Photoconductive optically driven deformable membrane for spatial light modulator applications utilizing GaAs substrates

The fabrication and characterization of an optically addressable deformable mirror for a spatial light modulator is described. Device operation utilizes an electrostatically driven pixellated aluminized polymeric membrane mirror supported above an optically controlled photoconductive GaAs substrate. A 5 microm thick grid of patterned photoresist supports the 2 microm thick aluminized Mylar membrane. A conductive ZnO layer is placed on the back side of the GaAs wafer. A standard Michelson interferometer is used to measure mirror deformation data as a function of illumination, applied voltage, and frequency. A simplified analysis of device operation is also presented.     

Cellulose acetate electrospun nanofibrous membrane: fabrication,characterization, drug loading and antibacterial properties

Cellulose-based materials are one of the most commonly used materials for biomedical applications, which normally applied as carriers for pharmaceuticals and drug-releasing scaffolds. In this study, cellulose acetate (CA) was used to fabricate the nanofibrous membrane using the electrospinning technique. CA solutions at different concentrations were prepared by dissolving the polymer in a mixture of acetic acid/acetone solvents with the ratio of 3 : 1. The field emission scanning electron microscope results showed that electrospinning of 10% (w/v) CA produced nanofibres with many beads. When the CA concentration was increased to 14% (w/v), bead-free nanofibres were produced. The contact angle measurement results confirmed the hydrophilic properties of nanofibres. In order to prevent common bacterial infections, a model drug, Tetracycline ? HCL was incorporated into the CA nanofibres. The drug-loaded CA nanofibres showed antibacterial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria. CA nanofibres had high water uptake properties. The CA nanofibrous membrane was non-toxic to human skin fibroblast cells. Thus the CA nanofibres with 14% (w/v) concentration exerted suitable properties for wound healing application.     

Fabrication and modeling of high-frequency PZT composite thick film membrane resonators

High-frequency, thickness mode resonators were fabricated using a 7 microm piezoelectric transducer (PZT) thick film that was produced using a modified composite ceramic sol-gel process. Initial studies dealt with the integration of the PZT thick film onto the substrate. Zirconium oxide (ZrO2) was selected as a diffusion barrier layer and gave good results when used in conjunction with silicon oxide (SiO2) as an etch stop layer. Using these conditions, devices were produced and the acoustic properties measured and modeled. The resonators showed a resonant frequency of about 200 MHz, an effective electromechanical coupling coefficient of 0.34, and a Q factor of 22. Modeling was based on a Mason-type model that gave good agreement between the experimental data and the simulations. The latter showed, for the PZT thick film, an electromechanical coupling coefficient of 0.35, a stiffness of 8.65 x 10(10) N x m(-2) and an e33,f piezoelectric coefficient of 9 C x m(-2).     

Inter-sheet-effect-inspired graphene sensors: design, fabrication and characterization

With their sub-nanometer inter-sheet spacing, few-layer graphenes (FLGs) are alignment-free building blocks for nanosensors based on the inter-sheet effects. In this paper, we have tackled the challenges towards batch fabrication of inter-sheet graphene sensors through controlled layer engineering, edge tailoring and selective electrode fabrication on different atomic layers. An oxygen plasma etching (OPE) technique is developed to remove graphene layer by layer, enabling the batch fabrication of FLGs in a controllable fashion because of the faster speed and readiness of patterning of this process as compared to the conventional mechanical exfoliation. Vapor sensing experiments have shown that 'inter-sheet' sensors possess a higher sensitivity than conventional 'intra-sheet' ones. Vapor sensitivity is improved more than two times in normalized resistance changes by taking the 'inter-sheet' design upon exposure to 0.5% ethanol-nitrogen mixture and 500 Pa water vapor environments, respectively. These remarkable improvements can mainly be attributed to the inter-sheet effects such as electron tunneling, chemical doping, physical insertion and enhanced edge effects. Such effects may result from molecule adsorption/desorption, force/displacement, pressure, surface tension or thermal energy, and can potentially remarkably enrich the applicable transduction mechanisms.     

Inspiration from butterfly and moth wing scales: Characterization,modeling, and fabrication

Through billions of years of evolution, nature has created biological materials with remarkable properties. Studying these biological materials can guide the design and fabrication of bio-inspired materials. Many of the complex natural architectures, such as shells, bones, and honeycombs, have been studied to imitate the design and fabrication of materials with improved hardness and stiffness. Recently, an increasing number of researchers have investigated the wings of lepidopterans (butterflies and moths) because these structures may exhibit dazzling colors. Based on previous studies, these iridescent colors are attributable to periodic structures on the scales that constitute the wing surfaces. These complex and diverse structures have recently become a focus of multidisciplinary research due to their promising applications in the display of structural colors, advanced sensors, and solar cells. This review provides a broad overview of the research into these wings, particularly the microstructures in the wing scales. This review investigates the following three fields: structural characterization and optical property analysis of lepidopteran wings, modeling and simulation of the optical properties and microstructure, and the fabrication of artificial structures inspired by these wings.     

Ceramic piezocomposites: modeling, technology, and characterization

A comprehensive review of microstructure peculiarities, mathematical models, methods of fabrication and measurements, as well as systematic experimental data for different types of ceramic piezocomposites is presented. New families of polymer-free ceramic piezocomposites (composites ceramics/ceramics and ceramics/crystals) with properties combining better parameters of PZT, PN type ceramics, and 1-3 composites are introduced. New damped-by-scattering ceramic piezocomposites, characterized by previously unachievable parameter combinations, are proposed. New material design concepts and fabrication methods for ceramic piezocomposites are considered. Piezoelectric resonance analysis methods for automatic iterative evaluation of complex material parameters, together with the sets of complex constants for different ceramic piezocomposites, are presented. Microstructural and physical mechanisms of losses and dispersion in ceramic piezocomposites, as well as technological aspects for their large-scale manufacture and application in ultrasonic devices are considered.     

Imaging multispectral polarimetric sensor: single-pixel design,fabrication, and characterization

A discrete-component approach was taken to establish the operational feasibility of a novel, imaging, midinfrared, multispectral, polarimetric sensor for remote-sensing application. The sensor is designed to exploit the spectral and polarimetric characteristics of the scene as discriminants. Pixelated multispectral filters and polarization filters were designed and fabricated on sapphire and Si substrates, respectively, and both were characterized. A single-pixel spectropolarimetric composite filter was characterized by use of a Fourier transform infrared spectrometer and a Pt-Si thermal-imaging camera. The experimental results show excellent agreement with theoretical predictions.     

Physics,fabrication, and characterization of thin films

Superconducting tunnel junctions as well as transition edge thermometers could benefit from high quality thin films. We point out the important features of various cryo detectors and show where high purity, or even epitaxially grown films are advantageous for detector performance. Some fabrication methods are discussed and methods of film characterization introduced. Photolithography has proven necessary to fabricate the complex structure of the present cryo detectors.     

Oxygen implanted Ni/NiO exchange bias system: fabrication, structure and magnetic property

Ion implantation is used to build a nanometer scale anti-ferromagnetic (AFM) cluster embedded exchange bias (EB) system. Ni film with a thickness of 100 nm is deposited on the Si (100) substrate using magnetron sputtering, 140 keV O+ is chosen to implant into the Ni film to form NiO AFM clusters, of which the size is estimated by X-ray diffraction based on synchrotron radiation (SR-XRD). By measuring hysteresis loop after field-cooling, significant shifts of loop along the applied field are observed. By increasing the implantation dose up to 3 x 10(17)/cm2 and annealing samples in N2 atmosphere, we discuss the origin of EB effect observed and the size confinement effect which lowers down the Néel temperature (T(N)) of NiO cluster to below room temperature.     

Concept, modeling, and performance prediction of a low-cost, large deformable mirror

While it is attractive to integrate a deformable mirror (DM) for adaptive optics (AO) into the telescope itself rather than using relay optics within an instrument, the resulting large DM can be expensive, particularly for extremely large telescopes. A low-cost approach for building a large DM is to use voice-coil actuators connected to the back of the DM through suction cups. Use of such inexpensive voice-coil actuators leads to a poorly damped system with many structural modes within the desired bandwidth. Control of the mirror dynamics using electro-mechanical sensors is thus required for integration within an AO system. We introduce a distributed control approach, and we show that the "inner" back sensor control loop does not need to function at low frequencies, leading to significant cost reduction for the sensors. Incorporating realistic models of low-cost actuators and sensors together with an atmospheric seeing model, we demonstrate that the low-cost mirror strategy is feasible within a closed-loop AO system.     

Design, fabrication, and characterization of high-efficiency extreme-ultraviolet diffusers

As the development of extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) lithography progresses, interest grows in the extension of traditional optical components to the EUV regime. Because of the strong absorption of EUV by most materials and because of its extremely short wavelength, however, it is difficult to implement many components that are commonplace in the longer-wavelength regimes. One such example is the diffuser that is often implemented with ordinary ground glass in the visible light regime. Here we demonstrate the fabrication of reflective EUV diffusers with high efficiency within a controllable bandwidth. Using these techniques, we have fabricated diffusers with efficiencies exceeding 10% within a moderate angular single-sided bandwidth of approximately 0.06 rad.     

旋光聚氨酯脲的制备、表征及其介电性能研究

利用联萘基团的结构刚性和轴向不对称性,通过氢转移加成聚合制备了具有光学活性的旋光聚氨酯脲(R-PUU)和消旋聚氨酯脲(PUU).采用傅里叶红外光谱、紫外-可见光谱、X射线衍射、热重等表征手段对R-PUU和PUU进行了表征,并测定了材料的介电常数(ε).结果表明:R-PUU的ε值为1.7356,PUU的ε值为0.7136,R-PUU更规整的聚合物结构可能有利于提高材料的介电常数.     

Addressable nanoelectrode membrane arrays: fabrication and steady-state behavior

An addressable nanoelectrode membrane array (ANEMA) based on a Au-filled track-etched polycarbonate membrane was fabricated. The Au-filled membrane was secured to a lithographically fabricated addressable ultramicroelectrode (UME) array patterned with 25 regularly spaced (100 microm center to center spacing), 10 microm diameter recessed Pt UMEs to create 25 microregions of 10 microm diameter nanoelectrode ensembles (NEEs) on the membrane. The steady-state voltammetric behavior of 1.0 mM Ru(NH(3))(6)Cl(3) and 1.0 mM ferrocene methanol in 0.1 M KCl on each of the micro NEEs resulted in sigmoidal-shaped voltammograms which were reproducible across the ANEMA. This reproducibility of the steady-state current was attributed to the overlapping hemispherical diffusion layers at the Au-filled nanopores of each 10 microm diameter NEE of a ANEMA. The track-etched polycarbonate membranes were filled using a gold electroless deposition procedure into the 30 nm diameter pores in the membrane. Electrical connection between the Au-filled template array and the lithographic UME platform array was achieved by potentiostatic electrodeposition of Cu from an acidic copper solution into each of the 25 recessed Pt UMEs on the UME array platform. A multiplexer unit capable of addressing 64 individual micro NEEs on an ANEMA is described. ANEMAs have advantages of high reproducibility, facile fabrication, multitime reuse of lithographically fabricated UME arrays, and purely steady-state behavior.     

Surface-structured gold-nanotube mats: fabrication, characterization, and application in surface-enhanced Raman scattering

The fabrication and characterization of nanostructured fibrous gold mats having high specific surface areas is reported. Freestanding porous films of 6-20-μm thickness and density 0.43 ± 0.02 g cm(3) are prepared using e-beam evaporation of gold on an electrospun nanoporous polymer template and subsequent removal of the template polymer in a suitable solvent. Structural characterization using electron microscopy techniques shows a nanofiber diameter in the range of 300-6000 nm, and the size of the nanochannels on the fiber surface is ≈200-350 nm. Such surface structuring is achieved through fast evaporation of organic solvent and phase separation of polymers during the electrospinning process. The wedge thickness varies from a few nanometers to a few tens of nanometers. The freestanding films possess good mechanical integrity and robustness. The calculated Young's modulus based on the slope in the elastic region is ≈114 MPa and gives an ultimate breaking strength of 0.7-0.8 MPa at a percentage elongation of 1.5-2.0%. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy measurements demonstrate the formation of polycrystalline gold nanostructures. Electrical characterization performed on these gold nanotubes reveals pure metallic behavior. Raman spectroscopic characterization of the fibrous membrane is performed using crystal violet (CV) adsorbed on it. Well-defined spectral peaks are obtainable at concentrations as low as 10(-7) M of CV, which did not give spectral signals at this low concentration on its own.     

Design, fabrication and characterization of indefinite metamaterials of nanowires

Indefinite optical properties, which are typically characterized by hyperbolic dispersion relations, have not been observed in naturally occurring materials, but can be realized through a metamaterial approach. We present here the design, fabrication and characterization of nanowire metamaterials with indefinite permittivity, in which all-angle negative refraction of light is observed. The bottom-up fabrication technique, which applies electrochemical plating of nanowires in porous alumina template, is developed and demonstrated in achieving uniform hyperbolic optical properties at a large scale. We developed techniques to improve the uniformity and to reduce the defect density in the sample. The non-magnetic design and the off-resonance operation of the nanowire metamaterials significantly reduce the energy loss of electromagnetic waves and make the broad-band negative refraction of light possible.     

Highly ordered uniform single-crystal Bi nanowires: fabrication and characterization

A mechanical pressure injection technique has been used to fabricate uniform bismuth (Bi) nanowires in the pores of an anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) template. The AAO template was prepared from general purity aluminum by a two-step anodization followed by heat treatment to achieve highly ordered nanochannels. The nanowires were then fabricated by an injection technique whereby the molten Bi was injected into the AAO template using a hydraulic pressure method. The Bi nanowires prepared by this method were found to be dense and continuous with uniform diameter throughout the length. Electron diffraction experiments using the transmission electron microscope on cross-sectional and free-standing longitudinal Bi nanowires showed that the majority of the individual nanowires were single crystalline, with preferred orientation of growth along the [011] zone axis of the pseudo-cubic structure. The work presented here provides an inexpensive and effective way of fabricating highly ordered single-crystalline Bi nanowires, with uniform size distributions.     

Dilute-melt, proton-exchange slab waveguides in LiNbO 3 : a new fabrication and characterization method

A method of dilute-melt proton exchange employing a mixture of glycerol and KHSO4 with lithium benzoate added is used to fabricate planar waveguides in c -cut LiNbO3 . With this exchange melt system the waveguide refractive-index profiles can be fabricated with a high degree of reproducibility. In contrast with the traditional dilute-melt method, which uses benzoic acid and lithium benzoate, the need for sealed containers during the exchange process can be avoided when the glycerol, KHSO4 , and lithium benzoate system is used for the exchange process. A new characterization method for determining the waveguide refractive-index profile from the measured-mode indexes is introduced. The main advantage of this characterization method compared with other methods is that it also applies to single-mode waveguides. Using the new characterization method, we investigate in detail the relation between waveguide refractive-index change and composition of this glycerol, KHSO4 and lithium benzoate exchange melt system.     

Silver/dendrimer nanocomposites as biomarkers: fabrication, characterization, in vitro toxicity, and intracellular detection

We have synthesized water-soluble, biocompatible, fluorescent, and stable silver/dendrimer nanocomposites that exhibit a potential for in vitro cell labeling. Amino-, hydroxyl-, and carboxyl-terminated ethylenediamine core generation 5 poly(amidoamine) dendrimers were utilized to prepare aqueous silver(I)-dendrimer complexes (with the molar ratio of 25 Ag+ per dendrimer) at the biologic pH of 7.4. Conversion of silver(I)-dendrimer complexes into dendrimer nanocomposites was achieved by irradiating the solutions with UV light to reduce the bound Ag+ cations to zerovalent Ag0 atoms, which were simultaneously trapped in the dendrimer network, resulting in the formation of {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NH2}, {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NGly}, and {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NSAH} dendrimer nanocomposites (DNC), respectively. The silver-DNCs were characterized by means of UV-vis, fluorescence spectroscopy, dynamic light-scattering, zeta potential measurements, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, X-ray energy dispersive spectroscopy, and selected area electron diffraction. The cytotoxicity of dendrimers and related silver nanocomposites was evaluated using an XTT colorimetric assay of cellular viability. The cellular uptake of nanoparticles was examined by transmission electron and confocal microscopy. Results indicate that {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NH2}, {(Ag0-)25-PAMAM_E5.NGly}, and {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NSAH} form primarily single particles with diameters between 3 and 7 nm. The dendrimer nanocomposites are fluorescent, and their surface charge, cellular internalization, toxicity, and cell labeling capabilities are determined by the surface functionalities of dendrimer templates. The {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NH2} and {(Ag0)25-PAMAM_E5.NSAH} nanocomposites exhibit potential application as cell biomarkers.     

Low-loss liquid-core optical fiber for low-refractive-index liquids: fabrication, characterization, and application in Raman spectroscopy

We describe a liquid-core optical fiber based on capillary tubing of Teflon AF 2400, which is a clear, amorphous fluoropolymer having a refractive index of 1.29. When filled with virtually any transparent liquid, the fiber is capable of transmitting light by total internal reflection. Loss below 3 dB/microm is demonstrated throughout much of the visible region for a 250-microm-i.d. fiber filled with water. The utility of this device in enhancing the intensity of Raman spectra of core liquids is demonstrated.     

Experimental characterization and numerical modeling of micromechanical damage under different stress states

The use of HSLA steels for the manufacture of automotive components is interesting from an engineering point of view. This family of steels, while possessing high strength, also has good formability and can be used in forming manufacturing processes. In some forming processes such as blanking, shear strain localization occurs, which causes damage and results in the final fracture of the material. This paper presents an experimental study based on in situ tests to understand and identify the physical mechanisms of ductile damage under two stress states: tension and shear. Different macroscopic tests were performed to calibrate a damage model based on a micromechanical approach. This damage model is based on the Gurson–Tvergaard–Needleman theory and presents recent improvements proposed by Nahshon and Hutchinson and by Nielsen and Tvergaard so as to better predict fracture under a wide range of stress states, especially with low levels of stress triaxiality. These extensions have made the identification of the material parameter more complicated. In this work an identification strategy has been proposed using tests on specimens with different shapes. The identified parameter values are validated and the fracture model show good predictive capability over a wide stress state range.