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We present a comprehensive study of the crystal structure of the thin-film, ferromagnetic topological insulator (Bi, Sb)2−xVxTe3. The dissipationless quantum anomalous Hall edge states it manifests are of particular interest for spintronics, as a natural spin filter or pure spin source, and as qubits for topological quantum computing. For ranges typically used in experiments, we investigate the effect of doping, substrate choice and film thickness on the (Bi, Sb)2Te3 unit cell using high-resolution X-ray diffractometry. Scanning transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy measurements provide local structural and interfacial information. We find that the unit cell is unaffected in-plane by vanadium doping changes, and remains unchanged over a thickness range of 4–10 quintuple layers (1 QL ≈ 1 nm). The in-plane lattice parameter (a) also remains the same in films grown on different substrate materials. However, out-of-plane the c-axis increases with the doping level and thicknesses >10 QL, and is potentially reduced in films grown on Si (1 1 1).

Hydroxyapatite [Ca-10(PO4)(6)(OH)(2)], (HA) is similar in composition to bone mineral and has been found to promote new bone formation when implanted in a skeletal defect. However, its use in biomedical applications is limited by its relatively slow rate of biological interaction, and there is also a requirement to improve the success rate of HA implants in younger active patients, particularly where implants will be in place long-term. The addition of silicon (Si) into HA has been demonstrated to enhance the speed, and quality of the bone repair process. This paper describes the synthesis and detailed characterisation of nanocrystalline silicon-substituted hydroxyapatite (SiHA) thin coatings applied to a titanium substrate via a magnetron co-sputtering process. Amorphous SiHA coatings (similar to 1 mu m thick) with varying Si content up to 4.9 wt% were produced before being transformed into crystalline films by heat-treatment. The crystalline coating was characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and infrared (IR) analysis, and confirmed to be a single-phase apatite. The substitution of Si into HA resulted in an increase in both the a- and c-axes of the unit cell parameters, but a decrease in the crystallite size, with increasing Si substitution. This substitution also caused a decrease in the intensities of both the O-H and P-O bands in the IR spectra. Hence, these findings confirmed that the crystal structure of HA was altered with Si substitution. In vitro cell culture work showed that these SiHA thin coatings exhibited enhanced bioactivity and biofunctionality. An increase in the attachment and growth of human osteoblast-like (HOB) cells on these coatings was observed throughout the culture period, with the formation of extracellular matrix. In addition, confocal microscopy revealed that HOBs developed mature cytoskeletons with clear evidence of actin stress fibres, along with defined cell nuclei. (c) 2006 Springer Science + Business Media, Inc.

A highly oriented cubic texture (full width at half maximum

A new class of `powder-in-tube' Mg-B superconducting conductors has been prepared using two different methods: an in situ technique where an Mg + 2B mixture was used as a central conductor core and reacted in situ to form MgB2, and an ex situ technique where fully reacted MgB2 powder was used to fill the metal tube. Conductors were prepared using silver, copper and bimetallic silver/stainless steel tubes. Wires manufactured by the in situ technique, diffusing Mg to B particles experienced ~25.5% decrease in density from the initial value after cold deformation, due to the phase transformation from Mg + 2(β-B)→MgB2 all with hexagonal structure. A comparative study of the intergranular current and grain connectivity in wires was conducted by AC susceptibility measurements and direct four point transport measurements. Using a SQUID magnetometer, magnetization versus magnetic field (M-H) curves of the round wires before and after sintering and reactive diffusion were measured at 5 K and in magnetic fields up to 5 T to define the Jcmag. The direct current measurements were performed in self field at 4.2 K. A comparison between zero-field-cooled (ZFC) and field-cooled (FC) susceptibility measurements for sintered Ag/MgB2, and reacted Cu/Mg + 2B conductors revealed systematic differences in the flux pinning in the wires which is in very good agreement with direct high transport current measurements.

Calcium carbonate dispersions stabilized by an adsorbed surfactant layer are used to regulate the acidity of lubricating oils for internal combustion engines. Three typical commercial samples have been examined using a combination of X-ray and neutron scattering techniques. The solid active material was extracted from the samples and redispersed in heptane and mixtures of toluene and toluene-d8 and n-octane and n-octane-d18. The results were in broad agreement with the core/shell model proposed by Ottewill [Markovic, Ottewill, Cebula, Field & Marsh (1984). Colloid Polym. Sci. 262, 648–656]. The core radius (~ 12–28 A) was obtained from SAXS data. The polydispersity was about 25% on all samples and the distribution skewed to larger sizes. The hydrogenated-solvent SANS data were too weak to be used to determine the core size. The total particle radius (~ 20–50 A) and hence the shell thickness were obtained by model fitting to the deuterated-solvent and 65% deuterated-solvent SANS data with the core radius from the X-ray data. In determining the best fit, the core density, amount of solvent in the shell and polydispersity were also adjusted to give fits with a shell-to-core-volume ratio and a volume fraction that agreed with the expected values. The SANS data were weaker than expected assuming a simple monodisperse core/shell model with a calcite core. This is consistent with the observed polydispersity and in addition implies diffuse boundaries. Although WAXS (wide-angle X-ray scattering) confirmed that the cores were non-crystalline the best model fits were obtained with a core scattering density not much less than that calculated for calcite. The absolute intensities suggested that some solvent was incorporated into the shells of all the samples and one sample showed a preference for uptake of octane as compared to toluene.

The 1H NMR laboratory- and rotating-frame (LF,RF) spin-lattice relaxation (SLR) behaviour in solid polyethylenes is reviewed in light of the two region spin diffusion coupled model. Highly crystalline high-density materials show single T1 values indicative of the fast diffusion limit whilst RFSLR is close to the slow diffusion limit, allowing direct determination of the dimensions of the crystalline and disordered regions. The LFSLR and RFSLR of the HDPE's suggest the existence of an interfacial material which the SLR behaviour includes as part of the crystalline region in contrast to XRD and DSC. 13C CPMAS measurements of 1H RFSLR in a LLDPE provide an additional insight into this problem. The 1H RFSLR is best represented by a superposition of two exponentials, measured by either 1H or 13C NMR. The 1H RFSLR, measured at different chemical shifts in the 13C NMR spectrum, provides direct evidence of the interfacial material. The possible use of spin-locking at angles other than 90° in the rotating frame to scale the spin diffusion rates is reviewed and its possible utility for LLDPE materials explored.

The new class of Mg-B superconducting conductors was prepared using the standard in-situ powder-in-tube, PIT, method where Mg+2B mixture was used to fill the copper and silver tubes. Study of the intergranular current, grain connectivity and superconducting phases in wires were conducted by AC susceptibility measurements and direct four point transport measurements. Using SQUID magnetometer, magnetisation versus magnetic field (M-H) curves of the round wires after reactive diffusion were measured at temperatures 5K and magnetic field up to 5T to define the Jcmag . The direct current density measurements of the in-situ Cu-MgB2 performed at 4.2K gave the value of 10^9 Am-2 ., Comment: Paper presented at EUCAS'01 conference, Copenhagen, 26 - 30 August 2001

A novel rf sputtering technology in which a high density plasma is created in a remote chamber has been used to reactively deposit zinc oxide (ZnO) and indium zinc oxide (IZO) thin films at room temperature from metallic sputtering targets at deposition rates ∼50 nm min −1 , which is approximately an order of magnitude greater than that of rf magnetron sputtering. Thin film transistors have been fabricated using IZO with a maximum processing temperature of 120 ◦ C, which is defined by the curing of the photoresist used in patterning. Devices have a saturated field effect mobility of 10 cm 2 V −1 s −1 and a switching ratio in excess of 10 6 . Gate bias stress experiments performed at elevated temperatures show a consistent apparent increase in the field effect mobility with time, which is attributed to a charge trapping phenomenon.

The III-nitrides include the semiconductors AlN, GaN and InN, which have band gaps spanning the entire UV and visible ranges. Thin films of III-nitrides are used to make UV, violet, blue and green light-emitting diodes and lasers, as well as solar cells, high-electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) and other devices. However, the film growth process gives rise to unusually high strain and high defect densities, which can affect the device performance. X-ray diffraction is a popular, non-destructive technique used to characterize films and device structures, allowing improvements in device efficiencies to be made. It provides information on crystalline lattice parameters (from which strain and composition are determined), misorientation (from which defect types and densities may be deduced), crystallite size and microstrain, wafer bowing, residual stress, alloy ordering, phase separation (if present) along with film thicknesses and superlattice (quantum well) thicknesses, compositions and non-uniformities. These topics are reviewed, along with the basic principles of x-ray diffraction of thin films and areas of special current interest, such as analysis of non-polar, semipolar and cubic III-nitrides. A summary of useful values needed in calculations, including elastic constants and lattice parameters, is also given. Such topics are also likely to be relevant to other highly lattice-mismatched wurtzite-structure materials such as heteroepitaxial ZnO and ZnSe.

Development of crystalline structure during the tubular film blowing of low-density polyethylene was investigated, using wide-angle X-ray diffraction technique, low-angle light scattering, and scanning electron microscopy. In the study, commercial grades of both high-pressure low-density polyethylene (HP-LDPE) and low-pressure low-density polyethylene (LP-LDPE) (also, commonly referred to as linear low-density polyethylene, LLDPE) were used. The applied stresses at the freeze line were determined using theoretical expressions derived in an earlier publication [C. D. Han and T. H. Kwack, J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 28, 3399 (1983)]. The applied stresses, S11F and S33F, at and above the freeze line in the machine and transverse directions were expressed in terms of the tension at the take-up device, take-up ratio, blow-up ratio, and the pressure difference across the film of the bubble. These applied stresses were used to interpret the crystalline axes' orientation in the tubular blown films. It was found that the magnitude of S11F is an important process parameter for the crystalline axes' orientation and that the biaxial stress ratio (S11F/S33F) appears to be a determining factor in the distribution of fibrillous nuclei and crystalline texture, as well as film anisotropy.