Submicrometer Order Research Articles

A new dynamic Monte Carlo method satisfying n-particle diffusion equation with position-dependent diffusion coefficient, free energy, and intermolecular interactions.

A dynamic Monte Carlo (MC) method recently proposed by us [Nagai et al., J. Chem. Phys. 156, 154506 (2022)] to describe single-particle diffusion of a molecule in a heterogeneous space with position-dependent diffusion coefficient and free energy is generalized here to n-particle dynamics, where n molecules diffuse in heterogeneous media interacting via their intermolecular potential. Starting from the master equation, we give an algebraic proof that the dynamic MC transition probabilities proposed here produce particle trajectories that satisfy the n-particle diffusion equation with position-dependent diffusion coefficient D0i(ri), free energy F1i(ri), and intermolecular interactions Vij(ri, rj). The MC calculations based on this method are compared to molecular dynamics (MD) calculations for two-dimensional heterogeneous Lennard-Jones test systems, showing excellent agreement of the long-distance global diffusion coefficient between the two cases. Thus, the particle trajectories produced by the present MC transition probabilities satisfy the n-particle diffusion equation, and the diffusion equation well describes the long-distance trajectories produced by the MD calculations. The method is also an extension of the conventional equilibrium Metropolis MC calculation for homogeneous systems with a constant diffusion coefficient to the dynamics in heterogeneous systems with a position-dependent diffusion coefficient and potential. In the present method, interactions and dynamics of the real systems are coarse-grained such that the calculation cost is drastically reduced. This provides an approach for the investigation of particle dynamics in very complex and large systems, where the diffusing length is of sub-micrometer order and the diffusion time is of the order of milliseconds or more.

A white-light interferometry method for 3D measurement of compactly spaced micro-nano structural units

Micro-nanostructures refer to technologies that operate at the nanoscale and provide materials and devices with unique mechanical, physical, and chemical properties. These structures have diverse applications in fields such as microelectronics, biotechnology, aerospace, and metamaterials. As precision machining technology advances, the demand for smaller sizes and higher accuracy of structural units has increased, leading to more compact integration. Consequently, the lossless and high-precision 3D measurement of highly integrated micro-nanostructure components has become increasingly challenging. In this study, we analyzed measurement errors in compactly spaced microstructural units using white-light scanning interferometry and proposed an algorithm to optimize this technology. By combining coherent peak-histogram processing with signal correlation analysis, we were able to improve the measurement accuracy by approximately ten times compared to current mainstream algorithms. To validate our algorithm, we performed experiments using metasurfaces with structural unit spacing at the order of sub-micrometer. The results obtained demonstrated the effectiveness of our algorithm in achieving accurate measurements.

Measurement and correction of lateral distortion in a Fizeau interferometer based on the self-calibration technique.

The lateral distortion of a surface measuring Fizeau interferometer may cause distorted image features in the lateral direction, as well as the surface form error in the axial direction (which is a source of the retrace error). Traditional method for lateral distortion measurement requires a high-accuracy calibration plate featuring a grid pattern. Such a calibration plate is not always available, especially when the required accuracy of the grid pattern comes to the order of sub-micrometer or even nanometer level. To remove the dependence on the plate accuracy, we propose a self-calibration method for the measurement and correction of lateral distortion in Fizeau interferometer. The self-calibration technique may separate the lateral distortion and the geometric error of the calibration plate. This method is verified using a 108-mm-aperture Fizeau interferometer. The experiments show that the form measurement error of a surface tilted at approximately 5° and 16° can be reduced from 92 nm to 43 nm and from 251 nm to 144 nm (peak-to-valley value), respectively, after the distortion correction.

Modeling of small tungsten dust grains in EAST tokamak with NDS-BOUT++

To investigate the transport of small dusts as well as their evolution property along their trajectories, the NDS module is developed under the BOUT++ framework, a highly desirable C++ code package to perform parallel plasma fluid simulations with an arbitrary number of equations in three-dimensional curvilinear coordinates. Due to the severe dust ablation in fusion plasmas, the dust size would decrease from micrometer to nanometer, resulting in impurities. Small dusts in the simulations here are specified as tungsten spheres with the radii on or below the order of submicrometer. The Rayleigh limit is included in the charging process when the dust is ablated to the droplet phase. The simulation results from the NDS module show that a 200 nm radius spherical tungsten dust originated from upper divertor region of EAST Tokamak is ablated completely due to the intense heating from the incoming plasma inside the core region, well consistent with the CCD footage of EAST shot # 81459. It is also found that the magnetic field dominates the dust transport when the dust radius is below 100 nm during the ablation along the trajectory. Our simulations predict that a 10 nm radius spherical tungsten dust injected from the inner midplane is well constrained by the magnetic field, and it reaches the inner divertor target with a velocity on the order of km/s.

First Step Toward Laser Micromachining Realization by Photonic Nanojet in Water Medium

In the recent period of the miniaturization of devices, there has been a high demand for high-resolution, flexible, and fast machining technique to accommodate high production volumes. Conventional laser machining with a focused laser beam has been widely used to fabricate small devices for various applications. However, this process is limited by the optical diffraction limit of the laser beam. Therefore, the photonic nanojet (PNJ) machining technique is a promising solution to tackle this problem. This technique is based on the near-field focusing of light waves with a high-energy laser power below the surface of an irradiated dielectric microsphere. We introduce water as a medium in the proposed PNJ machining technique so that the pattern could be fabricated more efficiently, faster, and with better quality. We evaluate the characteristics of the generated PNJ in water; further, we estimate the PNJ machining results numerically using the FDTD method and confirm them experimentally. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first ever to do so. All the holes obtained from the PNJ machining experiment were consistently in the sub-micrometer order and below the optical diffraction limit value of the constructed setup.

Investigation on the Differential Quadrature Fabry–Pérot Interferometer with Variable Measurement Mirrors

Due to the common path structure being insensitive to the environmental disturbances, relevant Fabry–Pérot interferometers have been presented for displacement measurement. However, the discontinuous signal distribution exists in the conventional Fabry–Pérot interferometer. Although a polarized Fabry–Pérot interferometer with low finesse was subsequently proposed, the signal processing is complicated, and the nonlinearity error of sub-micrometer order occurs in this signal. Therefore, a differential quadrature Fabry–Pérot interferometer has been proposed for the first time. In this measurement system, the nonlinearity error can be improved effectively, and the DC offset during the measurement procedure can be eliminated. Furthermore, the proposed system also features rapid and convenient replacing the measurement mirrors to meet the inspection requirement in various measuring ranges. In the comparison result between the commercial and self-developed Fabry–Pérot interferometer, it reveals that the maximum standard deviation is less than 0.120 μm in the whole measuring range of 600 mm. According to these results, the developed differential Fabry–Pérot interferometer is feasible for precise displacement measurement.

Modification of TA15 alloy surface by high-pulse-frequency laser cleaning

The original morphology of the oxide layer and the surface of the titanium alloy has a significant impact on manufacturing and processing. The laser cleaning pulse frequency amplitude affects the single pulse energy. It will affect the original morphology of the surface and the compositional changes of the laser-generated oxide layer. This work aims to study the effect of pulse frequency on the surface morphology and the composition of laser-generated oxide layer of the TA15 alloy surface in laser cleaning. With normal pulse frequency (70 kHz), the surface roughness increased to micrometer order. The striation morphology was formed, accompanied by melting. With high pulse frequency (700 kHz), the surface roughness (Ra) decreased to submicrometer order. The striation morphology and the melting phenomenon weakened and disappeared. The change in pulse frequency results in different chemical bonds on the surface. With normal pulse frequency, the oxide layer forming on the surface was mainly composed of TiO2 and a small amount of TiO. With high pulse frequency, the oxide layer forming on the surface was mainly composed of TiO. After laser cleaning, the self-corrosion current of the sample decreased by orders of magnitude compared with that of untreated samples. The corrosion resistance increased as the pulse frequency increased. The self-corrosion potential increased with an increase in the TiO amount.

Near-field radiative transfer in spectrally tunable double-layer phonon-polaritonic metamaterials

Understanding of near-field radiative transfer is crucial for many advanced applications such as nanoscale energy harvesting, nano-manufacturing, thermal imaging, and radiative cooling. Near-field radiative transfer has been shown to be dependent on the material and morphological characteristics of systems, the gap distances between structures, and their temperatures. Surface interactions of phononic materials in close proximity of each other has led to promising results for novel near-field radiative transfer applications. For systems involving thin films and small structures, as the dimension(s) through which the heat transfer takes place is/are on the order of sub-micrometers, it is important to identify the impacts of size-related parameters on the results. In this work, we investigated the impact of geometric design and characteristics in a double-layer metamaterial system made up of GaN, SiC, h-BN; all of which have potential importance in micro-and nano-technological systems. The numerical study is performed using the NF-RT-FDTD algorithm, which is a versatile method to study near-field thermal radiation performances of advanced configurations of materials, even with arbitrary shapes. We have systematically investigated the thin film thickness, the substrate material, and the nanostructured surfaces effects, and reported on the best combination of scenarios among the studied cases to obtain maximum enhancement of radiative heat transfer rate. The findings of this work may be used in design and fabrication of new corrugated surfaces for energy harvesting purposes.

Design of an On-Chip Highly Sensitive Misalignment Sensor in Silicon Technology

Advanced micromachining technology has made magnificent progress for fabrication of non-planar circuits. Using this technology, circuits and systems can be implemented in a more cost-effective way. Unlike the conventional planar circuit, low-cost and highly sensitive misalignment sensor is required to detect imperfect placement of different micro-devices, which may be of the order of sub-micrometers. Currently, this is hardly to be achieved by using the existing approaches. In this letter, we present a novel sensor design approach utilizing the parasitic capacitance of an integrated coupled-line resonator for misalignment sensing. Due to vertical misalignment between two metal strips, the parasitic capacitance of the sensor varies, which results in a resonance shift from 53 to 68 GHz, while a reasonably strong transmission notch is still maintained. Taking advantage of this principle, misalignment can be effectively detected. To prove the concept, several devices are fabricated in a standard silicon technology. Three samples with the same structure are used to evaluate the reliability, while eight different structures are used to verify the concept. All results are extensively validated through both simulation and measurements.

Application of mid-infrared free-electron laser tuned to amide bands for dissociation of aggregate structure of protein.

A mid-infrared free-electron laser (FEL) is a linearly polarized, high-peak powered pulse laser with tunable wavelength within the mid-infrared absorption region. It was recently found that pathogenic amyloid fibrils could be partially dissociated to the monomer form by the irradiation of the FEL targeting the amide I band (C=O stretching vibration), amide II band (N-H bending vibration) and amide III band (C-N stretching vibration). In this study, the irradiation effect of the FEL on keratin aggregate was tested as another model to demonstrate an applicability of the FEL for dissociation of protein aggregates. Synchrotron radiation infrared microscopy analysis showed that the α-helix content in the aggregate structure decreased to almost the same level as that in the monomer state after FEL irradiation tuned to 6.06 µm (amide I band). Both irradiations at 6.51 µm (amide II band) and 8.06 µm (amide III band) also decreased the content of the aggregate but to a lesser extent than for the irradiation at the amide I band. On the contrary, the irradiation tuned to 5.6 µm (non-absorbance region) changed little the secondary structure of the aggregate. Scanning-electron microscopy observation at the submicrometer order showed that the angular solid of the aggregate was converted to non-ordered fragments by the irradiation at each amide band, while the aggregate was hardly deformed by the irradiation at 5.6 µm. These results demonstrate that the amide-specific irradiation by the FEL was effective for dissociation of the protein aggregate to the monomer form.

Robust sub-micrometer displacement measurement using dual wavelength speckle correlation.

The unique characteristics of speckle correlation techniques including simple setup and fast, non-contact, high resolution measurement capability offer great potential for industrial applications. Robustness is an important requirement for industrial applications, which limits the application of many common techniques such as interferometric or photographic measurements, especially in mechanical workshops. This paper introduces an innovative technique for displacement measurement using speckle photography that is robust to disturbances, imaging errors, and does not require a large number of database patterns for calibration. It uses the relative correlation of the speckle patterns generated by two parallel, overlapping laser beams with an identical spot size and different wavelengths for relative displacement measurement in sub-micrometer order, and requires only one reference pattern that is updated frequently during the measurement process. The method is demonstrated over 200 µm range and is extendable to longer ranges.

Self-organized formation of hierarchically-ordered structures in laser-activated plasma CVD of sp3-bonded BN films

The hierarchical pattern formation with three stages, that is, (1) film-thickness topography, (2) fractal or concentric-ring pattern, and (3) cone morphology at micron or sub-micrometer order, was found here for the first time in the BN films prepared by plasma CVD assisted with pulsed excimer laser irradiation at 193 nm. The detailed topography consisting of unevenness in the film-thickness was obtained owing to the two-dimensional X-ray diffraction (2D-XRD) mapping method using a collimated X-ray of 0.1 mm in the diameter, where very high sensitivity was realized by selecting the X-ray from the substrate material, that was exponentially attenuated through the absorption from the film material according to Beer’s law. The important roles of the etching reactions in this process were experimentally verified here for the first time due to the 2D-mapping method. The formation mechanism of the hierarchical patterns was discussed.

Effect Of Alumina Reinforcing Fillers In BisGMA-based Resin Composites For Dental Applications

A photo-polymerizable resin based on bisphenol-A-glycidyldimethacrylate monomer was loaded at both 10 and 50% by weight with particles of alumina of size scales in the 10 micrometers and submicrometer order, termed micro-alumina and nano-alumina, respectively. After curing, the viscoelastic properties of these materials were characterized by multifrequency dynamic mechanical analysis at 0.1, 1 and 10 Hz, carried out in bending mode under strain control across the range of temperatures of 2 to 62°C, normally occurring in the mouth. The storage moduli close to body temperature (37°C) and mastication frequency (1 Hz) was evaluated as the main result of the analysis, along with its change on frequency. The stiffest composite was the 50%wt loaded nano-alumina, which reached a modulus of ~6.8 GPa, comparable to those of commercial restorative composites, even in the absence of bonding agent coating of the fillers. The storage moduli at the same frequency but room temperature (25°C) were compared with the elastic modulus resulting from atomic force microscopy nanoindentation. These measurements confirmed the same ranking of materials as the dynamic flexural analysis, while providing elastic modulus values ~50% higher on average. From the dynamic analysis no thermal transition was observed in the considered temperature range, and a stiffening effect appeared at higher frequencies for all the composites.

Numerical Calculations on the Grating-Assisted Phase Matching Condition of High Harmonic Generation in Photonic Crystal Fiber

We numerically investigated the grating-assisted phase matching (GAPM) of high harmonic generation (HHG) from the interaction of intense femtosecond laser pulse and rare gas in hollow core photonic crystal fiber (HCPCF). Our results show that the GAPM of HHG in HCPCF is especially suitable for photon energies in the range of 100~1keV. The calculated modulation period for GAPM of HHG in HCPCF is on the order of micrometer or sub-micrometer. This makes it easy to implement the GAPM of HHG with a counter-propagating modulation laser light in HCPCF. The high harmonic conversion efficiency is expected to be dramatically improved for the longer interaction length provided by the very low loss of HCPCF.

Periodic oscillation of photocurrents in single-walled carbon nanotubes

We perform a theoretical study of photocurrent of semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes (s-SWNTs) with lengths of the order of sub micrometers using the Keldysh nonequilibrium Green’s function method. We found that photocurrents in s-SWNTs exhibit periodic oscillations (i.e., the resistance varies periodically) as a function of length of the laser-irradiated region. To interpret this oscillating behavior, we derive the analytical expression for the photocurrent in the effective mass approximation.

Non-contact, in-line inspection of surface finish of crankshaft journals

Crankshaft bearings of an automotive engine require smooth and high reliability performance as they operate in a harsh environment of heat, pressure, abrasion, and chemical attack that may cause wear. The bearings are designed to meet high precision tolerances and require high-quality surface finish and surface topography. The journals are first grounded and finally polished to an outstanding surface finish in the order of sub-micrometers. In a mass production process, the tapes that are used for final polish may break without being revealed by the automation. Therefore, it is essential to provide an in-line inspection system for such parts to eliminate manual inspection. In order to achieve this goal, we developed a machine vision technique to validate that all journals were polished and detect the unpolished ones. In utilizing this technique, a full-size prototype go/no-go demonstrator was built to validate the performance and reliability of the method. The sensitivity of the system is high enough to differentiate sub-micron level roughness change of the crankshaft surface.

Evaluation of Surface Roughness of Quartz Glass Substrate in Fabrication Process for Neutron Focusing Mirror

The aspherical supermirror is among the most useful optics for focusing a neutron beam with a wide wavelength range. The improvement in surface roughness is essential for increasing the focusing gain. A highly efficient and high-precision fabrication process for the substrate of the aspherical mirror combining conventional precision grinding, numerically controlled local wet etching (NC-LWE) figuring, and low-pressure polishing was developed. Using this new fabrication process, plano-elliptical neutron-focusing mirror substrates were successfully fabricated with a figure error of submicrometer order and an rms surface roughness of less than 0.3 nm. In this report, the surface roughness of a quartz glass substrate for a neutron focusing supermirror was evaluated.

Observation of Microstructural Deformation Behavior in Metals Caused by Cavitation Impact

To clarify the erosion mechanism of cavitation, we pay attention to the internal changes in grains caused by cavitation impact. The vibratory cavitation test based on ASTM G32 was carried out and the cross section of directly under the eroded surface of a specimen was observed using the electron backscattering diffraction (EBSD) technique. The situations of grain boundaries and the changes in the crystal orientations of grains in aluminum, copper, and steel were analyzed. As a result, the following observations were made. Cavitation impact causes grain refining of sub-micrometer order near the eroded surface. There exist small changes in crystal orientation in grains. In steel, grain boundaries were generated on the eroded surface and were growing inward in the grain. Finally, the mechanism of internal deformation of grains caused by cavitation impact was discussed.

Direct Iron Coating onto Nd-Fe-B Powder by Thermal Decomposition of Iron Pentacarbonyl

Iron-coated Nd-Fe-B composite powder was prepared by thermal decomposition of iron pentacarbonyl in an inert organic solvent in the presence of alkylamine. Though this method is based on a modified solution-phase process to synthesize highly size-controlled iron nanoparticles, it is in turn featured by a suppressed formation of iron nanoparticles to achieve an efficient iron coating solely onto the surfaces of rare-earth magnet powder. The Nd-Fe-B magnetic powder was successfully coated by iron shells whose thicknesses were of the order of submicrometer to micrometer, being tuneable by the amount of initially loaded iron pentacarbonyl in a reaction flask. The amount of the coated iron reached to more than 10 wt.% of the initial Nd-Fe-B magnetic powder, which is practically sufficient to fabricate Nd-Fe-B/α-Fe nanocomposite permanent magnets.

Fabry–Pérot interferometer utilized for displacement measurement in a large measuring range

The optical configuration of a Fabry-Pérot interferometer is uncomplicated. This has already been applied in different measurement systems. For the displacement measurement with the Fabry-Pérot interferometer, the result is significantly influenced by the tilt angles of the measurement mirror in the interferometer. Hence, only for the rather small measuring range, the Fabry-Pérot interferometer is available. The goal of this investigation is to enhance the measuring range of Fabry-Pérot interferometer by compensating the tilt angles. To verify the measuring characteristic of the self-developed Fabry-Pérot interferometer, some comparison measurements with a reference standard have been performed. The maximum deviation of comparison experiments is less than 0.3 μm in the traveling range of 30 mm. The experimental results show that the Fabry-Pérot interferometer is highly stable, insensitive to environment effects, and can meet the measuring requirement of the submicrometer order.