

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lai, Wei-Chih; Lin, Kun-Wei; Guo, Tzung-Fang; Chen, Peter; Liao, Yuan-Yu

    2018-02-01

    We demonstrated the performance of inverted CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite-based solar cells (SCs) with a thermally oxidized nickel/gold/copper (Ni/Au/Cu) trilayer transparent electrode. Oxidized Ni/Au/Cu is a high transparent layer and has less resistance than the oxidized Ni/Au layer. Like the oxidized Ni/Au layer, oxidized Ni and Cu in oxidized Ni/Au/Cu could perform as a hole transport layer of the perovskite-based SCs. It leads to improved perovskite SC performance on an open circuit voltage of 1.01 V, a short circuit current density of 14.36 mA/cm2, a fill factor of 76.7%, and a power conversion efficiency (η%) of 11.1%. The η% of perovskite SCs with oxidized Ni (10 nm)/Au (6 nm)/Cu (1 nm) improved by approximately 10% compared with that of perovskite SCs with oxidized Ni/Au.

  17. Perovskite solar cells with CuSCN hole extraction layers yield stabilized efficiencies greater than 20%

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Arora, Neha; Dar, M. Ibrahim; Hinderhofer, Alexander; Pellet, Norman; Schreiber, Frank; Zakeeruddin, Shaik Mohammed; Grätzel, Michael

    2017-11-01

    Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with efficiencies greater than 20% have been realized only with expensive organic hole-transporting materials. We demonstrate PSCs that achieve stabilized efficiencies exceeding 20% with copper(I) thiocyanate (CuSCN) as the hole extraction layer. A fast solvent removal method enabled the creation of compact, highly conformal CuSCN layers that facilitate rapid carrier extraction and collection. The PSCs showed high thermal stability under long-term heating, although their operational stability was poor. This instability originated from potential-induced degradation of the CuSCN/Au contact. The addition of a conductive reduced graphene oxide spacer layer between CuSCN and gold allowed PSCs to retain >95% of their initial efficiency after aging at a maximum power point for 1000 hours under full solar intensity at 60°C. Under both continuous full-sun illumination and thermal stress, CuSCN-based devices surpassed the stability of spiro-OMeTAD-based PSCs.

  18. Microstructures and Properties of 40Cu/Ag(Invar) Composites Fabricated by Powder Metallurgy and Subsequent Thermo-Mechanical Treatment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Xin; Huang, Yingqiu; Liu, Xiangyu; Yang, Lei; Shi, Changdong; Wu, Yucheng; Tang, Wenming

    2018-03-01

    Composites of 40Cu/Ag(Invar) were prepared via pressureless sintering and subsequent thermo-mechanical treatment from raw materials of electroless Ag-plated Invar alloy powder and electrolytic Cu powder. Microstructures and properties of the prepared composites were studied to evaluate the effect of the Ag layer on blocking Cu/Invar interfacial diffusion in the composites. The electroless-plated Ag layer was dense, uniform, continuous, and bonded tightly with the Invar alloy substrate. During sintering of the composites, the Ag layer effectively prevented Cu/Invar interfacial diffusion. During cold-rolling, the Ag layer was deformed uniformly with the Invar alloy particles. The composites exhibited bi-continuous network structure and considerably improved properties. After sintering at 775 °C and subsequent thermo-mechanical treatment, the 40Cu/Ag(Invar) composites showed satisfactory comprehensive properties: relative density of 99.0 pct, hardness of HV 253, thermal conductivity of 55.7 W/(m K), and coefficient of thermal expansion of 11.2 × 10-6/K.

  19. Magnetization behavior of RE123 bulk magnets bearing twin seed-crystals in pulsed field magnetization processes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Oka, T.; Miyazaki, T.; Ogawa, J.; Fukui, S.; Sato, T.; Yokoyama, K.; Langer, M.

    2016-02-01

    Melt-textured Y-Ba-Cu-O high temperature superconducting bulk magnets were fabricated by the cold seeding method with using single or twin-seed crystals composed of Nd-Ba-Cu-O thin films on MgO substrates. The behavior of the magnetic flux penetration into anisotropic-grown bulk magnets thus fabricated was precisely evaluated during and after the pulsed field magnetization operated at 35 K. These seed crystals were put on the top surfaces of the precursors to grow large grains during the melt-processes. Although we know the magnetic flux motion is restricted by the enhanced pinning effect in temperature ranges lower than 77 K, we observed that flux invasion occurred at applied fields of 3.3 T when the twin seeds were used. This is definitely lower than those of 3.7 T when the single-seeds were employed. This means that the magnetic fluxes are capable of invading into twin-seeded bulk magnets more easily than single-seeded ones. The twin seeds form the different grain growth regions, the narrow-GSR (growth sector region) and wide-GSR, according to the different grain growth directions which are parallel and normal to the rows of seed crystals, respectively. The invading flux measurements revealed that the magnetic flux invades the sample from the wide-GSR prior to the narrow-GSR. It suggests that such anisotropic grain growth leads to different distributions of pinning centers, variations of J c values, and the formation of preferential paths for the invading magnetic fluxes. Using lower applied fields definitely contributed to lowering the heat generation during the PFM process, which, in turn, led to enhanced trapped magnetic fluxes.

  20. Can heavy metal pollution defend seed germination against heat stress? Effect of heavy metals (Cu(2+), Cd(2+) and Hg(2+)) on maize seed germination under high temperature.

    PubMed

    Deng, Benliang; Yang, Kejun; Zhang, Yifei; Li, Zuotong

    2016-09-01

    Heavy metal pollution, as well as greenhouse effect, has become a serious threat today. Both heavy metal and heat stresses can arrest seed germination. What response can be expected for seed germination under both stress conditions? Here, the effects of heavy metals (Cu(2+), Cd(2+) and Hg(2+)) on maize seed germination were investigated at 20 °C and 40 °C. Compared with 20 °C, heat stress induced thermodormancy. However, this thermodormancy could be significantly alleviated by the addition of a low concentration of heavy metals. Heavy metals, as well as heat stress induced H2O2 accumulation in germinating seeds. Interestingly, this low concentration of heavy metal that promoted seed germination could be partly blocked by DMTU (a specific ROS scavenger), irrespective of temperature. Accordingly, H2O2 addition reinforced this promoting effect on seed germination, which was induced by a low concentration of heavy metal. Furthermore, we found that the NADPH oxidase derived ROS was required for seed germination promoted by the heavy metals. Subsequently, treatment of seeds with fluridone (a specific inhibitor of ABA) or ABA significantly alleviated or aggravated thermodormancy, respectively. However, this alleviation or aggravation could be partly attenuated by a low concentration of heavy metals. In addition, germination that was inhibited by high concentrations of heavy metals was also partly reversed by fluridone. The obtained results support the idea that heavy metal-mediated ROS and hormone interaction can finally affect the thermodormancy release or not. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Graphene-copper composite with micro-layered grains and ultrahigh strength

    PubMed Central

    Wang, Lidong; Yang, Ziyue; Cui, Ye; Wei, Bing; Xu, Shichong; Sheng, Jie; Wang, Miao; Zhu, Yunpeng; Fei, Weidong

    2017-01-01

    Graphene with ultrahigh intrinsic strength and excellent thermal physical properties has the potential to be used as the reinforcement of many kinds of composites. Here, we show that very high tensile strength can be obtained in the copper matrix composite reinforced by reduced graphene oxide (RGO) when micro-layered structure is achieved. RGO-Cu powder with micro-layered structure is fabricated from the reduction of the micro-layered graphene oxide (GO) and Cu(OH)2 composite sheets, and RGO-Cu composites are sintered by spark plasma sintering process. The tensile strength of the 5 vol.% RGO-Cu composite is as high as 608 MPa, which is more than three times higher than that of the Cu matrix. The apparent strengthening efficiency of RGO in the 2.5 vol.% RGO-Cu composite is as high as 110, even higher than that of carbon nanotube, multilayer graphene, carbon nano fiber and RGO in the copper matrix composites produced by conventional MLM method. The excellent tensile and compressive strengths, high hardness and good electrical conductivity are obtained simultaneously in the RGO-Cu composites. The results shown in the present study provide an effective method to design graphene based composites with layered structure and high performance. PMID:28169306

  2. Biosorption of copper ions from aqueous solution using rape straw powders: Optimization, equilibrium and kinetic studies.

    PubMed

    Liu, Xin; Chen, Zhao-Qiong; Han, Bin; Su, Chun-Li; Han, Qin; Chen, Wei-Zhong

    2018-04-15

    In this paper, the adsorption behaviors of Cu(II) from the aqueous solution using rape straw powders were studied. The effects of initial Cu(II) concentration, pH range and absorbent dosage on the adsorption efficiency of Cu(II) by rape straw powder were investigated by Box-Behnken Design based on response surface methodology. The values of coefficient constant of the nonlinear models were 0.9997, 0.9984 and 0.9944 for removal Cu(II) from aqueous solution using rape straw shell, seed pods and straw pith core, respectively, which could navigate the design space for various factors on effects of biosorption Cu(II) from aqueous solution. The various factors of pH and biosorbents dosage were the key factors that affecting the removal efficiency of Cu(II) from aqueous solution. The biosorption equilibrium data presented its favorable monolayer adsorption Cu(II) onto shell, seed pods and straw pith core, respectively. The pseudo-second order kinetic model was the proper approach to determine the adsorption kinetics. The biosorption of Cu(II) onto surfaces of rape straw powders were confirmed and ion-exchanged in the adsorption process by energy dispersive spectrometer. The critical groups, -OH, -CH, -NH 3 + , -CH 3 , -NH and -C-O, exhibited by the infrared spectra results, changed to suggest that these groups played critical roles, especially -CH 3 in the adsorption of copper ions onto rape straw powders. The study provided evidences that rape straw powders can be used for removing Cu(II) from aqueous water. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  3. Infrared Brazing of Ti50Ni50 Shape Memory Alloy and Inconel 600 Alloy with Two Ag-Cu-Ti Active Braze Alloys

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shiue, Ren-Kae; Wu, Shyi-Kaan; Yang, Sheng-Hao

    2017-02-01

    Infrared brazing of Ti50Ni50 SMA and Inconel 600 alloy using Cusil-ABA and Ticusil filler metals has been investigated. The joints were dominated by Ag-Cu eutectic with proeutectic Cu in the Cusil-ABA brazed joint and with proeutectic Ag in the Ticusil one. A continuous curved belt composed of a Ni3Ti layer and a (Cu x Ni1- x )2Ti layer formed in the brazed Ti50Ni50/Ticusil/Inconel 600 joint. On the Ti50Ni50 SMA side, an intermetallic layer of (Cu x Ni1- x )2Ti formed in all joints, with x values around 0.81 and 0.47. Layers of (Cu x Ni1- x )2Ti, Ni3Ti, and mixed Ni3Ti and Ni2Cr intermetallics were observed next to the Inconel 600 substrate in the brazed Ti50Ni50/Cusil-ABA/Inconel 600 joint. The maximum shear strengths of the joints using the Cusil-ABA filler metal and the Ticusil filler metal were 324 and 300 MPa, respectively. In the Cusil-ABA brazed joint, cracks with cleavage-dominated fracture propagated along the (Cu x Ni1- x )2Ti interfacial layer next to the Ti50Ni50 SMA substrate. In the Ticusil brazed joint, ductile dimple fracture occurred in the Ag-rich matrix near the Inconel 600 alloy substrate. The absence of a detrimental Ti-Fe-(Cu) layer on the Inconel 600 substrate side can effectively improve the shear strength of the joint.

  4. Study of solid/liquid and solid/gas interfaces in Cu-isoleucine complex by surface X-ray diffraction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ferrer, Pilar; Rubio-Zuazo, Juan; Castro, German R.

    2013-02-01

    The enzymes could be understood like structures formed by amino acids bonded with metals, which act as active sites. The research on the coordination of metal-amino acid complexes will bring light on the behavior of metal enzymes, due to the close relation existing between the atomic structure and the functionality. The Cu-isoleucine bond is considered as a good model system to attain a better insight into the characteristics of naturally occurring copper metalloproteins. The surface structure of metal-amino acid complex could be considered as a more realistic model for real systems under biologic working conditions, since the molecular packing is decreased. In the surface, the structural constrains are reduced, keeping the structural capability of surface complex to change as a function of the surrounding environment. In this work, we present a surface X-ray diffraction study on Cu-isoleucine complex under different ambient conditions. Cu(Ile)2 crystals of about 5 mm × 5 mm × 1 mm have been growth, by seeding method in a supersaturated solution, presenting a surface of high quality. The sample for the surface diffraction study was mounted on a cell specially designed for solid/liquid or solid/gas interface analysis. The Cu-isoleucine crystal was measured under a protective dry N2 gas flow and in contact with a saturated metal amino acid solution. The bulk and the surface signals were compared, showing different atomic structures. In both cases, from surface diffraction data, it is observed that the atomic structure of the top layer undergoes a clear structural deformation. A non-uniform surface relaxation is observed producing an inhomogeneous displacement of the surface atoms towards the surface normal.

  5. Growth of <111>-oriented Cu layer on thin TaWN films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Takeyama, Mayumi B.; Sato, Masaru

    2017-07-01

    In this study, we examine the growth of a <111>-oriented Cu layer on a thin TaWN ternary alloy barrier for good electromigration reliability. The strongly preferentially oriented Cu(111) layer is observed on a thin TaWN barrier even in the as-deposited Cu (100 nm)/TaWN (5 nm)/Si system. Also, this system tolerates annealing at 700 °C for 1 h without silicide reaction. It is revealed that the TaWN film is one of the excellent barriers with thermal stability and low resistivity. Simultaneously, the TaWN film is a candidate for a superior underlying material to achieve the Cu(111) preferential orientation.

  6. All high Tc edge-geometry weak links utilizing Y-Ba-Cu-O barrier layers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hunt, B. D.; Foote, M. C.; Bajuk, L. J.

    1991-01-01

    High quality YBa2Cu3O(7-x) normal-metal/YBa2Cu3O(7-x) edge-geometry weak links have been fabricated using nonsuperconducting Y-Ba-Cu-O barrier layers deposited by laser ablation at reduced growth temperatures. Devices incorporating 25-100 A thick barrier layers exhibit current-voltage characteristics consistent with the resistively shunted junction model, with strong microwave and magnetic field response at temperatures up to 85 K. The critical currents vary exponentially with barrier thickness, and the resistances scale linearly with Y-Ba-Cu-O interlayer thickness and device area, indicating good barrier uniformity, with an effective mormal metal coherence length of 20 A.

  7. A comparative study of heterostructured CuO/CuWO4 nanowires and thin films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Polyakov, Boris; Kuzmin, Alexei; Vlassov, Sergei; Butanovs, Edgars; Zideluns, Janis; Butikova, Jelena; Kalendarev, Robert; Zubkins, Martins

    2017-12-01

    A comparative study of heterostructured CuO/CuWO4 core/shell nanowires and double-layer thin films was performed through X-ray diffraction, confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy and electron (SEM and TEM) microscopies. The heterostructures were produced using a two-step process, starting from a deposition of amorphous WO3 layer on top of CuO nanowires and thin films by reactive DC magnetron sputtering and followed by annealing at 650 °C in air. The second step induced a solid-state reaction between CuO and WO3 oxides through a thermal diffusion process, revealed by SEM-EDX analysis. Morphology evolution of core/shell nanowires and double-layer thin films upon heating was studied by electron (SEM and TEM) microscopies. A formation of CuWO4 phase was confirmed by X-ray diffraction and confocal micro-Raman spectroscopy.

  8. Solar Absorber Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 and its Parent Multilayers ZnS/SnS 2 /Cu 2 S Synthesized by Atomic Layer Deposition and Analyzed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Baryshev, Sergey V.; Riha, Shannon C.; Zinovev, Alexander V.

    2015-06-01

    Presented here are results of x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) on multilayers of metal-sulfide binaries ZnS, SnS2, and Cu2S grown by atomic layer deposition (ALD) on Si substrates, and of Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) formed upon 450 °C annealing of the parent multilayer ZnS/SnS2/Cu2S. Survey and detailed spectral analysis of the multilayer ZnS/SnS2/Cu2S are presented step-wise, as each layer was sequentially added by ALD. The set of data is finalized with spectra of the resulting alloy CZTS. XPS analyses indicate significant mixing between SnS2 and Cu2S, which favors CZTS formation within the ALD approach.

  9. Evaluation of inductively heated ferromagnetic alloy implants for therapeutic interstitial hyperthermia.

    PubMed

    Paulus, J A; Richardson, J S; Tucker, R D; Park, J B

    1996-04-01

    Ferromagnetic alloys heated by magnetic induction have been investigated as interstitial hyperthermia delivery implants for over a decade, utilizing low Curie temperatures to provide thermal self-regulation. The minimally invasive method is attractive for fractionated thermal treatment of tumors which are not easily heated by focused microwave or ultrasound techniques. Past analyses of ferromagnetic seeds by other authors depict poor experimental correlation with theoretical heating predictions. Improvements in computer hardware and commercially available finite element analysis software have simplified the analysis of inductively heated thermal seeds considerably. This manuscript examines end effects of finite length implants and nonlinear magnetic material properties to account for previous inconsistencies. Two alloys, Ni-28 wt% Cu (NiCu) and Pd-6.15 wt% Co (PdCo), were used for comparison of theoretical and experimental calorimetric results. Length to diameter (L/d) ratios of over 20 for cylindrical seeds are necessary for minimization of end effects. Magnetic properties tested for alloys of NiCu and PdCo illustrate considerable nonlinearity of these materials in field strength ranges used for induction heating. Field strength dependent magnetic permeabilities and calorimetric data illustrate that more detailed material information must be included to accurately estimate induction power loss for these implants.

  10. Interfacial reactions and compound formation of Sn-Ag-Cu solders by mechanical alloying on electroless Ni-P/Cu under bump metallization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kao, Szu-Tsung; Duh, Jenq-Gong

    2005-08-01

    Electroless Ni-P under bump metallization (UBM) has been widely used in electronic interconnections due to the good diffusion barrier between Cu and solder. In this study, the mechanical alloying (MA) process was applied to produce the SnAgCu lead-free solder pastes. Solder joints after annealing at 240°C for 15 min were employed to investigate the evolution of interfacial reaction between electroless Ni-P/Cu UBM and SnAgCu solder with various Cu concentrations ranging from 0.2 to 1.0 wt.%. After detailed quantitative analysis with an electron probe microanalyzer, the effect of Cu content on the formation of intermetallic compounds (IMCs) at SnAgCu solder/electroless Ni-P interface was evaluated. When the Cu concentration in the solder was 0.2 wt.%, only one (Ni, Cu)3Sn4 layer was observed at the solder/electroless Ni-P interface. As the Cu content increased to 0.5 wt.%, (Cu, Ni)6Sn5 formed along with (Ni, Cu)3Sn4. However, only one (Cu, Ni)6Sn5 layer was revealed, if the Cu content was up to 1 wt.%. With the aid of microstructure evolution, quantitative analysis, and elemental distribution by x-ray color mapping, the presence of the Ni-Sn-P phase and P-rich layer was evidenced.

  11. Y1Ba2Cu3O(6+delta) growth on thin Y-enhanced SiO2 buffer layers on silicon

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Robin, T.; Mesarwi, A.; Wu, N. J.; Fan, W. C.; Espoir, L.; Ignatiev, A.; Sega, R.

    1991-01-01

    SiO2 buffer layers as thin as 2 nm have been developed for use in the growth of Y1Ba2Cu3O(6+delta) thin films on silicon substrates. The SiO2 layers are formed through Y enhancement of silicon oxidation, and are highly stoichiometric. Y1Ba2Cu3O(6+delta) film growth on silicon with thin buffer layers has shown c orientation and Tc0 = 78 K.

  12. Chemical composition and some anti-nutrient content of raw and processed bitter vetch (Vicia ervilia) seed for use as feeding stuff in poultry diet.

    PubMed

    Sadeghi, Gh; Pourreza, J; Samei, A; Rahmani, H

    2009-01-01

    An experiment was conducted to determine chemical composition of raw and treated bitter vetch seed for use in poultry diets. Processing methods were: soaked in water for 12 h, then autoclaved and dried (SA); coarsely ground, soaked in water for 24 h, autoclaved and dried (GSA); coarsely ground, soaked in water for 47 h with exchange of water every 12 h, cooked and dried (GSC); coarsely ground, soaked in solution of 1% acetic acid for 24 h at 60 degrees C and dried (GAA). Raw bitter vetch seed was contained 94.52, 26.56, 0.4, 58.86, 3.38, 5.32, 12.28 and 14.20 percent DM, CP, EE, NFE, Ash, CF, ADF and NDF, respectively. Its GE, AME, AMEn, TME and TMEn values were 18.10, 13.15, 14.38, 14.10 and 14.69 MJ/kg, respectively. Results indicated that bitter vetch is a good source of Fe (340 ppm) and Cu (46.7 ppm). It s amino acid profile was suitable and methionine was the first limiting amino acid when compared with broiler and layer chicks requirements. Its canavanine and tannin content were 0.78 and 6.7 mg/kgDM, respectively. Processing methods improved CP and in some cases AMEn. All processing methods especially GSC resulted in a significant (P < 0.05) reduction in canavanine and tannin.

  13. Film transfer enabled by nanosheet seed layers on arbitrary sacrificial substrates

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Dral, A. P.; Nijland, M.; Koster, G.

    An approach for film transfer is demonstrated that makes use of seed layers of nanosheets on arbitrary sacrificial substrates. Epitaxial SrTiO{sub 3}, SrRuO{sub 3}, and BiFeO{sub 3} films were grown on Ca{sub 2}Nb{sub 3}O{sub 10} nanosheet seed layers on phlogopite mica substrates. Cleavage of the mica substrates enabled film transfer to flexible polyethylene terephthalate substrates. Electron backscatter diffraction, X-ray diffraction, and atomic force microscopy confirmed that crystal orientation and film morphology remained intact during transfer. The generic nature of this approach is illustrated by growing films on zinc oxide substrates with a nanosheet seed layer. Film transfer to a flexiblemore » substrate was accomplished via acid etching.« less

  14. Deuterium transport in Cu, CuCrZr, and Cu/Be

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Anderl, R. A.; Hankins, M. R.; Longhurst, G. R.; Pawelko, R. J.

    This paper presents the results of deuterium implantation/permeation experiments and TMAP4 simulations for a CuCrZr alloy, for OFHC-Cu and for a Cu/Be bi-layered structure at temperatures from 700 to 800 K. Experiments used a mass-analyzed, 3-keV D 3+ ion beam with particle flux densities of 5 × 10 19 to 7 × 10 19 D/m 2 s. Effective diffusivities and surface molecular recombination coefficients were derived giving Arrhenius pre-exponentials and activation energies for each material: CuCrZr alloy, (2.0 × 10 -2 m 2/s, 1.2 eV) for diffusivity and (2.9 × x10 -14 m 4/s, 1.92 eV) for surface molecular recombination coefficients; OFHC Cu, (2.1 × 10 -6 m 2/s, 0.52 eV) for diffusivity and (9.1 × 10 -18 m 4/s, 0.99 eV) for surface molecular recombination coefficients. TMAP4 simulation of permeation data measured for a Cu/Be bi-layer sample was achieved using a four-layer structure (Cu/BeO interface/Be/BeO back surface) and recommended values for diffusivity and solubility in Be, BeO and Cu.

  15. Comparison of the quality of single-crystal diamonds grown on two types of seed substrates by MPCVD

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, Yun; Guo, Yanzhao; Lin, Liangzhen; Zheng, Yuting; Hei, Lifu; Liu, Jinlong; Wei, Junjun; Chen, Liangxian; Li, Chengming

    2018-06-01

    Microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD) was used to grow single-crystal diamonds on two types of single-crystal diamond seed substrates prepared by high-pressure, high-temperature (HPHT) and chemical vapor deposition (CVD) methods. The quality of diamonds grown on the different seed substrates was compared. Fluorescence characteristics showed that the sectors of the HPHT seed substrates were obviously partitioned. Raman and absorption spectra showed that the CVD seed substrate produced higher-quality crystals with fewer nitrogen impurities. X-ray topography showed that the HPHT seed substrate had obvious growth sector boundaries, inclusions, dislocations, and stacking faults. The polarization characteristics of HPHT seed substrate were obvious, and the stress distribution was not uniform. When etching HPHT and CVD seed substrates using the same parameters, the etching morphology and extent of different growth sectors of the two substrates differed. Although extended defects were inevitably formed at the interface and propagated in the CVD layer, the dislocation density of a 1 mm-thick CVD layer grown on a CVD seed substrate was only half that of a 1 mm-thick CVD layer grown on an HPHT seed substrate. Therefore, the use of CVD seed substrate enabled the growth of a relatively higher-quality CVD single-crystal diamond.

  16. Evidence for Cu2-xSe platelets at grain boundaries and within grains in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Simsek Sanli, E.; Ramasse, Q. M.; Mainz, R.; Weber, A.; Abou-Ras, D.; Sigle, W.; van Aken, P. A.

    2017-07-01

    Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS)-based solar cells reach high power-conversion efficiencies of above 22%. In this work, a three-stage co-evaporation method was used for their fabrication. During the growth stages, the stoichiometry of the absorbers changes from Cu-poor ([Cu]/([In] + [Ga]) < 1) to Cu-rich ([Cu]/([In] + [Ga]) > 1) and finally becomes Cu-poor again when the growth process is completed. It is known that, according to the Cu-In-Ga-Se phase diagram, a Cu-rich growth leads to the presence of Cu2-xSe (x = 0-0.25), which is assumed to assist in recrystallization, grain growth, and defect annihilation in the CIGS layer. So far, Cu2-xSe precipitates with spatial extensions on the order of 10-100 nm have been detected only in Cu-rich CIGS layers. In the present work, we report Cu2-xSe platelets with widths of only a few atomic planes at grain boundaries and as inclusions within grains in a polycrystalline, Cu-poor CIGS layer, as evidenced by high-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The chemistry of the Cu-Se secondary phase was analyzed by electron energy-loss spectroscopy, and STEM image simulation confirmed the identification of the detected phase. These results represent additional experimental evidence for the proposed topotactical growth model for Cu-Se-assisted CIGS thin-film formation under Cu-rich conditions.

  17. Fabrication of nanocrystalline surface composite layer on Cu plate under ball collisions.

    PubMed

    Romankov, S; Park, Y C; Yoon, J M

    2014-10-01

    It was demonstrated that the severe plastic deformation of a surface induced by repeated ball collisions can be effectively used for fabrication of the nanocrystalline surface composite layers. The Cu disk was fixed at the top of a vibration chamber and ball treated. Al, Zr, Ni, Co and Fe were introduced into a Cu plate as contaminants from the grinding media one after the other by 15-min ball treatment. The composite structure was formed as a result of mechanical intermixing of the components. The particle size in as-fabricated layer ranged from 2 nm to 20 nm, with average values of about 7 nm. As-fabricated layer contained non-equilibrium multicomponent solid solution based on FCC Cu crystal structure, Zr-based phase, nanosized steel debris and amorphous phase. The hardness of the as-fabricated composite was almost ten times that of the initial Cu plate.

  18. Copper excess impairs mobilization of storage proteins in bean cotyledons.

    PubMed

    Karmous, Inès; El Ferjani, Ezzedine; Chaoui, Abdelilah

    2011-12-01

    Germination represents a limiting stage of plant life cycle. One of the underlying metabolic activities following imbibition of seed is the reserve mobilization. Seeds of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L. var. soisson nain hatif) were germinated by soaking in distilled water or 200 μM CuCl(2). Storage proteins breakdown and amino acids freeing from reserve tissues were investigated. Compared to the control, Cu caused a reduction in germination rate, embryo growth, and in mobilization of cotyledonary biomass. The failure in albumin and globulin hydrolysis after the exposure to the pollutant was argued by (1) higher contents of remaining proteins than control ones, (2) persistence of some polypeptide bands resolved by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of albumin and globulin-rich fractions, and (3) decrease in the availability of amino acids. Nitrogen starvation in embryonic axis should be associated with the Cu-imposed delay in growth.

  19. Mannans and endo-β-mannanase transcripts are located in different seed compartments during Brassicaceae germination.

    PubMed

    Carrillo-Barral, Néstor; Matilla, Angel J; Rodríguez-Gacio, María Del Carmen; Iglesias-Fernández, Raquel

    2018-03-01

    Mannans but not endo-β-mannanases are mainly found in the mucilage layer of two Brassicaceae seeds. Nonetheless, mannanase mobilization from inner to outer seed layers cannot be ruled out. The contribution of endo-β-mannanase (MAN) genes to the germination of the wild-type Sisymbrium officinale and cultivated Brassica rapa (Brassicaceae) species has been explored. In both species, mannans have been localized to the imbibed external seed coat layer (mucilage) by fluorescence immunolocalization and MAN enzymatic activity increases in seeds as imbibition progresses, reaching a peak before 100% germination is achieved. The MAN gene families have been annotated and the expression of their members analyzed in vegetative and reproductive organs. In S. officinale and B. rapa, MAN2, MAN5, MAN6, and MAN7 transcripts accumulate upon seed imbibition. SoMAN7 is the most expressed MAN gene in S. officinale germinating seeds, as occurs with its ortholog in Arabidopsis thaliana, but in B. rapa, the most abundant transcripts are BrMAN2 and BrMAN5. These genes (MAN2, MAN5, MAN6, and MAN7) are localized, by mRNA in situ hybridization, to the micropylar at the endosperm layer and to the radicle in S. officinale, but in B. rapa, these mRNAs are faintly found to the micropylar living seed coat layer and are mainly present at the radicle tip and the vascular bundles. If the domestication process undergone by B. rapa is responsible for these different MAN expression patterns, upon germination remains to be elucidated. Since mannans and MAN genes are not spatially distributed in the same seed tissues, a movement of MAN enzymes that are synthesized with typical signal peptides from the embryo tissues to the mucilage layer (via apoplastic space) is necessary for the mannans to be hydrolyzed.

  20. The synergistic effect of micro/nano-structured and Cu2+-doped hydroxyapatite particles to promote osteoblast viability and antibacterial activity.

    PubMed

    Shi, Feng; Liu, Yumei; Zhi, Wei; Xiao, Dongqin; Li, Hongyu; Duan, Ke; Qu, Shuxin; Weng, Jie

    2017-06-06

    Microstructure and chemical constitution are important factors affecting the biological activity of biomaterials. This study aimed to fabricate hydroxyapatite (HAp) particles with both micro/nanohybrid structure and Cu 2+ doping to promote osteogenic differentiation and antibacterial property. In the presence of inositol hexakisphosphate (IP6), micro/nano-structured and Cu 2+ -doped HAp (HAp-IP6-Cu) microspheres were successfully fabricated via hydrothermal method. Morphological observation showed that HAp-IP6-Cu microspheres with a diameter of 3.1-4.1 μm were chrysanthemum-like and composed of nano-flakes approximately 50 nm in thickness. Compared with the HAp micro-rods or IP6 modified HAp (HAp-IP6) microspheres, HAp-IP6-Cu microspheres had a larger specific surface area, better hydrophilicity and stronger ability to adsorb bovine serum albumin. To evaluate the synergistic effects of micro/nanohybrid structure and Cu 2+ on cell behavior, rat calvarial osteoblasts (RCOs) were cultured on HAp-IP6-Cu, HAp-IP6 and HAp layers as well as their extracts, respectively. Results demonstrated that HAp-IP6-Cu layer promoted the adhesion, proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of RCOs. The cells grew on HAp-IP6-Cu and HAp-IP6 layers exhibited greater spreading than those on HAp layer. In addition, quantitative test by the agar disk diffusion technique found that HAp-IP6-Cu microspheres were effectively against S taphylococcus aureus and E scherichia coli. These results demonstrated that HAp-IP6-Cu microspheres may be a potential candidate as a bioactive and anti-infective biomaterial for bone regeneration.

  1. Dynamic changes in the distribution of minerals in relation to phytic acid accumulation during rice seed development.

    PubMed

    Iwai, Toru; Takahashi, Michiko; Oda, Koshiro; Terada, Yasuko; Yoshida, Kaoru T

    2012-12-01

    Phytic acid (inositol hexakisphosphate [InsP(6)]) is the storage compound of phosphorus in seeds. As phytic acid binds strongly to metallic cations, it also acts as a storage compound of metals. To understand the mechanisms underlying metal accumulation and localization in relation to phytic acid storage, we applied synchrotron-based x-ray microfluorescence imaging analysis to characterize the simultaneous subcellular distribution of some mineral elements (phosphorus, calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, and copper) in immature and mature rice (Oryza sativa) seeds. This fine-imaging method can reveal whether these elements colocalize. We also determined their accumulation patterns and the changes in phosphate and InsP(6) contents during seed development. While the InsP(6) content in the outer parts of seeds rapidly increased during seed development, the phosphate contents of both the outer and inner parts of seeds remained low. Phosphorus, calcium, potassium, and iron were most abundant in the aleurone layer, and they colocalized throughout seed development. Zinc was broadly distributed from the aleurone layer to the inner endosperm. Copper localized outside the aleurone layer and did not colocalize with phosphorus. From these results, we suggest that phosphorus translocated from source organs was immediately converted to InsP(6) and accumulated in aleurone layer cells and that calcium, potassium, and iron accumulated as phytic acid salt (phytate) in the aleurone layer, whereas zinc bound loosely to InsP(6) and accumulated not only in phytate but also in another storage form. Copper accumulated in the endosperm and may exhibit a storage form other than phytate.

  2. Interfacial Reaction and IMC Growth of an Ultrasonically Soldered Cu/SAC305/Cu Structure during Isothermal Aging

    PubMed Central

    Long, Weifeng; Hu, Xiaowu; Fu, Yanshu

    2018-01-01

    In order to accelerate the growth of interfacial intermetallic compound (IMC) layers in a soldering structure, Cu/SAC305/Cu was first ultrasonically spot soldered and then subjected to isothermal aging. Relatively short vibration times, i.e., 400 ms and 800 ms, were used for the ultrasonic soldering. The isothermal aging was conducted at 150 °C for 0, 120, 240, and 360 h. The evolution of microstructure, the IMC layer growth mechanism during aging, and the shear strength of the joints after aging were systemically investigated. Results showed the following. (i) Formation of intermetallic compounds was accelerated by ultrasonic cavitation and streaming effects, the thickness of the interfacial Cu6Sn5 layer increased with aging time, and a thin Cu3Sn layer was identified after aging for 360 h. (ii) The growth of the interfacial IMC layer of the ultrasonically soldered Cu/SAC305/Cu joints followed a linear function of the square root of the aging time, revealing a diffusion-controlled mechanism. (iii) The tensile shear strength of the joint decreased to a small extent with increasing aging time, owing to the combined effects of IMC grain coarsening and the increase of the interfacial IMC. (iv) Finally, although the fracture surfaces and failure locations of the joint soldered with 400 ms and 800 ms vibration times show similar characteristics, they are influenced by the aging time. PMID:29316625

  3. Distinct oxygen hole doping in different layers of Sr₂CuO 4-δ/La₂CuO₄ superlattices

    DOE PAGES

    Smadici, S.; Lee, J. C. T.; Rusydi, A.; ...

    2012-03-28

    X-ray absorption in Sr₂CuO 4-δ/La₂CuO₄ (SCO/LCO) superlattices shows a variable occupation with doping of a hole state different from holes doped for x≲x optimal in bulk La 2-xSr xCuO₄ and suggests that this hole state is on apical oxygen atoms and polarized in the a-b plane. Considering the surface reflectivity gives a good qualitative description of the line shapes of resonant soft x-ray scattering. The interference between superlattice and surface reflections was used to distinguish between scatterers in the SCO and the LCO layers, with the two hole states maximized in different layers of the superlattice.

  4. Formation of Multilayer Cu Islands Embedded beneath the Surface of Graphite: Characterization and Fundamental Insights

    DOE PAGES

    Lii-Rosales, Ann; Han, Yong; Evans, James W.; ...

    2018-02-06

    Here in this paper, we present an extensive experimental study of the conditions under which Cu forms encapsulated islands under the top surface layers of graphite, as a result of physical vapor deposition of Cu on argon-ion-bombarded graphite. When the substrate is held at 800 K during deposition, conditions are optimal for formation of encapsulated multilayer Cu islands. Deposition temperatures below 600 K favor adsorbed Cu clusters, while deposition temperatures above 800 K favor a different type of feature that is probably a single-layer intercalated Cu island. The multilayer Cu islands are characterized with respect to size and shape, thicknessmore » and continuity of the graphitic overlayer, relationship to graphite steps, and stability in air. The experimental techniques are scanning tunneling microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We also present an extensive study using density functional theory to compare stabilities of a wide variety of configurations of Cu atoms, Cu clusters, and Cu layers on/under the graphite surface. The only configuration that is significantly more stable under the graphite surface than on top of it, is a single Cu atom. This analysis leads us to conclude that formation of encapsulated Cu islands is kinetically driven, rather than thermodynamically driven.« less

  5. Formation of Multilayer Cu Islands Embedded beneath the Surface of Graphite: Characterization and Fundamental Insights

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lii-Rosales, Ann; Han, Yong; Evans, James W.

    Here in this paper, we present an extensive experimental study of the conditions under which Cu forms encapsulated islands under the top surface layers of graphite, as a result of physical vapor deposition of Cu on argon-ion-bombarded graphite. When the substrate is held at 800 K during deposition, conditions are optimal for formation of encapsulated multilayer Cu islands. Deposition temperatures below 600 K favor adsorbed Cu clusters, while deposition temperatures above 800 K favor a different type of feature that is probably a single-layer intercalated Cu island. The multilayer Cu islands are characterized with respect to size and shape, thicknessmore » and continuity of the graphitic overlayer, relationship to graphite steps, and stability in air. The experimental techniques are scanning tunneling microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. We also present an extensive study using density functional theory to compare stabilities of a wide variety of configurations of Cu atoms, Cu clusters, and Cu layers on/under the graphite surface. The only configuration that is significantly more stable under the graphite surface than on top of it, is a single Cu atom. This analysis leads us to conclude that formation of encapsulated Cu islands is kinetically driven, rather than thermodynamically driven.« less

  6. Effect of inserting a hole injection layer in organic light-emitting diodes: A numerical approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Hyeongi; Hwang, Youngwook; Won, Taeyoung

    2015-01-01

    For investigating the effect of inserting a hole injection layer (HIL), we carried out a computational study concerning organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) that had a thin CuPc layer as the hole injection layer. We used S-TAD (2, 2', 7, 7'-tetrakis-(N, Ndiphenylamino)-9, 9-spirobifluoren) for the hole transfer layer, S-DPVBi (4, 4'-bis (2, 2'-diphenylvinyl)-1, 1'-spirobiphenyl) for the emission layer and Alq3 (Tris (8-hyroxyquinolinato) aluminium) for the electron transfer layer. This tri-layer device was compared with four-layer devices. To this tri-layer device, we added a thin CuPc layer, which had a 5.3 eV highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) level and a 3.8 eV lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) level, as a hole injection layer, and we chose this device for Device A. Also, we varied the LUMO level or the HOMO level of the thin CuPc layer. These two devices were identified as Device C and Device D, respectively. In this paper, we simulated the carrier injection, transport and recombination in these four devices. Thereby, we showed the effect of the HIL, and we demonstrated that the characteristics of these devices were improved by adding a thin layer of CuPc between the anode and the HTL.

  7. Epitaxial CuInSe2 thin films grown by molecular beam epitaxy and migration enhanced epitaxy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Abderrafi, K.; Ribeiro-Andrade, R.; Nicoara, N.; Cerqueira, M. F.; Gonzalez Debs, M.; Limborço, H.; Salomé, P. M. P.; Gonzalez, J. C.; Briones, F.; Garcia, J. M.; Sadewasser, S.

    2017-10-01

    While CuInSe2 chalcopyrite materials are mainly used in their polycrystalline form to prepare thin film solar cells, epitaxial layers have been used for the characterization of defects. Typically, epitaxial layers are grown by metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy or molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Here we present epitaxial layers grown by migration enhanced epitaxy (MEE) and compare the materials quality to MBE grown layers. CuInSe2 layers were grown on GaAs (0 0 1) substrates by co-evaporation of Cu, In, and Se using substrate temperatures of 450 °C, 530 °C, and 620 °C. The layers were characterized by high resolution X-ray diffraction (HR-XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), Raman spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy (AFM). HR-XRD and HR-TEM show a better crystalline quality of the MEE grown layers, and Raman scattering measurements confirm single phase CuInSe2. AFM shows the previously observed faceting of the (0 0 1) surface into {1 1 2} facets with trenches formed along the [1 1 0] direction. The surface of MEE-grown samples appears smoother compared to MBE-grown samples, a similar trend is observed with increasing growth temperature.

  8. Evaluation of constitutive iron reductase (AtFRO2) expression on mineral accumulation and distribution in soybean (Glycine max. L)

    PubMed Central

    Vasconcelos, Marta W.; Clemente, Thomas E.; Grusak, Michael A.

    2014-01-01

    Iron is an important micronutrient in human and plant nutrition. Adequate iron nutrition during crop production is central for assuring appropriate iron concentrations in the harvestable organs, for human food or animal feed. The whole-plant movement of iron involves several processes, including the reduction of ferric to ferrous iron at several locations throughout the plant, prior to transmembrane trafficking of ferrous iron. In this study, soybean plants that constitutively expressed the AtFRO2 iron reductase gene were analyzed for leaf iron reductase activity, as well as the effect of this transgene’s expression on root, leaf, pod wall, and seed mineral concentrations. High Fe supply, in combination with the constitutive expression of AtFRO2, resulted in significantly higher concentrations of different minerals in roots (K, P, Zn, Ca, Ni, Mg, and Mo), pod walls (Fe, K, P, Cu, and Ni), leaves (Fe, P, Cu, Ca, Ni, and Mg) and seeds (Fe, Zn, Cu, and Ni). Leaf and pod wall iron concentrations increased as much as 500% in transgenic plants, while seed iron concentrations only increased by 10%, suggesting that factors other than leaf and pod wall reductase activity were limiting the translocation of iron to seeds. Protoplasts isolated from transgenic leaves had three-fold higher reductase activity than controls. Expression levels of the iron storage protein, ferritin, were higher in the transgenic leaves than in wild-type, suggesting that the excess iron may be stored as ferritin in the leaves and therefore unavailable for phloem loading and delivery to the seeds. Also, citrate and malate levels in the roots and leaves of transgenic plants were significantly higher than in wild-type, suggesting that organic acid production could be related to the increased accumulation of minerals in roots, leaves, and pod walls, but not in the seeds. All together, these results suggest a more ubiquitous role for the iron reductase in whole-plant mineral accumulation and distribution. PMID:24765096

  9. Corrosion and runoff rates of Cu and three Cu-alloys in marine environments with increasing chloride deposition rate.

    PubMed

    Odnevall Wallinder, Inger; Zhang, Xian; Goidanich, Sara; Le Bozec, Nathalie; Herting, Gunilla; Leygraf, Christofer

    2014-02-15

    Bare copper sheet and three commercial Cu-based alloys, Cu15Zn, Cu4Sn and Cu5Al5Zn, have been exposed to four test sites in Brest, France, with strongly varying chloride deposition rates. The corrosion rates of all four materials decrease continuously with distance from the coast, i.e. with decreasing chloride load, and in the following order: Cu4Sn>Cu sheet>Cu15Zn>Cu5Al5Zn. The patina on all materials was composed of two main layers, Cu2O as the inner layer and Cu2(OH)3Cl as the outer layer, and with a discontinuous presence of CuCl in between. Additional minor patina constituents are SnO2 (Cu4Sn), Zn5(OH)6(CO3)2 (Cu15Zn and Cu5Al5Zn) and Zn6Al2(OH)16CO3·4H2O/Zn2Al(OH)6Cl·2H2O/Zn5Cl2(OH)8·H2O and Al2O3 (Cu5Al5Zn). The observed Zn- and Zn/Al-containing corrosion products might be important factors for the lower sensitivity of Cu15Zn and Cu5Al5Zn against chloride-induced atmospheric corrosion compared with Cu sheet and Cu4Sn. Decreasing corrosion rates with exposure time were observed for all materials and chloride loads and attributed to an improved adherence with time of the outer patina to the underlying inner oxide. Flaking of the outer patina layer was mainly observed on Cu4Sn and Cu sheet and associated with the gradual transformation of CuCl to Cu2(OH)3Cl of larger volume. After three years only Cu5Al5Zn remains lustrous because of a patina compared with the other materials that appeared brownish-reddish. Significantly lower release rates of metals compared with corresponding corrosion rates were observed for all materials. Very similar release rates of copper from all four materials were observed during the fifth year of marine exposure due to an outer surface patina that with time revealed similar constituents and solubility properties. Copyright © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  10. Fabrication of Cu-Ni mixed phase layer using DC electroplating and suppression of Kirkendall voids in Sn-Ag-Cu solder joints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chee, Sang-Soo; Lee, Jong-Hyun

    2014-05-01

    A solderable layer concurrently containing Cu-rich and Ni-rich phases (mixed-phase layer, MPL) was fabricated by direct current electroplating under varying process conditions. Current density was considered as the main parameter to adjust the microstructure and composition of MPL during the electroplating process, and deposit thickness were evaluated as functions of plating time. As a result, it was observed that the coral-like structure that consisted of Cu-rich and Ni-rich phases grew in the thickness direction. The most desirable microstructure was obtained at a relatively low current density of 0.4 mA/cm2. In other words, the surface was the smoothest and defect-free at this current density. The electroplating rate was slightly enhanced with an increase in current density. Investigations of its solid-state reaction properties, including the formation of Kirkendall voids, were also carried out after reflow soldering with Sn-3.0 Ag-0.5 Cu solder balls. In the solid-state aging experiment at 125°C, Kirkendall voids at the normal Sn-3.0 Ag-0.5 Cu solder/Cu interface were easily formed after just 240 h. Meanwhile, the presence of an intermetallic compound (IMC) layer created in the solder/MPL interface indicated a slightly lower growth rate, and no Kirkendall voids were observed in the IMC layer even after 720 h.

  11. Study of Sn and SnAgCu Solders Wetting Reaction on Ni/Pd/Au Substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, C. Y.; Wei, Y. S.; Lin, E. J.; Hsu, Y. C.; Tang, Y. K.

    2016-12-01

    Wetting reactions of pure Sn and Sn-Ag-Cu solder balls on Au(100 Å and 1000 Å)/Pd(500 Å)/Ni substrates were investigated. The (Au, Pd)Sn4 phase formed in the initial interfacial reaction between pure Sn and Au(100 Å and 1000 Å)/Pd(500 Å)/Ni substrates. Then, the initially formed (Au, Pd)Sn4 compound layer either dissolved or spalled into the molten Sn solder with 3 s of reflowing. The exposed Ni under-layer reacted with Sn solder and formed an interfacial Ni3Sn4 compound. We did not observe spalling compound in the Sn-Ag-Cu case, either on the thin Au (100 Å) or the thick Au (1000 Å) substrates. This implies that the Cu content in the Sn-Ag-Cu solder can efficiently suppress the spalling effect and really stabilize the interfacial layer. Sn-Ag-Cu solder has a better wetting than that of the pure Sn solder, regardless of the Au thickness of the Au/Pd/Ni substrate. For both cases of pure Sn and Sn-Ag-Cu, the initial wetting (<3-s reflowing) on the thin Au (100 Å) substrate is better than that of the thick Au (1000 Å) substrate. Over 3-s reflowing, the wetting on the thicker Au layer (1000 Å) substrate becomes better than the wetting on the thinner Au layer (100 Å) substrate.

  12. Coexistence of bipolar and unipolar resistive switching behaviors in the double-layer Ag/ZnS-Ag/CuAlO2/Pt memory device

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Lei; Xu, Haiyang; Wang, Zhongqiang; Yu, Hao; Ma, Jiangang; Liu, Yichun

    2016-01-01

    The coexistence of uniform bipolar and unipolar resistive-switching (RS) characteristics was demonstrated in a double-layer Ag/ZnS-Ag/CuAlO2/Pt memory device. By changing the compliance current (CC) from 1 mA to 10 mA, the RS behavior can be converted from the bipolar mode (BRS) to the unipolar mode (URS). The temperature dependence of low resistance states further indicates that the CFs are composed of the Ag atoms and Cu vacancies for the BRS mode and URS mode, respectively. For this double-layer structure device, the thicker conducting filaments (CFs) will be formed in the ZnS-Ag layer, and it can act as tip electrodes. Thus, the formation and rupture of these two different CFs are located in the CuAlO2 layer, realizing the uniform and stable BRS and URS.

  13. Comparative study on the passivation layers of copper sulphide minerals during bioleaching

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Fu, Kai-bin; Lin, Hai; Mo, Xiao-lan; Wang, Han; Wen, Hong-wei; Wen, Zi-long

    2012-10-01

    The bioleaching of copper sulphide minerals was investigated by using A. ferrooxidans ATF6. The result shows the preferential order of the minerals bioleaching as djurleite>bornite>pyritic chalcopyrite>covellite>porphyry chalcopyrite. The residues were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). It is indicated that jarosite may not be responsible for hindered dissolution. The elemental sulfur layer on the surface of pyritic chalcopyrite residues is cracked. The compact surface layer of porphyry chalcopyrite may strongly hinder copper extraction. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) further confirms that the passivation layers of covellite, pyritic chalcopyrite, and porphyry chalcopyrite are copper-depleted sulphide Cu4S11, S8, and copper-rich iron-deficient polysulphide Cu4Fe2S9, respectively. The ability of these passivation layers was found as Cu4Fe2S9>Cu4S11>S8>jarosite.

  14. Low-Temperature Synthesis of Vertically Align ZnO Layer on ITO Glass: The Role of Seed Layer and Hydrothermal Process

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sholehah, Amalia; Achmad, NurSumiati; Dimyati, Arbi; Dwiyanti, Yanyan; Partuti, Tri

    2017-05-01

    ZnO thin layer has a broad potential application in optoelectronic devices. In the present study, vertically align ZnO layers on ITO glass were synthesized using wet chemical method. The seed layers were prepared using electrodeposition method at 3°C. After that, the growing process was carried out using chemical bath deposition (CBD) at 90°C. To improve the structural property of the ZnO layers, hydrothermal technique was used subsequently. Results showed that seeding layer has a great influence on the physical properties of the ZnO layers. Moreover, hydrothermal process conducted after the ZnO growth can enhance the morphological property of the layers. From the experiments, it is found that the ZnO layers has diameter of ∼60 nm with increasing thickness from ∼0.8 to 1.2 μm and band-gap energies of ∼3.2 eV.

  15. Orientation dependences of atomic structures in chemically heterogeneous Cu{sub 50}Ta{sub 50}/Ta glass-crystal interfaces

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Yang, Guiqin; Gao, Xiaoze; Li, Jinfu

    2015-01-07

    Molecular dynamics simulations based on an angular-dependent potential were performed to examine the structural properties of chemically heterogeneous interfaces between amorphous Cu{sub 50}Ta{sub 50} and crystalline Ta. Several phenomena, namely, layering, crystallization, intermixing, and composition segregation, were observed in the Cu{sub 50}Ta{sub 50} region adjacent to the Ta layers. These interfacial behaviors are found to depend on the orientation of the underlying Ta substrate: Layering induced by Ta(110) extends the farthest into Cu{sub 50}Ta{sub 50}, crystallization in the Cu{sub 50}Ta{sub 50} region is most significant for interface against Ta(100), while inter-diffusion is most pronounced for Ta(111). It turns out thatmore » the induced layering behavior is dominated by the interlayer distances of the underlying Ta layers, while the degree of inter-diffusion is governed by the openness of the Ta crystalline layers. In addition, composition segregations are observed in all interface models, corresponding to the immiscible nature of the Cu-Ta system. Furthermore, Voronoi polyhedra 〈0,5,2,6〉 and 〈0,4,4,6〉 are found to be abundant in the vicinity of the interfaces for all models, whose presence is believed to facilitate the structural transition between amorphous and body centered cubic.« less

  16. Improved photoswitching response times of MoS2 field-effect transistors by stacking p-type copper phthalocyanine layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pak, Jinsu; Min, Misook; Cho, Kyungjune; Lien, Der-Hsien; Ahn, Geun Ho; Jang, Jingon; Yoo, Daekyoung; Chung, Seungjun; Javey, Ali; Lee, Takhee

    2016-10-01

    Photoswitching response times (rise and decay times) of a vertical organic and inorganic heterostructure with p-type copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) and n-type molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) semiconductors are investigated. By stacking a CuPc layer on MoS2 field effect transistors, better photodetection capability and fast photoswitching rise and decay phenomena are observed. Specifically, with a 2 nm-thick CuPc layer on the MoS2 channel, the photoswitching decay time decreases from 3.57 s to 0.18 s. The p-type CuPc layer, as a passivation layer, prevents the absorption of oxygen on the surface of the MoS2 channel layer, which results in a shortened photoswitching decay time because adsorbed oxygen destroys the balanced ratio of electrons and holes, leading to the interruption of recombination processes. The suggested heterostructure may deliver enhanced photodetection abilities and photoswitching characteristics for realizing ultra-thin and sensitive photodetectors.

  17. Epitaxial growth of YBa2Cu3O7 - delta films on oxidized silicon with yttria- and zirconia-based buffer layers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pechen, E. V.; Schoenberger, R.; Brunner, B.; Ritzinger, S.; Renk, K. F.; Sidorov, M. V.; Oktyabrsky, S. R.

    1993-09-01

    A study of epitaxial growth of YBa2Cu3O7-δ films on oxidized Si with yttria- and zirconia-based buffer layers is reported. Using substrates with either SiO2 free or naturally oxidized (100) surfaces of Si it was found that a thin SiO2 layer on top of the Si favors high-quality superconducting film formation. Compared to yttria-stabilized ZrO2 (YSZ) single layers, YSZY2O3 double and YSZ/Y2O3YSZ triple layers allows the deposition of thin YBa2Cu3O7-δ films with improved properties including reduced aging effects. In epitaxial YBa2Cu3O7-δ films grown on the double buffer layers a critical temperature Tc(R=0)=89.5 K and critical current densities of 3.5×106 A/cm2 at 77 K and 1×107 A/cm2 at 66 K were reached.

  18. Excess Oxygen Defects in Layered Cuprates

    DOE R&D Accomplishments Database

    Lightfoot, P.; Pei, S. Y.; Jorgensen, J. D.; Manthiram, A.; Tang, X. X.; Goodenough, J. B.

    1990-09-01

    Neutron powder diffraction has been used to study the oxygen defect chemistry of two non-superconducting layered cuprates, La{sub 1. 25}Dy{sub 0.75}Cu{sub 3.75}F{sub 0.5}, having a T{sup {asterisk}}- related structure, and La{sub 1.85}Sr{sub 1.15}Cu{sub 2}O{sub 6.25}, having a structure related to that of the newly discovered double-layer superconductor La{sub 2-x}Sr{sub x}CaCu{sub 2}O{sub 6}. The role played by oxygen defects in determining the superconducting properties of layered cuprates is discussed.

  19. Diffusion behavior of Cu/Ta heterogeneous interface under high temperature and high strain: An atomistic investigation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Ganglong; Wu, Houya; Luo, Honglong; Chen, Zhuo; Tay, Andrew A. O.; Zhu, Wenhui

    2017-09-01

    Three-dimensional (3D) integration technology using Cu interconnections has emerged as a promising solution to improve the performance of silicon microelectronic devices. However, Cu diffuses into SiO2 and requires a barrier layer such as Ta to ensure acceptable reliability. In this paper, the effects of temperature and strain normal to the interface on the inter-diffusion of Cu and Ta at annealing conditions are investigated using a molecular dynamics (MD) technique with embedded atomic method (EAM) potentials. Under thermal annealing conditions without strain, it is found that a Cu-rich diffusion region approximately 2 nm thick is formed at 1000 K after 10 ns of annealing. Ta is capable of diffusing into the interior of Cu but Cu hardly diffuses into the inner lattice of Ta. At the Cu side near the interface an amorphous structure is formed due to the process of diffusion. The diffusion activation energy of Cu and Ta are found to be 0.9769 and 0.586 eV, respectively. However, when a strain is applied, a large number of crystal defects are generated in the sample. As the strain is increased, extrinsic stacking faults (ESFs) and lots of Shockley partial dislocations appear. The density of the dislocations and the diffusion channels increase, promoting the diffusion of Cu atoms into the inner lattice of Ta. The thickness of the diffusion layer increases to 4 times the value when only a temperature load of 700 K is applied. The MD simulations demonstrated that Ta is very effective as a barrier layer under thermal loading only, and its effectiveness is impaired by tensile strain at the Cu/Ta interface. The simulations also clarified the mechanism that caused the impairment. The methodology and approach described in this paper can be followed further to study the effectiveness of barrier layers under various annealing and strain conditions, and to determine the minimum thickness of barrier layers required for a particular application.

  20. Steady-state solution growth of microcrystalline silicon on nanocrystalline seed layers on glass

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bansen, R.; Ehlers, C.; Teubner, Th.; Boeck, T.

    2016-09-01

    The growth of polycrystalline silicon layers on glass from tin solutions at low temperatures is presented. This approach is based on the steady-state solution growth of Si crystallites on nanocrystalline seed layers, which are prepared in a preceding process step. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy investigations reveal details about the seed layer surfaces, which consist of small hillocks, as well as about Sn inclusions and gaps along the glass substrate after solution growth. The successful growth of continuous microcrystalline Si layers with grain sizes up to several ten micrometers shows the feasibility of the process and makes it interesting for photovoltaics. Project supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) (No. BO 1129/5-1).

  1. Obtention of low oxidation states of copper from Cu 2+-Al 3+ layered double hydroxides containing organic sulfonates in the interlayer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Trujillano, Raquel; Holgado, María Jesús; Rives, Vicente

    2009-03-01

    A series of hydrotalcite-type compounds containing Cu(II) and Al(III) in the layers, and carbonate or different alkylsulfonates in the interlayer, have been prepared and studied. Calcination of these solids gives rise to formation of metallic copper and Cu 2+ and Cu + oxides or sulfates, depending on the calcination temperature and on the precise nature of the interlayer alkylsulfonate.

  2. Universal intrinsic scale of the hole concentration in high- Tc cuprates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Honma, T.; Hor, P. H.; Hsieh, H. H.; Tanimoto, M.

    2004-12-01

    We have measured thermoelectric power (TEP) as a function of hole concentration per CuO2 layer Ppl in Y1-xCaxBa2Cu3O6 (Ppl=x/2) with no oxygen in the Cu-O chain layer. The room-temperature TEP as a function of Ppl , S290(Ppl) , of Y1-xCaxBa2Cu3O6 behaves identically to that of La2-zSrzCuO4 (Ppl=z) . We argue that S290(Ppl) represents a measure of the intrinsic equilibrium electronic states of doped holes and, therefore, can be used as a common scale for the carrier concentrations of layered cuprates. We shows that the Ppl determined by this new universal scale is consistent with both hole concentration microscopically determined by NQR and the hole concentration macroscopically determined by the formal valency of Cu . We find two characteristic scaling temperatures, TS* and TS2* , in the TEP versus temperature curves that change systematically with doping. Based on the universal scale, we uncover a universal phase diagram in which almost all the experimentally determined pseudogap temperatures as a function of Ppl fall on two common curves; lower pseudogap temperature defined by the TS* versus Ppl curve and upper pseudogap temperature defined by the TS2* versus Ppl curve. We find that while pseudogaps are intrinsic properties of doped holes of a single CuO2 layer for all high- Tc cuprates, Tc depends on the number of layers, therefore, the inter layer coupling, in each individual system.

  3. Preparation and Optoelectronic Characteristics of ZnO/CuO-Cu2O Complex Inverse Heterostructure with GaP Buffer for Solar Cell Applications

    PubMed Central

    Hsu, Chih-Hung; Chen, Lung-Chien; Lin, Yi-Feng

    2013-01-01

    This study reports the optoelectronic characteristics of ZnO/GaP buffer/CuO-Cu2O complex (COC) inverse heterostructure for solar cell applications. The GaP and COC layers were used as buffer and absorber in the cell structure, respectively. An energy gap widening effect and CuO whiskers were observed as the copper (Cu) layer was exerted under heat treatment for oxidation at 500 °C for 10 min, and arose from the center of the Cu2O rods. For preparation of the 30 nm-thick GaP buffer by sputtering from GaP target, as the nitrogen gas flow rate increased from 0 to 2 sccm, the transmittance edge of the spectra demonstrated a blueshift form 2.24 to 3.25 eV. Therefore, the layer can be either GaP, GaNP, or GaN by changing the flow rate of nitrogen gas. PMID:28788341

  4. Nonenzymatic detection of glucose using BaCuO2 thin layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ito, Takeshi; Asada, Tsuyoshi; Asai, Naoto; Shimizu, Tomohiro; Shingubara, Shoso

    2017-01-01

    A BaCuO2 thin layer was deposited on a glassy carbon electrode and used for the direct oxidation of glucose. The crystalline, electrochemical, and physicochemical properties that depend on the deposition temperature and deposition time were studied. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis showed that the thin layer was amorphous even at 400 °C. The current density of the glucose oxidation using the thin layer deposited at 200 °C was higher than those at other deposition temperatures. Under this condition, the current density increased with the glucose concentration and deposition time. These results indicate that a BaCuO2 thin layer has potential for measuring the blood glucose level without enzymes.

  5. [Dynamics of Quercus variabilis seed rain and soil seed bank in different habitats on the north slope of Qinling Mountains].

    PubMed

    Wu, Min; Zhang, Wen-Hui; Zhou, Jian-Yun; Ma, Chuang; Ma, Li-Wei

    2011-11-01

    In order to explore the dynamics of Quercus variabilis seed rain and soil seed bank in different habitats on the north slope of Qinling Mountains, three kinds of micro-habitats (understory, forest gap, and forest edge) were selected, with the seed rain quantity and quality of Q. variabilis, seed amount and viability in soil seed bank, as well as the seedling development of Q. variabilis studied. The seed rain of Q. variabilis started from mid August, reached the peak in mid September-early October, and ended at the beginning of November, and there existed differences in the dissemination process, occurrence time, and composition of the seed rain among the three micro-habitats. The seed rain had the maximum intensity (39.55 +/- 5.56 seeds x m(-2)) in understory, the seeds had the earliest landing time, the longest lasting duration, and the highest viability in forest gap, and the mature seeds had the largest proportion in forest edge, accounting for 58.7% of the total. From the ending time of seed rain to next August, the total reserve of soil seed bank was the largest in understory and the smallest in forest edge. In the three habitats, the amount of mature and immature seeds, that of seeds eaten by animals, and the seed viability in soil seed bank all decreased with time. In contrast, the number of moldy seeds increased. The seeds were mainly concentrated in litter layer, a few of them were in 0-2 cm soil layer, and few were in 2-5 cm soil layer. The density of the seedlings varied with habitats, being the largest in forest gap, followed by in forest edge, and the least in understory, which suggested that forest gap was more suitable for the seed germination and seedling growth of Q. variabilis, and thus, appropriate thinning should be taken to increase forest gap to provide favorable conditions for the natural regeneration of Q. variabilis forest.

  6. Grain orientation in high Tc superconductors by molten salt powder synthesis

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gopalakrishnan, Sudhakar; Schulze, Walter A.

    1991-01-01

    The molten salt or the flux method is used to fabricate a grain oriented YBa2Cu3O(7-x) (123) superconductor. Here we suggest a two-stage approach in using the 'green phase', Y2BaCuO5 (211), as seed crystals in the formation of YBa2Cu3O(7-x). The process uses Y2BaCuO5 formed by molten salt synthesis. The Y2BaCuO5 phase was observed to be stable in water and in most of the salt systems. Salt processing can form a small quantity of anisotropic particles of Y2BaCuO5. This material can form the 123 phase when tape cast and sintered in the presence of the required levels of Ba and Cu.

  7. Improvement of the field-trapping capabilities of bulk Nd Ba Cu O superconductors using Ba Cu O substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Matsui, Motohide; Nariki, Shinya; Sakai, Naomichi; Iwafuchi, Kengo; Murakami, Masato

    2006-07-01

    We used Ba-Cu-O substrates to fabricate bulk Nd-Ba-Cu-O superconductors using a top-seeded melt-growth method. There were several advantages for the use of Ba-Cu-O substrate compared to conventional substrate materials such as MgO, ZrO2, Al2O3, RE123 and RE211 (RE = rare earth). The Ba-Cu-O did not react with the precursor and minimized liquid loss. Accordingly, the introduction of large-sized cracks was suppressed. We also found that Tc values were high at the bottom regions, which was ascribed to the beneficial effect of Ba-Cu-O in suppressing Nd/Ba substitution. As a result, we obtained bulk Nd-Ba-Cu-O superconductors that exhibited fairly good field-trapping capabilities, even at the bottom surfaces.

  8. Implementing Classification on a Munitions Response Project

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2011-12-01

    Detection Dig List  IVS/Seed Site Planning Decisions Dig All  Anomalies Site Characterization Implementing Classification on a Munitions Response...Details ● Seed emplacement ● EM61-MK2 detection survey  RTK GPS ● Select anomalies for further investigation ● Collect cued data using MetalMapper...5.2 mV in channel 2  938 anomalies selected ● All QC seeds detected using this threshold  Some just inside the 60-cm halo ● IVS reproducibility

  9. Spray- and spin-assisted layer-by-layer assembly of copper nanoparticles on thin-film composite reverse osmosis membrane for biofouling mitigation.

    PubMed

    Ma, Wen; Soroush, Adel; Van Anh Luong, Tran; Brennan, Gregory; Rahaman, Md Saifur; Asadishad, Bahareh; Tufenkji, Nathalie

    2016-08-01

    Copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) have long been considered as highly effective biocides; however, the lack of suitable methods for loading CuNPs onto polymeric membranes is recognized as being one of the primary reasons for the limited research concerning their application in membrane industries. A highly efficient spray- and spin-assisted layer-by-layer (SSLbL) method was developed to functionalize the TFC polyamide RO membranes with controllable loading of CuNPs for biofouling control. The SSLbL method was able to produce a uniform bilayer of polyethyleneimine-coated CuNPs and poly(acrylic) acid in less than 1 min, which is far more efficient than the traditional dipping approach (25-60 min). The successful loading of CuNPs onto the membrane surface was confirmed by XPS analysis. Increasing the number of bilayers from 2 to 10 led to an increased quantity of CuNPs on the membrane surface, from 1.75 to 23.7 μg cm(-2). Multi-layer coating exhibited minor impact on the membrane water permeation flux (13.3% reduction) while retaining the original salt rejection ability. Both static bacterial inactivation and cross-flow filtration tests demonstrated that CuNPs could significantly improve anti-biofouling property of a polyamide membrane and effectively inhibit the permeate flux reduction caused by bacterial deposition on the membrane surface. Once depleted, CuNPs can also be potentially regenerated on the membrane surface via the same SSLbL method. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  10. Characterization and modeling of microstructural evolution of near-eutectic tin-silver-copper solder joints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zbrzezny, Adam R.

    Near-eutectic Sn-Ag-Cu (SAC) solders are currently considered as major lead-free replacement candidates for Sn-Pb eutectic alloys in microelectronics applications. In this thesis, the microstructural thermal stability including recrystallization, grain growth behavior, Pb and Au contamination effects and interaction of the SAC solder with Cu and Ni substrates were investigated. The true eutectic composition of the Sn-Ag-Cu alloy was verified to be Sn3.5Ag0.9Cu wt.%, and the eutectic melting temperature was determined to be 217.4 +/- 0.8°C. The system was classified as belonging to faceting (Cu6Sn5)-faceting (Ag3Sn)-nonfaceting (Sn matrix) ternary eutectic. The most significant consequence of Pb contamination was the formation of a quaternary eutectic phase (Sn-Ag-Cu-Pb) with a melting point at 176°C. Similarly, the presence of gold in the SAC alloy led to a development of a new quaternary phase (Sn-Ag-Cu-Au) melting at 204°C. Prolonged aging of SAC-4 wt.% Au on nickel resulted in the deposition of a new, previously unreported, intermetallic (IMC) layer, ((Au1-xCUx)6Sn 5, 15 wt.% of Au) on top of the existing (Cu1-yNi y)6Sn5 layer. The interfacial products that formed during soldering to copper were Cu6Sn5 and Cu3Sn. Soldering to nickel resulted in the formation of one layer, (Cu1-yNiy) 6Sn5, which was different from the expected Ni3Sn 4 layer. A small copper content in the SAC solder (0.7 wt.%) was sufficient to promote this thermodynamic shift. Intermetallic growth on Cu during solid state aging was established to be bulk diffusion controlled. The IMC layers in the SAC system grew at a slower rate than in the Sn-Pb system. It was found that the reliability of SAC solder joints on copper was considerably better than on nickel due to copper enrichment during reflow and subsequent Cu6Sn5 intermetallic precipitation. Enhanced copper and silver diffusion followed by tin recrystallization and grain growth, cavity nucleation and subsequent micro-crack linkage formed the framework of a proposed microstructural model of solder degradation mechanisms under cyclic creep conditions. A multilayer diffusion model of the SAC/Cu couple was proposed and employed for predicting intermetallic layer growth kinetics. In general, the calculated IMC thicknesses for short and intermediate aging times were in reasonable agreement with the experimental data.

  11. Effect of processing parameters on the formation of C{sub f}/LAS composites/Ag−Cu−Ti/TC4 brazed joint

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Liu, Duo; Niu, Hongwei

    C{sub f}/LAS composites were successfully jointed to TC4 alloy with Ag−Cu−Ti filler by vacuum brazing. The interfacial microstructure of TC4/C{sub f}/LAS composites joints was characterized by employing scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS), X-diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The determination of the thin interfacial reaction layer (TiSi{sub 2} + TiC layer) was realized by TEM. The effect of holding time on the interfacial microstructure and shear strength were investigated. With the increasing holding time, the thickness of diffusion layer, Ti{sub 3}Cu{sub 4} layer, and TiSi{sub 2} + TiC layer increased obviously, on the contrary, that ofmore » Ti−Cu intermetallic compound layers decreased gradually. Besides, blocky Ti{sub 3}Cu{sub 4} phase was coarsened when the joint was brazed at 890 °C for 20 min, which deteriorated the mechanical properties of the joint dramatically. The interfacial evolution of TC4/C{sub f}/LAS composites joint and the formation of TiSi{sub 2}, TiC, Ti{sub 3}Cu{sub 4}, TiCu and Ti{sub 2}Cu phases were expounded. The maximum shear strength of 26.4 MPa was obtained when brazed at 890 °C for 10 min. - Highlights: •The thin interface reaction layer was determined to be TiSi{sub 2} + TiC layer by TEM. •Holding time had influence on the interfacial microstructure and joint properties. •Microstructural evolution mechanism and reactions of brazed joints were expounded.« less

  12. A novel, two-step top seeded infiltration and growth process for the fabrication of single grain, bulk (RE)BCO superconductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Namburi, Devendra K.; Shi, Yunhua; Palmer, Kysen G.; Dennis, Anthony R.; Durrell, John H.; Cardwell, David A.

    2016-09-01

    A fundamental requirement of the fabrication of high performing, (RE)-Ba-Cu-O bulk superconductors is achieving a single grain microstructure that exhibits good flux pinning properties. The top seeded melt growth (TSMG) process is a well-established technique for the fabrication of single grain (RE)BCO bulk samples and is now applied routinely by a number of research groups around the world. The introduction of a buffer layer to the TSMG process has been demonstrated recently to improve significantly the general reliability of the process. However, a number of growth-related defects, such as porosity and the formation of micro-cracks, remain inherent to the TSMG process, and are proving difficult to eliminate by varying the melt process parameters. The seeded infiltration and growth (SIG) process has been shown to yield single grain samples that exhibit significantly improved microstructures compared to the TSMG technique. Unfortunately, however, SIG leads to other processing challenges, such as the reliability of fabrication, optimisation of RE2BaCuO5 (RE-211) inclusions (size and content) in the sample microstructure, practical oxygenation of as processed samples and, hence, optimisation of the superconducting properties of the bulk single grain. In the present paper, we report the development of a near-net shaping technique based on a novel two-step, buffer-aided top seeded infiltration and growth (BA-TSIG) process, which has been demonstrated to improve greatly the reliability of the single grain growth process and has been used to fabricate successfully bulk, single grain (RE)BCO superconductors with improved microstructures and superconducting properties. A trapped field of ˜0.84 T and a zero field current density of 60 kA cm-2 have been measured at 77 K in a bulk, YBCO single grain sample of diameter 25 mm processed by this two-step BA-TSIG technique. To the best of our knowledge, this value of trapped field is the highest value ever reported for a sample fabricated by an infiltration and growth process. In this study we report the successful fabrication of 14 YBCO samples, with diameters of up to 32 mm, by this novel technique with a success rate of greater than 92%.

  13. Use of π-π forces to steer the assembly of a NTA complex of Cu(II) into hydrogen bonded supramolecular layers (H 3NTA = nitrilotriacetic acid)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dey, Biswajit; Choudhury, Somnath Ray; Suresh, Eringathodi; Jana, Atish Dipankar; Mukhopadhyay, Subrata

    2009-03-01

    We propose a crystal engineering principle where we show that it might be possible to direct the organization of molecular complexes into hydrogen bonded supramolecular layers through the use of suitable co-ligands possessing both the hydrogen-bonding as well as π-π stacking capability. This principle has been tested for the organization of [Cu(NTA) 2] units (H 3NTA = nitrilotriacetic acid, N(CH 2CO 2H) 3) in the molecular complex with formula (2-A-PH) 4[Cu(NTA) 2]·6H 2O ( 1), where 2-A-PH is protonated 2-amino-4-picoline. In 1, the 2-amino-4-picoline co-ligands have been utilized to direct the organization of [Cu(NTA) 2] units into hydrogen bonded layers. The linear stacking of π-π bonded protonated 2-amino-4-picoline molecules can be thought as the influencing agent for the organization of [Cu(NTA) 2] units into hydrogen bonded layers.

  14. Soft-template-synthesis of hollow CuO/Co3O4 composites for pseudo-capacitive electrode: A synergetic effect on electrochemical performance

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Kuaibing; Lv, Bo; Wu, Hua; Luo, Xuefei; Xu, Jiangyan; Geng, Zhirong

    2016-12-01

    Hollow CuO/Co3O4 hybrids, which inherited from its coordination polymer precursor consisting of sheets layer and nanoparticles layer composites, were synthesized and characterized by SEM, EDX, XRD and XPS. To assess its electrochemical capacitive performances, cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charging-discharging measurements and A.C. impedance tests were performed successively. The CuO/Co3O4 hybrids had higher capacitance and lower charge transfer resistance than bare Co3O4 nanostructures, revealing that it provided a protection layer and produced a synergistic effect due to the existence of CuO layer. The distinct synergistic effect could be further confirmed by endurance cycling tests. The capacitance of the CuO/Co3O4 hybrids was 111% retained after 500 cycles at a charging rate of 1.0 A g-1 and remained an intense growth trend after 2000 cycles at scan rate of 200 mV s-1.

  15. Electromigration in epitaxial Cu(001) lines

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ramanath, G.; Kim, H.; Goindi, H. S.; Frederick, M. J.; Shin, C.-S.; Goswami, R.; Petrov, I.; Greene, J. E.

    2002-04-01

    We report the electromigration (EM) response of single-domain epitaxial Cu(001) lines on layers of Ta, TaN, and TiN. Epitaxial Cu(001) lines on nitride layers exhibit nearly two orders of magnitude higher mean-time-to-failure (MTTF) values than those on Ta, indicating the strong influence of the underlayer. The activation energy of EM for Cu on the nitrides is ˜0.8-1.2 eV, and that of Cu on Ta is ˜0.2 eV, for 200-300 °C. Our results also indicate that the MTTF values correlate inversely to the crystal quality of the Cu layers measured by X-ray diffraction. The EM resistance of epitaxial Cu lines with different crystal quality on TaN were measured to separate the effects of interface chemistry and crystal quality. While higher quality epitaxial films reveal a higher EM resistance, the magnitude of the change is smaller than that obtained by changing the interface chemistry. Epitaxial lines exhibit more than 3-4 orders of magnitude higher MTTF than polycrystalline lines on the same underlayer. Based upon our results, we propose that the Cu/underlayer interface chemistry and presence of grain boundary diffusion play important roles in unpassivated Cu films.

  16. Redox biology response in germinating Phaseolus vulgaris seeds exposed to copper: Evidence for differential redox buffering in seedlings and cotyledon.

    PubMed

    Karmous, Inès; Trevisan, Rafael; El Ferjani, Ezzeddine; Chaoui, Abdelilah; Sheehan, David

    2017-01-01

    In agriculture, heavy metal contamination of soil interferes with processes associated with plant growth, development and productivity. Here, we describe oxidative and redox changes, and deleterious injury within cotyledons and seedlings caused by exposure of germinating (Phaseolus vulgaris L. var. soisson nain hâtif) seeds to copper (Cu). Cu induced a marked delay in seedling growth, and was associated with biochemical disturbances in terms of intracellular oxidative status, redox regulation and energy metabolism. In response to these alterations, modulation of activities of antioxidant proteins (thioredoxin and glutathione reductase, peroxiredoxin) occurred, thus preventing oxidative damage. In addition, oxidative modification of proteins was detected in both cotyledons and seedlings by one- and two-dimensional electrophoresis. These modified proteins may play roles in redox buffering. The changes in activities of redox proteins underline their fundamental roles in controlling redox homeostasis. However, observed differential redox responses in cotyledon and seedling tissues showed a major capacity of the seedlings' redox systems to protect the reduced status of protein thiols, thus suggesting quantitatively greater antioxidant protection of proteins in seedlings compared to cotyledon. To our knowledge, this is the first comprehensive redox biology investigation of the effect of Cu on seed germination.

  17. Encapsulation of the heteroepitaxial growth of wide band gap γ-CuCl on silicon substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lucas, F. O.; O'Reilly, L.; Natarajan, G.; McNally, P. J.; Daniels, S.; Taylor, D. M.; William, S.; Cameron, D. C.; Bradley, A. L.; Miltra, A.

    2006-01-01

    γ-CuCl semiconductor material has been identified as a candidate material for the fabrication of blue-UV optoelectronic devices on Si substrates due to its outstanding electronic, lattice and optical properties. However, CuCl thin films oxidise completely into oxyhalides of Cu II within a few days of exposure to air. Conventional encapsulation of thin γ-CuCl by sealed glass at a deposition/curing temperature greater than 250 °C cannot be used because CuCl interacts chemically with Si substrates when heated above that temperature. In this study we have investigated the behaviour of three candidate dielectric materials for use as protective layers for the heteroepitaxial growth of γ-CuCl on Si substrates: SiO 2 deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD), organic polysilsesquioxane-based spin on glass material (PSSQ) and cyclo olefin copolymer (COC) thermoplastic-based material. The optical properties (UV/Vis and IR) of the capped luminescent CuCl films were studied as a function of time, up to 28 days and compared with bare uncapped films. The results clearly show the efficiency of the protective layers. Both COC and the PSSQ layer prevented CuCl film from oxidising while SiO 2 delayed the effect of oxidation. The dielectric constant of the three protective layers was evaluated at 1 MHz to be 2.3, 3.6 and 6.9 for C0C, SiO 2 and PSSQ, respectively.

  18. Selenium-assisted controlled growth of graphene-Bi2Se3 nanoplates hybrid Dirac materials by chemical vapor deposition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sun, Zhencui; Man, Baoyuan; Yang, Cheng; Liu, Mei; Jiang, Shouzhen; Zhang, Chao; Zhang, Jiaxin; Liu, Fuyan; Xu, Yuanyuan

    2016-03-01

    Se seed layers were used to synthesize the high-quality graphene-Bi2Se3 nanoplates hybrid Dirac materials via chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. The morphology, crystallization and structural properties of the hybrid Dirac materials were characterized by SEM, EDS, Raman, XRD, AFM and HRTEM. The measurement results verify that the Se seed layer on the graphene surface can effectively saturate the surface dangling bonds of the graphene, which not only impel the uniform Bi2Se3 nanoplates growing along the horizontal direction but also can supply enough Se atoms to fill the Se vacancies. We also demonstrate the Se seed layer can effectively avoid the interaction of Bi2Se3 and the graphene. Further experiments testify the different Se seed layer on the graphene surface can be used to control the density of the Bi2Se3 nanoplates.

  19. Kinetics of Isothermal Reactive Diffusion Between Solid Cu and Liquid Sn

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    O, M.; Suzuki, T.; Kajihara, M.

    2018-01-01

    The Cu/Sn system is one of the most fundamental and important metallic systems for solder joints in electric devices. To realize reliable solder joints, information on reactive diffusion at the solder joint is very important. In the present study, we experimentally investigated the kinetics of the reactive diffusion between solid Cu and liquid Sn using semi-infinite Cu/Sn diffusion couples prepared by an isothermal bonding technique. Isothermal annealing of the diffusion couple was conducted in the temperature range of 533-603 K for various times up to 172.8 ks (48 h). Using annealing, an intermetallic layer composed of Cu6Sn5 with scallop morphology and Cu3Sn with rather uniform thickness is formed at the original Cu/Sn interface in the diffusion couple. The growth of the Cu6Sn5 scallop occurs much more quickly than that of the Cu3Sn layer and thus predominates in the overall growth of the intermetallic layer. This tendency becomes more remarkable at lower annealing temperatures. The total thickness of the intermetallic layer is proportional to a power function of the annealing time, and the exponent of the power function is close to unity at all the annealing temperatures. This means that volume diffusion controls the intermetallic growth and the morphology of the Cu6Sn5/Sn interface influences the rate-controlling process. Adopting a mean value of 0.99 for the exponent, we obtain a value of 26 kJ/mol for the activation enthalpy of the intermetallic growth.

  20. Morpho-anatomy, imbibition, viability and germination of the seed of Anadenanthera colubrina var. cebil (Fabaceae).

    PubMed

    Varela, Rodolfo Omar; Albornoz, Patricia Liliana

    2013-09-01

    Seed biology is a relevant aspect of tropical forests because it is central to the understanding of processes of plant establishment, succession and natural regeneration. Anadenanthera colubrina var. cebil is a timber tree from South America that produces large seeds with thin weak teguments, which is uncommon among legumes. This study describes the morphology and anatomy of the seed coat, the viability, imbibition, and germination in this species. Seeds used during the essays came from 10 trees that grow naturally in Horco Molle, province of Tucumán, Argentina. Seed morphology was described from a sample of 20 units. The seed coat surface was examined with a scanning electron microscope. Transverse sections of hydrated and non-hydrated seeds were employed to describe the histological structure of the seed coat. Hydration, viability and germination experiments were performed under laboratory controlled conditions; and the experimental design consisted of 10 replicas of 10 seeds each. Viability and germination tests were conducted using freshly fallen seeds and seeds stored for five months. Morphologically the seeds of A. colubrina var. cebil are circular to subcircular, laterally compressed, smooth, bright brown and have a horseshoe fissure line (= pleurogram) on both sides. The seed coat comprises five tissue layers and a double (external and internal) cuticle. The outer cuticle (on the epidermis) is smooth and interrupted by microcracks and pores of variable depth. The epidermis consists of macroesclereids with non-lignified secondary walls. This layer is separated from the underlying ones during seed hydration. The other layers of internal tissues are comprised of osteosclereids, parenchyma, osteosclereids, and macrosclereids. The percentage of viable seeds was 93%, decreasing to 75% in seeds with five months old. Seed mass increased 76% after the first eight hours of hydration. Germination percentage was 75% after 76 hours. Germination of seeds stored for five months decreased to 12%. The results showed that seeds of A. colubrina var. cebil are highly permeable and germinate directly without a dormant period.

  1. Guided Lithium Metal Deposition and Improved Lithium Coulombic Efficiency through Synergistic Effects of LiAsF 6 and Cyclic Carbonate Additives

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Ren, Xiaodi; Zhang, Yaohui; Engelhard, Mark H.

    Spatial and morphology control over lithium (Li) metal nucleation/growth, as well as improving Li Coulombic efficiency (CE) are of the most challenging issues for rechargeable Li metal batteries. Here, we report that LiAsF6 and vinylene carbonate (VC) can work synergistically to address these challenges. It is revealed that AsF6- can be reduced to Li3As and LiF, which can act as seeds for Li growth and form a robust solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) layer, respectively. The addition of VC is critical because it not only enables uniform AsF6- reduction by passivating the defect sites on Cu substrate, but also improves themore » SEI layer flexibility during the reductive polymerization process. As a result, highly compact, uniform and dendrite-free Li film with vertically aligned columns structure can be obtained with greatly increased Li CE, and the Li metal batteries using the electrolyte with both LiAsF6 and VC additives can have much improved cycle life.« less

  2. Boron-Based Nanostructures, Stability, Functionality and Synthetic Routes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Yakobson, Boris I.; Ajayan, Pulickel M.

    Boron (B) is one of the most intriguing elements not only because of its position between metals and nonmetals in periodic table but also because of its ability to form an enormous number of allotropes. Apart from several bulk three-dimensional (3D) phases, boron can form 0D clusters, 1D nanotubes and nanowires, and 2D layers. In particular, boron sheets of monoatomic thickness have raised interest as a potential new 2D-material and as a (conceptual) precursor, for example, so-called α-sheets, from which other boron structures - fullerene cages and tubes - might be constructed. In fact, a number of planar B clustersmore » up to tens of atoms, found in experiments, appear as seeds for extended sheets. In this project we developed theoretical methods to guide synthesis, have successfully identified the material substrates (Ag, Au, Cu) to producing the pure boron layers, and further even predicted what atomistic structures should be expected. These guidelines have successfully led to discoveries in several labs and now have grown into an active line of research worldwide.« less

  3. Optical and electrical properties of Cu-based all oxide semi-transparent photodetector

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kim, Hong-Sik; Patel, Malkeshkumar; Yadav, Pankaj

    2016-09-05

    Zero-bias operating Cu oxide-based photodetector was achieved by using large-scale available sputtering method. Cu oxide (Cu{sub 2}O or CuO) was used as p-type transparent layer to form a heterojunction by contacting n-type ZnO layer. All metal-oxide materials were employed to realize transparent device at room temperature and showed a high transparency (>75% at 600 nm) with excellent photoresponses. The structural, morphological, optical, and electrical properties of Cu oxides of CuO and Cu{sub 2}O are evaluated in depth by UV-visible spectrometer, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, Kelvin probe force microscopy, and Hall measurements. We may suggest a route ofmore » high-functional Cu oxide-based photoelectric devices for the applications in flexible and transparent electronics.« less

  4. Electrochemical performance of Ni0.8Cu0.2/Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9 cermet anodes with functionally graded structures for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cell fueled with syngas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Miyake, Michihiro; Iwami, Makoto; Takeuchi, Mizue; Nishimoto, Shunsuke; Kameshima, Yoshikazu

    2018-06-01

    The electrochemical performance of layered Ni0.8Cu0.2/Ce0.8Gd0.2O1.9 (GDC) cermet anodes is investigated for intermediate-temperature solid oxide fuel cells (IT-SOFCs) at 600 °C using humidified (3% H2O) model syngas with a molar ratio of H2/CO = 3/2 as the fuel. From the results obtained, the electrochemical performance of the functionally graded multi-layered anodes is found to be superior to the mono-layered anodes. The test cell with a bi-layered anode consisting of 100 mass% Ni0.8Cu0.2/0 mass% GDC (10M/0E) and 70 mass% Ni0.8Cu0.2/30 mass% GDC (7M/3E) exhibits high power density. The test cell with a tri-layered anode consisting of 10M/0E, 7M/3E, and 50 mass% Ni0.8Cu0.2/50 mass% GDC (5M/5E) exhibits an even higher power density, suggesting that 10M/0E and 5M/5E layers contribute to the current collecting part and active part, respectively.

  5. Preparation and characterization of CuInS2 absorber layers by sol-gel method for solar cell applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Amerioun, M. H.; Ghazi, M. E.; Izadifard, M.; Bahramian, B.

    2016-04-01

    CuInSe2 , CuInS2 ( CIS2 and CuInGaS2 alloys and their compounds with band gaps between 1.05 and 1.7eV are absorbance materials based on chalcopyrite, in which, because of their suitable direct band gap, high absorbance coefficient and short carrier diffusion are used as absorbance layers in solar cells. In this work, the effects of decrease in p H and thickness variation on characteristics of the CIS2 absorber layers, grown by spin coating on glass substrates, are investigated. Furthermore by using thiourea as a sulphur source in solvent, the sulfurization of layers was done easier than other sulfurization methods. Due to the difficulty in dissolving thiourea in the considered solvent that leads to a fast deposition during the dissolving process, precise conditions are employed in order to prepare the solution. In fact, this procedure can facilitate the sulfurization process of CuIn layers. The results obtained from this investigation indicate reductions in absorbance and band gap in the visible region of the spectrum as a result of decrease in p H. Finally, conductivity of layers is studied by the current vs. voltage curve that represents reduction of electrical resistance with decrease and increase in p H and thickness, respectively.

  6. Differential expression of vacuolar and defective cell wall invertase genes in roots and seeds of metalliferous and non-metalliferous populations of Rumex dentatus under copper stress.

    PubMed

    Xu, Zhong-Rui; Cai, Shen-Wen; Huang, Wu-Xing; Liu, Rong-Xiang; Xiong, Zhi-Ting

    2018-01-01

    Acid invertase activities in roots and young seeds of a metalliferous population (MP) of Rumex dentatus were previously observed to be significantly higher than those of a non-metalliferous population (NMP) under Cu stress. To date, no acid invertase gene has been cloned from R. dentatus. Here, we isolated four full-length cDNAs from the two populations of R. dentatus, presumably encoding cell wall (RdnCIN1 and RdmCIN1 from the NMP and MP, respectively) and vacuolar invertases (RdnVIN1 and RdmVIN1 from the NMP and MP, respectively). Unexpectedly, RdnCIN1 and RdmCIN1 most likely encode special defective invertases with highly attenuated sucrose-hydrolyzing capacity. The transcript levels of RdmCIN1 were significantly higher than those of RdnCIN1 in roots and young seeds under Cu stress, whereas under control conditions, the former was initially lower than the latter. Unexpected high correlations were observed between the transcript levels of RdnCIN1 and RdmCIN1 and the activity of cell wall invertase, even though RdnCIN1 and RdmCIN1 do not encode catalytically active invertases. Similarly, the transcript levels of RdmVIN1 in roots and young seeds were increased under Cu stress, whereas those of RdnVIN1 were decreased. The high correlations between the transcript levels of RdnVIN1 and RdmVIN1 and the activity of vacuolar invertase indicate that RdnVIN1 and RdmVIN1 might control distinct vacuolar invertase activities in the two populations. Moreover, a possible indirect role for acid invertases in Cu tolerance, mediated by generating a range of sugars used as nutrients and signaling molecules, is discussed. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Influence of ZnO seed layer precursor molar ratio on the density of interface defects in low temperature aqueous chemically synthesized ZnO nanorods/GaN light-emitting diodes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Alnoor, Hatim; Pozina, Galia; Khranovskyy, Volodymyr; Liu, Xianjie; Iandolo, Donata; Willander, Magnus; Nur, Omer

    2016-04-01

    Low temperature aqueous chemical synthesis (LT-ACS) of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods (NRs) has been attracting considerable research interest due to its great potential in the development of light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The influence of the molar ratio of the zinc acetate (ZnAc): KOH as a ZnO seed layer precursor on the density of interface defects and hence the presence of non-radiative recombination centers in LT-ACS of ZnO NRs/GaN LEDs has been systematically investigated. The material quality of the as-prepared seed layer as quantitatively deduced by the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy is found to be influenced by the molar ratio. It is revealed by spatially resolved cathodoluminescence that the seed layer molar ratio plays a significant role in the formation and the density of defects at the n-ZnO NRs/p-GaN heterostructure interface. Consequently, LED devices processed using ZnO NRs synthesized with molar ratio of 1:5 M exhibit stronger yellow emission (˜575 nm) compared to those based on 1:1 and 1:3 M ratios as measured by the electroluminescence. Furthermore, seed layer molar ratio shows a quantitative dependence of the non-radiative defect densities as deduced from light-output current characteristics analysis. These results have implications on the development of high-efficiency ZnO-based LEDs and may also be helpful in understanding the effects of the ZnO seed layer on defect-related non-radiative recombination.

  8. Growth of periodic nano-layers of nano-crystals of Au, Ag, Cu by ion beam

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Smith, Cydale C.; Zheng, B.; Muntele, C. I.; Muntele, I. C.; Ila, D.

    2005-01-01

    Multilayered thin films of SiO2/AU+ SiO2/, SiO2/Ag+ SiO2/, and SiO2/Cu+ SiO2/, were grown by deposition. We have previously shown that MeV ion Bombardment of multi-nano-layers of SiO2/AU+ SiO2/ produces Au nanocrystals in the AU+ SiO2 layers. An increased number of nano-layers followed by MeV ion bombardment produces a wide optical absorption band, of which its FWHM depends on the number of nano-layers of SiO2/AU+ SiO2/. We have successfully repeated this process for nano-layers of SiO2/Ag+ SiO2/, and SiO2/Cu+ SiO2/. In this work we used 5 MeV Si as the post deposition bombardment ion and monitored the location as well as the optical absorption's FWHM for each layered structure using Optical Absorption Photospectrometry. The concentration and location of the metal nano-crystals were measured by Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry. We will report on the results obtained for nano-layered structures produced by post deposition bombardment of SiO2/AU+ SiO2/, SiO2/Ag+ SiO2/, and SiO2/Cu+ SiO2/ layered systems as well as the results obtained from a system containing a periodic combination of SiO2/AU+ SiO2/, SiO2/Ag+ SiO2/, and SiO2/Cu+ SiO2/.

  9. Refractive indices of layers and optical simulations of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

    PubMed Central

    Avancini, Enrico; Losio, Paolo A.; Figi, Renato; Schreiner, Claudia; Bürki, Melanie; Bourgeois, Emilie; Remes, Zdenek; Nesladek, Milos; Tiwari, Ayodhya N.

    2018-01-01

    Abstract Cu(In,Ga)Se2 based solar cells have reached efficiencies close to 23%. Further knowledge-driven improvements require accurate determination of the material properties. Here, we present refractive indices for all layers in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells with high efficiency. The optical bandgap of Cu(In,Ga)Se2 does not depend on the Cu content in the explored composition range, while the absorption coefficient value is primarily determined by the Cu content. An expression for the absorption spectrum is proposed, with Ga and Cu compositions as parameters. This set of parameters allows accurate device simulations to understand remaining absorption and carrier collection losses and develop strategies to improve performances. PMID:29785230

  10. Interfacial Phenomena in Al/Al, Al/Cu, and Cu/Cu Joints Soldered Using an Al-Zn Alloy with Ag or Cu Additions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pstruś, Janusz; Gancarz, Tomasz

    2014-05-01

    The studies of soldered joints were carried out in systems: Al/solder/Al, Al/solder/Cu, Cu/solder/Cu, where the solder was (Al-Zn)EUT, (Al-Zn)EUT with 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 at.% of Ag and (Al-Zn)EUT with 0.5, 1.0, and 1.5 at.% of Cu addition. Brazing was performed at 500 °C for 3 min. The EDS analysis indicated that the composition of the layers starting from the Cu pad was CuZn, Cu5Zn8, and CuZn4, respectively. Wetting tests were performed at 500 °C for 3, 8, 15, and 30 min, respectively. Thickness of the layers and their kinetics of growth were measured based on the SEM micrographs. The formation of interlayers was not observed from the side of Al pads. On the contrary, dissolution of the Al substrate and migration of Al-rich particles into the bulk of the solder were observed.

  11. Intermetallic Compound Growth between Electroless Nickel/Electroless Palladium/Immersion Gold Surface Finish and Sn-3.5Ag or Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu Solder

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Oda, Yukinori; Fukumuro, Naoki; Yae, Shinji

    2018-04-01

    Using an electroless nickel/electroless palladium/immersion gold (ENEPIG) surface finish with a thick palladium-phosphorus (Pd-P) layer of 1 μm, the intermetallic compound (IMC) growth between the ENEPIG surface finish and lead-free solders Sn-3.5Ag (SA) or Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu (SAC) after reflow soldering and during solid-state aging at 150°C was investigated. After reflow soldering, in the SA/ENEPIG and SAC/ENEPIG interfaces, thick PdSn4 layers of about 2 μm to 3 μm formed on the residual Pd-P layers ( 0.5 μm thick). On the SA/ENEPIG interface, Sn was detected on the upper side of the residual Pd-P layer. On the SAC/ENEPIG interface, no Sn was detected in the residual Pd-P layer, and Cu was detected in the interface between the Pd-P and PdSn4 layers. After 300 h of aging at 150°C, the residual Pd-P layers had diffused completely into the solders. In the SA/ENEPIG interface, an IMC layer consisting of Ni3Sn4 and Ni3SnP formed between the PdSn4 layer and the nickel-phosphorus (Ni-P) layer, and a (Pd,Ni)Sn4 layer formed on the lower side of the PdSn4 layer. On the SAC/ENEPIG interface, a much thinner (Pd,Ni)Sn4 layer was observed, and a (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 layer was observed between the PdSn4 and Ni-P layers. These results indicate that Ni diffusion from the Ni-P layer to the PdSn4 layer produced a thick (Pd,Ni)Sn4 layer in the SA solder case, but was prevented by formation of (Cu,Ni)6Sn5 in the SAC solder case. This causes the difference in solder joint reliability between SA/ENEPIG and SAC/ENEPIG interfaces in common, thin Pd-P layer cases.

  12. Effect of Isothermal Aging and Thermal Cycling on Interfacial IMC Growth and Fracture Behavior of SnAgCu/Cu Joints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Xiaoyan; Li, Fenghui; Guo, Fu; Shi, Yaowu

    2011-01-01

    The growth behavior of interfacial intermetallic compounds (IMCs) of SnAgCu/Cu soldered joints was investigated during the reflow process, isothermal aging, and thermal cycling with a focus on the influence of these parameters on growth kinetics. The SnAgCu/Cu soldered joints were isothermally aged at 125°C, 150°C, and 175°C while the thermal cycling was performed within the temperature ranges from -25°C to 125°C and -40°C to 125°C. It was observed that a Cu6Sn5 layer formed, followed by rapid coarsening at the solder/Cu interface during reflowing. The grain size of the interfacial Cu6Sn5 was found to increase with aging time, and the morphology evolved from scallop-like to needle-like to rod-like and finally to particles. The rod-like Ag3Sn phase was formed on the solder side in front of the previously formed Cu6Sn5 layer. However, when subject to an increase of the aging time, the Cu3Sn phase was formed at the interface of the Cu6Sn5 layer and Cu substrate. The IMC growth rate increased with aging temperature for isothermally aged joints. During thermal cycling, the thickness of the IMC layer was found to increase with the number of thermal cycles, although the growth rate was slower than that for isothermal aging. The dwell time at the high-temperature end of the thermal cycles was found to significantly influence the growth rate of the IMCs. The growth of the IMCs, for both isothermal aging and thermal cycling, was found to be Arrhenius with aging temperature, and the corresponding diffusion factor and activation energy were obtained by data fitting. The tensile strength of the soldered joints decreased with increasing aging time. Consequently, the fracture site of the soldered joints migrated from the solder matrix to the interfacial Cu6Sn5 layer. Finally, the shear strength of the joints was found to decrease with both an increase in the number of thermal cycles and a decrease in the dwell temperature at the low end of the thermal cycle.

  13. Effect of Sn addition on the corrosion behavior of Ti-7Cu-Sn cast alloys for biomedical applications.

    PubMed

    Tsao, L C

    2015-01-01

    The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of Sn content on the microstructure and corrosion resistance of Ti7CuXSn (x=0-5 wt.%) samples. The corrosion tests were carried out in 0.9 wt.% NaCl solution at 25 °C. The electrochemical corrosion behavior of the Ti7CuXSn alloy samples was evaluated using potentiodynamic polarization curves, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and equivalent circuit analysis. The resulting impedance parameters and polarization curves showed that adding Sn improved the electrochemical corrosion behavior of the Ti7CuXSn alloy. The Ti7CuXSn alloy samples were composed of a dual-layer oxide consisting of an inner barrier layer and an outer porous layer. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  14. Trace metal contents of selected seeds and vegetables from oil producing areas of Nigeria.

    PubMed

    Wegwu, Matthew O; Omeodu, Stephen I

    2010-07-01

    The concentrations of accumulated trace metals in selected seeds and vegetables collected in the oil producing Rivers State of Nigeria were investigated. The values were compared with those of seeds and vegetables cultivated in Owerri, a less industrialized area in Nigeria. The lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) contents of the seeds obtained from Rivers State ranged between 0.10 and 0.23 microg/g dry weight, while those of the seeds cultivated in Owerri fell below the detection limit of 0.01 microg/g dry weight. The highest manganese (Mn) level (902 microg/g dry weight) was found in Irvingia garbonesis seeds cultivated in Rivers State. Similarly, the highest nickel (Ni) value (199 microg/g dry weight) was also obtained in I. garbonesis, however, in the seeds sampled in Owerri. The highest copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), and iron (Fe) levels (16.8, 5.27, and 26.2 microg/g dry weight, resp.) were detected in seeds collected in Rivers State. With the exception of Talinum triangulae, Ocinum gratissimum, and Piper guineese, with Pb levels of 0.09, 0.10, and 0.11 microg/g dry weight, respectively, the Pb and Cd levels in the vegetables grown in Owerri fell below the detection limit of 0.01 microg/g dry weight. The trace metal with the highest levels in all the vegetables studied was Mn, followed by Fe. The highest concentrations of Ni and Cu occurred in vegetables collected from Rivers State, while the highest level of Zn was observed in Piper guineese collected in Owerri, with a value of 21.4 microg/g dry weight. Although the trace metal concentrations of the seeds and vegetables collected in Rivers State tended to be higher than those of the seeds and vegetables grown in Owerri, the average levels of trace metals obtained in this study fell far below the WHO specifications for metals in foods.

  15. Method to grow group III-nitrides on copper using passivation layers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Li, Qiming; Wang, George T; Figiel, Jeffrey T

    Group III-nitride epilayers can be grown directly on copper substrates using intermediate passivation layers. For example, single crystalline c-plane GaN can be grown on Cu (110) substrates with MOCVD. The growth relies on a low temperature AlN passivation layer to isolate any alloying reaction between Ga and Cu.

  16. Binary Oxide p-n Heterojunction Piezoelectric Nanogenerators with an Electrochemically Deposited High p-Type Cu2O Layer.

    PubMed

    Baek, Seung Ki; Kwak, Sung Soo; Kim, Joo Sung; Kim, Sang Woo; Cho, Hyung Koun

    2016-08-31

    The high performance of ZnO-based piezoelectric nanogenerators (NGs) has been limited due to the potential screening from intrinsic electron carriers in ZnO. We have demonstrated a novel approach to greatly improve piezoelectric power generation by electrodepositing a high-quality p-type Cu2O layer between the piezoelectric semiconducting film and the metal electrode. The p-n heterojunction using only oxides suppresses the screening effect by forming an intrinsic depletion region, and thus sufficiently enhances the piezoelectric potential, compared to the pristine ZnO piezoelectric NG. Interestingly, a Sb-doped Cu2O layer has high mobility and low surface trap states. Thus, this doped layer is an attractive p-type material to significantly improve piezoelectric performance. Our results revealed that p-n junction NGs consisting of Au/ZnO/Cu2O/indium tin oxide with a Cu2O:Sb (cuprous oxide with a small amount of antimony) layer of sufficient thickness (3 μm) exhibit an extraordinarily high piezoelectric potential of 0.9 V and a maximum output current density of 3.1 μA/cm(2).

  17. Sputter Deposition of Yttrium-Barium Superconductor and Strontium Titanium Oxide Barrier Layer Thin Films

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Truman, James Kelly

    1992-01-01

    The commercial application of superconducting rm YBa_2Cu_3O_{7 -x} thin films requires the development of deposition methods which can be used to reproducibly deposit films with good superconducting properties on insulating and semiconducting substrates. Sputter deposition is the most popular method to fabricate Y-Ba-Cu-O superconductor thin films, but when used in the standard configuration suffers from a deviation between the compositions of the Y-Ba-Cu-O sputter target and deposited films, which is thought to be primarily due to resputtering of the film by negative ions sputtered from the target. In this study, the negative ions were explicitly identified and were found to consist predominantly O^-. The sputter yield of O^- was found to depend on the Ba compound used in the fabrication of Y -Ba-Cu-O targets and was related to the electronegativity difference between the components. An unreacted mixture of rm Y_2O_3, CuO, and BaF_2 was found to have the lowest O^- yield among targets with Y:Ba:Cu = 1:2:3. The high yield of O^- from rm YBa_2Cu_3O _{7-x} was found to depend on the target temperature and be due to the excess oxygen present. The SIMS negative ion data supported the composition data for sputter-deposited Y-Ba-Cu-O films. Targets using BaF _2 were found to improve the Ba deficiency, the run-to-run irreproducibility and the nonuniformity of the film composition typically found in sputtered Y -Ba-Cu-O films. Superconducting Y-Ba-Cu-O films were formed on SrTiO_3 substrates by post-deposition heat treatment of Y-Ba-Cu-O-F films in humid oxygen. The growth of superconducting rm YBa_2Cu_3O_{7-x}, thin films on common substrates such as sapphire or silicon requires the use of a barrier layer to prevent the deleterious interaction which occurs between Y-Ba-Cu-O films and these substrates. Barrier layers of SrTiO_3 were studied and found to exhibit textured growth with a preferred (111) orientation on (100) Si substrates. However, SrTiO_3 was found to be unsuitable as a barrier layer for the growth of rm YBa _2Cu_3O_{7-x}, on Si since Ba reacted with the si after migrating through the SrTiO_3 layer. For sapphire, no textured growth of SrTiO_3 was observed but it was found to be a suitable barrier layer since it prevented any interaction between Y-Ba-Cu-O films and sapphire substrates.

  18. Photocatalytic property and structural stability of CuAl-based layered double hydroxides

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lv, Ming; Liu, Haiqiang, E-mail: Liuhaiqiang1980@126.com

    2015-07-15

    Three types of CuMAl layered double hydroxides (LDHs, M=Mg, Zn, Ni) were successfully synthesized by coprecipitation. Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) and UV–Vis diffuse reflectance spectrum (UV–vis) were used to confirm the formation of as-synthesized solids with good crystal structure. The photocatalytic activity of those LDH materials for CO{sub 2} reduction under visible light was investigated. The experimental results show that CuNiAl-LDHs with narrowest band gap and largest surface areas behave highest efficiency for methanol generation under visible light compared with CuMgAl-LDHs and CuZnAl-LDHs. The CuNiAL-LDH showed high yield for methanol production i.e. 0.210more » mmol/g h, which was high efficient. In addition, the influence of the different M{sup 2+} on the structures and stability of the CuMAl-LDHs was also investigated by analyzing the geometric parameters, electronic arrangement, charge populations, hydrogen-bonding, and binding energies by density functional theory (DFT) analysis. The theoretical calculation results show that the chemical stability of LDH materials followed the order of CuMgAl-LDHs>CuZnAl-LDHs>CuNiAl-LDHs, which is just opposite with the photocatalytic activity and band gaps of three materials. - Graphical abstract: The host–guest calculation models and XRD patterns of CuMAl-LDHs: CuMgAl-LDHs (a), CuZnAl-LDHs (b) and CuNiAl-LDHs (c). - Highlights: • Three types of CuMAl layered double hydroxides (LDHs, M=Mg, Zn, Ni) has been synthesized. • CuMgNi shows narrower band gap and more excellent textural properties than other LDHs. • The band gap: CuMgAl« less

  19. Spray CVD for Making Solar-Cell Absorber Layers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Banger, Kulbinder K.; Harris, Jerry; Jin, Michael H.; Hepp, Aloysius

    2007-01-01

    Spray chemical vapor deposition (spray CVD) processes of a special type have been investigated for use in making CuInS2 absorber layers of thin-film solar photovoltaic cells from either of two subclasses of precursor compounds: [(PBu3) 2Cu(SEt)2In(SEt)2] or [(PPh3)2Cu(SEt)2 In(SEt)2]. The CuInS2 films produced in the experiments have been characterized by x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, and four-point-probe electrical tests.

  20. Polymer thin film as coating layer to prevent corrosion of metal/metal oxide film

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sarkar, Suman; Kundu, Sarathi

    2018-04-01

    Thin film of polymer is used as coating layer and the corrosion of metal/metal oxide layer is studied with the variation of the thickness of the coating layer. The thin layer of polystyrene is fabricated using spin coating method on copper oxide (CuO) film which is deposited on glass substrate using DC magnetron sputtering technique. Thickness of the polystyrene and the CuO layers are determined using X-ray reflectivity (XRR) technique. CuO thin films coated with the polystyrene layer are exposed to acetic acid (2.5 v/v% aqueous CH3COOH solution) environments and are subsequently analyzed using UV-Vis spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Surface morphology of the film before and after interaction with the acidic environment is determined using AFM. Results obtained from the XRR and UV-Vis spectroscopy confirm that the thin film of polystyrene acts as an anticorrosion coating layer and the strength of the coating depends upon the polymer layer thickness at a constant acid concentration.

  1. Copper(II) perrhenate Cu(C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH){sub 2}(ReO{sub 4}){sub 2}: Synthesis from isopropanol and CuReO{sub 4}, structure and properties

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mikhailova, D., E-mail: d.mikhailova@ifw-dresden.de; Institute for Complex Materials, IFW Dresden, Helmholtzstrasse 20, D-01069 Dresden; Max Planck Institute for Chemical Physics of Solids, Nöthnitzer Str. 40, D-01187 Dresden

    2015-12-15

    The crystal structure of Cu{sup +}Re{sup 7+}O{sub 4} is capable of a quasi-reversible incorporation of C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH molecules. A room-temperature reaction between CuReO{sub 4} and C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH under oxidizing conditions leads to the formation of a novel metal-organic hybrid compound Cu{sup 2+}(C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH){sub 2}(ReO{sub 4}){sub 2}. Upon heating under reducing conditions, this compound transforms back into CuReO{sub 4}, albeit with ReO{sub 2} and metallic Cu as by-products. The crystal structure of Cu(C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH){sub 2}(ReO{sub 4}){sub 2} solved from single-crystal X-ray diffraction (Pbca, a=10.005(3) Å, b=7.833(2) Å, and c=19.180(5) Å) reveals layers of corner-sharing CuO{sub 6}-octahedra andmore » ReO{sub 4}-tetrahedra, whereas isopropyl groups are attached to both sides of these layers, thus providing additional connections within the layers through hydrogen bonds. Cu(C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH){sub 2}(ReO{sub 4}){sub 2} is paramagnetic down to 4 K because the spatial arrangement of the Cu{sup 2+} half-filled orbitals prevents magnetic superexchange. The paramagnetic effective moment of 2.0(1) μ{sub B} is slightly above the spin-only value and typical for Cu{sup 2+} ions. - Highlights: • Novel Cu(C{sub 3}H{sub 7}OH){sub 2}(ReO{sub 4}){sub 2} compound has a sequence of inorganic and organic layers. • Hydrogen bonds provide an additional bonding Isopropanol molecules serve as a reducing agent during decomposition. • No direct Cu-O-Re-O-Cu connections via d{sub x2-y2} orbital of Cu{sup 2+} explain paramagnetism. • Hydrogen bonds provide an additional bonding. • Isopropanol molecules serve as a reducing agent during decomposition.« less

  2. Effects of soil applications of micro-nutrients and chelating agent citric acid on mineral nutrients in soybean seeds

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Micro-nutrients deficiency in soil result in crop yield loss and poor seed quality. Correcting this deficiency is normally conducted by foliar or soil application. The objective of this research was to determine the effects of soil applications of five micro-nutrients (Mn, Cu, Zn, Mo, and B) with a ...

  3. Atomic layer epitaxy of YBaCuO for optoelectronic applications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Skogman, R. A.; Khan, M. A.; Van Hove, J. M.; Bhattarai, A.; Boord, W. T.

    1992-01-01

    An MOCVD-based atomic-layer epitaxy process is being developed as a potential solution to the problems of film-thickness and interface-abruptness control which are encountered when fabricating superconductor-insulator-superconductor devices using YBa2Cu3O(7-x). In initial studies, the atomic-layer MOCVD process yields superconducting YBa2Cu3O(7-x) films with substrate temperatures of 605 C during film growth, and no postdeposition anneal. The low temperature process yields a smooth film surface and can reduce interface degradation due to diffusion.

  4. Structure of Cu/Ni Nanowires Obtained by Matrix Synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhigalina, O. M.; Doludenko, I. M.; Khmelenin, D. N.; Zagorskiy, D. L.; Bedin, S. A.; Ivanov, I. M.

    2018-05-01

    The structure of layered Cu/Ni nanowires obtained by template synthesis in 100-nm channels of track membranes has been investigated by transmission and scanning electron microscopy. The phase composition and main structural features of individual nanowires are determined. It is shown that nanowires consist of alternating Ni ( Fm3m) and Cu ( Fm3m) layers with grains up to 100 nm in size. It is found that nanowires contain also copper oxide crystallites up to 20 nm in size. The elemental composition of individual layers and their mutual arrangement are determined.

  5. Graphene growth from reduced graphene oxide by chemical vapour deposition: seeded growth accompanied by restoration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chang, Sung-Jin; Hyun, Moon Seop; Myung, Sung; Kang, Min-A.; Yoo, Jung Ho; Lee, Kyoung G.; Choi, Bong Gill; Cho, Youngji; Lee, Gaehang; Park, Tae Jung

    2016-03-01

    Understanding the underlying mechanisms involved in graphene growth via chemical vapour deposition (CVD) is critical for precise control of the characteristics of graphene. Despite much effort, the actual processes behind graphene synthesis still remain to be elucidated in a large number of aspects. Herein, we report the evolution of graphene properties during in-plane growth of graphene from reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on copper (Cu) via methane CVD. While graphene is laterally grown from RGO flakes on Cu foils up to a few hundred nanometres during CVD process, it shows appreciable improvement in structural quality. The monotonous enhancement of the structural quality of the graphene with increasing length of the graphene growth from RGO suggests that seeded CVD growth of graphene from RGO on Cu surface is accompanied by the restoration of graphitic structure. The finding provides insight into graphene growth and defect reconstruction useful for the production of tailored carbon nanostructures with required properties.

  6. Graphene growth from reduced graphene oxide by chemical vapour deposition: seeded growth accompanied by restoration.

    PubMed

    Chang, Sung-Jin; Hyun, Moon Seop; Myung, Sung; Kang, Min-A; Yoo, Jung Ho; Lee, Kyoung G; Choi, Bong Gill; Cho, Youngji; Lee, Gaehang; Park, Tae Jung

    2016-03-10

    Understanding the underlying mechanisms involved in graphene growth via chemical vapour deposition (CVD) is critical for precise control of the characteristics of graphene. Despite much effort, the actual processes behind graphene synthesis still remain to be elucidated in a large number of aspects. Herein, we report the evolution of graphene properties during in-plane growth of graphene from reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on copper (Cu) via methane CVD. While graphene is laterally grown from RGO flakes on Cu foils up to a few hundred nanometres during CVD process, it shows appreciable improvement in structural quality. The monotonous enhancement of the structural quality of the graphene with increasing length of the graphene growth from RGO suggests that seeded CVD growth of graphene from RGO on Cu surface is accompanied by the restoration of graphitic structure. The finding provides insight into graphene growth and defect reconstruction useful for the production of tailored carbon nanostructures with required properties.

  7. Graphene growth from reduced graphene oxide by chemical vapour deposition: seeded growth accompanied by restoration

    PubMed Central

    Chang, Sung-Jin; Hyun, Moon Seop; Myung, Sung; Kang, Min-A; Yoo, Jung Ho; Lee, Kyoung G.; Choi, Bong Gill; Cho, Youngji; Lee, Gaehang; Park, Tae Jung

    2016-01-01

    Understanding the underlying mechanisms involved in graphene growth via chemical vapour deposition (CVD) is critical for precise control of the characteristics of graphene. Despite much effort, the actual processes behind graphene synthesis still remain to be elucidated in a large number of aspects. Herein, we report the evolution of graphene properties during in-plane growth of graphene from reduced graphene oxide (RGO) on copper (Cu) via methane CVD. While graphene is laterally grown from RGO flakes on Cu foils up to a few hundred nanometres during CVD process, it shows appreciable improvement in structural quality. The monotonous enhancement of the structural quality of the graphene with increasing length of the graphene growth from RGO suggests that seeded CVD growth of graphene from RGO on Cu surface is accompanied by the restoration of graphitic structure. The finding provides insight into graphene growth and defect reconstruction useful for the production of tailored carbon nanostructures with required properties. PMID:26961409

  8. Structural Stability of Diffusion Barriers in Cu/Ru/MgO/Ta/Si

    PubMed Central

    Hsieh, Shu-Huei; Chen, Wen Jauh; Chien, Chu-Mo

    2015-01-01

    Various structures of Cu (50 nm)/Ru (2 nm)/MgO (0.5–3 nm)/Ta (2 nm)/Si were prepared by sputtering and electroplating techniques, in which the ultra-thin trilayer of Ru (2 nm)/MgO (0.5–3 nm)/Ta (2 nm) is used as the diffusion barrier against the interdiffusion between Cu film and Si substrate. The various structures of Cu/Ru/MgO/Ta/Si were characterized by four-point probes for their sheet resistances, by X-ray diffractometers for their crystal structures, by scanning electron microscopes for their surface morphologies, and by transmission electron microscopes for their cross-section and high resolution views. The results showed that the ultra-thin tri-layer of Ru (2 nm)/MgO (0.5–3 nm)/Ta (2 nm) is an effective diffusion barrier against the interdiffusion between Cu film and Si substrate. The MgO, and Ta layers as deposited are amorphous. The mechanism for the failure of the diffusion barrier is that the Ru layer first became discontinuous at a high temperature and the Ta layer sequentially become discontinuous at a higher temperature, the Cu atoms then diffuse through the MgO layer and to the substrate at the discontinuities, and the Cu3Si phases finally form. The maximum temperature at which the structures of Cu (50 nm)/Ru (2 nm)/MgO (0.5–3 nm)/Ta (2 nm)/Si are annealed and still have low sheet resistance is from 550 to 750 °C for the annealing time of 5 min and from 500 to 700 °C for the annealing time of 30 min. PMID:28347099

  9. Excellent Resistive Switching Performance of Cu-Se-Based Atomic Switch Using Lanthanide Metal Nanolayer at the Cu-Se/Al2O3 Interface.

    PubMed

    Woo, Hyunsuk; Vishwanath, Sujaya Kumar; Jeon, Sanghun

    2018-03-07

    The next-generation electronic society is dependent on the performance of nonvolatile memory devices, which has been continuously improving. In the last few years, many memory devices have been introduced. However, atomic switches are considered to be a simple and reliable basis for next-generation nonvolatile devices. In general, atomic switch-based resistive switching is controlled by electrochemical metallization. However, excess ion injection from the entire area of the active electrode into the switching layer causes device nonuniformity and degradation of reliability. Here, we propose the fabrication of a high-performance atomic switch based on Cu x -Se 1- x by inserting lanthanide (Ln) metal buffer layers such as neodymium (Nd), samarium (Sm), dysprosium (Dy), or lutetium (Lu) between the active metal layer and the electrolyte. Current-atomic force microscopy results confirm that Cu ions penetrate through the Ln-buffer layer and form thin conductive filaments inside the switching layer. Compared with the Pt/Cu x -Se 1- x /Al 2 O 3 /Pt device, the optimized Pt/Cu x -Se 1- x /Ln/Al 2 O 3 /Pt devices show improvement in the on/off resistance ratio (10 2 -10 7 ), retention (10 years/85 °C), endurance (∼10 000 cycles), and uniform resistance state distribution.

  10. High-Performance Ink-Synthesized Cu-Gate Thin-Film Transistor with Diffusion Barrier Formation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Woo, Whang Je; Nam, Taewook; Oh, Il-Kwon; Maeng, Wanjoo; Kim, Hyungjun

    2018-02-01

    The improved electrical properties of Cu-gate thin-film transistors (TFTs) using an ink-synthesizing process were studied; this technology enables a low-cost and large area process for the display industry. We investigated the film properties and the effects of the ink-synthesized Cu layer in detail with respect to device characteristics. The mobility and reliability of the devices were significantly improved by applying a diffusion barrier at the interface between the Cu gate and the gate insulator. By using a TaN diffusion barrier layer, considerably improved and stabilized ink-Cu gated TFTs could be realized, comparable to sputtered-Cu gated TFTs under positive bias temperature stress measurements.

  11. High-Performance Ink-Synthesized Cu-Gate Thin-Film Transistor with Diffusion Barrier Formation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Woo, Whang Je; Nam, Taewook; Oh, Il-Kwon; Maeng, Wanjoo; Kim, Hyungjun

    2018-05-01

    The improved electrical properties of Cu-gate thin-film transistors (TFTs) using an ink-synthesizing process were studied; this technology enables a low-cost and large area process for the display industry. We investigated the film properties and the effects of the ink-synthesized Cu layer in detail with respect to device characteristics. The mobility and reliability of the devices were significantly improved by applying a diffusion barrier at the interface between the Cu gate and the gate insulator. By using a TaN diffusion barrier layer, considerably improved and stabilized ink-Cu gated TFTs could be realized, comparable to sputtered-Cu gated TFTs under positive bias temperature stress measurements.

  12. Investigation of Gas Seeding for Planar Laser-Induced Fluorescence in Hypersonic Boundary Layers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Arisman, C. J.; Johansen, C. T.; Bathel, B. F.; Danehy, P. M.

    2015-01-01

    Numerical simulations of the gas-seeding strategies required for planar laser-induced fluorescence in a Mach 10 (approximately Mach 8.2 postshock) airflow were performed. The work was performed to understand and quantify the adverse effects associated with gas seeding and to assess various types of seed gas that could potentially be used in future experiments. In prior experiments, NO and NO2 were injected through a slot near the leading edge of a flatplate wedge model used in NASA Langley Research Center's 31 in. Mach 10 air tunnel facility. In this paper, nitric oxide, krypton, and iodine gases were simulated at various injection rates. Simulations showing the deflection of the velocity boundary layer for each of the cases are presented. Streamwise distributions of velocity and concentration boundary-layer thicknesses, as well as vertical distributions of velocity, temperature, and mass distributions, are presented for each of the cases. A comparison between simulated streamwise velocity profiles and experimentally obtained molecular tagging velocimetry profiles using a nitric oxide seeding strategy is performed to verify the influence of such a strategy on the boundary layer. The relative merits of the different seeding strategies are discussed. The results from a custom solver based on OpenFOAM version 2.2.1 are compared against results obtained from ANSYS® Fluent version 6.3.

  13. Surface structure and chemistry of Pt/Cu/Pt(1 1 1) near surface alloy model catalyst in CO

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zeng, Shibi; Nguyen, Luan; Cheng, Fang; Liu, Lacheng; Yu, Ying; Tao, Franklin (Feng)

    2014-11-01

    Near surface alloy (NSA) model catalyst Pt/Cu/Pt(1 1 1) was prepared on Pt(1 1 1) through a controlled vapor deposition of Cu atoms. Different coordination environments of Pt atoms of the topmost Pt layer with the underneath Cu atoms in the subsurface result in different local electronic structures of surface Pt atoms. Surface structure and chemistry of the NAS model catalyst in Torr pressure of CO were studied with high pressure scanning tunneling microscopy (HP-STM) and ambient pressure X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AP-XPS). In Torr pressure of CO, the topmost Pt layer of Pt/Cu/Pt(1 1 1) is restructured to thin nanoclusters with size of about 1 nm. Photoemission feature of O 1s of CO on Pt/Cu/Pt(1 1 1) suggests CO adsorbed on both edge and surface of these formed nanoclusters. This surface is active for CO oxidation. Atomic layers of carbon are formed on Pt/Cu/Pt(1 1 1) at 573 K in 2 Torr of CO.

  14. Heterojunction solar cell with 6% efficiency based on an n-type aluminum-gallium-oxide thin film and p-type sodium-doped Cu2O sheet

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Minami, Tadatsugu; Nishi, Yuki; Miyata, Toshihiro

    2015-02-01

    In this paper, we describe efforts to enhance the efficiency of Cu2O-based heterojunction solar cells fabricated with an aluminum-gallium-oxide (Al-Ga-O) thin film as the n-type layer and a p-type sodium (Na)-doped Cu2O (Cu2O:Na) sheet prepared by thermally oxidizing copper sheets. The optimal Al content [X; Al/(Ga + Al) atomic ratio] of an AlX-Ga1-X-O thin-film n-type layer was found to be approximately 2.5 at. %. The optimized resistivity was approximately 15 Ω cm for n-type AlX-Ga1-X-O/p-type Cu2O:Na heterojunction solar cells. A MgF2/AZO/Al0.025-Ga0.975-O/Cu2O:Na heterojunction solar cell with 6.1% efficiency was fabricated using a 60-nm-thick n-type oxide thin-film layer and a 0.2-mm-thick Cu2O:Na sheet with the optimized resistivity.

  15. Fabrication of Large Domain YBa2Cu3O(x) for Magnetic Suspension Applications

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Sengupta, S.; Corpus, J.; Gaines, J. R., Jr.; Todt, V. R.; Zhang, X.; Miller, D. J.

    1996-01-01

    Large domain YBa2Cu3O(x) levitators have been fabricated using a seeded melt processing technique. Depending upon the seed, either a single or five domained sample can be obtained. The grain boundaries separating each domains in the five domain levitator are found to be 90 degrees. Similar levitation forces can be observed for single and five domained samples. After thermal cycling, however, a small decrease in the levitation force of the five domain levitator was observed as a function of thermal cycles while nearly no change in force was observed in the single domain levitator. Finally, it is shown that both, single and five domain YBCO, behave similarly as a function of sample thickness.

  16. The General Isothermal Oxidation Behavior of Cu-8Cr-4Nb

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Thomas-Ogbuji, L. U.; Gray, Hugh R. (Technical Monitor)

    2002-01-01

    Oxidation kinetics of Cu-8Cr-4Nb was investigated by TGA (thermogravimetric) exposures between 500 and 900-C (at 25-50 C intervals) and the oxide scale morphologies examined by microscopy and micro-analysis. Because Cu-8Cr-4Nb is comprised of fine Cr2Nb precipitates in a Cu matrix, the results were interpreted by comparison with the behavior of copper (OFHC) and 'NARloy-Z' (a rival candidate material for thrust cell liner applications in advanced rocket engines) under the same conditions. While NARloy-Z and Cu exhibited identical oxidation behavior, Cu-8Cr-4Nb differed markedly in several respects: below approx. 700 C its oxidation rates were significantly lower than those of Cu; At higher temperatures its oxidation rates fell into two categories: an initial rate exceeding that of Cu, and a terminal rate comparable to that of Cu. Differences in oxide morphologies paralleled the kinetic differences at higher temperature: While NARloy-Z and Cu produced a uniform oxide scale of Cu2O inner layer and CuO outer layer, the inner (Cu2O) layer on Cu-8Cr-4Nb was stratified, with a highly porous/spongy inner stratum (responsible for the fast initial kinetics) and a dense/blocky outer stratum (corresponding to the slow terminal kinetics). Single and spinel oxides of Nb and Cr were found at the interface between the oxide scale and Cu-8Cr-4Nb substrate and it appears that these oxides were responsible for its suppressed oxidation rates at the intermediate temperatures. No difference was found between Cu-8Cr-4Nb oxidation in air and in oxygen at 1.0 atm.

  17. Trends and problems in CdS/Cu/x/S thin film solar cells - A review

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Martinuzzi, S.

    1982-03-01

    The methods currently used to fabricate CdS/CuS solar cells are reviewed, along with comparisons of the effects on performance of the various preparation techniques. Attention is given to thermal evaporation, sputter, and chemical spray formation of the CdS layers, noting that most experience is presently with the evaporative and spray processes. CuS layers are formed in dip or wet process chemiplating, electroplating, vacuum deposition in flash and sputter modes, solid state reaction, or spray deposition. Any of the CuS film techniques can be used with any of the CdS layer processes, while spraying and sputtering are noted to offer the best alternatives for industrial production. Band profiles, I-V characteristics, photocurrent levels, and capacitance-voltage characteristics are outlined for the differently formed cells, and CdS/CuS and CdZnS/CuS cells are concluded to exhibit the highest performance features. Areas of improvement necessary to bring the cells to commercial status are discussed.

  18. Solvothermal syntheses and characterization of three new silver(I)/copper(I)-thioarsenates based on As2+/As3+ ions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yao, Hua-Gang; Tang, Cheng-Fei; An, Yong-Lin; Ou, Zi-Jian; Wu, Guo-Hao; Lan, Pei; Zheng, Yi-Long

    2017-02-01

    Three new silver(I)/copper(I)-thioarsenates KAgAsIIS2 (1), RbCu2AsIIIS3 (2) and RbCu4AsIIIS4 (3) have been solvothermally synthesized and structurally characterized. 1 exhibits a two-dimensional anionic network built up by As-As bond connecting the left- and right-handed helical [AgS2]4- chains, and represents the first examples of thioarsenates(II). The structure of 2 consists of two kinds of helical [Cu2S3]4- chains linked by the arsenic atoms to form double layers with rubidium ions between the layers. Compound 3 is built up of infinite [Cu2S2]2- chain and layered [Cu6As2S6] linked to form a three-dimensional anionic framework, [Cu4AsS4]-, and containing channels in which the rubidium cations reside. The optical properties of 1-3 have been investigated by UV-vis spectroscopy.

  19. Photochemical bonding of epithelial cell-seeded collagen lattice to rat muscle layer for esophageal tissue engineering: a pilot study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chan, Barbara P.; Sato, M.; Vacanti, Joseph P.; Kochevar, Irene E.; Redmond, Robert W.

    2005-04-01

    Bilayered tube structures consist of epithelial cell-seeded collagen lattice and muscle layer have been fabricated for esophageal tissue engineering. Good adhesion between layers in order to facilitate cell infiltration and neovascularization in the collagen lattice is required. Previous efforts include using other bioglues such as fibrin glue and silicone tube as the physical support. However, the former is subjected to chances of transmitting blood-born infectious disease and is time consuming while the latter requires a second surgical procedure. The current project aimed to bond the cell-seeded collagen lattice to muscle layer using photochemical bonding, which has previously been demonstrated a rapid and non-thermal procedure in bonding collagenous tissues. Rat esophageal epithelial cells were seeded on collagen lattice and together with the latissimus dorsi muscle layer, were exposed to a photosensitizer rose Bengal at the bonding surface. An argon laser was used to irradiate the approximated layers. Bonding strength was measured during the peeling test of the collagen layer from the muscle layer. Post-bonding cell viability was assessed using a modified NADH-diaphorase microassay. A pilot in vivo study was conducted by directly bonding the cell-seeded collagen layer onto the muscle flap in rats and the structures were characterized histologically. Photochemical bonding was found to significantly increase the adherence at the bonding interface without compromising the cell viability. This indicates the feasibility of using the technique to fabricate multi-layered structures in the presence of living cells. The pilot animal study demonstrated integration of the collagen lattice with the muscle layer at the bonding interface although the subsequent surgical manipulation disturbed the integration at some region. This means that an additional procedure removing the tube could be avoided if the approximation and thus the bonding are optimized. Cell infiltration and neovascularization were also evident demonstrating that direct bonding of engineered tissue structures in particular those with low processability such as collagen lattice to the host tissue is feasible.

  20. Synthesis, structure and characterization of two new copper(I)-thioarsenates (III) constructed by the [AsS{sub 3}]{sup 3-} and CuS{sub x} units

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Yao, Hua-Gang; Ji, Min; Ji, Shou-Hua

    2013-02-15

    Two new copper(I)-thioarsenates(III), CsCu{sub 2}AsS{sub 3}(1) and KCu{sub 4}AsS{sub 4}(2), have been synthesized solvothermally in the presence of copper powder. Compound 1 is built up of trigonal AsS{sub 3} pyramid, tetrahedral CuAsS{sub 3} and CuS{sub 3} moieties forming 4-membered, 5-membered and 6-membered rings. The fusion of these rings produces layered anions [Cu{sub 2}AsS{sub 3}]{sup -}, and cesium cations are located between metal-sulfide layers. The structure of 2 consists of infinite [Cu{sub 2}S{sub 2}]{sup 2-} chain and layered [Cu{sub 6}As{sub 2}S{sub 6}] linked to form a three-dimensional anionic framework, [Cu{sub 4}AsS{sub 4}]{sup -}, and containing channels in which the potassium cationsmore » reside. - Graphical abstract: Qne layered CsCu{sub 2}AsS{sub 3} and one framework KCu{sub 4}AsS{sub 4} possessing noncondensed [AsS{sub 3}]{sup 3-} unit have been synthesized solvothermally. The optical band gaps of the two compounds are 2.3 and 1.8 eV, respectively. Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer We obtained two new copper(I)-thioarsenate(III), CsCu{sub 2}AsS{sub 3} and KCu{sub 4}AsS{sub 4}. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Both compounds possess noncondensed [AsS{sub 3}]{sup 3-} unit and represent new structure types. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer The optical band gaps of the two compounds are 2.3 eV and 1.8 eV, respectively.« less

  1. Seed Anatomy and Water Uptake in Relation to Seed Dormancy in Opuntia tomentosa (Cactaceae, Opuntioideae)

    PubMed Central

    Orozco-Segovia, A.; Márquez-Guzmán, J.; Sánchez-Coronado, M. E.; Gamboa de Buen, A.; Baskin, J. M.; Baskin, C. C.

    2007-01-01

    Background and Aims There is considerable confusion in the literature concerning impermeability of seeds with ‘hard’ seed coats, because the ability to take up (imbibe) water has not been tested in most of them. Seeds of Opuntia tomentosa were reported recently to have a water-impermeable seed coat sensu lato (i.e. physical dormancy), in combination with physiological dormancy. However, physical dormancy is not known to occur in Cactaceae. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine if seeds of O. tomentosa are water-permeable or water-impermeable, i.e. if they have physical dormancy. Methods The micromorphology of the seed coat and associated structures were characterized by SEM and light microscopy. Permeability of the seed-covering layers was assessed by an increase in mass of seeds on a wet substrate and by dye-tracking and uptake of tritiated water by intact versus scarified seeds. Key Results A germination valve and a water channel are formed in the hilum–micropyle region during dehydration and ageing in seeds of O. tomentosa. The funicular envelope undoubtedly plays a role in germination of Opuntia seeds via restriction of water uptake and mechanical resistance to expansion of the embryo. However, seeds do not exhibit any of three features characteristic of those with physical dormancy. Thus, they do not have a water-impermeable layer(s) of palisade cells (macrosclereids) or a water gap sensu stricto and they imbibe water without the seed coat being disrupted. Conclusions Although dormancy in seeds of this species can be broken by scarification, they have physiological dormancy only. Further, based on information in the literature, it is concluded that it is unlikely that any species of Opuntia has physical dormancy. This is the first integrative study of the anatomy, dynamics of water uptake and dormancy in seeds of Cactaceae subfamily Opuntioideae. PMID:17298989

  2. A decrease in phytic acid content substantially affects the distribution of mineral elements within rice seeds.

    PubMed

    Sakai, Hiroaki; Iwai, Toru; Matsubara, Chie; Usui, Yuto; Okamura, Masaki; Yatou, Osamu; Terada, Yasuko; Aoki, Naohiro; Nishida, Sho; Yoshida, Kaoru T

    2015-09-01

    Phytic acid (myo-inositol hexakisphosphate; InsP6) is the storage compound of phosphorus and many mineral elements in seeds. To determine the role of InsP6 in the accumulation and distribution of mineral elements in seeds, we performed fine mappings of mineral elements through synchrotron-based X-ray microfluorescence analysis using developing seeds from two independent low phytic acid (lpa) mutants of rice (Oryza sativa L.). The reduced InsP6 in lpa seeds did not affect the translocation of mineral elements from vegetative organs into seeds, because the total amounts of phosphorus and the other mineral elements in lpa seeds were identical to those in the wild type (WT). However, the reduced InsP6 caused large changes in mineral localization within lpa seeds. Phosphorus and potassium in the aleurone layer of lpa greatly decreased and diffused into the endosperm. Zinc and copper, which were broadly distributed from the aleurone layer to the inner endosperm in the WT, were localized in the narrower space around the aleurone layer in lpa mutants. We also confirmed that similar distribution changes occurred in transgenic rice with the lpa phenotype. Using these results, we discussed the role of InsP6 in the dynamic accumulation and distribution patterns of mineral elements during seed development. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  3. In situ atomic-scale imaging of the metal/oxide interfacial transformation

    DOE PAGES

    Zou, Lianfeng; Li, Jonathan; Zakharov, Dmitri; ...

    2017-08-21

    Directly probing structure dynamics at metal/oxide interfaces has been a major challenge due to their buried nature.Using environmental transmission electron microscopy,here we report observations of the in-place formation of Cu 2O/Cu interfaces via the oxidation of Cu, and subsequently probe the atomic mechanisms by which interfacial transformation and grain rotation occur at the interfaces during reduction in an H 2 gas environment. The Cu 2O→Cu transformation is observed to occur initially along the Cu 2O/Cu interface in a layer-by-layer manner.The accumulation of oxygen vacancies at the Cu 2O/Cu interface drives the collapse of the Cu 2O lattice near the interfacemore » region, which results in a tilted Cu 2O/Cu interface with concomitant Cu 2O island rotation. Lastly, these results provide unprecedented microscopic detail regarding the redox reactions of supported oxides,which differs fundamentally from the reduction of bulk or isolated oxides that requires the formation of new interfaces between the parent oxide and the reduced phase.« less

  4. Moisture barrier properties of single-layer graphene deposited on Cu films for Cu metallization

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gomasang, Ploybussara; Abe, Takumi; Kawahara, Kenji; Wasai, Yoko; Nabatova-Gabain, Nataliya; Thanh Cuong, Nguyen; Ago, Hiroki; Okada, Susumu; Ueno, Kazuyoshi

    2018-04-01

    The moisture barrier properties of large-grain single-layer graphene (SLG) deposited on a Cu(111)/sapphire substrate are demonstrated by comparing with the bare Cu(111) surface under an accelerated degradation test (ADT) at 85 °C and 85% relative humidity (RH) for various durations. The change in surface color and the formation of Cu oxide are investigated by optical microscopy (OM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), respectively. First-principle simulation is performed to understand the mechanisms underlying the barrier properties of SLG against O diffusion. The correlation between Cu oxide thickness and SLG quality are also analyzed by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) measured on a non-uniform SLG film. SLG with large grains shows high performance in preventing the Cu oxidation due to moisture during ADT.

  5. Efficient organic solar cells using copper(I) iodide (CuI) hole transport layers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Peng, Ying; Department of Physics and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ; Yaacobi-Gross, Nir

    We report the fabrication of high power conversion efficiency (PCE) polymer/fullerene bulk heterojunction (BHJ) photovoltaic cells using solution-processed Copper (I) Iodide (CuI) as hole transport layer (HTL). Our devices exhibit a PCE value of ∼5.5% which is equivalent to that obtained for control devices based on the commonly used conductive polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene): polystyrenesulfonate as HTL. Inverted cells with PCE >3% were also demonstrated using solution-processed metal oxide electron transport layers, with a CuI HTL evaporated on top of the BHJ. The high optical transparency and suitable energetics of CuI make it attractive for application in a range of inexpensive large-area optoelectronicmore » devices.« less

  6. Disorder-controlled superconductivity at YBa2Cu3O7/SrTiO3 interfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Garcia-Barriocanal, J.; Perez-Muñoz, A. M.; Sefrioui, Z.; Arias, D.; Varela, M.; Leon, C.; Pennycook, S. J.; Santamaria, J.

    2013-06-01

    We examine the effect of interface disorder in suppressing superconductivity in coherently grown ultrathin YBa2Cu3O7 (YBCO) layers on SrTiO3 (STO) in YBCO/STO superlattices. The termination plane of the STO is TiO2 and the CuO chains are missing at the interface. Disorder (steps) at the STO interface cause alterations of the stacking sequence of the intracell YBCO atomic layers. Stacking faults give rise to antiphase boundaries which break the continuity of the CuO2 planes and depress superconductivity. We show that superconductivity is directly controlled by interface disorder outlining the importance of pair breaking and localization by disorder in ultrathin layers.

  7. Method for making high-critical-current-density YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7 superconducting layers on metallic substrates

    DOEpatents

    Feenstra, Roeland; Christen, David; Paranthaman, Mariappan

    1999-01-01

    A method is disclosed for fabricating YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7 superconductor layers with the capability of carrying large superconducting currents on a metallic tape (substrate) supplied with a biaxially textured oxide buffer layer. The method represents a simplification of previously established techniques and provides processing requirements compatible with scale-up to long wire (tape) lengths and high processing speeds. This simplification has been realized by employing the BaF.sub.2 method to grow a YBa.sub.2 Cu.sub.3 O.sub.7 film on a metallic substrate having a biaxially textured oxide buffer layer.

  8. Ferromagnetic resonance in coupled permalloy double films separated by a Cu interlayer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Maksymowicz, A. Z.; Whiting, J. S. S.; Watson, M. L.; Chambers, A.

    1991-03-01

    Ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) at 16 GHz was used to study the magnetic coupling between two-layers of permalloy separated by a nonmagnetic Cu layer. Samples with the same thickness (600 Å) of both permalloy layers were deposited from e-gun sources onto glass substrates in UHV. The thickness d of the Cu interlayer was varied from 5 to 37 Å. The exchange coupling energy ( E = - KM1· M2) model was used to describe the interaction between the two magnetic layers. It was found from the ferromagnetic resonance data in the perpendicular configuration that K( d) follows an exponential law, K = K0e - d/ q, where q = 9.3 Å.

  9. Electronic interaction and bipolar resistive switching in copper oxide-multilayer graphene hybrid interface: Graphene as an oxygen ion storage and blocking layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Singh, Bharti; Mehta, B. R.; Govind, Feng, X.; Müllen, Klaus

    2011-11-01

    This study reports a bipolar resistive switching device based on copper oxide (CuO)-multilayer graphene (MLG) hybrid interface in complete contrast to the ohmic and rectifying characteristics of junctions based on individual MLG and CuO layers. The observed shift and the occurrence of additional O1s, Cu2p, and C1s core level peaks indicate electronic interaction at the hybrid interfacial layer. Large changes in the resistive switching parameters on changing the ambient conditions from air to vacuum establish the important role of MLG as oxygen ion storage and blocking layer towards the observed resistive switching effect.

  10. CuGaS₂ and CuGaS₂-ZnS Porous Layers from Solution-Processed Nanocrystals.

    PubMed

    Berestok, Taisiia; Guardia, Pablo; Estradé, Sònia; Llorca, Jordi; Peiró, Francesca; Cabot, Andreu; Brock, Stephanie L

    2018-04-05

    The manufacturing of semiconducting films using solution-based approaches is considered a low cost alternative to vacuum-based thin film deposition strategies. An additional advantage of solution processing methods is the possibility to control the layer nano/microstructure. Here, we detail the production of mesoporous CuGaS₂ (CGS) and ZnS layers from spin-coating and subsequent cross-linking through chalcogen-chalcogen bonds of properly functionalized nanocrystals (NCs). We further produce NC-based porous CGS/ZnS bilayers and NC-based CGS-ZnS composite layers using the same strategy. Photoelectrochemical measurements are used to demonstrate the efficacy of porous layers, and particularly the CGS/ZnS bilayers, for improved current densities and photoresponses relative to denser films deposited from as-produced NCs.

  11. Lithium Nitride Synthesized by in situ Lithium Deposition and Ion Implantation for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ishitama, Shintaro; Baba, Yuji; Fujii, Ryo; Nakamura, Masaru; Imahori, Yoshio

    Li3N synthesis on Li deposition layer was conducted without H2O and O2 by in situ lithium deposition in high vacuum chamber of 10-6 Pa and ion implantation techniques and the thermo-chemical stability of the Li3N/Li/Cu tri-layered target for Boron Neutron Capture Therapy (BNCT) under laser heating and air exposure was characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Following conclusions were derived; (1) Li3N/Li/Cu tri-layered target with very low oxide and carbon contamination was synthesized by in situ lithium vacuum deposition and N2+ ion implantation without H2O and O2 additions, (2) The starting temperature of evaporation of Li3N/Li/Cu tri-layered target increased by 120K compared to that of the Li/Cu target and (3) Remarkable oxidation and carbon contamination were observed on the surface of Li3N/Li/Cu after air exposure and these contaminated compositions was not removed by Ar+ heavy sputtering.

  12. Influence of ZnO seed layer precursor molar ratio on the density of interface defects in low temperature aqueous chemically synthesized ZnO nanorods/GaN light-emitting diodes

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Alnoor, Hatim, E-mail: hatim.alnoor@liu.se; Iandolo, Donata; Willander, Magnus

    Low temperature aqueous chemical synthesis (LT-ACS) of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanorods (NRs) has been attracting considerable research interest due to its great potential in the development of light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The influence of the molar ratio of the zinc acetate (ZnAc): KOH as a ZnO seed layer precursor on the density of interface defects and hence the presence of non-radiative recombination centers in LT-ACS of ZnO NRs/GaN LEDs has been systematically investigated. The material quality of the as-prepared seed layer as quantitatively deduced by the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy is found to be influenced by the molar ratio. It is revealedmore » by spatially resolved cathodoluminescence that the seed layer molar ratio plays a significant role in the formation and the density of defects at the n-ZnO NRs/p-GaN heterostructure interface. Consequently, LED devices processed using ZnO NRs synthesized with molar ratio of 1:5 M exhibit stronger yellow emission (∼575 nm) compared to those based on 1:1 and 1:3 M ratios as measured by the electroluminescence. Furthermore, seed layer molar ratio shows a quantitative dependence of the non-radiative defect densities as deduced from light-output current characteristics analysis. These results have implications on the development of high-efficiency ZnO-based LEDs and may also be helpful in understanding the effects of the ZnO seed layer on defect-related non-radiative recombination.« less

  13. Oriented Y-type hexagonal ferrite thin films prepared by chemical solution deposition

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Buršík, J., E-mail: bursik@iic.cas.cz; Kužel, R.; Knížek, K.

    2013-07-15

    Thin films of Ba{sub 2}Zn{sub 2}Fe{sub 12}O{sub 22} (Y) hexaferrite were prepared through the chemical solution deposition method on SrTiO{sub 3}(1 1 1) (ST) single crystal substrates using epitaxial SrFe{sub 12}O{sub 19} (M) hexaferrite thin layer as a seed template layer. The process of crystallization was mainly investigated by means of X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy. A detailed inspection revealed that growth of seed layer starts through the break-up of initially continuous film into isolated grains with expressive shape anisotropy and hexagonal habit. The vital parameters of the seed layer, i.e. thickness, substrate coverage, crystallization conditions and temperature rampmore » were optimized with the aim to obtain epitaxially crystallized Y phase. X-ray diffraction Pole figure measurements and Φ scans reveal perfect parallel in-plane alignment of SrTiO{sub 3} substrate and both hexaferrite phases. - Graphical abstract: XRD pole figure and AFM patterns of Ba{sub 2}Zn{sub 2}Fe{sub 12}O{sub 22} thin film epitaxially grown on SrTiO{sub 3}(1 1 1) single crystal using seeding layer templating. - Highlights: • Single phase Y-type hexagonal ferrite thin films were prepared by CSD method. • Seed M layer breaks into isolated single crystal islands and serves as a template. • Large seed grains grow by consuming the grains within the bulk of recoated film. • We explained the observed orientation relation of epitaxial domains. • Epitaxial growth on SrTiO{sub 3}(1 1 1) with relation (0 0 1){sub M,Y}//(1 1 1){sub ST}+[1 0 0]{sub M,Y}//[2 −1 −1]{sub ST}.« less

  14. 1D Cu(OH)2 nanorod/2D SnO2 nanosheets core/shell structured array: Covering with graphene layer leads to excellent performances on lithium-ion battery

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xia, Huicong; Zhang, Jianan; Chen, Zhimin; Xu, Qun

    2018-05-01

    A facile in-situ growth strategy is employ to achieving the two-dimensional SnO2 nanosheets/one-dimensional Cu(OH)2 nanorods nanoarchitecture on Cu foil current collector (SnO2/Cu(OH)2/Cu foil), follow by modification of a uniform layer of graphene (G). Confine with the graphene layer and unique one-dimensional/two-dimensional the nanoarchitecture, the remarkably enhance electrical conductivity and structural stability of G/SnO2/Cu(OH)2/Cu foil leads to a high reversible capacity of 1080.6 mAh g-1 at a current density of 200 mA g-1, much better than the samples without graphene (512.6 mAh g-1) and Cu(OH)2 nanorod (117.4 mAh g-1). Furthermore, G/SnO2/Cu(OH)2/Cu foil electrode shows high rate capacity (600.8 mAh g-1 at 1 A g-1) and excellent cycling stability (1057.1 mAh g-1 at 200 mA g-1 even after 500 cycles). This work highlights that increasing surface and interface effects with desirable three-dimensional nanoarchitecture can open a new avenue to electrochemical performance improvement in lithium-ion battery for SnO2-base anode.

  15. Calculation of heating power generated from ferromagnetic thermal seed (PdCo-PdNi-CuNi) alloys used as interstitial hyperthermia implants.

    PubMed

    El-Sayed, Adly H; Aly, A A; EI-Sayed, N I; Mekawy, M M; EI-Gendy, A A

    2007-03-01

    High quality heating device made of ferromagnetic alloy (thermal seed) was developed for hyperthermia treatment of cancer. The device generates sufficient heat at room temperature and stops heating at the Curie temperature T (c). The power dissipated from each seed was calculated from the area enclosed by the hysteresis loop. A new mathematical formula for the calculation of heating power was derived and showed good agreement with those calculated from hysteresis loop and calorimetric method.

  16. Co layer fragmentation effect on magnetoresistive and structural properties of nanogranular Co/Cu multilayers

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Spizzo, F.; Ronconi, F.; Ferrero, C.

    We deposited nanogranular Co/Cu multilayers made of thin fragmented Co layers separated by thicker Cu layers to study how the structure and the microstructure of magnetic nanogranular samples change as the average particle size is reduced and how these changes affect the giant magnetoresistive response of the samples. Indeed, thanks to the vertical periodicity of the structure, namely, to the fact that Co/Cu interfaces display an ordered stacking and are not randomly distributed within the samples as in conventional granular materials, their self-correlation and cross correlation can be investigated. In this way, the characteristic length scale of the Co/Cu interfacialmore » roughness that is strictly related to the giant magnetoresistive response of the samples and the universality class of the growth mechanism that affects the systems structure can be both accessed. The Co/Cu nanogranular multilayers were characterized using different x-ray techniques, from specular reflectivity, which allows to probe the multilayer development in the vertical direction, to grazing incidence small angle diffuse scattering, which provides information on the self-correlation and cross correlation of the Co/Cu interfaces. Furthermore, diffraction measurements indicate that the degree of structural disorder increases by decreasing the thickness of the Co layers. Magnetoresistive and magnetization measurements are as well presented and discussed with the results of the structural characterization.« less

  17. Junction formation of Cu3BiS3 investigated by Kelvin probe force microscopy and surface photovoltage measurements

    PubMed Central

    Mesa, Fredy; Chamorro, William; Vallejo, William; Baier, Robert; Dittrich, Thomas; Grimm, Alexander; Lux-Steiner, Martha C

    2012-01-01

    Summary Recently, the compound semiconductor Cu3BiS3 has been demonstrated to have a band gap of ~1.4 eV, well suited for photovoltaic energy harvesting. The preparation of polycrystalline thin films was successfully realized and now the junction formation to the n-type window needs to be developed. We present an investigation of the Cu3BiS3 absorber layer and the junction formation with CdS, ZnS and In2S3 buffer layers. Kelvin probe force microscopy shows the granular structure of the buffer layers with small grains of 20–100 nm, and a considerably smaller work-function distribution for In2S3 compared to that of CdS and ZnS. For In2S3 and CdS buffer layers the KPFM experiments indicate negatively charged Cu3BiS3 grain boundaries resulting from the deposition of the buffer layer. Macroscopic measurements of the surface photovoltage at variable excitation wavelength indicate the influence of defect states below the band gap on charge separation and a surface-defect passivation by the In2S3 buffer layer. Our findings indicate that Cu3BiS3 may become an interesting absorber material for thin-film solar cells; however, for photovoltaic application the band bending at the charge-selective contact has to be increased. PMID:22497001

  18. Junction formation of Cu(3)BiS(3) investigated by Kelvin probe force microscopy and surface photovoltage measurements.

    PubMed

    Mesa, Fredy; Chamorro, William; Vallejo, William; Baier, Robert; Dittrich, Thomas; Grimm, Alexander; Lux-Steiner, Martha C; Sadewasser, Sascha

    2012-01-01

    Recently, the compound semiconductor Cu(3)BiS(3) has been demonstrated to have a band gap of ~1.4 eV, well suited for photovoltaic energy harvesting. The preparation of polycrystalline thin films was successfully realized and now the junction formation to the n-type window needs to be developed. We present an investigation of the Cu(3)BiS(3) absorber layer and the junction formation with CdS, ZnS and In(2)S(3) buffer layers. Kelvin probe force microscopy shows the granular structure of the buffer layers with small grains of 20-100 nm, and a considerably smaller work-function distribution for In(2)S(3) compared to that of CdS and ZnS. For In(2)S(3) and CdS buffer layers the KPFM experiments indicate negatively charged Cu(3)BiS(3) grain boundaries resulting from the deposition of the buffer layer. Macroscopic measurements of the surface photovoltage at variable excitation wavelength indicate the influence of defect states below the band gap on charge separation and a surface-defect passivation by the In(2)S(3) buffer layer. Our findings indicate that Cu(3)BiS(3) may become an interesting absorber material for thin-film solar cells; however, for photovoltaic application the band bending at the charge-selective contact has to be increased.

  19. High-performance ultraviolet detection and visible-blind photodetector based on Cu{sub 2}O/ZnO nanorods with poly-(N-vinylcarbazole) intermediate layer

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Perng, Dung-Ching, E-mail: dcperng@ee.ncku.edu.tw; Center for Micro/Nano Science and Technology, National Cheng Kung University, One University Road, Tainan 701, Taiwan; Lin, Hsueh-Pin

    This study reports a high-performance hybrid ultraviolet (UV) photodetector with visible-blind sensitivity fabricated by inserting a poly-(N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) intermediate layer between low-cost processed Cu{sub 2}O film and ZnO nanorods (NRs). The PVK layer acts as an electron-blocking/hole-transporting layer between the n-ZnO and p-Cu{sub 2}O films. The Cu{sub 2}O/PVK/ZnO NR photodetector exhibited a responsivity of 13.28 A/W at 360 nm, a high detectivity of 1.03 × 10{sup 13} Jones at a low bias of −0.1 V under a low UV light intensity of 24.9 μW/cm{sup 2}. The photo-to-dark current ratios of the photodetector with and without the PVK intermediate layer at a bias of −0.5 V are 1.34 × 10{supmore » 2} and 3.99, respectively. The UV-to-visible rejection ratios (R{sub 360 nm}/R{sub 450 nm}) are 350 and 1.735, respectively. Several features are demonstrated: (a) UV photo-generated holes at the ZnO NRs can effectively be transported through the PVK layer to the p-Cu{sub 2}O layer; (b) the insertion of a PVK buffer layer significantly minimizes the reverse-bias leakage current, which leads to a larger amplification of the photocurrent; and (c) the PVK buffer layer greatly improves the UV-to-visible responsivity ratio, allowing the device to achieve high UV detection sensitivity at a low bias voltage using a very low light intensity.« less

  20. Copper oxide/N-silicon heterojunction photovoltaic device

    DOEpatents

    Feng, Tom; Ghosh, Amal K.

    1982-01-01

    A photovoltaic device having characteristics of a high efficiency solar cell comprising a Cu.sub.x O/n-Si heterojunction. The Cu.sub.x O layer is formed by heating a deposited copper layer in an oxygen containing ambient.

  1. Formation of the low-resistivity compound Cu{sub 3}Ge by low-temperature treatment in an atomic hydrogen flux

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Erofeev, E. V., E-mail: erofeev@micran.ru; Kazimirov, A. I.; Fedin, I. V.

    The systematic features of the formation of the low-resistivity compound Cu{sub 3}Ge by low-temperature treatment of a Cu/Ge two-layer system in an atomic hydrogen flux are studied. The Cu/Ge two-layer system is deposited onto an i-GaAs substrate. Treatment of the Cu/Ge/i-GaAs system, in which the layer thicknesses are, correspondingly, 122 and 78 nm, in atomic hydrogen with a flux density of 10{sup 15} at cm{sup 2} s{sup –1} for 2.5–10 min at room temperature induces the interdiffusion of Cu and Ge, with the formation of a polycrystalline film containing the stoichiometric Cu{sub 3}Ge phase. The film consists of vertically orientedmore » grains 100–150 nm in size and exhibits a minimum resistivity of 4.5 µΩ cm. Variations in the time of treatment of the Cu/Ge/i-GaAs samples in atomic hydrogen affect the Cu and Ge depth distribution, the phase composition of the films, and their resistivity. Experimental observation of the synthesis of the Cu{sub 3}Ge compound at room temperature suggests that treatment in atomic hydrogen has a stimulating effect on both the diffusion of Cu and Ge and the chemical reaction of Cu{sub 3}Ge-compound formation. These processes can be activated by the energy released upon the recombination of hydrogen atoms adsorbed at the surface of the Cu/Ge/i-GaAs sample.« less

  2. A copper-based layered coordination polymer: synthesis, magnetic properties and electrochemical performance in supercapacitors.

    PubMed

    Liu, Qi; Liu, Xiuxiu; Shi, Changdong; Zhang, Yanpeng; Feng, Xuejun; Cheng, Mei-Ling; Su, Seng; Gu, Jiande

    2015-11-28

    A copper-based layered coordination polymer ([Cu(hmt)(tfbdc)(H2O)]; hmt = hexamethylenetetramine, tfbdc = 2,3,5,6-tetrafluoroterephthalate; Cu-LCP) has been synthesized, and it has been structurally and magnetically characterized. The Cu-LCP shows ferromagnetic interactions between the adjacent copper(II) ions. Density functional theory calculations on the special model of Cu-LCP support the occurrence of ferromagnetic interactions. As an electrode material for supercapacitors, Cu-LCP exhibits a high specific capacitance of 1274 F g(-1) at a current density of 1 A g(-1) in 1 M LiOH electrolyte, and the capacitance retention is about 88% after 2000 cycles.

  3. Imaging the in-plane distribution of helium precipitates at a Cu/V interface

    DOE PAGES

    Chen, Di; Li, Nan; Yuryev, Dina; ...

    2017-02-15

    Here, we describe a transmission electron microscopy investigation of the distribution of helium precipitates within the plane of an interface between Cu and V. Statistical analysis of precipitate locations reveals a weak tendency for interfacial precipitates to align alongmore » $$\\langle$$110$$\\rangle$$-type crystallographic directions within the Cu layer. Comparison of these findings with helium-free Cu/V interfaces suggests that the precipitates may be aggregating preferentially along atomic-size steps in the interface created by threading dislocations in the Cu layer. Our observations also suggest that some precipitates may be aggregating along intersections between interfacial misfit dislocations.« less

  4. Copper Accumulation, Availability and Adsorption Capacity in Sandy Soils of Vineyards with Different Cultivation Duration

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mallmann, F. J. K.; Miotto, A.; Bender, M. A.; Gubiani, E.; Rheinheimer, D. D. S.; Kaminski, J.; Ceretta, C. A.; Šimůnek, J.

    2015-12-01

    Bordeaux mixture is a copper-based (Cu) fungicide and bactericide applied in vineyards to control plant diseases. Since it is applied several times per year, it accumulates in large quantities on plants and in soil. This study evaluates the Cu accumulation in, and desorption kinetics and adsorption capability of a sandy Ultisol in a natural field and in 3 vineyards for 5 (V1), 11 (V2), and 31 (V3) years in South of Brazil. Soil samples were collected in 8 depths (0-60 cm) of all four soil profiles, which all displayed similar soil properties. The following soil properties were measured: pH, organic matter (OM), soil bulk density, Cu total concentration, and Cu desorption and adsorption curves. A two first-order reactions model and the Langmuir isotherm were fitted to the desorption and adsorption curves, respectively. An increase in the total mass of Cu in the vineyards followed a linear regression curve, with an average annual increase of 7.15 kg ha-1. Cu accumulated down to a depth of 5, 20, and 30 cm in V1, V2 and V3, respectively, with the highest Cu content reaching 138.4 mg kg-1 in the 0-5 cm soil layer of V3. Cu desorption parameters showed a high correlation with its total concentration. Approximately 57 and 19% of total Cu were immediately and slowly available, respectively, indicating a high potential for plant absorption and/or downward movement. Cu concentrations extracted by EDTA from soil layers not affected by anthropogenic Cu inputs were very low. The maximum Cu adsorption capacity of the 0-5 and 5-10 cm soil layers increased with the vineyard age, reaching concentrations higher than 900 mg kg-1. This increase was highly related to OM and pH, which both increased with cultivation duration. Despite of low clay content of these soils, there is low risk of groundwater Cu contamination for actual conditions. However, high Cu concentrations in the surface layer of the long-term vineyards could cause toxicity problems for this and for companion crops.

  5. Ultrasonic soldering of Cu alloy using Ni-foam/Sn composite interlayer.

    PubMed

    Xiao, Yong; Wang, Qiwei; Wang, Ling; Zeng, Xian; Li, Mingyu; Wang, Ziqi; Zhang, Xingyi; Zhu, Xiaomeng

    2018-07-01

    In this study, Cu alloy joints were fabricated with a Ni-foam reinforced Sn-based composite solder with the assistance of ultrasonic vibration. Effects of ultrasonic soldering time on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Cu/Ni-Sn/Cu joints were investigated. Results showed that exceptional metallurgic bonding could be acquired with the assistance of ultrasonic vibration using a self-developed Ni-foam/Sn composite solder. For joint soldered for 5 s, a (Cu,Ni) 6 Sn 5 intermetallic compound (IMC) layer was formed on the Cu substrate surface, Ni skeletons distributed randomly in the soldering seam and a serrated (Ni,Cu) 3 Sn 4 IMC layer was formed on the Ni skeleton surface. Increasing the soldering time to 20 s, the (Ni,Cu) 3 Sn 4 IMC layer grew significantly and exhibited a loose porous structure on the Ni skeleton surface. Further increase the soldering time to 30 s, Ni skeletons were largely dissolved in the Sn base solder, and micro-sized (Ni,Cu) 3 Sn 4 particles were formed and dispersed homogeneously in the soldering seam. The formation of (Ni,Cu) 3 Sn 4 particles was mainly ascribed to acoustic cavitations induced erosion and grain refining effects. The joint soldered for 30 s exhibited the highest shear strength of 64.9 ± 3.3 MPa, and the shearing failure mainly occurred at the soldering seam/Cu substrate interface. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  6. Mechanism of abnormally slow crystal growth of CuZr alloy

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Yan, X. Q.; Lü, Y. J., E-mail: yongjunlv@bit.edu.cn; State Key Laboratory of Silicon Materials, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027

    2015-10-28

    Crystal growth of the glass-forming CuZr alloy is shown to be abnormally slow, which suggests a new method to identify the good glass-forming alloys. The crystal growth of elemental Cu, Pd and binary NiAl, CuZr alloys is systematically studied with the aid of molecular dynamics simulations. The temperature dependence of the growth velocity indicates the different growth mechanisms between the elemental and the alloy systems. The high-speed growth featuring the elemental metals is dominated by the non-activated collision between liquid-like atoms and interface, and the low-speed growth for NiAl and CuZr is determined by the diffusion across the interface. Wemore » find that, in contrast to Cu, Pd, and NiAl, a strong stress layering arisen from the density and the local order layering forms in front of the liquid-crystal interface of CuZr alloy, which causes a slow diffusion zone. The formation of the slow diffusion zone suppresses the interface moving, resulting in much small growth velocity of CuZr alloy. We provide a direct evidence of this explanation by applying the compressive stress normal to the interface. The compression is shown to boost the stress layering in CuZr significantly, correspondingly enhancing the slow diffusion zone, and eventually slowing down the crystal growth of CuZr alloy immediately. In contrast, the growth of Cu, Pd, and NiAl is increased by the compression because the low diffusion zones in them are never well developed.« less

  7. The role of nanoscale seed layers on the enhanced performance of niobium doped TiO 2 thin films on glass

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Nikodemski, Stefan; Dameron, Arrelaine A.; Perkins, John D.

    Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) coatings with decreased cost and greater process or performance versatility are needed for a variety of optoelectronic applications. Among potential new TCO candidates, doped titanium dioxide is receiving particular interest. In this study, niobium-doped titania bilayer structures consisting of a nanoscale seed layer (deposited by atomic layer deposition or RF magnetron sputtering) followed by a thick bulk-like layer were grown directly on glass in order to examine the effects of the seed layer processing on the subsequent crystallization and electrical properties of these heterostructures. Observations from Raman spectroscopy suggest that higher oxygen content in the seedmore » layer suppresses the formation of detrimental titania polymorph phases, found in films produced by annealing directly after synthesis without any exposure to oxygen. Here, our results indicate that the generation of excellent Nb:TiO 2 conductors on glass (without breaking vacuum) only occurs within a narrow processing range and that the sequential deposition of oxygen-poor layers on oxygen-rich layers is a critical step towards achieving films with low resistivity.« less

  8. The role of nanoscale seed layers on the enhanced performance of niobium doped TiO 2 thin films on glass

    DOE PAGES

    Nikodemski, Stefan; Dameron, Arrelaine A.; Perkins, John D.; ...

    2016-09-09

    Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) coatings with decreased cost and greater process or performance versatility are needed for a variety of optoelectronic applications. Among potential new TCO candidates, doped titanium dioxide is receiving particular interest. In this study, niobium-doped titania bilayer structures consisting of a nanoscale seed layer (deposited by atomic layer deposition or RF magnetron sputtering) followed by a thick bulk-like layer were grown directly on glass in order to examine the effects of the seed layer processing on the subsequent crystallization and electrical properties of these heterostructures. Observations from Raman spectroscopy suggest that higher oxygen content in the seedmore » layer suppresses the formation of detrimental titania polymorph phases, found in films produced by annealing directly after synthesis without any exposure to oxygen. Here, our results indicate that the generation of excellent Nb:TiO 2 conductors on glass (without breaking vacuum) only occurs within a narrow processing range and that the sequential deposition of oxygen-poor layers on oxygen-rich layers is a critical step towards achieving films with low resistivity.« less

  9. Comparative Study of ENIG and ENEPIG as Surface Finishes for a Sn-Ag-Cu Solder Joint

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yoon, Jeong-Won; Noh, Bo-In; Jung, Seung-Boo

    2011-09-01

    Interfacial reactions and joint reliability of Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu solder with two different surface finishes, electroless nickel-immersion gold (ENIG) and electroless nickel-electroless palladium-immersion gold (ENEPIG), were evaluated during a reflow process. We first compared the interfacial reactions of the two solder joints and also successfully revealed a connection between the interfacial reaction behavior and mechanical reliability. The Sn-Ag-Cu/ENIG joint exhibited a higher intermetallic compound (IMC) growth rate and a higher consumption rate of the Ni(P) layer than the Sn-Ag-Cu/ENEPIG joint. The presence of the Pd layer in the ENEPIG suppressed the growth of the interfacial IMC layer and the consumption of the Ni(P) layer, resulting in the superior interfacial stability of the solder joint. The shear test results show that the ENIG joint fractured along the interface, exhibiting indications of brittle failure possibly due to the brittle IMC layer. In contrast, the failure of the ENEPIG joint only went through the bulk solder, supporting the idea that the interface is mechanically reliable. The results from this study confirm that the Sn-Ag-Cu/ENEPIG solder joint is mechanically robust and, thus, the combination is a viable option for a Pb-free package system.

  10. Multilayer Regulation of Atomic Boron Nitride Films to Improve Oxidation and Corrosion Resistance of Cu.

    PubMed

    Ren, Siming; Cui, Mingjun; Pu, Jibin; Xue, Qunji; Wang, Liping

    2017-08-16

    The boron nitride (BN) monolayer (1L) with high impermeability and resistivity seems to hold promise as a long-term corrosion barrier for Cu under ambient condition, which is supported by recent researches. Here, we perform a complete study of the alternating temperature tests (the sample is exposed in air for 30 days and subsequently heated at 200 °C for 2 h) and electrochemical measurements on 1L and multilayer BN-coated Cu foils. Results imply that the BN-coated Cu foils are less oxidized than uncoated Cu foils after alternating temperature tests, regardless of the layers of BN. Particularly, the oxidation process proceeds slowly in multilayers because most of the underlying defects are covered with BN layers to suppress the oxygen diffusion in the vertical direction and the oxidation mainly occurs on the wrinkled region of BN films. Electrochemical analyses reveal that the BN layers provide an effective physical barrier against the corrosive medium and inhibit the electron diffusion because of their high electrical insulating behavior and the corrosion resistance of the samples increases with increasing BN layers. These findings indicate that BN films with adequate layers are good candidates for oxidation and corrosion protection at the atomic level, which is vital to many industrial and academic applications.

  11. Influences of alkaline earth metal substitution on the crystal structure and physical properties of magnetic RuSr1.9A0.1GdCu2O8 (A = Ca, Sr, and Ba) superconductors.

    PubMed

    Hur, Su Gil; Park, Dae Hoon; Hwang, Seong-Ju; Kim, Seung Joo; Lee, J H; Lee, Sang Young

    2005-11-24

    We have investigated the effect of alkaline earth metal substitution on the crystal structure and physical properties of magnetic superconductors RuSr(1.9)A(0.1)GdCu(2)O(8) (A = Ca, Sr, and Ba) in order to probe an interaction between the magnetic coupling of the RuO(2) layer and the superconductivity of the CuO(2) layer. X-ray diffraction and X-ray absorption spectroscopic analyses demonstrate that the isovalent substitution of Sr ions with Ca or Ba ions makes it possible to tune the interlayer distance between the CuO(2) and the RuO(2) layers. From the measurements of electrical resistance and magnetic susceptibility, it was found that, in contrast to negligible change of magnetization, both of the alkaline earth metal substitutions lead to a notable depression of zero-resistance temperature T(c) (DeltaT(c) approximately 17-19 K). On the basis of the absence of a systematic correlation between the T(c) and the interlayer distance/magnetization, we have concluded that the internal magnetic field of the RuO(2) layer has insignificant influence on the superconducting property of the CuO(2) layer in the ruthenocuprate.

  12. Apparently enhanced magnetization of Cu(I)-modified γ-Fe2O3 based nanoparticles

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qiu, Xiaoyan; He, Zhenghong; Mao, Hong; Zhang, Ting; Lin, Yueqiang; Liu, Xiaodong; Li, Decai; Meng, Xiangshen; Li, Jian

    2017-11-01

    Using a chemically induced transition method in FeCl2 solution, γ-Fe2O3 based magnetic nanoparticles, in which γ-Fe2O3 crystallites were coated with FeCl3ṡ6H2O, were prepared. During the synthesis of the γ-Fe2O3 nanoparticles Cu(I) modification of the particles was attempted. According to the results from both magnetization measurements and structural characterization, it was judged that a magnetic silent "dead layer", which can be attributed to spin disorder in the surface of the γ-Fe2O3 crystallites due to breaking of the crystal symmetry, existed in the unmodified particles. For the Cu(I)-modified sample, the CuCl thin layer on the γ-Fe2O3 crystallites incurred the crystal symmetry to reduce the spin disorder, which "awakened" the "dead layer" on the surface of the γ-Fe2O3 crystallites, enhancing the apparent magnetization of the Cu(I)-modified nanoparticles. It was determined that the surface spin disorder of the magnetic crystallite could be related to the coating layer on the crystallite, and can be modified by altering the coating layer to enhance the effective magnetization of the magnetic nanoparticles.

  13. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Polyakova, I. N., E-mail: polyakova@igic.ras.ru; Poznyak, A. L.; Sergienko, V. S.

    Four Cu(II) complexes with the RR,SS-Edds{sup 4-} and SS-HEdds{sup 3-} anions are synthesized, and their crystal structures are studied. In the compounds [Cu2(RR,SS-Edds)] . 6H{sub 2}O (I) and Ba2[Cu(RR,SS-Edds)](ClO{sub 4}){sub 2} . 8H{sub 2}O (II), the ligand forms hexacoordinate chelate [Cu(Edds)]{sup 2-} complexes with the N atoms and O atoms of the propionate groups in the equatorial positions and the O atoms of the acetate groups in the axial vertices. In the compounds Ba[Cu(SS-HEdds)]ClO{sub 4} . 2H{sub 2}O (III) and Ba3[Cu2(RR,SS-Edds){sub 2}](ClO{sub 4}){sub 2} . 6H{sub 2}O (IV), one of the propionate arms, the protonated arm in III and themore » deprotonated arm in IV, does not enter into the coordination sphere of the Cu atom. An acetate arm moves to its position in the equatorial plane, and the free axial vertex is occupied by an O atom of the perchlorate ion. In I-IV, the lengths of the equatorial Cu-N and Cu-O bonds fall in the ranges 1.970-2.014 and 1.921-1.970 A, respectively. The axial Cu-O bonds with the acetate groups and ClO{sub 4}{sup -} anions are elongated to 2.293-2.500 and 2.727-2.992 A, respectively. In structure I, the second Cu atom acts as a counterion forming bonds with the O atoms of two water molecules and three O atoms of the Edds ligands. In II-IV, the Ba{sup 2+} cations are hydrated and bound to the O atoms of the anionic complexes and (except for one of the cations in IV) ClO{sub 4}{sup -} anions. The coordination number of the Ba cations is nine. The structural units in I-IV are connected into layers. In I, an extended system of hydrogen bonds links the layers into a framework. In II and III, the layers are linked only by weak hydrogen bonds, one bond per structural unit. In IV, ClO{sub 4}{sup -} anions are bound to the Ba and Cu atoms of neighboring layers, thus serving as bridges between the layers.« less

  14. A dilute Cu(Ni) alloy for synthesis of large-area Bernal stacked bilayer graphene using atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Madito, M. J.; Bello, A.; Dangbegnon, J. K.

    2016-01-07

    A bilayer graphene film obtained on copper (Cu) foil is known to have a significant fraction of non-Bernal (AB) stacking and on copper/nickel (Cu/Ni) thin films is known to grow over a large-area with AB stacking. In this study, annealed Cu foils for graphene growth were doped with small concentrations of Ni to obtain dilute Cu(Ni) alloys in which the hydrocarbon decomposition rate of Cu will be enhanced by Ni during synthesis of large-area AB-stacked bilayer graphene using atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition. The Ni doped concentration and the Ni homogeneous distribution in Cu foil were confirmed with inductively coupledmore » plasma optical emission spectrometry and proton-induced X-ray emission. An electron backscatter diffraction map showed that Cu foils have a single (001) surface orientation which leads to a uniform growth rate on Cu surface in early stages of graphene growth and also leads to a uniform Ni surface concentration distribution through segregation kinetics. The increase in Ni surface concentration in foils was investigated with time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry. The quality of graphene, the number of graphene layers, and the layers stacking order in synthesized bilayer graphene films were confirmed by Raman and electron diffraction measurements. A four point probe station was used to measure the sheet resistance of graphene films. As compared to Cu foil, the prepared dilute Cu(Ni) alloy demonstrated the good capability of growing large-area AB-stacked bilayer graphene film by increasing Ni content in Cu surface layer.« less

  15. A dilute Cu(Ni) alloy for synthesis of large-area Bernal stacked bilayer graphene using atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Madito, M. J.; Bello, A.; Dangbegnon, J. K.; Oliphant, C. J.; Jordaan, W. A.; Momodu, D. Y.; Masikhwa, T. M.; Barzegar, F.; Fabiane, M.; Manyala, N.

    2016-01-01

    A bilayer graphene film obtained on copper (Cu) foil is known to have a significant fraction of non-Bernal (AB) stacking and on copper/nickel (Cu/Ni) thin films is known to grow over a large-area with AB stacking. In this study, annealed Cu foils for graphene growth were doped with small concentrations of Ni to obtain dilute Cu(Ni) alloys in which the hydrocarbon decomposition rate of Cu will be enhanced by Ni during synthesis of large-area AB-stacked bilayer graphene using atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition. The Ni doped concentration and the Ni homogeneous distribution in Cu foil were confirmed with inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry and proton-induced X-ray emission. An electron backscatter diffraction map showed that Cu foils have a single (001) surface orientation which leads to a uniform growth rate on Cu surface in early stages of graphene growth and also leads to a uniform Ni surface concentration distribution through segregation kinetics. The increase in Ni surface concentration in foils was investigated with time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry. The quality of graphene, the number of graphene layers, and the layers stacking order in synthesized bilayer graphene films were confirmed by Raman and electron diffraction measurements. A four point probe station was used to measure the sheet resistance of graphene films. As compared to Cu foil, the prepared dilute Cu(Ni) alloy demonstrated the good capability of growing large-area AB-stacked bilayer graphene film by increasing Ni content in Cu surface layer.

  16. Stabilization of the O p2x2 phase on Cu(001) sheltered by wrinkled BN over-layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, Yong-Sung; Ma, Chuanxu; Li, An-Ping; Yoon, Mina

    The 2 √3x √3R45°phase of oxygen (O) on the Cu(001) surface has been observed in scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) measurements. Although the p2x2 phase of O on the Cu(001) surface has been proposed theoretically to be the most stable in O-lean conditions, it has not been observed in experiments for a long time. Recently, the O p2x2 phase has been found in STM on the Cu(001) surface with an overlying BN monolayer. In this theoretical study, we investigate what the role of BN over-layer is to stabilize the O p2x2 phase on the Cu(001) surface. The BN over-layer is lattice-matched with the Cu(001) surface and the BN mono-layer sheet is periodically wrinkled along the BN arm-chair direction and along the [100] or [010] direction on the Cu(001) surface. The interlayer space between the Cu(001) surface and the bulge of the wrinkled BN sheet is found to play as a preferential shelter for O to be adsorbed, and the boundary of the BN inner wall along the [010] or [100] direction makes the p2x2 phase more favorable against the 45°-tilted 2 √3x √3R45°phase of O on the Cu(001) surface. This was supported by Center for Nanophase Materials Sciences, which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility, and the Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program of Oak Ridge National Laboratory, maaged by UT-Battelle, LLC, for the U. S. DOE.

  17. Organic solar cells using a ZnO/Cu/ZnO anode deposited by ion beam sputtering at room temperature for flexible devices.

    PubMed

    El Hajj, Ahmad; Lucas, Bruno; Barbot, Anthony; Antony, Rémi; Ratier, Bernard; Aldissi, Matt

    2013-07-01

    The development of indium-free transparent conductive oxides (TCOs) on polymer substrates for flexible devices requires deposition at low temperatures and a limited thermal treatment. In this paper, we investigated the optical and electrical properties of ZnO/Cu/ZnO multi-layer electrodes obtained by ion beam sputtering at room temperature for flexible optoelectronic devices. This multilayer structure has the advantage of adjusting the layer thickness to favor antireflection and surface plasmon resonance of the metallic layer. We found that the optimal electrode is made up of a 10 nm-thick Cu layer between two 40 nm-thick ZnO layers, which results in a sheet resistance of 12 omega/(see symbol), a high transmittance of 85% in the visible range, and the highest figure of merit of 5.4 x 10(-3) (see symbol)/omega. A P3HT:PCBM-based solar cell showed a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 2.26% using the optimized ZnO (40 nm)/Cu (10 nm)/ZnO (40 nm) anode.

  18. Electron Doping of Ultrathin Black Phosphorus with Cu Adatoms.

    PubMed

    Koenig, Steven P; Doganov, Rostislav A; Seixas, Leandro; Carvalho, Alexandra; Tan, Jun You; Watanabe, Kenji; Taniguchi, Takashi; Yakovlev, Nikolai; Castro Neto, Antonio H; Özyilmaz, Barbaros

    2016-04-13

    Few-layer black phosphorus is a monatomic two-dimensional crystal with a direct band gap that has high carrier mobility for both holes and electrons. Similarly to other layered atomic crystals, like graphene or layered transition metal dichalcogenides, the transport behavior of few-layer black phosphorus is sensitive to surface impurities, adsorbates, and adatoms. Here we study the effect of Cu adatoms onto few-layer black phosphorus by characterizing few-layer black phosphorus field effect devices and by performing first-principles calculations. We find that the addition of Cu adatoms can be used to controllably n-dope few layer black phosphorus, thereby lowering the threshold voltage for n-type conduction without degrading the transport properties. We demonstrate a scalable 2D material-based complementary inverter which utilizes a boron nitride gate dielectric, a graphite gate, and a single bP crystal for both the p- and n-channels. The inverter operates at matched input and output voltages, exhibits a gain of 46, and does not require different contact metals or local electrostatic gating.

  19. CuGaS2 and CuGaS2–ZnS Porous Layers from Solution-Processed Nanocrystals

    PubMed Central

    Guardia, Pablo; Estradé, Sònia; Peiró, Francesca; Cabot, Andreu

    2018-01-01

    The manufacturing of semiconducting films using solution-based approaches is considered a low cost alternative to vacuum-based thin film deposition strategies. An additional advantage of solution processing methods is the possibility to control the layer nano/microstructure. Here, we detail the production of mesoporous CuGaS2 (CGS) and ZnS layers from spin-coating and subsequent cross-linking through chalcogen-chalcogen bonds of properly functionalized nanocrystals (NCs). We further produce NC-based porous CGS/ZnS bilayers and NC-based CGS–ZnS composite layers using the same strategy. Photoelectrochemical measurements are used to demonstrate the efficacy of porous layers, and particularly the CGS/ZnS bilayers, for improved current densities and photoresponses relative to denser films deposited from as-produced NCs. PMID:29621198

  20. Molecular charge distribution and dispersion of electronic states in the contact layer between pentacene and Cu(119) and beyond

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Annese, E.; Fujii, J.; Baldacchini, C.; Zhou, B.; Viol, C. E.; Vobornik, I.; Betti, M. G.; Rossi, G.

    2008-05-01

    The interaction of pentacene molecules in contact with the Cu(119) stepped surface has been directly imaged by scanning tunneling microscopy and analyzed by angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy. Interacting molecules, which are in contact with copper, generate dispersive electronic states associated with a perturbed electron charge density distribution of the molecular orbitals. In contrast, the electron charge density of molecules of the pentacene on top of the first layer, which is not in direct contact with the Cu surface, shows an intramolecular structure very similar to that of the free molecule. Our results indicate that the delocalization of the molecular states in the pentacene/Cu system is confined to the very first molecular layer at the interface.

  1. Cu-doped CdS and its application in CdTe thin film solar cell

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Deng, Yi; College of Electronic and Information Engineering, Hankou University, Wuhan, Hubei 430212; Yang, Jun

    2016-01-15

    Cu is widely used in the back contact formation of CdTe thin film solar cells. However, Cu is easily to diffuse from the back contact into the CdTe absorber layer and even to the cell junction interface CdS/CdTe. This phenomenon is generally believed to be the main factor affecting the CdTe solar cell stability. In this study Cu was intentionally doped in CdS thin film to study its effect on the microstructural, optical and electrical properties of the CdS material. Upon Cu doping, the V{sub Cd{sup −}} and the surface-state-related photoluminescence emissions were dramatically decreased/quenched. The presence of Cu atommore » hindered the recrystallization/coalescence of the nano-sized grains in the as-deposited CdS film during the air and the CdCl{sub 2} annealing. CdTe thin film solar cell fabricated with Cu-doped CdS window layers demonstrated much decreased fill factor, which was induced by the increased space-charge recombination near the p-n junction and the worsened junction crystalline quality. Temperature dependent current-voltage curve measurement indicated that the doped Cu in the CdS window layer was not stable at both room and higher temperatures.« less

  2. Crystal structure across the β to α phase transition in thermoelectric Cu 2–xSe

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Eikeland, Espen; Blichfeld, Anders B.; Borup, Kasper A.

    Here, the crystal structure uniquely imparts the specific properties of a material, and thus provides the starting point for any quantitative understanding of thermoelectric properties. Cu 2–xSe is an intensely studied high performing, non-toxic and cheap thermoelectric material, and here for the first time, the average structure of β-Cu 2–xSe is reported based on analysis of multi-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction data. It consists of Se–Cu layers with additional copper between every alternate layer. The structural changes during the peculiar zT enhancing phase transition mainly consist of changes in the inter-layer distance coupled with subtle Cu migration. Just prior to themore » transition the structure exhibits strong negative thermal expansion due to the reordering of Cu atoms, when approached from low temperatures. The phase transition is fully reversible and group–subgroup symmetry relations are derived that relate the low-temperature β-phase to the high-temperature α-phase. Weak superstructure reflections are observed and a possible Cu ordering is proposed. The structural rearrangement may have a significant impact on the band structure and the Cu rearrangement may also be linked to an entropy increase. Both factors potentially contribute to the extraordinary zT enhancement across the phase transition.« less

  3. Crystal structure across the β to α phase transition in thermoelectric Cu 2–xSe

    DOE PAGES

    Eikeland, Espen; Blichfeld, Anders B.; Borup, Kasper A.; ...

    2017-06-13

    Here, the crystal structure uniquely imparts the specific properties of a material, and thus provides the starting point for any quantitative understanding of thermoelectric properties. Cu 2–xSe is an intensely studied high performing, non-toxic and cheap thermoelectric material, and here for the first time, the average structure of β-Cu 2–xSe is reported based on analysis of multi-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction data. It consists of Se–Cu layers with additional copper between every alternate layer. The structural changes during the peculiar zT enhancing phase transition mainly consist of changes in the inter-layer distance coupled with subtle Cu migration. Just prior to themore » transition the structure exhibits strong negative thermal expansion due to the reordering of Cu atoms, when approached from low temperatures. The phase transition is fully reversible and group–subgroup symmetry relations are derived that relate the low-temperature β-phase to the high-temperature α-phase. Weak superstructure reflections are observed and a possible Cu ordering is proposed. The structural rearrangement may have a significant impact on the band structure and the Cu rearrangement may also be linked to an entropy increase. Both factors potentially contribute to the extraordinary zT enhancement across the phase transition.« less

  4. Temperature dependence of positron annihilation parameters in Tl-Ba-Ca-Cu-O superconductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sundar, C. S.; Bharathi, A.; Ching, W. Y.; Jean, Y. C.; Hor, P. H.; Meng, R. L.; Huang, Z. J.; Chu, C. W.

    1990-08-01

    The results of positron lifetime and Doppler broadened line-shape parameter measurements as a function of temperature, across Tc, in the Tl-Ba-Ca-Cu-O superconductors are presented. The bulk lifetime in the normal state is found to decrease with the increase in the number of CuO2 layers. Different temperature dependencies of the annihilation parameters are observed in the various Tl systems containing different numbers of CuO2 layers. In the Tl2Ba2Ca2Cu3O10 system, an increase in lifetime is observed below Tc, whereas in Tl2Ba2CaCu2O8, a decrease in lifetime is seen below Tc. In the Tl2Ba2CuO6 system, the lifetime is observed to be temperature independent. The different temperature variations of positron annihilation parameters are discussed in the light of the positron density distribution, obtained with use of the results of the self-consistent orthogonalized linear combination of atomic orbitals band-structure calculations. It is argued that the different temperature dependencies of the annihilation parameters is related to the positron density distribution within the unit cell and arise due to local charge transfer in the vicinity of the CuO2 layer in the superconducting state.

  5. CuO-Functionalized Silicon Photoanodes for Photoelectrochemical Water Splitting Devices.

    PubMed

    Shi, Yuanyuan; Gimbert-Suriñach, Carolina; Han, Tingting; Berardi, Serena; Lanza, Mario; Llobet, Antoni

    2016-01-13

    One main difficulty for the technological development of photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting (WS) devices is the fabrication of active, stable and cost-effective photoelectrodes that ensure high performance. Here, we report the development of a CuO/Silicon based photoanode, which shows an onset potential for the water oxidation of 0.53 V vs SCE at pH 9, that is, an overpotential of 75 mV, and high stability above 10 h. These values account for a photovoltage of 420 mV due to the absorbed photons by silicon, as proven by comparing with analogous CuO/FTO electrodes that are not photoactive. The photoanodes have been fabricated by sputtering a thin film of Cu(0) on commercially available n-type Si wafers, followed by a photoelectrochemical treatment in basic pH conditions. The resulting CuO/Cu layer acts as (1) protective layer to avoid the corrosion of nSi, (2) p-type hole conducting layer for efficient charge separation and transportation, and (3) electrocatalyst to reduce the overpotential of the water oxidation reaction. The low cost, low toxicity, and good performance of CuO-based coatings can be an attractive solution to functionalize unstable materials for solar energy conversion.

  6. Method Producing an SNS Superconducting Junction with Weak Link Barrier

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hunt, Brian D. (Inventor)

    1999-01-01

    A method of producing a high temperature superconductor Josephson element and an improved SNS weak link barrier element is provided. A YBaCuO superconducting electrode film is deposited on a substrate at a temperature of approximately 800 C. A weak link barrier layer of a nonsuperconducting film of N-YBaCuO is deposited over the electrode at a temperature range of 520 C. to 540 C. at a lower deposition rate. Subsequently a superconducting counter-electrode film layer of YBaCuO is deposited over the weak link barrier layer at approximately 800 C. The weak link barrier layer has a thickness of approximately 50 A and the SNS element can be constructed to provide an edge geometry junction.

  7. Perspective: Maintaining surface-phase purity is key to efficient open air fabricated cuprous oxide solar cells

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Hoye, Robert L. Z., E-mail: rlzh2@cam.ac.uk, E-mail: jld35@cam.ac.uk; Ievskaya, Yulia; MacManus-Driscoll, Judith L., E-mail: rlzh2@cam.ac.uk, E-mail: jld35@cam.ac.uk

    2015-02-01

    Electrochemically deposited Cu{sub 2}O solar cells are receiving growing attention owing to a recent doubling in efficiency. This was enabled by the controlled chemical environment used in depositing doped ZnO layers by atomic layer deposition, which is not well suited to large-scale industrial production. While open air fabrication with atmospheric pressure spatial atomic layer deposition overcomes this limitation, we find that this approach is limited by an inability to remove the detrimental CuO layer that forms on the Cu{sub 2}O surface. Herein, we propose strategies for achieving efficiencies in atmospherically processed cells that are equivalent to the high values achievedmore » in vacuum processed cells.« less

  8. Superhydrophilicity and antibacterial property of a Cu-dotted oxide coating surface

    PubMed Central

    2010-01-01

    Background Aluminum-made settings are widely used in healthcare, schools, public facilities and transit systems. Frequently-touched surfaces of those settings are likely to harbour bacteria and be a potential source of infection. One method to utilize the effectiveness of copper (Cu) in eliminating pathogens for these surfaces would be to coat the aluminum (Al) items with a Cu coating. However, such a combination of Cu and Al metals is susceptible to galvanic corrosion because of their different electrochemical potentials. Methods In this work, a new approach was proposed in which electrolytic plasma oxidation (EPO) of Al was used to form an oxide surface layer followed by electroplating of Cu metal on the top of the oxide layer. The oxide was designed to function as a corrosion protective and biocompatible layer, and the Cu in the form of dots was utilized as an antibacterial material. The antibacterial property enhanced by superhydrophilicity of the Cu-dotted oxide coating was evaluated. Results A superhydrophilic surface was successfully prepared using electrolytic plasma oxidation of aluminum (Al) followed by electroplating of copper (Cu) in a Cu-dotted form. Both Cu plate and Cu-dotted oxide surfaces had excellent antimicrobial activities against E. coli ATCC 25922, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) ATCC 43300 and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VRE) ATCC 51299. However, its Cu-dotted surface morphology allowed the Cu-dotted oxide surface to be more antibacterial than the smooth Cu plate surface. The enhanced antibacterial property was attributed to the superhydrophilic behaviour of the Cu-dotted oxide surface that allowed the bacteria to have a more effective killing contact with Cu due to spreading of the bacterial suspension media. Conclusion The superhydrophilic Cu-dotted oxide coating surface provided an effective method of controlling bacterial growth and survival on contact surfaces and thus reduces the risk of infection and spread of bacteria-related diseases particularly in moist or wet environments. PMID:20843373

  9. Characterization of ZrO2 buffer layers for sequentially evaporated Y-Ba-CuO on Si and Al2O3 substrates

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Valco, George J.; Rohrer, Norman J.; Pouch, John J.; Warner, Joseph D.; Bhasin, Kul B.

    1988-01-01

    Thin film high temperature superconductors have the potential to change the microwave technology for space communications systems. For such applications it is desirable that the films be formed on substrates such as Al2O3 which have good microwave properties. The use of ZrO2 buffer layers between Y-Ba-Cu-O and the substrate has been investigated. These superconducting films have been formed by multilayer sequential electron beam evaporation of Cu, BaF2 and Y with subsequent annealing. The three layer sequence of Y/BaF2/Cu is repeated four times for a total of twelve layers. Such a multilayer film, approximately 1 micron thick, deposited directly on SrTiO3 and annealed at 900 C for 45 min produces a film with a superconducting onset of 93 K and critical temperature of 85 K. Auger electron spectroscopy in conjunction with argon ion sputtering was used to obtain the distribution of each element as a function of depth for an unannealed film, the annealed film on SrTiO3 and annealed films on ZrO2 buffer layers. The individual layers were apparent. After annealing, the bulk of the film on SrTiO3 is observed to be fairly uniform while films on the substrates with buffer layers are less uniform. The Y-Ba-Cu-O/ZrO2 interface is broad with a long Ba tail into the ZrO2, suggesting interaction between the film and the buffer layer. The underlying ZrO2/Si interface is sharper. The detailed Auger results are presented and compared with samples annealed at different temperatures and durations.

  10. Resistive switching of Cu/Cu2O junction fabricated using simple thermal oxidation at 423 K for memristor application

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ani, M. H.; Helmi, F.; Herman, S. H.; Noh, S.

    2018-01-01

    Recently, extensive researches have been done on memristor to replace current memory storage technologies. Study on active layer of memristor mostly involving n-type semiconductor oxide such as TiO2 and ZnO. This paper highlight a simple water vapour oxidation method at 423 K to form Cu/Cu2O electronic junction as a new type of memristor. Cu2O is a p-type semiconductor oxide, was used as the active layer of memristor. Cu/Cu2O/Au memristor was fabricated by thermal oxidation of copper foil, followed by sputtering of gold. Structural, morphological and memristive properties were characterized using XRD, FESEM, and current-voltage, I-V measurement respectively. Its memristivity was indentified by pinch hysteresis loop and measurement of high resistance state (HRS) and low resistance state (LRS) of the sample. The Cu/Cu2O/Au memristor demonstrates comparable performances to previous studies using other methods.

  11. [XPS analysis of beads formed by fuse breaking of electric copper wire].

    PubMed

    Wu, Ying; Meng, Qing-Shan; Wang, Xin-Ming; Gao, Wei; Di, Man

    2010-05-01

    The in-depth composition of beads formed by fuse breaking of the electric copper wire in different circumstances was studied by XPS with Ar+ ion sputtering. In addition, the measured Auger spectra and the calculated Auger parameters were compared for differentiation of the substances of Cu and Cu2O. Corresponding to the sputtering depth, the molten product on a bead induced directly by fuse breaking of the copper wire without cover may be distinguished as three portions: surface layer with a drastic decrease in carbon content; intermediate layer with a gentle change in oxygen content and gradually diminished carbon peak, and consisting of Cu2O; transition layer without Cu2O and with a rapid decrease in oxygen content. While the molten product on a bead formed by fuse breaking of the copper wire after its insulating cover had been burned out may be distinguished as two portions: surface layer with carbon content decreasing quickly; subsurface layer without Cu2O and with carbon and oxygen content decreasing gradually. Thus, it can be seen that there was an obvious interface between the layered surface product and the substrate for the first type of bead, while as to the second type of bead there was no interface. As a result, the presence of Cu2O and the quantitative results can be used to identify the molten product on a bead induced directly by fuse breaking of the copper wire without cover and the molten product on a bead formed by fuse breaking of the cupper wire after its insulating cover had been burned out, as a complementary technique for the judgments of fire cause.

  12. Mobility Enhancement in Amorphous In-Ga-Zn-O Thin-Film Transistor by Induced Metallic in Nanoparticles and Cu Electrodes.

    PubMed

    Hu, Shiben; Ning, Honglong; Lu, Kuankuan; Fang, Zhiqiang; Li, Yuzhi; Yao, Rihui; Xu, Miao; Wang, Lei; Peng, Junbiao; Lu, Xubing

    2018-03-27

    In this work, we fabricated a high-mobility amorphous indium-gallium-zinc-oxide (a-IGZO) thin-film transistor (TFT) based on alumina oxide (Al 2 O 3 ) passivation layer (PVL) and copper (Cu) source/drain electrodes (S/D). The mechanism of the high mobility for a-IGZO TFT was proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The conductivity of the channel layer was significantly improved due to the formation of metallic In nanoparticles on the back channel during Al 2 O 3 PVL sputtering. In addition, Ar atmosphere annealing induced the Schottky contact formation between the Cu S/D and the channel layer caused by Cu diffusion. In conjunction with high conductivity channel and Schottky contact, the a-IGZO TFT based on Cu S/D and Al 2 O 3 PVL exhibited remarkable mobility of 33.5-220.1 cm 2 /Vs when channel length varies from 60 to 560 μ m. This work presents a feasible way to implement high mobility and Cu electrodes in a-IGZO TFT, simultaneously.

  13. Mobility Enhancement in Amorphous In-Ga-Zn-O Thin-Film Transistor by Induced Metallic in Nanoparticles and Cu Electrodes

    PubMed Central

    Lu, Kuankuan; Li, Yuzhi; Xu, Miao; Wang, Lei; Peng, Junbiao; Lu, Xubing

    2018-01-01

    In this work, we fabricated a high-mobility amorphous indium-gallium-zinc-oxide (a-IGZO) thin-film transistor (TFT) based on alumina oxide (Al2O3) passivation layer (PVL) and copper (Cu) source/drain electrodes (S/D). The mechanism of the high mobility for a-IGZO TFT was proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The conductivity of the channel layer was significantly improved due to the formation of metallic In nanoparticles on the back channel during Al2O3 PVL sputtering. In addition, Ar atmosphere annealing induced the Schottky contact formation between the Cu S/D and the channel layer caused by Cu diffusion. In conjunction with high conductivity channel and Schottky contact, the a-IGZO TFT based on Cu S/D and Al2O3 PVL exhibited remarkable mobility of 33.5–220.1 cm2/Vs when channel length varies from 60 to 560 μm. This work presents a feasible way to implement high mobility and Cu electrodes in a-IGZO TFT, simultaneously. PMID:29584710

  14. Cu-rGO subsurface layer creation on copper substrate and its resistance to oxidation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pietrzak, Katarzyna; Strojny-Nędza, Agata; Olesińska, Wiesława; Bańkowska, Anna; Gładki, Andrzej

    2017-11-01

    On the basis of a specially designed experiment, this paper presents a model, which is an attempt to explain the mechanism of formatting and creating oxidation resistance of Cu-rGO subsurface layers. Practically zero chemical affinity of copper to carbon is a fundamental difficulty in creating composite structures of Cu-C, properties which are theoretically possible to estimate. In order to bind the thermally reduced graphene oxide with copper surface, the effect of structural rebuilding of the copper oxide, in the process of annealing in a nitrogen atmosphere, have been used. On intentionally oxidized and anoxic copper substrates the dispersed graphene oxide (GO) and thermally reduced graphene oxide (rGO) were loaded. Annealing processes after the binding effects of both graphene oxide forms to Cu substrates were tested. The methods for high-resolution electron microscopy were found subsurface rGO-Cu layer having a substantially greater resistance to oxidation than pure copper. The mechanism for the effective resistance to oxidation of the Cu-rGO has been presented in a hypothetical form.

  15. In situ codoping of a CuO absorber layer with aluminum and titanium: the impact of codoping and interface engineering on the performance of a CuO-based heterojunction solar cell

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Masudy-Panah, Saeid; Radhakrishnan, K.; Ru, Tan Hui; Yi, Ren; Wong, Ten It; Dalapati, Goutam Kumar

    2016-09-01

    Aluminum-doped cupric oxide (CuO:Al) was prepared via an out-diffusion process of Al from an Al-coated substrate into the deposited CuO thin film upon thermal treatment. The effect of the annealing temperature on the structural and optical properties of CuO:Al was investigated in detail. The influence of Al incorporation on the photovoltaic properties was then investigated by preparing a p-CuO:Al/n-Si heterojunction solar cell. A significant improvement in the performance of the solar cell was achieved by controlling the out-diffusion of Al. A novel in situ method to co-dope CuO with Al and titanium (Ti) has been proposed to demonstrate CuO-based solar cells with the front surface field (FSF) design. The FSF design was created by depositing a CuO:Al layer followed by a Ti-doped CuO (CuO:Ti) layer. This is the first successful experimental demonstration of the codoping of a CuO thin film and CuO thin film solar cells with the FSF design. The open circuit voltage (V oc), short circuit current density (J sc) and fill factor (FF) of the fabricated solar cells were significantly higher for the FSF device compared to devices without FSF. The FF of this device improved by 68% through the FSF design and a record efficiency ɳ of 2% was achieved. The improvement of the solar cell properties is mainly attributed to the reduction of surface recombination, which influences the charge carrier collection.

  16. Effect of Sn-Ag-Cu on the Improvement of Electromigration Behavior in Sn-58Bi Solder Joint

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Wang, Fengjiang; Zhou, Lili; Zhang, Zhijie; Wang, Jiheng; Wang, Xiaojing; Wu, Mingfang

    2017-10-01

    Reliability issues caused by the formation of a Bi-rich layer at the anode interface usually occurs in the Sn-58Bi eutectic solder joint during electromigration (EM). To improve the EM performance of a Sn-58Bi solder joint, Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu solder was introduced into it to produce SnBi-SnAgCu structural or compositional composite joints, and their EM behaviors were investigated with the current density of 1.0 × 104 A/cm2 for different stressing times. The structure of the compositional composite solder joint was obtained by the occurrence of partial or full mixing between Sn-Bi and Sn-Ag-Cu solder with a suitable soldering temperature. In the structural composite joint, melted Sn-Bi was partially mixed with Sn-Ag-Cu solder to produce a Cu/Sn-Bi/Sn-Ag-Cu/Sn-Bi/Cu structure. In the compositional composite joint, full melting and mixing between these two solders occurred to produce a Cu/Sn-Ag-Cu-Bi/Cu structure, in which the solder matrix was a homogeneous structure including Sn, Bi phases, Cu6Sn5 and Ag3Sn IMCs. After current stressing, the EM performance of Sn-Bi solder was obviously improved with the structural or the compositional composite joint. In Sn-58Bi joints, a thick Bi-rich layer was easily produced at the anode interface, and obviously increased with stressing time. However, after current stressing on the structural composite joints, the existence of s Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu interlayer between the two Sn-58Bi solders effectively acted as a diffusion barrier and significantly slowed the formation of the Bi-rich layer at the anode side and the IMC thicknesses at the interfaces.

  17. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Pathak, S.; Li, N.; Maeder, X.

    We investigated the mechanical response of physical vapor deposited Cu–TiN nanolayered composites of varying layer thicknesses from 5 nm to 200 nm. Both the Cu and TiN layers were found to consist of single phase nanometer sized grains. The grain sizes in the Cu and TiN layers, measured using transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, were found to be comparable to or smaller than their respective layer thicknesses. Indentation hardness testing revealed that the hardness of such nanolayered composites exhibits a weak dependence on the layer thickness but is more correlated to their grain size.

  18. Twin-mediated epitaxial growth of highly lattice-mismatched Cu/Ag core-shell nanowires.

    PubMed

    Weng, Wei-Lun; Hsu, Chin-Yu; Lee, Jheng-Syun; Fan, Hsin-Hsin; Liao, Chien-Neng

    2018-05-31

    Lattice-mismatch is an important factor for the heteroepitaxial growth of core-shell nanostructures. A large lattice-mismatch usually leads to a non-coherent interface or a polycrystalline shell layer. In this study, a conformal Ag layer is coated on Cu nanowires with dense nanoscale twin boundaries through a galvanic replacement reaction. Despite a large lattice mismatch between Ag and Cu (∼12.6%), the Ag shell replicates the twinning structure in Cu nanowires and grows epitaxially on the nanotwinned Cu nanowire. A twin-mediated growth mechanism is proposed to explain the epitaxy of high lattice-mismatch bimetallic systems in which the misfit dislocations are accommodated by coherent twin boundaries.

  19. Comparative Study of MIL-96(Al) as Continuous Metal-Organic Frameworks Layer and Mixed-Matrix Membrane.

    PubMed

    Knebel, Alexander; Friebe, Sebastian; Bigall, Nadja Carola; Benzaqui, Marvin; Serre, Christian; Caro, Jürgen

    2016-03-23

    MIL-96(Al) layers were prepared as supported metal-organic frameworks membrane via reactive seeding using the α-alumina support as the Al source for the formation of the MIL-96(Al) seeds. Depending on the solvent mixture employed during seed formation, two different crystal morphologies, with different orientation of the transport-active channels, have been formed. This crystal orientation and habit is predefined by the seed crystals and is kept in the subsequent growth of the seeds to continuous layers. In the gas separation of an equimolar H2/CO2 mixture, the hydrogen permeability of the two supported MIL-96(Al) layers was found to be highly dependent on the crystal morphology and the accompanied channel orientation in the layer. In addition to the neat supported MIL-96(Al) membrane layers, mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs, 10 wt % filler loading) as a composite of MIL-96(Al) particles as filler in a continuous Matrimid polymer phase have been prepared. Five particle sizes of MIL-96(Al) between 3.2 μm and 55 nm were synthesized. In the preparation of the MIL-96(Al)/Matrimid MMM (10 wt % filler loading), the following preparation problems have been identified: The bigger micrometer-sized MIL-96(Al) crystals show a trend toward sedimentation during casting of the MMM, whereas for nanoparticles aggregation and recrystallization to micrometer-sized MIL-96(Al) crystals has been observed. Because of these preparation problems for MMM, the neat supported MIL-96(Al) layers show a relatively high H2/CO2 selectivity (≈9) and a hydrogen permeance approximately 2 magnitudes higher than that of the best MMM.

  20. Smooth muscle cell seeding of decellularized scaffolds: the importance of bioreactor preconditioning to development of a more native architecture for tissue-engineered blood vessels.

    PubMed

    Yazdani, Saami K; Watts, Benjamin; Machingal, Masood; Jarajapu, Yagna P R; Van Dyke, Mark E; Christ, George J

    2009-04-01

    Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) impart important functional characteristics in the native artery and, therefore, should logically be incorporated in the development of tissue-engineered blood vessels. However, the native architecture and low porosity of naturally derived biomaterials (i.e., decellularized vessels) have impeded efforts to seed and incorporate a VSMC layer in tissue-engineered blood vessels. To this end, the goal of this study was to develop improved methods for seeding, proliferation, and maturation of VSMCs on decellularized porcine carotid arteries. Decellularized vessels were prepared in the absence and presence of the adventitial layer, and statically seeded with a pipette containing a suspension of rat aortic VSMCs. After cell seeding, recellularized engineered vessels were placed in a custom bioreactor system for 1-2 weeks to enhance cellular proliferation, alignment, and maturation. Initial attachment of VSMCs was dramatically enhanced by removing the adventitial layer of the decellularized porcine artery. Moreover, cyclic bioreactor conditioning (i.e., flow and pressure) resulted in increased VSMC proliferation and accelerated formation of a muscularized medial layer in the absence of the adventitial layer during the first week of preconditioning. Fura-2-based digital imaging microscopy revealed marked and reproducible depolarization-induced calcium mobilization after bioreactor preconditioning in the absence, but not in the presence, of the adventitia. The major finding of this investigation is that bioreactor preconditioning accelerates the formation of a significant muscular layer on decellularized scaffolds, in particular on adventitia-denuded scaffolds. Further, the VSMC layer of bioreactor-preconditioned vessels was capable of mobilizing calcium in response to cellular depolarization. These findings represent an important first step toward the development of tissue-engineered vascular grafts that more closely mimic native vasculature.

  1. Removal of Cu(II) ions from contaminated waters using a conducting microfiltration membrane.

    PubMed

    Wang, Xueye; Wang, Zhiwei; Chen, Haiqin; Wu, Zhichao

    2017-10-05

    Efficient removal of toxic metals using low-pressure membrane processes from contaminated waters is an important but challenging task. In the present work, a conducting microfiltration membrane prepared by embedding a stainless steel mesh in the active layer of a polyvinylidene fluoride membrane is developed to remove Cu(II) ions from contaminated waters. Results showed that the conducting membrane had favorable electrochemical properties and stability as cathode. Batch tests showed that Cu(II) removal efficiency increased with the increase of voltages and leveled off with the further enhancement of electric field. The optimal voltages were determined to be 1.0V and 2.0V for the influent Cu(II) concentrations of 5mg/L and 30mg/L, respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction results demonstrated the presence of Cu(0) and Cu(OH) 2 on the membrane surface. The removal mechanisms involved the intrinsic adsorption of membrane, electrosorption of membrane, adsorption of deposited layer, chemical precipitation of Cu(OH) 2 and deposition of Cu(0) which were aided by electrophoresis and electrochemical oxidation-reduction. Long-term tests showed that the major contributors for Cu(II) removal were the deposition of Cu(0) by electrochemical reduction-oxidation (47.3%±8.5%) and chemical precipitation (41.1%±0.2%), followed by electrosorption, adsorption by the fouling layer and membrane intrinsic sorption. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  2. Convection and the seeding of the North Atlantic bloom

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    D'Asaro, Eric A.

    Observations of vertical velocities in deep wintertime mixed layers using neutrally buoyant floats show that the convectively driven vertical velocities, roughly 1000 m per day, greatly exceed the sinking velocities of phytoplankton, 10 m or less per day. These velocities mix plankton effectively and uniformly across the convective layer and are therefore capable of returning those that have sunk to depth back into the euphotic zone. This mechanism cycles cells through the surface layer during the winter and provides a seed population for the spring bloom. A simple model of this mechanism applied to immortal phytoplankton in the subpolar Labrador Sea predicts that the seed population in early spring will be a few percent of the fall concentration if the plankton sink more slowly than the mean rate at which the surface well-mixed layer grows over the winter. Plankton that sink faster than this will mostly sink into the abyss with only a minute fraction remaining by spring. The shallower mixed layers of mid-latitudes are predicted to be much less effective at maintaining a seed population over the winter, limiting the ability of rapidly sinking cells to survive the winter.

  3. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Wang, Kuaibing, E-mail: wangkb@njau.edu.cn; State Key Laboratory of Coordination Chemistry, Coordination Chemistry Institute, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093; Lv, Bo

    Hollow CuO/Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} hybrids, which inherited from its coordination polymer precursor consisting of sheets layer and nanoparticles layer composites, were synthesized and characterized by SEM, EDX, XRD and XPS. To assess its electrochemical capacitive performances, cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charging-discharging measurements and A.C. impedance tests were performed successively. The CuO/Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} hybrids had higher capacitance and lower charge transfer resistance than bare Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} nanostructures, revealing that it provided a protection layer and produced a synergistic effect due to the existence of CuO layer. The distinct synergistic effect could be further confirmed by endurance cycling tests. The capacitancemore » of the CuO/Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} hybrids was 111% retained after 500 cycles at a charging rate of 1.0 A g{sup −1} and remained an intense growth trend after 2000 cycles at scan rate of 200 mV s{sup −1}. - Graphical abstract: Hollow CuO/Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} hybrids are synthesized and display a peculiar synergetic effect on the resulting performances, which can further be evaluated and confirmed by series of electrochemical measurements. - Highlights: • Hollow CuO/Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} hybrids are synthesized from bimetallic-Schiff base polymer precursors. • The capacitance of the CuO/Co{sub 3}O{sub 4} hybrids keeps a growth tendency after 2000 cycles. • A synergetic effect is found for the hybrids in electrochemical energy storage process.« less

  4. Heusler alloys with bcc tungsten seed layers for GMR junctions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Frost, William; Hirohata, Atsufumi

    2018-05-01

    We demonstrate that polycrystalline Co2FeSi Heusler alloys films can be grown with perpendicular anisotropy without the use of an MgO interface. By heating the substrate to 400 °C prior to deposition and using a tungsten seed layer perpendicular anisotropy is induced in the Heusler layer. This is maintained as the thickness of the Co2FeSi is increased up to 12.5 nm. The layers with thickness dependent coercivity can be implemented into a giant magnetoresistance structure leading to spin-valve behaviour without the need for an exchange biased pinned layer.

  5. Dynamic XPS measurements of ultrathin polyelectrolyte films containing antibacterial Ag–Cu nanoparticles

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Taner-Camcı, Merve; Suzer, Sefik, E-mail: suzer@fen.bilkent.edu.tr

    Ultrathin films consisting of polyelectrolyte layers prepared by layer-by-layer deposition technique and containing also Ag and Cu nanoparticles exhibit superior antibacterial activity toward Escherichia coli. These films have been investigated with XPS measurements under square wave excitation at two different frequencies, in order to further our understanding about the chemical/physical nature of the nanoparticles. Dubbed as dynamical XPS, such measurements bring out similarities and differences among the surface structures by correlating the binding energy shifts of the corresponding XPS peaks. Accordingly, it is observed that the Cu2p, Ag3d of the metal nanoparticles, and S2p of cysteine, the stabilizer and themore » capping agent, exhibit similar shifts. On the other hand, the C1s, N1s, and S2p peaks of the polyelectrolyte layers shift differently. This finding leads us the claim that the Ag and Cu atoms are in a nanoalloy structure, capped with cystein, as opposed to phase separated entities.« less

  6. Super-hydrophilic copper sulfide films as light absorbers for efficient solar steam generation under one sun illumination

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Guo, Zhenzhen; Ming, Xin; Wang, Gang; Hou, Baofei; Liu, Xinghang; Mei, Tao; Li, Jinhua; Wang, Jianying; Wang, Xianbao

    2018-02-01

    Solar steam technology is one of the simplest, most direct and effective ways to harness solar energy through water evaporation. Here, we report the development using super-hydrophilic copper sulfide (CuS) films with double-layer structures as light absorbers for solar steam generation. In the double-layer structure system, a porous mixed cellulose ester (MCE) membrane is used as a supporting layer, which enables water to get into the CuS light absorbers through a capillary action to provide continuous water during solar steam generation. The super-hydrophilic property of the double-layer system (CuS/MCE) leads to a thinner water film close to the air-water interface where the surface temperature is sufficiently high, leading to more efficient evaporation (˜80 ± 2.5%) under one sun illumination. Furthermore, the evaporation efficiencies still keep a steady value after 15 cycles of testing. The super-hydrophilic CuS film is promising for practical application in water purification and evaporation as a light absorption material.

  7. Fabrication of dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) using annato seeds (Bixa orellana Linn)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Haryanto, Ditia Allindira; Landuma, Suarni; Purwanto, Agus

    2014-02-24

    The Fabrication of dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) using Annato seeds has been conducted in this study. Annato seeds (Bixa orellana Linn) used as a sensitizer for dye sensitized solar cell. The experimental parameter was concentration of natural dye. Annato seeds was extracted using etanol solution and the concentration was controlled by varying mass of Annato seeds. A semiconductor TiO{sub 2} was prepared by a screen printing method for coating glass use paste of TiO{sub 2}. Construction DSSC used layered systems (sandwich) consists of working electrode (TiO{sub 2} semiconductor-dye) and counter electrode (platina). Both are placed on conductive glass andmore » electrolytes that occur electrons cycle. The characterization of thin layer of TiO{sub 2} was conducted using SEM (Scanning Electron Microscpy) analysis showed the surface morphology of TiO{sub 2} thin layer and the cross section of a thin layer of TiO{sub 2} with a thickness of 15–19 μm. Characterization of natural dye extract was determined using UV-Vis spectrometry analysis shows the wavelength range annato seeds is 328–515 nm, and the voltage (V{sub oc}) and electric current (I{sub sc}) resulted in keithley test for 30 gram, 40 gram, and 50 gram were 0,4000 V; 0,4251 V; 0,4502 V and 0,000074 A; 0,000458 A; 0,000857 A, respectively. The efficiencies of the fabricated solar cells using annato seeds as senstizer for each varying mass are 0,00799%, 0,01237%, and 0,05696%.« less

  8. Low temperature fabrication of CuxO thin-film transistors and investigation on the origin of low field effect mobility

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shijeesh, M. R.; Jayaraj, M. K.

    2018-04-01

    Cuprous (Cu2O) and cupric (CuO) oxide thin films have been deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering with two different oxygen partial pressures. The as-deposited copper oxide films were subjected to post-annealing at 300 °C for 30 min to improve the microstructural, morphological, and optical properties of thin films. Optical absorption studies revealed the existence of a large number of subgap states inside CuO films than Cu2O films. Cu2O and CuO thin film transistors (TFTs) were fabricated in an inverted staggered structure by using a post-annealed channel layer. The field effect mobility values of Cu2O and CuO TFTs were 5.20 × 10-4 cm2 V-1 s-1 and 2.33 × 10-4 cm2 V-1 s-1, respectively. The poor values of subthreshold swing, threshold voltage, and field effect mobility of the TFTs were due to the charge trap density at the copper oxide/dielectric interface as well as defect induced trap states originated from the oxygen vacancies inside the bulk copper oxide. In order to study the distribution of the trap states in the Cu2O and CuO active layer, the temperature dependent transfer characteristics of transistors in the temperature range between 310 K and 340 K were studied. The observed subgap states were found to be decreasing exponentially inside the bandgap, with CuO TFT showing higher subgap states than Cu2O TFT. The high-density hole trap states in the CuO channel are one of the plausible reasons for the lower mobility in CuO TFT than in Cu2O TFT. The origin of these subgap states was attributed to the impurities or oxygen vacancies present in the CuO channel layer.

  9. Quantification of elemental area densities in multiple metal layers (Au/Ni/Cu) on a Cr-coated quartz glass substrate for certification of NMIJ CRM 5208-a.

    PubMed

    Ariga, Tomoko; Zhu, Yanbei; Ito, Mika; Takatsuka, Toshiko; Terauchi, Shinya; Kurokawa, Akira; Inagaki, Kazumi

    2018-04-01

    Area densities of Au/Ni/Cu layers on a Cr-coated quartz substrate were characterized to certify a multiple-metal-layer certified reference material (NMIJ CRM5208-a) that is intended for use in the analysis of the layer area density and the thickness by an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. The area densities of Au/Ni/Cu layers were calculated from layer mass amounts and area. The layer mass amounts were determined by using wet chemical analyses, namely inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), isotope-dilution (ID-) ICP-MS, and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) after dissolving the layers with diluted mixture of HCl and HNO 3 (1:1, v/v). Analytical results of the layer mass amounts obtained by the methods agreed well with each another within their uncertainty ranges. The area of the layer was determined by using a high-resolution optical scanner calibrated by Japan Calibration Service System (JCSS) standard scales. The property values of area density were 1.84 ± 0.05 μg/mm 2 for Au, 8.69 ± 0.17 μg/mm 2 for Ni, and 8.80 ± 0.14 μg/mm 2 for Cu (mean ± expanded uncertainty, coverage factor k = 2). In order to assess the reliability of these values, the density of each metal layer calculated from the property values of the area density and layer thickness measured by using a scanning electron microscope were compared with available literature values and good agreement between the observed values and values obtained in previous studies.

  10. Stable aqueous based Cu nanoparticle ink for printing well-defined highly conductive features on a plastic substrate.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Sunho; Song, Hae Chun; Lee, Won Woo; Lee, Sun Sook; Choi, Youngmin; Son, Wonil; Kim, Eui Duk; Paik, Choon Hoon; Oh, Seok Heon; Ryu, Beyong-Hwan

    2011-03-15

    With the aim of inkjet printing highly conductive and well-defined Cu features on plastic substrates, aqueous based Cu ink is prepared for the first time using water-soluble Cu nanoparticles with a very thin surface oxide layer. Owing to the specific properties, high surface tension and low boiling point, of water, the aqueous based Cu ink endows a variety of advantages over conventional Cu inks based on organic solvents in printing narrow conductive patterns without irregular morphologies. It is demonstrated how the design of aqueous based ink affects the basic properties of printed conductive features such as surface morphology, microstructure, conductivity, and line width. The long-term stability of aqueous based Cu ink against oxidation is analyzed through an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) based investigation on the evolution of the surface oxide layer in the aqueous based ink.

  11. Enhanced hydrothermal stability of Cu-ZSM-5 catalyst via surface modification in the selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhang, Tao; Shi, Juan; Liu, Jian; Wang, Daxi; Zhao, Zhen; Cheng, Kai; Li, Jianmei

    2016-07-01

    The surface of Cu-ZSM-5 catalyst was modified by chemical liquid deposition (CLD) of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) for enhancing its hydrothermal stability in the selective catalytic reduction of NO with NH3. After hydrothermal aging at 750 °C for 13 h, the catalytic performance of Cu-ZSM-5-Aged catalyst was significantly reduced for NO reduction in the entire temperature range, while that of Cu-ZSM-5-CLD-Aged catalyst was affected very little. The characterization results indicated that an inert silica layer was deposited on the surface of Cu-ZSM-5 and formed a protective layer, which prevents the detachment of Cu2+ from ZSM-5 ion-exchange positions and the dealumination of zeolite during the hydrothermal aging process. Based on the data it is hypothesized to be the primary reason for the high hydrothermal stability of Cu-ZSM-5-CLD catalyst.

  12. Enhancement in electrical conductivity of pastes containing submicron Ag-coated Cu filler with palmitic acid surface modification

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Choi, Eun Byeol; Lee, Jong-Hyun

    2017-09-01

    The fabrication and applied use of submicron Ag-coated Cu (Cu@Ag) particles as a filler material for epoxy-based conductive pastes having the advantages of a lower material cost and antioxidation behavior were studied. Submicron Cu@Ag particles were successfully prepared and surface-modified using palmitic acid. Diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy and thermogravimetric differential scanning calorimetry results indicated the formation of an organic layer by the chemical interaction between the Cu@Ag surface and palmitic acid and the survival of the organic layer after treatment at 160 °C for 3 h in air. The printed pastes containing both commercial micron Cu@Ag flakes and the fabricated submicron Cu@Ag particles showed a greatly reduced electrical resistivity (4.68 × 10-4 Ω cm) after surface modification compared to an initial value of 1.85 × 10-3 Ω cm when cured.

  13. Theoretical Insights into a CO Dimerization Mechanism in CO2 Electroreduction.

    PubMed

    Montoya, Joseph H; Shi, Chuan; Chan, Karen; Nørskov, Jens K

    2015-06-04

    In this work, we present DFT simulations that demonstrate the ability of Cu to catalyze CO dimerization in CO2 and CO electroreduction. We describe a previously unreported CO dimer configuration that is uniquely stabilized by a charged water layer on both Cu(111) and Cu(100). Without this charged water layer at the metal surface, the formation of the CO dimer is prohibitively endergonic. Our calculations also demonstrate that dimerization should have a lower activation barrier on Cu(100) than Cu(111), which, along with a more exergonic adsorption energy and a corresponding higher coverage of *CO, is consistent with experimental observations that Cu(100) has a high activity for C-C coupling at low overpotentials. We also demonstrate that this effect is present with cations other than H(+), a finding that is consistent with the experimentally observed pH independence of C2 formation on Cu.

  14. Anomalous Hall hysteresis in T m3F e5O12/Pt with strain-induced perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Chi; Sellappan, Pathikumar; Liu, Yawen; Xu, Yadong; Garay, Javier E.; Shi, Jing

    2016-10-01

    We demonstrate robust interface strain-induced perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in atomically flat ferrimagnetic insulator T m3F e5O12 (TIG) films grown with pulsed laser deposition on a substituted G d3G a5O12 substrate which maximizes the tensile strain at the interface. In bilayers consisting of Pt and TIG, we observe large squared Hall hysteresis loops over a wide range of thicknesses of Pt at room temperature. When a thin Cu layer is inserted between Pt and TIG, the Hall hysteresis magnitude decays but stays finite as the thickness of Cu increases up to 5 nm. However, if the Cu layer is placed atop Pt instead, the Hall hysteresis magnitude is consistently larger than when the Cu layer with the same thickness is inserted in between for all Cu thicknesses. These results suggest that both the proximity-induced ferromagnetism and spin current contribute to the anomalous Hall effect.

  15. Tuning the surface morphology of aluminium doped zinc oxide thin films by arrayed nanorods through chemical growth process

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Devasia, Sebin; Anila, E. I.

    2018-04-01

    Here we report the growth and characterization of chemically grown aluminium doped zinc oxide nanorods on seed layers. The seed layers were prepared by chemical spray pyrolysis which acted as the growth centers. The growth duration of nanorods were varied from 3h to 12h in steps of 3h. Further, investigations on their structural, morphological, electrical and optical properties. The SEM images confirmed the hexagonal shaped nanorod arrays grown on the seed layers. Later, the x-ray diffraction measurements revealed the pure zinc oxide phase of the samples. Photoluminescence and photoconductivity studies were carried out to analyze the potential of its optoelectronic properties.

  16. Carbon tolerance of Ni-Cu and Ni-Cu/YSZ sub-μm sized SOFC thin film model systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Götsch, Thomas; Schachinger, Thomas; Stöger-Pollach, Michael; Kaindl, Reinhard; Penner, Simon

    2017-04-01

    Thin films of YSZ, unsupported Ni-Cu 1:1 alloy phases and YSZ-supported Ni-Cu 1:1 alloy solutions have been reproducibly prepared by magnetron sputter deposition on Si wafers and NaCl(001) single crystal facets at two selected substrate temperatures of 298 K and 873 K. Subsequently, the layer properties of the resulting sub-μm thick thin films as well as the tendency towards carbon deposition following treatment in pure methane at 1073 K has been tested comparatively. Well-crystallized structures of cubic YSZ, cubic NiCu and cubic NiCu/YSZ have been obtained following deposition at 873 K on both substrates. Carbon is deposited on all samples following the trend Ni-Cu (1:1) = Ni-Cu (1:1)/YSZ > pure YSZ, indicating that at least the 1:1 composition of layered Ni-Cu alloy phases is not able to suppress the carbon deposition completely, rendering it unfavorable for usage as anode component in sub-μm sized fuel cells. It is shown that surfaces with a high Cu/Ni ratio nevertheless prohibit any carbon deposition.

  17. Gas Suppression via Copper Interlayers in Magnetron Sputtered Al-Cu2O Multilayers.

    PubMed

    Kinsey, Alex H; Slusarski, Kyle; Sosa, Steven; Weihs, Timothy P

    2017-07-05

    The use of thin-foil, self-propagating thermite reactions to bond components successfully depends on the ability to suppress gas generation and avoid pore formation during the exothermic production of brazes. To study the mechanisms of vapor production in diluted thermites, thin film multilayer Al-Cu-Cu 2 O-Cu foils are produced via magnetron sputtering, where the Cu layer thickness is systematically increased from 0 to 100 nm in 25 nm increments. The excess Cu layers act as diffusion barriers, limiting the transport of oxygen from the oxide to the Al fuel, as determined by slow heating differential scanning calorimetry experiments. Furthermore, by adding excess Cu to the system, the temperature of the self-propagating thermite reactions drops below the boiling point of Cu, eliminating the metal vapor production. It is determined that Cu vapor production can be eliminated by increasing the Cu interlayer thickness above 50 nm. However, the porous nature of the final products suggests that only metal vapor production is suppressed via dilution. Gas generation via oxygen release is still capable of producing a porous reaction product.

  18. Influence of carbon content on the copper-telluride phase formation and on the resistive switching behavior of carbon alloyed Cu-Te conductive bridge random access memory cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Devulder, Wouter; Opsomer, Karl; Franquet, Alexis; Meersschaut, Johan; Belmonte, Attilio; Muller, Robert; De Schutter, Bob; Van Elshocht, Sven; Jurczak, Malgorzata; Goux, Ludovic; Detavernier, Christophe

    2014-02-01

    In this paper, we investigate the influence of the carbon content on the Cu-Te phase formation and on the resistive switching behavior in carbon alloyed Cu0.6Te0.4 based conductive bridge random access memory (CBRAM) cells. Carbon alloying of copper-tellurium inhibits the crystallization, while attractive switching behavior is preserved when using the material as Cu-supply layer in CBRAM cells. The phase formation is first investigated in a combinatorial way. With increasing carbon content, an enlargement of the temperature window in which the material stays amorphous was observed. Moreover, if crystalline phases are formed, subsequent phase transformations are inhibited. The electrical switching behavior of memory cells with different carbon contents is then investigated by implementing them in 580 μm diameter dot TiN/Cu0.6Te0.4-C/Al2O3/Si memory cells. Reliable switching behavior is observed for carbon contents up to 40 at. %, with a resistive window of more than 2 orders of magnitude, whereas for 50 at. % carbon, a higher current in the off state and only a small resistive window are present after repeated cycling. This degradation can be ascribed to the higher thermal and lower drift contribution to the reset operation due to a lower Cu affinity towards the supply layer, leading cycle-after-cycle to an increasing amount of Cu in the switching layer, which contributes to the current. The thermal diffusion of Cu into Al2O3 under annealing also gives an indication of the Cu affinity of the source layer. Time of flight secondary ion mass spectroscopy was used to investigate this migration depth in Al2O3 before and after annealing, showing a higher Cu, Te, and C migration for high carbon contents.

  19. First principles calculations of point defect diffusion in CdS buffer layers: Implications for Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S){sub 2} and Cu{sub 2}ZnSn(Se,S){sub 4}-based thin-film photovoltaics

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Varley, J. B.; Lordi, V.; He, X.

    2016-01-14

    We investigate point defects in CdS buffer layers that may arise from intermixing with Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGSe) or Cu{sub 2}ZnSn(S,Se){sub 4} (CZTSSe) absorber layers in thin-film photovoltaics (PV). Using hybrid functional calculations, we characterize the migration barriers of Cu, In, Ga, Se, Sn, Zn, Na, and K impurities and assess the activation energies necessary for their diffusion into the bulk of the buffer. We find that Cu, In, and Ga are the most mobile defects in CIGS-derived impurities, with diffusion expected to proceed into the buffer via interstitial-hopping and cadmium vacancy-assisted mechanisms at temperatures ∼400 °C. Cu is predicted to stronglymore » favor migration paths within the basal plane of the wurtzite CdS lattice, which may facilitate defect clustering and ultimately the formation of Cu-rich interfacial phases as observed by energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopic elemental maps in real PV devices. Se, Zn, and Sn defects are found to exhibit much larger activation energies and are not expected to diffuse within the CdS bulk at temperatures compatible with typical PV processing temperatures. Lastly, we find that Na interstitials are expected to exhibit slightly lower activation energies than K interstitials despite having a larger migration barrier. Still, we find both alkali species are expected to diffuse via an interstitially mediated mechanism at slightly higher temperatures than enable In, Ga, and Cu diffusion in the bulk. Our results indicate that processing temperatures in excess of ∼400 °C will lead to more interfacial intermixing with CdS buffer layers in CIGSe devices, and less so for CZTSSe absorbers where only Cu is expected to significantly diffuse into the buffer.« less

  20. Signal processing and analysis for copper layer thickness measurement within a large variation range in the CMP process.

    PubMed

    Li, Hongkai; Zhao, Qian; Lu, Xinchun; Luo, Jianbin

    2017-11-01

    In the copper (Cu) chemical mechanical planarization (CMP) process, accurate determination of a process reaching the end point is of great importance. Based on the eddy current technology, the in situ thickness measurement of the Cu layer is feasible. Previous research studies focus on the application of the eddy current method to the metal layer thickness measurement or endpoint detection. In this paper, an in situ measurement system, which is independently developed by using the eddy current method, is applied to the actual Cu CMP process. A series of experiments are done for further analyzing the dynamic response characteristic of the output signal within different thickness variation ranges. In this study, the voltage difference of the output signal is used to represent the thickness of the Cu layer, and we can extract the voltage difference variations from the output signal fast by using the proposed data processing algorithm. The results show that the voltage difference decreases as thickness decreases in the conventional measurement range and the sensitivity increases at the same time. However, it is also found that there exists a thickness threshold, and the correlation is negative, when the thickness is more than the threshold. Furthermore, it is possible that the in situ measurement system can be used within a larger Cu layer thickness variation range by creating two calibration tables.

  1. Physical properties of spin-valve films grown on naturally oxidized metal nano-oxide surfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mao, Ming; Cerjan, Charlie; Kools, Jacques

    2002-05-01

    The physical properties of spin-valve films NiFe 25 Å/CoFe 10 Å/Cu(tCu)/CoFe 30 Å/IrMn 70 Å/Ta 20 Å with graded Cu layer thickness (tCu=18-45 Å) grown on the surface of metal nano-oxide layers (NOLs) were studied. The NOLs were formed from ultrathin Al, Cr, Cu, Nb, Ta, CoFe, NiFe, and NiFeCr layers by natural oxidation. The growth of the spin-valve films on NOLs has led to an enhancement in giant magnetoresistance value by up to 48%. A corresponding reduction in minimum film resistance by over 10% confirms that this enhancement originates from an increase in the mean free path of spin-polarized electrons due to the resultant specular reflection at the nano-oxide surfaces. A wide spectrum of oscillatory interlayer exchange coupling dependence on tCu for these NOL-bearing films suggests that a specular nano-oxide surface does not necessarily result in a smoother multilayer structure. The observation of an enhanced exchange biasing among these spin-valve films appears in contradiction to the observed deterioration of their crystallographic quality. As an important application, TaOx, CrOx, and NbOx could be employed as an alternative to AlOx as the barrier layer for magnetic tunnel junctions.

  2. Space Exposed Experiment Developed for Students (SEEDS) P-0004-2

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Grigsby, Doris K.

    1991-01-01

    This cooperative endeavor of NASA Headquarters, the NASA Langley Research Center, and the George W. Park Seed Company, resulted in the distribution, by the end of March, 1990, of approximately 132,000 space exposed experiment developed for students (SEEDS) kits to 64,000 teachers representing 40,000 classrooms and 3.3 million kindergarden through university students. Kits were sent to every state, as well as to 30 foreign countries. Preliminary radiation data indicates that layer A received 725 rads, while layer D received 350 rads. Germination rate was reported to be 73.8 percent for space exposed seeds and 70.3 percent for earth based control seeds. Tests conducted within the first six months after retrieval indicated space exposed seeds germinated in an average of 8.0 days, while earth based control seeds' average germination rate was 8.3 days. Some mutations (assumed to be radiation induced) reported by students and Park Seed include plants that added a leaf instead of the usual flower at the end of the flower front and fruit produced from a flower with a variegated calyx bore seeds producing albino plants, while fruit from a flower with a green calyx from the same plant bore seeds produced green plants.

  3. Surface chemistry of copper metal and copper oxide atomic layer deposition from copper(ii) acetylacetonate: a combined first-principles and reactive molecular dynamics study.

    PubMed

    Hu, Xiao; Schuster, Jörg; Schulz, Stefan E; Gessner, Thomas

    2015-10-28

    Atomistic mechanisms for the atomic layer deposition using the Cu(acac)2 (acac = acetylacetonate) precursor are studied using first-principles calculations and reactive molecular dynamics simulations. The results show that Cu(acac)2 chemisorbs on the hollow site of the Cu(110) surface and decomposes easily into a Cu atom and the acac-ligands. A sequential dissociation and reduction of the Cu precursor [Cu(acac)2 → Cu(acac) → Cu] are observed. Further decomposition of the acac-ligand is unfavorable on the Cu surface. Thus additional adsorption of the precursors may be blocked by adsorbed ligands. Molecular hydrogen is found to be nonreactive towards Cu(acac)2 on Cu(110), whereas individual H atoms easily lead to bond breaking in the Cu precursor upon impact, and thus release the surface ligands into the gas-phase. On the other hand, water reacts with Cu(acac)2 on a Cu2O substrate through a ligand-exchange reaction, which produces gaseous H(acac) and surface OH species. Combustion reactions with the main by-products CO2 and H2O are observed during the reaction between Cu(acac)2 and ozone on the CuO surface. The reactivity of different co-reactants toward Cu(acac)2 follows the order H > O3 > H2O.

  4. 7 CFR 52.1851 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1851 Section 52.1851 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  5. 7 CFR 52.1842 - Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds. 52.1842 Section 52.1842 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL...

  6. 7 CFR 52.1853 - Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1853 Section 52.1853 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  7. 7 CFR 52.1853 - Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1853 Section 52.1853 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  8. 7 CFR 52.1842 - Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds. 52.1842 Section 52.1842 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL...

  9. 7 CFR 52.1852 - Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1852 Section 52.1852 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT O...

  10. 7 CFR 52.1851 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1851 Section 52.1851 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  11. 7 CFR 52.1853 - Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1853 Section 52.1853 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  12. 7 CFR 52.1850 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1850 Section 52.1850 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF...

  13. 7 CFR 52.1852 - Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1852 Section 52.1852 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT O...

  14. 7 CFR 52.1850 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1850 Section 52.1850 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF...

  15. 7 CFR 52.1851 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1851 Section 52.1851 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  16. 7 CFR 52.1842 - Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds. 52.1842 Section 52.1842 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL...

  17. 7 CFR 52.1842 - Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Product description of Layer or (Cluster) raisins with seeds. 52.1842 Section 52.1842 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL...

  18. 7 CFR 52.1852 - Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1852 Section 52.1852 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT O...

  19. 7 CFR 52.1850 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1850 Section 52.1850 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF...

  20. 7 CFR 52.1852 - Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1852 Section 52.1852 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT O...

  1. 7 CFR 52.1851 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1851 Section 52.1851 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  2. 7 CFR 52.1853 - Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Grades of raisins with seeds-layer or cluster. 52.1853 Section 52.1853 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF 1946...

  3. 7 CFR 52.1850 - Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 2 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Sizes of raisins with seeds-except layer or cluster. 52.1850 Section 52.1850 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture AGRICULTURAL MARKETING SERVICE (Standards, Inspections, Marketing Practices), DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE REGULATIONS AND STANDARDS UNDER THE AGRICULTURAL MARKETING ACT OF...

  4. Germination and elongation of flax in microgravity

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Levine, Howard G.; Anderson, Ken; Boody, April; Cox, Dave; Kuznetsov, Oleg A.; Hasenstein, Karl H.

    2003-01-01

    This experiment was conducted as part of a risk mitigation payload aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-101. The objectives were to test a newly developed water delivery system, and to determine the optimal combination of water volume and substrate for the imbibition and germination of flax (Linum usitatissimum) seeds in space. Two different combinations of germination paper were tested for their ability to absorb, distribute, and retain water in microgravity. A single layer of thick germination paper was compared with one layer of thin germination paper under a layer of thick paper. Paper strips were cut to fit snugly into seed cassettes, and seeds were glued to them with the micropyle ends pointing outward. Water was delivered in small increments that traveled through the paper via capillary action. Three water delivery volumes were tested, with the largest (480 microliters) outperforming the 400 microliters and 320 microliters volumes for percent germination (90.6%) and root growth (mean=4.1 mm) during the 34-hour spaceflight experiment. The ground control experiment yielded similar results, but with lower rates of germination (84.4%) and shorter root lengths (mean=2.8 mm). It is not clear if the roots emerged more quickly in microgravity and/or grew faster than the ground controls. The single layer of thick germination paper generally exhibited better overall growth than the two layered option. Significant seed position effects were observed in both the flight and ground control experiments. Overall, the design of the water delivery system, seed cassettes and the germination paper strip concept was validated as an effective method for promoting seed germination and root growth under microgravity conditions. c2003 COSPAR. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  5. Germination and elongation of flax in microgravity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Levine, Howard G.; Anderson, Ken; Boody, April; Cox, Dave; Kuznetsov, Oleg A.; Hasenstein, Karl H.

    2003-05-01

    This experiment was conducted as part of a risk mitigation payload aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-101. The objectives were to test a newly developed water delivery system, and to determine the optimal combination of water volume and substrate for the imbibition and germination of flax ( Linum usitatissimum) seeds in space. Two different combinations of germination paper were tested for their ability to absorb, distribute, and retain water in microgravity. A single layer of thick germination paper was compared with one layer of thin germination paper under a layer of thick paper. Paper strips were cut to fit snugly into seed cassettes, and seeds were glued to them with the micropyle ends pointing outward. Water was delivered in small increments that traveled through the paper via capillary action. Three water delivery volumes were tested, with the largest (480 μL) outperforming the 400 μL, and 320 μL volumes for percent germination (90.6%) and root growth (mean = 4.1 mm) during the 34-hour spaceflight experiment. The ground control experiment yielded similar results, but with lower rates of germination (84.4%) and shorter root lengths (mean = 2.8 mm). It is not clear if the roots emerged more quickly in microgravity and/or grew faster than the ground controls. The single layer of thick germination paper generally exhibited better overall growth than the two layered option. Significant seed position effects were observed in both the flight and ground control experiments. Overall, the design of the water delivery system, seed cassettes and the germination paper strip concept was validated as an effective method for promoting seed germination and root growth under microgravity conditions.

  6. DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Mohri, Maryam, E-mail: mmohri@ut.ac.ir; Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Institute of Nanotechnology, 76021 Karlsruhe; Nili-Ahmadabadi, Mahmoud

    The crystallization of Ni-rich/NiTiCu bi-layer thin film deposited by magnetron sputtering from two separate alloy targets was investigated. To achieve the shape memory effect, the NiTi thin films deposited at room temperature with amorphous structure were annealed at 773 K for 15, 30, and 60 min for crystallization. Characterization of the films was carried out by differential scanning calorimetry to indicate the crystallization temperature, grazing incidence X-ray diffraction to identify the phase structures, atomic force microscopy to evaluate surface morphology, scanning transmission electron microscopy to study the cross section of the thin films. The results show that the structure ofmore » the annealed thin films strongly depends on the temperature and time of the annealing. Crystalline grains nucleated first at the surface and then grew inward to form columnar grains. Furthermore, the crystallization behavior was markedly affected by composition variations. - Highlights: • A developed bi-layer Ni45TiCu5/Ni50.8Ti was deposited on Si substrate and crystallized. • During crystallization, The Ni{sub 45}TiCu{sub 5} layer is thermally less stable than the Ni-rich layer. • The activation energy is 302 and 464 kJ/mol for Cu-rich and Ni-rich layer in bi-layer, respectively.« less

  7. Dynamics of the phase formation process upon the low temperature selenization of Cu/In-multilayer stacks

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Oertel, M., E-mail: michael.oertel@uni-jena.de; Ronning, C.

    2015-03-14

    Phase reactions occurring during a low temperature selenization of thin In/Cu-multilayer stacks were investigated by ex-situ x-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDS). Therefore, dc-sputtered In/Cu-multilayers onto molybdenum coated soda lime glass were selenized in a high vacuum system at temperatures between 260 and 340 °C with different dwell times and selenium supply. The combination of the results of the phase analysis by XRD and the measurements of the in-depth elemental distribution by EDS allowed a conclusion on the occurring reactions within the layer depth. We found two CuInSe{sub 2} formation processes depending on the applied temperature. Already, atmore » a heater temperature of 260 °C, the CuInSe{sub 2} formation can occur by the reaction of Cu{sub 2−x}Se with In{sub 4}Se{sub 3} and Se. At 340 °C, CuInSe{sub 2} is formed by the reaction of Cu{sub 2−x}Se with InSe and Se. Because both reactions need additional selenium, the selenium supply during the selenization can shift the reaction equilibria either to the metal binaries side or to the CuInSe{sub 2} side. Interestingly, a lower selenium supply shifts the equilibrium to the CuInSe{sub 2} side, because the amount of selenium incorporated into the metallic layer is higher for a lower selenium supply. Most likely, a larger number of grain boundaries are the reason for the stronger selenium incorporation. The results of the phase formation studies were used to design a two stage selenization process to get a defined structure of an indium selenide- and a copper selenide-layer at low temperatures as the origin for a controlled interdiffusion to form the CuInSe{sub 2}-absorber-layer at higher temperatures. The approach delivers a CuInSe{sub 2} absorber which reach total area efficiencies of 11.8% (13.0% active area) in a CuInSe{sub 2}-thin-film solar cell. A finished formation of CuInSe{sub 2} at low temperature was not observed in our experiments but is probably possible for longer dwell times.« less

  8. Detailed low-energy electron diffraction analysis of the (4×4) surface structure of C60 on Cu(111): Seven-atom-vacancy reconstruction

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xu, Geng; Shi, Xing-Qiang; Zhang, R. Q.; Pai, Woei Wu; Jeng, H. T.; Van Hove, M. A.

    2012-08-01

    A detailed and exhaustive structural analysis by low-energy electron diffraction (LEED) is reported for the C60-induced reconstruction of Cu(111), in the system Cu(111) + (4 × 4)-C60. A wide LEED energy range allows enhanced sensitivity to the crucial C60-metal interface that is buried below the 7-Å-thick molecular layer. The analysis clearly favors a seven-Cu-atom vacancy model (with Pendry R-factor Rp = 0.376) over a one-Cu-atom vacancy model (Rp = 0.608) and over nonreconstructed models (Rp = 0.671 for atop site and Rp = 0.536 for hcp site). The seven-Cu-atom vacancy forms a (4 × 4) lattice of bowl-like holes. In each hole, a C60 molecule can nestle by forming strong bonds (shorter than 2.30 Å) between 15 C atoms of the molecule and 12 Cu atoms of the outermost and second Cu layers.

  9. Electro deposition of cuprous oxide for thin film solar cell applications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shahrestani, Seyed Mohammad

    p and n type copper oxide semiconductor layers were fabricated by electrochemistry using new approaches for photovoltaic applications. Thin films were electroplated by cathodic polarization on a copper foil or indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates. The optimum deposition conditions (composition, pH and temperature of the electrolyte and applied potential) of the layers as thin films have been identified; in particular the conditions that allow getting the n-type layers have been well identified for the first time. The configuration of a photo - electrochemical cell was used to characterize the spectral response of the layers. It was shown that the p type layers exhibit a photocurrent in the cathode potential region and n layers exhibit photo current in the anode potential region. Measurements of electrical resistivity of electro chemically deposited layers of p and n type Cu2O, showed that the resistivity of p-type Cu2O varies from 3.2 x 105 to 2.0 x 108 Ocm. These values depend the electrodepositing conditions such as the pH of the solution, the deposition potential and temperature. The influence of several plating parameters of the p type layers of Cu2O, such as applied potential, pH and temperature of the bath on the chemical composition, degree of crystallinity, grain size and orientation parameters of the sample was systematically studied using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. Depending of the electro-deposition potential, two different surface morphologies with various preferential crystal orientations were obtained for the temperatures of the electro-deposition of 30 °C and pH 9. For the same temperature, the layers of p type Cu2O of highly crystalline p type are obtained at pH 12, indicating that the crystallinity depends on the pH of the bath. Also, it has been shown that the morphology of Cu2O layers was changed by varying the potential and the duration of deposition, as well as the temperature of the solution. The conditions for the electro-deposition of Cu2O n-type were identified consistently for the first time. The electro-deposition electrolyte is based 0.01M acetate copper and 0.1 M sodium acetate: it has a pH between 6.3 and 4, a potential of from 0 to -0.25 V vs. Ag / AgCl and a temperature of 60oC. The optimum annealing temperature of the n-type Cu2O layers is between 120-150oC for the annealing time of 30 to 120 minutes. Resistivity of the n-type films varies between 5 x 103 and 5 x 104 at pH 4 to pH 6.4. We have shown for the first time that bubbling nitrogen gas in the electroplating cell improves significantly the spectral response of the electro-deposited n-type thin film. A two steps electro-deposition process was implemented to make the p-n homojunction cuprous oxide. Indium tin oxide (ITO) was used as a transparent conductive oxide substrate. A p-Cu2O was electrodeposited on ITO. After heat treatment a thin film layer of n-Cu 2O was electrodeposited on top of previous layer. The performance of a p-n homojunction photovoltaic solar cell of Cu2O was determined. The short-circuit current and the open circuit voltage were respectively determined to be as 0.35 volts and 235 muA/cm2. The fill factor (FF) and conversion efficiency of light into electricity were respectively measured to be 0.305 and 0.082%.

  10. Uncovering a new quasi-2D CuO2 plane between the YBa2Cu3O7 and CeO2 buffer layer of coated conductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Zhi-Xin; Cao, Jin-Jin; Gou, Xiao-Fan; Wang, Tian-Ge; Xue, Feng

    2018-01-01

    We report a discovery of the quasi-two-dimensional (quasi-2D) CuO2 plane between the superconductor YBa2Cu3O7 (YBCO) and CeO2 buffer layer (mostly used in the fabrication) of coated conductors through the atomistic computer simulations with the molecular dynamics (MD) and first-principle calculations. For an YBCO coated conductor with multilayer structures, the buffer layers deposited onto a substrate are mainly considered to transfer a strong biaxial texture from the substrate to the YBCO layer. To deeply understand the tuning mechanism of the texture transfer, exploring the complete atomic-level picture of the structure between the YBa2Cu3O7/CeO2 interfaces is firstly required. However, the related observation data have not been available due to some big challenges of experimental techniques. With the MD simulations, having tested the accuracy of the potential functions for the YBa2Cu3O7/CeO2 interface, we constructed a total of 54 possible atom stacking models of the interface and identified its most appropriate and stable structure according to the criterion of the interface adhesion energy and the coherent characterization. To further verify the stability of the identified structure, we performed the first-principle calculations to obtain the adhesion energy and developed the general knowledge of the interface structure. Finally, a coherent interface formed with a new built quasi-2D CuO2 plane that is structurally similar to the CuO2 plane inside bulk YBCO was determined.

  11. Pentavalent and tetravalent uranium selenides, Tl3Cu4USe6 and Tl2Ag2USe4: syntheses, characterization, and structural comparison to other layered actinide chalcogenide compounds.

    PubMed

    Bugaris, Daniel E; Choi, Eun Sang; Copping, Roy; Glans, Per-Anders; Minasian, Stefan G; Tyliszczak, Tolek; Kozimor, Stosh A; Shuh, David K; Ibers, James A

    2011-07-18

    The compounds Tl(3)Cu(4)USe(6) and Tl(2)Ag(2)USe(4) were synthesized by the reaction of the elements in excess TlCl at 1123 K. Both compounds crystallize in new structure types, in space groups P2(1)/c and C2/m, respectively, of the monoclinic system. Each compound contains layers of USe(6) octahedra and MSe(4) (M = Cu, Ag) tetrahedra, separated by Tl(+) cations. The packing of the octahedra and the tetrahedra within the layers is compared to the packing arrangements found in other layered actinide chalcogenides. Tl(3)Cu(4)USe(6) displays peaks in its magnetic susceptibility at 5 and 70 K. It exhibits modified Curie-Weiss paramagnetic behavior with an effective magnetic moment of 1.58(1) μ(B) in the temperature range 72-300 K, whereas Tl(2)Ag(2)USe(4) exhibits modified Curie-Weiss paramagnetic behavior with μ(eff) = 3.4(1) μ(B) in the temperature range 100-300 K. X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) results from scanning transmission X-ray spectromicroscopy confirm that Tl(3)Cu(4)USe(6) has Se bonding characteristic of discrete Se(2-) units, Cu bonding generally representative of Cu(+), and U bonding consistent with a U(4+) or U(5+) species. On the basis of these measurements, as well as bonding arguments, the formal oxidation states for U may be assigned as +5 in Tl(3)Cu(4)USe(6) and +4 in Tl(2)Ag(2)USe(4).

  12. Fabrication of Well-Aligned ZnO Nanorods Using a Composite Seed Layer of ZnO Nanoparticles and Chitosan Polymer.

    PubMed

    Khun, Kimleang; Ibupoto, Zafar Hussain; AlSalhi, Mohamad S; Atif, Muhammad; Ansari, Anees A; Willander, Magnus

    2013-09-30

    In this study, by taking the advantage of both inorganic ZnO nanoparticles and the organic material chitosan as a composite seed layer, we have fabricated well-aligned ZnO nanorods on a gold-coated glass substrate using the hydrothermal growth method. The ZnO nanoparticles were characterized by the Raman spectroscopic techniques, which showed the nanocrystalline phase of the ZnO nanoparticles. Different composites of ZnO nanoparticles and chitosan were prepared and used as a seed layer for the fabrication of well-aligned ZnO nanorods. Field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopic techniques were utilized for the structural characterization of the ZnO nanoparticles/chitosan seed layer-coated ZnO nanorods on a gold-coated glass substrate. This study has shown that the ZnO nanorods are well-aligned, uniform, and dense, exhibit the wurtzite hexagonal structure, and are perpendicularly oriented to the substrate. Moreover, the ZnO nanorods are only composed of Zn and O atoms. An optical study was also carried out for the ZnO nanoparticles/chitosan seed layer-coated ZnO nanorods, and the obtained results have shown that the fabricated ZnO nanorods exhibit good crystal quality. This study has provided a cheap fabrication method for the controlled morphology and good alignment of ZnO nanorods, which is of high demand for enhancing the working performance of optoelectronic devices.

  13. Fabrication of Well-Aligned ZnO Nanorods Using a Composite Seed Layer of ZnO Nanoparticles and Chitosan Polymer

    PubMed Central

    Khun, Kimleang; Ibupoto, Zafar Hussain; AlSalhi, Mohamad S.; Atif, Muhammad; Ansari, Anees A.; Willander, Magnus

    2013-01-01

    In this study, by taking the advantage of both inorganic ZnO nanoparticles and the organic material chitosan as a composite seed layer, we have fabricated well-aligned ZnO nanorods on a gold-coated glass substrate using the hydrothermal growth method. The ZnO nanoparticles were characterized by the Raman spectroscopic techniques, which showed the nanocrystalline phase of the ZnO nanoparticles. Different composites of ZnO nanoparticles and chitosan were prepared and used as a seed layer for the fabrication of well-aligned ZnO nanorods. Field emission scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and infrared reflection absorption spectroscopic techniques were utilized for the structural characterization of the ZnO nanoparticles/chitosan seed layer-coated ZnO nanorods on a gold-coated glass substrate. This study has shown that the ZnO nanorods are well-aligned, uniform, and dense, exhibit the wurtzite hexagonal structure, and are perpendicularly oriented to the substrate. Moreover, the ZnO nanorods are only composed of Zn and O atoms. An optical study was also carried out for the ZnO nanoparticles/chitosan seed layer-coated ZnO nanorods, and the obtained results have shown that the fabricated ZnO nanorods exhibit good crystal quality. This study has provided a cheap fabrication method for the controlled morphology and good alignment of ZnO nanorods, which is of high demand for enhancing the working performance of optoelectronic devices. PMID:28788336

  14. Site-selective doping and superconductivity in (La1-yPry)(Ba2-xLax)Cu3O7+δ

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mitzi, D. B.; Feffer, P. T.; Newsam, J. M.; Webb, D. J.; Klavins, P.; Jacobson, A. J.; Kapitulnik, A.

    1988-10-01

    Samples in the quaternary system (La1-yPry)(Ba2-xLax)Cu3O7+δ have been prepared and characterized using x-ray and neutron diffraction, thermogravimetric analysis, and transport and magnetic measurements. Pr substitutes on the oxygen-depleted La layers for y>0.0, while La substitutes on the Ba sites for x>0.0. The effect of doping on each site is inferred to be primarily local, affecting immediately adjacent Cu-O layers. The similar suppression of superconductivity that accompanies doping on each of the two distinct sites apparently correlates with the degree of oxidation of the Cu-O sheets (and not the chains), indicating that the sheets support the high temperature superconductivity. Comparison of orthorhombic and tetragonal samples with similar Ba:La ratios (and y=0) demonstrates that the orthorhombic phase yields the largest Meissner signals and highest transition temperatures in the La(Ba2-xLax)Cu3O7+δ system. The effect on superconductivity of oxygen-vacancy configuration in the Cu-O chain layers is proposed to derive, indirectly, from their influence on the Cu-O sheets. In addition, optimally superconducting La(Ba2-xLax)Cu3O7+δ samples exhibit interesting normal-state magnetic properties, with a paramagnetic susceptibility that decreases steadily with temperature between 350 K and Tc.

  15. Structure and dynamics of shear bands in amorphous–crystalline nanolaminates

    DOE PAGES

    Guo, Wei; Gan, Bin; Molina-Aldareguia, Jon M.; ...

    2015-08-03

    In this paper, the velocities of shear bands in amorphous CuZr/crystalline Cu nanolaminates were quantified as a function of strain rate and crystalline volume fraction. A rate-dependent transition in flow response was found in a 100 nm CuZr/10 nm Cu nanolaminates. When increasing the Cu layer thickness from 10 nm to 100 nm, the instantaneous velocity of the shear band in these nanolaminates decreases from 11.2 μm/s to <~500 nm/s. Finally, atom probe tomography and transmission election microcopy observation revealed that in post-deformed pillars both grain rotation in the crystalline portion and non-diffusive crystallization in the amorphous layer affect themore » viscosity of shear bands.« less

  16. Computational prediction of the electronic structure and optical properties of graphene-like β-CuN3.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Xu; Zhao, Xudong; Jing, Yu; Wu, Dihua; Zhou, Zhen

    2015-12-21

    Recently, a new polymorph of the highly energetic phase β-CuN3 has been synthesized. By hybrid density functional computations, we investigated the structural, electronic and optical properties of β-CuN3 bulk and layers. Due to the quantum confinement effect, the band gap of the monolayer (2.39 eV) is larger than that of the bulk (2.23 eV). The layer number affects the configuration and the band gap. β-CuN3 shows both ionic and covalent characters, and could be stable in the infrared and visible spectrum and would decompose under ultraviolet light. The results imply that bulk β-CuN3 could be used as an energetic material.

  17. ``Loose spins'' in Fe/Cu/Fe(001) structures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Heinrich, B.; Celinski, Z.; Liao, L. X.; From, M.; Cochran, J. F.

    1994-05-01

    Slonczewski recently proposed a model for the exchange coupling between ferromagnetic layers separated by a nonferromagnetic spacer based on the concept of ``loose spins.'' ``Loose spins'' contribute to the total exchange energy. We have studied the role of ``loose spins'' in bcc Fe/Cu/Fe(001) structures. bcc Fe/Cu/Fe(001) trilayers deposited at room temperature were investigated extensively in our previous studies. In our ``loose spin'' studies, the Fe was added inside the Cu interlayer. Several structures were atomically engineered in order to test the behavior of ``loose spins:'' One additional atomic layer of an (Fe+Cu) alloy were located in appropriate positions in a Cu spacer. The bilinear and biquadratic exchange coupling in the above structures was quantitatively studied with FMR in the temperature range 77-370 K and with MOKE at RT.

  18. Endophytic and rhizospheric bacteria associated with Silene paradoxa grown on metal-contaminated soils are selected and transferred to the next generation of plants as seed endophytes

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mocali, Stefano; Fabiani, Arturo; Chiellini, Carolina; Gori, Giulia; Gonnelli, Cristina

    2017-04-01

    It is well known that bacteria are commonly associated to the plants, either on the outer surfaces (epiphytes) that inside the plant tissues (endophytes). These bacteria mainly derived from soil and reach the various organs of the plant throughout the root system. Despite recent works have shown that endophytic bacteria can have an important role in the physiology of the plant, little is known of their possible involvement in the resistance and tolerance mechanisms of plants to heavy metals. Furthermore, until now only limited research has been conducted to unravel the exact role and possible applications of seed endophytes. The aim of this work was to characterize the plant-associated bacterial communities present at both the rhizosphere and inside the seeds, roots and aerial parts of plants of Silene paradoxa, a plant highly well-adapted to extreme environments, such as metal-contaminated soils. Thus, soil samples and plants of S. paradoxa were collected from i) the landfill of a Cu mine at Fenice Capanne (Grosseto, Italy); ii) a serpentine soil (with a high Ni content) at Pieve Santo Stefano (Arezzo, Italy); iii) a limestone uncontaminated soil in Colle Val d'Elsa (Siena, Italy). Bacterial communities associated with the three different plant organs have been then characterized by high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA genes (microbiota). Bacteria were also isolated from seeds and soil and the colony forming units (CFU) was determined on plates containing different concentrations of Ni and Cu (5, 10 and 15 mM). The results showed a greater bacterial diversity among the three soils compared to plants. In particular, even though some phyla occurred in all the three soils (Actinobacteria, Proteobacteria, Chlorflexi and Acidobacteria), in general the bacterial community structure of the three soils was quite different from each other. Interestingly, the endophytic composition within each plant compartment was observed to be strongly affected by the soil of origin. Furthermore, CFU values revealed that bacteria isolated from seeds of plants growing on soils contaminated with Cu and Ni had a greater capacity to grow on Cu- and Ni-enriched media, respectively, compared to the control. In conclusion, based on the data obtained it is plausible to assume that some of the plant-associated bacteria for S. paradoxa can be directly selected from soil by the plants for their beneficial characteristics (i.e. metal resistance) and could be transferred via the seed to benefit the next generation. As they might possess several plant growth-promoting and biocontrol properties, the study of endophytes application in diverse processes such as biofertilization, bioenergy production and bioremediation should be encouraged.

  19. Method of transferring strained semiconductor structure

    DOEpatents

    Nastasi, Michael A [Santa Fe, NM; Shao, Lin [College Station, TX

    2009-12-29

    The transfer of strained semiconductor layers from one substrate to another substrate involves depositing a multilayer structure on a substrate having surface contaminants. An interface that includes the contaminants is formed in between the deposited layer and the substrate. Hydrogen atoms are introduced into the structure and allowed to diffuse to the interface. Afterward, the deposited multilayer structure is bonded to a second substrate and is separated away at the interface, which results in transferring a multilayer structure from one substrate to the other substrate. The multilayer structure includes at least one strained semiconductor layer and at least one strain-induced seed layer. The strain-induced seed layer can be optionally etched away after the layer transfer.

  20. On the origins of hardness of Cu–TiN nanolayered composites

    DOE PAGES

    Pathak, S.; Li, N.; Maeder, X.; ...

    2015-07-18

    We investigated the mechanical response of physical vapor deposited Cu–TiN nanolayered composites of varying layer thicknesses from 5 nm to 200 nm. Both the Cu and TiN layers were found to consist of single phase nanometer sized grains. The grain sizes in the Cu and TiN layers, measured using transmission electron microscopy and X-ray diffraction, were found to be comparable to or smaller than their respective layer thicknesses. Indentation hardness testing revealed that the hardness of such nanolayered composites exhibits a weak dependence on the layer thickness but is more correlated to their grain size.

  1. Nodeless pairing in superconducting copper-oxide monolayer films on Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ

    DOE PAGES

    Zhong, Yong; Wang, Yang; Han, Sha; ...

    2016-07-12

    We report that the pairing mechanism of high-temperature superconductivity in cuprates remains the biggest unresolved mystery in condensed matter physics. To solve the problem, one of the most effective approaches is to investigate directly the superconducting CuO 2 layers. Here, by growing CuO 2 monolayer films on Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ substrates, we identify two distinct and spatially separated energy gaps centered at the Fermi energy, a smaller U-like gap and a larger V-like gap on the films, and study their interactions with alien atoms by low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy. The newly discovered U-like gap exhibits strong phase coherencemore » and is immune to scattering by K, Cs and Ag atoms, suggesting its nature as a nodeless superconducting gap in the CuO 2 layers, whereas the V-like gap agrees with the well-known pseudogap state in the underdoped regime. In conclusion, our results support an s-wave superconductivity in Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ, which, we propose, originates from the modulation-doping resultant two-dimensional hole liquid confined in the CuO 2 layers.« less

  2. Nodeless pairing in superconducting copper-oxide monolayer films on Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Zhong, Yong; Wang, Yang; Han, Sha

    We report that the pairing mechanism of high-temperature superconductivity in cuprates remains the biggest unresolved mystery in condensed matter physics. To solve the problem, one of the most effective approaches is to investigate directly the superconducting CuO 2 layers. Here, by growing CuO 2 monolayer films on Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ substrates, we identify two distinct and spatially separated energy gaps centered at the Fermi energy, a smaller U-like gap and a larger V-like gap on the films, and study their interactions with alien atoms by low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy. The newly discovered U-like gap exhibits strong phase coherencemore » and is immune to scattering by K, Cs and Ag atoms, suggesting its nature as a nodeless superconducting gap in the CuO 2 layers, whereas the V-like gap agrees with the well-known pseudogap state in the underdoped regime. In conclusion, our results support an s-wave superconductivity in Bi 2Sr 2CaCu 2O 8+δ, which, we propose, originates from the modulation-doping resultant two-dimensional hole liquid confined in the CuO 2 layers.« less

  3. A comprehensive study of magnetic exchanges in the layered oxychalcogenides Sr 3 Fe 2 O 5 Cu 2 Q 2 ( Q = S, Se)

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lü, Minfeng; Mentré, Olivier; Gordon, Elijah E.

    2017-12-01

    The layered oxysulfide Sr3Fe2O5Cu2S2 was prepared, and its crystal structure and magnetic properties were characterized by synchrotron X-ray diffraction (XRD), powder neutron diffraction (PND), Mössbauer spectroscopy measurements and by density functional theory (DFT) calculations. In addition, the spin exchange interactions leading to the ordered magnetic structure of Sr3Fe2O5Cu2S2 were compared with those of its selenium analogue Sr3Fe2O5Cu2Se2. The oxysulfide Sr3Fe2O5Cu2S2 adopts a G-type antiferromagnetic (AFM) structure at a temperature in the range 485–512 K, which is comparable with the three-dimensional (3D) AFM ordering temperature, TN ≈ 490 K, found for Sr3Fe2O5Cu2Se2. Consistent with this observation, the spin exchange interactions ofmore » the magnetic (Sr3Fe2O5)2+ layers are slightly greater (but comparable) for oxysulfide than for the oxyselenide. Attempts to reduce or oxidize Sr3Fe2O5Cu2S2 using topochemical routes yield metallic Fe.« less

  4. Room-temperature synthesis of three-dimensional porous ZnO@CuNi hybrid magnetic layers with photoluminescent and photocatalytic properties.

    PubMed

    Guerrero, Miguel; Zhang, Jin; Altube, Ainhoa; García-Lecina, Eva; Roldan, Mònica; Baró, Maria Dolors; Pellicer, Eva; Sort, Jordi

    2016-01-01

    A facile synthetic approach to prepare porous ZnO@CuNi hybrid films is presented. Initially, magnetic CuNi porous layers (consisting of phase separated CuNi alloys) are successfully grown by electrodeposition at different current densities using H 2 bubbles as a dynamic template to generate the porosity. The porous CuNi alloys serve as parent scaffolds to be subsequently filled with a solution containing ZnO nanoparticles previously synthesized by sol-gel. The dispersed nanoparticles are deposited dropwise onto the CuNi frameworks and the solvent is left to evaporate while the nanoparticles impregnate the interior of the pores, rendering ZnO-coated CuNi 3D porous structures. No thermal annealing is required to obtain the porous films. The synthesized hybrid porous layers exhibit an interesting combination of tunable ferromagnetic and photoluminescent properties. In addition, the aqueous photocatalytic activity of the composite is studied under UV-visible light irradiation for the degradation of Rhodamine B. The proposed method represents a fast and inexpensive approach towards the implementation of devices based on metal-semiconductor porous systems, avoiding the use of post-synthesis heat treatment steps which could cause deleterious oxidation of the metallic counterpart, as well as collapse of the porous structure and loss of the ferromagnetic properties.

  5. Effect of Strain Rate on Joint Strength and Failure Mode of Lead-Free Solder Joints

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Jian; Lei, Yongping; Fu, Hanguang; Guo, Fu

    2018-03-01

    In surface mount technology, the Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu solder joint has a shorter impact lifetime than a traditional lead-tin solder joint. In order to improve the impact property of SnAgCu lead-free solder joints and identify the effect of silver content on tensile strength and impact property, impact experiments were conducted at various strain rates on three selected SnAgCu based solder joints. It was found that joint failure mainly occurred in the solder material with large plastic deformation under low strain rate, while joint failure occurred at the brittle intermetallic compound layer without any plastic deformation at a high strain rate. Joint strength increased with the silver content in SnAgCu alloys in static tensile tests, while the impact property of the solder joint decreased with increasing silver content. When the strain rate was low, plastic deformation occurred with failure and the tensile strength of the Sn-3.0Ag-0.5Cu solder joint was higher than that of Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu; when the strain rate was high, joint failure mainly occurred at the brittle interface layer and the Sn-0.3Ag-0.7Cu solder joint had a better impact resistance with a thinner intermetallic compound layer.

  6. Room-temperature synthesis of three-dimensional porous ZnO@CuNi hybrid magnetic layers with photoluminescent and photocatalytic properties

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Guerrero, Miguel; Zhang, Jin; Altube, Ainhoa; García-Lecina, Eva; Roldan, Mònica; Baró, Maria Dolors; Pellicer, Eva; Sort, Jordi

    2016-01-01

    A facile synthetic approach to prepare porous ZnO@CuNi hybrid films is presented. Initially, magnetic CuNi porous layers (consisting of phase separated CuNi alloys) are successfully grown by electrodeposition at different current densities using H2 bubbles as a dynamic template to generate the porosity. The porous CuNi alloys serve as parent scaffolds to be subsequently filled with a solution containing ZnO nanoparticles previously synthesized by sol-gel. The dispersed nanoparticles are deposited dropwise onto the CuNi frameworks and the solvent is left to evaporate while the nanoparticles impregnate the interior of the pores, rendering ZnO-coated CuNi 3D porous structures. No thermal annealing is required to obtain the porous films. The synthesized hybrid porous layers exhibit an interesting combination of tunable ferromagnetic and photoluminescent properties. In addition, the aqueous photocatalytic activity of the composite is studied under UV-visible light irradiation for the degradation of Rhodamine B. The proposed method represents a fast and inexpensive approach towards the implementation of devices based on metal-semiconductor porous systems, avoiding the use of post-synthesis heat treatment steps which could cause deleterious oxidation of the metallic counterpart, as well as collapse of the porous structure and loss of the ferromagnetic properties.

  7. Buffer layers on rolled nickel or copper as superconductor substrates

    DOEpatents

    Paranthaman, Mariappan; Lee, Dominic F.; Kroeger, Donald M.; Goyal, Amit

    2000-01-01

    Buffer layer architectures are epitaxially deposited on biaxially-textured rolled substrates of nickel and/or copper and their alloys for high current conductors, and more particularly buffer layer architectures such as Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, YSZ/Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /CeO.sub.2 /Ni, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni (RE=Rare Earth), and Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /YSZ/CeO.sub.2 /Ni, Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, YSZ/Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /CeO.sub.2 /Cu, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, and Yb.sub.2 O.sub.3 /YSZ/CeO.sub.2 /Cu. Deposition methods include physical vapor deposition techniques which include electron-beam evaporation, rf magnetron sputtering, pulsed laser deposition, thermal evaporation, and solution precursor approach, which includes chemical vapor deposition, combustion CVD, metal-organic decomposition, sol-gel processing, and plasma spray.

  8. Structure of the Developing Pea Seed Coat and the Post‐phloem Transport Pathway of Nutrients

    PubMed Central

    VAN DONGEN, JOOST T.; AMMERLAAN, ANKIE M. H.; WOUTERLOOD, MADELEINE; VAN AELST, ADRIAAN C.; BORSTLAP, ADRIANUS C.

    2003-01-01

    An important function of the seed coat is to deliver nutrients to the embryo. To relate this function to anatomical characteristics, the developing seed coat of pea (Pisum sativum L.) was examined by light‐ and cryo‐scanning electron microscopy (cryo‐SEM) from the late pre‐storage phase until the end of seed filling. During this time the apparently undifferentiated seed coat tissues evolve into the epidermal macrosclereids, the hypodermal hourglass cells, chlorenchyma, ground parenchyma and branched parenchyma. Using the fluorescent symplast tracer 8‐hydroxypyrene‐1,3,6‐trisulfonic acid, it could be demonstrated that solutes imported by the phloem move into the chlorenchyma and ground parenchyma, but not into the branched parenchyma. From a comparison with literature data of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) and broad bean (Vicia faba L.), it is concluded that in the three species different parenchyma layers, but not the branched parenchyma, may be involved in the post‐phloem symplasmic transport of nutrients in the seed coat. In pea, the branched parenchyma dies during the storage phase, and its cell wall remnants then form the boundary layer between the living seed coat parenchyma cells and the cotyledons. Using cryo‐SEM, clear images were obtained of this boundary layer which showed that many intracellular spaces in the seed coat parenchyma are filled with an aqueous solution. This is suggested to facilitate the diffusion of nutrients from the site of unloading towards the cotyledons. PMID:12714370

  9. Estimation of loci involved in non-shattering of seeds in early rice domestication.

    PubMed

    Ishikawa, Ryo; Nishimura, Akinori; Htun, Than Myint; Nishioka, Ryo; Oka, Yumi; Tsujimura, Yuki; Inoue, Chizuru; Ishii, Takashige

    2017-04-01

    Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is widely cultivated around the world and is known to be domesticated from its wild form, O. rufipogon. A loss of seed shattering is one of the most obvious phenotypic changes selected for during rice domestication. Previously, three seed-shattering loci, qSH1, sh4, and qSH3 were reported to be involved in non-shattering of seeds of Japonica-type cultivated rice, O. sativa cv. Nipponbare. In this study, we focused on non-shattering characteristics of O. sativa Indica cv. IR36 having functional allele at qSH1. We produced backcross recombinant inbred lines having chromosomal segments from IR36 in the genetic background of wild rice, O. rufipogon W630. Histological and quantitative trait loci analyses of abscission layer formation were conducted. In the analysis of quantitative trait loci, a strong peak was observed close to sh4. We, nevertheless, found that some lines showed complete abscission layer formation despite carrying the IR36 allele at sh4, implying that non-shattering of seeds of IR36 could be regulated by the combination of mutations at sh4 and other seed-shattering loci. We also genotyped qSH3, a recently identified seed-shattering locus. Lines that have the IR36 alleles at sh4 and qSH3 showed inhibition of abscission layer formation but the degree of seed shattering was different from that of IR36. On the basis of these results, we estimated that non-shattering of seeds in early rice domestication involved mutations in at least three loci, and these genetic materials produced in this study may help to identify novel seed-shattering loci.

  10. The MADS Box Genes ABS, SHP1, and SHP2 Are Essential for the Coordination of Cell Divisions in Ovule and Seed Coat Development and for Endosperm Formation in Arabidopsis thaliana

    PubMed Central

    Tekleyohans, Dawit G.; Wittkop, Benjamin; Snowdon, Rod J.

    2016-01-01

    Seed formation is a pivotal process in plant reproduction and dispersal. It begins with megagametophyte development in the ovule, followed by fertilization and subsequently coordinated development of embryo, endosperm, and maternal seed coat. Two closely related MADS-box genes, SHATTERPROOF 1 and 2 (SHP1 and SHP2) are involved in specifying ovule integument identity in Arabidopsis thaliana. The MADS box gene ARABIDOPSIS BSISTER (ABS or TT16) is required, together with SEEDSTICK (STK) for the formation of endothelium, part of the seed coat and innermost tissue layer formed by the maternal plant. Little is known about the genetic interaction of SHP1 and SHP2 with ABS and the coordination of endosperm and seed coat development. In this work, mutant and expression analysis shed light on this aspect of concerted development. Triple tt16 shp1 shp2 mutants produce malformed seedlings, seed coat formation defects, fewer seeds, and mucilage reduction. While shp1 shp2 mutants fail to coordinate the timely development of ovules, tt16 mutants show less peripheral endosperm after fertilization. Failure in coordinated division of the innermost integument layer in early ovule stages leads to inner seed coat defects in tt16 and tt16 shp1 shp2 triple mutant seeds. An antagonistic action of ABS and SHP1/SHP2 is observed in inner seed coat layer formation. Expression analysis also indicates that ABS represses SHP1, SHP2, and FRUITFUL expression. Our work shows that the evolutionary conserved Bsister genes are required not only for endothelium but also for endosperm development and genetically interact with SHP1 and SHP2 in a partially antagonistic manner. PMID:27776173

  11. Artificial twin-layer configurations of Zn(O,S) films by radio frequency sputtering in all dry processed eco-friendly Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Liu, Wei; Fan, Yu; Li, Xiaodong; Lin, Shuping; Liu, Yang; Shi, Sihan; Wang, He; Zhou, Zhiqiang; Zhang, Yi; Sun, Yun

    2018-03-01

    Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin film solar cells are of great interest for research and industrial applications with their high conversion efficiencies, long-term stability and significant lifetimes. Such a solar cell of a p-n junction consists of p-type Cu(In,Ga)Se2 films as a light absorber and n-type CdS as a buffer layer, which often emerges with intrinsic ZnO. Aimed at eco-friendly fabrication protocols, a large number of strategies have been investigated to fabricate a Cd-free n-type buffer layer such as Zn(O,S) in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells. Also, if the Zn(O,S) films are prepared by coevaporation or sputtering, it will offer high compatibility with the preferred mass production. Here, we propose and optimize a dry method for Zn(O,S) deposition in a radio frequency sputtering. In particular, the strategy for the twin-layer configurations of Zn(O,S) films not only greatly improve their electrical conductance and suppress charge carrier recombination, but also avoid degradation of the Zn(O,S)/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 interfaces. Indeed, the high quality of such twin Zn(O,S) layers have been reflected in the similar conversion efficiencies of the complete solar cells as well as the large short-circuit current density, which exceeds the CdS reference device. In addition, Zn(O,S) twin layers have reduced the production time and materials by replacing the CdS/i-ZnO layers, which removes two fabrication steps in the multilayered thin film solar cells. Furthermore, the device physics for such improvements have been fully unveiled with both experimental current-voltage and capacitance-voltage spectroscopies and device simulations via wxAMPS program. Finally, the proposed twin-layer Zn(O,S)/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 interfaces account for the broadening of the depletion region of photogenerated charge carriers, which greatly suppress the carrier recombination at the space charge region, and eventually lead to the more efficient collection of charge carriers at both electrodes.

  12. Cu2+ ions as a paramagnetic probe to study the surface chemical modification process of layered double hydroxides and hydroxide salts with nitrate and carboxylate anions.

    PubMed

    Arizaga, Gregorio Guadalupe Carbajal; Mangrich, Antonio Salvio; Wypych, Fernando

    2008-04-01

    A layered zinc hydroxide nitrate (Zn5(OH)8(NO3)2.2H2O) and a layered double hydroxide (Zn/Al-NO3) were synthesized by coprecipitation and doped with different amounts of Cu2+ (0.2, 1, and 10 mol%), as paramagnetic probe. Although the literature reports that the nitrate ion is free (with D3h symmetry) between the layers of these two structures, the FTIR spectra of two zinc hydroxide nitrate samples show the C2v symmetry for the nitrate ion, whereas the g ||/A || value in the EPR spectra of Cu2+ is high. This fact suggests bonding of some nitrate ions to the layers of the zinc hydroxide nitrate. The zinc hydroxide nitrate was used as matrix in the intercalation reaction with benzoate, o-chlorobenzoate, and o-iodobenzoate ions. FTIR spectra confirm the ionic exchange reaction and the EPR spectroscopy reveals bonding of the organic ions to the inorganic layers of the zinc hydroxide nitrate, while the layered double hydroxides show only exchange reactions.

  13. Advanced Cu chemical displacement technique for SiO2-based electrochemical metallization ReRAM application.

    PubMed

    Chin, Fun-Tat; Lin, Yu-Hsien; You, Hsin-Chiang; Yang, Wen-Luh; Lin, Li-Min; Hsiao, Yu-Ping; Ko, Chum-Min; Chao, Tien-Sheng

    2014-01-01

    This study investigates an advanced copper (Cu) chemical displacement technique (CDT) with varying the chemical displacement time for fabricating Cu/SiO2-stacked resistive random-access memory (ReRAM). Compared with other Cu deposition methods, this CDT easily controls the interface of the Cu-insulator, the switching layer thickness, and the immunity of the Cu etching process, assisting the 1-transistor-1-ReRAM (1T-1R) structure and system-on-chip integration. The modulated shape of the Cu-SiO2 interface and the thickness of the SiO2 layer obtained by CDT-based Cu deposition on SiO2 were confirmed by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The CDT-fabricated Cu/SiO2-stacked ReRAM exhibited lower operation voltages and more stable data retention characteristics than the control Cu/SiO2-stacked sample. As the Cu CDT processing time increased, the forming and set voltages of the CDT-fabricated Cu/SiO2-stacked ReRAM decreased. Conversely, decreasing the processing time reduced the on-state current and reset voltage while increasing the endurance switching cycle time. Therefore, the switching characteristics were easily modulated by Cu CDT, yielding a high performance electrochemical metallization (ECM)-type ReRAM.

  14. Materials process and applications of single grain (RE)-Ba-Cu-O bulk high-temperature superconductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Beizhan; Zhou, Difan; Xu, Kun; Hara, Shogo; Tsuzuki, Keita; Miki, Motohiro; Felder, Brice; Deng, Zigang; Izumi, Mitsuru

    2012-11-01

    This paper reviews recent advances in the melt process of (RE)-Ba-Cu-O [(RE)BCO, where RE represents a rare earth element] single grain high-temperature superconductors (HTSs), bulks and its applications. The efforts on the improvement of the magnetic flux pinning with employing the top-seeded melt-growth process technique and using a seeded infiltration and growth process are discussed. Which including various chemical doping strategies and controlled pushing effect based on the peritectic reaction of (RE)BCO. The typical experiment results, such as the largest single domain bulk, the clear TEM observations and the significant critical current density, are summarized together with the magnetization techniques. Finally, we highlight the recent prominent progress of HTS bulk applications, including Maglev, flywheel, power device, magnetic drug delivery system and magnetic resonance devices.

  15. Residual stress within nanoscale metallic multilayer systems during thermal cycling

    DOE PAGES

    Economy, David Ross; Cordill, Megan Jo; Payzant, E. Andrew; ...

    2015-09-21

    Projected applications for nanoscale metallic multilayers will include wide temperature ranges. Since film residual stress has been known to alter system reliability, stress development within new film structures with high interfacial densities should be characterized to identify potential long-term performance barriers. To understand factors contributing to thermal stress evolution within nanoscale metallic multilayers, stress in Cu/Nb systems adhered to Si substrates was calculated from curvature measurements collected during cycling between 25 °C and 400 °C. Additionally, stress within each type of component layers was calculated from shifts in the primary peak position from in-situ heated X-ray diffraction. The effects ofmore » both film architecture (layer thickness) and layer order in metallic multilayers were tracked and compared with monolithic Cu and Nb films. Analysis indicated that the thermoelastic slope of nanoscale metallic multilayer films depends on thermal expansion mismatch, elastic modulus of the components, and also interfacial density. The layer thickness (i.e. interfacial density) affected thermoelastic slope magnitude while layer order had minimal impact on stress responses after the initial thermal cycle. When comparing stress responses of monolithic Cu and Nb films to those of the Cu/Nb systems, the nanoscale metallic multilayers show a similar increase in stress above 200 °C to the Nb monolithic films, indicating that Nb components play a larger role in stress development than Cu. Local stress calculations from X-ray diffraction peak shifts collected during heating reveal that the component layers within a multilayer film respond similarly to their monolithic counterparts.« less

  16. Colossal internal barrier layer capacitance effect in polycrystalline copper (II) oxide

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sarkar, Sudipta; Jana, Pradip Kumar; Chaudhuri, B. K.

    2008-01-01

    Dielectric spectroscopy analysis of the high permittivity (κ˜104) copper (II) oxide (CuO) ceramic shows that the grain contribution plays a major role for the giant-κ value at low temperature, whereas grain boundary (GB) contribution dominates around room temperature and above. Moreover, impedance spectroscopy analysis reveals electrically heterogeneous microstructure in CuO consisting of semiconducting grains and insulating GBs. Finally, the giant dielectric phenomenon exhibited by CuO is attributed to the internal barrier layer (due to GB) capacitance mechanism.

  17. Changes in the adsorbate dipole layer with changing d-filling of the metal (II) (Co, Ni, Cu) phthalocyanines on Au(111).

    PubMed

    Xiao, Jie; Dowben, Peter A

    2009-02-04

    In combined photoemission and inverse photoemission spectroscopy studies, we observe changes in the metal phthalocyanine molecular orbital offsets with respect to the conducting gold substrate Fermi level, with the changing d-electron filling of the metal (II) (Co, Ni, Cu) phthalocyanines. The implication is that the interfacial dipole layer depends upon the choice of metal (Co, Ni, Cu) centers within the metal (II) phthalocyanines adsorbed on Au(111).

  18. Influences of ultra-thin Ti seed layers on the dewetting phenomenon of Au films deposited on Si oxide substrates

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kamiko, Masao; Kim, So-Mang; Jeong, Young-Seok; Ha, Jae-Ho; Koo, Sang-Mo; Ha, Jae-Geun

    2018-05-01

    The influences of a Ti seed layer (1 nm) on the dewetting phenomenon of Au films (5 nm) grown onto amorphous SiO2 substrates have been studied and compared. Atomic force microscopy results indicated that the introduction of Ti between the substrate and Au promoted the dewetting phenomenon. X-ray diffraction measurements suggested that the initial deposition of Ti promoted crystallinity of Au. A series of Auger electron spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy results revealed that Ti transformed to a Ti oxide layer by reduction of the amorphous SiO2 substrate surface, and that the Ti seed layer remained on the substrate, without going through the dewetting process during annealing. We concluded that the enhancement of Au dewetting and the improvement in crystallinity of Au by the insertion of Ti could be attributed to the fact that Au location was changed from the surface of the amorphous SiO2 substrate to that of the Ti oxide layer.

  19. Cu gettering by phosphorus-doped emitters in p-type silicon: Effect on light-induced degradation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Inglese, Alessandro; Laine, Hannu S.; Vähänissi, Ville; Savin, Hele

    2018-01-01

    The presence of copper (Cu) contamination is known to cause relevant light-induced degradation (Cu-LID) effects in p-type silicon. Due to its high diffusivity, Cu is generally regarded as a relatively benign impurity, which can be readily relocated during device fabrication from the wafer bulk, i.e. the region affected by Cu-LID, to the surface phosphorus-doped emitter. This contribution examines in detail the impact of gettering by industrially relevant phosphorus layers on the strength of Cu-LID effects. We find that phosphorus gettering does not always prevent the occurrence of Cu-LID. Specifically, air-cooling after an isothermal anneal at 800°C results in only weak impurity segregation to the phosphorus-doped layer, which turns out to be insufficient for effectively mitigating Cu-LID effects. Furthermore, we show that the gettering efficiency can be enhanced through the addition of a slow cooling ramp (-4°C/min) between 800°C and 600°C, resulting in the nearly complete disappearance of Cu-LID effects.

  20. [Distribution characteristics of copper in soil and rape around Tongling mining area].

    PubMed

    Shen, Chang-Gao; Gao, Chao; Wang, Deng-Feng; Wang, Lei; Chen, Fu-Rong

    2007-10-01

    Soil and rape samples around Tongling mining area were collected, and their copper (Cu) contents were investigated. The results showed that the upland soil developed on the slope deposit around the mining area as well as the paddy soil distributed in lower reaches was heavily polluted by Cu, while the fluvo-aquic soil further from the mining area was less contaminated. Though the Cu content in paddy soil and upland soil was nearly the same, its bioavailability was higher in paddy soil, due to the Cu pollution of irrigated water. There was a significant correlation between available and total Cu in these three types of soil. The activation rate of soil Cu (percentage of available Cu in total Cu) was 15.0% on average, which was positively correlated with soil total Cu and organic matter while negatively correlated with soil pH and Mn. The average Cu content in rape seed and stalk was 4.0 and 5.8 mg x kg(-1), respectively. The rape Cu content increased obviously with increasing soil available Cu content when the soil available Cu content was relatively low, but the Cu absorption and accumulation by rape decreased gradually when the soil available copper content was higher than 30 mg x kg(-1).

  1. Electrodeposited Ni-Based Magnetic Mesoporous Films as Smart Surfaces for Atomic Layer Deposition: An "All-Chemical" Deposition Approach toward 3D Nanoengineered Composite Layers.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Jin; Quintana, Alberto; Menéndez, Enric; Coll, Mariona; Pellicer, Eva; Sort, Jordi

    2018-05-02

    Mesoporous Ni and Cu-Ni (Cu 20 Ni 80 and Cu 45 Ni 55 in at. %) films, showing a three-dimensional (3D) porous structure and tunable magnetic properties, are prepared by electrodeposition from aqueous surfactant solutions using micelles of P-123 triblock copolymer as structure-directing entities. Pores between 5 and 30 nm and dissimilar space arrangements (continuous interconnected networks, circular pores, corrugated mesophases) are obtained depending on the synthetic conditions. X-ray diffraction studies reveal that the Cu-Ni films have crystallized in the face-centered cubic structure, are textured, and exhibit certain degree of phase separation, particularly those with a higher Cu content. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is used to conformally coat the mesopores of Cu 20 Ni 80 film with amorphous Al 2 O 3 , rendering multiphase "nano-in-meso" metal-ceramic composites without compromising the ferromagnetic response of the metallic scaffold. From a technological viewpoint, these 3D nanoengineered composite films could be appealing for applications like magnetically actuated micro/nanoelectromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS), voltage-driven magneto-electric devices, capacitors, or as protective coatings with superior strength and tribological performance.

  2. Electroless Cu Plating on Anodized Al Substrate for High Power LED.

    PubMed

    Rha, Sa-Kyun; Lee, Youn-Seoung

    2015-03-01

    Area-selective copper deposition on screen printed Ag pattern/anodized Al/Al substrate was attempted using a neutral electroless plating processes for printed circuit boards (PCBs), according to a range of variation of pH 6.5-pH 8 at 70 °C. The utilized basic electroless solution consisted of copper(II) sulfate pentahydrate, sodium phosphinate monohydrate, sodium citrate tribasic dihydrate, ammonium chloride, and nickel(II) sulfate hexahydrate. The pH of the copper plating solutions was adjusted from pH 6.5 to pH 8 using NH4OH. Using electroless plating in pH 6.5 and pH 7 baths, surface damage to the anodized Al layer hardly occurred; the structure of the plated Cu-rich films was a typical fcc-Cu, but a small Ni component was co-deposited. In electroless plating at pH 8, the surface of the anodized Al layer was damaged and the Cu film was composed of a lot of Ni and P which were co-deposited with Cu. Finally, in a pH 7 bath, we can make a selectively electroless plated Cu film on a PCB without any lithography and without surface damage to the anodized Al layer.

  3. Deposition of ultra thin CuInS₂ absorber layers by ALD for thin film solar cells at low temperature (down to 150 °C).

    PubMed

    Schneider, Nathanaelle; Bouttemy, Muriel; Genevée, Pascal; Lincot, Daniel; Donsanti, Frédérique

    2015-02-06

    Two new processes for the atomic layer deposition of copper indium sulfide (CuInS₂) based on the use of two different sets of precursors are reported. Metal chloride precursors (CuCl, InCl₃) in combination with H2S imply relatively high deposition temperature (Tdep = 380 °C), and due to exchange reactions, CuInS₂ stoechiometry was only achieved by depositing In₂S3 layers on a CuxS film. However, the use of acac- metal precursors (Cu(acac)₂, In(acac)₃) allows the direct deposition of CuInS₂ at temperature as low as 150 °C, involving in situ copper-reduction, exchange reaction and diffusion processes. The morphology, crystallographic structure, chemical composition and optical band gap of thin films were investigated using scanning electronic microscope, x-ray diffraction under grazing incidence conditions, x-ray fluorescence, energy dispersive spectrometry, secondary ion mass spectrometry, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and UV-vis spectroscopy. Films were implemented as ultra-thin absorbers in a typical CIS-solar cell architecture and allowed conversion efficiencies up to 2.8%.

  4. Buffer layers on metal surfaces having biaxial texture as superconductor substrates

    DOEpatents

    Paranthaman, Mariappan; Lee, Dominic F.; Kroeger, Donald M.; Goyal, Amit

    2000-01-01

    Buffer layer architectures are epitaxially deposited on biaxially-textured rolled substrates of nickel and/or copper and their alloys for high current conductors, and more particularly buffer layer architectures such as Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, YSZ/Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, (RE=Rare Earth), RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Ni, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /CeO.sub.2 /Ni, and RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /YSZ/CeO.sub.2 /Ni, Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, YSZ/Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Y.sub.2 O.sub.3 /Cu, RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /CeO.sub.2 /Cu, and RE.sub.2 O.sub.3 /YSZ/CeO.sub.2 /Cu. Deposition methods include physical vapor deposition techniques which include electron-beam evaporation, rf magnetron sputtering, pulsed laser deposition, thermal evaporation, and solution precursor approaches, which include chemical vapor deposition, combustion CVD, metal-organic decomposition, sol-gel processing, and plasma spray.

  5. Mechanical and microstructural characterization of W–Cu FGM fabricated by one-step sintering method through PM route

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gupta, Rajat; Kumar, Rohit; Chaubey, A. K.; Kanpara, Shailesh; Khirwadkar, S. S.

    2018-03-01

    Five layer W-Cu functionally graded material (FGM) for components in nuclear fusion application was fabricated by a one-step resistance sintering process, known as spark plasma sintering (SPS). In this study effect of sintering temperature (Ts) on physical, mechanical and surface property was investigated. Detailed microstructural study revealed that the graded structure of the composite layers with varying composition from 0 to 100 wt% W and Cu in opposite directions could be well densified after the SPS process. It also indicates that the fine microstructure within functionally graded layers can be maintained because of short sintering time. The sample sintered at 1050°C shows more than 90% theoretical density, hardness greater than 239±5 Hv and excellent surface scratch resistance. The result demonstrates that SPS is promising and more suitable process for fabrication of W-Cu FGM.

  6. Electrical and magnetic properties of conductive Cu-based coated conductors

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Aytug, T.; Paranthaman, M.; Thompson, J. R.; Goyal, A.; Rutter, N.; Zhai, H. Y.; Gapud, A. A.; Ijaduola, A. O.; Christen, D. K.

    2003-11-01

    The development of YBa2Cu3O7-δ (YBCO)-based coated conductors for electric power applications will require electrical and thermal stabilization of the high-temperature superconducting (HTS) coating. In addition, nonmagnetic tape substrates are an important factor in order to reduce the ferromagnetic hysteresis energy loss in ac applications. We report progress toward a conductive buffer layer architecture on biaxially textured nonmagnetic Cu tapes to electrically couple the HTS layer to the underlying metal substrate. A protective Ni overlayer, followed by a single buffer layer of La0.7Sr0.3MnO3, was employed to avoid Cu diffusion and to improve oxidation resistance of the substrate. Property characterizations of YBCO films on short prototype samples revealed self-field critical current density (Jc) values exceeding 2×106 A/cm2 at 77 K and good electrical connectivity. Magnetic hysteretic loss due to Ni overlayer was also investigated.

  7. Germination and elongation of flax in microgravity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Levine, H.; Anderson, K.; Boody, A.; Cox, D.; Kuznetsov, O.; Hasenstein, K.

    This experiment was conducted as part of a risk mitigation BIOTUBE Precursor hardware demonstration payload aboard the Space Shuttle Atlantis on STS-101. The objectives were to provide a demonstration and test of the newly developed BIOTUBE water delivery subsystem, and to determine the optimal water volume and germination paper combination for the automated imbibition and germination of flax (Linum usitatissimum) seeds in space. Two different substrate treatments of standard laboratory germination paper were tested for their ability to absorb, distribute, and retain water in microgravity. The first consisted of one layer of thick germination paper (designated "heavy"), and the second consisted of one layer of standard germination paper (designated "normal") under one layer of heavy germination paper. The germination paper strips were cut (4 X 1.6 cm) to fit snugly into seed cassettes. The seeds were attached to them by applying guar glue (1.25% w/v) drops to 8 premarked spots and the seeds orientated with the micropyle ends pointing outward. Water was delivered in 50 μL boluses which slowly traveled down the paper via capillary action (eliminating the complications caused by excess water pooling around the seed's surface). The data indicated that the 480 μL water delivery volume provided the best wetness level treatment for both percent germination (90.6%) and overall root growth (mean = 4.1 mm) during the 34 hour spaceflight experiment. The ground control experiment experienced similar results, but with slightly lower rates of germination (84.4%) and significantly shorter root lengths (2.8 mm). It is not clear if the roots emerged more quickly in microgravity and/or grew faster than the ground controls. The single layer of "Heavy" germination paper generally exhibited better overall growth than the two layered option. This in conjunction with the simplicity of using a single strip per seed cassette argues in favor of its selection. Significant seed position effects were observed in both the flight and ground control experiments. Overall, the design of the water delivery subsystem, seed cassettes and the germination paper strip concept was validated under microgravity conditions as an effective method of maintaining seed position and allowing adequate room for root growth. This work was supported under NASA Contract NAS10-002001.

  8. A Novel Seeding Method of Interfacial Polymerization-Assisted Dip Coating for the Preparation of Zeolite NaA Membranes on Ceramic Hollow Fiber Supports.

    PubMed

    Cao, Yue; Wang, Ming; Xu, Zhen-Liang; Ma, Xiao-Hua; Xue, Shuang-Mei

    2016-09-28

    A novel seeding method combining interfacial polymerization (IP) technique with dip-coating operation was designed for directly coating nanosized NaA seed crystals (150 nm) onto the micrometer-sized α-Al2O3 hollow fiber support, in which the polyamide (PA) produced by IP acted as an effective medium to freeze and fix seed crystals at the proper position so that the controlled seed layer could be accomplished. While a coating suspension with only 0.5 wt % seed content was used, a very thin seed layer with high quality and good adhesion was achieved through dip coating twice without drying between, and the whole seeding process was operated at ambient conditions. The resulting zeolite NaA membranes not only exhibited high pervaporation (PV) performance with an average separation factor above 10000 and flux nearly 9.0 kg/m(2)·h in dehydration of 90 wt % ethanol aqueous solution at 348 K but also demonstrated great reproducibility by testing more than eight batches of zeolite membranes. In addition, this seeding strategy could be readily extended to the preparation of other supported zeolite membranes for a wide range of separation applications.

  9. Thermally driven self-healing using copper nanofiber heater

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Min Wook; Jo, Hong Seok; Yoon, Sam S.; Yarin, Alexander L.

    2017-07-01

    Nano-textured transparent heaters made of copper nanofibers (CuNFs) are used to facilitate accelerated self-healing of bromobutyl rubber (BIIR). The heater and BIIR layer are separately deposited on each side of a transparent flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. A pre-notched crack on the BIIR layer was bridged due to heating facilitated by CuNFs. In the corrosion test, a cracked BIIR layer covered a steel substrate. An accelerated self-healing of the crack due to the transparent copper nanofiber heater facilitated an anti-corrosion protective effect of the BIIR layer.

  10. An Ecological Friendly Dragee Technic Application on Crop Seeds

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    László, M.

    2009-04-01

    Summary: In Brazíl, in EMBRAPA/CNPH was developing a dragée technic for seeds of crops and vegetables of carrot (Daucus carota L.), onion (Allium cepa L.), tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill.), lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), micro tubers of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.), Andropogon ssp. and Eucalyptus ssp. using as inert material the dolomite (CaCO3 96%) powder fractions (0.05 to 1.00 mm) and as cementing adhesives the polyvinyl acetate (PVA) and Gumma arabicum (Ga) (0 to 80% in water). On dragée process were using fungicides with agent of metalaxyl, iprodyon, benomyl, mankoceb (1 to 5 g fungicide/kg dolomite powder) and nutrients (N, P2O5, K2O 0.05 to 0.5, MgO, Fe, Zn, Mn, B, Cu, Mo, Co 0.000005 to 0.1 g/ kg dolomite powder) were applied from 1990. to 1993. Best results obtained with fraction of dolomite powder of 0.07 to 0.60 mm of diameter and adhesive of polyvinyl acetate (PVA) with the concentration between 10 to 20%. The dragées obtained presented a mechanical resistance of 0.5 kg/cm2 had show a germination higher than 90% without any phytotoxical effects to the seedlings. Fungicides with agent of metalaxyl, iprodyon, benomyl, mankoceb with the concentration 3-3 and mineral nutrients N, P2O5, K2O, MgO, Fe, Zn, Mn, B, Cu, Mo, Co with the concentration 0.2, 0.1, 0.15, 0.06, 0.00045, 0.00025, 0.0011, 0.00057, 0.00045, 0.000084, 0.00001 g/kg dolomite powder were showed best reultes, respectively. With this dragée utilization we could make possible the intensive use of highest quality seeds wich because of their higher costs are prohibitive in the actual systems of production. Keywords:crops, vegetables, seeds, dragée, nutrients, fungicides Introduction: In Latin America, Brazíl is the far greatest producer of crops and vegetables, with an annual production estimated at 9.631.000 tons in the value of 1.576 million dollars. Fifty species are cultivated of which 35 are producing botanical seeds including 162 varieties commercialized. The average national production of vegetable seeds is of 1.329,73 tons per year with an additional importation of 553,14 tons (Warley and Homero 1991). Most of the seeds of species are small requiring special preparation of the soil or the formation of seedlings and transplantation limiting the possibilities to mechanized planting. Besides the small size of seeds their trichome contents their wrinkle and their sensibility to mechanical damage difficult their uniform and precise distribution at sowing. To avoid error of "stand" and excessive number of seeds is sown followed by thinning out to eliminate exceeding plants. That results in the rise of production costs leding the producer to the utilization of cheaper seeds giving up extra gains that may results from the usage of better cultivars. The dragée facilitates the uniform distribution of seeds and makes precision mechanical planting possible (Márton 1993). In the process of plant productions the use of dragéed seeds facilitates the distribution of seeds that rises productive rentability (Silva and Márton 1992). The National Research Center for Vegetable Crops was developing dragée techniques of seeds based on Hungarian technology viewing the utilization of natural resources from the Brazílian situation from 1990 to 1993 (Márton 1999, 2000). Material and Method: At the first stage an equipment was developed for the production of dragées on the laboratory scale. The apparatus was permitting different material tests of seeds of various species obtaining dragées of carrot (Daucus carota L.), onion (Allium cepa L.), tomato (Lycopersicum esculentum Mill.), lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) and micro tubers of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.), Andropogon ssp. and Eucalyptus ssp. using as inert material the dolomite (CaCO3 96%) powder fractions (0.05 to 1.00 mm) and as cementing adhesives the polyvinyl acetate (PVA) and Gumma arabicum (Ga) (0 to 80% in water). On dragée process were using fungicides with agent of metalaxyl, iprodyon, benomyl, mancoceb (1 to 5 g fungicide/kg dolomite powder) and mineral nutrients (N, P2O5, K2O 0.05 to 0.5, MgO, Fe, Zn, Mn, B, Cu, Mo, Co 0.000005 to 0.1 g/kg dolomite powder) were applied from 1990. to 1993. After the first stage of producing dragées a more detailed study was started to produce seeds of tomato varieties for processing being its mechanical seeding the most wide-spread requiring 40.000 tons of seeds per year. Results and Discussion: During the tests with the dragées produced it was verified that those produced from materials of very fine granulometry affected very adversly the germination of the seeds probably because of the lack of gas diffusion. This phenomenon was due to the formation of micro pores that retained water with great intensity not permitting gas exchange between the seeds and environment. At the same time it was observed different that greater fractions of material do not permit the adhesion of seeds and the dragée remained "empty". The tests of granulometric fractions of dolomite powder showed that granule with size over 0.6 mm is not practicable for dragée process because of the lack of sticking of the seeds and because of the formation of deformed dragées the surface of wich is not smooth. Best results were obtained in the intermediary fractions of 0.07 to 0.60 mm when the finer fractions were usable in the final stage in order to obtain smoother surface. When granules finer than 0.07 mm were used this affected adversely the germination of the seeds. As cementing agents adhesives of polyvinyl acetate (PVA) and Gumma arabicum (Ga) were tested in concentrations between 5 to 70% diluted in water. Best results were obtained with PVA with the concentration between 10 to 20%. The dragées produced with adhesives at 5% obtained a mechanical resistance inferior to 0.5 kg/cm2 and the dragées produced easily. The dragées produced with adhesives of concentration superior to 20% presented a mechanical resistance higher than 0.5 kg/cm2 but difficulted the germination. The affinity of contact between the layer of dragée and surface of the seeds is favorable to the formation of a water coat. That coat does not permit the oxygenation of the seeds unable the beginning of the germination. Because of that during the first day after the planting the formation of the water coat layer must be avoided the application of irrigation. Best results with fungicides with agents such metalaxyl, iprodyon, benomyl, mancoceb with the concentration 3-3 and mineral nutrients such N, P2O5, K2O, MgO, Fe, Zn, Mn, B, Cu, Mo, Co with the concentration 0.2, 0.1, 0.15, 0.06, 0.00045, 0.00025, 0.0011, 0.00057, 0.00045, 0.000084 0.00001 g/kg dolomite powder were obtained, respectively. With this fungicides and mineral nutrients concentrations were obtaining very good germinations (higher than 90%) without surging phytotoxication and other abnormalities. In case of this dragée utilization can make possible the intensive use of highest quality seeds wich because of their higher costs are prohibitive in the actual system of production by mechanical seeding, generaly. For example actually 2 to 3 kgs of tomato seeds are use per hectare for planting. However 0.2 to 0.3 kgs of seeds should be sufficient to produce the seedlings to the same area. Acknowledgements: This research was supported by National Research Center for Vegetable Crops (EMBRAPA/CNPH), Brazíl and Research Institute for Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Hungary References Márton L (1993) Relatorio final de consultoria. EMBRAPA/CNPH. Brasília-DF. p 151. Brazíl Márton L (2000) Effects of NPK fertilizers on potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) yield. Veszprém University. Keszthely. p 136. Hungary Márton L and José AB (1999) Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) production in Brazíl. Acta Agronomica Óváriensis 41:153-158. Hungary Silva JBC and Márton L (1992) Adaptation of pelletization (dragée) techniques of seeds in Brazíl. In proceeding: The application and utilization in the agricultural scientific results in developing countries. Second International Scientific Conference. 286-289. Gödöllő. Hungary Warley MN and Homero BSVP (1991) Encontro sobre producáo e qualidade de sementes de hortalicas. Centro Nacional de Pesquisa de Hortalicas-CNPH/EMBRAPA. Brazília-DF. Brasíl

  11. Spin-filter specular spin valves

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lu, Z. Q.; Pan, G.; Jibouri, A. A.; Zheng, Yaunkai

    2002-01-01

    Both a thin free layer and high magnetoresistance (MR) ratio are required in spin valves for high magnetic density recording heads. In traditional spin valve structures, reducing the free layer normally results in a reduction in MR. We report here on a spin-filter specular spin valve with structure Ta 3.5 nm/NiFe 2 nm/IrMn 6 nm/CoFe 1.5 nm/Nol/CoFe 2 nm/Cu 2.2 nm/CoFe tF/Cu tSF/Nol2/Ta 3 nm, which is demonstrated to maintain MR ratio higher than 12% even when the CoFe free layer is reduced to 1 nm. The semiclassical Boltzmann transport equation was used to simulate MR ratio. An optimized MR ratio of ˜14.5% was obtained when tF was about 1.5 nm and tSF about 1.0 nm as a result of the balance between the increase in electron mean free path difference and current shunting through conducting layer. It is found that the Cu enhancing layer not only enhances the MR ratio but also improves soft magnetic properties of CoFe free layer due to the low atomic intermixing observed between Co and Cu. The CoFe free layer of 1-4 nm exhibits a low coercivity of ˜3 Oe even after annealing at 270 °C for 7 h in a field of 1 kOe. Furthermore, the interlayer coupling field Hint between free layer and pinned layer can be controlled by balancing the Rudermann-Kittel-(Kasuya)-Yosida and magnetostatic coupling. Such a thin soft CoFe free layer is particularly attractive for high density read sensor application.

  12. Solid Liquid Interdiffusion Bonding of (Pb, Sn)Te Thermoelectric Modules with Cu Electrodes Using a Thin-Film Sn Interlayer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chuang, T. H.; Lin, H. J.; Chuang, C. H.; Yeh, W. T.; Hwang, J. D.; Chu, H. S.

    2014-12-01

    A (Pb, Sn)Te thermoelectric element plated with a Ni barrier layer and a Ag reaction layer has been joined with a Cu electrode coated with Ag and Sn thin films using a solid-liquid interdiffusion bonding method. This method allows the interfacial reaction between Ag and Sn such that Ag3Sn intermetallic compounds form at low temperature and are stable at high temperature. In this study, the bonding strength was about 6.6 MPa, and the specimens fractured along the interface between the (Pb, Sn)Te thermoelectric element and the Ni barrier layer. Pre-electroplating a film of Sn with a thickness of about 1 μm on the thermoelectric element and pre-heating at 250°C for 3 min ensures the adhesion between the thermoelectric material and the Ni barrier layer. The bonding strength is thus increased to a maximal value of 12.2 MPa, and most of the fractures occur inside the thermoelectric material. During the bonding process, not only the Ag3Sn intermetallics but also Cu6Sn5 forms at the Ag3Sn/Cu interface, which transforms into Cu3Sn with increases in the bonding temperature or bonding time.

  13. Investigations of YBa2Cu3O y films sputtered onto a substrate of amorphous quartz with a platinum buffer layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blinova, Yu. V.; Snigirev, O. V.; Porokhov, N. V.; Evlashin, S. A.

    2017-10-01

    Results of investigations using X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy of composite materials made from YBa2Cu3O y films sputtered (using various regimes) onto a substrate of amorphous quartz with a platinum buffer layer, have been given.

  14. Hybrid Cu(2)O diode with orientation-controlled C(60) polycrystal.

    PubMed

    Izaki, Masanobu; Saito, Takamasa; Ohata, Tatsuya; Murata, Kazufumi; Fariza, Binti Mohamad; Sasano, Junji; Shinagawa, Tsutomu; Watase, Seiji

    2012-07-25

    We report on a hybrid diode composed of a 2.1 eV bandgap p-cupric oxide (Cu2O) semiconductor and fullerene (C60) layer with a face-centered cubic configuration. The hybrid diode has been constructed by electrodeposition of the 500 nm thick Cu2O layer in a basic aqueous solution containing a copper acetate hydrate and lactic acid followed by a vacuum evaporation of the 50 nm thick C60 layer at the evaporation rate from 0.25 to 1.0 Å/s. The C60 layers prepared by the evaporation possessed a face-centered cubic configuration with the lattice constant of 14.19 A, and the preferred orientation changed from random to (111) plane with decrease in the C60 evaporation rate from 1.0 to 0.25 Å/s. The hybrid p-Cu2O/C60 diode showed a rectification feature regardless of the C60 evaporation rate, and both the rectification ratio and forward current density improved with decrease in the C60 evaporation rate. The excellent rectification with the ideality factor of approximately 1 was obtained for the 500 nm thick (111)-Cu2O/50 nm thick (111)-fcc-C60/bathocuproine (BCP) diode at the C60 evaporation rate of 0.25 Å /s. The hybrid Cu2O/C60 diode prepared by stacking the C60 layer at the evaporation rate of 0.25 Å/s revealed the photovoltaic performance of 8.7 × 10(-6)% in conversion efficiency under AM1.5 illumination, and the conversion efficiency changed depending on the C60 evaporation rate.

  15. Crystalline Membranes

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Tsapatsis, Michael (Inventor); Lai, Zhiping (Inventor)

    2008-01-01

    In certain aspects, the invention features methods for forming crystalline membranes (e.g., a membrane of a framework material, such as a zeolite) by inducing secondary growth in a layer of oriented seed crystals. The rate of growth of the seed crystals in the plane of the substrate is controlled to be comparable to the rate of growth out of the plane. As a result, a crystalline membrane can form a substantially continuous layer including grains of uniform crystallographic orientation that extend through the depth of the layer.

  16. Preparation of Hollow CuO@SiO2 Spheres and Its Catalytic Performances for the NO + CO and CO Oxidation

    PubMed Central

    Niu, Xiaoyu; Zhao, Tieying; Yuan, Fulong; Zhu, Yujun

    2015-01-01

    The hollow CuO@SiO2 spheres with a mean diameter of 240 nm and a thin shell layer of about 30 nm in thickness was synthesized using an inorganic SiO2 shell coating on the surface of Cu@C composite that was prepared by a two-step hydrothermal method. The obtained hollow CuO@SiO2 spheres were characterized by ICP-AES, nitrogen adsorption-desorption, SEM, TEM, XRD, H2-TPR, CO-TPR, CO-TPD and NO-TPD. The results revealed that the hollow CuO@SiO2 spheres consist of CuO uniformly inserted into SiO2 layer. The CuO@SiO2 sample exhibits particular catalytic activities for CO oxidation and NO + CO reactions compared with CuO supported on SiO2 (CuO/SiO2). The higher catalytic activity is attributed to the special hollow shell structure that possesses much more highly dispersed CuO nanocluster that can be easy toward the CO and NO adsorption and the oxidation of CO on its surface. PMID:25777579

  17. Structure and superconductivity in (Bi(0.35)Cu(0.65))Sr2YCu2O7 and related materials

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jennings, R. A.; Williams, S. P.; Greaves, C.

    1995-01-01

    The recently reported (Bi/Cu)Sr2YCu2O7 phase has been studied by time of flight powder neutron diffraction. The proposed 1212 structure has been confirmed and refinements have shown the oxygen in the (Bi/Cu)O layer is displaced by 0.78 A from the ideal (1/2,1/2,0) site (P4/mmm space group) along /100/. Bond Valence Sum calculations have suggested oxidation states of Bi(5+) and Cu(2+) for the cations in the (Bi/Cu)O layers. The material is non-superconducting and all attempts to induce superconductivity have been unsuccessful. Work on the related material (Ce/Cu)Sr2YCu2O7 has shown the ideal Ce content to be 0.5 Ce per formula unit. The introduction of Ba (10%) onto the Sr site dramatically increases phase stability and also induces superconductivity (62 K).

  18. Low-temperature structural and transport anomalies in Cu2Se

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chi, Hang; Kim, Hyoungchul; Thomas, John C.; Shi, Guangsha; Sun, Kai; Abeykoon, Milinda; Bozin, Emil S.; Shi, Xiaoya; Li, Qiang; Shi, Xun; Kioupakis, Emmanouil; Van der Ven, Anton; Kaviany, Massoud; Uher, Ctirad

    2014-05-01

    Through systematic examination of symmetrically nonequivalent configurations, first-principles calculations have identified a new ground state of Cu2Se, which is constructed by repeating sextuple layers of Se-Cu-Cu-Cu-Cu-Se. The layered nature is in accord with electron and x-ray diffraction studies at and below room temperature and also is consistent with transport properties. Magnetoresistance measurements at liquid helium temperatures exhibit cusp-shaped field dependence at low fields and evolve into quasilinear field dependence at intermediate and high fields. These results reveal the existence of weak antilocalization effect, which has been analyzed using a modified Hikami, Larkin, and Nagaoka model, including a quantum interference term and a classical quadratic contribution. Fitting parameters suggest a quantum coherence length L of 175 nm at 1.8 K. With increasing temperature, the classical parabolic behavior becomes more dominant, and L decreases as a power law of T-0.83.

  19. Reaction-diffusion-induced explosive crystallization in a metal-selenium nanometer film structure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kogai, V. Ya.

    2016-03-01

    Experimental data for reaction-diffusion-induced explosive crystallization in a nanodimensional metal (Cu, Ag)/selenium structure are presented. It is found that after the metal layer has completely diffused into the amorphous Se film, the electrical potential rises from 0.14 to 1.21 V in the Cu(30 nm)/Se(140 nm) heterolayer and from 0.01 to 1.17 V in the Ag(30 nm)/Se(140 nm) heterolayer. The metals diffusing into the amorphous Se layer interact with Se, forming nuclei of a new phase (CuSe or Ag2Se). The intense growth of the CuSe and Ag2Se crystallization centers results in a considerable liberation of latent energy in the form of phase transformation heat and in explosive growth of CuSe and Ag2Se nanocrystalline particles. The mean size of CuSe and Ag2Se crystallites equals 25 and 50 nm, respectively.

  20. Raman study of the thermal stability of HgBa 2CaCu 2O 6+δ and HgBa 2Ca 2Cu 3O 8+δ

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chang, H.; He, Z. H.; Meng, R. L.; Xue, Y. Y.; Chu, C. W.

    1995-02-01

    We studied the thermal stability of HgBa 2CaCu 2O 6+δ and HgBa 2Ca 2Cu 3O 8+δ at varying laser irradiation power. Each compound has two Raman bands around 570 and 590 cm -1 which are assigned to the vibrations of the interstitial oxygen in HgO δ layers and the apical oxygen in BaO layers, respectively. The 590 cm -1 band shifts position slightly with irradiation, and both the intensity and position of the 570 cm -1 band vary significantly with the laser power. The occupation factor of the interstitial oxygen is sensitive to the annealing temperature. At higher temperatures (550-600°C), both compounds decompose into various (Ba,Cu)-oxides such as Ba 1- xCa xCuO 2.

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