201,891 research outputs found
Ultrasonic inspection and self-healing of Ge and 3C-SiC semiconductor membranes
Knowledge of the mechanical properties and stability of thin film structures is important for device operation. Potential failures related to crack initiation and growth must be identified early, to enable healing through e.g. annealing. Here, three square suspended membranes, formed from a thin layer of cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) or germanium (Ge) on a silicon substrate, were characterised by their response to ultrasonic excitation. The resonant frequencies and mode shapes were measured during thermal cycling over a temperature range of 20--100~C. The influence of temperature on the stress was explored by comparison with predictions from a model of thermal expansion of the combined membrane and substrate. For an ideal, non-cracked sample the stress and Q-factor behaved as predicted. In contrast, for a 3C-SiC and a Ge membrane that had undergone vibration and thermal cycling to simulate extended use, measurements of the stress and Q-factor showed the presence of damage, with the 3C-SiC membrane subsequently breaking. However, the damaged Ge sample showed an improvement to the resonant behaviour on subsequent heating. Scanning electron microscopy showed that this was due to a self-healing of sub-micrometer cracks, caused by expansion of the germanium layer to form bridges over the cracked regions, with the effect also observable in the ultrasonic inspection
Precise comparison of theory and new experiment for the Casimir force leads to stronger constraints on thermal quantum effects and long-range interactions
We report an improved dynamic determination of the Casimir pressure between
two plane plates obtained using a micromachined torsional oscillator. The main
improvements in the current experiment are a significant suppression of the
surface roughness of the Au layers deposited on the interacting surfaces, and a
decrease in the experimental error in the measurement of the absolute
separation. A metrological analysis of all data permitted us to determine both
the random and systematic errors, and to find the total experimental error as a
function of separation at the 95% confidence level. In contrast to all previous
experiments on the Casimir effect, our smallest experimental error (%) is achieved over a wide separation range. The theoretical Casimir
pressures in the experimental configuration were calculated by the use of four
theoretical approaches suggested in the literature. All corrections to the
Casimir force were calculated or estimated. All theoretical errors were
analyzed and combined to obtain the total theoretical error at the 95%
confidence level. Finally, the confidence interval for the differences between
theoretical and experimental pressures was obtained as a function of
separation. Our measurements are found to be consistent with two theoretical
approaches utilizing the plasma model and the surface impedance over the entire
measurement region. Two other approaches to the thermal Casimir force,
utilizing the Drude model or a special prescription for the determination of
the zero-frequency contribution to the Lifshitz formula, are excluded on the
basis of our measurements at the 99% and 95% confidence levels, respectively.
Finally, constraints on Yukawa-type hypothetical interactions are strengthened
by up to a factor of 20 in a wide interaction range.Comment: 43 pages, 15 figures, elsart.cls is used. Accepted for publication in
Annals of Physics. (Several misprints in the text are corrected.
Measurements of thermal properties of icy Mars regolith analogs
In a series of laboratory experiments, we measure thermal diffusivity, thermal conductivity, and heat capacity of icy regolith created by vapor deposition of water below its triple point and in a low pressure atmosphere. We find that an ice-regolith mixture prepared in this manner, which may be common on Mars, and potentially also present on the Moon, Mercury, comets and other bodies, has a thermal conductivity that increases approximately linearly with ice content. This trend differs substantially from thermal property models based of preferential formation of ice at grain contacts previously applied to both terrestrial and non-terrestrial subsurface ice. We describe the observed microphysical structure of ice responsible for these thermal properties, which displaces interstitial gases, traps bubbles, exhibits anisotropic growth, and bridges non-neighboring grains. We also consider the applicability of these measurements to subsurface ice on Mars and other solar system bodies
Kondo insulator SmB6 under strain: surface dominated conduction near room temperature
SmB6 is a strongly correlated mixed-valence Kondo insulator with a newly
discovered surface state, proposed to be of non-trivial topological origin.
However, the surface state dominates electrical conduction only below T* ~ 4 K
limiting its scientific investigation and device application. Here, we report
the enhancement of T * in SmB6 under the application of tensile strain. With
0.7% tensile strain we report surface dominated conduction at up to a
temperature of 240 K, persisting even after the strain has been removed. This
can be explained in the framework of strain-tuned temporal and spatial
fluctuations of f-electron configurations, which might be generally applied to
other mixed-valence materials. We note that this amount of strain can be indued
in epitaxial SmB6 films via substrate in potential device applications.Comment: to appear in Nature Material
On the effect of thin film growth mechanisms on the specular reflectance of aluminum thin films deposited via filtered cathodic vacuum arc
The optimisation of the specular reflectance of solar collectors is a key parameter to increase the global yield of concentrated solar power (CSP) plants. In this work, the influence of filtered cathodic vacuum arc deposition parameters, particularly working pressure and deposition time, on the specular and diffuse reflectance of aluminium thin films, was studied. Changes in specular reflectance, measured by ultravioletâvisible and near-infrared spectroscopy (UV-vis-NIR) spectro photometry, were directly correlated with thin film elemental concentration depth profiles, obtained by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), and surface and cross-sectional morphologies as measured by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and profilometry. Finally, atomic force microscopy (AFM) provided information on the roughness and growth mechanism of the films. The two contributions to the total reflectance of the films, namely diffuse and specular reflectance, were found to be deeply influenced by deposition conditions. It was proven that working pressure and deposition time directly determine the predominant factor. Specular reflectance varied from 12 to 99.8% of the total reflectance for films grown at the same working pressure of 0.1 Pa and with different deposition times. This transformation could not be attributed to an oxidation of the films as stated by RBS, but was correlated with a progressive modification of the roughness, surface, and bulk morphology of the samples over the deposition time. Hence, the evolution in the final optical properties of the films is driven by different growth mechanisms and the resulting microstructures. In addition to the originally addressed CSP applications the potential of the developed aluminium films for other application rather than CSP, such as, for example, reference material for spectroscopic diffuse reflectance measurements, is also discussed
Mixed-conducting LSC/CGO and Ag/CGO composites for passive oxygen separation membranes
Dense ceramic oxygen separation membranes can pass oxygen perm-selectively at
elevated temperature and have potential for improving the performance and reducing
the cost of several industrial processes: such as the conversion of natural gas to
syngas, or to separate oxygen from air for oxy-fuel combustion in electricity
generation (to reduce NOx emissions and facilitate CO2 sequestration). These
pressure-driven solid state membranes are based on fast oxygen-ion conducting
ceramics, but also need a compensating flow of electrons. Dual-phase composites are
attractive since they provide an extra degree of freedom, compared with single phase
membranes, for optimising the overall membrane performance. In this study,
composites containing gadolinia doped ceria (CGO, Ce0.9Gd0.1O2- ) and either
strontium-doped lanthanum cobaltite (LSC, La0.9Sr0.1CoO3- or La0.6Sr0.4CoO3- ) or
silver (Ag) were investigated for possible application as oxygen separation
membranes in oxy-fuel combustion system. These should combine the high oxygen
ion conductivity of CGO with the high electronic conductivity and fast oxygen
surface exchange of LSC or silver.
Dense mixed-conducting composite materials of LSC/CGO (prepared by powder
mixing and sintering) and Ag/CGO composites (prepared by silver plus copper oxide
infiltration method) showed high relative density (above 95%), low background gas
leakage and also good electrical conduction. The percolation threshold of the
electronic conducting component was determined to be approximately 20 vol.% for
both LSC compositions and 14 vol.% for Ag. Isotopic exchange and depth profiling
by secondary ion mass spectrometry was used to investigated the oxygen tracer
diffusion (D*) and surface exchange coefficient (k*) of the composites. Composites
just above the electronic percolation threshold exhibited high solid state oxygen
diffusivity, fast surface exchange activity moderate thermal expansion and sufficient
mechanical strength thus combining the benefits of their constituent materials. The
preliminary work on oxygen permeation measurement showed that the reasonable
magnitude of oxygen fluxes is possible to be achieved. This indicates that the
composites of LSC/CGO and Ag/CGO are promising for further development as
passive oxygen separation membranes
Nano-flow thermal sensor applying dymamic w-2w sensing method
This article presents microchannel thermal flow sensors fabricated using standard micromachining technology. The sensors comprise of a SiXNY microchannel created by etching of a poly-Si sacrificial layer. The channels are released by KOH etching through inlets and outlets etched from the backside of the substrate. Liquid flow is measured by platinum resistors deposited on top of the microchannel, while the channel is thermally isolated from the substrate by a SiXNY membrane. Flow rates of DI water in the order of nlâ
min-1 have been measured using a dynamic sensing method applying heat waves
Effect of contact angle hysteresis on thermocapillary droplet actuation
Open microfluidic devices based on actuation techniques such as electrowetting, dielectrophoresis, or thermocapillary stresses require controlled motion of small liquid droplets on the surface of glass or silicon substrates. In this article we explore the physical mechanisms affecting thermocapillary migration of droplets generated by surface temperature gradients on the supporting substrate. Using a combination of experiment and modeling, we investigate the behavior of the threshold force required for droplet mobilization and the speed after depinning as a function of the droplet size, the applied thermal gradient and the liquid material parameters. The experimental results are well described by a hydrodynamic model based on earlier work by Ford and Nadim. The model describes the steady motion of a two-dimensional droplet driven by thermocapillary stresses including contact angle hysteresis. The results of this study highlight the critical role of chemical or mechanical hysteresis and the need to reduce this retentive force for minimizing power requirements in microfluidic devices
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