TEM Characterization of Single- and Multilayer Triol-Based Sol–Gel PZT (53/47) Thin Films

Integrated lead zirconate titanate thin films deposited on Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrates using a novel triol-based route were characterized using X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Crack-free single-layer PZT films of up to 200 nm thick were prepared by triol-based sol–gel processing onto Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrates. Films ∼75 nm thick exhibited a microstructure free of pores and second phase. As film thickness increased, film texture changed from {100} to {111} perovskite. Essentially, single-phase multilayer films could be prepared by the deposition and pyrolysis of several 75 nm layers, followed by a single crystallization step. The influence of heat-treatment schedule on the microstructure and orientation of the multilayer films is discussed. Comparison has been made between multilayer films prepared using the triol-based sol and an inverted mixing order/acetic acid-based sol.     

Temperature and processing effects on lithium ion conductivity of solution-deposited lithium zirconium phosphate (LiZr2P3O12) thin films

Lithium zirconium phosphate (LiZr₂P₃O₁₂) thin films have been prepared on platinized silicon substrates via a chemical solution deposition approach with processing temperatures between 700°C and 775°C. Films that were subject to a single high-temperature anneal were found to crystallize at temperatures above 725°C. Crystallization was observed in films annealed after each deposited layer at 700°C and above. In both cases, grain size was found to increase with annealing temperature. Ion conductivity was found to increase with annealing temperature in singly annealed films. In per-layer annealed films ion conductivity was found to initially increase then decrease with increasing annealing temperature. A maximum ion conductivity of 1.6 × 10⁻⁶ S/cm was observed for the singly annealed 775°C condition, while a maximum ion conductivity of 5.8 × 10⁻⁷ S/cm was observed for the 725°C per-layer annealed condition. These results are consistent with an increasing influence of cross-plane, internal interface resistance and vapor phase carrier loss in the per-layer annealed samples. This work demonstrates that post-deposition processing methods can strongly affect the ion conducting properties of LiZr₂P₃O₁₂ thin films.     

Biobased flexible polyurethane foams manufactured from lactide-based polyester-ether polyols for automotive applications

In this study, biobased polyester-ether polyols derived from meso-lactide and dimer acids were evaluated for flexible polyurethane foams (PUF) applications. Initially, the catalyst concentration was optimized for the biobased PUF containing 30% of biobased polyol (70% petroleum-based polyol). Then, the same formulation was used for biobased PUF synthesis containing 10%–40% of biobased polyols. The performance of biobased PUF was compared with the performance of the control foam made with 100% petroleum-based polyol. The characteristic times (cream, top of the cup, string gel, rise, tack-free) of biobased PUF were determined. The biobased PUF were evaluated for the mechanical (tensile and compressive) and morphological properties. As the wet compression set is important for automotive applications, it was measured for all biobased PUF. The thermal degradation behavior of biobased PUF was also evaluated and compared with the control foam. The effect of different hydroxyl and acid values of polyols on the mechanical properties of biobased PUF is also discussed. The miscibility of all components of PUF formulations is crucial in order to produce a foam with uniform properties. Thus, the miscibility of biobased polyols with commercial petroleum-based polyol was studied.     

A versatile facility for laboratory studies of viscoelastic and poroelastic behaviour of rocks

Novel laboratory equipment has been modified to allow both torsional and flexural oscillation measurements at sub-microstrain amplitudes, thereby providing seismic-frequency constraints on both the shear and compressional wave properties of cylindrical rock specimens within the linear regime. The new flexural mode capability has been tested on experimental assemblies containing fused silica control specimens. Close consistency between the experimental data and the results of numerical modelling with both finite-difference and finite-element methods demonstrates the viability of the new technique. The capability to perform such measurements under conditions of independently controlled confining and pore-fluid pressure, with emerging strategies for distinguishing between local (squirt) and global (specimen-wide) fluid flow, will have particular application to the study of frequency-dependent seismic properties expected of cracked and fluid-saturated rocks of the Earth's upper crust.     

How to “alternatize” a clustering algorithm

Given a clustering algorithm, how can we adapt it to find multiple, nonredundant, high-quality clusterings? We focus on algorithms based on vector quantization and describe a framework for automatic ‘alternatization’ of such algorithms. Our framework works in both simultaneous and sequential learning formulations and can mine an arbitrary number of alternative clusterings. We demonstrate its applicability to various clustering algorithms—k-means, spectral clustering, constrained clustering, and co-clustering—and effectiveness in mining a variety of datasets.     

Data-Intensive Computing in the 21st Century

The deluge of data that future applications must process—in domains ranging from science to business informatics—creates a compelling argument for substantially increased R&D targeted at discovering scalable hardware and software solutions for data-intensive problems.     

An extensible and lightweight architecture for adaptive server applications

Server applications augmented with behavioral adaptation logic can react to environmental changes, creating self‐managing server applications with improved quality of service at runtime. However, developing adaptive server applications is challenging due to the complexity of the underlying server technologies and highly dynamic application environments. This paper presents an architecture framework, the Adaptive Server Framework (ASF), to facilitate the development of adaptive behavior for legacy server applications. ASF provides a clear separation between the implementation of adaptive behavior and the business logic of the server application. This means a server application can be extended with programmable adaptive features through the definition and implementation of control components defined in ASF. Furthermore, ASF is a lightweight architecture in that it incurs low CPU overhead and memory usage. We demonstrate the effectiveness of ASF through a case study, in which a server application dynamically determines the resolution and quality to scale an image based on the load of the server and network connection speed. The experimental evaluation demonstrates the performance gains possible by adaptive behavior and the low overhead introduced by ASF. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Cyclic voltammetry on electrode surfaces covered with porous layers: An analysis of electron transfer kinetics at single-walled carbon nanotube modified electrodes

Cyclic voltammetry is recorded of the oxidation of ferrocyanide on a glassy carbon electrode modified with multiple layers of single-walled carbon nanotubes. The current response is interpreted in terms of semi-infinite planar diffusion towards the macro-electrode surface and in terms of oxidation of the electroactive species trapped in pockets in between the nanotubes. A thin layer model is used to illustrate the effects of diffusion within a porous layer. It is found that a semi-infinite planar diffusion model alone is not appropriate for interpreting the kinetics of the electron transfer at this electrode surface. In particular, caution should be exercised in respect of comparing voltammetric peak-to-peak potential separations between naked electrodes and nanotube-modified electrodes for the inference of electrocatalysis via electron transfer via the nanotubes.     

Minimal ordering constraints for some families of variable symmetries

Variable symmetries in a constraint satisfaction problem can be broken by adding lexicographic ordering constraints. Existing general methods of generating such sets of ordering constraints can require a huge number of constraints. This adds an unacceptable overhead to the solving process. Methods exist by which this large set of ordering constraints can be reduced to a much smaller set automatically, but their application is also prohibitively costly. In contrast, this paper takes a bottom-up approach. It examines some commonly-occurring families of groups and derives a minimal set of ordering constraints sufficient to break the symmetry each group describes. These minimal sets are then used as building blocks to generate minimal sets of ordering constraints for groups constructed via direct and imprimitive wreath products. Experimental results confirm the value of minimal sets of ordering constraints, which can now be generated much more cheaply than with previous methods.