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In recent years, a number of both theoretical and experimental investigations have been performed focusing on the zirconium isotopic chain. In particular, state-of-the-art Monte Carlo shell-model calculations predict shape coexistence in these isotopes. In this context, the 94Zr nucleus, which is believed to possess a nearly spherical ground state, is particularly interesting since the purported deformed structure is basedon the low-lying 02+ state, making it amenable for detailed study. In order to provide definitive conclusionson the shapes of the low-lying states, two complementary experiments to study 94Zr by means of low-energy Coulomb excitation were performed. This data will allow the quadrupole moments of the 21,2+ levels to be extracted as well as for the deformation parameters of the 01,2+ states to be determined and, thus, definitive conclusions to be drawn on the role of shape coexistence in this nucleus for the first time. The first experiment was performed at the INFN Legnaro National Laboratory with the GALILEO-SPIDER setup, which, for the first time, was coupled with 6 lanthanum bromide scintillators (LaBr3:Ce) in order to maximize the γ-ray detection effciency. The second experiment was performed at the Maier-Leibnitz Laboratory (MLL) in Munich and used a Q3D magnetic spectrograph to detect the scattered 12C ions following Coulomb excitation of 94Zr targets.

Zn1-xMgxO epitaxial films with Mg concentrations 0≤x≤0.3 were grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy on a-plane sapphire substrates. Precise determination of the Mg concentration x was performed by elastic recoil detection analysis. The bandgap energy was extracted from absorption measurements with high accuracy taking electron-hole interaction and exciton-phonon complexes into account. From these results a linear relationship between bandgap energy and Mg concentration is established for x≤0.3. Due to alloy disorder, the increase of the photoluminescence emission energy with Mg concentration is less pronounced. An analysis of the lattice parameters reveals that the epitaxial films grow biaxially strained on a-plane sapphire. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nonpolar Zn1-xMgxO epitaxial films were grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy on a-plane ZnO substrates. A smooth surface morphology was accomplished under oxygen-rich growth conditions. The benefits of the use of ZnO substrates on the structural properties are reflected by a low-density of threading dislocations. Furthermore, no indications for the generation of basal plane stacking faults are found. The pseudomorphic growth on a-plane ZnO substrates efficiently locks the epitaxial Zn1-xMgxO films to the wurtzite structure up to x = 0.25. The Mg concentration is not constant and increases with larger thickness. The optical properties reflect the influence of alloy disorder. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Molecular stopping cross section data of Al2O3, for heavy ions of 12C, 16O, 28Si, 35Cl, 79Br within the energy range of 0.01–1.0MeV/nucleon were measured. Both direct transmission and bulk analysis methods were applied. Stopping cross sections were calculated both with the SRIM and MSTAR codes. Evaluation and intercomparison of the new data with the calculated and previously measured ones are reported in this paper. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Aluminum oxide was deposited using atomic layer deposition on either a silicon oxide or a silicon nitride interface. Water vapor or ozone were used as oxidation precursors. The structural properties of these films were investigated by time-of-flight secondary-ion-mass-spectroscopy (ToF-SIMS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and elastic recoil detection (ERD). Special attention was given to contamination issues of the film and the interface, bonding conditions and temperature influence on diffusion. The results suggest that the silicon most likely diffused along grain boundaries of polycrystalline Al2O3. Carbon and hydrogen were located at the interface and furthermore hydrogen diffused out of the film to some extent due to anneal. Carbon content in the layer was reduced when using O3 as an oxidant. The formation of metallic aluminum clusters was not observed for any of the investigated process conditions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]