Simulation of characteristics of double-junction solar cells based on ZnSiP2 heterostructures on silicon substrate

Design and operation modes of double-junction monolithic lattice-matched solar cells based on the ZnSiP₂/Si system of materials have been calculated. The effect of the photoactive region thickness and minority carrier lifetime in ZnSiP₂ layers on the efficiency of conversion of the incident solar light energy into electrical power was determined. It is shown that solar cells based on ZnSiP₂/Si heterostructures can provide efficiencies of 28.8% at AM1.5D, 100 mW/cm², and 33.3% at AM1.5D, 200 W/cm².     

Temperature cycling and its effect on mechanical behaviours of highporosity chalks

Temperature history can have a significant effect on the strength of water-saturated chalk.In this study,hydrostatic stress cycles are applied to understand the mechanical response of chalk samples exposed to temperature cycling between each stress cycle,compared to the samples tested at a constant temperature.The total accumulated strain during a stress cycle and the irreversible strain are reported.Chalk samples from Kansas(USA)and Mons(Belgium),with different degrees of induration(i.e.amount of contact cementation),were used.The samples were saturated with equilibrated water(polar)and nonpolar Isopar H oil to quantify water weakening.All samples tested during 10 stress cycles with varying temperature(i.e.temperature cycled in between each stress cycle)accumulated more strain than those tested at constant temperatures.All the stress cycles were performed at 30℃.The two chalk types behaved similarly when saturated with Isopar H oil,but differently when saturated with water.When saturated with water,the stronger Kansas chalk accumulated more total strain and more irreversible strain within each stress cycle than the weaker Mons chalk.     

Conveyer-belt accidents in mining and metallurgy

The dynamic interaction between the mechanical and electrical drive parameters when damage suddenly appears in the mechanical part of a conveyer belt is investigated. The possibility of using the change in the motor’s electrical parameters as a diagnostic signal is assessed. A model for investigating the dynamic processes in the system consisting of the grid, the induction motor, and the conveyer belt is proposed. The grid and induction motor are described by a model of fourth-order state space, whose output is the torque at the motor shaft. The moments of inertia and pliability of the links between the elements in the mechanical part of the conveyer belt are determined. By gradually identifying the elements with the minimum moment of inertia and distributing their moments of inertia and pliabilities among the adjacent elements, we obtain a three-mass system simulating the mechanical part of the conveyer belt. This dynamic model is solved by means of Matlab Simulink software. The energy characteristics of the drive are determined in dynamic processes following a mechanical accident.     

Analysis of ventilation of working areas in thick gently dipping coalbeds

Advanced technologies and modern high-production machines for underground mining of thick gently dipping coal demand strict adherence to technological discipline, reduction in operational loss and selection of optimized ventilation modes. The authors analyze ventilation schemes used in working areas in thick gently dipping seams in order to reveal influence exerted by the schemes, methods and parameters of ventilation on distribution of air loss in mined-out areas.     

The Indirect Excitons Contribution to the Polarizability of a Dielectric Nanoparticle

Semiconductors - The optical properties of dielectric nanostructures strongly depend on dielectric nanoparticles (NP) polarizability which can take the high values even interacting with...     

Effect of ZnO layer thickness upon optoelectrical properties of NiO/ ZnO heterojunction prepared at room temperature

In this work, p-NiO/n-ZnO heterostructures were successfully prepared at room temperature using RF sputtering technique. The influence of ZnO layer thickness on the performance of the heterojunction was investigated. The deposited ZnO layers have a hexagonal Wurtzite structure with preferable growth orientations along (002) and (103) for thinner films. Increasing the thickness results in more crystallographic orientation randomness. The current–voltage measurements of the realized heterojunctions showed a clear rectifying behavior. The measured ideality factor varies from 2.5 to 1.6 according to the thickness of ZnO layer. The series resistance of the device is enlarged with increasing ZnO thickness. The deduced parameters from the I–V characteristics suggest that 200 nm is the optimal thickness of the ZnO layer according to our experimental conditions. We attribute the relatively better performance of this thickness to achieving reasonable compensation between serial resistance and ideality factor. The best heterojunction was tested and successfully used as a UV detector.     

On Application of Carbon-Containing Electrode Materials in Technology of Electrospark Alloying: Part 1. Peculiarities of Coating Formation Using Electrospark Treatment of Titanium Alloy OT4-1

Electrospark treatment of OT4-1 titanium alloy was performed sequentially with a STIM-20N hard-alloy electrode (TiC–20% Ni) and carbon-containing material (graphite and carbon-based composite materials). Kinetics of the mass transfer of the hard-alloy electrode was studied. The cathode mass loss during the first minute of the treatment was established. The kinetics results were processed using the methods of mathematical statistics. The erosion resistance of the applied carbon-containing materials was determined. Phase composition and relief of the coatings formed were analyzed. It was found that the application of the carbon-containing material increases the content of refractory phases in the coatings. Increase in the time of the treatment using the carbon-containing materials decreases the roughness of the coatings.