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Stability control of elements of stone constructions of various structures is a prerequisite for their safe operation. The use of modern methods of non-destructive diagnostics of the stress-strain state of such constructions is an effective, and in many cases the only way to control it. Studies of thermal radiation accompanying the processes of solid bodies deformation allowed to justify and develop a method that allows to obtain non-contact information about changes in the stress-strain state in various types of geomaterials, including limestones. However, studies of the water saturation influence of rocks on the thermal radiation parameters recorded in this way are currently superficial. Taking into account the water saturation degree of rocks is necessary when monitoring the mechanical condition of stone structures that are in direct contact with water. The main purpose of this work is to study the dependences of changes in the intensity of thermal radiation from the surface of limestone samples with different humidity under conditions of uniaxial compression. The obtained results showed the expected significant decrease in the mechanical properties (uniaxial compressive strength and elastic modulus) of water-saturated samples in comparison with dry ones. At the same time, a significant increase in the intensity of thermal radiation of limestone samples subjected to compression with an increase in their water saturation was recorded, which makes it necessary to take into account the revealed regularity when identifying changes in the stress state of stone structures established according to non-contact IR diagnostics in real conditions.

—Based on first-principle calculations in the framework of the density functional theory and structure prediction algorithms, we have determined iron carbide phases stable at the Earth’s core pressures and temperatures. It is shown that Fe7C3 is unstable and decomposes into the mixture Fe2C + Fe3C over the entire range of pressures and temperatures specific to the Earth’s inner core. Subsequent decomposition of Fe3C into the mixture Fe + Fe2C is unfavorable. We also predict a new low-temperature modification Fe3C-C2/m-II dynamically and thermodynamically stable over the pressure range 290–305 GPa.

We have studied the growth of GaN layers by the metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) on sapphire substrates at various reactor pressures, including ones above the atmospheric level. It is established that the epitaxial growth at higher pressures does not affect the crystalline perfection of epilayers, their electron mobility, and background impurity level, but leads to the formation of GaN surface with lower lateral scale of inhomogeneities. In addition, the reactor pressure influences the ratio of edge and impurity lines in the photoluminescence spectra and leakage current level in reversely biased Schottky barriers.

We describe the performance of a superconductor–insulator–superconductor (SIS) mixer operating in the frequency range of 780–950 GHz. Unlike most SIS mixers, the tunnel junction employs two different superconductors, a niobium nitride top and a niobium bottom electrode sandwiching an aluminum nitride barrier layer, fabricated on a niobium titanium nitride ground plane. The mixer was tested in a pulse tube cryostat, with all the optical components, in the signal path, mounted inside the vacuum environment to avoid attenuation of the RF signal as it propagates from the hot/cold loads to the mixer. With this setup, we have measured an RF-corrected noise temperature of $\sim$ 220 K. In this article, we focus on investigating the influence of local oscillator (LO) power heating on the performance of the terahertz mixer. The increase in the junction's physical temperature can be observed experimentally by noting the suppression of the gap voltage in the pumped current–voltage ( $I\text{--}V$ ) curve as the LO pumping level is increased. Similar observation has already been reported, and attempts were made to estimate the effective temperature of the device using equations of heat transfer between the mixer chip layers. Here, we present an experimental method of quantifying this effect by recovering the effective temperature of the junction through comparing the pumped $I\text{--}V$ curves at different pumping levels and fixed bath temperature, with the unpumped $I\text{--}V$ curves obtained at varying bath temperatures. We also estimate, for the first time, the effect of heating on the noise temperature as a function of bath temperature and frequency. We show that for typical experimental parameters, the LO heating can increase the double-sideband receiver noise temperature by as much as 20%, and that in the frequency range of the measurements, the effective temperature of the junction at fixed LO power increases linearly with frequency at a rate of 0.5 K/100 GHz.

The work is devoted to the application of the Hill method for calculating the chemical potential of a molecule in the one-component homogeneous molecular system within computer simulations. This method is based on the double integration of molecular radial distribution functions, which depend on the additional parameter that controls the strength of interactions between the molecules. The results of calculating the chemical potential of the argon molecule by the Hill method are compared with our data obtained by two other methods: the Widom test-particle method and the extended ensemble method within the Wang–Landau algorithm.

In this paper, we studied the interrelation between the variations in CH4, CO, CO2, NO, NO2, O3, and SO2 concentrations, and the number concentration of aerosol with particle diameters larger than 0.4 μm, and the following meteorological parameters: air temperature, atmospheric pressure, wind direction and speed, total solar radiation and ultraviolet radiation in the wavelength range 295–320 nm, relative humidity, and partial water vapor pressure. For this, we used the air composition monitoring data (for the period 1993–2018) from the Tropospheric Ozone Research (TOR) station in the region of Tomsk Akademgorodok.

The effect of gamma irradiation and doping with silicon dioxide on the first-order solid-state phase transition in polytetrafluoroethylene is studied by the differential scanning calorimetry method. A quantitative analysis of the profiles of the heat capacity peaks is carried out on the basis of the theory of diffuse phase transitions. It is shown that the elementary volume of the phase transformation depends on the γ irradiation and the concentration of silicon dioxide.

Based on the first-principles calculations within the density functional theory and crystal structure prediction algorithms iron phosphide phases stable under pressure of the Earth’s core and tempe...

The piezoelectric properties of lead zirconate titanate (PZT) ceramics can be improved by low-temperature cyclic treatment. It is established that the conditions of ceramics storage predetermine whether a series of high-gradient thermal shock processing will improve or degrade the material properties.

The stability of Fe4H, Fe2H, FeH, Fe3H5, FeH2, FeH3, FeH4, Fe3H13, FeH5, and FeH6 iron hydrides at temperatures of 0–5000 K and pressures of 100–400 GPa has been analyzed for the first time in the density functional theory using the lattice dynamics method in the quasiharmonic approximation, and the corresponding PT phase diagrams have been obtained. It has been found that heating expands a set of stable stoichiometric compounds, so that a number of structures metastable at room temperature are stabilized at temperatures above 1000 K. The topological analysis of structures of iron hydrides indicates that most of them belong to rare or unique topological types. An increase in the amount of hydrogen in a structure is accompanied by the reduction of the length of an H-H bond, which results in the formation of dumbbell-like hydrogen molecules H2 in FeHx structures with x > 6. However, these structures are thermodynamically unstable and decay into a mixture of FeH6 and solid H.

In a spintronic resonator a radio-frequency signal excites spin dynamics that can be detected by the spin-diode effect. Such resonators are generally based on ferromagnetic metals and their responses to spin torques. New and richer functionalities can potentially be achieved with quantum materials, specifically with transition metal oxides that have phase transitions that can endow a spintronic resonator with hysteresis and memory. Here we present the spin torque ferromagnetic resonance characteristics of a hybrid metal-insulator-transition oxide/ ferromagnetic metal nanoconstriction. Our samples incorporate $${\mathrm {V}}_2{\mathrm {O}}_3$$ V 2 O 3 , with Ni, Permalloy ($${\hbox {Ni}}_{80}{\hbox {Fe}}_{20}$$ Ni 80 Fe 20 ) and Pt layers patterned into a nanoconstriction geometry. The first order phase transition in $${\mathrm {V}}_2{\mathrm {O}}_3$$ V 2 O 3 is shown to lead to systematic changes in the resonance response and hysteretic current control of the ferromagnetic resonance frequency. Further, the output signal can be systematically varied by locally changing the state of the $${\mathrm {V}}_2{\mathrm {O}}_3$$ V 2 O 3 with a dc current. These results demonstrate new spintronic resonator functionalities of interest for neuromorphic computing.

This research was funded by the Latvian Council of Science grant LZP-2018/2-0083. Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia, as the Center of Excellence, has received funding from the European Union?s Horizon 2020 Framework Program H2020-WIDESPREAD-01-2016-2017-TeamingPhase2 under Grant Agreement No. 739508, project CAMART2., On the basis of time-dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) we performed first-principle calculations to predict optical properties and transition states of pristine, N-and S-doped, and N+S-codoped anatase TiO2 nanotubes of 1 nm-diameter. The host O atoms of the pristine TiO2 nanotube were substituted by N and S atoms to evaluate the influence of dopants on the photocatalytic properties of hollow titania nanostructures. The charge transition mechanism promoted by dopants positioned in the nanotube wall clearly demonstrates the constructive and destructive contributions to photoabsorption by means of calculated transition contribution maps. Based on the results of our calculations, we predict an increased visible-light-driven photoresponse in N-and S-doped and the N+S-codoped TiO2 nanotubes, enhancing the efficiency of hydrogen production in water-splitting applications. © 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. The article is published under the CC BY 4.0 license., Latvian Council of Science grant LZP-2018/2-0083; Institute of Solid State Physics, University of Latvia as the Center of Excellence has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Framework Programme H2020-WIDESPREAD-01-2016-2017-TeamingPhase2 under grant agreement No. 739508, project CAMART2.

The results of studying the conditions for obtaining an atomically smooth surface of GaSb substrates are presented for the first time. It has been shown experimentally that it is possible to improve the surface quality of the samples by changing the annealing conditions. The smallest roughness of 1.3 nm was obtained for an annealing time of 16 min at a temperature of 650°C in a flow of trimethylantimony and H2.

This study considers some aspects of electrolytic plasma in the process of anodic carburising of steel, including the nature of the glow in a vapour gaseous envelope, its thickness under various hydrodynamic conditions; it also examines the formation patterns of a hardened layer after carburising along with quenching in the same electrolyte. The glow in a vapour gaseous envelope was examined with a spectrometer; its profile and thickness were determined by solving energy and mass balance equations in a pre-anode area. The structure of the carburised layer and hardness distribution were explored with an optical microscope and a microhardness tester. Carbon concentration in the carburised layer was determined by means of optical emission spectroscopy. The investigation has revealed that the glow in a vapour gaseous envelope under carburising is a continuous emission from heated bodies—vapour gaseous phase and the sample without any electric discharges. It has been theoretically derived, that in laminar approximation the layer has maximal thickness under certain hydrodynamic conditions. This conclusion has been confirmed by homogeneous distribution of current density throughout the surface of the sample during its carburising under condition of force hydrodynamics, i.e. the sample being flowed round with cooled electrolyte. Aerated stirring in electrolyte does not provide homogeneous current density distribution, which falls in vertical direction. Anodic carburising of steel in a glycerol electrolyte followed by quenching results in the formation of a martensitic layer up to 200 μm in thickness, within 5-min treatment, with maximal microhardness 1000 HV.

The article describes the research for improvement of properties of low-carbon steel 20 by anodic nitroboriding in the electrolyte containing boric acid in the quantity necessary for ensuring sufficient boron potential in the saturating medium—vapor-gaseous envelope. Current–voltage and temperature–voltage characteristics of plasma-electrolytic treatment in the suggested electrolyte; the influence of oxidation and anodic dissolution processes on weight balance, structure and phase composition of the modified layer, its microhardness, roughness and wear resistance were considered. There was a significant (up to 1180 HV) increase in microhardness and a fivefold decrease in wear and corrosion. The data of tests showed that the operational resource increases more than 45 times for threaded fastening pair subjected to nitroboriding.

It was shown that the nanoindentation treatment of the atomically flat GaAs surface with the tip of atomic-force microscope in contact mode allows to produce small size pits with the depth in the range from a few tenths of nm up to a 1.5 nm. The experimental data can be qualitatively described on the base of kinetic concept of fracture of solid state developed by Zhurkov, which suppose the generation of defects and subsequent destruction of the GaAs surface. The molecular dynamics modelling confirmed thermally activated destruction of a few top atomic layers under indentation. The presented technology could be used to form the shape of solid state surfaces with subnanometer resolution in depth without wet etching processes.

We present the design and results of characterization of a new sideband separating (2SB) mixer for 800-950GHz, based on superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) junctions. This is the first waveguide 2SB SIS mixer demonstrated at such a high frequency. The design is following the classical quadrature hybrid architecture, meanwhile additional attention was put on the reduction of reflections in the RF structure in order to minimize the RF imbalance, to achieve a high image rejection ratio (IRR). The RF waveguide block was manufactured by micromilling and populated by single-ended SIS mixers developed earlier for upgrade of the CHAMP+ high-band array on the APEX telescope. These SIS mixers have double-sideband (DSB) noise temperatures from 210 to 400K. The assembled 2SB mixer yields a SSB noise temperature from 450 to 900K, with an IRR above 15dB in 95 of the band. Comparing the DSB and the SSB sensitivities, we find that the waveguide losses are as low as expected and do not exceed 0.6dB. The presented mixer is a prototype for use in a 2SB dual polarization receiver planned for deployment on the APEX telescope.

We report the results of systematic Raman spectroscopy studies of AlxGa1 –xN (x ~ 0.75) layers grown using plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy at various stoichiometric conditions and growth fluxes. The high-intensity asymmetric low-frequency peak obeying Bose statistics is discovered in Raman spectra of the layers grown by temperature-modulated epitaxy at strongly Ga-enriched conditions. Theoretical model is developed to explain the origin and the high intensity of the observed low-frequency peak, which is attributed to the presence of excessive metallic gallium in AlGaN layers and can be explained by vibrations of gallium clusters with a diameter of ~1 nm. The nature of the low-frequency peak is similar to that of the boson peak in glasses, which occupies the same frequency range in Raman spectra. We demonstrate the capabilities of Raman spectroscopy as an express and non-destructive technique for optimization of growth conditions of AlGaN layers to achieve simultaneously the atomically-smooth droplet-free surface morphology and the high structural quality.

The heterocyclic polymer network nanocomposites obtained from bisphtalonitrile and various (from 0.03 to 5 wt %) modified silicate montmorillonite (MMT) nanolayers are studied. The nanostructure together with thermal, relaxation, and elastic properties of the composites are characterized with transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS), dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). DMA and TGA measurements were performed in air and nitrogen mediums in the temperature range from 20 to 600–900°C. There was a various degree of exfoliation of MMT in the matrix to form single nanolayers, as well as thin and “thick” packs of MMT nanolayers, depending on its amount. We showed that there are strong constraining dynamics effects of the matrix by nanoparticles and sharp dynamic heterogeneity in the glass transition. We found that there are possibilities of complete suppression of the latter and of preservation of elastic characteristics of the composites unchanged at the temperatures from 20 to 600°C. The nanocomposites exhibit uniquely high thermal properties. A glass transition temperature of 570°C and satisfactory thermal stability are achieved with preservation of integrity of the material up to ~500°C in air and up to ∼900°C in nitrogen.

The paper presents an attempt to use the Hall–Petch relationship to relate the yield strength of copper and titanium in three different states (initial, annealed, and after equal-channel angular pressing) to the sizes of nano- and micrometer deformation jumps measured using a precision interferometric technique. It is shown that, upon a compression strain near the yield point, one can observe six levels of deformation with three nano- and three micrometer sizes of deformation jumps from 1–2 nm to 20–35 μm. Each of the six structural states of metals is characterized by its own set of deformation jump sizes. Dependences of the yield strengths of copper and titanium on the jump sizes L–1/2 are constructed, and the general regularities and features of deformation jumps for each of the metals in different structural states are discussed.

The morphology and electrical properties of doped semi-insulating gallium nitride (GaN) epilayers have been studied. It was found that doping-induced improvement of the insulating properties of GaN epilayers with increased level of doping with carbon or iron is limited by the accompanying deterioration of surface morphology. The character of impurity-related morphology development is different for the two dopants. It is established that the co-doping with carbon and iron allows planarity of the GaN surface to be retained along with a significant improvement of insulating properties of epilayers.

We perform a comparative study of melting of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) in its unmodified form, after irradiation, and after adding plant-derived silicon dioxide as an additive (content, 1%). Calculation of peak shapes on thermal capacity profiles within the theory of smeared phase transitions enable us to identify the structural changes and their features resulting from irradiation of PTFE and incorporation of the additive in it. α-relaxation at the glass transition in our samples is studied by dynamic mechanical analysis.

Due to losses in metals, the propagation length of the surface plasmon-polariton (SPP) waves on metal surfaces is small. This severely limits development of numerous applications of the SPP optics: in the near-infrared spectral region propagation length of SPP waves is no longer than 200 μm as for plane SPP waves and for all types of SPP waveguides. In this work, we show that the focusing of SPPs allows for the first time realizing open-type waveguide for SPP waves characterized by long distance of SPP effective propagation length up to 1 mm at a wavelength of 780 nm. We show that focused SPP waves in such a waveguide can be effectively excited by a 16 fs laser as well as be amplitude modulated within a bandwidth about 3.5 THz. The fast dynamics of the focused SPP waves is limited by the SPP group velocity dispersion. The large effective propagation length of the SPPs and its ultra-high bandwidth open up new possibilities for using focused SPPs in different areas of plasmonics and photonics.

This paper deals with Pc5 magnetospheric pulsations featuring positive azimuthal wave numbers registered with the mid-latitude coherent decameter radar located near Ekaterinburg (EKB). The azimuthal wave numbers are determined using adjacent high time resolution beams directed toward the magnetic pole. Approximately 13 % of all steady waves registered with the radar propagate eastward. We have examined ten cases of wave observations with both small and high positive wave numbers, which occurred between April 2014 and March 2015. We performed a wavelet analysis of the data sets, estimated wavelength in radial direction for four cases, and determined meridional phase propagation direction. In three cases, the results are consistent with field line resonance behavior. However, in the majority of the studied events wave frequencies are considerably lower than those of field line resonance, which were derived from satellite data on magnetic field and particle density. These waves may be classed with the drift-compressional mode.

We describe the current state and technical characteristics of Tropospheric Ozone Research (TOR) station, created 25 years ago to monitor atmospheric composition, basic meteorological variables, and other parameters. The multiyear observations showed that the air quality on the territory of Akademgorodok in Tomsk has been substantially degraded since the creation and development of the Special Economic Zone on its territory.

High-efficiency semiconductor lasers and light-emitting diodes operating in the 3–5 μm mid-infrared (mid-IR) spectral range are currently of great demand for a wide variety of applications, in particular, gas sensing, noninvasive medical tests, IR spectroscopy etc. III-V compounds with a lattice constant of about 6.1 A are traditionally used for this spectral range. The attractive idea to fabricate such emitters on GaAs substrates by using In(Ga,Al)As compounds is restricted by either the minimum operating wavelength of ∼8 μm in case of pseudomorphic AlGaAs-based quantum cascade lasers or requires utilization of thick metamorphic InxAl1-xAs buffer layers (MBLs) playing a key role in reducing the density of threading dislocations (TDs) in an active region, which otherwise result in a strong decay of the quantum efficiency of such mid-IR emitters. In this review we present the results of careful investigations of employing the convex-graded InxAl1-xAs MBLs for fabrication by molecular beam epitaxy on GaAs (001) substrates of In(Ga,Al)As heterostructures with a combined type-II/type-I InSb/InAs/InGaAs quantum well (QW) for efficient mid-IR emitters (3–3.6 μm). The issues of strain relaxation, elastic stress balance, efficiency of radiative and non-radiative recombination at T = 10–300 K are discussed in relation to molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) growth conditions and designs of the structures. A wide complex of techniques including in-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction, atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning and transmission electron microscopies, X-ray diffractometry, reciprocal space mapping, selective area electron diffraction, as well as photoluminescence (PL) and Fourier-transformed infrared spectroscopy was used to study in detail structural and optical properties of the metamorphic QW structures. Optimization of the growth conditions (the substrate temperature, the As4/III ratio) and elastic strain profiles governed by variation of an inverse step in the In content profile between the MBL and the InAlAs virtual substrate results in decrease in the TD density (down to 3 × 107 cm−2), increase of the thickness of the low-TD-density near-surface MBL region to 250–300 nm, the extremely low surface roughness with the RMS value of 1.6–2.4 nm, measured by AFM, as well as rather high 3.5 μm-PL intensity at temperatures up to 300 K in such structures. The obtained results indicate that the metamorphic InSb/In(Ga,Al)As QW heterostructures of proper design, grown under the optimum MBE conditions, are very promising for fabricating the efficient mid-IR emitters on a GaAs platform.

The coupling of electronic degrees of freedom in materials to create hybridized functionalities is a holy grail of modern condensed matter physics that may produce novel mechanisms of control. Correlated electron systems often exhibit coupled degrees of freedom with a high degree of tunability which sometimes lead to hybridized functionalities based on external stimuli. However, the mechanisms of tunability and the sensitivity to external stimuli are determined by intrinsic material properties which are not always controllable. A Mott metal-insulator transition, which is technologically attractive due to the large changes in resistance, can be tuned by doping, strain, electric fields, and orbital occupancy but cannot be, in and of itself, controlled externally with light. Here we present a new approach to produce hybridized functionalities using a properly engineered photoconductor/strongly-correlated hybrid heterostructure, showing control of the Metal-to-Insulator transition (MIT) using optical means. This approach combines a photoconductor, which does not exhibit an MIT, with a strongly correlated oxide, which is not photoconducting. Due to the close proximity between the two materials, the heterostructure exhibits large volatile and nonvolatile, photoinduced resistivity changes and substantial photoinduced shifts in the MIT transition temperatures. This approach can potentially be extended to other judiciously chosen combinations of strongly correlated materials with systems which exhibit optically, electrically or magnetically controllable behavior.

The development of laser industry and the increase in the intensity of laser radiation make the problem of protecting the vision organs and photosensitive sensors from high-intensity laser radiation more relevant. This paper presents the results for optical characteristics of phthalocyanine J-type dimeric complexes of Mg (phtMg) dissolved in dimethylformamide (DMF). Coherent Chameleon Ultra laser system was used as a source of laser radiation. The pulse duration was 140 fs, the pulse repetition rate was 80 MHz, and the wavelength was 810 nm. The studied solution didn’t exhibit nonlinear absorption properties (in contrast to the case of exposure by nanosecond radiation); the sample transmission remained unchanged with the increase in the intensity of the incident radiation. However, with the increase in the radiation power above 20 mW, an expansion of the beam was observed with the formation of a diffraction rings pattern due to spatial self-phase modulation induced by nonlinear refraction. The expansion of the laser beam allows the intensity of the laser radiation to be reduced by increasing the beam radius. Moreover, the addition of a diaphragm to the optical scheme, which "cuts off" a part of the incident radiation with an increase in the beam radius, makes it possible to reduce the radiation power getting in the sensor. This makes phthalocyanine complexes of Mg dissolved in DMF a promising material for use not only as a limiter of femtosecond pulsed radiation, but also as a nonlinear optical switcher for signal control in optical communication systems.

The early twentieth-century warming (ETCW), defined as occurring within the period 1921–50, saw a clear increase in actinometric observations in the Arctic. Nevertheless, information on radiation balance and its components at that time is still very limited in availability, and therefore large discrepancies exist among estimates of total solar irradiance forcing. To eliminate these uncertainties, all available solar radiation data for the Arctic need to be collected and processed. Better knowledge about incoming solar radiation (direct, diffuse, and global) should allow for more reliable estimation of the magnitude of total solar irradiance forcing, which can help, in turn, to more precisely and correctly explain the reasons for the ETCW in the Arctic. The paper summarizes our research into the availability of solar radiation data for the Arctic. An important part of this work is its detailed inventory of data series (including metadata) for the period before the mid-twentieth century. Based on the most reliable data series, general solar conditions in the Arctic during the ETCW are described. The character of solar radiation changes between the ETCW and present times, in particular after 2000, is also analyzed. Average annual global solar radiation in the Russian Arctic during the ETCW was slightly greater than in the period 1964–90 (by about 1–2 W·m−2) and was markedly greater than in the period 2001–19 (by about 16 W·m−2). Our results also reveal that in the period 1920–2019 three phases of solar radiation changes can be distinguished: a brightening phase (1921–50), a stabilization phase (1951–93), and a dimming phase (after 2000).

This repost describes our results on development of low-noise heterodyne THz receivers for ground based and space radio astronomy. Superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) mixers that employ high quality Nb-based tunnel junctions are the key element of the most sensitive heterodyne THz receivers. In particular we present here the SIS receivers for frequency range 211–275 GHz and 800–950 GHz with double sideband (DSB) noise temperature of about 25 K and 220 K, respectively. The latest results on development, fabrication techniques and experimental study of the SIS receivers will be discussed.

We have probed directly the temperature and magnetic field dependence of pinned uncompensated magnetization at the interface of antiferromagnetic ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}$ with Cu, using ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Cu}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Co}$ spin valves. Electrons polarized by the Co layer are scattered by the pinned uncompensated moments at the ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Cu}$ interface giving rise to giant magnetoresistance. We determined the direction and magnitude of the pinned uncompensated magnetization at different magnetic fields and temperatures using the angular dependencies of resistance. The strong ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}$ anisotropy pins the uncompensated magnetization along the easy axis independent of the cooling field orientation. Most interestingly, magnetic fields as high as 90 kOe cannot break the pinning at the ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}\text{\ensuremath{-}}\mathrm{Cu}$ interface. This proves that the pinned interfacial magnetization is strongly coupled to the antiferromagnetic order inside the bulk ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}$ layer. Studies as a function of ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}$ crystalline orientation show that uncompensated spins are only detected in a spin valve with (110) crystal orientation, but not in valves containing ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}(100)$ and ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}(001)$. This observation is in agreement with symmetry-related considerations which predict the equilibrium boundary magnetization for the ${\mathrm{FeF}}_{2}(110)$ layer.

Many correlated systems feature an insulator-to-metal transition that can be triggered by an electric field. Although it is known that metallization takes place through filament formation, the details of how this process initiates and evolves remain elusive. We use in-operando optical reflectivity to capture the growth dynamics of the metallic phase with space and time resolution. We demonstrate that filament formation is triggered by nucleation at hotspots, with a subsequent expansion over several decades in time. By comparing three case studies (VO2, V3O5, and V2O3), we identify the resistivity change across the transition as the crucial parameter governing this process. Our results provide a spatiotemporal characterization of volatile resistive switching in Mott insulators, which is important for emerging technologies, such as optoelectronics and neuromorphic computing.

Data of multiyear monitoring at the TOR station are used to calculate the average concentrations of gas and aerosol constituents in different air masses in the region of Tomsk. It is shown that CO2 and CH4 are characterized by a decrease in concentrations in going from an Arctic to a tropical air mass. Ozone shows the opposite pattern: the largest concentrations are recorded in the tropical air mass and the smallest concentrations in the Arctic air mass. Such gases as CO and SO2 show distributions more complex in character.

The constitutional repeating unit structures of poly(pyromellitic dianhydride-co-4,4′-oxydianiline) or polyamiс acid, butyric acid and complexes between butyric acid and one, two or three units of polyamiс acid were calculated using the density functional theory method (DFT B3LYP) on a 6-31G(d,p) basis with the basis set superposition error (BSSE) correction in the program Gaussian 09. The optimised structures of the template and polyamiс acid allowed to establish intermolecular non-covalent interactions during imprinting and, based on the results, develop a method of polyimide-based molecularly imprinted polymer preparation using butyric acid as template. It was shown that the optimum molar ratio of reagents used for the synthesis of molecularly imprinted polymer is 1:1 (interaction energy ∆E = 43.2 kJ/mol). In the presence of a large number of polyamic acid units in prepolymerisation complexes, the self-association of polyamic acid and the steric hindrance, which reduce the stability of the complexes, occur. The simulation results are in good agreement with experimental data. When analysing the energy values and parameters of bonds of the complexes, it was shown that butyric acid interacts with carboxyl groups from units of polyamiс acid via hydrogen bonding of moderate strength. The IR spectra of a complex between structural unit of polyamic acid and butyric acid were also obtained in order to understand the intermolecular interactions responsible for the molecular recognition. According to the IR spectra, it was shown that the vibrations of the C=O and O–H groups of butyric acid and polyamic acid participating in the interaction are weakened; their vibration frequencies are reduced. The polyimide structure was also constructed in the work. It was shown that two polyimide chains interact with each other due to hydrogen bonds between the hydrogen atoms of the benzene rings and the oxygen of the imide groups.

The growth features of GaN nanorods on patterned c-sapphire substrates with a regular microcone array having a different density and base diameter in the ranges of (1–5) × 107 cm–2 and 2.5–3.5 μm, respectively, are investigated. The kinetics is studied and the selective-growth regimes are determined for single GaN nanorods with a diameter of 30–100 nm at the vertices of microcones under radically lower growth rates on their slopes. The effect of the configuration of microcones, the substrate temperature, the roughness of the initial surface, and the presence of indium as a surfactant on the degree of growth selectivity is investigated.

We investigated the growth of III-N/graphene heterostructures as a single process in a MOVPE reactor. Raman spectra revealed that graphene can be successfully deposited on sapphire substrate by propane pyrolysis if temperature exceeds 1060 °C and hydrogen is used as a carrier gas. GaN epitaxial layers and heterostructures on such graphene using both high-temperature AlN buffer layer and low-temperature GaN nucleation layer was demonstrated. Analysis of surface morphology and X-Ray diffraction curves indicate that GaN quality depends on graphene thickness. Use of copper electroplated Ni-based contact layer combined with thermal shock allows exfoliation of large-area III-N LED structures from sapphire.

The performance of a direct variational data assimilation algorithm with quasi-independent data assimilation at individual steps of the splitting scheme has been studied in a realistic scenario of air pollution assessment in the city of Novosibirsk by monitoring system data. For operation under conditions of a sparse monitoring network, an algorithm with minimization of the spatial derivative of the uncertainty (control) function adjusted to data assimilation is proposed. The use of the spatial derivative minimization increases the smoothness of the uncertainty (control functions) reconstructed, which has a positive effect on the reconstruction quality in the scenario considered.

Comparative analysis of phase and relaxation transitions in poly(tetrafluoroethylene) by differential scanning calorimetry and dynamic mechanical analysis has been carried out. Elimination of procedural errors in the first case has allowed us to obtain true values of thermodynamic parameters for phase transitions and reveal their nature. Quantitative analysis of heat capacity peak profile was performed on the basis of smeared first-order phase transition theory and relaxation glass transition has been characterized.

The effect of additives of 1 and 3 wt % of halloysite on the rate and small jumps of deformation under uniaxial compression of ultrahigh-molecular-weight polyethylene was investigated. A procedure for precision interference measurement with a resolution of 325 nm for displacement and 1 kHz for frequency enabled the detection of several levels of deformation in the micro- and nanometer ranges. The addition of halloysite results in a decrease in the strain rate under the same loading conditions and a change in the characteristics of the strain jumps. Calorimetric measurements showed that melting of polyethylene with a different concentration of halloysite causes a change in the transition energy and the degree of crystallinity.

The results of WRF-CHEM model simulation of dispersal of anthropogenic emissions from the Norilsk industrial zone are verified against data of aircraft sensing performed in August 2004. It is shown that the WRF-CHEM v3.5.1 model configuration selected adequately reproduces the meteorological parameters obtained during the 2004 measurement campaign. The model-derived distributions of the concentrations of sulfur anhydride and ozone and mass concentration of aerosol qualitatively reproduce those retrieved from data of aircraft sensing. Quantitative estimates showed that the standard errors for sulfur dioxide, PM2.5 mass concentration, and ozone, calculated for three flights, had been 23 ppb, 2.6 μg/m3, and 9.8 ppb, respectively. These discrepancies may be due to incorrect specification of the initial and boundary conditions, inaccurate specification of anthropogenic emissions, and limitations in the aerosol and chemical descriptions.

AlGaN/AlN/GaN and InAlN/AlN/GaN structures with 2D electron gas have been grown on sapphire substrates by metal-organic vapor-phase epitaxy. The suppression of the parasitic conductivity of buffer GaN layers was provided either by intentionally raising the density of edge dislocations or by doping with iron (GaN:Fe). It was shown that using GaN buffer layers with a better crystal perfection and more planar surface results in the electron mobility in the 2D channel for carriers becoming 1.2–1.5 times higher.

We demonstrate effective, up to 30%, reflection of the surface plasmon-polariton wave (SPP) from a nanogroove made on Ag film surface. The use of SPP reflection from a nanogroove having a shape of parabola helps to realize a new element in nanoplasmonics—parabolic SPP mirror. It was found that the mirror allows focusing of the SPP into a diffraction-limited spot with a lateral size of about λSPP (λSPP = 800 nm—SPP wavelength). The possibility of spatial scanning the focusing spot of SPP on the surface of Ag film is shown.

Large-scale surface nanopatterning of a commercial silicon (Si) wafer in the form of regular 1D arrays of high-aspect-ratio vertical nanosheets (NSs) for antifouling and other potential promising optoelectronic, nanophotonic, and sensing applications was performed via multishot picosecond IR-laser ablation under a 5-mm-thick carbon disulfide liquid layer. Specifically, the nanopatterned surface layer demonstrates the broad ultralow mid-IR transmittance and the high content of sulfur, carbon, and even oxygen in the modified submicron-thick top layer, preventing the appearance of a Staphylococcus aureus bacterial biofilm. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy studies exhibit the anticorrelating inner versus outer surface abundance of donor sulfur versus adverse carbon and oxygen components and the amorphous structure of the sulfur-hyperdoped NSs atop their crystalline basements. These NSs indicate their appearance via the interfacial vapor/plume bubble-mediated codeposition of Si ablation nanoplu...

Milligram-per-second production of selenium nanoparticles in water sols was realized through 7-W, 2 MHz-rate femtosecond laser ablation of a crystalline trigonal selenium pellet. High-yield particle formation mechanism and ultimate mass-removal yield were elucidated by optical profilometry and scanning electron microscopy characterization of the corresponding crater depths and topographies. Deposited selenium particles were inspected by scanning and transmission electron microscopy, while their hydrosols (nanoinks) were characterized by optical transmission, Raman and dynamic light scattering spectroscopy. 2D patterns and coatings were ink-jet printed on thin supported silver films and their bare silica glass substrates, as well as on IR-transparent CaF2 substrates, and characterized by electron microscopy, energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, and broadband (vis-mid IR) transmission spectroscopy, exhibiting crystalline selenium nanoparticles with high refractive index as promising all-dielectric sensing building nanoblocks in nanophotonics.

We investigated structural and emission properties of self-organized InP/GaInP quantum dots (QD) grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition using an amount of deposited In from 7 to 2 monolayers (ML). In the uncapped samples, using atomic force microscopy (AFM), we observed lateral sizes of 100–200 nm, together with a bimodal height distribution having maxima at ∼5 and ∼15 nm, which we denoted as QDs of type A and B, respectively; and reduction of the density of the type-B dots from 4.4 to 1.6 μm–2. The reduction of the density of B-type dots were observed also using transmission electron microscopy of the capped samples. Using single dot low-temperature photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy we demonstrated effects of Wigner localization for the electrons accumulated in these dots.

The study considers heat exchange in a three-phase system: electrolyte solution—vapour-gas envelope (VGE)—a titanium workpiece. The temperature of a workpiece, current intensity, heat fluxes from the envelope to the electrolyte and the workpiece were measured in an aqueous solution of ammonium chloride with addition of ammonia and glycerol. Addition of ammonia and glycerol proved to decrease current intensity, heating temperature, total energy liberation and heat fluxes to the solution and the sample. Furthermore, it was found that heat shares passing to the electrolyte and the workpiece are not affected by ammonia and glycerol concentrations. The addition of ammonia and glycerol affect heat exchange, increasing the VGE thickness due to intense evaporation of these elements.

The structure and properties of high-pressure phases of iron nitrides Fe7N3 in the pressure range of 50–150 GPa have been studied with ab initio calculations within the electron density functional theory. A new phase Amm2-Fe7N3, which is the most energetically favorable in the pressure range of 43–128 GPa, has been found using the USPEX (Universal Structure Predictor: Evolutionary Xtallography) algorithms. It has been thermodynamically shown that another high-pressure phase β-Fe7N3 is isostructural to a similar phase of iron carbide. The elastic properties have been calculated for all modifications e-, β-, and Amm2-Fe7N3 stable at high pressures.

Single crystals of L-histidine phosphite (L-Hist · H3РО3) have been grown from aqueous solution by slow cooling method. The results of elemental analysis, of X-ray-diffraction studies of the crystal structure, and the habitus of the obtained crystals are given. The elastic and piezoelectric coefficients have been measured on the plates with the (010) natural faces by the method of electromechanical resonance for stretching vibrations in the temperature range 295–340 K. Elastic compliance values s33 and s22 and the corresponding elastic-moduli values, piezoelectric coefficients d23 and d22, coefficients of electromechanical coupling, and temperature coefficient of the resonance frequency are obtained. A comparison is given with other crystals, which are compounds of amino acids with phosphorous or phosphoric acid.