Search

Few-layer graphene has been widely regarded as an efficient filter for gas separation, but the effect of the layer number on the gas permeation process is still unclear. To explore the layer number effect, we perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the gas permeation through a nanopore within the few-layer graphene. Our numerical simulations show that the permeation constant decreases with increasing layer number, which is analyzed based on the macroscopic Kennard empirical model. The macroscopic model is in good agreement with the numerical result in the limit of large layer number, but there are obvious deviations for the medium layer number. We generalize the macroscopic model by considering the nanoscale effect from the surface morphology of the nanoscale pore, which can well describe the layer number dependence for the gas permeation constant in the full range. These results provide valuable information for the application of few-layer graphene in the gas permeation field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Van der Waals heterostructures inherit many novel electronic and optical properties from their constituent atomic layers. Mechanical stability is key for realizing high-performance nanodevices based on van der Waals heterostructures. However, buckling instability is a critical mechanical issue for heterostructures associated with its two-dimensional nature. Using molecular dynamics simulations of graphene/MoS2 heterostructures, we demonstrate the relationship between buckling instability and the misfit strain that arises inevitably in such heterostructures. The impact of misfit strain on buckling depends on its magnitude: (1) A negative misfit strain causes a pre-compression of the graphene layer, which in turn initiates and accelerates buckling in this layer and reduces the buckling stability in the heterostructure as a whole. (2) A small positive misfit strain enhances the buckling stability of the graphene/MoS2 heterostructure by pre-stretching and hence decelerating the buckling of the graphene layer (where heterostructure buckling is initiated). (3) In the case of a large positive misfit strain, the graphene layer is pre-stretched while the MoS2 layer is significantly pre-compressed, so that heterostructure buckling is initiated by the MoS2 layer. Consequently, the buckling stability of the graphene/MoS2 heterostructure is reduced by increasing the large positive misfit strain. These findings are valuable for understanding the mechanical properties of van der Waals heterostructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a Whipple structure to enhance the impact resistance of graphene/aluminum alloy composites by varying the interlayer spacing between graphene and aluminum alloy. The increased interlayer spacing provides more deformation space for the graphene to absorb more deformation energy, and enables the formation of a debris cloud from the bullet fragments and graphene fragments, significantly reducing the impact energy per unit area of the next material. The impact limit serves as a critical metric for assessing the impact resistance of the Whipple structure. Based on molecular dynamics simulations, we developed a machine learning model to predict the protection of aluminum alloy, and quickly determined the impact limits of velocity, bullet radius, and interlayer spacing by using the machine learning model. An empirical equation for the impact limit of interlayer spacing was established. The results showed that non-zero interlayer spacing can significantly improve the impact resistance of the hybrid structure; to fully exploit the superior impact resistance of this Whipple structure, the number of graphene layers should be at least 3. Furthermore, at high impact velocities and large bullet radii, the impact limit of the interlayer spacing exhibits a substantial correlation with the number of graphene layers. These results provide valuable information for the design of the impact resistance of the graphene/aluminum alloy composites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The continuous loading assumption is adopted in most present studies on the buckling of thin shells subjected to lateral loads, while the relationship between the finite number of loads and the lateral buckling remains unclear. In this work, we derive an analytic formula for the dependence of the critical buckling stress on the number of loads, which shows that the critical stress increases significantly with the increase of the load number and reaches a saturation value in the limit of large load number. Furthermore, the analytic formula reveals the dependence of the critical stress on the deviation of the radius in an imperfect shell. To verify the validity of the analytic formula, we perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the buckling of both perfect and imperfect single-walled carbon nanotubes under a finite number of lateral loads, where the analytic formula agrees with the simulation results. These results shall be valuable for understanding mechanical stability of elastic thin shells or nanoscale tubal structures subjected to discrete lateral loads. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the phonon modes in single-walled MoS2 nanotubes via lattice dynamics calculation and molecular dynamics simulation. The phonon spectra for tubes of arbitrary chiralities are calculated from a dynamical matrix constructed by the combination of an empirical potential with the conserved helical quantum numbers (κ, n). In particular, we show that the frequency (ω) of the radial breathing mode is inversely proportional to the tube diameter (d) as ω = 665.3/d cm−1. The eigenvectors of the twenty lowest-frequency phonon modes are illustrated. Based on these eigenvectors, we demonstrate that the radial breathing oscillation is initially disturbed by phonon modes of three-fold symmetry, then eventually the tube is squashed by modes of two-fold symmetry . Our study provides fundamental knowledge for further investigations of the thermal and mechanical properties of MoS2 nanotubes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform classical molecular dynamics simulation to investigate the mechanisms underpinning the unresolved, experimentally observed temperature-dependent scaling transition in the quality factors of graphene nanomechanical resonators (GNMRs). Our simulations reveal that the mechanism underlying this temperature scaling phenomenon is the out-of-plane migration of adsorbates on GNMRs. Specifically, the migrating adsorbate undergoes frequent collisions with the GNMR, which strongly influences the resulting mechanical oscillation, and thus the quality factors. We also predict a discontinuous transition in the quality factor at a lower critical temperature, which results from the in-plane migration of the adsorbate. Overall, our work clearly demonstrates the strong effect of adsorbate migration on the quality factors of GNMRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We derive, from an empirical interaction potential, an analytic formula for the elastic bending modulus of single-layer MoS2 (SLMoS2). By using this approach, we do not need to define or estimate a thickness value for SLMoS2, which is important due to the substantial controversy in defining this value for two-dimensional or ultrathin nanostructures such as graphene and nanotubes. The obtained elastic bending modulus of 9.61 eV in SLMoS2 is significantly higher than the bending modulus of 1.4 eV in graphene, and is found to be within the range of values that are obtained using thin shell theory with experimentally obtained values for the elastic constants of SLMoS2. This increase in bending modulus as compared to monolayer graphene is attributed, through our analytic expression, to the finite thickness of SLMoS2. Specifically, while each monolayer of S atoms contributes 1.75 eV to the bending modulus, which is similar to the 1.4 eV bending modulus of monolayer graphene, the additional pairwise and angular interactions between out of plane Mo and S atoms contribute 5.84 eV to the bending modulus of SLMoS2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the effect of polar surfaces on the quality (Q)-factors of zinc oxide (ZnO) nanowire-based nanoresonators. We find that the Q-factors in ZnO nanoresonators with free polar (0001) surfaces are about one order of magnitude higher than in nanoresonators that have been stabilized with reduced charges on the polar (0001) surfaces. From normal mode analysis, we show that the higher Q-factor is due to a shell-like reconstruction that occurs for the free polar surfaces. This shell-like reconstruction suppresses twisting motion in the nanowires such that the mixing of other modes with the resonant mode of oscillation is minimized, and leads to substantially higher Q-factors in ZnO nanoresonators with free polar surfaces. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform both classical molecular dynamics simulations and beam model calculations to investigate the Young's modulus of kinked silicon nanowires (KSiNWs). The Young's modulus is found to be highly sensitive to the arm length of the kink and is essentially inversely proportional to the arm length. The mechanism underlying the size dependence is found to be the interplay between the kink angle potential and the arm length potential, where we obtain an analytic relationship between the Young's modulus and the arm length of the KSiNW. Our results provide insight into the application of this novel building block in nanomechanical devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, we conducted molecular dynamic simulations to investigate the thermal expansion behavior of Janus MoSSe nanotubes. We focused on understanding how the intrinsic strain in these nanotubes affects their thermal expansion coefficient (TEC). Interestingly, we found that Janus MoSSe nanotubes with sulfur (S) on the outer surface (MoSeS) exhibit a different intrinsic strain compared to those with selenium (Se) on the outer surface (MoSSe). In light of this observation, we explored the influence of this intrinsic strain on the TEC of the nanotubes. Our results revealed distinct trends for the TEC along the radial direction (TEC- r) and the axial direction (TEC- l x ) of the MoSSe and MoSeS nanotubes. The TEC- r of MoSeS nanotubes was found to be significantly greater than that of MoSSe nanotubes. Moreover, the TEC- l x of MoSeS nanotubes was smaller than that of MoSSe nanotubes. Further analysis showed that the TEC- r of MoSeS nanotubes decreased by up to 37% as the radius increased, while that of MoSSe nanotubes exhibited a slight increase with increasing radius. On the other hand, the TEC- l x of MoSeS nanotubes increased by as much as 45% with increasing radius, whereas that of MoSSe nanotubes decreased gradually. These opposite tendencies of the TECs with respect to the radius were attributed to the presence of intrinsic strain within the nanotubes. The intrinsic strain was found to play a crucial role in inducing thermally induced bending and elliptization of the nanotubes' cross-section. These effects are considered key mechanisms through which intrinsic strain influences the TEC. Overall, our study provides valuable insights into the thermal stability of Janus nanotubes. By understanding the relationship between intrinsic strain and the thermal expansion behavior of nanotubes, we contribute to the broader understanding of these materials and their potential applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the detection of diffuse halos (LAHs) around star-forming galaxies at z ∼ 5.7 by stacking 310 spectroscopically confirmed emitters (LAEs). The majority of the LAEs are identified from our spectroscopic survey of galaxies at z > 5.5. They are all located in well-studied fields with deep narrowband and broadband imaging data. We combine the LAE sample and its subsamples in the narrowband NB816 (i.e., the band) and z band (i.e., the continuum band). By comparing the stacked objects with their corresponding point-spread functions, we clearly detect extended LAHs around these LAEs. We perform sophisticated simulations and analyses on statistical and systematic errors, and confirm that the detected halos are not caused by errors. The scale lengths of the LAHs, when described by a double-component model, range from 1.2 to 5.3 kpc with a typical value of ∼2 kpc. The LAH sizes from our sample are in agreement with those of individual LAEs at the similar redshift measured by Very Large Telescope/MUSE but are relatively smaller than those of photometrically selected LAEs in previous studies. We also find that LAEs with higher luminosities, higher UV-continuum luminosities, or smaller equivalent widths tend to have larger LAH sizes. Our results are consistent with a scenario that LAHs originate from the scattered light of the central galaxies by H i gas in the circumgalactic medium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thermal expansion effect plays an important role in governing the thermal stability or the stable configuration of quasi-two-dimensional atomic layers, where the difference between the thermal expansion coefficient of different kinds of atomic layer in lateral heterostructure may cause strong thermal rippling of the atomic layer. We investigate the thermal expansion phenomenon in the WSe2–MoS2 lateral heterostructure. We find that the thermal expansion coefficient can be enhanced by more than a factor of two via varying the ratio between the WSe2 and MoS2 components in the heterostructure. The underlying mechanism is disclosed to be the buckling of the WSe2 region that is induced by the misfit strain at the coherent interface between WSe2 and MoS2. These findings shall be helpful in handling the thermal stability of functional devices based on the transition-metal dichalcogenide lateral heterostructures and other similar quasi-two-dimensional lateral heterostructures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Misfit strain is inevitable in various heterostructures like the graphene/MoS2 van der Waals heterostructure. Although the misfit strain effect on electronic and other physical properties have been well studied, it is still unclear how the misfit strain will affect the performance of the nanomechanical resonator based on the graphene/MoS2 heterostructure. By performing molecular dynamics simulations, we disclose a misfit strain-induced decoupling phenomenon between the graphene layer and the MoS2 layer during the resonant oscillation of the heterostructure. A direct relationship between the misfit strain and the decoupling mechanism is successfully established through the retraction force analysis. We further suggest to use the graphene/MoS2/graphene sandwich heterostructure for the nanomechanical resonator application, which is able to prevent the misfit strain-related decoupling phenomenon. These results provide valuable information for the future application of the graphene/MoS2 heterostructure in the nanomechanical resonator field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, the advances in terahertz applications have stimulated interest in the biological effects associated with this frequency range. We study the gene expression profile in three types of cells exposed to terahertz radiation, i.e., human ARPE-19 retinal pigment epithelial cells, simian virus 40-transformed human corneal epithelial cells, and human MIO-M1 Müller cells. We find that the gene expression in response to heat shock is unaffected, indicating that the minimum temperature increases under controlled environment. The transcriptome sequencing survey demonstrates that 6-hour irradiation with a broadband terahertz source results in specific change in gene expression and also the biological functions that are closely related to these genes. Our results imply that the effect of terahertz radiation on gene expression can last over 15 hours and depends on the type of cell. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report initial results from a large Gemini program to observe z ≳ 5.7 quasars with GNIRS near-IR spectroscopy. Our sample includes 50 quasars with simultaneous ∼0.85–2.5 μm spectra covering the rest-frame ultraviolet and major broad emission lines from Lyα to Mg ii. We present spectral measurements for these quasars and compare with their lower redshift counterparts at z = 1.5–2.3. We find that when quasar luminosity is matched, there are no significant differences between the rest-UV spectra of z ≳ 5.7 quasars and the low-z comparison sample. High-z quasars have similar continuum and emission line properties and occupy the same region in the black hole mass and luminosity space as the comparison sample, accreting at an average Eddington ratio of ∼0.3. There is no evidence for super-Eddington accretion or hypermassive (>1010M⊙) black holes within our sample. We find a mild excess of quasars with weak C iv lines relative to the control sample. Our results, corroborating earlier studies but with better statistics, demonstrate that these high-z quasars are already mature systems of accreting supermassive black holes operating with the same physical mechanisms as those at lower redshifts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the irreversibility of crumpled graphene obtained by hydrostatic or biaxial compression. Our results show that there is a critical degree of crumpling, above which the crumpling is irreversible after the external force is removed. The critical degree of irreversible crumpling is closely related to the self-adhesion phenomenon of graphene, which leads to a step-like jump or decrease in the adhesion energy. We find the critical degree of crumpling is about 0.5 or 0.55 for hydrostatic or biaxial compression, which matches analytic predictions based on a competition between adhesive and bending energies in folded graphene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a sandwich-structured MEMS electret-based vibrational energy harvester (e-VEH) that has two opposite-charged electrets integrated into a single electrostatic device. Compared to the conventional two-plate configuration where the maximum charge can only be induced when the movable mass reaches its lowest position, the proposed harvester is capable of creating maximum charge induction at both the highest and the lowest extremes, leading to an enhanced output performance. As a proof of concept, an out-of-plane MEMS e-VEH device with an overall volume of about 0.24 cm3 is designed, modeled, fabricated and characterized. A holistic equivalent circuit model incorporating the mechanical dynamic model and two capacitive circuits has been established to study the charge circulations. With the fabricated prototype, the experimental analysis demonstrates the superior performance of the proposed sandwiched e-VEH: the output voltage increases by 80.9% and 18.6% at an acceleration of 5 m s−2 compared to the top electret alone and bottom electret alone configurations, respectively. The experimental results also confirm the waveform derivation with the increase of excitation, which is in good agreement with the circuit simulation results. The proposed sandwiched e-VEH topology provides an effective and convenient methodology for improving the performance of electrostatic energy harvesting devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Buckling is one of the most common phenomena in atom-thick layered structures like graphene. While the buckling phenomenon usually causes disaster for most nanodevices, we illustrate one positive application of buckled graphene for energy harvest, storage and conversion. More specifically, we perform molecular dynamical simulations to show that buckled graphene can be used to collect wasted mechanical energy and store the energy in the form of internal knotting potential. Through strain engineering, the knotting potential can be converted into useful kinetic (thermal) energy that is highly concentrated at the free edges of buckled graphene. The present study demonstrates potential applications of buckled graphene for converting dispersed wasted mechanical energy into concentrated useful kinetic (thermal) energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This is a reply to the comment by Midtvedt and Croy on our article 2015 Nanotechnology26 315706. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a vibration-based MEMS electromagnetic energy harvester (EM-EH) device with two-degree-of-freedom (2DOF) configuration has been presented, modeled and characterized. The proposed 2DOF system comprises a primary subsystem for power generation, and an accessory subsystem for frequency tuning. A lumped parametric 2DOF model is built and examined in respect of energy harvesting capabilities. By controlling the mass ratio and frequency ratio, the first two resonances of primary mass can be tuned close to each other while maintaining comparable magnitudes. The 2DOF configuration is expected to be more adaptive and efficient than the conventional 1DOF structure, which could only operate near its sole resonance. The 2DOF EM-EH chip is fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer through double-sided deep reactive-ion etching (DRIE). Induction coil is only patterned on the primary mass for energy conversion. With current prototype at an acceleration of 0.12 g, two resonances of 326 and 391 Hz with output voltages of 3.6 and 6.5 mV are obtained respectively, providing good validation for the modeling results. This paper offers new insights of implementing a multimodal MEMS EM-EH device. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A nonlinear circuit can be designed by using inductor, resistor, capacitor and other electric devices, and the electromagnetic field energy can be released from the circuit in the oscillating state. The generation of spikes or bursting states in neurons could be energetically a costly process. Based on the Helmholtz’s theorem, a Hamilton energy function is defined to detect the energy shift induced by transition of electric modes in a Hindmarsh–Rose neuron. It is found that the energy storage is dependent on the external forcing, and energy release is associated with the electric mode. As a result, the bursting state and chaotic state could be helpful to release the energy in the neuron quickly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We derive an analytic formula for the elastic bending modulus of single-layer black phosphorus (SLBP) based on the valence force field model. The obtained elastic bending modulus is 4.8028 eV and 7.9905 eV along the armchair and zigzag directions in the SLBP, respectively. These values are obviously larger than the bending modulus of 1.4 eV in graphene due to the intrinsic finite thickness for SLBP. Our derivation analytically illustrates that the elastic bending modulus of SLBP is proportional to the square of its intrinsic thickness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Armchair and zigzag are two popular principal directions in many quasi-two-dimensional nanostructures such as graphene, hexagonal boron nitride, and black phosphorus. To date, nearly all published works discuss the anisotropy for physical quantities based on the comparison between quantity values in these two principal directions in single-layer black phosphorus. However, in the present work, by analyzing the directional dependence for the Young’s modulus with an analytic formula, we explore the third principal direction with a direction angle , besides the armchair and zigzag directions. This new principal direction is determined by the puckered configuration of black phosphorus. The largest Young’s modulus value is neither in the armchair, nor in the zigzag direction. Instead it is the third principle direction along which the Young’s modulus has the maximum value. This work reveals that armchair and zigzag directions are not enough for the discussion of anisotropic properties in the single-layer black phosphorus, and it is crucial to include this new principal direction for anisotropy discussions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We propose parametrizing the Stillinger–Weber potential for covalent materials starting from the valence force-field model. All geometrical parameters in the Stillinger–Weber potential are determined analytically according to the equilibrium condition for each individual potential term, while the energy parameters are derived from the valence force-field model. This parametrization approach transfers the accuracy of the valence force field model to the Stillinger–Weber potential. Furthermore, the resulting Stilliinger–Weber potential supports stable molecular dynamics simulations, as each potential term is at an energy-minimum state separately at the equilibrium configuration. We employ this procedure to parametrize Stillinger–Weber potentials for single-layer MoS2 and black phosphorous. The obtained Stillinger–Weber potentials predict an accurate phonon spectrum and mechanical behaviors. We also provide input scripts of these Stillinger–Weber potentials used by publicly available simulation packages including GULP and LAMMPS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the in-plane and cross-plane thermal conductivities of molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) using non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. We find that the in-plane thermal conductivity of monolayer MoS2 is about 19.76 W mK−1. Interestingly, the in-plane thermal conductivity of multilayer MoS2 is insensitive to the number of layers, which is in strong contrast to the in-plane thermal conductivity of graphene where the interlayer interaction strongly affects the in-plane thermal conductivity. This layer number insensitivity is attributable to the finite energy gap in the phonon spectrum of MoS2, which makes the phonon–phonon scattering channel almost unchanged with increasing layer number. For the cross-plane thermal transport, we find that the cross-plane thermal conductivity of multilayer MoS2 can be effectively tuned by applying cross-plane strain. More specifically, a 10% cross-plane compressive strain can enhance the thermal conductivity by a factor of 10, while a 5% cross-plane tensile strain can reduce the thermal conductivity by 90%. Our findings are important for thermal management in MoS2 based nanodevices and for thermoelectric applications of MoS2. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The single-layer black phosphorus is characteristic for its puckered structure, which has led to distinct anisotropy in its optical, electronic, and mechanical properties. We use the non-equilibrium Greenʼs function approach and the first-principles method to investigate the thermal conductance for single-layer black phosphorus in the ballistic transport regime, in which the phonon–phonon scattering is neglected. We find that the anisotropy in the thermal conduction is very weak for the single-layer black phosphorus—the difference between two in-plane directions is less than 4%. Our phonon calculations disclose that the out-of-plane acoustic phonon branch has lower group velocities in the direction perpendicular to the pucker, as the black phosphorus is softer in this direction, leading to a weakening effect for the thermal conductance in the perpendicular direction. However, the longitudinal acoustic phonon branch behaves abnormally; i.e., the group velocity of this phonon branch is higher in the perpendicular direction, although the single-layer black phosphorus is softer in this direction. The abnormal behavior of the longitudinal acoustic phonon branch is closely related to the highly anisotropic Poissonʼs ratio in the single-layer black phosphorus. As a result of the counteraction between the out-of-plane phonon mode and the in-plane phonon modes, the thermal conductance in the perpendicular direction is weaker than the parallel direction, but the anisotropy is pretty small. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanical properties of single-layer black phosphorus under uniaxial deformation are investigated using first-principles calculations. Both the Young's modulus and ultimate strain are found to be highly anisotropic and nonlinear as a result of its quasi-two-dimensional puckered structure. Specifically, the in-plane Young's modulus is 41.3 GPa in the direction perpendicular to the pucker and 106.4 GPa in the parallel direction. The ideal strain is 0.48 and 0.11 in the perpendicular and parallel directions, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Molecular dynamics simulations are performed to investigate the buckling of single-layer MoS2 under uniaxial compression. The strain rate is found to have an important effect on the critical buckling strain, where higher strain rate leads to larger critical strain. The critical strain is almost temperature-independent for K, and it increases with increasing temperature for K owing to the thermal vibration assisted healing mechanism on the buckling deformation. The length-dependence of the critical strain from our simulations is in good agreement with the prediction of the Euler buckling theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal conductivity of porous graphene can be affected by defect concentration, nanopore shape and distribution, and it is hard to clarify the effects due to the correlation of those factors. In this work, molecular dynamics simulation is used to compare the thermal conductivity of graphene with three shapes of regularly arranged nanopores. The results prove the dominant role of defect concentration under certain circumstances in reducing thermal conductivity, while the coupling effect of nanopore shape should be noticed. When the atoms at the local phonon scattering area around each nanopore are properly removed, the abnormal increment of thermal conductivity can be detected with the increase of defect concentration. Heat flux vector angles can effectively characterize the local phonon scattering area, which can be used to describe the effect of nanopore shape. The coupling effect of defect concentration and pore shape with similar heat flux path is clarified according to this process. By adjusting vertex angle of triangle defect, there is a balanced state of the effect factors between the variation of defect concentration and the same phonon scattering area. It provides a possible way to describe the weighing factors of the coupling effect. The results suggest a feasible approach to optimize and regulate thermal properties of porous graphene in nanodevice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform classical molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the enhancement of the mass sensitivity and resonant frequency of graphene nanomechanical resonators that is achieved by driving them into the nonlinear oscillation regime. The mass sensitivity as measured by the resonant frequency shift is found to triple if the actuation energy is about 2.5 times the initial kinetic energy of the nanoresonator. The mechanism underlying the enhanced mass sensitivity is found to be the effective strain that is induced in the nanoresonator due to the nonlinear oscillations, where we obtain an analytic relationship between the induced effective strain and the actuation energy that is applied to the graphene nanoresonator. An important implication of this work is that there is no need for experimentalists to apply tensile strain to the resonators before actuation in order to enhance the mass sensitivity. Instead, enhanced mass sensitivity can be obtained by the far simpler technique of actuating nonlinear oscillations of an existing graphene nanoresonator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel method was developed for synthesizing SnO2 zigzag nanobelts on a silicon substrate with the assistance of CuO powder. The crystalline structure and morphology of SnO2 zigzag nanobelts were characterized using x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy. The growth habits and formation mechanism of the obtained SnO2 zigzag nanobelts were discussed in detail based on a series of experimental results. The optical property was evaluated by room temperature photoluminescence spectra. Field emission properties of SnO2 zigzag nanobelts was measured for the first time leading to good performance with a turn-on field of 1.9 V µm[?]1 and a threshold field of 5.1 V µm[?]1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanism of the famous phase compression is discussed, and it is used to control the chaos in the Hindmarsh-Rose (H-R) model. It is numerically confirmed that the phase compression scheme can be understood as one kind of intermittent feedback scheme, which requires appropriate thresholds and feedback coefficient, and the intermittent feedback can be realized with the Heaviside function. In the case of control chaos, the output variable (usually the voltage or the membrane potential of the neuron) is sampled and compared with the external standard signal of the electric electrode. The error between the sampled variable and the external standard signal of the electrode is input into the system only when the sampled variable surpasses the selected thresholds. The numerical simulation results confirm that the chaotic H-R system can be controlled to reach arbitrary n-periodical (n = 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,...) orbit or stable state even when just one variable is feed backed into the system intermittently. The chaotic Chua circuit is also investigated to check its model independence and effectiveness of the schemes and the equivalence of the two schemes are confirmed again. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a scheme of parameter perturbation to suppress the stable rotating spiral wave, meandering spiral wave and turbulence in the excitable media, which is described by the modified Fitzhugh-Nagumo (MFHN) model. The controllable parameter in the MFHN model is perturbed with a weak pulse and the pulse period is decided by the rotating period of the spiral wave approximatively. It is confirmed that the spiral wave and spiral turbulence can be suppressed greatly. Drift and instability of spiral wave can be observed in the numerical simulation tests before the whole media become homogeneous finally. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the noise-induced synchronization between two identical uncoupled Hodgkin-Huxley neurons with sinusoidal stimulations. The numerical results confirm that the value of critical noise intensity for synchronizing two systems is much less than the magnitude of mean size of the attractor in the original system, and the deterministic feature of the attractor in the original system remains unchanged. This finding is significantly different from the previous work [Phys. Rev. E 67 (2003) 027201] in which the value of the critical noise intensity for synchronizing two systems was found to be roughly equal to the magnitude of mean size of the attractor in the original system, and at this intensity, the noise swamps the qualitative structure of the attractor in the original deterministic systems to synchronize to their stochastic dynamics. Further investigation shows that the critical noise intensity for synchronizing two neurons induced by noise may be related to the structure of interspike intervals of the original systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cross-sectional shape of the nanotube is a key factor governing fundamental mechanical properties of the nanotube and the nanotube forest. In contrast to most circular nanotubes, in the present work, we demonstrate that the holey phenine nanotubes have polygonal cross sections with diameter-dependent number of sides. The non-circular cross section is attributed to the high twistability of the continuous C–C chains in the phenine nanotube. Consequently, the phenine nanotube forest has a square lattice structure rather than the regular hexagonal lattice of the carbon nanotube forest, resulting in a smooth buckling process under biaxial compression. The buckling pattern of the phenine nanotube forest is highly ordered with the orientation determined by the initial dislocation that frequently appears in the phenine nanotube forest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the energy dissipation of the resonant oscillation for the group IV monolayers of puckered configuration, in which the oscillation is driven with different actuation velocities. We find that, in the moderate actuation velocity regime, the nonlinear coupling between the resonant oscillation mode and other high-frequency modes will lead to the non-resonant motion of the system. For the larger actuation velocity, the effective strain generated during the resonant oscillating causes a structural transition from the puckered configuration into the planar configuration, which is a characteristic energy dissipation mechanism for the resonant oscillation of these group IV puckered monolayers. Our findings shed light on mechanical applications of the group IV monolayers in the nanomechanical resonator field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Black phosphorene (BP) is not stable at ambient conditions, so atomic defects and oxidation effects are unavoidable in BP samples in the experiment. The effects of these defects on the performance of the BP nanoresonators are still unclear. Here, we perform classical molecular dynamics to investigate the effects of the vacancy and oxidation on single-layer BP nanoresonators at different temperatures. We find that the vacancy causes a strong reduction in the quality factor of the nanoresonators, while the oxidation has a weaker effect on the nanoresonators. More specifically, a 2% concentration of randomly distributed single vacancies is able to reduce the quality factor by about 80% and 40% at 4.2 K and 50 K, respectively. We also find that the quality factor of the nanoresonators is not sensitive to the distribution pattern of the vacancy defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the folding of molybdenum disulphide (MoS2) using coarse-grained (CG) simulations, in which all the parameters are determined analytically from the Stillinger–Weber atomic potential. Owing to its simplicity, the CG model can be used to derive analytic predictions for the relaxed configuration of the folded MoS2 and the resonant frequency for the breathing-like oscillation. We disclose two interesting phenomena for the breathing-like oscillation in the folded MoS2. First, the breathing-like oscillation is self-actuated, since this oscillation can be actuated by intrinsic thermal vibrations without any external actuation force. Second, the resonant frequency of the breathing-like oscillation is insensitive to the adsorption effect. These two features enable practical applications of the folded MoS2 based nanoresonators, where stable resonant oscillations are desirable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanical properties of supergraphene, cy clicgraphene and graphyne are studied using molecular dynamics simulations based on the AIREBO potential. In particular, we present the chirality-dependence of their mechanical properties, including Young's moduli, shear moduli, Poisson's ratios, ultimate strength and ultimate strains. The relationship of their Young moduli, shear moduli and Poisson ratios is in the order of Ysu (super) < Ycy (cy clic) < Ygy (graphyne) < Yge (graphene), Gsu < Gcy < Ggy < Gge and vsu > vcy > vgy > vge in corresponding zigzag and armchair sheets, respectively. Their intersheet adhesion energy is obtained as γsu D 30, γcy D 99 and γgy D 149 mJ m-2, which are much lower than that of γge D 291 mJ m-2 (the value is in good agreement with the latest experimental result γge D 310 ± J m-2). The obtained adhesion energy is accurately characterized by continuum modeling of the van der Waals interactions. Our study is very useful for the future applications of graphene-like materials in nanoelectromechanical systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We show that the hexagonal structure of single-layer molybdenum disulphide (), under uniaxial tension along a zigzag direction for large deformations, can transfer to a new quadrilateral structure by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations when the temperature is below 40 K. The new phase remains stable after unloading, even at room temperature. The Youngʼs modulus of the new phase along the zigzag direction is about 2.5 times higher than that of normal . Checking against density functional theory calculations shows that the new phase is preserved and displays excellent electrical conductivity. Our results provide physical insights into the origins of the new phase transition of at low temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The film properties and microstructures of (bottom)Si/SiO2/Ti(top) and (bottom)Si/SiO2/Ti/TiN/AlCu(top) stacks deposited by different processes were characterized. The resistivities of thin Ti films and the reflectivities of AlCu alloy films were found to correlate with the microstructure as well as the mean time to failure (MTTF) in the electromigration (EM) test. A quick-turn monitor for AlCu interconnect reliability in the semiconductor manufacturing industry was established. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) plays an integral role in the metabolism of liver and development of the skeleton in humans. To date, the interactions between different-duration terahertz (THz) radiation and ALP activities, as well as the influence mechanism are still unclear. In this study, using the para-nitro-phenyl-phosphate (pNPP) method, we detect changes in ALP activities during 40-minute THz radiation (0.1 THz, 13 mW/cm2). It is found that the activity of ALP decreases in the first 25 min, and subsequently increases in the later 15 min. Compared with the activity of ALP being heated, the results suggest that short-term terahertz radiation induces a decrease in enzyme activity through the non-thermal mechanism. In order to explore the non-thermal effects of THz radiation on ALP, we focus on the impacts of 0.1 THz radiation for 20 min on the activity of ALP in different concentrations. The results reveal that the activity of ALP decreases significantly after exposure to THz radiation. In addition, it could be deduced from fluorescence, ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis), and THz spectra results that THz radiation has induced changes in ALP structures. Our study unlocks non-thermal interactions between THz radiation and ALP, as well as suggests that THz spectroscopy is a promising technique to distinguish ALP structures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on an InGaN/GaN light emitting diode (LED) structure, monolithically integrated vertical driving metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MOSFETs) were designed and experimentally implemented using a selective area growth (SAG) method. A simple p-GaN/n-GaN stack was selectively regrown on top of the LED wafer to realize an n/p/n structure for the vertical MOSFET fabrication. The integrated vertical MOSFET, which can effectively modulate the injection current through the serially connected LED, exhibited high performance such as an enhancement-mode (E-mode) operation with a relatively high output current density. However, on-resistance (RON) degradation was observed in the fabricated vertical MOSFET at a low drain bias level (VDS < 2 V). Through a 2D TCAD simulation, the origin of the high RON was revealed to be an electron barrier induced by the LED’s p-AlGaN electron blocking layer (EBL). The simulation results also demonstrated that it can be improved by band engineering of the EBL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thermal properties of the diamond nanothread (DNT) forest array are studied using non-equilibrium molecular dynamics simulations. We find a strong anisotropic thermal property in this structure, i.e. the thermal conductivity in thread direction is over 300 times of that in the perpendicular direction. When subject to external strain, the thermal conductivity of the DNT forest decreases with increasing compressive/tensile strain in the thread direction, while thermal conductivity increases exponentially with increasing compressive strain in the perpendicular direction. The increase in thermal conductivity is attributed to the enhanced interactions among DNTs induced by compression. These results are explained by phonon spectra and structural deformation. Our findings show that diamond nanothread forest has a great potential application in the super-capacitors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies of the most luminous quasars at high redshift directly probe the evolution of the most massive black holes in the early universe and their connection to massive galaxy formation. However, extremely luminous quasars at high redshift are very rare objects. Only wide-area surveys have a chance to constrain their population. The Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) has so far provided the most widely adopted measurements of the quasar luminosity function at . However, a careful re-examination of the SDSS quasar sample revealed that the SDSS quasar selection is in fact missing a significant fraction of quasars at the brightest end. We identified the purely optical-color selection of SDSS, where quasars at these redshifts are strongly contaminated by late-type dwarfs, and the spectroscopic incompleteness of the SDSS footprint as the main reasons. Therefore, we designed the Extremely Luminous Quasar Survey (ELQS), based on a novel near-infrared JKW2 color cut using Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mission (WISE) AllWISE and 2MASS all-sky photometry, to yield high completeness for very bright () quasars in the redshift range of . It effectively uses random forest machine-learning algorithms on SDSS and WISE photometry for quasar–star classification and photometric redshift estimation. The ELQS will spectroscopically follow-up ∼230 new quasar candidates in an area of ∼12,000 deg2 in the SDSS footprint to obtain a well-defined and complete quasar sample for an accurate measurement of the bright-end quasar luminosity function (QLF) at . In this paper, we present the quasar selection algorithm and the quasar candidate catalog. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a spectroscopic survey of high-redshift, luminous galaxies over four square degrees on the sky, aiming to build a large and homogeneous sample of Lyα emitters (LAEs) at and 6.5, and Lyman-break galaxies (LBGs) at . The fields that we choose to observe are well studied, such as by the Subaru XMM-Newton Deep Survey and COSMOS. They have deep optical imaging data in a series of broad and narrow bands, allowing for the efficient selection of galaxy candidates. Spectroscopic observations are being carried out using the multi-object spectrograph M2FS on the Magellan Clay telescope. M2FS is efficient enough to identify high-redshift galaxies, owing to its 256 optical fibers deployed over a circular field of view in diameter. We have observed ∼2.5 square degrees. When the program is completed, we expect to identify more than 400 bright LAEs at and 6.5, and a substantial number of LBGs at . This unique sample will be used to study a variety of galaxy properties and to search for large protoclusters. Furthermore, the statistical properties of these galaxies will be used to probe cosmic reionization. We describe the motivation, program design, target selection, and M2FS observations. We also outline our science goals, and present a sample of the brightest LAEs at and 6.5. This sample contains 32 LAEs with Lyα luminosities higher than 1043 erg s−1. A few of them reach ≥3 × 1043 erg s−1, comparable to the two most luminous LAEs known at , “CR7” and “COLA1.” These LAEs provide ideal targets to study extreme galaxies in the distant universe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the discovery of nine quasars at identified in the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) imaging data. This completes our survey of quasars in the SDSS footprint. Our final sample consists of 52 quasars at , including 29 quasars with mag selected from 11,240 deg2 of the SDSS single-epoch imaging survey (the main survey), 10 quasars with selected from 4223 deg2 of the SDSS overlap regions (regions with two or more imaging scans), and 13 quasars down to mag from the 277 deg2 in Stripe 82. They span a wide luminosity range of . This well-defined sample is used to derive the quasar luminosity function (QLF) at . After combining our SDSS sample with two faint ( mag) quasars from the literature, we obtain the parameters for a double power-law fit to the QLF. The bright-end slope β of the QLF is well constrained to be . Due to the small number of low-luminosity quasars, the faint-end slope α and the characteristic magnitude are less well constrained, with and mag. The spatial density of luminous quasars, parametrized as , drops rapidly from to 6, with . Based on our fitted QLF and assuming an intergalactic medium (IGM) clumping factor of C = 3, we find that the observed quasar population cannot provide enough photons to ionize the IGM at ∼90% confidence. Quasars may still provide a significant fraction of the required photons, although much larger samples of faint quasars are needed for more stringent constraints on the quasar contribution to reionization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphorene, a new two-dimensional (2D) material beyond graphene, has attracted great attention in recent years due to its superior physical and electrical properties. However, compared to graphene and other 2D materials, phosphorene has a relatively low Young’s modulus and fracture strength, which may limit its applications due to possible structure failures. For the mechanical reliability of future phosphorene-based nanodevices, it is necessary to have a deep understanding of the mechanical properties and fracture behaviors of phosphorene. Previous studies on the mechanical properties of phosphorene were based on first principles calculations at 0 K. In this work, we employ molecular dynamics simulations to explore the mechanical properties and fracture behaviors of phosphorene at finite temperatures. It is found that temperature has a significant effect on the mechanical properties of phosphorene. The fracture strength and strain reduce by more than 65% when the temperature increases from 0 K to 450 K. Moreover, the fracture strength and strain in the zigzag direction is more sensitive to the temperature rise than that in the armchair direction. More interestingly, the failure crack propagates preferably along the groove in the puckered structure when uniaxial tension is applied in the armchair direction. In contrast, when the uniaxial tension is applied in the zigzag direction, multiple cracks are observed with rough fracture surfaces. Our present work provides useful information about the mechanical properties and failure behaviors of phosphorene at finite temperatures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The particle sizes and porosities of simulated pore structures are probed by terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. A double-peak time-domain spectrum phenomenon is observed when the terahertz (THz) pulses illuminated a pore and a particle. The amplitudes of the two peaks depend strongly and monotonically on the particle size and porosity. A model is used to study the phenomenon, and the computational results agreed with the experimental measurements. These measurements indicate the terahertz spectroscopic behaviors of pores and particles, suggesting that terahertz spectroscopy can be used as a noncontact probe of porosity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work explores the effect of spontaneous emission on coherence generation and population transfer in a three-level ladder atomic system driven by two pulses in counterintuitive order. With adiabatic evolution and the weak-dephasing approximation, we find that a large coherence and population transfer can be achieved even with spontaneous decay rate. The maximum coherence and population transfer decrease with the increase of spontaneous decay rate from the highest state to intermediate state. But this effect can be compensated by shortening the pulse width and enlarging the delay time. Results show that the coherence generation and population transfer never depend on the spontaneous decay rate from the intermediate state to ground state. The validity of the analytic solution is examined by numerical calculation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]