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A study is conducted on a 160-nm-thick (Hg0.9Re0.1)Ba2CaCu2Oy [(Hg,Re0-1212] epitaxial thin films that were fabricated on 2degree-18.4degree -tilt SrTiO3 vicinal substrates with thin buffer layers. The studies indicate that the vicinal films had superior crystallinity and superconducting properties comparable to those for conventional films with no tilt.

Micro-Raman spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction techniques were used to compare and characterize rhenium oxide thin films obtained by thermal evaporation of Re[O.sub.3] powders on different substrates, maintained at different temperatures and by reactive magnetron sputtering of a Re metallic target. The electrical and electro-optical behaviors of Re[O.sub.3] films deposited on standard indium tin oxide/glass substrate tested inside asymmetric nematic liquid crystal cells showed an ability to rectify their electro-optical response similar to tungsten trioxide.

Time-of-flight neutron powder diffraction and specific heat measurements were employed to study the nature of thermal expansion in rhenium trioxide, an electrically conducting oxide with cubic symmetry. The temperature evolution of the lattice parameters indicated that Re[O.sub.3] could exhibit negative thermal expansion below room temperature and that the transition from negative to positive thermal expansion depended on sample preparation.

Weakly bonded rigid heavy clusters (WBRHCs) are used for studying the thermoelectric properties of quaternary icosahedral AlPdReFe quasicrystals obtained by replacing Re with Fe in icosahedral AlPdRe quasicrystals. The results have shown that Fe substitution is more favorable than Ru substitution for the Re site in i-AlPdRe.

DC magnetron sputtering is used for preparing RE-Fe-B films on a Ta buffer layer on thermally oxidized Si substrates. The results have indicated that the film has a high perpendicular coercivity and large magnetic energy product.

The composition dependence of the Seebeck coefficient and the electrical conductivity of AlPdRe icosahedral alloys are presented. It is noticed that the Seeback coefficient rapidly increases with increasing Re or Pd concentration.