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Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Cryogenic characterization of a LiAlO 2 crystal and new results on spin-dependent dark matter interactions with ordinary matter: CRESST Collaboration
    (Berlin ; Heidelberg : Springer, 2020) Abdelhameed, A.H.; Angloher, G.; Bauer, P.; Bento, A.; Bertoldo, E.; Breier, R.; Bucci, C.; Canonica, L.; D’Addabbo, A.; Di Lorenzo, S.; Erb, A.; Feilitzsch, F.V.; Iachellini, N.F.; Fichtinger, S.; Fuchs, D.; Fuss, A.; Ghete, V.M.; Garai, A.; Gorla, P.; Hauff, D.; Ješkovský, M.; Jochum, J.; Kaizer, J.; Kaznacheeva, M.; Kinast, A.; Kluck, H.; Kraus, H.; Langenkämper, A.; Mancuso, M.; Mokina, V.; Mondragon, E.; Olmi, M.; Ortmann, T.; Pagliarone, C.; Palušová, V.; Pattavina, L.; Petricca, F.; Potzel, W.; Povinec, P.; Pröbst, F.; Reindl, F.; Rothe, J.; Schäffner, K.; Schieck, J.; Schipperges, V.; Schmiedmayer, D.; Schönert, S.; Schwertner, C.; Stahlberg, M.; Stodolsky, L.; Strandhagen, C.; Strauss, R.; Usherov, I.; Wagner, F.; Willers, M.; Zema, V.; Zeman, J.; Brützam, M.; Ganschow, S.
    In this work, a first cryogenic characterization of a scintillating LiAlO 2 single crystal is presented. The results achieved show that this material holds great potential as a target for direct dark matter search experiments. Three different detector modules obtained from one crystal grown at the Leibniz-Institut für Kristallzüchtung (IKZ) have been tested to study different properties at cryogenic temperatures. Firstly, two 2.8 g twin crystals were used to build different detector modules which were operated in an above-ground laboratory at the Max Planck Institute for Physics (MPP) in Munich, Germany. The first detector module was used to study the scintillation properties of LiAlO 2 at cryogenic temperatures. The second achieved an energy threshold of (213.02 ± 1.48) eV which allows setting a competitive limit on the spin-dependent dark matter particle-proton scattering cross section for dark matter particle masses between 350MeV/c2 and 1.50GeV/c2. Secondly, a detector module with a 373 g LiAlO 2 crystal as the main absorber was tested in an underground facility at the Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS): from this measurement it was possible to determine the radiopurity of the crystal and study the feasibility of using this material as a neutron flux monitor for low-background experiments. © 2020, The Author(s).
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    High-defect hydrophilic carbon cuboids anchored with Co/CoO nanoparticles as highly efficient and ultra-stable lithium-ion battery anodes
    (Cambridge : Royal Society of Chemistry, 2016) Sun, Xiaolei; Hao, Guang-Ping; Lu, Xueyi; Xi, Lixia; Liu, Bo; Si, Wenping; Ma, Chuansheng; Liu, Qiming; Zhang, Qiang; Kaskel, Stefan; Schmidt, Oliver G.
    We propose an effective strategy to engineer a unique kind of porous carbon cuboid with tightly anchored cobalt/cobalt oxide nanoparticles (PCC–CoOx) that exhibit outstanding electrochemical performance for many key aspects of lithium-ion battery electrodes. The host carbon cuboid features an ultra-polar surface reflected by its high hydrophilicity and rich surface defects due to high heteroatom doping (N-/O-doping both higher than 10 atom%) as well as hierarchical pore systems. We loaded the porous carbon cuboid with cobalt/cobalt oxide nanoparticles through an impregnation process followed by calcination treatment. The resulting PCC–CoOx anode exhibits superior rate capability (195 mA h g−1 at 20 A g−1) and excellent cycling stability (580 mA h g−1 after 2000 cycles at 1 A g−1 with only 0.0067% capacity loss per cycle). Impressively, even after an ultra-long cycle life exceeding 10 000 cycles at 5 A g−1, the battery can recover to 1050 mA h g−1 at 0.1 A g−1, perhaps the best performance demonstrated so far for lithium storage in cobalt oxide-based electrodes. This study provides a new perspective to engineer long-life, high-power metal oxide-based electrodes for lithium-ion batteries through controlling the surface chemistry of carbon host materials.
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    Anodically fabricated TiO2–SnO2 nanotubes and their application in lithium ion batteries
    (Cambridge : Royal Society of Chemistry, 2016) Madian, M.; Klose, M.; Jaumann, T.; Gebert, A.; Oswald, S.; Ismail, N.; Eychmüller, A.; Eckerta, J.; Giebeler, L.
    Developing novel electrode materials is a substantial issue to improve the performance of lithium ion batteries. In the present study, single phase Ti–Sn alloys with different Sn contents of 1 to 10 at% were used to fabricate Ti–Sn–O nanotubes via a straight-forward anodic oxidation step in an ethylene glycolbased solution containing NH4F. Various characterization tools such as SEM, EDXS, TEM, XPS and Raman spectroscopy were used to characterize the grown nanotube films. Our results reveal the successful formation of mixed TiO2/SnO2 nanotubes in the applied voltage range of 10–40 V. The as-formed nanotubes are amorphous and their dimensions are precisely controlled by tuning the formation voltage which turns Ti–Sn–O nanotubes into highly attractive materials for various applications. As an example, the Ti–Sn–O nanotubes offer promising properties as anode materials in lithium ion batteries. The electrochemical performance of the grown nanotubes was evaluated against a Li/Li+ electrode at a current density of 504 mA cm2. The results demonstrate that TiO2/SnO2 nanotubes prepared at 40 V on a TiSn1 alloy substrate display an average 1.4 fold increase in areal capacity with excellent cycling stability over more than 400 cycles compared to the pure TiO2 nanotubes fabricated and tested under identical conditions. This electrode was tested at current densities of 50, 100, 252, 504 and 1008 mA cm2 exhibiting average capacities of 780, 660, 490, and 405 mA cm2 (i.e. 410, 345, 305 and 212 mA h g1), respectively. The remarkably improved electrochemical performance is attributed to enhanced lithium ion diffusion which originates from the presence of SnO2 nanotubes and the high surface area of the mixed oxide tubes. The TiO2/SnO2 electrodes retain their original tubular structure after electrochemical cycling with only slight changes in their morphology.
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    Terahertz emission from lithium doped silicon under continuous wave interband optical excitation
    (Bristol : IOP Publ., 2015) Andrianov, A.V.; Zakhar'in, A.O.; Zhukavin, R.K.; Shastin, V.N.; Abrosimov, N.V.
    We report on experimental observation and study of terahertz emission from lithium doped silicon crystals under continuous wave band-to-band optical excitation. It is shown that radiative transitions of electrons from 2P excited states of lithium donor to the 1S(A1) donor ground state prevail in the emission spectrum. The terahertz emission occurs due to capture of nonequilibrium electrons to charged donors, which in turn are generated in the crystal as a result of impurity assisted electron-hole recombination. Besides the intracentre radiative transitions the terahertz emission spectrum exhibits also features at about 12.7 and 15.27 meV, which could be related to intraexciton transitions and transitions from the continuum to the free exciton ground state.
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    Binding energy referencing for XPS in Alkali metal-based battery materials research (II): Application to complex composite electrodes
    (Basel : MDPI AG, 2018) Oswald, S.; Thoss, F.; Zier, M.; Hoffmann, M.; Jaumann, T.; Herklotz, M.; Nikolowski, K.; Scheiba, F.; Kohl, M.; Giebeler, L.; Mikhailova, D.; Ehrenberg, H.
    X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is a key method for studying (electro-)chemical changes in metal-ion battery electrode materials. In a recent publication, we pointed out a conflict in binding energy (BE) scale referencing at alkali metal samples, which is manifested in systematic deviations of the BEs up to several eV due to a specific interaction between the highly reactive alkali metal in contact with non-conducting surrounding species. The consequences of this phenomenon for XPS data interpretation are discussed in the present manuscript. Investigations of phenomena at surface-electrolyte interphase regions for a wide range of materials for both lithium and sodium-based applications are explained, ranging from oxide-based cathode materials via alloys and carbon-based anodes including appropriate reference chemicals. Depending on material class and alkaline content, specific solutions are proposed for choosing the correct reference BE to accurately define the BE scale. In conclusion, the different approaches for the use of reference elements, such as aliphatic carbon, implanted noble gas or surface metals, partially lack practicability and can lead to misinterpretation for application in battery materials. Thus, this manuscript provides exemplary alternative solutions.
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    Tm3+-doped calcium lithium tantalum gallium garnet (Tm:CLTGG): novel laser crystal
    (Washington, DC : OSA, 2021) Alles, Adrian; Pan, Zhongben; Loiko, Pavel; Serres, Josep Maria; Slimi, Sami; Yingming, Shawuti; Tang, Kaiyang; Wang, Yicheng; Zhao, Yongguang; Dunina, Elena; Kornienko, Alexey; Camy, Patrice; Chen, Weidong; Wang, Li; Griebner, Uwe; Petrov, Valentin; Solé, Rosa Maria; Aguiló, Magdalena; Díaz, Francesc; Mateos, Xavier
    We report on the development of a novel laser crystal with broadband emission properties at ∼2 µm – a Tm3+,Li+-codoped calcium tantalum gallium garnet (Tm:CLTGG). The crystal is grown by the Czochralski method. Its structure (cubic, sp. gr. 𝐼𝑎3¯𝑑, a = 12.5158(0) Å) is refined by the Rietveld method. Tm:CLTGG exhibits a relatively high thermal conductivity of 4.33 Wm-1K-1. Raman spectroscopy confirms a weak concentration of vacancies due to the charge compensation provided by Li+ codoping. The transition probabilities of Tm3+ ions are determined using the modified Judd-Ofelt theory yielding the intensity parameters Ω2 = 5.185, Ω4 = 0.650, Ω6 = 1.068 [10−20 cm2] and α = 0.171 [10−4 cm]. The crystal-field splitting of the Tm3+ multiplets is revealed at 10 K. The first diode-pumped Tm:CLTGG laser generates 1.08 W at ∼2 µm with a slope efficiency of 23.8%. The Tm3+ ions in CLTGG exhibit significant inhomogeneous spectral broadening due to the structure disorder (a random distribution of Ta5+ and Ga3+ cations over octahedral and tetrahedral lattice sites) leading to smooth and broad gain profiles (bandwidth: 130 nm) extending well above 2 µm and rendering Tm:CLTGG suitable for femtosecond pulse generation.