Magnetic brightening of carbon nanotube photoluminescence through symmetry breaking

We report that symmetry breaking by a magnetic field can drastically increase the photoluminescence quantum yield of single-walled carbon nanotubes, by as much as a factor of 6, at low temperatures. To explain this we have developed a theoretical model based on field-dependent exciton band structure and the interplay of Coulomb interactions and the Aharonov-Bohm effect. This conclusively explains our data as the first experimental observation of dark excitons 5-10 meV below the bright excitons.     

Solubilization of octafluoronaphthalene by mixed micelles of fluorocarbon and hydrocarbon surfactants in aqueous solutions

Solubilization of octafluoronaphthalene (OFN) by fluorocarbon and hydrocarbon surfactants in aqueous solutions has been examined to investigate the effects of mixing surfactants and added salt. Diethylammonium perfluoronanoate (DEAPFN) micelles have the most solubilization power toward OFN. The difference in micellar solubilization power will be caused by the hydrophobicity of ionic groups and micellar size. Large positive synergistic effects on solubilization behavior were observed in the DEAPFN-diethylammonium tetradecyl sulfate mixed micellar systems. Solubilization of OFN depended on the concentrations of added salt and the aggregation number, that is, the micellar size.     

Ultrastructure of submandibular salivary glands of mouse: TEM and HRSEM observations

The fine structure of submandibular glands of mouse were analyzed using light microscopy (LM), high resolution scanning electron microscopy (HRSEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) methods. For LM, the specimens were embedded in Spurr resin, stained by toluidin blue solutions. For TEM, the tissues of submandibular salivary glands were fixed with modified Karnovsky solution and postfixed with osmium tetroxide. For HRSEM, the tissues were fixed with 2% osmium tetroxide solution in 1/15M sodium phosphate buffer (pH 7.4). The samples were immersed successively in dymethylsulphoxide and freeze cracked. The maceration was made in diluted osmium tetroxide for 24-48 h. The samples were examined by high resolution scanning electron microscopy. The intracellular components of acinar and ductal cells revealed clearly the Golgi apparatus, rough endoplasmic reticulum, secretory granules, and mitochondria. The end bulbs of Golgi lamellae and flattened cisterns of rough endoplasmic reticulum showed the luminal surface. A few mitochondria were identified intermingling between the rough endoplasmic reticulum and the mitochondriales cristae in three-dimensional HRSEM images. Secretory granules were numerous and presented different sizes. Small granules of ribosomes were attached on cistern surface, measuring 20-25 nm in diameter. Numerous arranged microvilli were found on the luminal surface of secretory canaliculus. The contact surfaces of acinar cells revealed complicated interdigitations by cytoplasmic processes. The mitochondria of duct cells were disposed vertically and surrounded by basal infoldings of plasma membranes. Basement membrane showed a spongy-like structure having an irregular surface with various strands and meshes of fine collagen fibrils.     

Effect of operation conditions on biological Fe oxidation with rotating biological contactors

Oxidation of ferrous iron (Fe²⁺) by acidophilic iron-oxidizing bacteria was conducted with a laboratory-scale rotating biological contactor (RBC) in order to investigate the effects of Fe²⁺ concentration, pH, temperature and rotation rate. Fe²⁺ oxidation rate on RBC was expressed as a first-order reaction with respect to Fe²⁺ concentration when it was below 150 mg 1⁻¹. Fe²⁺ oxidation rate was not affected by pH from 1.0 to 2.6 nor by temperatures from 10 to 40°C but was accelerated by increasing peripheral disk velocity from 4.7 to 28.2 m min⁻¹.     

High Arachidonic Acid Levels in the Tissues of Herbivorous Fish Species (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Siganus fuscescens,Calotomus japonicus</Emphasis> and <Emphasis Type="Italic">Kyphosus bigibbus</Emphasis>)

The lipid and fatty acid compositions in the various organs (muscle, liver, other viscera) and stomach contents of three common herbivorous fish species in Japan, Siganus fuscescens, Calotomus japonicus and Kyphosus bigibbus, were examined to explore the stable 20:4n-6 (arachidonic acid, ARA) sources. Triacylglycerol (TAG), phosphatidylethanolamine (PtdEtn), and phosphatidylcholine (PtdCho) were the dominant lipid classes, while the major FA contents were 16:0, 18:1n-9, 16:1n-7, 14:0, 18:0, 18:1n-7, and some PUFA, including ARA, 20:5n-3 (eicosapentaenoic acid, EPA), 22:5n-3 (docosapentaenoic acid, DPA), and 22:6n-3 (docosahexaenoic acid, DHA). The amounts of these fatty acids were varied among species and their lipid classes. Phospholipids contained higher levels of PUFA than TAG. However, ARA in both phospholipids and TAG was markedly present in the muscle and viscera of all specimens, particularly in C. japonicus and K. bigibbus. Moreover, their ARA levels were higher than the levels of DHA and EPA. The observed high ARA level is unusual in marine fish and might be characteristic of herbivorous fish. Furthermore, ARA was the dominant PUFA in the stomach contents of the three species, suggesting that the high ARA level originated from their food sources. The above indicates that these three herbivorous fishes are ARA-rich marine foods and have potential utilization as stable ARA resources.     

The Second Order Recombination and Spin-Exchange Relaxation of Atomic Deuterium at Low Temperatures in a Low Magnetic Field

We measured the 2nd order recombination rates and spin-exchange relaxation of atomic deuterium (D) in a ⁴ He coated sample cell, using the hyperfine resonance of (F = 1/2, m_F = –1/2) – (F = 3/2, m_F = –1/2) transition in a low magnetic field (3.9 mT) at temperatures between 0.6 K and 1.2 K. At lower temperatures below 0.9 K, the density decay of D atoms was dominated by D-D recombination on the liquid He surface. We found that the surface recombination cross length was 1_DD = (5.5 ± 1.3) × 10 ^–9 cm and the adsorption energy of D on ⁴ He surface was _a = 3.97 ± 0.07 K. Compared with prior measurements at high magnetic fields by other groups, 1_DD at low field was orders of magnitude smaller than what was expected when the scaling of 1/B² dependence of the direct recombination mechanism was used, and in addition, _a was significantly larger. This was attributed to the onset of the resonant recombination mechanism for the D-D surface recombination at high fields. Above 0.9 K, D-D volume recombination and recombination of D with hydrogen impurity became dominant processes of the density decay of D. The transverse relaxation times were measured and we determined the D-D spin-exchange relaxation rates, G_DD = (1.4 ± 0.6) × 10 ^–10 cm ³ sec ^–1 . It was smaller than theoretical calculations.     

High‐Ampacity Power Cables of Tightly‐Packed and Aligned Carbon Nanotubes

The current‐carrying capacity (CCC), or ampacity, of highly‐conductive, light, and strong carbon nanotube (CNT) fibers is characterized by measuring their failure current density (FCD) and continuous current rating (CCR) values. It is shown, both experimentally and theoretically, that the CCC of these fibers is determined by the balance between current‐induced Joule heating and heat exchange with the surroundings. The measured FCD values of the fibers range from 10⁷ to 10⁹ A m^?2 and are generally higher than the previously reported values for aligned buckypapers, carbon fibers, and CNT fibers. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first time the CCR for a CNT fiber has been reported. The specific CCC value (i.e., normalized by the linear mass density) of these CNT fibers are demonstrated to be higher than those of copper.     

Facile fabrication of all-SWNT field-effect transistors

Field-effect transistors (FETs) have been fabricated using as-grown single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) for the channel as well as both source and drain electrodes. The underlying Si substrate was employed as the back-gate electrode. Fabrication consisted of patterned catalyst deposition by surface modification followed by dip-coating and synthesis of SWNTs by alcohol chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The electrodes and channel were grown simultaneously in one CVD process. The resulting FETs exhibited excellent performance, with an I _ON/I _OFF ratio of 10⁶ and a maximum ON-state current (I _ON) exceeding 13 μA. The large I _ON is attributed to SWNT bundles connecting the SWNT channel with the SWNT electrodes. Bundling creates a large contact area, which results in a small contact resistance despite the presence of Schottky barriers at metallic-semiconducting interfaces. The approach described here demonstrates a significant step toward the realization of metal-free electronics.      

A High-Sensitivity Microwave-Single-Photon Detector with Rydberg Atoms at Low Temperature

A high-sensitivity microwave-single-photon detector was developed in Kyoto, in which microwave photons in a resonant cavity cooled at very low temperatures are absorbed by highly excited Rydberg atoms and the Rydberg atoms thereby promoted to a higher excited state are then selectively field-ionized and detected. This scheme allows us to count microwave photons one by one, thus provide a single-photon counting without the limit of standard quantum limit (SQL). The apparatus “CARRACK” for the single-photon detector was constructed based on this scheme, where the cavity was cooled down to 10 mK range to reduce the background of thermal blackbody photons from the cavity wall. The apparatus has served for years to search for dark matter axions in the 10 μeV (∼2.4 GHz) mass region. Thermal blackbody photons in a microwave resonant cavity at temperatures as low as 70 mK have been measured, the sensitivity being below the SQL limit. A number of improvements in the detection efficiency and sensitivity have been planned and will be reported. Applications of the detector to fundamental physics are also discussed shortly.      

焦炭过滤床在线分离电炉粉尘中氧化锌的研究

采用电炉粉尘与焦炭粉的混合试样,对利用焦炭过滤床在线回收电炉粉尘,在CO/CO2混合气体中氧化锌的还原分离工艺进行了模拟研究.热力学分析表明,在所设焦炭过滤床的温度及气氛条件下,固-固还原和气-固还原反应都可以发生,氧化锌的还原分离是可以实现的.实验结果表明,与单独被固体碳或CO还原时相比较,混合试样在固体碳和CO同时存在时的初期减重率变化最快,最终还原率最高.在粉尘颗粒表面,被还原的金属铁生成及聚积长大后,将对还原气体向颗粒内部进一步扩散起到阻碍作用,对颗粒内部残存的微量ZnO的还原产生不利影响.如何加快氧化锌的还原分离而抑制氧化铁的还原及聚集长大将成为提高氧化锌回收率的关键.