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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 1,027 records · Page 57
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Structural transitions, magnetic properties, and electronic structures of Co(Fe)-doped MnNiSi compounds

The structural transitions, magnetic properties, and electronic structures of Co(Fe)-doped MnNiSi compounds are investigated by x-ray powder diffraction, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), magnetic measurements, and first-principles calculations. Results indicate that all samples undergo a martensitic transition from the Ni{sub 2}In-type parent phase to TiNiSi-type orthorhombic phase at high temperatures. The substitution of Co(Fe) for Mn in Mn{sub 1−x}Co{sub x}NiSi (x = 0.2, 0.3, and 0.4) and Mn{sub 1−y}Fe{sub y}NiSi (y = 0.26, 0.30, 0.36, 0.46, and 0.55) samples decreases the structural transition temperature and Curie temperature of martensite. The martensite phases show a typical ferromagnetic behavior with saturation field being basically unchanged with increasing Co(Fe) content, while the saturation magnetization shows a decreasing tendency. The theoretically calculated moments are in good agreement with the experimentally measured results. The orbital hybridizations between different 3d elements are analyzed from the distribution of density of states.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Origin of structural analogies and differences between the atomic structures of GeSe{sub 4} and GeS{sub 4} glasses: A first principles study

First-principles molecular dynamics simulations based on density functional theory are employed for a comparative study of structural and bonding properties of two stoichiometrically identical chalcogenide glasses, GeSe{sub 4} and GeS{sub 4}. Two periodic cells of 120 and 480 atoms are adopted. Both glasses feature a coexistence of Ge-centered tetrahedra and Se(S) homopolar connections. Results obtained for N = 480 indicate substantial differences at the level of the Se(S) environment, since Ge–Se–Se connections are more frequent than the corresponding Ge–S–S ones. The presence of a more prominent first sharp diffraction peak in the total neutron structure factor of glassy GeS{sub 4} is rationalized in terms of a higher number of large size rings, accounting for extended Ge–Se correlations. Both the electronic density of states and appropriate electronic localization tools provide evidence of a higher ionic character of Ge–S bonds when compared to Ge–Se bonds. An interesting byproduct of these investigations is the occurrence of discernible size effects that affect structural motifs involving next nearest neighbor distances, when 120 or 480 atoms are used.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

Photoelectron spectra and structure of the Mn{sub n}{sup −} anions (n = 2–16)

Photoelectron spectra of the Mn{sub n}{sup −} anion clusters (n = 2–16) are obtained by anion photoelectron spectroscopy. The electronic and geometrical structures of the anions are computed using density functional theory with generalized gradient approximation and a basis set of triple-ζ quality. The electronic and geometrical structures of the neutral Mn{sub n} clusters have also been computed to estimate the adiabatic electron affinities. The average absolute difference between the computed and experimental vertical detachment energies of an extra electron is about 0.2 eV. Beginning with n = 6, all lowest total energy states of the Mn{sub n}{sup −} anions are ferrimagnetic with the spin multiplicities which do not exceed 8. The computed ionization energies of the neutral Mn{sub n} clusters are in good agreement with previously obtained experimental data. According to the results of our computations, the binding energies of Mn atoms are nearly independent on the cluster charge for n > 6 and possess prominent peaks at Mn{sub 13} and Mn{sub 13}{sup −} in the neutral and anionic series, respectively. The density of states obtained from the results of our computations for the Mn{sub n}{sup −} anion clusters show the metallic character of the anion electronic structures.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

Structural properties of Bi{sub 2−x}Mn{sub x}Se{sub 3} thin films grown via molecular beam epitaxy

The effects of Mn doping on the structural properties of the topological insulator Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} in thin film form were studied in samples grown via molecular beam epitaxy. Extended x-ray absorption fine structure measurements, supported by density functional theory calculations, indicate that preferential incorporation occurs substitutionally in Bi sites across the entire film volume. This finding is consistent with x-ray diffraction measurements which show that the out of plane lattice constant expands while the in plane lattice constant contracts as the Mn concentration is increased. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicates that the Mn valency is 2+ and that the Mn bonding is similar to that in MnSe. The expansion along the out of plane direction is most likely due to weakening of the Van der Waals interactions between adjacent Se planes. Transport measurements are consistent with this Mn{sup 2+} substitution of Bi sites if additional structural defects induced by this substitution are taken into account.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Structural and optical properties of nano-structured CdS thin films prepared by chemical bath deposition

Cadmium sulfide (CdS) thin films have been deposited on conducting glass substrates by chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique. The effect of precursor concentration on the structural, morphological, compositional, and optical properties of the CdS films has been studied. Crystal structure of these CdS films is characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and it reveals polycrystalline structure with mixture of cubic and wurtzite phases with grain size decreasing as precursor concentration is increased. Optical studies reveal that the CdS thin films have high transmittance in visible spectral region reaching 90% and the films possess direct optical band gap that decreases from 2.46 to 2.39 eV with decreasing bath concentration. Our study suggests that growth is nucleation controlled.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2016

Graph-based linear scaling electronic structure theory

We show how graph theory can be combined with quantum theory to calculate the electronic structure of large complex systems. The graph formalism is general and applicable to a broad range of electronic structure methods and materials, including challenging systems such as biomolecules. The methodology combines well-controlled accuracy, low computational cost, and natural low-communication parallelism. This combination addresses substantial shortcomings of linear scaling electronic structure theory, in particular with respect to quantum-based molecular dynamics simulations.

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

Magnetism and electronic structure of CoFeCrX (X = Si, Ge) Heusler alloys

The structural, electronic, and magnetic properties of CoFeCrX (X = Si, Ge) Heusler alloys have been investigated. Experimentally, the alloys were synthesized in the cubic L2{sub 1} structure with small disorder. The cubic phase of CoFeCrSi was found to be highly stable against heat treatment, but CoFeCrGe disintegrated into other new compounds when the temperature reached 402 °C (675 K). Although the first-principle calculation predicted the possibility of tetragonal phase in CoFeCrGe, the tetragonal phase could not be stabilized experimentally. Both CoFeCrSi and CoFeCrGe compounds showed ferrimagnetic spin order at room temperature and have Curie temperatures (T{sub C}) significantly above room temperature. The measured T{sub C} for CoFeCrSi is 790 K but that of CoFeCrGe could not be measured due to its dissociation into new compounds at 675 K. The saturation magnetizations of CoFeCrSi and CoFeCrGe are 2.82 μ{sub B}/f.u. and 2.78 μ{sub B}/f.u., respectively, which are close to the theoretically predicted value of 3 μ{sub B}/f.u. for their half-metallic phases. The calculated band gaps for CoFeCrSi and CoFeCrGe are, respectively, 1 eV and 0.5 eV. These materials have potential for spintronic device applications, as they exhibit half-metallic electronic structures with large band gaps, and Curie temperatures significantly above room temperature.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Enhancement of Optical Emission and Ion Currents in a Laser Produced Silicon Plasma by Femtosecond Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structuring

Laser-induced periodic surface structuring is a powerful technique for modifying the surface properties of solids. Using ultrashort pulses from a Ti:Sapphire laser (800 nm, 100 fs) we have fabricated nanoscale order laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) on a silicon (100) surface. The LIPSS patterns are found to be strongly dependent on the laser pulse energy, state of polarization, number of shots delivered on the target, and the ambient pressure. The role of laser wavelength is studied by using the second harmonic output (400 nm) also for fabrication. Large area (5x4 mm2) surface structuring has been carried out at atmospheric pressure after optimizing the laser parameters at 800 nm. The patterned silicon surface shows a substantial reduction in the reflection of incident light over a wide range of wavelengths, in comparison to plain silicon. Moreover, when used for laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) experiments, enhanced optical emission and ion current have been observed from the patterned surface. This indicates that coupling of laser energy to the surface is enhanced in the case of patterned silicon. While spectral lines emitted by doubly ionized silicon have been observed from the patterned surface, the plain surface gives lines from singly ionized silicon only. A discernible enhancement has been measured in both optical (50-90%) and electrical (34%) signals from the plasma generated on the patterned surface. These results confirm that LIPSS is a versatile method for enhancing the coupling of laser energy on to irradiated solid surfaces.

ion currents, optical emission, laser produced sil↗
DOE OSTI2026

Structural modulation, physical properties, and electronic band structure of the kagome metal UCr 6 ⁢Ge 6

The chemical flexibility of the 𝑅⁢𝑀 6 ⁢𝑋 6 stoichiometry, where an 𝑓-block element is intercalated in the CoSn structure type, allows for the tuning of flatbands associated with kagome lattices to the Fermi level and for emergent phenomena due to interactions between the 𝑓- and 𝑑-electron lattices. Yet, 5⁢𝑓 members of the “166” compounds are underrepresented compared with 4⁢𝑓 members. In this work, we report single-crystal growth of UCr 6 ⁢Ge 6 , which crystallizes in a monoclinically distorted Y 0.5⁢ Co 3 ⁢Ge 3 -type structure. The real-space character of the modulation, which is unique within the 𝑅⁢𝑀 6 ⁢𝑋 6 family, is approximated by a 3×1×2 supercell of the average monoclinic cell. The compound has kagome-lattice flatbands near the Fermi level and a moderately enhanced electronic heat capacity, as evidenced by its low-temperature Sommerfeld coefficient (𝛾=86.5 mJ mol −1 K −2 ) paired with band structure calculations. The small, isotropic magnetization and featureless resistivity of UCr 6 ⁢Ge 6 suggest itinerant uranium 5⁢𝑓 electrons and Pauli paramagnetism. Angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy results provide evidence for uranium 5⁢𝑓 weight at the Fermi level and for a flatband near the Fermi level associated with the chromium 3⁢𝑑 kagome lattice. The isotropic magnetic behavior of the uranium 5⁢𝑓 electrons starkly contrasts with localized behavior in other uranium 166 compounds, highlighting the high tunability of the magnetic ground state across the material family.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Evolution of the electronic structure in Ta 2 NiSe 5 across the structural transition revealed by resonant inelastic x-ray scattering

We utilized high-energy-resolution resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) at both the Ta and Ni L 3 -edges to map out element-specific particle-hole excitations in Ta 2 NiSe 5 across the phase transition. Our results reveal a momentum dependent gap-like feature in the low energy spectrum, which agrees well with the band gap in element-specific joint density of states calculations based on ab initio estimates of the electronic structure in both the low temperature monoclinic and the high temperature orthorhombic structure. Below T c , the RIXS energy-momentum map shows a minimal gap at the Brillouin zone center (~0.16 eV), conforming that Ta 2 NiSe 5 possesses a direct band gap in its low temperature ground state. However, inside the gap, no signature of anticipated collective modes with an energy scale comparable to the gap size can be identified. Upon increasing the temperature to above T c , whereas the gap at the zone center closes, the RIXS map at finite momenta still possesses the gross features of the low temperature map, suggesting a substantial mixing between the Ta and Ni orbits in the conduction and valence bands, which does not change substantially across the phase transition. Our experimental observations and comparison to the theoretical calculations lend further support that the phase transition and the corresponding gap opening in Ta 2 NiSe 5 is largely structural by nature with possible minor contribution from the putative exciton condensate.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

The structure of cytomegalovirus immune modulator UL141 highlights structural Ig-fold versatility for receptor binding

The crystal structure of Human cytomegalovirus immune modulator UL141 was solved at 3.25 Å resolution. Here, a detailed analysis of its intimate dimerization interface and the biophysical properties of its receptor (TRAIL-R2 and CD155) binding interactions are presented. Natural killer (NK) cells are critical components of the innate immune system as they rapidly detect and destroy infected cells. To avoid immune recognition and to allow long-term persistence in the host, Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) has evolved a number of genes to evade or inhibit immune effector pathways. In particular, UL141 can inhibit cell-surface expression of both the NK cell-activating ligand CD155 as well as the TRAIL death receptors (TRAIL-R1 and TRAIL-R2). The crystal structure of unliganded HCMV UL141 refined to 3.25 Å resolution allowed analysis of its head-to-tail dimerization interface. A ‘dimerization-deficient’ mutant of UL141 (ddUL141) was further designed, which retained the ability to bind to TRAIL-R2 or CD155 while losing the ability to cross-link two receptor monomers. Structural comparison of unliganded UL141 with UL141 bound to TRAIL-R2 further identified a mobile loop that makes intimate contacts with TRAIL-R2 upon receptor engagement. Superposition of the Ig-like domain of UL141 on the CD155 ligand T-cell immunoreceptor with Ig and ITIM domains (TIGIT) revealed that UL141 can potentially engage CD155 similar to TIGIT by using the C′C′′ and GF loops. Further mutations in the TIGIT binding site of CD155 (Q63R and F128R) abrogated UL141 binding, suggesting that the Ig-like domain of UL141 is a viral mimic of TIGIT, as it targets the same binding site on CD155 using similar ‘lock-and-key’ interactions. Sequence alignment of the UL141 gene and its orthologues also showed conservation in this highly hydrophobic (L/A)X{sub 6}G ‘lock’ motif for CD155 binding as well as conservation of the TRAIL-R2 binding patches, suggesting that these host–receptor interactions are evolutionary conserved.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2020

Structure of the Receptor Binding Domain of EnvP(b)1, an Endogenous Retroviral Envelope Protein Expressed in Human Tissues

EnvP(b)1 is an endogenous retroviral envelope gene found in human and other primate genomes. We report EnvP(b)1 sequences in primate genomes consistent with an integration event between 40 and 71 million years ago. Using a highly specific polyclonal antiserum raised against the putative receptor binding domain (RBD) of human EnvP(b)1, we detected expression in human placenta, ovaries, and thymus. We found that EnvP(b)1 is proteolytically processed, and using cell-cell fusion assays in multiple primate cell lines, we demonstrated that extant EnvP(b)1 proteins from a variety of primate genomes are fusogenic. This work supports the idea that EnvP(b)1 is under purifying selection and its fusogenic activity has been maintained for over 40 million years. We determined the structure of the RBD of human EnvP(b)1, which defines structural similarities with extant leukemia viruses, despite little sequence conservation. This structure highlights a common scaffold from which novel receptor binding specificities likely evolved. The evolutionary plasticity of this domain may underlie the diversity of related Envs in circulating viruses.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2018

Accurate Refinement of the Crystal Structure of Ba{sub 3}TaGa{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14} from Langasite Family and Analysis of Structural Transformations Due to Isomorphous Cation Substitutions

An accurate structure analysis of a Ba{sub 3}TaGa{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14} single crystal from langasite family was performed using four X-ray diffraction data sets collected on a diffractometer equipped with a CCD area detector (sp. gr. P321, Z = 1, sinθ/λ ≤ 1.35 Å{sup –1}; at 295 K a = 8.516(1) Å, c = 5.1910(6) Å, R/wR = 0.58/0.56%, Δρ{sub min}/Δρ{sub max} =–0.73/0.42 e/Å{sup 3}, 4414 independent reflections; at 106 K a = 8.5109(9) Å, c = 5.1861(9) Å, R/wR = 0.75/0.86%, Δρ{sub min}/Δρ{sub max} =–0.81/1.06 e/Å{sup 3}, 4382 reflections). The distinguishing feature of the Ba{sub 3}TaGa{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14} structure is a strong disorder of the Ga atom at the 3f site. Structural transformations in the series of Сa{sub 3}TaGa{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14}–Sr{sub 3}TaGa{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14}–Ba{sub 3}TaGa{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14}–Ba{sub 3}TaFe{sub 3}Si{sub 2}O{sub 14} crystals were analyzed.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

Structural Analysis of K 4 Fe(CN) 6 ·3H 2 O, K 3 Fe(CN) 6 and Prussian Blue

XRD and XAS were used to characterize the bulk structure, while XPS was used to characterize the surface structure, of commercially obtained nominally K 4 Fe(CN) 6 ·3H 2 O, K 3 Fe(CN) 6 and our synthesized Prussian Blue (PB) material. K 4 Fe(CN) 6 ·3H 2 O was found to consist of a fully hydrated phase, which crystallizes in the monoclinic form and a less hydrated or anhydrous phase which crystallizes in the orthorhombic form. K 3 Fe(CN) 6 was found to consist of the well-established orthorhombic form rather than the monoclinic form. The structure of our synthesized Prussian Blue (PB) was found to be consistent with that reported for (KOH) 0.7 Fe(III) 1.33 Fe(II)(CN) 6 ·4.0H 2 O which crystallizes in the cubic form. XPS and XAS confirmed the presence of ferrous Fe(II) at the surface and bulk levels in K 4 Fe(CN) 6 ·xH 2 O. However, XPS revealed the presence of Fe(II) (~30%) and Fe(III) (~70%) in the surface region of K 3 Fe(CN) 6 while XAS confirmed the presence of mostly Fe(III) at the bulk level. Both XPS and XANES confirmed the presence of Fe(II) and Fe(III) in the surface and bulk regions of PB. We report that this ex situ XAS study will be used to support the analysis of an in situ XAS data collected on a PB containing supercapacitor to understand the mechanistic origin of pseudocapacitance in these devices.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2017

Method for computationally efficient design of dielectric laser accelerator structures

Here, dielectric microstructures have generated much interest in recent years as a means of accelerating charged particles when powered by solid state lasers. The acceleration gradient (or particle energy gain per unit length) is an important figure of merit. To design structures with high acceleration gradients, we explore the adjoint variable method, a highly efficient technique used to compute the sensitivity of an objective with respect to a large number of parameters. With this formalism, the sensitivity of the acceleration gradient of a dielectric structure with respect to its entire spatial permittivity distribution is calculated by the use of only two full-field electromagnetic simulations, the original and ‘adjoint’. The adjoint simulation corresponds physically to the reciprocal situation of a point charge moving through the accelerator gap and radiating. Using this formalism, we perform numerical optimizations aimed at maximizing acceleration gradients, which generate fabricable structures of greatly improved performance in comparison to previously examined geometries.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗