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The present article reports on the alignment or orientation of a particular compound N(4-n-heptyloxy benzylidene)4´-n-butylaniline through dielectric study. The effect of using two different alignment layers (for homogenous alignment) and doping silver nanoparticles (0.25% by weight) on the behavior in dielectric property with varying temperature and biasing electric field was studied in terms of liquid crystal alignment or orientation using the mechanism proposed by earlier workers. The study includes the anomalous dielectric behavior in SmG phase by presenting a technique for the analysis of the absorption process, which exists only in SmG phase at fixed frequency while varying temperature, is also presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ag nanoparticles (Ag NPs) embedded titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanofibers were fabricated by colloidal sol process, electrospinning, and calcination technique. Calcination of the electrospun nanofibers were heat treated at 600°C for 180 minutes in air atmosphere. X-ray diffraction patterns exhibited that the anatase phase and silver coexisted in the resulted Ag NPs/TiO2nanofibers; transmission electron microscopy demonstrated Ag NPs well spread in the porous microstructure of composite fibers. The prepared nanofibers were utilized as photocatalyst for degradation of methyl orange. The degradation rate of methyl orange dye solution containing Ag/TiO2composite nanofibers is 99% only after irradiation for 3 hours. It is proposed that these new Ag NPs/TiO2composite nanofibers will have potential application in water pollution treatment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The domain kinetics during cyclic switching using electrodes of stable suspension of Ag nanoparticles and tap water was studied in single crystals of the relaxor ferroelectric strontium-barium niobate Sr0.61Ba0.39Nb2O6. Mathematical treatment of the set of instantaneous domain images and analysis of the switching current data by Kolmogorov-Avrami formula have been applied for characterization of the polarization reversal process. The change of the time constants during cyclic switching in the single domain area and the area with initial nanodomain structure has been attributed to relaxation of the bias field. The noticeable switching deceleration for suspension electrode was attributed to series resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]