Sol-gel-hydrothermal growth of oxide thin films at low temperatures

Lead zirconate titanate (PZT) (Pb(Zr_0.52Ti_0.48)O₃) and barium titanate (BaTiO₃) thin films have been successfully prepared using a novel sol-gel- hydrothermal (SG-HT) technique at low temperatures, which involves a combination of the conventional sol-gel process and a hydrothermal method. Highly (111)-oriented PZT thin films with a single perovskite phase and polycrystalline BaTiO thin films with well developed crystallites were obtained at a processing temperature as low as 160⁰C. The microstructural characteristics demonstrate that the SG-HT-derived PZT and BaTiO₃ thin films with good crystallinity and surface morphology are converted from the amorphous phase to the desired perovskite phase on platinum-coated and bare silicon substrates at a low processing temperature of 100-200 C. These results suggest that the SGHT technique, which is of great significance because of its low processing temperature, will become a potential and promising process for fabricating PZT, BaTiO₃ and other oxide thin films.     

Atomic force microscopy investigation of buckling patterns of nickel thin films on polycarbonate substrates

The evolution of buckling patterns of nickel thin films have been studied in situ by atomic force microscopy during cyclic tests composed of uniaxial compression followed by release of the external applied stress. After the first strain cycling, buckling structures evolve from straight-sided wrinkles to varicose patterns characterized by a debuckling of some parts of the film. Further cycling tests reveal that rebonding of the film on its substrate does not occur once decohesion has taken place.     

Determination of the nature of stacking-fault tetrahedra in electron-irradiated silver by high-resolution structural imaging

Abstract

High-resolution structural imaging has been used to show that the great majority of stacking-fault tetrahedra produced in thin foils of electron-irradiated silver are of vacancy nature.     

Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy of electrodeposited Ni-P alloys

Abstract

Ultramicrotoming has been employed to prepare thin cross-sections of Ni-P alloys electrodeposited on to a copper substrate. The sections, as thin as 10nm or even less, can be prepared readily with negligible damage to the alloys. Subsequent examination of the ultramicrotomed sections in an analytical transmission electron microscope has revealed that Ni-P alloys of low P content consist of fine layers of different composition and crystallinity. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy of ultramicrotomed sections has also revealed the presence of ordered regions, a few nanometres in size, in the Ni₇₇P₂₃ alloy which has been thought previously to be amorphous.     

The role of peer influence on girls’ body dissatisfaction and dieting

IntroductionPeer influence is considered a global construct, although the effects of its various dimensions on body dissatisfaction and dieting via internalisation of the thin ideal and social comparison have yet to be analysed.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to analyse how the different dimensions of peer influence (i.e., perception of teasing, appearance conversation with friends and peer attributions about the importance of appearance with regard to popularity) affect body dissatisfaction and dieting.MethodA total of 298 Italian adolescent girls and young women completed a questionnaire assessing different dimensions of peer influence, internalisation of the thin ideal, social comparison, body dissatisfaction and dieting.ResultsThe results indicated that peer attributions and appearance conversations with friends affect body dissatisfaction and dieting through internalisation and social comparison. Teasing had a direct effect on girls’ dissatisfaction levels.ConclusionsThe current findings have important preventive and treatment implications. Preventive interventions should not target sociocultural influences as a whole, rather they should analyse the specific dimensions of peer influence, with consideration for the degree to which girls internalise sociocultural messages and engage in social comparison.     

Epitaxial Ni-Al thin films on NaCl using a Ag buffer layer

Epitaxial nanoscale [001] films of Ni _x Al_100-x (x = 62.5) have been prepared by physical vapour deposition on to a thin film of Ag [001] on NaCl (001) faces with occasional hillocks. The Ag film contains numerous dislocations and stacking faults and has a rms surface roughness of 2 nm. The Ni-Al film is ordered in the B2 structure and reveals many dislocations as well as antiphase boundaries between ordered domains. The formation of subgrains in the Ni-Al film results in severe height variations up to 30 nm across the surface. A cross-sectional model for the growth of both films is presented.     

Interfacial reaction between silicon nitride and aluminium

Abstract

The microstructure of a silicon nitride/aluminium interface has been identified by analytical transmission electron microscopy. HIPed silicon nitride without any additive was bonded by pure aluminium at 800°C for 15 min. A thin (～ 5000 Å) reaction layer was recognized at the interface. It consisted of two regions. One an amorphous layer facing the aluminium; it contained aluminium, silicon and oxygen. The other was on the silicon nitride side and consisted of fine particles which were less than 100 Å in diameter. These particles were considered to have β'-sialon type structure.     

Influence of Guinier-Preston zones on deformation in Ti-rich Ti-Ni thin films

The deformed microstructure of a Ti-48.9at.%Ni thin film has been investigated by transmission electron microscopy. It was found that Guinier-Preston (GP) zones exist in the thin film and the martensite has (001) compound twins as substructure. The microstructure of the martensite shows that the GP zones do not stop both the shear deformation of martensitic transformation and the twinning shear of (001) deformation twin in the martensite phase. These results give a microstructural explanation for the previous result that Ti-rich Ti-Ni thin films with GP zones show a large transformation strain despite the presence of the GP zones.     

Photoinduced and thermally induced bleaching of amorphous Ge─S films

Abstract

The photoinduced changes of the optical properties of Ge₂₇S₇₃ thin films have been examined using visible and infrared spectroscopy. It was found that illumination of the virgin thin film in vacuum is accompanied by a blue shift of the optical gap and by an increase of the Ge─S bond density. If the film is illuminated in air, the blue shift of the gap is observed too, but the density of Ge─S bonds decreases and new extrinsic absorption bands around 820 and 695 cm^?1 appear in the spectrum, indicating most probably the presence of Ge─O bonds. It is supposed that in the former case the photoinduced changes are most probably intrinsic (decreases of the randomness of the film structure), while in the second case the photoinduced bleaching is accompanied by photoinduced oxidation of the film.     

Virtues and ethics within Watsuji Tetsurō’s Rinrigaku

ABSTRACT

In the second volume of Rinrigaku, Watsuji Tetsurō focuses on developing his notion of betweenness (aidagara 間柄) through the ethical organisations (jinrinteki soshiki 人倫的組織) of family, local community, economics, cultural community, and the state. Although those who have commentated on the later volumes have focused on the controversy which surrounds Watsuji’s account of the state, very little attention has been paid to the role of virtues within his thought. It is precisely this academic lacuna which this enquiry is intended to address. In this paper, there are two particular aims which I hope to achieve: firstly, I will seek to explicate the role which virtues play within Watsuji’s ethical system, and secondly, I will attempt to evaluate how the virtues inform Watsuji’s normative approach.     

Newly observed microscopic planar defects on {111} in natural diamond

Abstract

Circular disc-crack-like defects randomly distributed on {111} planes have been discovered by 300kV transmission electron microscopy in diamond that had crystallized on non-faceted growth surfaces of mean orientation {100}. In a sample of ～ 100 defects, disc diameters were narrowly distributed about a mean of 1·2 μm and one in seven discs were located on a coplanar stacking fault of average diameter 2 μm. Discs totally enclosed within the specimen exhibit concentric moiré fringes covering their image areas when viewed obliquely, showing them to be dilated into thin lenticles. Internal pressures, deduced from moiré-fringe counts on six lenticles, were in the range 1·5 to 1·8 GPa.     

Investigation of {111} stacking faults and nanotwins in epitaxial BaTiO3 thin films by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy

{111} stacking faults and nanotwins in epitaxial BaTiO₃ thin films on MgO substrates have been investigated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. In many cases, the stacking faults and nanotwins were found to be accompanied by partial dislocations. These partial dislocations can be classified as two different types, analogous to the situation in the fcc structure. One is of the Shockley type with the Burgers vector (a/3)<112>. The other is of the Frank type with the Burgers vector (a/3)<111>. The movements of both types of partial can lead to the {111} stacking faults and the {111} twins observed in these films.     

Nucleation of the C40-to-C11 b transformation in magnetron-sputtered MoSi 2 thin films

Transmission electron microscopy has been used to reveal the microstructure of metastable C40 MoSi 2 thin films produced by annealing amorphous magnetron-sputtered deposits at 700°C. The films contain nanoscale acicular grains elongated parallel to (0001), with extensive basal faulting. The faults are intrinsic with R ´ 1/3[0001] and correspond to thin slabs of the equilibrium C11 b phase. It is proposed that these faults may act as nuclei for the subsequent transformation from C40 to C11 b by a process akin to discontinuous coarsening.     

Running as a way fat women re-story their bodies and construct a runner identity in a North American sociocultural context

AimThis research sought to identify the process by which women who identify as fat or as not having a typical athletic body construct an athletic identity and persist in their running and other athletic endeavors despite body size-related barriers.MethodsFrom an online recruitment effort, 19 North American women runners in larger bodies completed interviews in which they told the story of how they had become runners. A narrative analysis with a feminist, constructivist approach was conducted to identify story types.ResultsFour narrative types were identified: reclaiming the body, reclaiming health, space-making, and future-imagining. Through finding a size- and pace-inclusive running community, running persistently, and completing races, women relinquished the stories they’d believed that their bodies were not athletic since childhood and constructed an identity of runner in a fat body.ConclusionsThese women’s engagement in running is a personal form of resistance against those who define athletic and healthy as “thin” or “fit.” They have found a welcoming athletic community and have moved on to leadership where they are working to make running accessible to other women in bodies like theirs. Those reading these narratives should consider ways in which fat bodies have been excluded from athletics, as well as ways to support the work being done by women runners in fat bodies to redefine health and athleticism.     

Gaining and losing weight: Identity transformations

Individuals who experience weight problems frequently have a long history of weight gain and weight loss. Based on observation and participation, this study follows a group of dieters in a weight loss clinic over a period of one year. The findings suggest that social factors in the dieter's world have a significant impact on the degree of success experienced. Of particular significance are the perceptions of others once extensive weight loss occurs. It is argued that the loss of weight is only one of a number of issues that the heavy person deals with as he or she moves into the thin world.     

Transition from diffusive to ballistic capture related to hydrogen incorporation in amorphous silicon

Three intersection mechanisms with the gliding planes (111)_TB, (001)_TB and (115)_TB respectively have been observed by high-resolution electron microscopy in the type-I twin intersection of gamma-TiAl. It was found that the intersection mechanism that occurred was related to the thickness of the incident twin. The accommodation mechanism on the (111)_TB atomic plane is preferred when the incident twin becomes very thin. The dislocation dissociations of the (111)_TB plane accommodation are the most energetically unfavourable of the dissociations of the three intersection mechanisms; however, the resultant dislocations on the (111)_TB planes are the easiest to propagate away from the intersection area. Accordingly, (111)_TB atomic plane accommodation is considered to be the only mechanism allowing shear transmission under the small local stress of the pile-up of the incident twinning partials.     

On the stability of 𝛃-SiC with respect to chemical disorder induced by irradiation with energetic particles

X-ray diffraction measurements of changes in the long-range structural orderof 𝛃-SiC thin films have been performed during irradiation with energetic ions atlow temperature. The decrease in both the chemical and the topological order wasanalysed in situ using the superstructure (002) and the fundamental (004)reflections of the zincblende-type structure, in a dose range up to completeamorphization. The data indicate that the crystalline-to-amorphous transitionis a continuous process rather than a sudden collapse of a defective crystalstructure and that, in contrast with previous assumptions, 𝛃-SiC remains stablewith respect to amorphization up to a high degree of chemical disorder.     

Effect of grain orientation and local strain on the quality of polycrystalline YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 superconductive films

The critical current densities of superconducting thin films and their dependence on the film structural characteristics has been a major research interest for more than a decade. Controlling this relationship is crucial if large-scale high-quality YBa 2 Cu 3 O 7 (YBCO) tapes are to be produced. Two major keystones of information have been established in this field. Firstly, there is a direct relationship between the critical current density and the grain-boundary angle in polycrystalline YBCO films. Grain boundaries with a mismatch angle higher than 5° usually result in reduced critical current densities. This detrimental effect of large-angle grain boundaries to the quality of YBCO films has been attributed to strain fields resulting from such grain boundaries. Secondly, the quality of the YBCO film can be enhanced by straining its lattice in specific direction. Here, we report, for the first time, direct experimental results coupling local grain orientation and local strain maps of thin YBCO films deposited on a (001) biaxially textured nickel substrate. These results were correlated to the quality of the film and showed how grain structure in the nickel substrate affects the grain structure in the YBCO films even in the presence of several buffer layers. More importantly, the data show that highquality films with high critical current densities can be produced, in spite of large-angle grain boundaries, if the film is compressed in the range of 0.5% strain normal to the a axis.     

Electron microscopy of grain boundaries: An application to RE-Fe-B (RE = Pr or Nd) magnetic materials

Abstract

To study the grain boundaries of the technologically important RE_13.75Fe_80.25B₆ (RE = Pr or Nd) permanent magnets, we developed a new method using small-angle dark-field imaging based on inner-potential differences at the grain boundaries, combined with high-resolution electron microscopy and nanoscale chemical analysis. In both the Pr- and Nd-based melt-quenched die-upset magnets we consistently observed a very thin Fe-rich amorphized intergranular phase at the boundaries, and this finding may have an impact on our understanding of the coercivity mechanism of these materials. Although the value of the method was demonstrated for transition metal-rare earth intermetallics, it may also be applied to grain-boundary studies in other materials.     

Fitness vs. fatness: Implicit bias towards obesity among fitness professionals and regular exercisers

ObjectivesSuccess of supported exercise programmes to tackle obesity appear to be shaped, in part, by co-exercisers’ beliefs. This study, therefore, aimed to assess implicit attitudes towards obesity among two key groups of people in a public exercise setting: fitness professionals offering exercise advice, and regular exercisers.DesignQuestionnaire survey.MethodsIn all, 57 fitness professionals and 56 regular exercisers were recruited from gyms across Central England. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire, semantic differential measure of explicit beliefs and the implicit associations test (IAT). The IAT reveals unconscious attitudes of participants to implicit associations between target concepts (thin vs. fat) and attributes (good vs. bad). The attribute of motivated vs. lazy was adopted in the current study due to relevance in an exercise setting.ResultsEvidence of a strong anti-fat bias was found (p<.01) for both fitness professionals and regular exercisers on all implicit and explicit measures (good vs. bad; motivated vs. lazy). This bias was more pronounced for fitness professionals who themselves had never been overweight and who believed personal control dictated body weight. For regular exercisers, a higher level of anti-fat bias was found for females, younger participants and those who had never been overweight.ConclusionsThis study suggests that the guidance to support exercise, and combat obesity, may be compromised by the beliefs of those facilitating such programmes.