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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 451 records · Page 25
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2016

Structure and magnetism in Ga-rich MnGa/GaN thin films and unexpected giant perpendicular anisotropy in the ultra-thin film limit

Here, we report structural, surface, and magnetic investigations of ferromagnetic Ga-rich MnGa thin and ultra-thin films grown on semiconducting GaN(0001) using molecular beam epitaxy. The Mn:Ga composition ratio is varied from ≈1 (stoichiometric) to ≈0.42 (very Ga-rich) for different samples. We find that the L1 0 MnGa phase is preserved down to a Mn:Ga ratio of ≈0.81. As the Ga concentration increases, we observe the coexistence of more Ga-rich phases, namely Mn3Ga5 and Mn2Ga5. Room temperature scanning tunneling microscopy imaging reveals highly epitaxial films, with atomically smooth and highly reconstructed surfaces. Magnetic characterizations show how the magnetic properties evolve with changing composition and that giant perpendicular magnetic anisotropy is induced by reducing the size of our films.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Ultrafast Shock-Induced Reactions in Pentaerythritol Tetranitrate Thin Films

The chemical and physical processes involved in the shock-to-detonation transition of energetic solids are not fully understood due to difficulties in probing the fast dynamics involved in initiation. Here, we employ shock interferometry experiments with sub-20-ps time resolution to study highly textured (110) pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) thin films during the early stages of shock compression using ultrafast laser-driven shock wave methods. We observe evidence of rapid exothermic chemical reactions in the PETN thin films for interface particle velocities above ~1.05 km/s as indicated by shock velocities and pressures well above the unreacted Hugoniot. The time scale of our experiment suggests that exothermic reactions begin less than 50 ps behind the shock front for these high-density PETN thin films. Thermochemical calculations for partially reacted Hugoniots also support this interpretation. Finally, the experimentally observed time scale of reactivity could be used to narrow possible initiation mechanisms.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2016

Crystal Structure of AgBi 2 I 7 Thin Films

Synthesis of cubic-phase AgBi 2 I 7 iodobismuthate thin films and fabrication of air-stable Pb-free solar cells using the AgBi 2 I 7 absorber have recently been reported. Based on X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and nominal composition, it was suggested that the synthesized films have a cubic ThZr 2 H 7 crystal structure with AgBi 2 I 7 stoichiometry. Through careful examination of the proposed structure and computational evaluation of the phase stability and bandgap, we find that the reported “AgBi 2 I 7 ” films cannot be forming with the ThZr 2 H 7 -type structure, but rather more likely adopt an Ag-deficient AgBiI 4 type. Both the experimental X-ray diffraction pattern and band gap can be better explained by the AgBiI 4 structure. Additionally, the proposed AgBiI 4 structure, with octahedral bismuth coordination, removes unphysically short Bi–I bonding within the BiI8 hexahedra of the ThZr 2 I 7 model. Our results provide critical insights for assessing the photovoltaic properties of AgBi 2 I 7 iodobismuthate materials.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Cellulose-Based Reflective Liquid Crystal Films as Optical Filters and Solar Gain Regulators

Many promising approaches for designing interactions of synthetic materials with light involve solid optical monocrystals and nanofabricated photonic crystal structures with spatially periodic variations of refractive index. Although their high costs limit current technological applications, remarkably, such photonic and optically anisotropic materials have also evolved throughout nature and enable narrow or broad-band spectral reflection of light. Here we use self-assembly of biomaterial cellulose nanocrystals to obtain three-layer films with helicoidal and nematic-like organization of the cellulose nanoparticles, which mimics naturally occurring polarization-insensitive reflectors found in the wings of Plusiotis resplendens beetles. These films were characterized with polarized optical microscopy and circular dichroism spectrometry, as well as scanning and transmission electron microscopies. These films exhibit high reflectivity tunable within the visible and near-infrared regions of the optical spectrum and may find applications ranging from color filters to smart cloth designs and in solar-gain-regulating building technologies.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Development of a UiO-Type Thin Film Electrocatalysis Platform with Redox-Active Linkers

Metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) as electro- catalysis scaffolds are appealing due to the large concentration of catalytic units that can be assembled in three dimensions. To harness the full potential of these materials, charge transport to the redox catalysts within the MOF has to be ensured. Here in this paper, we report the first electroactive MOF with the UiO/PIZOF topology (Zr(dcphOH-NDI)), i.e., one of the most widely used MOFs for catalyst incorporation, by using redox-active naphthalene diimide-based linkers (dcphOH-NDI). Hydroxyl groups were included on the dcphOH-NDI linker to facilitate proton transport through the material. Potentiometric titrations of Zr(dcphOH-NDI) show the proton-responsive behavior via the -OH groups on the linkers and the bridging Zr-μ 3 -OH of the secondary building units with pK a values of 6.10 and 3.45, respectively. When grown directly onto transparent conductive fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO), 1 μm thin films of Zr(dcphOH-NDI)@FTO could be achieved. Zr(dcphOH-NDI)@FTO displays reversible electrochromic behavior as a result of the sequential one-electron reductions of the redox-active NDI linkers. Importantly, 97% of the NDI sites are electrochemically active at applied potentials. Charge propagation through the thin film proceeds through a linker-to-linker hopping mechanism that is charge-balanced by electrolyte transport, giving rise to cyclic voltammograms of the thin films that show characteristics of a diffusion-controlled process. The equivalent diffusion coefficient, D e , that contains contributions from both phenomena was measured directly by UV/vis spectroelectrochemistry. Using KPF 6 as electrolyte, De was determined to be D e (KPF 6 ) = (5.4 ± 1.1) × 10 -11 cm 2 s -1 , while an increase in countercation size to n-Bu 4 N + led to a significant decrease of D e by about 1 order of magnitude (D e (n-Bu 4 NPF 6 ) = (4.0 ± 2.5) × 10 -12 cm 2 s -1 ).

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2012

Silicon-on-glass pore network micromodels with oxygen-sensing fluorophore films for chemical imaging and defined spatial structure

Pore network microfluidic models were fabricated by a silicon-on-glass technique that provides the precision advantage of dry etched silicon while creating a structure that is transparent across all microfluidic channels and pores, and can be imaged from either side. A silicon layer is bonded to an underlying borosilicate glass substrate and thinned to the desired height of the microfluidic channels and pores. The silicon is then patterned and through-etched by deep reactive ion etching (DRIE), with the underlying glass serving as an etch stop. After bonding on a transparent glass cover plate, one obtains a micromodel in oxygen impermeable materials with water wet surfaces where the microfluidic channels are transparent and structural elements such as the pillars creating the pore network are opaque. The micromodel can be imaged from either side. The advantageous features of this approach in a chemical imaging application are demonstrated by incorporating a Pt porphyrin fluorophore in a PDMS film serving as the oxygen sensing layer and a bonding surface, or in a polystyrene film coated with a PDMS layer for bonding. The sensing of a dissolved oxygen gradient was demonstrated using fluorescence lifetime imaging, and it is shown that different matrix polymers lead to optimal use in different ranges dissolved oxygen concentration. Imaging with the opaque pillars in between the observation direction and the continuous fluorophore film yields images that retain spatial information in the sensor image.

chemical imaging↗
DOE OSTI2017

Nanoporous poly(3-hexylthiophene) thin film structures from self-organization of a tunable molecular bottlebrush scaffold

The ability to widely tune the design of macromolecular bottlebrushes provides access to self-assembled nanostructures formed by microphase segregation in melt, thin film and solution that depart from structures adopted by simple linear copolymers. A series of random bottlebrush copolymers containing poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and poly(D,L-lactide) (PLA) side chains grafted on a poly(norbornene) backbone were synthesized via ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) using the grafting through approach. P3HT side chains induce a physical aggregation of the bottlebrush copolymers upon solvent removal by vacuum drying, primarily driven by attractive π–π interactions; however, the amount of aggregation can be controlled by adjusting side chain composition or by adding linear P3HT chains to the bottlebrush copolymers. Coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations reveal that linear P3HT chains preferentially associate with P3HT side chains of bottlebrush copolymers, which tends to reduce the aggregation. The nanoscale morphology of microphase segregated thin films created by casting P3HT–PLA random bottlebrush copolymers is highly dependent on the composition of P3HT and PLA side chains, while domain spacing of nanostructures is mainly determined by the length of the side chains. The selective removal of PLA side chains under alkaline conditions generates nanoporous P3HT structures that can be tuned by manipulating molecular design of the bottlebrush scaffold, which is affected by molecular weight and grafting density of the side chains, and their sequence. Furthermore, the ability to exploit the unusual architecture of bottlebrushes to fabricate tunable nanoporous P3HT thin film structures may be a useful way to design templates for optoelectronic applications or membranes for separations.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2012

INFLUENCE OF FILM STRUCTURE AND LIGHT ON CHARGE TRAPPING AND DISSIPATION DYNAMICS IN SPUN-CAST ORGANIC THIN-FILM TRANSISTORS MEASURED BY SCANNING KELVIN PROBE MICROSCOPY

Herein, time-dependent scanning Kelvin probe microscopy of solution processed organic thin film transistors (OTFTs) reveals a correlation between film microstructure and OTFT device performance with the location of trapped charge within the device channel. The accumulation of the observed trapped charge is concurrent with the decrease in I{sub SD} during operation (V{sub G}=-40 V, V{sub SD}= -10 V). We discuss the charge trapping and dissipation dynamics as they relate to the film structure and show that application of light quickly dissipates the observed trapped charge.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Controlling compositional homogeneity and crystalline orientation in Bi 0.8 Sb 0.2 thermoelectric thin films [Control of composition and crystallinity in Bi 0.8 Sb 0.2 thermoelectric thin films].

Controlling alloy composition, crystalline quality, and crystal orientation is necessary to achieve high thermoelectric performance in Bi 1-x Sb x thin films. These microstructural attributes are demonstrated in this letter via co-sputter deposition of Bi and Sb metals on Si/SiO 2 substrates followed by ex-situ post anneals ranging from 200 – 300 °C in forming gas with rapid cooling to achieve orientation along the trigonal axis. We show with cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry that 50 – 95% of the Sb segregates at the surface upon exposure to air during transfer. This then forms a nanocrystalline Sb 2 O 3 layer upon annealing, leaving the bulk of the film primarily Bi metal which is a poor thermoelectric material. We demonstrate a SiN capping technique to eliminate Sb segregation and preserve a uniform composition throughout the thickness of the film. Given that the Bi 1-x Sb x solid solution melting point depends on the Sb content, the SiN cap allows one to carefully approach but not exceed the melting point during annealing. This leads to the strong orientation along the trigonal axis and high crystalline quality desired for thermoelectric applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗