Warm with high color rendering index white light from hybridization of Ca2BO3Cl:Eu2+ yellow phosphor and CdSe/ZnS nanocrystals

Yellow emitting Ca₂BO₃Cl:Eu²⁺ phosphor was prepared by solid state reaction at 900 °C. The particle was monoclinic crystal structure, and showed broad band emission at around 540–590 nm due to the 5d–4f transition. Single Ca₂BO₃Cl:Eu²⁺ phosphor converted white LED exhibited the CIE coordinates of (0.3441, 0.2675) with low CRI of 67.4. Hybridization of Ca₂BO₃Cl:Eu²⁺ with 535 and 610 nm emitting CdSe/ZnS nanocrystals contributed to increasing white spectrum and generated the warm color temperature (4055 K) with high CRI (83.9) of white light. The acceptable color stability was also observed from (0.3687, 0.3051) at 20 mA to (0.3645, 0.3101) at 80 mA.     

Effects of La doping on electrical conductivity,thermal expansion and electrochemical performance in LaxSr1–xCo0.9Sb0.1O3–δ cathodes for IT–SOFCs

Perovskite oxides La_xSr_1–xCo_0.9Sb_0.1O_3–δ (LSCSbx, x=0.0–0.8) are investigated as IT–SOFC cathodes supported with La_0.9Sr_0.1Ga_0.8Mg_0.2O_3–δ (LSGM) electrolyte. All LSCSbx oxides have a tetragonal distorted perovskite structure with s.g. P4/mmm, while a La₂Co₂O₅ impurity phase was observed within La doping levels at x=0.6–0.8. The LSCSb0.4 has a good chemical compatibility with LSGM electrolyte for temperatures up to 1050 °C. XPS examinations indicate the existence of Co³⁺/Co⁴⁺ mixed valence states in LSCSbx. The conductivity increases with La doping and the LSCSbx with x=0.4 exhibits the highest electrical conductivity (e.g., 673–1637 S cm⁻¹ at 300–850 °C). The thermal expansion coefficient (TEC) decreases from 25.89×10^–6 K^–1 for x=0.0 to 18.5×10^–6 K^–1 for x=0.6 at 30–900 °C. Among the LSCSbx compositions, the LSCSb0.2 exhibits the lowest polarization resistance (R_p), which is merely 0.069 Ω cm² at 700 °C. The maximum power density of the cell with LSCSb0.2 cathode on 300 µm thick LSGM electrolyte attains 564 mW cm^–2 at 850 °C, which is higher than that of SrCo_0.9Sb_0.1O_3–δ (SCSb) cathode. All of the results indicate that LSCSb0.2 is a promising material for application in IT–SOFCs cathodes.     

Biodegradation in coals and other organic-rich rocks

Biodegraded material and the remains of micro-organisms have been shown by transmission electron microscopy to be widespread in a range of Australian coals. Virtually all of this alteration, which has had significant effects on the properties subsequently attained by the coal, must have occurred at a very early stage of deposition. The micro-organisms appear to be mainly fungi and bacteria which have not only modified higher plant tissues but also represent significant amounts of added organic matter. Important amongst the latter are small but abundant occurrences of lipid-rich material of relevance in relation to the generation of hydrocarbons. The results suggest the need for reinterpretation of some light microscopic observations.     

Spectroscopic and magnetic properties of the garnet Ca2NaNi2V3O12Ca2NaMg2V3O12 solid solution

The vibrational, electronic (reflectance) and EPR spectra, as well as the magnetic properties of the garnet Ca₂NaNi₂V₃O₁₂ and its solid solution Ca₂NaMg_2-xNi_xV₃O₁₂ were investigated. The results show that a fraction of the vanadium (V) ions can be replaced by vanadium (IV), depending on the thermal history of the samples. Besides, the existence of some kind of antiferromagnetic interactions as well as the presence of a Ni spin forbidden transition in the electronic spectrum can be inferred. Likewise, the vibrational study suggests that in the case of garnets, the Raman spectroscopy would be a very useful tool to study the substitutional processes in this type of material.     

Rb+-doped CsPbBr3 quantum dots with multi-color stabilized in borosilicate glass via crystallization

All-inorganic lead halide quantum dots (QDs) have attracted immense interest because of their excellent photoelectric properties. By virtue of a similar ionic radius and the same valence state, Rb⁺/Cs⁺ mixed-cation have become a novel mechanism to adjust multi-color emission. However, their poor stability remains a serious problem that has not been solved satisfactorily. Interestingly, QDs glass shows good thermostability and moisture susceptibility. Herein, CsPbBr₃: xRb (x = 0, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8) QD glasses which yield tunable emission spectra (475–523 nm) were synthesized successfully via glass crystallization. Most importantly, the as-prepared QDs glasses exhibited ultrastability under various atmospheric, water and heat conditions. Thus, synthesis of a mixed-cation perovskite QDs glass is a new method to achieve stable multi-color emission. They are also expected to become a new generation of photoelectric materials and can be prospectively applied to light-emitting devices.     

Diffraction gratings inside bulk azodye-doped hybrid inorganic-organic materials by a femtosecond laser

We have investigated diffraction gratings fabricated inside bulk azodye-doped hybrid inorganic-organic materials by a focused near-IR 800 nm femtosecond laser directly. The first-order diffraction of the grating was measured using a 632.8 nm He-Ne laser. By changing the laser parameters such as the laser power, the scanning speed, and the grating period, we found that the first-order Bragg diffraction efficiency was strongly dependent on the parameters of the femtosecond laser. The results showed that the first-order Bragg diffraction efficiency can be increased when decreasing the laser power or increasing the grating periods and the scanning speed of the laser. The mechanisms were also analyzed briefly.     

Excellent energy storage performance of paraelectric Ba0.4Sr0.6TiO3 based ceramics through induction of polar nano-regions

Dielectric energy storage materials with congenitally high power densities and ultrafast discharge rates have been extensively studied for emergent applications. As a typical and traditional dielectric material, paraelectric Ba_0.4Sr_0.6TiO₃ (BST) ceramic exhibits a moderate dielectric constant (ε_r), low dielectric loss and slightly nonlinear P–E hysteresis. However, its energy storage density (W) is extremely low because of its low maximum polarisation (P_max) and weak breakdown strength (BDS). In this study, ferroelectric Na_0.5Bi_0.5TiO₃ (NBT) was introduced into paraelectric BST to enhance energy storage performance. The results show that the introduction of NBT induced polar nano-regions (PNRs) in the paraelectric matrix, resulting in a slim hysteresis loop with low remnant polarisation (P_r) and high P_max simultaneously. Furthermore, owing to a decrease in the oxygen vacancy concentration and an increase in the band gap energy, the BDS of the BST ceramic also significantly increased. As a consequence, a remarkable energy storage density (W_rec = 3.89 J/cm³) and a high energy storage efficiency (η = 83.8%) were realised in the 0.75Ba_0.4Sr_0.6TiO₃-0.25Bi_0.5Na_0.5TiO₃ (0.75BST–0.25NBT) ceramic under a practical electric field of 360 kV/cm. Moreover, the ceramic also exhibited an excellent current density (～1029.7 A/cm²) and ultrahigh power density (～128.7 MW/cm²). The attained energy storage performances indicate that the NBT-modified BST ceramics are promising materials for high energy storage capacitor applications field.     

R-curve behavior of BaTiO3- and PZT ceramics under the influence of an electric field applied parallel to the crack front

The fracture resistance curves (R-curves) of BaTiO₃ and commercial PZT–PIC 151 were measured with compact tension specimens under the influence of an electric field applied parallel to the crack front. A strong influence of the electric field on the starting and plateau value was found as well as on the length of the R-curve. Generally a toughness increase was detected with increasing electric field. The toughening effect is estimated from the change in crack tip stress intensity induced by ferroelastic domain switching near the crack tip using the weight function formalism developed for stress-induced transformation toughening of zirconia ceramics. In order to obtain a quantitative prediction of toughening, ferroelastic and ferroelectric properties were measured.     

Electrochemical evaluation of LiZnxMn2−xO4 (x≤0.10) cathode material synthesized by solution combustion method

The spinel LiZn_xMn_2−xO₄ (x≤0.10) cathode materials have been synthesized by solution combustion method at 600 °C for 3 h. The structure and the morphology of LiZn_xMn_2−xO₄ were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), respectively. All the obtained samples were identified as the spinel structure of LiMn₂O₄, the lattice parameters of samples decreased and the particle size increased as the Zn content increased. The effects of Zn-doping on the electrochemical characteristics of LiMn₂O₄ were investigated by galvanostatic charge–discharge experiments, cyclic voltammetry (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Among them, LiZn_0.05Mn_1.95O₄ particles presented outstanding cycling stability with a capacity retention of 82.9% at a discharge rate of 1 C (1 C=148 mA h g⁻¹) after 500 cycles. Spinel LiZn_0.05Mn_1.95O₄ had reversible cycling performance, revealing that doping LiMn₂O₄ with Zn improves its electrochemical performance.     

Influence of secondary phases on ferroelectric properties of Bi0.5Na0.5TiO3 ceramics

The effects of secondary phases on ferroelectric properties of Bi_0.5Na_0.5TiO₃ (BNT) have been studied. Ceramic powders were prepared by solid state reaction employing different sintering temperatures and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy and impedance spectroscopy. The perovskite structure was detected by XRD; together with small peaks corresponding to a secondary phase assigned to the Na₂Ti₆O₁₃-based phase in calcined powders. In addition, morphology and the content of the secondary phase were modified by the sintering temperatures, affecting the ferroelectric properties, and ac and dc conductivities. We believe that our results can benefit not only the understanding of BNT ceramics, but also expand the range of applications.