Fabrication of piezoelectric multilayer thin-film actuators

In this study, we fabricated multilayer ceramics (MLCs) composed of multilayered Pb(Zr,Ti)O₃ (PZT) piezoelectric thin films with internal electrodes and evaluated their dielectric and piezoelectric properties. The stack of PZT ferroelectric layers (550 nm) and SrRuO₃ (SRO, 80 nm) electrodes were alternatively deposited on Pt/Ti-coated silicon-on-insulator substrates by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering. The MLCs composed of one, three, and five PZT layers were fabricated by the alternate sputtering deposition of PZT ferroelectric layers and SRO electrodes through the movable shadow mask. The capacitances of MLCs were proportionally increased with the number of PZT layers, while their relative dielectric constants were almost same among the each MLC. The MLCs exhibited symmetric and saturated P–E hysteresis loops similar to the conventional PZT thin films. We estimated that the piezoelectric properties of MLCs by FEM simulation, and confirmed that the effective transverse piezoelectric coefficients (d _31,eff ) increased with the number of PZT layers. The piezoelectric coefficients calculated to be d _31,eff  = ?2964 pC/N at 25 PZT layers, which is much higher than those of conventional single-layer piezoelectric thin films.     

Some Notes on Stability Problems of Probabilistic Automata

Abstract

The behavior of a probabilistic automaton is essentially characterized by products of matrices selected from a given finite set of stochastic matrices. It is of interest to know under what conditions these matrix products are stable against perturbations of the entries in the matrices.     

Self-reconfigurable robots

In this article, the concept of a cellular robot that is capable of reconfiguring itself is reviewed. This "self-reconfigurable (SR) robot" exemplifies a new trend in robotics, indeed, we can now build various kinds of SR robots with off-the-shelf technologies of processors, actuators, and sensors. These SR robots, based on modern mechatronics, are still not as adaptable as the liquid metal robot in The Terminator 2 but are just as flexible as any conventional robots     

Improvement of the dynamic characteristics in multiple-output dc-dc converter by using the magnetic coupling of the energy-storage reactor

The dynamic cross regulation characteristics of the improved forward-type multiple-output converter is examined and compared with that of the conventional one. In the conventional forward-type multiple-output converter, the regulation performance of the cross regulated output voltages is deteriorated by the dynamic change of the load even when the proportional gain of the feedback controller is sufficiently large. On the other hand, in the improved converter, the dynamic cross regulation performance is ameliorated along with the increase in the proportional gain. Further, it can be improved more satisfactorily by using the appropriate P-D control. In this case, the magnetic coupling of the energy-storage reactor plays a key role in the dynamic cross regulation. That mechanism is clarified theoretically through the equivalent circuit models.     

Crystallization in rapid quenching of La0.33NbO3 melt

Transparent La_0.33NbO₃ flakes were fabricated by a rapid quenching technique. The quenched La_0.33NbO₃ phase takes a simple cubic perovskite structure and cation vacancies are randomly distributed on the A sites. The cubic La_0.33NbO₃ phase is a new modification which is different from the well-known orthorhombic phase with ordered A-site vacancies. Transparent flakes were found to show the predominant orientation of (110) and (220) planes.     

Near-net-shape forming of Al-Al3Ni functionally graded material over eutectic melting temperature

A possibility to make near-net-shape functionally graded material (FGM) products has been examined. The FGM billets having a graded volume fraction of Al₃Ni in thickness direction were machined from an Al-Al₃Ni FGM thick-walled tube manufactured by a vacuum centrifugal method. Billets, which were set in the container for the backward extruding, were heated to 650 °C to 680 °C, at which temperature the FGM becomes a mixture of molten aluminum eutectic and solid intermetallics. Then, billets were extruded successfully to FGM cups by a semisolid forming, except at 650 °C. Residual bulky Al₃Ni particles are found at higher temperature. Thus, an optimum operation temperature is found to be around 660 °C, because bulky Al₃Ni particles transform to fine spheroidal or fibrous shape after the forming. The volume fraction of intermetallics at the bottom region of the cup was condensed more than 60 vol pct in a proper billet setting.     

Dynamic Characteristics Analysis of Two‐DOF Oscillatory Actuator and Experimental Verification of Prototype

Recently, linear oscillatory actuators have been used in a wide range of applications. In particular, small linear oscillatory actuators are expected to be used in haptic devices by being extended to provide multi‐degree‐of‐freedom motion with arbitrary acceleration. In this paper, we propose a compact two‐DOF oscillatory actuator that can move in various directions on a plane. The static and dynamic characteristics of the actuator are determined by the 3D finite element method. The effectiveness of this method is shown through a comparison of the measured results with the experimental results from a prototype. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electr Eng Jpn, 186(1): 58–65, 2014; Published online in Wiley Online Library ( wileyonlinelibrary.com ). DOI 10.1002/eej.22312     

Morphology control of goethite acicular particles during aging by nitrogen bubbling and subsequent reactive aeration

Conditions for synthesizing acicular fine particles of goethite with high aspect ratio were devised by oxidizing mixed slurry comprising ferrous carbonate and hydroxide after neutralizing by alkali carbonate. By bubbling N₂ after neutralization into the slurry containing FeCO₃ and Fe(OH)₂, dissolved CO₂ is ejected. As a consequence, the relative concentration of CO₃²⁻ decreases and that of hydroxide increases. These favor the increase of the aspect ratio of the goethite particles via two factors, i.e., (1) decrease in the critical size of the nuclei and (2) suppression of growth inhibition at the tip of needle-like particles due to CO₃²⁻ adsorption. We propose a reaction scheme for the entire processing.     

Bloom Formation on Poorly-Tempered Chocolate and Effects of Seed Addition

Bloom on chocolate with different levels of cocoa butter seed addition was investigated. When insufficient cocoa butter seed crystals were added to give proper temper, the chocolate developed bloom as dark brown spheres in lighter color areas, similar to that seen in bloom on untempered chocolate. These dark colored spheres overlapped and the lighter color areas disappeared with increasing seed amount added. The relationship between seed amount and lighter color area (bloom), as quantified by image analysis, showed that over 270 ppm seeds (fat basis) were needed to accomplish good tempering. The cocoa butter crystallization behavior with various amounts of seed was observed by light microscopy. Too few seeds caused sparse β crystallization and massive β′ crystallization, which explains the appearance of poorly tempered chocolate bloom. As seed amount increased, β crystallization of cocoa butter took less time to reach the upper level of solid fat content and the size became smaller. In addition, DSC analysis was carried out to study crystallization and melting behavior of cocoa butter with different seed amounts. Higher levels of added seeds resulted in greater amounts of β crystal formation and the crystallization temperature increased, which meant crystallization occurred earlier. These results showed that the mechanism of bloom formation on poorly tempered chocolate (insufficient seeds) is due to sufficient time and space for phase (particles and fat) separation as the stable polymorphs grow.