Oxygen vacancy segregation and space-charge effects in grain boundaries of dry and hydrated BaZrO3

A space-charge model is applied to describe the equilibrium effects of segregation of double-donor oxygen vacancies to grain boundaries in dry and wet acceptor-doped samples of the perovskite oxide BaZrO3. The grain boundary core vacancy concentrations and electrostatic potential barriers resulting from different vacancy segregation energies are evaluated. Density-functional calculations on vacancy segregation to the mirror-symmetric \Sigma 3 (112) [-110] tilt grain boundary are also presented. Our results indicate that oxygen vacancy segregation can be responsible for the low grain boundary proton conductivity in BaZrO3 reported in the literature

Growth suppression of antibiotic-resistant Salmonella typhimurium DT104 by a non-DT104 strain in vitro

Growth suppression of antibiotic-resistant Salmonella typhimurium DT104 by a non-DT104 strain was investigated in vitro. Chromosomal mutants of eight antibiotic-resistant DT104 strains were generated by sub-culturing on desoxycholate hydrogen sulfide lactose agar containing 25 µg/ml of nalidixic acid. Low counts of each of these mutants (designated as “minority cultures”) were inoculated into 24-h cultures of a non-DT104 S. typhimurium strain (designated as “majority culture”) to test the ability of the majority culture to suppress the multiplication of the minority culture. Multiplication of small numbers of the antibiotic-resistant DT104 strains was significantly (P < 0.05) prevented when the DT104s were added to 24-h brain heart infusion cultures of the non-DT104 strain. This observation has practical implications for the control of the menacing antibiotic-resistant Salmonella typhimurium DT104

ESR Modes in CsCuCl3 in Pulsed Magnetic Fields

We present ESR results for 35-134GHz in the antiferromagnet CsCuCl3 at T=1.5K. The external field is applied perpendicular to the hexagonal c-axis. With our pulsed field facility we reach 50T an unprecedented field for low temperature ESR. We observe strong resonances up to fields close to the ferromagnetic region of ~30T. These results are discussed in a model for antiferromagnetic modes in a two-dimensional frustrated triangular spin system.Comment: 3 pages, RevTeX, 3 figures. to be published in Solid State Communication

Evaporative Deposition Patterns Revisited: Spatial Dimensions of the Deposit

A model accounting for finite spatial dimensions of the deposit patterns in the evaporating sessile drops of colloidal solution on a plane substrate is proposed. The model is based on the assumption that the solute particles occupy finite volume and hence these dimensions are of the steric origin. Within this model, the geometrical characteristics of the deposition patterns are found as functions of the initial concentration of the solute, the initial geometry of the drop, and the time elapsed from the beginning of the drying process. The model is solved analytically for small initial concentrations of the solute and numerically for arbitrary initial concentrations of the solute. The agreement between our theoretical results and the experimental data is demonstrated, and it is shown that the observed dependence of the deposit dimensions on the experimental parameters can indeed be attributed to the finite dimensions of the solute particles. These results are universal and do not depend on any free or fitting parameters; they are important for understanding the evaporative deposition and may be useful for creating controlled deposition patterns.Comment: 34 pages, 14 figures, LaTeX; submitted to Physical Review

Giant Stark effect in the emission of single semiconductor quantum dots

We study the quantum-confined Stark effect in single InAs/GaAs quantum dots embedded within a AlGaAs/GaAs/AlGaAs quantum well. By significantly increasing the barrier height we can observe emission from a dot at electric fields of -500 kV/cm, leading to Stark shifts of up to 25 meV. Our results suggest this technique may enable future applications that require self-assembled dots with transitions at the same energy

Linear-response theory of the longitudinal spin Seebeck effect

We theoretically investigate the longitudinal spin Seebeck effect, in which the spin current is injected from a ferromagnet into an attached nonmagnetic metal in a direction parallel to the temperature gradient. Using the fact that the phonon heat current flows intensely into the attached nonmagnetic metal in this particular configuration, we show that the sign of the spin injection signal in the longitudinal spin Seebeck effect can be opposite to that in the conventional transverse spin Seebeck effect when the electron-phonon interaction in the nonmagnetic metal is sufficiently large. Our linear-response approach can explain the sign reversal of the spin injection signal recently observed in the longitudinal spin Seebeck effect.Comment: Proc. of ICM 2012 (Accepted for publication in J. Korean Phys. Soc.), typos correcte

Eight-band calculations of strained InAs/GaAs quantum dots compared with one, four, and six-band approximations

The electronic structure of pyramidal shaped InAs/GaAs quantum dots is calculated using an eight-band strain dependent $\bf k\cdot p$ Hamiltonian. The influence of strain on band energies and the conduction-band effective mass are examined. Single particle bound-state energies and exciton binding energies are computed as functions of island size. The eight-band results are compared with those for one, four and six bands, and with results from a one-band approximation in which m(r) is determined by the local value of the strain. The eight-band model predicts a lower ground state energy and a larger number of excited states than the other approximations.Comment: 8 pages, 7 figures, revtex, eps

Change of the Ground State upon Hole Doping Unveiled by Ni Impurity in High-TcT_{\rm c} Cuprates

The electronic ground state in high-$T_{\rm c}$ cuprates where the superconducting state is suppressed by Ni substitution has been investigated in La$_{2-x}$Sr$_x$Cu$_{1-y}$Ni$_y$O$_4$ from the specific heat and muon spin relaxation measurements. It has been found that the ground state changes from a magnetically ordered state with the strong hole-trapping by Ni to a metallic state with the Kondo effect of Ni with increasing hole-concentration. Moreover, the analysis of the results has revealed that a phase separation into the magnetically ordered phase and the metallic phase occurs around the boundary of two phases.Comment: 11pages, 4 figure

Microstructural and morphological properties of homoepitaxial (001)ZnTe layers investigated by x-ray diffuse scattering

The microstructural and morphological properties of homoepitaxial (001)ZnTe layers are investigated by x-ray diffuse scattering. High resolution reciprocal space maps recorded close to the ZnTe (004) Bragg peak show different diffuse scattering features. One kind of cross-shaped diffuse scattering streaks along directions can be attributed to stacking faults within the epilayers. Another kind of cross-shaped streaks inclined at an angle of about 80deg with respect to the in-plane direction arises from the morphology of the epilayers. (abridged version

A versatile standard for bathochromic fluorescence based on intramolecular FRET.

A perylene and a terrylene tetracarboxylic bisimide dyad was prepared in which an efficient energy transfer from the former to the latter is observed. The absorption spectrum of this compound covers a broad range. Bathochromic fluorescence with a high quantum yield was obtained independent of excitation wavelengths (λ < 655 nm). The dyad can be recommended for the use of calibrating fluorescence spectrometers, as well as a fluorescence standard in the bathochromic region