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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 505 records · Page 28
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2021

Interfacial Response and Structural Adaptation of Structured Polyelectrolyte Thin Films

Ionizable block copolymers with distinctive block characteristics display the diversity crucial for the design of macromolecules for targeted applications. In contrast to van der Waals copolymers, their interfaces, which are critical to their function, consist of nanodomains, each of a different nature and thus unique interfacial behavior. Here, the interfacial response of a symmetric block copolymer with a sulfonated polystyrene polyelectrolyte center, tethered to polyethylene-r-propylene and terminated by poly(t-butyl styrene) is probed as polymer films are exposed to three polar solvents, water, propanol, and tetrahydrofuran (THF), using molecular dynamics simulations. Each of the solvents captures a distinctive interaction with the individual blocks. We find that at the film boundary, the interfacial response is initially dominated by that of the hydrophobic blocks to all solvents. At later times, the solvent distribution among the blocks, where water molecules associate predominantly with the sulfonated groups and propanol and THF reside at multiple different sites, determines the chemical composition and the polymer conformation at the interface. Altogether, these simulations provide the first direct molecular insight into the interfacial response of ionizable copolymers.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Synthesis, Magnetic Properties, and Electronic Structure of Magnetic Topological Insulator MnBi 2 Se 4

The intrinsic magnetic topological insulators MnBi 2 Te 4 and MnBi 2 Se 4 support novel topological states related to symmetry breaking by magnetic order. Unlike MnBi 2 Te 4 , the study of MnBi 2 Se 4 has been inhibited by the lack of bulk crystals, as the van der Waals (vdW) crystal is not the thermodynamic equilibrium phase. In this study, we report the layer-by-layer synthesis of vdW MnBi 2 Se 4 crystals using nonequilibrium molecular beam epitaxy. Atomic-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy identify a well-ordered vdW crystal with septuple-layer base units. The magnetic properties agree with the predicted layered antiferromagnetic ordering but disagree with its predicted out-of-plane orientation. Instead, our samples exhibit an easy-plane anisotropy, which is explained by including dipole–dipole interactions. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy reveals the gapless Dirac-like surface state, which demonstrates that MnBi 2 Se 4 is a topological insulator above the magnetic-ordering temperature. These studies show that MnBi 2 Se 4 is a promising candidate for exploring rich topological phases of layered antiferromagnetic topological insulators.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Photocarrier Dynamics in MoTe 2 Nanofilms with 2 H and Distorted 1 T Lattice Structures

Molybdenum telluride (MoTe 2 ), an emerging layered two-dimensional (2D) material, possesses excellent phase-changing properties. Previous studies revealed its reversible transition between 2H and 1T' phases with a transition energy as small as 35 meV. Since 1T'-MoTe 2 is metallic, it can serve as an electrical contact for semiconducting 2H-MoTe 2 -based optoelectronic devices. Here, the photocarrier dynamics in MoTe 2 nanofilms synthesized by a one-step method and with coexisting multiple phases are investigated by transient absorption measurements. Both the energy relaxation time and the recombination lifetime of the excitons are shorter in the 1T'-MoTe 2 compared to its 2H phase. Furthermore, these results provide information on the different photocarrier dynamical properties of these two phases, which is important for future 2D optoelectronic and phase-change electronic devices based on MoTe 2 .

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Sublimation Kinetics for Individual Graphite and Graphene Nanoparticles (NPs): NP-to-NP Variations and Evolving Structure-Kinetics and Structure-Emissivity Relationships

A single nanoparticle (NP) mass spectrometry method was used to measure sublimation rates as a function of nanoparticle temperature (T NP ) for sets of individual graphite and graphene NPs. Initially, the NP sublimation rates were ~400 times faster than that for bulk graphite, and there were large NP-to-NP variations. Over time, the rates slowed substantially, though remaining well above the bulk rate. The initial activation energies (E a values) were correspondingly low and doubled as a few monolayer’s worth of material were sublimed from the surfaces. The high initial rates and low E a values are attributed to large numbers of edge, defect, and other low coordination sites on the NP surfaces, and the changes are attributed to atomic-scale “smoothing” of the surface by preferential sublimation of the less stable sites. The emissivity of the NPs also changed after heating, most frequently increasing. Here, the emissivity and sublimation rates were anti-correlated, leading to the conclusion that high densities of low-coordination sites on the NP surfaces enhances sublimation but suppresses emissivity.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗