Films Of Various Thicknesses Research Articles

Investigations on the rheological properties of cement mortar based on fine aggregate characteristic and its extended prediction model

The rheological property of mortar is significantly influenced by its contained fine aggregate morphology characteristic and capable predictive models are limited. This work aims to expand the film thickness theory by developing an index that integrally represents variations in grain shape, gradation, and mix proportions, and elucidates the impact and the mechanism of these multifactorial differences on rheological performance. The quantitative analysis of the aggregate gradation and particle shape differences were performed, which was used to assess the impact of these variations and different mix ratios on the rheological performance of mortars. A correlation between aggregate differences and film thickness was established using specific surface area and void ratio. The result shows that variations in aggregates are accurately assessed by image analysis and consistently reflected in specific surface area and void ratio metrics. Since variations in rheological performance are predominantly governed by differences in film thickness, the disparities among aggregates can be quantified in terms of their impact on rheological properties by considering specific surface area and void ratio, thus translating into variations of film thickness. The differences in rheological properties due to variations in grain shape, gradation, and mix proportions can be comprehensively represented and controlled through an expansion of the film thickness model.

Study on dosimetric characteristics of polycarbonate films irradiated by electron beam

In this study, the dosimetric characteristics (thickness applicability, dose linear response, signal fading characteristic, in-batch consistency, readout reproducibility, humidity dependence, and electron energy response) of engineering polycarbonate films irradiated by electron beam were studied using spectrophotometry. The results show that polycarbonate films of various thicknesses exhibit good dose linearity within their corresponding wavelength ranges. Specifically, the dose capture range of 0.3 mm polycarbonate film spans from 950 Gy to 1000 kGy. After irradiation, the net absorbance of polycarbonate films showed an exponential decline, which was dose-dependent. The average absolute deviation of net absorbance for polycarbonate films produced within the same batch is 1.49% at 100 kGy. After 15 repeated absorbance measurements, the coefficient of variation in net absorbance for the polycarbonate films is less than 1%. Additionally, the radiation response of the polycarbonate film is affected by the environment relative humidity (during irradiation and post-irradiation storage). At the same dose of 3.5-20 MeV electron beam irradiation, the net absorbance response deviation of polycarbonate films remains below 2.26%. These results provide a comprehensive reference for detecting high doses of electron beams using engineering polycarbonate films.

Unification of insertion and supercapacitive storage concepts: Storage profiles in titania

Insertion storage in battery electrodes and supercapacitive storage are typically considered to be independent phenomena and thus are dealt with in separate scientific communities. Using tailored experiments on titanium oxide thin films of various thicknesses, we demonstrate the simultaneous occurrence of both processes. For the interpretation of the entire storage profile encompassing both contributions, the (free) energies of the charge carriers in the mixed conductor and the neighboring phase are the only materials parameters required. The experimental results enable no less than a unification of insertion and supercapacitive storage, the first being dominant for thick films, the latter for thin films or negligible electronic conductivity. Therefore, the size of the storage medium and the nature of the current collecting phases can be used to tune power density versus energy density.

Ultrabroadband Optical Properties of 2D Titanium Carbide MXene.

MXenes have rapidly ascended as a prominent class of two-dimensional (2D) materials, renowned for their distinctive optical and electrical properties. Despite extensive exploration of MXenes' optical properties, existing studies predominantly focus on the near-infrared (NIR) to the ultraviolet spectral range, leaving the mid-infrared (mid-IR) range relatively uncharted. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive characterization of the intrinsic optical properties of Ti3C2Tx MXene across an ultrabroadband spectral range, spanning from mid-IR (28 meV) to vacuum ultraviolet (VUV, 6.4 eV). For this purpose, Ti3C2Tx MXene films of varying thicknesses were coated on quartz substrates, resulting in two distinct categories: thin film samples with thicknesses below 50 nm and bulk-like samples with thicknesses exceeding 500 nm. Using spectroscopic ellipsometry, we analyzed the optical properties of films of various thicknesses and extracted detailed information on their dielectric functions. Our findings reveal resonances in the mid-IR to VUV range. Employing the Lorentz-Drude model to examine these resonances has uncovered the optical resistivity of MXene films and led to the identification of multiple plasmonic modes active in the visible to NIR range, as well as broad band-to-band transition-like resonances in the mid-IR range. This ultrabroadband optical versatility of Ti3C2Tx MXene is anticipated to bring about a wide range of thermal and optical applications.

Mesoscopic modeling of interaction dynamics for two bubbles in the near-wall region

A nonorthogonal hybrid thermal lattice Boltzmann cavitation model is proposed in this study. The flow and density field are described by the pseudopotential model, while the temperature is realized by solving the macroscopic temperature function. The model is verified by simulating the Laplace law and a bubble evolves in the unbounded region. Furthermore, the interaction dynamics between two bubbles near the wall are investigated. The bubble collapse intensity is dominated by the initial bubble–bubble distance and bubble–wall distance. A pair of inclined reentrant jets are reported for the strong interaction modes, and splashing resulting from the jet collisions may lead to the bubble center shifting away from the wall or the axis of symmetry. For the weak interaction mode with dimensionless bubble-wall distance γ between 1 and 3.5, the maximum collapse pressure increases linearly. The maximum collapse pressure Pc_max decreases with increasing bubble spacing, and Pc_max for distance between two bubbles with d2=40lu increases by 9 % to 16.2 % compared to that of d2=30lu. The variation of the liquid film thickness h between adjacent cavitation bubbles is primarily governed by the expansion velocity of the bubble wall ḣ, and similarly, the thickness of the liquid film between the bubble wall follows the same principle with h∼ḣ−2. The bubble radius in the growth stage aligns closely with the theoretical analysis for the weak interaction mode, while discrepancies appear between the simulation and prediction due to the bubble losing its roundness in the collapse stage.

Thin film nanocomposite membranes based on renewable polymer Pebax® and zeolitic imidazolate frameworks for CO2/CH4 separation

This study investigates the impact of integrating Pebax® Rnew® 30R51, a sustainable elastomer-type copolymer material, with zeolitic imidazolate frameworks (ZIFs) to develop advanced membranes for CO2/CH4 gas separation. The fabrication process of ZIF/Pebax® Rnew® 30R51 thin films was optimized to achieve uniform and defect-free thin film composite (TFC) membranes. Crucial membrane properties, including permeability, selectivity and separation efficiency, were analyzed with variations in ZIF type, loading levels, film thickness and operating conditions. Additionally, the resulting TFC and ZIF/Pebax® Rnew® 30R51 thin film nanocomposite (TFN) membranes were subjected to characterization via FTIR, XRD, TGA and SEM to evaluate their physicochemical properties. Nanoparticles of ZIF-8, NH2-ZIF-8 and ZIF-94 were individually added (at 5–15 wt% loadings) to the Pebax® Rnew® 30R51 matrix to develop the CO2 separation efficiency. The pristine TFC membrane showed a 66 GPU CO2 permeance and a 37.5 CO2/CH4 separation selectivity, primarily due to improved CO2 mass transport. Upon inclusion of ZIFs, the CO2 permeance with 5 wt% loadings of ZIF-8, NH2-ZIF-8 and ZIF-94 increased to 148, 99 and 125 GPU, respectively, despite this, the CO2/CH4 separation selectivity maintained at 29.4, 37.0 and 27.0, respectively.

Effect of thin film thickness of ferrofluid on inclined bioconvective flow

This research examines the effect of variable thin film thickness on the bioconvective ferrofluid flow through a rotating sloped surface when a magnetic field (dipole) is present. Similarity transformation is used to standardize the current model's governing equations. By using a finite element method, the normalized nonlinear differential equations are numerically solved. Variable thickness of ferrofluid thin film and bioconvective parameters (bioconvective Lewis number, bioconvective Peclet number, and micro-organism concentration difference) yield the following results: velocity profiles (radial, tangential, and axial), gravity flow (drainage velocity and induced velocity), temperature profile, concentration profile and microorganism profile. In addition, this investigation examines the density of moving microorganisms as well as local heat and mass transport. The temperature, concentration, radial, axial, drainage, induced, and motile microbe velocity are all improved with increasing film thickness. Variable thickness increases local heat transfer whereas increasing Brownian motion and thermophoresis parameters decreases it. This study could be helpful for self-sterilizing applications and biomedical engineering.

Optical and optoelectrical characterizations of Cu2ZnSn3S8: A potential nominee for optoelectronic and photovoltaic applications

A successful trial has been accomplished in synthesizing a stable phase of Cu2ZnSn3S8 (CZTS8). The deposited thin films have been obtained by utilizing the chemical bath deposition (CBD) process. Basic characterizations have been applied to check the formation of our new stable material. The formed CZTS8 films disclose the amorphous nature as presented in the x-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns. Also, an enhancement in film morphology has been obtained by expanding the film thickness. Moreover, optoelectrical and linear/nonlinear optical features have been studied for the as-deposited films. Our material has interesting characteristics to be a promising window sheet for thin film solar cells. It reveals a tendency to be an n-type semiconductor material. Further, it shows high optical absorption as well as high optical conductivity. Moreover, it has a direct optical transition, and its energy gap is varied in the range (3.89 eV - 3.94 eV). Additionally, the dispersion and optoelectrical indices were affected by the variation in both film thickness and film roughness. Furthermore, the nonlinear optical indices χ(1),χ(3) and n2 were improved via the increase in film thickness. A satisfactory correlation has been performed between all of the evaluated parameters. The main goal of this study has been achieved by obtaining n-type material by increasing the Tin and Sulfur contents in the CZTS8 as compared with the known p-type material (Cu2ZnSnS4) CZTS4. The revealed findings acknowledge that CZTS8 could be a promising nominee for either optoelectronic or photovoltaic applications.

Applicability of energy-theta mapping in resonant soft X-ray reflectometry to probe depth dependence of oxidation state and crystallographic environment in iron oxide multilayers

In the present paper we discuss applicability of the synchrotron method of resonant x-ray reflectometry to non-destructive depth profiling of multilayer heterostructures with low optical contrast between the sublayers. The two-dimensional mapping approach comprising evaluation and measurement of reflectance as a function of photon energy and grazing angle is shown to provide a convenient way to effectively utilize the enhancement of optical contrast between the sublayers that exists at the absorption edges of chemical elements due to particular spectral shape peculiarities related to oxidation state, crystallographic environment and magnetization. In the present study the evaluation of the resonant X-ray reflectivity maps is performed using a specially developed modeling and fitting software. Estimation of the photon energy / grazing angle combinations at which the reflectance is most sensitive to the minor changes in the physical properties of the sublayers is illustrated by the example of ferroic-on-semiconductor nanoscale heterostructures composed of nanoscale film of metallic iron oxidized from either top or bottom side. The subtle differences in resonant soft x-ray reflectance caused by variation of the oxide film thickness, oxidation state and crystallographic environment are discussed. The presented approach is applicable to a large class of heterostructures composed of sublayers that can be distinguished only by the differences in their near edge X-ray absorption fine structure.

Influence of the edge effect of the solenoid magnetic field on the discharge process of magnetron sputtering in long and narrow chambers

The fourth-generation light source or future particle accelerators have compact vacuum systems, resulting in a small flow conductance of the beam chamber. The development of NEG (Non-Evaporable Getters) films technology with distributed pumping is a good solution. This technology can obtain a pressure distribution with a small pressure gradient and an ultra-high vacuum of 10-8 Pa inside the vacuum chambers. In the magnetron sputtering process for NEG coating, the inhomogeneity of the magnetic field at the edge of the solenoid is a key parameter for affecting the stability of the magnetron sputtering discharge process. The influence mechanism of the edge magnetic field on the plasma discharge process and discharge uniformity was studied to optimize the coating parameters, which is very important. The Particle-In-Cell/Monte Carlo Collision (PIC/MCC) method was employed to simulate plasma discharge in a narrow vacuum chamber under various edge magnetic field conditions. The potential distribution, charged particle density distribution, and particle density distribution on the target were acquired for four sets of discharge parameters, followed by data processing and analysis. The electric field distribution during the discharge process is closely linked to the non-uniformity of the magnetic field at the solenoid's edge. The smaller Br (the radial component of the magnetic field) component of the magnetic field, the more uniform distribution of Ar+ on the target surface, and the smaller the difference along the length of the vacuum chamber. A smaller radial component (Br) of the magnetic field results in a more uniform distribution of Ar+ on the target surface and reduces variations in film thickness along the length of the vacuum chamber. This is attributed to the small distance between the inner wall of the vacuum chamber and the cathode target. The change in the edge magnetic field will result in the rapid migration of electrons to the inner wall of the vacuum chamber and insufficient collision with the discharge gas, making it challenging to sustain the discharge process. Moreover, fluctuations in the edge magnetic field of the solenoid induce gradient drift and curvature drift in charged particles, resulting in rapid electron loss and alterations in the density and potential distribution of charged particles at the ends of the vacuum chamber, ultimately leading to discharge instability. The research results show the importance of the edge magnetic field effect on the magnetron sputtering coating of the slender vacuum chambers, which provides an important reference for the segmented coating process of similar vacuum chambers in future accelerators.

High-sensitive and fast-responsive In2O3 thin film sensors for dual detection of NO2 and H2S gases at room temperature

In this work, the room-temperature dual gas sensing characteristics of indium oxide (In2O3) thin films towards NO2 and H2S have been studied. In2O3 thin films were synthesized by the thermal oxidation of indium metal films of various thicknesses in the range of 50–250 nm deposited by thermal evaporation method. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GI-XRD) revealed the change in preferred orientation of In2O3 thin films corresponding to varying thickness, while field-emission electron microscopy studies showcased evolving surface morphologies from individual grains to granular network with respect to the increase in film thickness. Investigations were made on the ability of In2O3 thin films to detect various low concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gases at ambient temperature. In2O3 thin films synthesized using 100 nm thick In films exhibited good sensing response of around 58 and 68 % towards NO2 and H2S gases of 5 ppm respectively, at room temperature (27 °C) with the response time of 36 and 18 s. Remarkably, the lower experimental detection limit of these toxic gases could be extended up to 100 ppb. Using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, a large presence of surface oxygen is observed on the In2O3 thin film. The sensor has demonstrated remarkable sensing abilities, including strong selectivity, quick sensing response, and good repeatability.

An experimental investigation on characteristics of liquid film thickness of gas-liquid Taylor flow in square/rectangular microchannel applied in microreactor

Microchannel reactors employing Taylor flow is 1 – 3 orders of magnitude higher than traditional reactor in handling gas-liquid reaction processes, which has found important applications in oxidation, hydrogenation, chlorination, fluorination and absorption involved in chemical industry. Liquid film thickness of gas-liquid Taylor flow in circular microchannel has been widely investigated, whereas the variation and distribution of liquid film thickness in square/rectangular microchannel are lack of comprehension. In the present work, experiments were conducted to investigate the variation of liquid film thickness in square channels with hydraulic diameter Dh = 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1.0 mm, and rectangular channels with a depth of 0.5 mm and widths of 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 1.0 mm under the condition of air-water and the addition of surfactant Tween-20. The liquid film thicknesses were measured using a laser focus displacement meter (LFDM), the bubble shapes and velocities were compared using high speed photography. The experimental results illustrate that the dimensionless bubble diameter in square/rectangular microchannels can be divided into initial stage, reduction stage and stable stage with the increasing of capillary number Ca. The initial, reduction and stable stage of the dimensionless bubble diameter are all influenced by the channel hydraulic diameter, aspect ratio, asymmetry effects and surface tension coefficient of working fluid. In square channels with Dh = 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 1.0 mm, the dimensionless bubble diameter enters the reduction stage at Ca = 0.019, 0.015, 0.011, and 0.009, respectively. Besides, an empirical formula of dimensionless bubble diameter was developed using the dimensionless groups Ca, Re, Bo, and Li/Dh to describe the characteristics of liquid film thickness in square/rectangular microchannel.

Heat transfer characteristics of vertical condensers under unsteady boundary conditions: Dynamic modeling, experiment validation, and parametric analysis

A dynamic model has been developed to predict the coupled heat transfer characteristics of vertical condensers under varying boundary conditions. The model predictions closely matched the experimental data, with normalized mean bias error and root mean square error metrics below 3%. It was observed that variations in the inlet temperature of the secondary-side coolant did not immediately affect the outlet coolant temperature, exhibiting a noticeable lag phase before gradually adjusting to new conditions. Even after the inlet coolant stabilized, the outlet coolant temperature continued to rise until reaching a steady state after a defined period. The dynamic changes in the condensate film thickness and local heat flux density were categorized into three stages: lag, transitional, and steady. These stages showed differing response and transition times across various locations of the condenser. The bottom of the condenser pipeline demonstrated the shortest response time for condensate film thickness variation but the longest transition time. Additionally, the study investigated the influence of geometric parameters on the dynamic response characteristics of condensers. It was found that longer condenser tubes, lower wall thermal diffusivity, and thicker condensing walls resulted in extended transition times for condensate mass flow at the condenser bottom.

Using femtosecond laser pulses to investigate the thickness-dependent nonlinear optical properties of nickel oxide thin films and their potential use as optical limiters

In this study, the Z-scan technique was used to investigate the nonlinear optical properties of nickel oxide (NiO) thin films of various thicknesses. Direct current (DC) sputtering was used to deposit single-phase NiO thin films with thicknesses of 280, 350, and 470 nm onto a soda-lime glass substrate. The film structure was measured using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), while the linear optical properties were measured using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer. NiO thin films were irradiated with 100 fs laser pulses at various excitation wavelengths and excitation powers to determine the nonlinear absorption coefficient and nonlinear refractive index. The NiO films were found to have reverse saturable absorption and self-focusing behavior. As the thickness of the NiO film increases, both the nonlinear absorption coefficient and nonlinear refractive index decrease. Additionally, the investigation of the optical limitations of NiO thin films revealed a definite association with the thickness of the NiO thin film.

Analyzing the Influence of Varying Film Thickness on the Structural and Optical Properties of Ge15Se75Zn10 Thin Films

Analyzing the Influence of Varying Film Thickness on the Structural and Optical Properties of Ge15Se75Zn10 Thin Films

Comparative evaluation of the antioxidant property value of rosemary essential oil blend soy protein based edible films with varying film thickness

Comparative evaluation of the antioxidant property value of rosemary essential oil blend soy protein based edible films with varying film thickness

Magnetooptical Faraday and Kerr effects in nanosized BiYIG/GGG structures

AnnotationMagnetooptical Faraday and Kerr effects are studied in the nanosized BiY2Fe5O12 films within the spectral region of 1.3 eV<E<4.5 eV and magnetic fields of up to 10 kOe. It is shown that the thin-films BiY2Fe5O12 with the thicknesses ranging from 5 to 51 nm obtained by magnetron sputtering on the single-crystalline Gd3Ga5O12 substrates have high magneto-optical quality. The specific Faraday rotation for the nanosized Bi0.5Y1.5Fe5O12-δ films reaches about 140000 deg/cm close to that for bulk BiY2Fe5O12. Meanwhile, the polar Kerr effect reaches about 30 min within the range of 1.6 eV–4.1 eV at the magnetic fields above 2 kOe.It is shown that the strong paramagnetic contribution of Gd3Ga5O12 substrates significantly affects the Faraday and Kerr effect for the films. The defining of magnetooptical parameters and Verdet constant for the Gd3Ga5O12 substrate permitted to separate the substrate contribution and reveal peculiarities of spectral dependences of both Faraday and Kerr effects for magnetic films of various thicknesses. The estimated critical thickness of the film-substrate interface region is as large as 35 lattice constants of BiY2Fe5O12. It is shown that the magnetooptical effects for the thin films with the thickness above the critical one correspond to those for bulk BiY2Fe5O12. For samples with the smallest thicknesses of the film (5 nm) the contributions from magnetically dead and magnetically passive layers lead to a drastic reduction in the observable Faraday and Kerr effects with a dominating contribution from the substrate. The high density of displacement dislocations at the film-substrate interface leads to the decrease the magnetooptical quality of the nanosized films.

Advancing large-scale thin-film PPLN nonlinear photonics with segmented tunable micro-heaters

Thin-film periodically poled lithium niobate (TF-PPLN) devices have recently gained prominence for efficient wavelength conversion processes in both classical and quantum applications. However, the patterning and poling of TF-PPLN devices today are mostly performed at chip scales, presenting a significant bottleneck for future large-scale nonlinear photonic systems that require the integration of multiple nonlinear components with consistent performance and low cost. Here, we take a pivotal step towards this goal by developing a wafer-scale TF-PPLN nonlinear photonic platform, leveraging ultraviolet stepper lithography and an automated poling process. To address the inhomogeneous broadening of the quasi-phase matching (QPM) spectrum induced by film thickness variations across the wafer, we propose and demonstrate segmented thermal optic tuning modules that can precisely adjust and align the QPM peak wavelengths in each section. Using the segmented micro-heaters, we show the successful realignment of inhomogeneously broadened multi-peak QPM spectra with up to 57% enhancement of conversion efficiency. We achieve a high normalized conversion efficiency of 3802% W−1 cm−2 in a 6 mm long PPLN waveguide, recovering 84% of the theoretically predicted efficiency in this device. The advanced fabrication techniques and segmented tuning architectures presented herein pave the way for wafer-scale integration of complex functional nonlinear photonic circuits with applications in quantum information processing, precision sensing and metrology, and low-noise-figure optical signal amplification.

Enhancing practical modeling: A neural network approach for locally-resolved prediction of elastohydrodynamic line contacts

When modeling bearings in the context of entire transmissions or drivetrains, there are practical limits to the calculation resources available to calculate single bearings or even contacts. In settings such as these, curve-fitting methods have historically been deployed to estimate the elastohydrodynamic lubrication conditions. Machine learning methods have the potential to enable more sophisticated physical modeling in the context of larger computation environments, as the evaluation time of a trained model is typically negligible. We present a neural network that accurately evaluates the locally variable elastohydrodynamic film pressure and film thickness distributions and explore its application to (e.g.) cylindrical roller bearings. Employing a neural network for the EHL film thickness calculations rather than the curve-fitted, simplified methods that are today’s standard can enable a more physically precise modeling strategy at almost no additional computational cost.

Development And Application Of A New Visualization Technique Using Photochromism For Transport Process Of Lubricating Oil Around The Engine Piston

A new visualization technique using photochromism for the movement of oil film was developed and applied to an optical gasoline engine. A photochromic dye was dissolved in the oil and an arbitrary position of the oil film was illuminated by UV laser light, which makes a marker in the oil film via a photochromic reaction. The lifetime of color change by photochromism is relatively long and therefore, by tracking the movement of a marker makes it possible to visualize the movement of oil film directly. The color density was quantified based on the absorbance calculated from images taken before and after coloring in two wavelengths. Through the experimental and theoretical considerations, it was confirmed that the calculated absorbance is effective in reducing a noise originated by the color, the shape of the piston surface, the temporal variation of oil film thickness and the illuminating light intensity distribution. Furthermore, the value of the absorbance is in a very good linear relationship with the oil film thickness. This technique was applied to an optical gasoline engine and confirmed the availability of this technique. In the top land of piston surface, the oil film between the piston and cylinder liner was separated and the majority of the oil is at the piston surface and moved with the piston motion. The oil film thickness on the cylinder liner was very thin. On the contrary, at the piston skirt region, a wider region of the oil film is connected between the linear and the piston skirt. However, there are regions where the oil film between the liner and the skirt is separated by cavitation and the majority of the oil film is on the piston skirt. The change of the flow direction by the operating condition, i.e., the throttle condition, was able to clearly visualize, though the movement of oil film on the piston surface was very slow in normal case. The relatively fast complexed flow for opposite direction was also able to visualize by this technique.