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    Category Physics

    Skyrmions, found in Magnetic Systems, now show to also exist in Ferroelectrics

    December 1, 2015, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics

    Schematic representation of the structure and dipolar configuration of the vortex state.

    Schematic representation of the structure and dipolar configuration of the vortex state. The structure consists of a cylindrical BaTiO3 (BTO) nanowire with a radius R of 2.7 nm (seven lattice constant units) embedded in a SrTiO3 (STO) matrix with lateral sides along the [100] and [010] directions of nx=ny=36 lattice constant units, and a length nz=6 along the [001] pseudocubic direction. (b) Cross-sectional dipolar configuration of the (Vxy|FEz) state characterized by a vortex pattern in the z-planes co-occurring with an electrical polarization along the [001] direction.

    Skyrmions are non-coplanar swirling field textures. Ferroelectrics convert changes in mechanical energy into electrical energy and vice versa...

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    New Phase of Carbon: Making diamonds at room temperature

    December 1, 2015, Categories  Physics, Chemistry/Nanotechnology

    This is a scanning electron microscopy image of microdiamonds made using the new technique.

    This is a scanning electron microscopy image of microdiamonds made using the new technique.

    Q-carbon is distinct from known phases of graphite and diamond. They have also developed a technique for using Q-carbon to make diamond-related structures at room temperature and at ambient atmospheric pressure in air. “We’ve now created a third solid phase of carbon,” says Prof. Jay Narayan. “The only place it may be found in the natural world would be possibly in the core of some planets.”

    Q-carbon has some unusual characteristics
    ~It is ferromagnetic -other solid forms of carbon are not.
    “We didn’t even think that was possible,” Narayan says.
    ~It is harder than diamond, and glows when exposed to even low levels of energy.
    ~”Q-carbon’s strength and low work-function – its willingness to release el...

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    Graphene and Metal Nitrides improve Performance and Stability of Energy Storage Devices

    November 30, 2015, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics

    Illustration of the asymmetric supercapacitor, consisting of vertically aligned graphene nanosheets coated with iron nitride and titanium nitride as the anode and cathode, respectively. Credit: © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

    Illustration of the asymmetric supercapacitor, consisting of vertically aligned graphene nanosheets coated with iron nitride and titanium nitride as the anode and cathode, respectively. Credit: © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim

    Supercapacitors can be charged and discharged tens of thousands of times, but their low energy density compared to conventional batteries limits their application for energy storage. Now, A*STAR researchers in Singapore have developed an ‘asymmetric’ supercapacitor based on metal nitrides and graphene that could be a viable energy storage solution.

    A supercapacitor’s viability is largely determined by materials its anodes and cathodes are comprised...

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    Promising New Prototype of Battery

    November 30, 2015, Categories  Physics, Technology/Electronics, Chemistry/Nanotechnology

    Assembling a cell to test sodium-ion (Na-ion), battery materials in a glove box. Credit: ©Cyril FRESILLON/CSE/CNRS Photothèque

    Assembling a cell to test sodium-ion (Na-ion), battery materials in a glove box. Credit: ©Cyril FRESILLON/CSE/CNRS Photothèque

    An alternative technology to Li-ion has been designed for application in specific sectors. The researchers have developed the first battery using sodium ions in the usual “18650” format, an industry standard. The main advantage of the prototype is that it relies on sodium, an element far more abundant and less costly than lithium. The batteries have displayed performance levels comparable to their lithium counterparts, and this new technology is already attracting industrial interest. It could be used to store renewable energies in the future, say researchers.

    The 1st step was to find the ideal “recipe” for the cathode of the battery...

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