Single-Wedge Lift-Out for Atom Probe Tomography Al/Ni Multilayers Specimen Preparation Based on Dual-Beam-FIB

Atomic probe tomography (APT) samples with Al/Ni multilayer structure were successfully prepared by using a focused ion beam (FIB), combining with a field emission scanning electron microscope, with a new single-wedge lift-out method and a reduced amorphous damage layer of Ga ions implantation. The optimum vertex angle and preparation parameters of APT sample were discussed. The double interdiffusion relationship of the multilayer films was successfully observed by the local electrode APT, which laid a foundation for further study of the interface composition and crystal structure of the two-phase composites.

Exciton Modulation in Perylene-Based Molecular Crystals Upon Formation of a Metal-Organic Interface From Many-Body Perturbation Theory

Excited-state processes at organic-inorganic interfaces consisting of molecular crystals are essential in energy conversion applications. While advances in experimental methods allow direct observation and detection of exciton transfer across such junctions, a detailed understanding of the underlying excitonic properties due to crystal packing and interface structure is still largely lacking. In this work, we use many-body perturbation theory to study structure-property relations of excitons in molecular crystals upon adsorption on a gold surface. We explore the case of the experimentally-studied octyl perylene diimide (C8-PDI) as a prototypical system, and use the GW and Bethe-Salpeter equation (BSE) approach to quantify the change in quasiparticle and exciton properties due to intermolecular and substrate screening. Our findings provide a close inspection of both local and environmental structural effects dominating the excitation energies and the exciton binding and nature, as well as their modulation upon the metal-organic interface composition.

Influence of the Interface Composition to the Superconductivity of Ti/PdAu Films

In this work, the interface composition of the superconducting Ti/PdAu bilayer is tuned by an annealing process in N2 from 100 to 500 °C to control the superconducting transition temperature (Tc). This Ti-PdAu composition layer is characterized with a high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and energy-dispersive spectrometer (EDS) to show the infiltration process. The surface topography, electrical, and cryogenic properties are also shown. The inter-infiltration of Ti and PdAu induced by the thermal treatments generates an intermixed layer at the interface of the bilayer film. Due to the enforced proximity effect by the annealing process, the Tc of Ti (55 nm)/PdAu (60 nm) bilayer thin films is tuned from an initial value of 243 to 111 mK which is a temperature that is suitable for the application as the function unit of a superconducting transition edge sensor.

Towards an Understanding of the SEI Formation and Lithium Preferential Plating on Copper

<div>‘Anode-free’ batteries present a significant advantage due to their substantially higher energy density and ease of assembly in a dry air atmosphere. However, potential safety issues due to lithium (Li) dendrite growth rather than smooth Li metal plating on the Cu current collector, and low cycling coulombic efficiency during their operation are delaying their practical implementation. To understand the interplay between Cu surface chemistry and the morphology of the plated Li, we studied the SEI formation on Cu and the preferential plating of Li using ssNMR, insitu NMR, XPS, ToF-SIMS, SEM and EIS.</div><div>A native interphase layer (N-SEI) is formed instantaneously on copper current collectors upon their immersion in LiPF6-based electrolyte. The nature of the N-SEI is affected by the copper interface composition, homogeneity and formation time. In addition to the typical SEI components, it contains CuxO and its reaction products. Parasitic semi-reversible electrochemical reactions were observed with in-situ NMR measurements of Li plating efficiency during the first five cycles. The morphology of the plated lithium is affected by the SEI homogeneity, current density and rest time in the electrolyte before the plating. The preferential plating of Li is governed by the distribution of ionic conducting compounds rather than electronic conducting compounds.</div>

Towards an Understanding of the SEI Formation and Lithium Preferential Plating on Copper

<div>‘Anode-free’ batteries present a significant advantage due to their substantially higher energy density and ease of assembly in a dry air atmosphere. However, potential safety issues due to lithium (Li) dendrite growth rather than smooth Li metal plating on the Cu current collector, and low cycling coulombic efficiency during their operation are delaying their practical implementation. To understand the interplay between Cu surface chemistry and the morphology of the plated Li, we studied the SEI formation on Cu and the preferential plating of Li using ssNMR, insitu NMR, XPS, ToF-SIMS, SEM and EIS.</div><div>A native interphase layer (N-SEI) is formed instantaneously on copper current collectors upon their immersion in LiPF6-based electrolyte. The nature of the N-SEI is affected by the copper interface composition, homogeneity and formation time. In addition to the typical SEI components, it contains CuxO and its reaction products. Parasitic semi-reversible electrochemical reactions were observed with in-situ NMR measurements of Li plating efficiency during the first five cycles. The morphology of the plated lithium is affected by the SEI homogeneity, current density and rest time in the electrolyte before the plating. The preferential plating of Li is governed by the distribution of ionic conducting compounds rather than electronic conducting compounds.</div>

Concurrent asynchronous robotic subsumption using actors & promises

Fascinated with robotics open source integrated component MARIE [1], ROS [5] and open source component PLAYER/STAGE [2], CARMEN [3] available in the eld of robotics application. We aim at developing an asynchronous concurrent robotics application based on subsumption [6] architecture using PLAYER, STAGE and already available services freely available on the internet. We used wanderer and wall follower services embedded inside an actor [10][11] and integrated these services to two dierent robots of same congurations on our promise based frame-work that provides actor as service. The two robots switch their services based on color detected (red,green,blue) during their movement in an environment asynchronously. Using actor as a service lls the gap of SOA [4] &amp; EDA [7] by providing<br />synchronous and asynchronous support for communication. We measured the performance of time taken in completion of services in promise [8] based implementation ,synchronous and asynchronous callback [9] based implementation. We developed a model to prove deadlock freeness in our integrated architecture using petrinet [15] interface composition. We have also been able to justify that component integrated on promise based framework takes less time in service completion than synchronous and asynchronous callback based services.