Preparation and characterization of alumina submicron fibers by plasma assisted calcination

Ceramic alumina nanofibers were prepared by plasma-assisted calcination (PAC) using atmospheric pressure plasma. Electrospun polyvinyl pyrrolidone/aluminium butoxide fibers were pre-treated by plasma generated in ambient air using a special type of coplanar dielectric barrier discharge. The effect of plasma on fibers and structural, chemical and crystalline properties of obtained ceramic nanofibers were characterized using X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy, Energy-dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy and X-Ray Diffraction. Thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis were used for the study of thermal behaviour of untreated and plasma-treated samples. The ceramic fibers prepared by PAC exhibit suitable chemical composition, higher porosity, high length of fibers and better crystalline properties with simultaneous simplifying of the sintering process. The plasma pre-treatment of fibers results in a shortening of following thermal treatment, decrease of the required temperature and excludes a slow temperature increase as prevention of fibrous structure degradation typical in preparation of ceramic fibers by polymer-template techniques.     

Waveguide-based near-eye display with dual-channel exit pupil expander

We propose a waveguide-based near-eye display featuring a dual-channel exit pupil expander, which is composed of an in-coupler, relay gratings, and an out-coupler. Unlike the conventional waveguide-based near-eye displays, whose field of views are usually non-split or partially split, our dual-channel exit pupil expander is able to evenly split the field of view into two halves. The greatest benefit of doing so is that the upper limit of field of view could be significantly increased. The design rules for all components, including the microdisplay, collimating lens, waveguide and gratings, have been studied. The refractive index and dimension of waveguide are identified as two factors that limit the field of view. In what follows, its key specifications are recapitulated. Field of view is 70° (diagonal), eye relief is 15 mm, exit pupil is 20 × 9 mm², modulation transfer function is above 0.591 at 30 cycle/degree, contrast ratio is 13, and distortion is 1.38%.     

An array waveguide probe for detection,location and sizing of surface cracks in metals

The paper describes the development of a novel microwave probe for detection, location and sizing of surface cracks in metals. The probe utilizes the inherent mutual coupling in an array structure to determine crack alignment, placement and dimensions. The main feature of the probe is its ability to electronically scan the region of concern, thus avoiding the large inspection time and unwanted noise experienced in the conventional mechanical scanning. Theoretical and experimental results are presented for a prototype two-cell array probe when scanning a metallic specimen containing a long surface crack. It is shown that the probe is capable of determining the orientation, location and dimensions of surface cracks of a few millimeters depth.     

Novel organic dyes containing N-bridged oligothiophene coplanar cores for dye-sensitized solar cells

Three novel organic dyes adopting fully-fused coplanar heteroarene as the donor moieties end-capped with two cyanoacrylic acids as acceptors and anchoring groups have been synthesized, characterized, and used as the sensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The photophysical and electrochemical properties of the novel dyes and the characteristics of the DSSCs based on the novel organic dyes were investigated. The incorporation of the coplanar cores with electron-donating N-bridges are beneficial for the better intramolecular charge transfer (ICT), giving these new dyes good light-harvesting capability. The LUMO energy levels of these coplanar heteroacene-based dyes are sufficiently high for the efficient electron injection to TiO₂ upon photo-excitation, while the suitable HOMOs allow the regeneration of oxidized dyes with the electrolyte redox (I⁻/I₃⁻). The structural features of the coplanar cores (penta vs. hexa heteroarene) as well as the alkyl substitutions play crucial roles in governing the physical properties and device performance. Among these three novel organic sensitizers, the EHTt dye composed of a fully fused hexa-arene core and less bulky N-alkyl groups caused the DSSC to show the best photovoltaic performance with an open-circuit voltage (V_OC) of 0.58 V, a short-circuit photocurrent density (J_SC) of 13.72 mA/cm², and a fill factor (FF) of 0.69, yielding an overall power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 5.52% under AM 1.5G solar irradiation.     

Fabrication and characterization of large-core Yb/Al-codoped fused silica waveguides using dry etching

A deep inductively coupled plasma etching process was developed as a part of a continuous effort to develop an all-silica on-chip platform for high-power optical devices. Combined F and Cl based etching chemistry was found most suitable since silica matrix and Al doping are generally etched using different chemistries. First large-core (∼20 × 20 μm) Yb/Al-codoped fused silica waveguides on pure silica substrate were successfully fabricated, featuring ∼1 dB/cm optical propagation loss.     

Use of electromagnetic two-layer wave-guided propagation in the GPR frequency range to characterize water transfer in concrete

The objective of this paper is to adapt a recent innovative technique for extracting and exploiting the Electromagnetic (EM) waveguide dispersion of civil engineering materials by means of GPR, and allowing to monitor the water ingress front during the absorption process for various concrete mixes. This technique is based on an inversion procedure that applies the Electromagnetic Waveguide Model (WGM) to invert phase velocity dispersion curves in their modal form. A Parallel homogenization model, derived from the Lichtenecker-Rother equation, has been employed to extend the waveguide model from a one-layer to a two-layer medium. The WGM outputs are then used to estimate the geometric parameters of the propagation medium and offer a primary application to water transfer monitoring in concrete through capillarity effects. The initial WGM validation is carried out on FDTD-simulated propagation signals, while the second validation relies on GPR data acquired from homogeneous materials. Then, a broad-based experimental study is conducted for the purpose of correlating electromagnetic waveguide dispersion parameters with both the geometric and hydric characteristics of various concrete mixes. Results obtained using the two-layer WGM serve to monitor the water ingress front during an absorption process. These results are then compared to the moisture gradients generated on cores using gammadensimetry, which is set as the reference. This procedure yields a number of trends, which in turn provide key information on the conditioning state of the studied concretes.     

双脊型波导窗在宽带大功率行波管中的应用

本文简要分析了脊形波导窗的结构,介绍了WRD650双脊波导窗在实际制管中的应用,测试结果表明脊形波导窗应用于宽带大功率行波管是可行的.     

Alkaline aluminum phosphate glasses for thermal ion-exchanged optical waveguide

Alkaline aluminum phosphate glasses (NMAP) with excellent chemical durability for thermal ion-exchanged optical waveguide have been designed and investigated. The transition temperature Tg (470 °C) is higher than the ion-exchange temperature (390 °C), which is favorable to sustain the stability of the glass structure for planar waveguide fabrication. The effective diffusion coefficient D_e of K⁺–Na⁺ ion exchange in NMAP glasses is 0.110 μm²/min, indicating that ion exchange can be achieved efficiently in the optical glasses. Single-mode channel waveguide has been fabricated on Er³⁺/Yb³⁺ doped NMAP glass substrate by standard micro-fabrication and K⁺–Na⁺ ion exchange. The mode field diameter is 9.6 μm in the horizontal direction and 6.0 μm in the vertical direction, respectively, indicating an excellent overlap with a standard single-mode fiber. Judd–Ofelt intensity parameter Ω₂ is 5.47 × 10⁻²⁰ cm², implying a strong asymmetrical and covalent environment around Er³⁺ in the optical glasses. The full width at half maximum and maximum stimulated emission cross section of the ⁴I_13/2 → ⁴I_15/2 are 30 nm and 6.80 × 10⁻²¹ cm², respectively, demonstrating that the phosphate glasses are potential glass candidates in developing compact optoelectronic devices. Pr³⁺, Tm³⁺ and Ho³⁺ doped NMAP glasses are promising candidates to fabricate waveguide amplifiers and lasers operating at special telecommunication windows.     

An Analysis of Characteristics of Coplanar Transmission Lines with Finite Conductivity and Finite Strip Thickness by the Method of Lines

The method of lines (MoL) has been applied for analyzing the characteristics of various structures of coplanar transmission lines widely. But in most previous literatures, the metallizations are considered as infinitely thin or PEC(Perfect Electric Conductor). In this paper, the characteristics of coplanar transmission lines (take an example for shielding microstrip lines) with finite conductivity and finite strip thickness are analyzed by MoL and the computation results are shown.