147 research outputs found
Spectro-microscopy of single and multi-layer graphene supported by a weakly interacting substrate
We report measurements of the electronic structure and surface morphology of
exfoliated graphene on an insulating substrate using angle-resolved
photoemission and low energy electron diffraction. Our results show that
although exfoliated graphene is microscopically corrugated, the valence band
retains a massless fermionic dispersion, with a Fermi velocity of ~10^6 m/s. We
observe a close relationship between the morphology and electronic structure,
which suggests that controlling the interaction between graphene and the
supporting substrate is essential for graphene device applications.Comment: 10 pages of text, 4 JPEG figure
Observation of Bloch-point domain walls in cylindrical magnetic nanowires
Topological protection is an elegant way of warranting the integrity of
quantum and nanosized systems. In magnetism one example is the Bloch-point, a
peculiar object implying the local vanishing of magnetization within a
ferromagnet. Its existence had been postulated and described theoretically
since several decades, however it has never been observed. We con rm
experimentally the existence of Bloch points, imaged within domain walls in
cylindrical magnetic nanowires, combining surface and transmission XMCD-PEEM
magnetic microscopy. This opens the way to the experimental search for peculiar
phenomena predicted during the motion of Bloch-point-based domain walls
Desorption kinetics from a surface derived from direct imaging of the adsorbate layer
There are numerous indications that adsorbed particles on a surface do not desorb statistically, but that their spatial distribution is important. Evidence almost exclusively comes from temperature-programmed desorption, the standard method for measuring desorption rates. However, this method, as a kinetics experiment, cannot uniquely prove an atomic mechanism. Here we report a low-energy electron microscopy investigation in which a surface is microscopically imaged while simultaneously temperature-programmed desorption is recorded. The data show that during desorption of oxygen molecules from a silver single crystal surface, islands of oxygen atoms are present. By correlating the microscopy and the kinetics data, a model is derived that includes the shapes of the islands and assumes that the oxygen molecules desorb from the island edges. The model quantitatively reproduces the complex desorption kinetics, confirming that desorption is affected by islands and that the often used mean-field treatment is inappropriate
Spin configurations in Co2FeAl0.4Si0.6 Heusler alloy thin film elements
We determine experimentally the spin structure of half-metallic
Co2FeAl0.4Si0.6 Heusler alloy elements using magnetic microscopy. Following
magnetic saturation, the dominant magnetic states consist of quasi-uniform
configurations, where a strong influence from the magnetocrystalline anisotropy
is visible. Heating experiments show the stability of the spin configuration of
domain walls in confined geometries up to 800 K. The switching temperature for
the transition from transverse to vortex walls in ring elements is found to
increase with ring width, an effect attributed to structural changes and
consequent changes in magnetic anisotropy, which start to occur in the narrower
elements at lower temperatures.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure
Assessment of a self-reported Drinks Diary for the estimation of drinks intake by care home residents: Fluid Intake Study in the Elderly (FISE)
Objectives: We evaluated the accuracy of a newly developed self-completed Drinks Diary in care home residents and compared it with direct observation and fluid intake charts. Design: Observational study. Setting: Residential care homes in Norfolk, UK. Participants: 22 elderly people (18 women, mean age 86.6 years SD 8.6, 12 with MMSE scores <27). Measurements: Participants recorded their own drinks intake over 24 hours using the Drinks Diary while care staff used the homes’ usual fluid intake chart to record drinks intake. These records were compared with drinks intake assessed by researcher direct observation (reference method), during waking hours (6am to 10pm), while drinks taken from 10pm to 6am were self-reported and checked with staff. Results: Drinks intake assessed by the Drinks Diary was highly correlated with researcher direct observation (Pearson correlation coefficient r=0.93, p<0.001, mean difference -163ml/day) while few staff-completed fluid charts were returned and correlation was low (r=0.122, p=0.818, mean difference 702ml/day). The Drinks Diary classified 19 of 22 participants correctly as drinking enough or not using both the European Food Safety Authority and US recommendations. Conclusion: The Drinks Diary estimate of drinks intake was comparable with direct observation and more accurate (and reliably completed) than staff records. The Drinks Diary can provide a reliable estimate of drinks intake in elderly care home residents physically and cognitively able to complete it. It may be useful for researchers, care staff and practitioners needing to monitor drinks intake of elderly people, to help them avoid dehydration
Desorption kinetics from a surface derived from direct imaging of the adsorbate layer
There are numerous indications that adsorbed particles on a surface do not desorb statistically, but that their spatial distribution is important. Evidence almost exclusively comes from temperature-programmed desorption, the standard method for measuring desorption rates. However, this method, as a kinetics experiment, cannot uniquely prove an atomic mechanism. Here we report a low-energy electron microscopy investigation in which a surface is microscopically imaged while simultaneously temperature-programmed desorption is recorded. The data show that during desorption of oxygen molecules from a silver single crystal surface, islands of oxygen atoms are present. By correlating the microscopy and the kinetics data, a model is derived that includes the shapes of the islands and assumes that the oxygen molecules desorb from the island edges. The model quantitatively reproduces the complex desorption kinetics, confirming that desorption is affected by islands and that the often used mean-field treatment is inappropriate
Pattern induced ordering of semiconducting graphene ribbons grown from nitrogen-seeded SiC
International audienceA wide band gap semiconducting form of graphene can be produced by growing a buckled form of graphene from a SiC(0001) surface randomly seeded with nitrogen. In this work, we show that the disorder observed in this form of graphene can be substantially reduced by pre-patterning the nitrogen seeded SiC surface into trenches. The result of the patterning is highly improved film thickness variations, orientational epitaxy, domain size, and electronic structure. The ordering induced by this patterned growth offers a way to take advantage of the extremely high mobilities and switching speeds in C-face graphene devices while having the thickness uniformity and fabrication scalability normally only achievable for graphene grown on the SiC(0001) Si-fac
- …