National Institute Of Materials Physics - Romania

The strong modulation of the AC magnetic response in the magnetic field-temperature region of the DC magnetization peak effect (PE) occurring just below the DC irreversibility line (IL) of weakly pinned superconducting single crystals is well known. However, it is not yet clear if the AC magnetic signal registered at usual frequencies and amplitudes is significantly affected by the presence of the second magnetization peak (SMP) in the DC magnetic hysteresis curves, since the SMP appears in specimens with stronger pinning and is located well below the IL. We investigated the AC magnetic response of several La2 - xSrxCuO4 and 122-type pnictide superconducting single crystals exhibiting a pronounced DC SMP. It was found that in the case of small demagnetization effects, the AC magnetic signal across the SMP remains in the linear regime, with no detectable distortions in the SMP range (within the high sensitivity of a Physical Property Measurement System). This indicates reduced values of the Campbell penetration depth compared with the London magnetic penetration depth. A clearly nonmonotonic, SMP-related variation has only been obtained for the DC field dependence of the out of phase component of the AC magnetic moment in the nonlinear regime. The nonlinear AC Bean regime far below the IL has been attained in the conditions of enhanced demagnetization effects (plate-like specimens in perpendicular magnetic fields).

This paper proposes a novel, flexible, low cost administration patch which could be used as a non-invasive, controlled transdermal drug delivery system. The fabricated device consists in a flexible microfiber architecture heater covered with a thermoresponsive hydrogel, namely poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), as a matrix for the incorporation of active molecules. The manufacturing process consists of two main steps. First, the electrospun poly(methyl methacrylate) fiber networks are sputter coated with a thin gold layer and attached to flexible poly(ethylene terephthalate) substrates to obtain the heating platforms. Second, the heaters are encapsulated in poly(ethylene terephthalate) foils and covered with poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) hydrogel sheets. In order to illustrate the functionality of the fabricated patch, the hydrogel layer is loaded with methylene blue aqueous solution and is afterwards heated via Joule effect, by applying a voltage on the metalized fibers. The methylene blue releasing profiles of the heated patch are compared with those of the unheated one and the influence of parameters such as hydrogel composition and morphology, as well as the applied voltage values for microheating are investigated. The results indicate that the fabricated patch can be used as a drug administration instrument, while its performance can be tuned depending on the targeted application.

Zn1-x-yFexNdyO, x = 0.02 and y = 0.00-0.05 were successfully synthesized via a hydrothermal method at 200 degrees C. XRD and Mossbauer spectroscopy indicated that (Fe, Nd) codoped ZnO, calcined at 700 degrees C, 3 h in air, contains hexagonal ZnO phase as main phase and traces of ZnFe2O4; no phase containing neodymium was observed. In this study, a strong powder morphology dependence on Nd concentration and calcination temperature was evidenced by SEM. The photocatalytic properties were found to depend on the sample morphology and Nd content. Thermoluminescence signal is weak compared to the undoped ZnO and the curves shape was almost independent on the doping level and dependent on the calcination temperature and was related to the structural defects induced by the synthesis and calcination. Photoluminescence spectra showed that the green-yellow band due to the oxygen related defects, decreases by Fe and Nd-codoping. Thermo-magnetization curves measured in low applied fields and the magnetic hysteresis loops recorded in the temperature range 5-380 K, indicate two superimposed magnetic regimes, one predominant above 100 K the other below 100 K. The observed magnetic order is not directly related to the dopant Fe or Nd ions, but to different type of defects.

Two mixtures of elemental nickel and titanium powders in atomic proportions of 50% Ni + 50% Ti and 32% Ni + 68% Ti, respectively, were ground for 40 hours in a high energy planetary mill. In the case of the first mixture, the mechanical alloying was totally produced, while for the second, the alloying was partial. In both mixtures, qualitative X-ray diffraction phase analysis revealed the presence of metastable phases, such as Ni HC and NiTi- R-phase. Also, the equiatomic mixture is characterized by a partially amorphous structure. 10% of each type of mixture submitted to milling was used as reinforcing element in the form of particulates for two magnesium matrix composites. They were obtained by sintering in the plasma at 590 degrees C. In the case of the reinforced with the second mixture composite, the production of new phases other than the matrix and those present in the mixture of nickel and titanium powders after milling were recorded. The electron microscopy images of the two composites have resistant, free of micropores or microcracks matrix / particulates interfaces. The Mg-10% (32 at% Ni + 68 at% Ti) composite is characterized by Vickers hardness higher than that of the composite reinforced with the equiatomic mixture.

Short powder-in-tube tapes of MgB2 in the Fe sheath were fabricated by ex situ route from a commercial powder containing some free Mg and MgO impurity phases. The final heat treatment was performed by spark plasma sintering (SPS). Tapes were with open (OT) or closed (CT) endings. Closed endings were made by folding and pressing. The MgB2 core of the OT sample has shown a higher low-field critical current density, a higher maximum pinning force, a slightly higher disorder, smaller average MgB2 crystallite size, a weak contact between Fe and MgB2 core, and more macro-flux jumps. The upper and irreversibility fields were similar for OT and CT samples. In the center of the MgB2 cores, the detected impurity phase is MgO, while at the interface with Fe, MgB4 also occurs. Impurity phases found at interface, MgO and MgB4, are present in the center of the bulk SPSed samples. Reactions and pinning-force-related parameters are discussed with respect to Mg behavior influenced by condition of endings. It is inferred that the presence of free Mg in the raw MgB2 powder has an important contribution to observed differences, and its removal or control is recommended.

We investigated the AC magnetic response of a YBa2Cu3O7 film with embedded BaZrO3 nanorods and Y2O3 nanoparticles at a static magnetic field H-dc lower than the matching field H-Phi. We proposed a practical formula for the determination of the induced current J during AC susceptibility measurements, which allows us to directly obtain the pinning potential U-c from the characteristics of electric field E versus J. We show that the dynamic critical current J(d) induced at the depinning frequency f(d) can be experimentally obtained by measuring m'(T) and m ''(T) at different frequencies and amplitudes. It was found that the value of f(d) obtained by extrapolation of J to J(d) in the PHz domain is much higher than the frequency reported for ordinary YBa2Cu3O7 thin films as determined by microwave impedance measurements. AC susceptibility, vortex dynamics, pinning energy, depinning frequency, dynamic critical current, microwave impedance measurements

Interfacial properties of organic adsorbates featuring aromatic -orbitals on metal surfaces play an important role for organic electronics and spintronics. Pyrene is a flat aromatic molecule with a size between ultimately small benzene and extended graphene segments. The deposition of pyrene molecules onto clean and reactive surfaces with a sub-monolayer coverage under ultra-high vacuum (UHV) conditions is challenging, since pyrene is a solid with a high vapor pressure. Here, a sublimation procedure under UHV and image pyrene adlayers on in situ prepared Au(111) and Fe/W(110) substrates by means of low-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy is presented. For Au(111), the molecule-surface interaction is weak as indicated by the specific herringbone reconstruction of the Au(111) surface that is visible through the self-assembled pyrene adlayer. Pyrene desorption due to weak intermolecular interaction self-limits the growth to one monolayer (ML). On the more reactive 2-4 ML thick Fe films on W(110), the molecular order of the pyrene adlayer sensitively depends on the Fe thickness-dependent dislocation pattern at the substrate surface. Irregular arrangements occur for 1 ML Fe and near substrate dislocations for 2-4 ML Fe. Self-assembled ordered arrays form predominantly for 2 ML Fe, where the dislocation pattern leaves sufficiently large unperturbed areas between the dislocation lines.

Refined structure of the ferritic phase induced by mechanical milling (under reducing atmosphere) and its thermal stability are required in various applications of nanostructured ferritic alloys. The impurification with nitrogen and oxygen uptaken from the air is very probable during ball-milling, especially at the long-time high-energy milling conditions. As a rule, these interstitial impurities in as-milled powders are in quantities under the sensibility limit of conventional measurement techniques, such as XRD and SEM/ EDS. To evidence the tendency for microstructure modification by impurities introduced during milling, the Fe-14Cr-3W-0.4Ti-0.25Y(2)O(3) (Fe14Cr) ferritic steel powders (re)loaded in air and milled up to 170 h with interruption of the milling process, and heated up to 1373 K were investigated by thermal analysis in correlation with X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. XRD failed to detect the impurities in powders milled up to 38 h in air although a consistent mass loss related to the degassing of N-2 was registered in thermogravimetric, TG, curves. (Fe,Cr)(4)N, fcc-c, (Fe, Cr)(2)O-3 impurity phases in powders milled over 38 h in air and (Fe,Cr)(2)O-4 formed upon heating were readily detected by XRD. The analysis of these results allowed to better understand the impurification process and to generalise it for any as-milled Fe-Cr-based alloy powder processed in any milling conditions irrespective of the milling atmosphere, duration and thus, of amounts of contaminants. The quality of three powders milled for 170 h in three different conditions was compared: in air, under an argon atmosphere with interruptions of the milling process and under an argon atmosphere without interruption of the milling process. The contamination of powder milled for 170 h under an argon atmosphere without interruption of the milling process is insignificant (corresponding to less than 0.5 mass% mass loss in TG) as compared to powders obtained in the other two milling conditions. New approaches for minimising the contamination from air are suggested.

Arrays of Ni submicron wires surrounded by poly (vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) submicron tubes were prepared via solution-processed polymer and Ni electrodeposition into anodic aluminum oxide template. The PVDF solution was filtered in vacuum through the template and the resulting dried structure was used for the electrodeposition of Ni wires. The obtained core-shell submicron wire structure consists of a metallic magnetic nanowire core of about 50 mu m in length and about 300 nm diameter surrounded by a polymer tube shell with thickness less than 10 nm. The specific ferroelectric beta-phase of the polymer was obtained whereas the magnetic behavior of the Ni-cores was proven to be specific to an array of ferromagnetic Ni cylindrical wires (about 0.62 mu(B)/Ni atom) with magnetization reversal mechanisms dominated by dipolar interactions and domain wall displacements. No significant differences of the magnetization reversal mechanism were observed in case of Ni submicron wires surrounded by PVDF tubes and similar Ni wires without PVDF shell, suggesting that magneto-coupling effects in such systems might be observed only by measuring the perturbation of the electric state of the polymer shell under a magnetic excitation of the Ni cores.

Co-doped CeO2 thin films were grown from a bulk target with starting composition Ce0.95Yb0.04Er0.01O2 by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) on a p(+)-n-n(+) single crystal silicon diode. The PLD laser fluence was varied between 1.7 J/cm(2) and 3.7 J/cm(2). The device with the film grown for a laser fluence of 2.3 J/cm(2) delivers the highest performance taking advantage of the up conversion (UC) effect provided by this film. Namely, the increase in the relative power conversion efficiency of the device is 12.1% and 39.2% for illumination under 1 and 2.1 sun, respectively, and its relative external quantum efficiency is 8.2% when illuminated with 980 nm light. The film grown for the optimum 2.3 J/cm(2) fluence shows good target-film composition transfer and a granular morphology with a low roughness. The UC mechanism consists of efficient energy transfer between spatially separated Yb3+ and Er3+ ions, i.e. the absorption of infrared light photons by the Yb3+ ions (F-2(7/2) -> F-2(5/2) transition) is followed by a two-step energy transfer process to neighboring Er3+ ions and by their characteristic luminescent emissions ((H-2(11/2), S-4(3/2)) -> I-4(15/2)) and (F-4(9/2) -> I-4(15/2)).