A new method for the determination of the wave aberration function for high-resolution TEM.; 2. Measurement of the antisymmetric aberrations

A new method is presented for the determination of the antisymmetric coefficients of the wave aberration function from a tableau of tilted illumination images. The approach is based on measurements of the apparent defocus and two-fold astigmatism using a phase correlation function and phase contrast index calculated from a short focus series acquired at each tilt. This method is shown to be suitable for a wide range of specimens and is sufficiently accurate for exit plane wave restoration at 0.1 nm resolution. Experimental examples of this approach are provided and the method is compared to results obtained from measurements of conventional power spectra.     

An encapsulated helical one-dimensional cobalt iodide nanostructure

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) can be used as templates for the growth of low-dimensional inorganic materials whose structures and properties often differ greatly from those of the bulk. Here we describe the detailed crystallography of an entire helical one-dimensional cobalt diiodide nanostructure encapsulated within a SWNT. This material has an unprecedented twisted double tetrahedral chain structure arising from a rotation of Co(2)I(4) units along its length. The complete nanostructure comprises two distinct regions with oppositely handed helices separated by a short disordered region. The encapsulating SWNT shows a commensurate ovoid distortion reflecting an unexpectedly strong interaction between the nanostructure and the SWNT.     

Lead zirconate titanate thin film capacitors on electroless nickel coated copper foils for embedded passive applications

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT, 52/48) thin film capacitors were prepared on electroless Ni coated Cu foil by chemical solution deposition for printed wiring board embedded capacitor applications. Phase development, dielectric properties, and leakage characteristics of capacitors were investigated, in particular as a function of the process temperature. Dielectric properties of the capacitors were dependent on the crystallization temperature, and capacitance densities of more than 350 nF/cm² and loss tangent of less than 0.03 were measured for capacitors crystallized below 600 °C. Lowest leakage current densities (around 2 × 10^− 7 A/cm² at 10 V direct current (DC)) and highest breakdown fields could be obtained for capacitors crystallized at 650 °C.Capacitors with different thickness and a two-layer capacitor model were used in analyzing the interface layer between PZT and the underlying electroless Ni. From the capacitance and leakage measurements, it is suggested that the interface reaction layer has low permittivity (K around 30) and high defect concentration, which has an important effect on the electrical properties of capacitors. This interface is from the reaction of the electroless nickel layer with the adjacent PZT, and may specifically be moderated by the nickel phosphide (Ni-P) phase, transformed from amorphous Ni during the annealing step.The results have significant implications for embedded capacitors in printed wiring boards. They demonstrate that the process can be tuned to produce either voltage independent capacitors with low leakage and high breakdown fields (above 30 V DC), or the more usual hysteretic, switching, ferroelectric capacitors with higher capacitance densities.     

The Imperial College Thermophysical Properties Data Centre

The IUPAC Thermodynamic Tables Project Centre in London has at its disposal considerable expertise on the production and utilization of high-accuracy equations of state which represent the thermodynamic properties of substances. For some years they have been content to propagate this information by the traditional method of book production, but the increasing use of the computer in industry for process design has shown that an additional method was needed. The setting up of the IUPAC Transport Properties Project Centre, also at Imperial College, whose products would also be in demand by industry, afforded the occasion for a new look at the problem. The solution has been to set up the Imperial College Thermophysical Properties Data Centre, which embraces the two IUPAC Project Centres, and for it to establish a link with the existing Physical Properties Data Service of the Institution of Chemical Engineers, thus providing for the dissemination of the available information without involving the Centres in problems such as those of marketing and advertising. This paper outlines the activities of the Centres and discusses the problems in bringing their products to the attention of industry in suitable form.Paper presented at the Ninth Symposium on Thermophysical Properties, June 24–27, 1985, Boulder, Colorado, U.S.A.     

Evidence for terror management theory II: The effects of mortality salience on reactions to those who threaten or bolster the cultural worldview.

Three experiments were conducted to test the hypothesis, derived from terror management theory, that reminding people of their mortality increases attraction to those who consensually validate their beliefs and decreases attraction to those who threaten their beliefs. In Study 1, subjects with a Christian religious background were asked to form impressions of Christian and Jewish target persons. Before doing so, mortality was made salient to half of the subjects. In support of predictions, mortality salience led to more positive evaluations of the in-group member (the Christian) and more negative evaluations of the out-group member (the Jew). In Study 2, mortality salience led to especially negative evaluations of an attitudinally dissimilar other, but only among subjects high in authoritarianism. In Study 3, mortality salience led to especially positive reactions to someone who directly praised subjects' cultural worldviews and especially negative reactions to someone who criticized them. The implications of these findings for understanding in-group favoritism, prejudice, and intolerance of deviance are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Surface plasmon resonance shows that type IV pili are important in surface attachment by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Type IV pili have been shown to play a role in the early stages of bacterial biofilm formation, but not in initial bacterial attachment. Here, using the surface analytical technique, surface plasmon resonance (SPR), we follow the attachment of the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa in real time. In contrast to previous studies, we show that type IV pili mutants are defective in attachment. Both mutants lacking pili (pilA), and those possessing an overabundance of pili (pilT), showed reduced SPR measured attachment compared with the wild-type PAO1 strain. Both pil mutants also showed reduced pathogenicity in a model insect host, as measured by percentage mortality after 24h. SPR revealed differences in the kinetics of attachment between pilA and pilT, differences obscured by endpoint assays using crystal violet stain. These results highlight the power of SPR in monitoring bacterial attachment in real time and also demonstrate an additional role for type IV pili beyond bacterial aggregation and micro-colony formation.     

Polymer characterization by thermal field flow fractionation with a continuous viscosity detector

A sensitive flow viscometer detector has been successfully used with time-delay, exponential-decay thermal field flow fractionation (TDE-TFFF) to produce unique information on polymers. TFFF with a concentration-dependent detector (e.g., refractometer) and a differential capillary viscometer is unable to produce a universal calibration plot that eliminates the necessity of polymer standards for accurate molecular-weight calibration. However, this system directly provides valuable information on the inherent (or intrinsic) viscosity distribution of polymers. Absolute intrinsic viscosity values are measured by TFFF without the need of calibration. Detailed TFFF/inherent-viscosity distribution profiles uniquely describe individual sample differences and are not affected by the experimental conditions used in TFFF separations. These viscosity distributions should be very useful in polymer characterization, since they are closely correlated with polymer end-use and solution properties, as well as to polymer molecule weight.