Determination of specific ion positions of Cr³⁺ and O²- in Cr₂O₃ thin films and their relationship to exchange anisotropy at Co/Cr₂O₃ interfaces

The structures of antiferromagnetic Cr₂O₃(0001) thin films with perpendicular exchange bias were investigated using reflection high-energy electron diffraction, X-ray reflectivity, and synchrotron X-ray diffraction. We mainly investigated the specific ion positions of Cr³⁺ and O²- in the corundum structure and discussed their relationship to the magnetic anisotropy of Cr₂O₃. The Cr₂O₃(0001) thin film grown on a Pt(111) buffer layer exhibited a perpendicular exchange anisotropy density of 0.42 mJ/m², in which the Cr³⁺ position is the primary factor in the enhancement of magnetic anisotropy due to dipolar-interaction. In contrast, the single-crystalline Cr₂O₃(0001) film grown on a α-Al₂O₃(0001) substrate featured a low exchange magnetic anisotropy of 0.098 mJ/m². In this film, the Cr³⁺ position parameter is an insignificant factor, leading to low magnetic anisotropy. The O²- ion position also differs between the two types of films, which can affect both the magnetic anisotropy energy originating from fine structures and the magneto-electric properties of Cr₂O₃.Yu Shiratsuchi, Yuuta Nakano, Nobuhito Inami, Tetsuro Ueno, Kanta Ono, Reiji Kumai, Ryoko Sagayama, and Ryoichi Nakatani, Journal of Applied Physics 123, 103903 (2018); https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5020620

Enhancement of perpendicular exchange bias by introducing twin boundary in Pt/Co/α-Cr₂O₃/α-V₂O₃ epitaxial film

Perpendicular exchange anisotropy at the Co/α-Cr₂O₃ interface was investigated using the two types of films: the film with the single crystalline α-Cr₂O₃ and that with the twinned a-Cr₂O₃. Exchange anisotropy energy density JK of the film with the single crystalline α-Cr₂O₃ was ~0.09 erg/cm² whereas JK of the film with the twinned α-Cr₂O₃ was ~0.43 erg/cm², more than 4-times enhancement. We discussed the mechanism of the enhancement of JK based on the exchange coupling at the twin boundary and that the spin frustration at the twin boundary can be the origin of the enhancement of JK.Y.Shiratsuchi, S.Yoshida, S.Onoue, et al. Enhancement of perpendicular exchange bias by introducing twin boundary in Pt/Co/a-Cr₂O₃/a-V₂O₃ epitaxial film. Materials Transactions 60, 2028 (2019); https://doi.org/10.2320/matertrans.MT-M2019102

Context-dependent substroke model for HMM-based on-line handwriting recognition

Describes context-dependent substroke hidden Markov models (HMMs)for on-line handwritten recognition of cursive Kanji and Hiragana characters. In order to tackle this problem, we have proposed the substroke HMM approach where a modeling unit "substroke" that is much smaller than a whole character is employed and each character is modeled as a concatenation of only 25 kinds of substroke HMMs. One of the drawbacks of this approach is that the recognition accuracy deteriorates in the case of scribbled characters, and characters where the shape of the substrokes varies a lot. We show that the context-dependent substroke modeling which depends on how the substroke connects to the adjacent substrokes is effective for achieving robust recognition of low quality characters, The successive state splitting algorithm which was mainly developed for speech recognition is employed to construct the context dependent substroke HMMs. Experimental results show that the correct recognition rate improved from 88% to 92% for cursive Kanji handwriting and from 90% to 98% for Hiragana handwriting

An Attempt to Solve the Hierarchy Problem Based on Gravity-Gauge-Higgs Unification Scenario

We discuss a possible scenario to solve the hierarchy problem, in which 4-dimensional bosonic fields with all possible integer spins, graviton, gauge boson and Higgs are unified in a framework of a gravity theory with extra dimensions. The Higgs is identified with the extra space component of the metric tensor. One-loop quantum effect on the Higgs mass-squared is explicitly calculated in a five dimensional gravity theory compactified on $S^1$. We obtain a finite calculable Higgs mass-squared without suffering from quadratic divergence, by virtue of general coordinate transformation invariance, which is argued to be guaranteed by the summation over all Kaluza-Klein modes running in the loop diagrams.Comment: 15pages, 2figures; version accepted for publication in Phys. Lett. B, one reference adde

Morphology of F8T2/PC71BM Blend Film as Investigated by Scanning Transmission X-ray Microscope (STXM)

Clarification of the morphology of bulk heterojunction (BHJ) is indispensable for true comprehension of the organic solar cells. Here, we performed scanning transmission X-ray microscopy (STXM) for a poly-(9,9-dioctylfluorene-co-bithiophene) (F8T2)/[6,6]-phenyl C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) blend film annealed at various temperatures (Tan). We found that the fullerene concentration within the polymer-rich domain decreases with Tan while the domain size (∼230 nm) is essentially unchanged. We will discuss the interrelation between the film morphology and the photovoltaic performance

Development of Antiferromagnetic Heusler Alloys for the Replacement of Iridium as a Critically Raw Material

As a platinum group metal, iridium (Ir) is the scarcest element on the earth but it has been widely used as an antiferromagnetic layer in magnetic recording, crucibles and spark plugs due to its high melting point. In magnetic recording, antiferromagnetic layers have been used to pin its neighbouring ferromagnetic layer in a spin-valve read head in a hard disk drive for example. Recently, antiferromagnetic layers have also been found to induce a spin-polarised electrical current. In these devices, the most commonly used antiferromagnet is an Ir-Mn alloy because of its corrosion resistance and the reliable magnetic pinning of adjacent ferromagnetic layers. It is therefore crucial to explore new antiferromagnetic materials without critical raw materials. In this review, recent research on new antiferromagnetic Heusler compounds and their exchange interactions along the plane normal is discussed. These new antiferromagnets are characterised by very sensitive magnetic and electrical measurement techniques recently developed to determine their characteristic temperatures together with atomic structural analysis. Mn-based alloys are found to be most promising based on their robustness against atomic disordering and large pinning strength up to 1.4 kOe, which is comparable with that for Ir-Mn. The search for new antiferromagnetic films and their characterisation are useful for further miniaturisation and development of spintronic devices in a sustainable manner

Device characteristics of carbon nanotube transistor fabricated by direct growth method

We have fabricated carbon nanotube (CNT) field-effect transistors (FETs) by direct growth of single-wall CNTs between the source and drain electrodes, and investigated their device characteristics. The FETs show ambipolar operation. The temperature and bias voltage dependence of device characteristics are consistent with device operation of the Schottky-type FET. The carrier injection barrier heights for both the electron and hole carriers show small values of 17-74 meV, without any additional specific treatment after device fabrication

Synthesis-condition dependence of carbon nanotube growth by alcohol catalytic chemical vapor deposition method

We report the dependence of growth yield of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) on heat-treatment time and catalyst film thickness by the alcohol catalytic chemical vapor deposition method. Three types of heat-treatment, synthesis of 30 min, synthesis of 30 min after annealing of 30 min, and synthesis of 60 min, were investigated. Thickness of Co catalyst film was varied from 1 to 10 nm. In the case of thinner Co film less than 3 nm, long synthesis time of 60 min is favorable for the effective SWNT growth, because of the small amount of Co catalyst. In the case of thicker Co film more than 3 nm, an amount of grown SWNTs by 30 min synthesis after 30 min annealing and by 60 min synthesis was much higher than that by 30 min synthesis without annealing, showing that total heat-treatment time of 60 min is important for the SWNT growth. Results suggest that the conversion from the thicker film of Co to nano-particle which act as catalyst takes place during the first 30 min

Coordination Method between Specialist of Nano-Materials and Non-Specialist in Nano-Industry

Making a roadmap to a new business plan in nano-industry proposed here is one of the suitable examples of coordination method in current business. The roadmap is discussed here on the standpoint of a specialist of magnetism for the example. Most difficult but quite important points in the example are found in exact prediction to the timing of the technical developments and exact evaluation of the appraisal value as the business. The most possible method against these difficulties will be given by the cooperative discussion with the selected key persons including some excellent specialists in the enterprise. The two points in the method of collaboration to success the business are emphasized as the review.The original publication is available at JAIST Press http://www.jaist.ac.jp/library/jaist-press/index.htmlProceedings of KSS'2007 : The Eighth International Symposium on Knowledge and Systems Sciences : November 5-7, 2007, [Ishikawa High-Tech Conference Center, Nomi, Ishikawa, JAPAN]Organized by: Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technolog