We have developed a novel strategy for elaborating composite plasmonic nanomaterials in a well controlled manner. Combining several techniques commonly used in microelectronic engineering, namely sputtering deposition, thermal oxidation, ultra low energy ion implantation, focused ion beam lithography, thermal or laser annealing, we have obtained 3D patterned optical layers. Their spatial and spectral responses take benefit of optical interference, plasmonic resonance effects and coupling between excitations in both near and far field regime. Moreover these structures show high level of uniformity, reproducibility and stability, and they preserve flat and chemically uniform surfaces.

The performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) is limited by the back-reaction of photogenerated electrons from the photoelectrode back into the electrolyte solution. An atomic layer deposited (ALD) hafnium oxide (HfO2) ultra thin, a few nanometers, compact layer was grown on the surface of the transparent conducting oxide (TCO) and its effects on the performance of DSSCs were studied with dark and illuminated current-voltage and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements. Further, the theory of electron recombination at the TCO/electrolyte interface was developed and used to explain the improved DSSC performance with an ALD HfO2 compact layer.

Hydrogen is commonly used to remove (or at least reduce) the electrical activity of numerous defects and impurities in Si. Although hydrogenation works quite well for many defects, it has generally been unsuccessful with transition metal (TM) impurities. A number of {TM,Hn} complexes have been detected using optical or electrical techniques. Even though the gap levels of the isolated TM shift upon hydrogenation, many {TM,Hn} complexes remain electrically active. The nature of the complexes responsible for specific DLTS lines is generally not known, and the number of H interstitials in a given complex is assumed. We have performed systematic first-principles calculations involving Ti-H and Ni-H interactions in Si, assuming both interstitial and substitutional sites for the TM. The equilibrium configurations, binding energies, and approximate gap levels of all the {Ti,Hn} and {Ni,Hn} complexes are calculated.

In the recent years more and more theoretical and experimental evidence have been found that the hydrogen bonded to silicon in dense hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) predominantly resides in hydrogenated divacancies. In this contribution we will philosophize about the option that the small fraction of divacancies, missing at least one of its bonded hydrogen, may correspond to some of the native and metastable defect states of a-Si:H. We will discuss that such defect entities are an interesting basis for new and alternative views on the origin of the SWE.

The influence of hypersonic on phenol sulfoxidation kinetics in the presence of cobalt complexes fixed on polyacrylic acid (PAA) is investigated in the soft conditions (313-333K). Products are p- and o-phenolsulfonic acids. Phenol conversion under the investigated conditions reaches 98-100 %. The ultrasonic sound in the interval from 0 to 60 kHz leads to aggrandizement of trivalent cobalt concentration in a solution, as a result, increasing the reaction activity. The enlargement of ultrasound influence (USI) modulation frequency and the exposure time results in destruction of a binuclear complex, which may be responsible for enhanced catalytic activity. KEDWORDS: ultrasound influence; polyacrylic acid; immobilized cobalt complexes; kinetics

The characteristics of a tunable wavelength filter in a-SiC:H multilayered stack p-i'i-n graded cells are studied both theoretically and experimentally. Three different architectures are tested for proper fine tuning of the spectral sensitivity. The simplest configuration is a two terminal p-i-n photodiode where the active intrinsic layer is a double layered a-SiC:H/a-Si:H thin film. In the others the active device consists of a p-i'(a-SiC:H)-n / p-i(a-Si:H)-n heterostructures where the doped layers can have high or low conductivities. The spectral analysis of the device is performed under different optical and electrical applied bias and frequencies. Results show that, depending on the architecture and time window used, the device acts as an optical filter, an amplifier or a multiplexer /demultiplexer for optical signal processing, wavelength conversion, signal demultiplexing, and pattern recognition. A theoretical analysis supported by numerical and electrical simulations is presented. The analysis uses simple phototransistor and photodiode equations to explain the response of the device under different optical signals, and to compare the generated photocurrent with the experimental data.

Gold nanoparticles supported on titania catalysts with different Au loadings were prepared and evaluated in the reaction of NO reduction by CO in an oxygen rich condition. The crystalline structures of the Au/TiO2 materials were refined with Rietveld method. TiO2 support chiefly contains anatase phase, having a crystalline size ranged from 5 to 15 nm. Au particles have an average crystal size approximately 2-5 nm as Au concentration less 3 wt %. In the reaction of NO + CO + O2, the Au/TiO2catalysts show a selectivity to 100 % N2, neither NO2 nor N2O was yielded in the reaction temperature between 25 and 400 °C, which strongly indicates that Au/TiO2catalysts are much superior to the other catalysts like Pt/TiO2 catalysts on which N2O was usually produced in the reaction temperature below 200 °C and NO2 was produced in the reaction temperature above 300 °C under a similar reaction condition.

Samples with a composition ZrNiSn were synthesized by a combination of mechanical alloying (MA) and consolidation by either Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS) or hot pressing (HP). Appropriate stoichiometric ratios of the starting materials were milled under an inert atmosphere in a high energy ball mill for 6 hours, achieving a half-Heusler phase. X-Ray diffraction patterns of as milled powders and consolidated samples were compared and analyzed for phase purity. Thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity and Seebeck coefficient were measured as a function of temperature in the range 300 K to 800 K and compared with measurements reported for high temperature solid state reaction synthesis of this compound. HP samples, compared to SPS samples, demonstrate increased grain growth due to longer heating times. Reduced grain size achieved by MA and SPS causes increased phonon scattering due to the increased number of grain boundaries, which lowers the thermal conductivity without doping the base system with addition phonon scattering centers.

We investigate the influence of refractive index contrast on the light scattering properties of nanotextured interfaces, which serve as front contact for p-i-n thin-film silicon solar cells. We here focus on ZnO surfaces with randomly oriented pyramidal features, known for their excellent light trapping performance. Transparent replicas, with a different refractive index, but practically identical morphology compared to their ZnO masters, were fabricated via nanoimprinting. Within the theoretical framework we recently proposed, we show how the angular and spectral dependence of light scattered by nanostructures with identical morphology but different refractive index may be related to each other allowing direct comparison of their light trapping potential within the device.

All-printed electronics is the key technology to ultra-low-cost, large-area electronics. As a critical step in this direction, we demonstrate that femtosecond laser processing (sintering and ablation) of solution deposited metal nanoparticles enables direct metal patterning at low-temperature with ultra high resolution (∼300nm) to overcome the resolution limitation of the current inkjet direct writing processes.

This could be explained by the combined effects of novel properties of metal nanoparticles such as melting temperature drop, strong absorption of the incident laser beam at surface plasmon mode, lower conductive heat transfer loss, and the relatively weak bonding between nanoparticles. Local thermal control of the laser sintering process could minimize the heat-affected zone and the thermal damage to the substrate and further enhance the resolution of the process. This local nanoparticle deposition and energy coupling enable an environmentally friendly and cost-effective process as well as a low-temperature manufacturing sequence to realize large-area, flexible electronics on polymer substrates.

Carbon foams with a reticulated macrostructure were prepared by a polymer sponge replication method. The electromagnetic parameters of carbon foams with variable electric conductivity were measured at a frequency of 2450MHz. Compared with the same composition pulverized powders, carbon foams have relatively lower dielectric constant but much larger dielectric loss, and more remarkably, carbon foams have magnetic loss. The microwave absorbing property measurement of carbon foams was also conducted. A relatively broad absorbing band performance has been got for carbon foams, and the absorbing values exceeds 7dB almost in the whole measured frequency range of 4-15GHz, while the frequencies range for absorbing values exceeding 8dB are about 7 GHz for the carbon foam with an electric conductivity of 0.46S/m. It is worthy that the broad absorbing band feature of the carbon foam is obtained without any impedance match design, which indicates carbon foams have a great possibility of being applied as RAMs. The special electromagnetic loss characteristics and prominent radar absorbing properties about carbon foams indicate macrostructure modification is possibly a new and effective way to modulate the electromagnetic properties of RAMs besides the traditional composition variation.

Growing interest in nanomaterials has raised many questions regarding the operating mechanisms active during the deformation and failure of nanoscale materials. To address this, a simple, effective in situ TEM straining technique was developed that provides direct detailed observations of the active deformation mechanisms at a length scale relevant to most nanomaterials. The capabilities of this new straining structure are highlighted with initial results in pulsed laser deposited (PLD) Al-Al2O3 thin films of uniform thickness. The Al-Al2O3 system was chosen for investigation, as the grain size can be tailored via deposition and annealing conditions and the active mechanisms in the binary system can be compared to previous studies in PLD Ni and evaporated Al films. PLD Al-Al2O3 free-standing films of various oxide concentrations and different thermal histories were produced and characterized in terms of average grain and particle sizes. Preliminary in situ TEM straining experiments show intergranular failure for films with 5 vol% Al2O3. Further work is in progress to explore and understand the active deformation and failure mechanisms, as well as the dependence of mechanisms on processing routes.

Photocatalytic deposition of Ag nanoparticles from a mixed aqueous solution of AgNO3 and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) onto TiO2 film supported on indium-tin oxide-coated glass slide (Ag/TiO2 film) was carried out by using UV light irradiation. The size and shape of the Ag nanoparticles were controlled by the addition of PVP during the photodeposition. In the optical absorption spectra of the Ag/TiO2 film, the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) absorption of the Ag nanoparticles was observed. When the film was immersed in various kinds of alcohols with the refractive index at 20°C (), ranging between 1.3292 and 1.4103, the peak LSPR absorption was shifted to longer wavelengths and the peak absorbance increased with increasing . The spectral change of the Ag/TiO2 film with larger spherical Ag nanoparticles was more prominent than that with smaller ones.

Doped SbTe phase change (PRAM) line cells produced by e-beam lithography were cycled for at least 100 million times. The memory retention of the PRAM cell was measured both isothermally and isochronally which showed excellent agreement. An activation energy for growth of 1.7 eV was found (after 100 million cycles) for both measurements. Similar isothermal and isochronal measurements were performed on PRAM cells produced by optical lithography which yielded activation energies of 3.0 eV and 3.3 eV, respectively. Our results show that the same phase-change material can show large differences in retention behavior depending on the way the cells are produced.

We prepared single-phase nickel ferrite nanoparticles separated by silicon dioxide using sol-gel method with tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as a precursor for SiO2. The magnetic properties are investigated by using SQUID-magnetometry over a broad temperature range (4.2 – 350 K), magnetic field (2–70,000 Oe) and frequency (0.1 – 1000 Hz) range. The particle size is in the range 8 – 12 nm. Exchange bias and spin disorder appear at the core-shell interface due to broken bonds on the surface. Disorder and core-shell interaction induces spin-glass freezing which is manifested by a low temperature peak in the AC susceptibility well separated from magnetic blocking peak. This low temperature peak is assigned to spin-glass freezing. The proof of spin-glass freezing is managed by zero field cooled/field cooled (ZFC/FC), frequency and DC field dependence of AC susceptibility, low temperature hysteresis loop and time dependent thermoremanent magnetization at different temperatures. All the measurements stated above signify blocking/unblocking at higher temperatures and surface spin-glass freezing at low temperatures. The aim of our work is to contribute to a better understanding of “spin-frozen” magnetic ferrite nanoparticles at diameters 8 – 12 nm which could be important in future for stabilizing the magnetic state of “core-shell”-structured nanomagnets.

Colloidal crystals have been attracting much attention due to their novel use as 3D-photonic crystals and to their structural color. We have been developing a method for the colloidal crystal growth of opal films immersed in silicone oil. This method is one of the evaporative self-assembly techniques for opal films from colloidal particle suspensions. Understanding the mechanism of the process is important to assure the coating of high-quality opal thin films. The colloidal crystallization from suspension was observed with a long working distance optical microscope and Bragg's diffraction peaks were measured with a miniature fiber optic spectrometer. The transition from a non-crystalline to a crystalline phase is observed within a region between the disordered colloidal suspension and the colloidal crystal film. Within this region, that spans a distance of about 400μm, the lattice of the colloidal crystal reduces until it transitions to the close-packed structure.

Nanoparticles consisting of different biocompatible materials are attracting a lot of interest in the biomedical area as useful tools for drug delivery, photo-therapy and contrast enhancement agents in MRI, fluorescence and confocal microscopy. This work mainly focuses on the synthesis of polymeric/inorganic multifunctional nanoparticles (PIMN) based on biocompatible di-block copolymer poly(L,L-lactide-co-ethylene glycol) (PLLA-PEG) via an emulsion-evaporation method. Besides containing a hydrophobic drug (Indomethacin), these polymeric nanoparticles incorporate different visualization agents such as superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPION) and fluorescent Quantum Dots (QDs) that are used as contrast agents for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) and fluorescence microscopy together. Gold Nanorods are also incorporated in such nanostructures to allow simultaneous visualization and photodynamic therapy. MRI studies are performed with different loading of SPION into PIMN, showing an enhancement in T2 contrast superior to commercial contrast agents. Core-shell QDs absorption and emission spectra are recorded before and after their loading into PIMN. With these polymeric/inorganic multifunctional nanoparticles, both MRI visualization and confocal fluorescence microscopy studies can be performed. Gold nanorods are also synthesized and incorporated into PIMN without changing their longitudinal absorption peak usable for lased excitation and phototherapy. In-vitro cytotoxicity studies have also been performed to confirm the low cytotoxicity of PIMN for further in-vivo studies.

GaTe and GaTe:In single crystals were grown from high purity Ga (7N) and zone refined Te (>7N) precursor materials. InSe thin films were deposited by thermal evaporation onto the sulfur passivated GaTe:In substrates at various substrate temperatures from 450K-550K to fabricate p-GaTe:In/n-InSe heterojunction solar cells. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize GaTe:In crystals and InSe thin film surfaces. The current-voltage characteristics of p-GaTe:In/n-InSe solar cells were measured under dark and under illumination of 75mW/cm2. Dark J-V measurements showed that the reverse saturation current density (J0) decreased from 3.8 x 10-6 A/cm2 to 1.5 x 10-9 A/cm2 and the ideality factor was reduced from 2.04 to 1.15 as a result of surface passivation. Under illumination of 75 mW/cm2, the open-circuit voltage (Voc) increased from 0.54V to 0.68V and short-circuit current density (Jsc) increased from 7.19 mA/cm2 to 8.65 mA/cm2 for solar cells with surface passivated GaTe:In substrates, leading to an increased solar cell efficiency of 5.03%. EPMA measurements revealed that the InSe thin films deposited at 550 K on GaTe:In substrates were near stoichiometric with enhanced grain size contributing also to better solar cell performance.

An equivalent-circuit electrical model is used to simulate the photovoltaic properties of mixed-phase thin-film silicon solar cells. Microcrystalline and amorphous phases are represented as separate parallel-connected photodiode equivalent circuits, scaled by assuming that the photodiode area is directly proportional to the volume fraction of each phase. A reasonable correspondence between experiment and simulation is obtained for short-circuit current and open-circuit voltage vs. volume fraction. However the large dip in fill-factor and reduced PV efficiency measured for cells prepared in the low-crystalline region is inadequately reproduced. It is concluded that poor PV performance in this region is not due solely to shunting by more highly-crystalline filaments, which supports the view that the low-crystalline material has transport properties inferior to either microcrystalline or amorphous silicon.

Composites containing mainly-half-Heusler MNiSn (HH) and full-Heusler MNi2Sn (FH) were prepared by solid state reaction of a mixture of polycrystalline bulk HH alloy with various concentrations of Ni up to 10 wt.%. Electrical conductivities, thermal conductivities and thermopowers of spark plasma sintered specimens of the as synthesized composite materials were measured in the temperature range from 300 K to 750 K. The conduction type of the composite changes from semiconductor to semimetal for Ni concentrations up to 2 wt.% and from semimetal to metal for higher Ni concentrations above 5 wt.%. A strong reduction in lattice thermal conductivity was observed for the composite containing 10 wt. % Ni inclusions.