A New Class of Materials Based on Nanoporous High Entropy Alloys with Outstanding Properties

Nanoporous metals with a random, bicontinuous structure of both pores and ligaments exhibit many unique mechanical properties, but their technical applications are often limited by their intrinsic brittleness under tensile strain triggered by fracture of the weakest ligaments. Here, we use molecular dynamics simulations to study the mechanical behavior and thermal stability of two different bicontinuous nanoporous high entropy alloys, Al0.1CoCrFeNi and NbMoTaW. To isolate the properties related to the nanoporous nature of our samples, we also studied the corresponding bulk and nanocrystalline systems. The results demonstrate that the specific modulus of nanoporous HEAs are 2 to 3 times greater than that of single element nanoporous materials with specific strength reaching values 5 to 10 times higher, comparable to bulk metals with the highest specific strength. Bicontinuous HEAs also displayed excellent resistance to thermal degradation as evidenced by the absence of coarsening ligaments up to temperatures of 1273 K which ensures the durability and reliability in high-temperature applications. The findings uncover unprecedented mechanical and thermal properties of bicontinuous nanoporous high entropy alloys, paving the way for their promising utilization in advanced engineering and structural applications

Sulfur-induced corrosion of Au(111) studied by real-time STM

The interaction of sulfur with gold surfaces has attracted considerable interest due to numerous technological applications such as the formation of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), use as a corrosion inhibitor, and as a chemical sensor. In this work, the interaction of sulfur with Au(111) at two different temperatures (300 K and 420 K) was studied by real-time scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), low energy electron diffraction (LEED) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). In the low coverage regime (< 0.1 monolayer), S modifies the surface stress leading to a lateral expansion of the Au surface layer. An ordered ({radical}3 x {radical}3)R30{sup o} sulfur adlayer develops as the coverage reaches {approx}0.3 ML. With further increasing S coverage the Au(111) surface undergoes a dynamic rearrangement while forming a two-dimensional AuS phase: gold surface atoms are removed from regular terrace sites and incorporated into the growing gold sulfide phase resulting in the appearance of pits and irregularly shaped AuS islands. Gold sulfide prepared at room temperature exhibits short-range order; an incommensurate, long-range ordered AuS phase develops upon annealing at 450-525 K. Higher temperatures lead to decomposition of the AuS corrosion film. Formation of an ordered AuS phase via rapid step retraction rather than etch pit formation is observed during S-interaction with Au(111) surfaces at 420 K. Our results shed new light on the S-Au(111) interaction

Dislocation nucleation in bcc Ta single crystals studied by nanoindentation

The study of dislocation nucleation in closed-packed metals by nanoindentation has recently attracted much interest. Here, we address the peculiarities of the incipient plasticity in body centered cubic (bcc) metals using low index Ta single-crystals as a model system. The combination of nanoindentation with high-resolution atomic force microscopy provides us with experimental atomic-scale information on the process of dislocation nucleation and multiplication. Our results reveal a unique deformation behavior of bcc Ta at the onset of plasticity which is distinctly different from that of closed-packed metals. Most noticeable, we observe only one rather than a sequence of discontinuities in the load-displacement curves. This and other differences are discussed in context of the characteristic plastic deformation behavior of bcc metals

Selective Thermal Reduction of Single-layer MoO3 nanostructures on Au(111)

MoO{sub 3} is an interesting oxide prototype because its catalytic activity is sensitive to the presence and nature of defects. In this work, we demonstrate that we can control the number of defects in single-layer MoO{sub 3} nanostructures grown on Au(111) by a simple thermal reduction treatment. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy demonstrates the formation of Mo{sup 5+} species and oxygen vacancies during annealing at 650 K. The percentage of Mo{sup 5+} increases with the duration of annealing, until a stable composition containing 50% Mo{sup 6+} and 50% Mo{sup 5+} is obtained. Surprisingly, the formation of lower oxidation states such as Mo{sup 4+} was not observed. The reduced MoO{sub x} islands remain one layer high, based on scanning tunneling microscope (STM) images. The two-dimensional nature of the reduced oxide nanocrystals may be due to a large barrier for structural reorganization and, thus, may account for the absence of Mo oxidation states lower than +5. Based on scanning tunneling microscopy images and density functional calculations, we propose that the formation of Mo{sup 5+} ions during annealing is not associated with formation of oxygen point defects, but can be attributed to the formation of extended one-dimensional shear defects. These reduced structures are useful for studying the dependence of reactivity on defect type, and present exciting possibilities for chemical sensors and other applications

the fire assay reloaded

The fire assay process is still the most accurate and precise method for measuring the gold content in gold alloys. Scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy have been applied to observe the change in microstructure of the samples undergoing the fire assay process. The performed observations reveal that the microstructure of the specimen is more complex than expected. Before the parting stage, the specimen is not a perfect gold–silver binary alloy but contains also copper–silver oxides and other residual compounds. The parting stage appears to be a dealloying process leading to a nanoporous gold nanostructure. What observed after partition explains the evolution of the shape and colour of the specimen and may allow for a better comprehension of the procedure and an improvement in the method

Synthesis of TiO2 nanoparticles on the Au(111) surface

The growth of titanium oxide nanoparticles on reconstructed Au(111) surfaces was investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Ti was deposited by physical vapor deposition at 300 K. Regular arrays of titanium nanoparticles form by preferential nucleation of Ti at the elbow sites of the herringbone reconstruction. Titanium oxide clusters were synthesized by subsequent exposure to O{sub 2} at 300 K. Two- and three-dimensional titanium oxide nanocrystallites form during annealing in the temperature range from 600 to 900 K. At the same time, the Au(111) surface assumes a serrated, <110> oriented step-edge morphology, suggesting step-edge pinning by titanium oxide nanoparticles. The oxidation state of these titanium oxide nanoparticles varies with annealing temperature. Specifically, annealing to 900 K results in the formation of stoichiometric TiO{sub 2} nanocrystals as judged by the observed XPS binding energies. Nano-dispersed TiO{sub 2} on Au(111) is an ideal system to test the various models explaining the enhanced catalytic reactivity of supported Au nanoparticles

Deformation Behavior of Nanoporous Metals

Nanoporous open-cell foams are a rapidly growing class of high-porosity materials (porosity {ge} 70%). The research in this field is driven by the desire to create functional materials with unique physical, chemical and mechanical properties where the material properties emerge from both morphology and the material itself. An example is the development of nanoporous metallic materials for photonic and plasmonic applications which has recently attracted much interest. The general strategy is to take advantage of various size effects to introduce novel properties. These size effects arise from confinement of the material by pores and ligaments, and can range from electromagnetic resonances to length scale effects in plasticity. In this chapter we will focus on the mechanical properties of low density nanoporous metals and how these properties are affected by length scale effects and bonding characteristics. A thorough understanding of the mechanical behavior will open the door to further improve and fine-tune the mechanical properties of these sometimes very delicate materials, and thus will be crucial for integrating nanoporous metals into products. Cellular solids with pore sizes above 1 micron have been the subject of intense research for many years, and various scaling relations describing the mechanical properties have been developed.[4] In general, it has been found that the most important parameter in controlling their mechanical properties is the relative density, that is, the density of the foam divided by that of solid from which the foam is made. Other factors include the mechanical properties of the solid material and the foam morphology such as ligament shape and connectivity. The characteristic internal length scale of the structure as determined by pores and ligaments, on the other hand, usually has only little effect on the mechanical properties. This changes at the submicron length scale where the surface-to-volume ratio becomes large and the effect of free surfaces can no longer be neglected. As the material becomes more and more constraint by the presence of free surfaces, length scale effects on plasticity become more and more important and bulk properties can no longer be used to describe the material properties. Even the elastic properties may be affected as the reduced coordination of surface atoms and the concomitant redistribution of electrons may soften or stiffen the material. If, and to what extend, such length scale effects control the mechanical behavior of nanoporous materials depends strongly on the material and the characteristic length scale associated with its plastic deformation. For example, ductile materials such as metals which deform via dislocation-mediated processes can be expected to exhibit pronounced length scale effects in the sub-micron regime where free surfaces start to constrain efficient dislocation multiplication. In this chapter we will limit our discussion to our own area of expertise which is the mechanical behavior of nanoporous open-cell gold foams as a typical example of nanoporous metal foams. Throughout this chapter we will review our current understanding of the mechanical properties of nanoporous open-cell foams including both experimental and theoretical studies

Breaking the Screen: Interaction Across Touchscreen Boundaries in Virtual Reality for Mobile Knowledge Workers.

Virtual Reality (VR) has the potential to transform knowledge work. One advantage of VR knowledge work is that it allows extending 2D displays into the third dimension, enabling new operations, such as selecting overlapping objects or displaying additional layers of information. On the other hand, mobile knowledge workers often work on established mobile devices, such as tablets, limiting interaction with those devices to a small input space. This challenge of a constrained input space is intensified in situations when VR knowledge work is situated in cramped environments, such as airplanes and touchdown spaces. In this paper, we investigate the feasibility of interacting jointly between an immersive VR head-mounted display and a tablet within the context of knowledge work. Specifically, we 1) design, implement and study how to interact with information that reaches beyond a single physical touchscreen in VR; 2) design and evaluate a set of interaction concepts; and 3) build example applications and gather user feedback on those applications.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures, ISMAR 202

Nanoporous gold as a highly active substrate for surface-enhanced Raman scattering spectroscopy

Colloidal solutions of metal nanoparticles are currently among most studied substrates for sensors based on surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS). However, such substrates often suffer from not being cost-effective, reusable, or stable. Here, we develop nanoporous Au as a highly active, tunable, a.ordable, stable, bio-compatible, and reusable SERS substrate. Nanoporous Au is prepared by a facile process of free corrosion of AgAu alloys followed by annealing. Results show that nanofoams with average pore sizes of {approx} 250 nm exhibit the largest SERS signal for 632.8 nm excitation. This is attributed to the electromagnetic SERS enhancement mechanism with additional field localization within pores

Snus use and rejection in the USA

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether snus might become a strategy for reducing the harm associated with cigarette smoking in the USA as appears to be the case in Sweden, we examined receptivity to snus use in two cities with the greatest exposure to the major brands. METHODS: A dual frame, telephone survey and a brief mail survey were conducted in 2011 and 2012 in Indianapolis, Indiana and Dallas/Fort Worth Texas. Over 5000 adults completed surveys. Trial, ever use, current use and reasons for using or quitting snus after trial were measured. RESULTS: Among male smokers, 29.9% had ever tried snus (CI 22.7 to 38.1) and 4.2% were current users (CI 1.6 to 10.7). Among female smokers, 8.5% ever tried snus (CI 4.4 to 15.7) and current use was unknown. Current use was virtually absent among former smokers and never smokers. A major predictor of any level of snus use was current use of conventional smokeless tobacco. Those who tried and gave up snus cited curiosity (41.3%) and the fact that it was available at low or no cost (30%) as reasons for trial; reasons for not continuing included preferring another form of tobacco (75.1%) and disliking the mouth feel (34.6%). Almost all current snus users indicated that they were trying to cut down on cigarettes, but few (3.9%) were using it to quit smoking entirely. CONCLUSIONS: The low rate of adoption of snus suggests that neither the hopes nor the fears surrounding this new product are likely to be realised in the USA with the current marketing patterns