Abstract: Atomic layer deposition (ALD) enables the conformal coating of porous materials, making the technique suitable for pore size tuning at the atomic level, e.g., for applications in catalysis, gas separation and sensing. It is, however, not straightforward to obtain information about the conformality of ALD coatings deposited in pores with diameters in the low mesoporous regime (<10 nm). In this work, it is demonstrated that in situ synchrotron based grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS) can provide valuable information on the change in density and internal surface area during ALD of TiO2 in a porous titania film with small mesopores (3-8 nm). The results are shown to be in good agreement with in situ X-ray fluorescence data representing the evolution of the amount of Ti atoms deposited in the porous film. Analysis of both datasets indicates that the minimum pore diameter that can be achieved by ALD is determined by the size of the Ti-precursor molecule.

Abstract: Electron acceleration from the interaction of an intense short-pulse laser with low density plasma is considered. The relation between direct electron acceleration within the laser pulse and that in the wake is investigated analytically. The magnitude and location of the ponderomotive-force-caused charge separation field with respect to that of the pulse determine the relative effectiveness of the two acceleration mechanisms. It is shown that there is an optimum condition for acceleration in the wake. Electron acceleration within the pulse dominates as the pulse becomes sufficiently short, and the latter directly drives and even traps the electrons. The latter can reach ultrahigh energies and can be extracted by impinging the pulse on a solid target. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.

Abstract: Platinumgold heteronanostructures comprising either dimer (PtAu) or coresatellite (Pt@Au) configurations were synthesized by means of a seeded growth procedure using platinum nanodendrites as seeds. Careful control of the reduction kinetics of the gold precursor can be used to direct the nucleation and growth of gold nanoparticles on either one or multiple surface sites simultaneously, leading to the formation of either dimers or coresatellite nanoparticles, respectively, in high yields. Characterization by electron tomography and high resolution electron microscopy provided a better understanding of the actual three-dimensional particle morphology, as well as the AuPt interface, revealing quasi-epitaxial growth of Au on Pt. The prepared PtAu bimetallic nanostructures are highly efficient catalysts for ethanol oxidation in alkaline solution, showing accurate selectivity, high sensitivity, and improved efficiency by generating higher current densities than their monometallic counterparts.

Abstract: We consider a one-dimensional (1D) superlattice (SL) on graphene consisting of very high and very thin (δ-function) magnetic and potential barriers with zero average potential and zero magnetic field. We calculate the energy spectrum analytically, study it in different limiting cases, and determine the condition under which an electron beam incident on an SL is highly collimated along its direction. In the absence of the magnetic SL the collimation is very sensitive to the value of W/Ws and is optimal for W/Ws = 1, where W is the distance between the positive and negative barriers and L = W + Ws is the size of the unit cell. In the presence of only the magnetic SL the collimation decreases and the symmetry of the spectrum around ky is broken for W/W_s\neq 1 . In addition, a gap opens which depends on the strength of the magnetic field. We also investigate the effect of spatially separated potential and magnetic δ-function barriers and predict a better collimation in specific cases.

Abstract: In this work, we have studied the TMA/H(2)O (TMA Al(CH(3))(3)) atomic layer deposition (ALD) of Al(2)O(3) on hydroxyl (OH) and thiol (SH) terminated semiconductor substrates. Total reflection x-ray fluorescence reveals a complex growth-per-cycle evolution during the early ALD reaction cycles. OH and SH terminated surfaces demonstrate growth inhibition from the second reaction cycle on. Theoretical calculations, based on density functional theory, are performed on cluster models to investigate the first TMA/H(2)O reaction cycle. Based on the theoretical results, we discuss possible mechanisms for the growth inhibition from the second reaction cycle on. In addition, our calculations show that AlCH(3) groups are hydrolyzed by a H(2)O molecule adsorbed on a neighboring Al atom, independent of the type of backbonds (Si-O, Ge-O, or Ge-S) of AlCH(3). The coordination of Al remains four-fold after the first TMA/H(2)O reaction cycle. (C) 2012 American Vacuum Society. [DOI: 10.1116/1.3664090]

Abstract: A novel spintronic nanodevice is proposed that is able to manipulate the single heavy-hole spin state in a coherent manner. It can act as a single quantum logic gate. The heavy-hole spin transformations are realized by transporting the hole around closed loops defined by metal gates deposited on top of the nanodevice. The device exploits Dresselhaus spin-orbit interaction, which translates the spatial motion of the hole into a rotation of the spin. The proposed quantum gate operates on subnanosecond time scales and requires only the application of a weak static voltage which allows for addressing heavy-hole spin qubits individually. Our results are supported by quantum mechanical time-dependent calculations within the four-band Luttinger-Kohn model.

Abstract: Unidirectional chiral states are predicted in single layer graphene which originate from the breaking of the sublattice symmetry due to an asymmetric mass potential. The latter can be created experimentally using boron-nitride (BN) substrates with a line defect (B-B or N-N) that changes the induced mass potential in graphene. Solving the Dirac-Weyl equation, the obtained energy spectrum is compared with the one calculated using ab initio density functional calculations. We found that these one-dimensional chiral states are very robust and they can even exist in the presence of a small gap between the mass regions. In the latter case additional bound states are found that are topologically different from those chiral states.

Abstract: The hyperdynamics method is a powerful tool to simulate slow processes at the atomic level. However, the construction of an optimal hyperdynamics potential is a task that is far from trivial. Here, we propose a generally applicable implementation of the hyperdynamics algorithm, borrowing two concepts from metadynamics. First, the use of a collective variable (CV) to represent the accelerated dynamics gives the method a very large flexibility and simplicity. Second, a metadynamics procedure can be used to construct a suitable history-dependent bias potential on-the-fly, effectively turning the algorithm into a self-learning accelerated molecular dynamics method. This collective variable-driven hyperdynamics (CVHD) method has a modular design: both the local system properties on which the bias is based, as well as the characteristics of the biasing method itself, can be chosen to match the needs of the considered system. As a result, system-specific details are abstracted from the biasing algorithm itself, making it extremely versatile and transparent. The method is tested on three model systems: diffusion on the Cu(001) surface and nickel-catalyzed methane decomposition, as examples of reactive processes with a bond-length-based CV, and the folding of a long polymer-like chain, using a set of dihedral angles as a CV. Boost factors up to 109, corresponding to a time scale of seconds, could be obtained while still accurately reproducing correct dynamics.

Abstract: Using first-principles calculations, we study the dependence of the electronic and vibrational properties of multilayered PbI2 crystals on the number of layers and focus on the electronic-band structure and the Raman spectrum. Electronic-band structure calculations reveal that the direct or indirect semiconducting behavior of PbI2 is strongly influenced by the number of layers. We find that at 3L thickness there is a direct-to-indirect band gap transition (from bulk-to-monolayer). It is shown that in the Raman spectrum two prominent peaks, A(1g) and E-g, exhibit phonon hardening with an increasing number of layers due to the interlayer van der Waals interaction. Moreover, the Raman activity of the A(1g) mode significantly increases with an increasing number of layers due to the enhanced out-of-plane dielectric constant in the few-layer case. We further characterize rigid-layer vibrations of low-frequency interlayer shear (C) and breathing (LB) modes in few-layer PbI2. A reduced monatomic (linear) chain model (LCM) provides a fairly accurate picture of the number of layers dependence of the low-frequency modes and it is shown also to be a powerful tool to study the interlayer coupling strength in layered PbI2.

Abstract: We present a combined study of experimental and computational work for a dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) used for CH4 conversion into H2. More specifically, we investigated the influence of N2 as an impurity (150,000 ppm) and as additive gas (199%) on the CH4 conversion and H2 yield. For this purpose, a zero-dimensional chemical kinetics model is applied to study the plasma chemistry. The calculated conversions and yields for various gas mixing ratios are compared to the obtained experimental values, and good agreement is achieved. The study reveals the significance of the View the MathML source and View the MathML source metastable states for the CH4 conversion into H2, based on a kinetic analysis of the reaction chemistry.