Plastic Deformation of Single-Crystal Diamond Nanopillars

Diamond is known to possess a range of extraordinary properties that include exceptional mechanical stability. In this work, it is demonstrated that nanoscale diamond pillars can undergo not only elastic deformation (and brittle fracture), but also a new form of plastic deformation that depends critically on the nanopillar dimensions and crystallographic orientation of the diamond. The plastic deformation can be explained by the emergence of an ordered allotrope of carbon that is termed O8-carbon. The new phase is predicted by simulations of the deformation dynamics, which show how the sp³ bonds of (001)-oriented diamond restructure into O8-carbon in localized regions of deforming diamond nanopillars. The results demonstrate unprecedented mechanical behavior of diamond, and provide important insights into deformation dynamics of nanostructured materials.     

Orientation Dependence of Stress Rupture Properties of a Ni-based Single Crystal Superalloy at 760℃

The orientation dependence of creep rupture lives of a single crystal superalloy at 760℃/760 MPa was investigated.The orientations of the specimens tested were about 30°away from [001].The results showed that specimens with orientations on the [001]-[011] boundary had the longest rupture life.The deformation of these specimen were controlled by a/2110 slip and a few stacking faults with two orientations were observed.On the other hand,specimens with orientations near the [001]-[011] boundary or on the [001]-[111] boundary showed short rupture lives,and stacking faults with single orientation were observed in these specimens.The rupture properties and the deformation mechanisms were discussed based on the dislocation pattern and the calculated Schmid factors for different specimens.     

Simulation of Fatigue Crack Propagation in Ductile Metals by Blunting and Re-sharpening

Laird and Smith [(1962). Philosophical Magazine 8, 847–857] proposed a plastic sliding-off mechanism for the stage II fatigue crack growth via striation formation. In their view, the fatigue crack extension results solely from the changing character of deformation at the crack tip during loading and unloading. In particular, the crack tip blunts during the loading stage and folds into a double notch during the unloading stage, resulting in striation formation. In order to verify Laird’s plastic blunting mechanism for ductile polycrystals as well as for ductile fcc single crystals, FE calculations were performed for a rectangular plate with an initially sharp crack under plane strain conditions. The plate was subjected to a fully reversed tension-to-pressure cyclic load perpendicular to the crack plane (Mode 1). In the single crystal case the crack propagation simulations were carried out for cracks with crack plane (001) for two different crack growth orientations [110] and [100]. No initial radius for the crack tip was assumed. The actual shape of the crack tip followed from an initially sharp crack by repeated remeshing. To model the constitutive behavior typical for polycrystalline ductile metals, J₂ hypo-elasto-plasticity model with Armstrong–Frederick kinematic hardening was used. To model the constitutive behavior typical for ductile fcc single crystals, a geometrically nonlinear version of Cailletaud’s model based on the multiplicative elasto-plastic decomposition of the deformation gradient was implemented into the FE program ABAQUS. For simplicity, only octahedral slip systems were considered. Using repeated remeshing for severely distorted elements at the advancing crack tip, deformation patterns in the sense of Laird’s mechanism for fatigue crack propagation with striation formation were obtained in the case of the polycrystal simulation as well as in the case of the single crystal simulation for [110] crack growth direction. The simulation for [100] crack growth direction with the same stress level as for [110] direction also yielded crack extension by progressive large deformations but without striation formation. The dependence of the fatigue striation formation on the crack growth direction as predicted by the simulation of crack propagation in single crystals is verified by the experimental results of Neumann [(1974). Acta Metallurgica 22, 1155–1165] on pure copper single crystals.     

Microstructure of Epitaxial La_(0.7)Ca_(0.3)MnO_3 Thin Films Deposited by Direct Current Magnetron Sputtering on LaAlO_3 Substrate

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high resolution electron microscopy (HREM) have been used to study the microstructural properties of La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 films on (001) LaAlO3 substrates prepared by direct current magnetron sputtering technique.The as-grown thin films with different thickness are perfectly coherent with the substrates.The film suffers a tetragonal deformation in the area near the interface between the film and the substrate.With increasing thickness, the film is partially relaxed.It was found that La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 films consist of two types of oriented domains described as: (1) (110)f[001]f||(001)s[100]sand (110)f[001]f||(001)s[100]s and (2) (110)f[001]f||(001)s[010]s and (110)f[001]f//(001)s[010]s.Upon annealing, the film is relaxed by the formation of misfit dislocations.Other than misfit dislocations, two types of threading dislocations with Burgers vector of <100> and <110> were also identified.     

Orientation and temperature dependence of the tensile behavior of GaN nanowires: an atomistic study

Gallium nitride (GaN) is a high-temperature semiconductor material of considerable interest. It emits brilliant light and has been considered as a key material for the next generation of high frequency and high power transistors that are capable of operating at high temperatures. Due to its anisotropic and polar nature, GaN exhibits direction-dependent properties. Growth directions along [001], [1?10] and [110] directions have all been synthesized experimentally. In this work, molecular dynamics simulations are carried out to characterize the mechanical properties of GaN nanowires with different orientations at different temperatures. The simulation results reveal that the nanowires with different growth orientations exhibit distinct deformation behavior under tensile loading. The nanowires exhibit ductility at high deformation temperatures and brittleness at lower temperature. The brittle to ductile transition (BDT) was observed in the nanowires grown along the [001] direction. The nanowires grown along the [110] direction slip in the {010} planes, whereas the nanowires grown along the [1?10] direction fracture in a cleavage manner under tensile loading.     

Scaling down lateral dimensions of silicon nanopillars fabricated by reactive ion etching with Au/Cr self-assembled clusters as an etch mask

Nanodot and nanopillar structures and precisely controlled reproducible fabrication thereof are of great interest in common nanoelectronic devices, including photonic crystals and surface plasmon resonance instruments. In this work, fabrication process of the silicon nanopillar structures is described. It includes self-organization of gold and chromium clusters at thickness close to that of one atomic diameter to serve as etching masks followed by the reactive ion etching to form silicon nanopillars. Scanning electron microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy were used to characterize self-organized gold and chromium clusters as well as the final silicon nanopillars. This method was found to produce silicon nanopillars of sub-10 nm lateral dimensions and the diameter-to-height aspect ratio of up to 1:14.     

High Resolution Electron Microscopy Observations of Structural Changes in Iron Nitride Films Annealed in Vacuum

Iron-nitride films were prepared by reactive sputtering, and the effect of annealing treatment on the structures was investigated by means of in-situ electron microscopy and high resolution electron microscopy (HREM). As-deposited films were observed to be a mixed structure of a few ultrafine ε-Fe2-3N particles existing in the amorphous matrix. lt was found that the structurerelaxation in the amorphous occurred at 473 K, and the ultrafine grains began to grow at the higher annealing temperatures. The transition of the amorphous to ε-Fe2-3N was almost completed at 673 K. It is considered that the formation of the ideal ε-Fe3N is originated from the ordering of the nitrogen atoms during the annealing in vacuum. On the other hand, γ'-phase (Fe4N) was seen to precipitation of ε-phase at 723 K. Two possible modes are proposed in the precipitation of γ'-phase, depending on the heating rate and crystallographic orientation relationships. i.e. [121]ε [001]γ, (210)ε(110)γ and [100]ε[110]γ, (001)ε(111)γ. In addition,α-Fe particles were observed to form from the γ'-phase at high temperatures. We assumed that these structural changes are due to the diffusion of nitrogen and iron atoms during the annealing,except for the case of the precipitation of the γ'-phase as depicted above. The results obtained in this work are in a good agreement with the assumption.     

Microstructure and texture of high manganese steel subjected to dynamic impact loading

ABSTRACT

Dynamic impact response of high Mn-steel at a strain rate of 3000?s^?1 was investigated using the Split Hopkinson Pressure bar. The investigated steel depicted continuous yielding at high strain rates. Additionally, the yield stress displayed a positive strain-rate sensitivity with an increasing strain rate. Microstructural evaluations displayed that strain-induced martensitic transformation and dislocation multiplication during slip were dominant plastic deformation mechanisms in the absence of deformation twinning which contributes to the strain hardening. Adiabatic shear band and martensite to austenite reversion or dynamic recrystallisation were also attributed to strain softening during impact deformation. The {001}<110> R-cube, {011}<110> R-Goss, and ({111}<110>) E texture components were strengthened after impact loading compared with as-received condition, while the intensities of Cube, Cupper, Brass, and S texture components were decreased.     

PCL Nanopillars Versus Nanofibers: A Contrast in Progenitor Cell Morphology,Proliferation, and Fate Determination

The role of nanotopography on the long‐term response of progenitor cells is explored using polycaprolactone (PCL) nanopillar and nanofiber surfaces seeded with plastic‐adherent rat multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). After 4 weeks in culture under normal expansion media conditions, MSCs cultured on nanofibers exhibit better adherence, increased proliferation, and maintain increasingly dense fibroblast‐like morphologies. In contrast, MSCs seeded on nanopillar surfaces display lowered adherence, reduced proliferation, and adopt highly elongated cellular morphologies. Immunofluorescent staining of MSCs on PCL nanopillars reveals the presence of two bone marker proteins, osteopontin and osteocalcin, providing evidence for surface induced differentiation into osteoblast‐like cells. Unlike the nanopillar topography, MSCs cultured on nanofiber and smooth PCL surfaces did not appear to undergo osteogenesis. Observed differences in cellular response to the PCL nanotopographies offer strategies to direct progenitor cell populations solely based upon submicron surface modifications. This study provides a foundation for future work exploring variations in PCL nanopillar topography with the goal of optimizing adherence and osteogenic response of MSCs.     

Computer simulation of deformation and fracture of small crystals by molecular dynamics method

Body-centred cubic iron whiskers having [100] and [110] axes were pulled in a molecular dynamics simulation using a supercomputer. The upper yield stress close to the theoretical strength was found. Above the upper yield stress, phase transformation was observed; at the same time the stress was greatly reduced. A new possible mechanism of twinning is proposed. The whiskers were pulled until they had broken into two pieces. Copper small crystals with and without a notch were sheared. It was observed that the edge dislocations were created at the surface and moved through and escaped from the crystals. Copper small single crystals with a notch were pulled. A half-dislocation was created near the tip of the notch. Sharp yield stress was observed. In medium deformation dislocations on different slip planes were created. Due to the cutting of dislocations the tensile stress increased.     

外应力场下NiAl合金微裂纹动态扩展的分子动力学模拟

目的 对NiAl合金中不同晶体取向的裂纹扩展动力学行为进行原子尺度研究,明晰在塑性变形过程     

Effect of loading direction and initial imperfections on the development of dynamic shear bands in a FCC single crystal

Summary We study plane strain dynamic thermomechanical deformations of a FCC single crystal deformed at an average strain-rate of 1 000 s^–1 along the crystallographic direction [380] with the plane of deformation parallel to the plane (001) of the single crystal. Four different situations are studied; in the first two there is no initial imperfection assumed in the crystal and it is either compressed or pulled, and in the other two the crystal is compressed but either the initial temperature is nonuniform or a small region around the centroid of the cross-section is misoriented relative to the rest of the cross-section. In each case, all twelve slip systems are assumed to be potentially active, and the crystal material is presumed to exhibit strain hardening, strain-rate hardening, and thermal softening. These effects are modelled by using a simple combined isotropic-kinematic hardening expression for the critical resolved shear stress, proposed by Weng, and modified to incorporate the effect of thermal softening of the material. It is found that each one of the slip systems , and contributes essentially equally to the plastic deformations of the crystal and these slip systems become active soon after the load is applied. The same holds for the slip systems , and except that they are active in a region different from that of the previous one. The remaining four slip systems either stay inactive throughout the deformation process, or become active at late stages of the deformation.     

Behaviour of impurity atoms and adsorbed oxygen atoms on (001) face of iron epitaxial film

The behaviour of impurity atoms and adsorbed oxygen atoms on a (001) iron face were studied by a four-grid type LEED-AES system. The (001) iron face was prepared by deposition; that is, the iron atoms were evaporated from an iron wire (99.9 per cent) which was heated directly by electric current, and the iron film was grown epitaxially on the (001) face of an MgO substrate under wide ranges of experimental conditions. The orientations, (001)_Fe//(001)_MgO, [100]_Fe//[110]_MgO, were identified. No impurity atoms were detected during the film formation by AES. When the film was heated at temperatures higher than 500°C, extra spots appeared in the LEED pattern and a distinct sulphur peak appeared in the AES curve. They indicate that a super structure, Fe(001)C(2×2)S, was formed. This structure was stable but when it was treated in an oxygen atmosphere (1×10^?6torr) at 500°C, the sulphur peak vanished and another super structure, Fe(001)P(2×2)0, was formed. When the substrate was kept at a high temperature during the film formation, it seems that a super-structure, Fe(001)C(2×2)C was formed.     

Deformation mechanisms in oriented high-density polyethylene

The deformation of samples of oriented high-density polyethylene has been analysed in terms of three principal deformation mechanisms,fibrillar slip, lamella slip andchain slip. From a study of small- and wide-angle X-ray diffraction patterns it is possible to deduce which mechanism or mechanisms are operating in particular cases. Material prepared in three different ways has been examined and it appears that in all three cases the primary mechanism for plastic deformation is [001] chain slip.In oriented and annealed material with a well-defined lamella crystal structure it has been possible to show that the recoverable elastic deformation is primarily due to reversible lamella slip. In this material plastic deformation by chain slip starts at a well-defined critical resolved shear stress of about 15 MNm^–2.Deformation of oriented unannealed material, in which the crystal structure is not so well-defined, appears to be more complicated. In material prepared by cold drawing some of the plastic strain may be accounted for by permanent lamella slip. Fibrillar slip does not appear to be a major deformation mechanism in any of the three materials.     

Nanostructured gold microelectrodes for extracellular recording from electrogenic cells

We present a new biocompatible nanostructured microelectrode array for extracellular signal recording from electrogenic cells. Microfabrication techniques were combined with a template-assisted approach using nanoporous aluminum oxide to develop gold nanopillar electrodes. The nanopillars were approximately 300-400 nm high and had a diameter of 60 nm. Thus, they yielded a higher surface area of the electrodes resulting in a decreased impedance compared to planar electrodes. The interaction between the large-scale gold nanopillar arrays and cardiac muscle cells (HL-1) was investigated via focused ion beam milling. In the resulting cross-sections we observed a tight coupling between the HL-1 cells and the gold nanostructures. However, the cell membranes did not bend into the cleft between adjacent nanopillars due to the high pillar density. We performed extracellular potential recordings from HL-1 cells with the nanostructured microelectrode arrays. The maximal amplitudes recorded with the nanopillar electrodes were up to 100% higher than those recorded with planar gold electrodes. Increasing the aspect ratio of the gold nanopillars and changing the geometrical layout can further enhance the signal quality in the future.     

Photoreflectance study of strained GaAsN/GaAs T-junction quantum wires grown by metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy

Strained GaAsN T-junction quantum wires (T-QWRs) with different N contents grown on GaAs by two steps metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy in [001] and [110] directions, namely QW1 and QW2 respectively, have been investigated by photoreflectance (PR) spectroscopy. Two GaAsN T-QWRs with different N contents were formed by T-intersection of (i) a 6.4-nm-thick GaAs0.89N0.011 QW1 and a 5.2-nm-thick GaAs0.968N0.032 QW2 and (ii) a 5.0-nm-thick GaAs0.985N0.015 QW1 and a 5.2-nm-thick GaAs0.968N0.032 QW2. An evidence of a one-dimensional structure at T-intersection of the two QWs on the (001) and (110) surfaces was established by PR resonances associated with extended states in all the QW and T-QWR samples. It is found that larger lateral confinement energy than 100 meV in both of [001] and [110] directions were achieved for GaAsN T-QWRs. With increasing temperature, the transition energy of GaAsN T-QWRs decreases with a faster shrinking rate compared to that of bulk GaAs. Optical quality of GaAsN T-QWRs is found to be affected by the N-induced band edge fluctuation, which is the unique characteristic of dilute III-V-nitrides.     

Structure, texture and mechanical properties of AlZnMgCuZr alloy rolled after heat treatments

The aluminium alloy containing 6.7 wt.% Zn, 2.6 wt.% Mg, 1.6 wt.% Cu and 0.1 wt.% Zr was continuously cast and either quenched from 465°C, or furnace cooled down to 100°C to find the best ductility for further cold plastic deformation. The alloys were then cold rolled down to the highest possible degree of deformation. The initial texture in both alloys can be described by (211)[111], (321)[346] and (110)[112] ideal orientations. With increasing deformation other orientations like {110}001 and cubic {100}001 appear after both types of treatments. TEM studies revealed increase of subgrain misorientation up to approx. 9° after 75% of deformation by rolling. On ageing at 120°C for 24 h the maximum hardness of 210 HV was reached. The alloys deformed prior to ageing at 120°C attained 230 HV. Very small GP zones, up to a few nanometers in size, grow after several days of ageing giving diffused diffraction effects. After ageing for 1 day at 120°C, precipitates grow and were identified as η′.     

The dislocation structure of slip bands in deformed high entropy alloy nanopillars

Remarkable diversity is observed in dislocation interactions that are responsible for intermittent and sud-den crystal slips.While large crystal slips can be easily observed on the surface of deformed crystals,unraveling the underlying dislocation interaction mechanisms,however,has been a longstanding chal-lenge in the study of single-crystal plasticity.A recent study demonstrated that the sluggish dislocation dynamics in the high entropy alloy (HEA) of Al0.1CoCrFeNi enables the observation of slip bands for a direct link to dislocation avalanches in a nanopillar.Here,we further examined the dislocation structure of slip bands in the HEA nanopillars oriented for single slip.Experimental evidence was provided on the dislocation organization in a slip band based on groups of primary dislocations,secondary dislocations,and dislocation pileups.The results were compared with the previously proposed slip band models.The unique aspects of the HEA that enable such observations were also investigated through an examination of the dislocation microstructure and its response to applied forces in the HEA nanopillars.     

Separation of long DNA molecules by quartz nanopillar chips under a direct current electric field

We have established the nanofabrication technique for constructing nanopillars with high aspect ratio (100-500 nm diameter and 500-5000 nm tall) inside a microchannel on a quartz chip. The size of pillars and the spacing between pillars are designed as a DNA sieving matrix for optimal analysis of large DNA fragments over a few kilobase pairs (kbp). A chip with nanopillar channel and simple cross injector was developed based on the optimal design and applied to the separation of DNA fragments (1-38 kbp) and large DNA fragments (lambda DNA, 48.5 kbp; T4 DNA, 165.6 kbp) that are difficult to separate on conventional gel electrophoresis and capillary electrophoresis without a pulsed-field technique. DNA fragments ranging from 1 to 38 kbp were separated as clear bands, and furthermore, the mixture of lambda DNA and T4 DNA was successfully separated by a 380-microm-long nanopillar channel within only 10 s even under a direct current (dc) electric field. Theoretical plate number N of the channel (380-1450 microm long) was 1000-3000 (0.7 x 10(6)-2.1 x 10(6) plates/m). A single DNA molecule observation during electrophoresis in a nanopillar channel revealed that the optimal nanopillars induced T4 DNA to form a narrow U-shaped conformation during electrophoresis whereas lambda DNA kept a rather spherical conformation. We demonstrated that, even under a dc electric field, the optimal nanopillar dimensions depend on a gyration radius of DNA molecule that made it possible to separate large DNA fragments in a short time.     

Microstructure of Epitaxial La0.7Ca0.3MnO3 Thin Films Deposited by Direct Current Magnetron Sputtering on LaAlO3 Substrate

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and high resolution electron microscopy (HREM) have been used to study the microstructural properties of La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO₃ films on (001) LaAlO₃ substrates prepared by direct current magnetron sputtering technique. The as-grown thin films with different thickness are perfectly coherent with the substrates. The film suffers a tetragonal deformation in the area near the interface between the film and the substrate. With increasing thickness, the film is partially relaxed. It was found that La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO₃ films consist of two types of oriented domains described as: (1) (110)_f [001]_f||(001)_s[100]_s and (1¹10)_f [001]_f||(001)_s[100]_s and (2) (110)_f [001]_f||(001)_s[010]_s and (1¹10)_f [001]_f//(001)_s[010]_s. Upon annealing, the film is relaxed by the formation of mis¯t dislocations. Other than mis¯t dislocations, two types of threading dislocations with Burgers vector of <100> and <110> were also identified.