Search Results

Now showing 1 - 8 of 8
  • Item
    Exciton dispersion in para-quaterphenyl: Significant molecular interactions beyond Coulomb coupling
    (New York, NY : American Inst. of Physics, 2021) Graf, Lukas; Krupskaya, Yulia; Büchner, Bernd; Knupfer, Martin
    We have experimentally determined the momentum dependence of the electronic excitation spectra of para-quaterphenyl single crystals. The parallel arrangement of para-quaterphenyl molecules results in a strong Coulomb coupling of the molecular excitons. Such crystals have been considered to be a very good realization of the Frenkel exciton model, including the formation of H-type aggregates. Our data reveal an unexpected exciton dispersion of the upper Davydov component, which cannot be rationalized in terms of inter-molecular Coulomb coupling of the excitons. A significant reduction of the nearest neighbor coupling due to additional charge-transfer processes is able to provide an explanation of the data. Furthermore, the spectral onset of the excitation spectrum, which represents a heavy exciton resulting from exciton-phonon coupling, also shows a clear dispersion, which had been unknown so far. Finally, an optically forbidden excitation about 1 eV above the excitation onset is observed. © 2021 Author(s).
  • Item
    Evolution of the charge carrier plasmon in the one-dimensional metal TTF-TCNQ as a function of temperature and momentum
    (Bristol : Institute of Physics Publishing, 2019) Kovbasa, N.; Graf, L.; Knupfer, M.
    We have investigated the charge carrier plasmon in the quasi one-dimensional metal TTF-TCNQ using electron energy-loss spectroscopy. Our data reveal a negative plasmon dispersion with a slope that is independent of temperature, which is in agreement to predictions from model calculations and previous room temperature data. A plasmon energy shift upon temperature is observed, and we discuss possible contributions to this shift. The spectral width of the plasmon is rather temperature independent, but increases clearly above a momentum value of about 0.3 Å-1.
  • Item
    Milliradian precision ultrafast pulse control for spectral phase metrology
    (Washington, DC : Soc., 2021) Stamm, Jacob; Benel, Jorge; Escoto, Esmerando; Steinmeyer, Günter; Dantus, Marcos
    A pulse-shaper-based method for spectral phase measurement and compression with milliradian precision is proposed and tested experimentally. Measurements of chirp and third-order dispersion are performed and compared to theoretical predictions. The single-digit milliradian accuracy is benchmarked by a group velocity dispersion measurement of fused silica.
  • Item
    Establishment, morphology and properties of carbon nanotube networks in polymer melts
    (Amsterdam [u.a.] : Elsevier, 2012) Alig, I.; Pötschke, P.; Lellinger, D.; Skipa, T.; Pegel, S.; Kasaliwal, G.R.; Villmow, T.
    As for nanofillers in general, the properties of carbon nanotube (CNT) -polymer composites depend strongly on the filler arrangement and the structure of the filler network. This article reviews our actual understanding of the relation between processing conditions, state of CNT dispersion and structure of the filler network on the one hand, and the resulting electrical, melt rheological and mechanical properties, on the other hand. The as-produced rather compact agglomerates of CNTs (initial agglomerates, >1 μm), whose structure can vary for different tube manufacturers, synthesis and/or purification conditions, have first to be well dispersed in the polymer matrix during the mixing step, before they can be arranged to a filler network with defined physical properties by forming secondary agglomerates. Influencing factors on the melt dispersion of initial agglomerates of multi-walled CNTs into individualized tubes are discussed in context of dispersion mechanisms, namely the melt infiltration into initial agglomerates, agglomerate rupture and nanotube erosion from agglomerate surfaces. The hierarchical morphology of filler arrangement resulting from secondary agglomeration processes has been found to be due to a competition of build-up and destruction for the actual melt temperature and the given external flow field forces. Related experimental results from in-line and laboratory experiments and a model approach for description of shear-induced properties are presented.
  • Item
    On the efficiency of bile salt for stable suspension and isolation of single-walled carbon nanotubes-spectroscopic and microscopic investigations
    (Berlin : Springer Verlag, 2010) Lukaszczuk, P.; Borowiak-Palen, E.; Rümmeli, M.H.; Kalenczuk, R.J.
    In this contribution we present a systematic study on the dispersion of SWCNTs in a water-based solution of biocompatible detergent: sodium deoxycholate (DOC). By avoiding harsh chemical conditions, which are known to damage nanotubes structure, a stable SWCNTs suspension was created. Long term stirring of the solution led to preparation of a stable transparent solution, containing welldispersed isolated SWCNTs. The as-prepared dispersion remained stable and clear for two months. Optical absorption spectroscopy was employed to measure SWCNTs suspension stability. Nanotube aggregation was evaluated through the tangential mode (G mode) present in the Raman spectrum. High-resolution transmission electronmicroscopy was employed to observe the mechanism of debundling process. © 2010 Springer-Verlag.
  • Item
    First stellar photons for an integrated optics discrete beam combiner at the William Herschel Telescope
    (Washington, DC : The Optical Society, 2021) Nayak, Abani Shankar; Labadie, Lucas; Sharma, Tarun Kumar; Piacentini, Simone; Corrielli, Giacomo; Osellame, Roberto; Gendron, Éric; Buey, Jean-Tristan M.; Chemla, Fanny; Cohen, Mathieu; Bharmal, Nazim A.; Bardou, Lisa F.; Staykov, Lazar; Osborn, James; Morris, Timothy J.; Pedretti, Ettore; Dinkelaker, Aline N.; Madhav, Kalaga V.; Roth, Martin M.
    We present the first on-sky results of a four-telescope integrated optics discrete beam combiner (DBC) tested at the 4.2mWilliamHerschel Telescope. The device consists of a four-input pupil remapper followed by a DBC and a 23-output reformatter. The whole device was written monolithically in a single alumino-borosilicate substrate using ultrafast laser inscription. The device was operated at astronomical H-band (1.6 μm), and a deformable mirror along with a microlens array was used to inject stellar photons into the device. We report the measured visibility amplitudes and closure phases obtained on Vega and Altair that are retrieved using the calibrated transfer matrix of the device. While the coherence function can be reconstructed, the on-sky results show significant dispersion from the expected values. Based on the analysis of comparable simulations, we find that such dispersion is largely caused by the limited signal-to-noise ratio of our observations. This constitutes a first step toward an improved validation of theDBCas a possible beam combination scheme for long-baseline interferometry. © 2021 Optical Society of America.
  • Item
    SPION@polydehydroalanine hybrid particles
    (London : RSC Publishing, 2015) von der Lühe, Moritz; Günther, Ulrike; Weidner, Andreas; Gräfe, Christine; Clement, Joachim H.; Dutz, Silvio; Schacher, Felix H.
    It is generally accepted that a protein corona is rapidly formed upon exposure of nanoparticles to biological fluids and that both the amount and the composition of adsorbed proteins affect the dispersion properties of the resulting particles. Hereby, the net charge and overall charge density of the pristine nanoparticles are supposed to play a crucial role. In an attempt to control both charge and charge distribution, we report on the coating of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) with different polyelectrolytes. Starting from orthogonally protected polydehydroalanine, the material can be easily transformed into a polyanion (poly(tert-butoxycarbonyl acrylic acid), PtBAA), polycation (poly(aminomethylacrylate), PAMA), or even a polyzwitterion (polydehydroalanine, PDha). While coating of SPIONs with PtBAA and PDha was shown to be successful, approaches using PAMA have failed so far. The dispersion properties of the resulting hybrid particles have been investigated using dynamic light scattering (DLS), zeta-potential, and TEM measurements – the amount of adsorbed polymer was quantified using vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA).
  • Item
    Synthesis and characterization of MgAl-DBS LDH/PLA composite by sonication-assisted masterbatch (SAM) melt mixing method
    (Cambridge : RSC, 2019) Quispe-Dominguez, Roger; Naseem, Sajid; Leuteritz, Andreas; Kuehnert, Ines
    This research work is based on the comparison of the mixing phenomena of magnesium-aluminum (MgAl) layered double hydroxides (LDHs) intercalated by dodecylbenzene sulfonate (MgAl-DBS) in poly(lactic acid) (PLA). Two mixing techniques were used to compare the dispersion of LDHs in PLA such as sonication-assisted masterbatch (SAM) melt mixing and direct melting (DM) methods. MgAl LDHs synthesized by the urea hydrolysis method and intercalated with DBS anions using anion exchange reaction and were used in different ratios in PLA (1.25, 2.5, and 5 wt%). MgAl LDHs and their anion intercalation were studied by the X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) method. Different properties of LDH/PLA composites were compared to analyze the effect of these mixing techniques. Dispersion and exfoliation of LDHs in PLA were investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Influences on the rheological properties were evaluated by analyzing the complex viscosities (η*), storage modulus (G′) and loss modulus (G′′) by using a rheometer. The thermal properties, thermal stability and effect on crystallinity of composites made with the two mixing techniques were analyzed by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) respectively. The mixing mechanism and amount of MgAl-DBS LDHs have a notable effect on the properties of PLA composites with sonication-assisted masterbatch melt mixing techniques giving better dispersion of LDHs in PLA composites as compared to direct melt mixing. © The Royal Society of Chemistry.