Investigation of the Influence of Nanodispersed Compositions Obtained by Plasmochemical Synthesis on the Crystallization Processes of Structural Alloys

The state of the problem of stabilizing the structure, improving the quality and properties of structural alloys is studied. To solve the problem, it is proposed to modify melts of low–alloyed alloys with nanodispersed compositions obtained by plasma–chemical synthesis. Process technological parameters are developed. Nanopowders of carbide and carbonitride class SiC and Ti (C, N) with a size of 50 ... 100 nm are obtained. The crystallographic parameters of the nanocompositions and the specific surface are determined, and the dependency curves are plotted. The macro– and microstructure of structural steels and alloys was studied before and after the modification. A significant (in 2 ... 3.5 times) grain refinement and stabilization of the alloy structure as a result of nanopowder modification of titanium carbonitride have been achieved. Thermodynamic calculations of the dimensions of crystalline seeds during the crystallization of steels and alloys are carried out. A complex criterial estimation of the efficiency of nanodispersed compositions in a steel melt is proposed. The features of crystallization and structure formation of modified structural steels are studied. The obtained results are of theoretical and practical importance for production of critical parts from structural steels and high–quality alloys

Dynamic Behavior in Piezoresponse Force Microscopy

Frequency dependent dynamic behavior in Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM) implemented on a beam-deflection atomic force microscope (AFM) is analyzed using a combination of modeling and experimental measurements. The PFM signal comprises contributions from local electrostatic forces acting on the tip, distributed forces acting on the cantilever, and three components of the electromechanical response vector. These interactions result in the bending and torsion of the cantilever, detected as vertical and lateral PFM signals. The relative magnitudes of these contributions depend on geometric parameters of the system, the stiffness and frictional forces of tip-surface junction, and operation frequencies. The dynamic signal formation mechanism in PFM is analyzed and conditions for optimal PFM imaging are formulated. The experimental approach for probing cantilever dynamics using frequency-bias spectroscopy and deconvolution of electromechanical and electrostatic contrast is implemented.Comment: 65 pages, 15 figures, high quality version available upon reques

The Band Excitation Method in Scanning Probe Microscopy for Rapid Mapping of Energy Dissipation on the Nanoscale

Mapping energy transformation pathways and dissipation on the nanoscale and understanding the role of local structure on dissipative behavior is a challenge for imaging in areas ranging from electronics and information technologies to efficient energy production. Here we develop a novel Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) technique in which the cantilever is excited and the response is recorded over a band of frequencies simultaneously rather than at a single frequency as in conventional SPMs. This band excitation (BE) SPM allows very rapid acquisition of the full frequency response at each point (i.e. transfer function) in an image and in particular enables the direct measurement of energy dissipation through the determination of the Q-factor of the cantilever-sample system. The BE method is demonstrated for force-distance and voltage spectroscopies and for magnetic dissipation imaging with sensitivity close to the thermomechanical limit. The applicability of BE for various SPMs is analyzed, and the method is expected to be universally applicable to all ambient and liquid SPMs.Comment: 32 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in Nanotechnolog