The study focus on low temperature process with doping antimony to refine the quality of the CI(G)S thin film, and doping gallium to increase energy band gap in two-stage co-evaporation process. Furthermore, we discuss about the variety of crystal structure, and recognize the value of energy band gap in transmission spectra. It has been achieved to increase the energy band gap of material with doping gallium. Recognizing the shift of XRD pattern and research result from papers, I estimate the content ratio of gallium in ¢»A atoms is 0.28~0.29, near my establishment ratio 0.3. By tuning the molecular beam flux of antimony effusion cell from 1.1¡Ñ1013 atoms/cm2second to 2.2¡Ñ1014 atoms/cm2second , to find out the property content of antimony involving of co-evaporation to optimize the quality of the CI(G)S polycrystalline thin film. We just observed that the thin film with antimony involving make effect of smoother and denser surface morphology. In our study, we also try discontinue supplying the antimony vapor to reduce the amount of antimony which involves the reaction process, and make low content of antimony leaved in the CI(G)S thin film. Here, We found out a special effect of the grain- growth of the CI(G)S thin film supplying antimony continually or not in the process. It should be strong (112) prefer orientation when we deposit the thin film using SLG substrate. However, we found out that antimony enhance the (220/204) .

Antimony is a toxic element which is mostly found in two oxidation states (III and V) in environmental, biological and geological samples. Antimony may form various inorganic and organic compounds that exhibit differences in analytical behavior, toxicity and mobility / inorganic compounds of antimony are more toxic than organic forms and toxicity of Sb(III) has been shown to be 10 times higher than that of Sb(V). Therefore selective determination of Sb(III) and Sb(V) is required in environmental and biological samples. Hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry is a sensitive, fast and economical technique for the determination of antimony at trace level. A possible non-chromatographic method for antimony speciation is hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry that is based on the relatively slow kinetics of hydride formation from Sb(V). In this study, continuous flow hydride generation method for the determination of antimony was developed and hydride generation conditions were optimized. Analyte solution was prepared in 0.050 mol/L HCl and 1.2% (w/v) NaBH4 stabilized in 0.30% (w/v) NaOH was used as a reductant solution. Inorganic antimony speciation conditions were determined by continuous flow HGAAS system. For the pre-reduction of Sb(V) to Sb(III), 8.0% (w/v) potassium iodide (KI) and 0.10% (w/v) ascorbic acid were used. Further speciation study was also carried out using Ir coated W-coil Atom Trap Hydride Generation Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. Tungsten coil atom trap was used to enhance the sensitivity. Tungsten coil surface was treated with Ir and totally 250 &amp / #956 / g 1000 mg/L Ir stock solution was used for coating of tungsten coil. LOD and LOQ values were calculated as 152 pg/mL and 508 pg/mL according to 120 seconds trapping. 128 and 37 fold enhancement were obtained for 120 seconds collection with respect to W-coil-ETAAS and ETAAS, respectively.

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Thesis (M.S. in E.A.S.)--School of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, Georgia Institute of Technology, 2004. Directed by Philip N. Froelich. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 131-133).

Glass matrix composites containing a conducting filler such as antimony tin oxide (ATO) or silicon carbide whiskers (SiCw) have the potential for applications such as transparent electrodes, heating elements, and electromagnetic shielding. For these applications, the composite performance is highly dependent on the microstructure of the composite and the interactions the added filler has with one another. In this research, borosilicate glass-matrix composites were fabricated using a processing method that creates segregated percolated networks at low concentrations of conducting fillers. The conducting fillers were hot pressed with the glass microspheres at temperatures near the glass transition temperature (550°C) using various pressures. Upon hot-pressing at these low temperatures, the glass microspheres deformed into faceted polyhedra and the fillers were displaced to the edges of the glass particles, resulting in percolation. The processing method used in this study was able to bypass many of the current composition and densification issues associated with the creation of percolated networks in glass composites. In some cases, the formation of these percolated networks resulted in a 12-13 orders of magnitude decrease in the resistivity. Using a non-destructive electrical measurement technique, ac impedance spectroscopy (IS), the changes in the electrical properties were tracked as the conducting networks developed. Using IS in conjunction with other techniques, correlations were made between the electrical properties, the filler interfaces, and the influence the processing parameters had on the development of the percolation networks within these composites.

Recent trends in composite research include the development of structural materials with multiple functionalities. In new studies, novel materials are being designed, developed, modified, and implemented into composite designs. Typically, an increase in functionality requires additional material phases within one system. The presence of excessive phases can result in deterioration of individual or overall properties. True multi-functional materials must maintain all properties at or above the minimum operating limit. In this project, samples of antimony and cobalt-doped tin oxide (ATO(Co2O3)) sol-gel solutions are used to coat carbon fibers and are heat treated at a temperature range of 200 - 500 °C. Results from this research are used to model the implementation of sol-gel coatings into carbon fiber reinforced multifunctional composite systems. This research presents a novel thermo-responsive sol-gel/ (dopant) combination and evaluation of the actuating responses (reflectivity and surface heat dissipation) due to various heat treatment temperatures. While ATO is a well-known transparent conductive material, the implementation of ATO on carbon fibers for infrared thermal reflectivity has not been examined. These coatings serve as actuators capable of reflecting thermal infrared radiation in the near infrared wavelengths of 0.7-1.2 μm. By altering the level of Co2O3 and heat treatment temperatures, optimal optical properties are obtained. While scanning electron microscopy (SEM) is used for imaging, electron diffraction spectroscopy (EDS) is used to verify the compounds present in the coatings. Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy was performed to analyze the chemical bonds and reflectivity in the infrared spectra after the heat treatments. Total reflection and angle-dependent reflectivity measurements were performed on the coatings in the wavelengths of 0.7-2 μm. Laser induced damage threshold testing was done to investigate the dielectric breakdown and used to calculate surface temperatures.

Lithium-ion batteries are most commonly employed as power sources for portable electronic devices. Limited capacity, high cost, and safety problems associated with the commercially used graphite anode materials are hampering the use of lithium-ion batteries in larger-scale applications such as the electric vehicle. Nanocomposite alloys have shown promise as new anode materials because of their better safety due to higher operating potential, increased energy density, low cost, and straightforward synthesis as compared to graphite. The purpose of this dissertation is to investigate and understand the electrochemical properties of several types of nanocomposite alloys and to assess their viability as replacement anode materials for lithium-ion batteries. Tin and antimony are two elements that are active toward lithium. Accordingly, this dissertation is focused on tin-based and antimony-based nanocomposite alloy materials. Tin and antimony each have larger theoretical capacities than commercially available anodes, but the capacity fades dramatically in the first few cycles when metallic tin or antimony is used as the anode in a lithium-ion battery. This capacity fade is largely due to the agglomeration of particles in the anode material and the formation of a barrier layer between the surface of the anode and the electrolyte. In order to suppress agglomeration, the active anode material can be constrained by an inactive matrix of material that makes up the nanocomposite. By controlling the surface of the particles in the nanocomposite via methods such as the addition of additives to the electrolyte, the detrimental effects of the solid-electrolyte interphase layer (SEI) can be minimized, and the capacity of the material can be maintained. Moreover, the nanocomposite alloys described in this dissertation can be used above the voltage where lithium plating occurs, thereby enhancing the safety of lithium-ion batteries. The alloy anodes in this study are synthesized by high-energy mechanical milling and furnace heating. The materials are characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning and transmission electron microscopies, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Electrochemical performances are assessed at various temperatures, potential ranges, and charge rates. The lithiation/delithiation reaction mechanisms for these nanocomposite materials are explored with ex-situ X-ray diffraction. Specifically, three different nanocomposite alloy anode materials have been developed: Mo3Sb7-C, Cu2Sb-Al2O3-C, and Cu6Sn5-TiC-C. Mo3Sb7-C has high gravimetric capacity and involves a reaction mechanism whereby crystalline Mo3Sb7 disappears and is reformed during each cycle. Cu2Sb-Al2O3-C with small particles (2 - 10 nm) of Cu2Sb dispersed in the Al2O3-C matrix is made by a single-step ball milling process. It exhibits long cycle life (+ 500 cycles), and the reversibility of the reaction of Cu2Sb-Al2O3-C with lithium is improved when longer milling times are used for synthesis. The reaction mechanism for Cu2Sb-Al2O3-C appears to be dependent upon the size of the crystalline Cu2Sb particles. The coulombic efficiency of Cu2Sb-Al2O3-C is improved through the addition of 2 % vinylethylene carbonate to the electrolyte. With a high tap density of 2.2 g/cm3, Cu6Sn5-TiC-C exhibits high volumetric capacity. The reversibility of the reaction of Cu6Sn5-TiC-C with lithium is improved when the material is cycled above 0.2 V vs. Li/Li+. / text

Inelastic collision processes driven by anistropic interactions are investigated below 1 K. Three distinct experiments are presented. First, for the atomic species antimony (Sb), rapid relaxation is observed in collisions with \(^4He\). We identify the relatively large spin-orbit coupling as the primary mechanism which distorts the electrostatic potential to introduce significant anisotropy to the ground \(^4S_{3/2}\) state. The collisions are too rapid for the experiment to fix a specific value, but an upper bound is determined, with the elastic-to-inelastic collision ratio \(\gamma \leq 9.1 x 10^2\). In the second experiment, inelastic \(\mathcal{m}_J\)-changing and \(J\)-changing transition rates of aluminum (Al) are measured for collisions with \(^3He\). The experiment employs a clean method using a single pump/probe laser to measure the steady-state magnetic sublevel population resulting from the competition of optical pumping and inelastic collisions. The collision ratio \(\gamma\) is measured for both \(\mathcal{m}_J\)- and \(J\)-changing processes as a function of magnetic field and found to be in agreement with the theoretically calculated dependence, giving support to the theory of suppressed Zeeman relaxation in spherical \(^2P_{1/2}\) states [1]. In the third experiment, very rapid atom-atom relaxation is observed for the trapped lanthanide rare-earth atoms erbium (Er) and thulium (Tm). Both are nominally nonspherical \((L \neq 0)\) atoms that were previously observed to have strongly suppressed electronic interaction anisotropy in collisions with helium \((\gamma > 10^4-10^5, [2,3])\). No suppression is observed in collisions between these atoms \((\gamma \lesssim 10)\), which likely implies that evaporative cooling them in a magnetic trap will be impossible. Taken together, these studies reveal more of the role of electrostatic anisotropy in cold atomic collisions. / Physics

Carbon and phosphorus have often been compared owing to their diagonal relationship on the periodic table. However, relative to carbon, there remains an enormous breadth of polyphosphorus chemistry that is unexplored, particularly in the area of cationic phosphorus. A key step in the systematic and rational development of larger catenated organo-polyphosphorus cations is a fundamental understanding of the reactivity of small cationic building blocks. The smallest catenated framework in this context is the phosphinophosphonium monocation [R3P-PR2]+ (or phosphine-stabilized phosphenium cation), which can be prepared with a variety of functional groups at either phosphorus centre. This dissertation explores the diverse reactivity of chloro-substituted phosphinophosphonium cations, with a particular focus on reductive coupling as a synthetic route to novel catena-phosphorus systems. The resulting cationic frameworks are comprehensively described in terms of their diasteroisomerism, solution dynamics, and solid-state structural features. Additionally, fundamental electrochemical investigations of these diphosphorus cations are outlined as a tool for understanding and quantifying the reactivity of phosphenium cations. Finally, extension of reductive coupling methodology to the first chlorostibinophosphonium cations presents a promising outlook towards the catenation of the heavier pnictogen cations.

The isotropy of a glass can be broken by the application of a mechanical stress giving rise to a phenomenon of birefringence. Some lead-containing glass compositions are known to prevent this phenomenon and they are called zero-stress optic glass. Mueller’s theory of photoelasticity attempts to explain the structural origin of the photoelastic response in glass and crystal. Zwanziger’s empirical model is able to predict the photoelastic response of a glass based on its composition and the crystal structure of its constituents. Lead-, tin-, antimony-, zinc-, and cadmium-containing glasses were investigated in the binary silicate, borate, and phosphate systems. The stress optic coe?cient of these binary glasses was measured experimentally using the S´enarmont method or found in the literature. Solid-state Nuclear Magnetic Resonance spectroscopy and M¨ossbauer spectroscopy were mainly used to investigate the local environment of the cations. The photoelastic response of a glass and its structure were correlated, and the results were compared with the expectations arising from Mueller’s theory and Zwanziger’s empirical model. The theory and the model were both tested and their reliability was discussed. Zero-stress optic glasses are of technological interest, but new environmental regulations forbids the use of lead in materials, including glass. From experimental results and literature, a global strategy to design new zero-stress optic glasses was established. New lead-free zero-stress optic glasses were discovered with properties similar to the lead-containing zero-stress optic glass (high index of refraction, transparency, no coloration). The study of the structural dependence of the photoelastic response of oxide glass contributed to identify new parameters in?uencing the photoelasticity, such as covalency, polarizability and natural deformation of the additive.