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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 919 records · Page 51
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2017

High-fat diet aggravates 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether-inhibited testosterone production via DAX-1 in Leydig cells in rats

Growing evidence has revealed that a high-fat diet (HFD) could lead to disorders of glycolipid metabolism and insulin-resistant states, and HFDs have been associated with the inhibition of testicular steroidogenesis. Our previous study demonstrated that 2,2′,4,4′-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE47) could increase the risk of diabetes in humans and reduce testosterone production in rats. However, whether the HFD affects BDE47-inhibited testosterone production by elevating insulin levels and inducing related pathways remains unknown. In male rats treated with BDE47 by gavage for 12 weeks, the HFD significantly increased the BDE47 content of the liver and testis and increased the weight of the adipose tissue; increased macrovesicular steatosis in the liver and the levels of triglycerides, fasting glucose and insulin; further aggravated the disruption of the seminiferous epithelium; and lowered the level of testosterone, resulting in fewer sperm in the epididymis. Of note, the HFD enhanced BDE47-induced DAX-1 expression and decreased the expression levels of StAR and 3β-HSD in the testicular interstitial compartments in rats. In isolated primary Leydig cells from rats, BDE47 or insulin increased DAX-1 expression, decreased the expression of StAR and 3β-HSD, and reduced testosterone production, which was nearly reversed by knocking down DAX-1. These results indicated that the HFD aggravates BDE47-inhibited testosterone production through hyperinsulinemia, and the accumulation of testicular BDE47 that induces the up-regulation of DAX-1 and the subsequent down-regulation of steroidogenic proteins, i.e., StAR and 3β-HSD, in Leydig cells. - Highlights: • High-fat diet (HFD) aggravates the accumulation of BDE47 in liver and testis in rats. • HFD aggravates BDE47-inhibited testosterone production via DAX-1 in Leydig cells. • HFD enhances BDE47-induced the disorder of glycolipid metabolism and hyperinsulinemia. • Both hyperinsulinemia and accumulation of BDE47 inhibited testosterone via DAX-1.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2016

Elucidation of the therapeutic role of mitochondrial biogenesis transducers NRF-1 in the regulation of renal fibrosis

Background: Mitochondrial dysfunction is a newly established risk factor for the development of renal fibrosis. Cell survival and injury repair is facilitated by mitochondrial biogenesis. Nuclear respiratory factor 1 (NRF-1) is a transcriptional regulation factor that plays a central role in the regulation of mitochondrial biogenesis. However, the transcription factor of this process in renal fibrosis is unknown. Thus, we hereby discussed the correlations of NRF-1 and renal interstitial fibrosis. Materials and methods: In vitro fibrosis model was established by treatment with transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1) in NRK-49F (Normal Rat kidney fibroblast). We investigated the ROS production, mitochondrial biogenesis and fibrogenic marker (e.q. fibronectin) during the progression of renal fibrosis by kit and Western blotting assay. Here, we used that two distinct mechanisms regulate NRF-1 activation and degradation of NRF-1. NRF-1 was transfect by pcDNA-NRF-1 overexpression gene to evaluate the NRF-1 activity of the therapeutic effect in renal fibrosis. In addition, NRF-1 was silenced by shRNA-NRF-1 to evaluate the significance of NRF-1. ELISA was used to evaluate the secreted fibronectin. Immunofluorescence staining was used to assay the in situ expression of proteins (e.g. fibronectin, NRF-1). Results: Under renal fibrosis conditions, TGF-β1 (5 ng/ml) increased ROS. Simultaneously, TGF-β1-induced extracellular fibronectin by ELISA assay. In addition, TGF-β1 decreased expression of mitochondrial biogenesis. This is the first time to demonstrate that expression of NRF-1 is significantly decreased in renal fibrosis. However, NRK49F was a transfection with pcDNA-NRF-1 (2 μg/ml) expression vector dramatically reverse TGF-β1-induced cellular fibrosis concomitantly with the suppression of fibronectin (both intracellular and extracellular fibronectin). More importantly, transfection with shRNA-NRF-1 (2 μg/ml) significantly increased the expression of fibronectin of both intercellular and extracellular origins in NRK-49F cells. Discussion: These finding suggest that NRF-1 plays a pivotal role on renal cellular fibrosis. Moreover, NRF-1 might act as a novel renal fibrosis antagonist by down-regulating fibrosis signaling in renal fibroblast cells.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2011

Suppression of donor-vacancy clusters in germanium by concurrent annealing and irradiation

Diffusion of phosphorous and arsenic in germanium under in situ proton irradiation has been performed and analyzed with secondary ion mass spectrometry. Dopant profiles corresponding to proton-exposed regions exhibit a higher penetration depth and more pronounced box shape than profiles of nonexposed regions. Continuum theoretical simulations reveal that diffusion under irradiation is much less affected by inactive donor-vacancy clusters than diffusion under annealing only. The suppression of donor-vacancy clusters is caused by interstitials in supersaturation and vacancy concentrations close to thermal equilibrium. Concurrent annealing and irradiation have the potential to attain high active doping levels in Ge.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Benefits of Damage Engineering for PMOS Junction Stability

As CMOS devices continue to shrink, the formation of ultra shallow junction (USJ) in the source/drain extension remains to be a key challenge requiring high dopant activation, shallow dopant profile and abrupt junctions. The next generations of sub nano-CMOS devices impose a new set of challenges such as elimination of residual defects resulting in higher leakage, difficulty to control lateral diffusion, junction stability post anneal and junction formation in new materials. To address these challenges for advanced technological nodes beyond 32 nm, it is imperative to explore novel species and techniques. Molecular species such as Carborane (C{sub 2}B{sub 10}H{sub 12}), a novel doping species and a promising alternative to monomer Boron is of considerable interest due to the performance boost for 22 nm low power and high performance devices. Also, to reduce residual defects, damage engineering methodologies have generated a lot of attention as it has demonstrated significant benefits in device performance. Varian proprietary techniques to perform implants at cold temperatures (PTC II) have demonstrated lower junction leakage, enhanced activation, reduced dopant diffusion and less dopant deactivation due to the reduction of self-interstitial atoms present at the end-of-range (EOR) with low implant temperatures. In this paper, for the first time, there is a comprehensive study of the effect of implant temperature on defect engineering affecting deactivation/reactivation, and it is well established in this paper that colder the implant temperature the better it is for damage engineering with reduced EOR defects and better amorphization. The effect has been studied over a wide range of implant temperature. To understand any difference in deactivation between molecular and monomer Boron and to provide direct comparison equivalent Boron implants, co-implanted with Carbon were also studied. Implants with wide range of temperatures are implemented using PTC II. This paper will also show how damage reduction correlates with optimum junction formation and stability.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2011

Bandgap tailoring of rutile TiO{sub 2}(110) via surface patterning with electron cyclotron resonance sputtering

Crystalline TiO{sub 2} nanodots have been formed on single crystal rutile TiO{sub 2}(110) surfaces via ion beam sputtering method by utilizing Ar ion beams from electron cyclotron resonance source. Nearly five times enhancement in absorbance of visible light, {approx}5 times increase in luminescence, and {approx}0.1 eV narrowing of bandgap are observed for nanodot-patterned surfaces, in the absence of any dopant material. Formation of crystalline rutile TiO{sub 2} nanodots and development of Ti interstitials on the TiO{sub 2}(110) surface, after ion beam sputtering, are responsible for these observations. Results suggest that these nanodot-patterned rutile TiO{sub 2} surfaces can become effective photocatalysts.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

O K-energy loss near-edge structure change induced by tantalum impurity in monoclinic hafnium oxide

The present paper reports the energy loss near-edge structure (ELNES) study of monoclinic HfO{sub 2} (m-HfO{sub 2}) and tantalum doped m-HfO{sub 2} (Ta{sub 0.1}Hf{sub 0.9}O{sub 2}) thin films prepared by radio frequency magnetron co-sputtering method. A change in the O K-ELNES spectra was observed as the amount of dopant increases. In order to precise the common features and the differences as a function of Ta defect nature (substitutional or interstitial) in HfO{sub 2}, the O K-ELNES were commented with respect to density functional theory calculations implemented in Vienna ab initio simulation package code. The calculated Ta doped HfO{sub 2} band structure showed that substitutional tantalum is the dominant defect and the spectral differences between doped and non-doped HfO{sub 2} are mainly originated from the change in the local cation distribution around the oxygen atoms.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Direct observation of N-(group V) bonding defects in dilute nitride semiconductors using hard x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Using bulk sensitive hard x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, we directly observe a spectrum related to N-As bonding defects in (Ga,In)(N,As)/Ga(N,As) heterostructure. The defects are most likely attributed to split interstitials. Their concentration is in the order of 10{sup 19} cm{sup -3}, close to the detection limit of the measurement. Rapid thermal annealing eliminates the defects, leading to those undetectable. Similar phenomenon is observed for N-P bonding defects in In(N,P). The results indicate common features in dilute nitride semiconductor system: existence of N-(group V) bonding defects and their behavior on postgrowth annealing.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2011

Effects of irradiation and annealing on deep levels in rhodium-doped p-GaAs grown by metal-organic chemical-vapor deposition

This paper reports a detailed study of the effects of irradiation and thermal annealing on deep levels in Rh-doped p-type GaAs grown by low-pressure metal-organic chemical-vapor deposition, using deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) technique. It is found upon irradiation with alpha particles that, in addition to the radiation-induced defect peaks, all the Rh-related peaks observed in majority, as well as minority-carrier emission DLTS scans show an increase in their respective concentrations. The usually observed {alpha}-induced defects H{alpha}1, H{alpha}2, and H{alpha}3 are found to have lower introduction rates in Rh-doped samples, as compared to reference samples (not doped with Rh). Alpha-irradiation has been found to decompose the two minority carrier emitting bands (one at low temperature {approx}150 K and the other at {approx}380 K) observed prior to irradiation into distinct peaks corresponding to deep levels Rh1 and Rh2 and EL2 and Rh3, respectively. A similar effect is also observed for the majority-carrier emitting band composed of hole emission from deep levels RhA and RhB, which separate out well upon irradiation. Further, from the double-correlation DLTS measurements, the emission rates of carriers from the radiation-enhanced peaks corresponding to deep levels Rh1, Rh2, Rh3, and RhC were found to be dependent on junction electric field. For RhC, the field dependence data have been analyzed in terms of the Poole-Frenkel model employing a 3-dimensional Coulomb potential with q = 2e (electronic charge). Temperature dependence of the hole capture cross-sections of the levels RhA and RhC was also studied quantitatively. The observed dependence of the hole capture cross-section of RhC on temperature can be interpreted in terms of multiphonon capture model, yielding a capture barrier of 0.2 eV and {sigma}({infinity}) = 2.3 x 10{sup -14} cm{sup 2}. The results of irradiation and isochronal thermal annealing study, in combination with the theoretical analysis of the field dependence of hole emission data, lead us to interpret the levels RhA and RhB as charged centers and probably complexes of arsenic anti-site defect (As{sub Ga}) with Rh-impurity, (As{sub Ga}-Rh). The levels Rh1 and Rh2 are also proposed to be complexes, albeit of a different type, of arsenic anti-site defects (As{sub Ga}) and Rh-impurity (As{sub Ga}-Rh), while the level RhC is likely to be a doubly-charged complex center composed of arsenic interstitial (I{sub As}) and Rh-impurity (I{sub As}-Rh).

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Mechanism for transient migration of xenon in UO{sub 2}

In this letter, we report recent work on atomistic modeling of diffusion migration events of the fission gas product xenon in UO{sub 2} nuclear fuel. Under nonequilibrium conditions, Xe atoms can occupy the octahedral interstitial site, in contrast to the thermodynamically most stable uranium substitutional site. A transient migration mechanism involving Xe and two oxygen atoms is identified using basin constrained molecular dynamics employing a Buckingham type interatomic potential. This mechanism is then validated using density functional theory calculations using the nudged elastic band method. An overall reduction in the migration barrier of 1.6-2.7 eV is obtained compared to vacancy-mediated diffusion on the uranium sublattice.

11 NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE AND FUEL MATERIALS↗
DOE OSTI2011

Annealing behavior of the EB-centers and M-center in low-energy electron irradiated n-type 4H-SiC

After low-energy electron irradiation of epitaxial n-type 4H-SiC with a dose of 5x10{sup 16} cm{sup -2}, the bistable M-center, previously reported in high-energy proton implanted 4H-SiC, is detected in the deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) spectrum. The annealing behavior of the M-center is confirmed, and an enhanced recombination process is suggested. The annihilation process is coincidental with the evolvement of the bistable EB-centers in the low temperature range of the DLTS spectrum. The annealing energy of the M-center is similar to the generation energy of the EB-centers, thus partial transformation of the M-center to the EB-centers is suggested. The EB-centers completely disappeared after annealing temperatures higher than 700 deg. C without the formation of new defects in the observed DLTS scanning range. The threshold energy for moving Si atom in SiC is higher than the applied irradiation energy, and the annihilation temperatures are relatively low, therefore the M-center, EH1 and EH3, as well as the EB-centers are attributed to defects related to the C atom in SiC, most probably to carbon interstitials and their complexes.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2011

Interaction of He with Cu, V, and Ta in bcc Fe: A first-principles study

Precipitates often play key roles in improving the mechanical performance of structural materials. Using first-principles density functional theory method, we have calculated the geometry and energetics of small X{sub n} and X{sub n}He (X = Cu, V, and Ta) clusters in bcc Fe matrix to investigate the effect of He on X precipitation on the initial stage in neutron-irradiated Fe alloys. Both substitutional and interstitial He attract solute atoms. The attraction of a substitutional He and a Cu atom is as strong as 0.30 eV (nearest neighbor) or 0.25 eV (next-nearest neighbor), even stronger than the vacancy-Cu pair. Such an attraction facilitates the clustering of Cu atoms. By comparison, the attraction of He to V (0.02 eV) or Ta (0.22 eV) is weaker than that of a vacancy. We find that one He can bind up to four Ta atoms to form a tetrahedron, despite the fact that in the absence of He, Ta atoms prefer to stay away from each other. The effect of He on the solute-solute and solute-matrix interactions can be understood from the facts that He behaves both as a free-volume filler and as a bonding insulator.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Electron Screening in Metals

Electron screening enhances cross sections for nuclear reactions at low energies. We have studied the {sup 1}H({sup 7}Li,{alpha}){sup 4}He reaction in inverse kinematics and observed large electron screening only when the metallic targets were under tensile stress. Hydrogen was loaded into Pd and PdAg alloy foils from gas phase and concentrations reached about 0.6 protons per metallic atom. Mechanical pressure creates stress induced states in the metal. Without pressure hydrogen occupies octahedral interstitial positions in the fcc Pd lattice. Under stress some protons move to dislocated octahedral (dis-O) sites in the lattice. We believe that the magnitude of screening in various metals depends on the electron density on dis-O sites in case of fcc lattices or dislocated tetrahedral sites in bcc metals. We are currently trying to confirm the above by determining the electron density at the sites occupied by protons via the measurement of proton Knight's shift with {sup 1}H nuclear magnetic resonance technique.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2011

Influence of surface defects in ZnO thin films on its biosensing response characteristic

Highly c-axis oriented zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films deposited by rf magnetron sputtering under varying processing pressure (20-50 mT) in a reactive gas mixture of argon and oxygen were studied for biosensing application. The as-deposited ZnO thin films were in a state of compressive stress having defects related to interstitial Zn and antisite oxygen. Glucose oxidase has been chosen as the model enzyme in the present study and was immobilized on the surface of ZnO thin films deposited on indium tin oxide coated Corning Glass substrate. The studies reveal a correlation between the biosensing characteristic and the presence of defects in the ZnO films. The ZnO films deposited under high pressure (50 mT) are found to be more sensitive for biosensing application due to availability of more surface area for effective immobilization of biomolecules and exhibits a suitable microenvironment with good electron transfer characteristic. The obtained results highlight the importance of desired microstate besides availability of suitable native defects in the ZnO thin film for exhibiting enhanced biosensing response.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Influence of crystal orientation and ion bombardment on the nitrogen diffusivity in single-crystalline austenitic stainless steel

The nitrogen diffusivity in single-crystalline AISI 316L austenitic stainless steel (ASS) during ion nitriding has been investigated at different crystal orientations ((001), (110), (111)) under variations of ion flux (0.3-0.7 mA cm{sup -2}), ion energy (0.5-1.2 keV), and temperature (370-430 deg. C). The nitrogen depth profiles obtained from nuclear reaction analysis are in excellent agreement with fits using the model of diffusion under the influence of traps, from which diffusion coefficients were extracted. At fixed ion energy and flux, the diffusivity varies by a factor up to 2.5 at different crystal orientations. At (100) orientation, it increases linearly with increasing ion flux or energy. The findings are discussed on the basis of atomistic mechanisms of interstitial diffusion, potential lattice distortions, local decomposition, and ion-induced lattice vibrational excitations.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Atomistic surface erosion and thin film growth modelled over realistic time scales

We present results of atomistic modelling of surface growth and sputtering using a multi-time scale molecular dynamics-on-the-fly kinetic Monte Carlo scheme which allows simulations to be carried out over realistic experimental times. The method uses molecular dynamics to model the fast processes and then calculates the diffusion barriers for the slow processes on-the-fly, without any preconceptions about what transitions might occur. The method is applied to the growth of metal and oxide materials at impact energies typical for both vapour deposition and magnetron sputtering. The method can be used to explain growth processes, such as the filling of vacancies and the formation of stacking faults. By tuning the variable experimental parameters on the computer, a parameter set for optimum crystalline growth can be determined. The method can also be used to model sputtering where the particle interactions with the surface occur at a higher energy. It is shown how a steady state can arise in which interstitial clusters are continuously being formed below the surface during an atom impact event which also recombine or diffuse to the surface between impact events. For fcc metals the near surface region remains basically crystalline during the erosion process with a pitted topography which soon attains a steady state roughness.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Impact of Laser Radiation on Microhardness of a Semiconductor

It was found that strongly absorbed Nd:YAG laser radiation leads to a non-monotonous dependence of microhardness of p- and n-type Si crystals on laser radiation. This dependence is characterized by two maxima for p-Si and one maximum for n-Si crystals. In both cases the increase of microhardness at higher laser intensity is explained by formation of mechanically compressed layer at the irradiated surface due to concentration of the interstitial atoms of Si at the surface in temperature gradient field. The decrease of the microhardness is explained by formation of nano-cones as a result of plastic deformation of the mechanically stressed layer. The additional maximum at lower laser intensity for p-Si crystal is explained by p-n type inversion of Si conductivity.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2012

Effects of hydrogenation on non-radiative defects in GaNP and GaNAs alloys: An optically detected magnetic resonance study

Photoluminescence and optically detected magnetic resonance techniques are utilized to study defect properties of GaNP and GaNAs alloys subjected to post-growth hydrogenation by low-energy sub-threshold ion beam irradiation. It is found that in GaNP H incorporation leads to activation of new defects, which has a Ga interstitial (Ga{sub i}) atom at its core and may also involve a H atom as a partner. The observed activation critically depends on the presence of N in the alloy, as it does not occur in GaP with a low level of N doping. In sharp contrast, in GaNAs hydrogen is found to efficiently passivate Ga{sub i}-related defects present in the as-grown material. A possible mechanism responsible for the observed difference in the H behavior in GaNP and GaNAs is discussed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗