This work investigates the use of the novel electric field assisted chemical vapour deposition (EACVD) process in the production of titanium dioxide thin films for photocatalytic applications on glass substrate. This work looks into the interaction of applied electric fields with the precursor species during the aerosol assisted chemical vapour deposition (AACVD) and atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition (APCVD) reaction of Titanium isopropoxide (TTIP) and Titanium (IV) Chloride (TiCl4) with different solvents. The electric field was generated by applying a potential difference between two fluorine-doped tin oxide glass sheets. The electric field was varied between 0 – 3000 Vm-1. The deposited films were analysed and characterized using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, UV-vis spectroscopy, water-contact angles and resazurin photcatalytic testing. It was observed that the application of electric fields produced changes in the morphology, particle size, growth rate, crystal orientation and crystal phases. Generally, films produced under the influence of the electric fields showed higher photo-activity than films produced in absence of electric fields. The deposited films produced from the electric field assisted aerosol chemical vapour deposition (EAACVD) showed higher photo-activity with applied AC electric fields than with applied DC electric fields. Likewise, they showed higher photo-activity than the deposited films produced from the electric field assisted atmospheric pressure chemical vapour deposition (EAAPCVD) with applied AC electric fields. The results obtained were explained by the interaction mechanisms between the electric fields and the precursor species, which differ depending on the CVD technique used. Although titanium dioxide photo-activity is comprised by a combination of factors, it was observed that an optimum can be obtained by varying both experimental conditions and field strength. In particular, optimum results were obtained for deposited films which showed long-shaped particles, reduced particle size and high preferential orientation in the anatase (004) plane. Electric field assisted chemical vapour deposition (EACVD) shows a great potential for the improvement of commercial products available in the market such as self-cleaning and antibacterial surfaces.

This thesis provides a compendium for the use of microcontact printing in fabricating electrical devices. Work has been undertaken to examine the use of soft lithographic techniques for employment in electronic manufacture. This thesis focusses on the use of high electric field generators as a means to producing electroluminescent devices. These devices provide a quantifiable output in the form of light. Analysis of the electrical performance of electrode structures can be determined by their success at producing light. A prospective reduction in driving voltage would deem these devices more efficient, longer lasting and an improvement on current specification. The work focussed on the viability of using relatively crude print techniques to create high resolution structures. This was carried out successfully and demonstrated that lighting structures of 75 μm and 25 μm have been produced. Microcontact printing has been established as a method for patterning gold surfaces with a functionalising self-assembled monolayer using alkanethiol molecules. This layer is then utilised as an etch resist layer to expose gold tracks for use as electric field generator electrode arrays. Through careful analysis of each step of the printing process, techniques were developed and reported to create a robust and repeatable print mechanism for reliability and accuracy. These techniques were employed to optimise the print process culminating in the development of each stage and final electrode structures mounted on a rigid backplate for use as electroluminescent devices for characterisation. These devices were then modelled for their electrical characteristics and investigated for being used in low voltage application. In this case for the development of electroluminescent applications, a driving voltage of 65 V was achieved and represents a significant advance to the field of printed electronics and Electroluminescence.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Em geral, o efeito magnetocalórico (EMC) é caracterizado pela variação adiabática da temperatura (ΔTad) e a variação isotérmica da entropia (ΔST) sob variações do campo magnético. Devido as aplicações tecnológicas do EMC na refrigeração magnética, que não apresentam efeitos perigosos para o meio ambiente e tem o potencial para reduzir o consumo de energia, os estudos sobre o EMC tem crescido ao longo dos anos . Neste trabalho, estudamos as propriedades magnéticas e magnetocalóricos da série Gd (1-Y) Pr (Y) Ni2 com Y = 0; 0,25; 0,5; 0,75 e 1 A série dos compostos RNi2 compostos cristalizam na fase de Laves cúbico C15, o que torna o Campo Elétrico Cristalino cúbico um quadro adequado para descrever a anisotropia magnética sobre estes compostos . Além do modelo hamiltoniano inclui contribuições do efeito Zeeman e as interações de troca indireta entre Gd-Gd, Gd-Pr e íons Pr-Pr. Vale a pena notar que o GdNi2 apresenta um arranjo ferromagnético com temperatura de transição de cerca de 78 K e o composto PrNi2 é paramagnético. Os potenciais magnetocalóricos foram calculados e comparados com os dados experimentais. Além disso, investigamos a influência da direção do campo magnético sobre as quantidades magnéticas e no EMC investigada. / In general, the magnetocaloric effect (MCE) is characterized by the adiabatic temperature change, (ΔTad) , and the isothermal entropy change, (ΔST) , under changes of the magnetic field intensity. Due to technological applications of the MCE on magnetic refrigeration, which do not present hazardous effects to the environmental and has the potential to lower energy consumption, the interest on the MCE had grown over the years . In this work, we have studied the magnetic and magnetocaloric properties in the series Gd(1-Y)Pr(Y)Ni2 with Y = 0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1. The RNi2 (R = Rare-earth) compounds crystallize in the cubic laves phase, which makes the cubic CEF an appropriate framework to describe the magnetism on these compounds . Besides CEF, the model Hamiltonian includes contributions of the Zeeman effect, and the indirect exchange interactions among Gd-Gd, Gd-Pr and Pr-Pr ions. It is worth noticing that the GdNi2 presents a ferromagnetic arrangement with transition temperature around 78 K and the PrNi2 compound is paramagnetic. The temperature dependences of the magnetocaloric potentials were simulated and compared with the experimental data. Furthermore, the influence of the magnetic field direction on the magnetocaloric quantities was theoretically investigated.

Graphene can be used to create circuits that are almost superconducting, potentially speeding electronic components by as much as 1000 times [1]. Such blazing speed might also help produce ever-tinier computing devices with more power than your clunky laptop [2]. Graphite is a polymorph of the element carbon [3]. Graphite is made up of tiny sheets of graphene. Graphene sheets stack to form graphite with an interplanar spacing of 0.335 nm, which means that a stack of 3 million sheets would be only one millimeter thick. [1] This nano scale 2 dimensional sheet is graphene. Novoselov and Geim's discovery is now the stuff of scientific legend, with the two men being awarded the Nobel Prize in 2010 [4]. In 2004, two Russian-born scientists at the University of Manchester stuck Scotch tape to a chunk of graphite, then repeatedly peeled it back until they had the tiniest layer possible [2]. Graphene has exploded on the scene over the past couple of years. "Six years ago, it didn't exist at all, and next year we know that Samsung is planning to release their first mobile-phone screens made of graphene." - Dr Kostya Novoselov [4]. It is a lattice of hexagons, each vertex tipped with a carbon atom. At the molecular level, it looks like chicken wire [4]. There are two common lattice formations of graphene, armchair and zigzag. The most studied edges, zigzag and armchair, have drastically different electronic properties. Zigzag edges can sustain edge surface states and resonances that are not present in the armchair case Rycerz et al., 2007 [5]. This research focused on the armchair graphene nanoribbon formation (acGNR). Graphene has several notable properties that make it worthy of research. The first of which is its remarkable strength. Graphene has a record breaking strength of 200 times greater than steel, with a tensile strength of 130GPa [1]. Graphene has a Young's modulus of 1000, compared to just that of 150 for silicon [1]. To put it into perspective, if you had a sheet of graphene as thick as a piece of cellophane, it would support the weight of a car. [2] If paper were as stiff as graphene, you could hold a 100-yard-long sheet of it at one end without its breaking or bending. [2] Another one of graphene's attractive properties is its electronic band gap, or rather, its lack thereof. Graphene is a Zero Gap Semiconductor. So it has high electron mobility at room temperature. It's a Superconductor. Electron transfer is 100 times faster than Silicon [1]. With zero a band gap, in the massless Dirac Fermion structure, the graphene ribbon is virtually lossless, making it a perfect semiconductor. Even in the massive Dirac Fermion structure, the band gap is 64meV [6]. This research began, as discussed in Chapter 2, with an armchair graphene nanoribbon unit cell of N=8. There were 16 electron approximation locations (ψ) provided per unit cell that spanned varying Fermi energy levels. Due to the atomic scales of the nanoribbon, the carbon atoms are separated by 1.42Å. The unit vector is given as, ~a = dbx, where d = 3αcc and αcc = 1.42°A is the carbon bond length [5]. Because of the close proximity of the carbon atoms, the 16 electron approximations could be combined or summed with their opposing lattice neighbors. Using single line approximation allowed us to reduce the 16 points down to 8. These approximations were then converted into charge densities (ρ). Poisson's equation, discussed in Chapter 3, was expanded into the 3 dimensional space, allowing us to convert ρ into voltage potentials (φ). Even though graphene is 2 dimensional; it can be used nicely in 3 dimensional computations without the presence of a substrate, due to the electric field lines and voltage potential characteristics produced being 3 dimensional. Subsequently it was found that small graphene sheets do not need to rest on substrates but can be freely suspended from a scaffolding; furthermore, bilayer and multilayer sheets can be prepared and characterized.

In this study conducted at Food Science Australia (FSA) and Berlin University of Technology (BUT), the effects of pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment, a novel non-thermal processing technology on bovine milk microflora and native enzymes and on the rheological and textural properties of rennet-induced milk gels was investigated. The PEF treatments were conducted at field intensities of 25-37 kV cm-1 (up to 50 kV cm-1)and temperature range of 30°C to 75ºC. Native milk enzymes selected for the study included alkaline phosphatase, lipase, xanthine oxidase and plasminand microbiological study included determining Total Plate Count (TPC) and Pseudomonas and Enterobacteriaceae counts in skim milk. At 30ºC PEF treatment at maximum field intensity inactivated AlP by 42% while at 60oC inactivation was higher (67%). Under these treatment conditions less than1 log reduction in TPC and Pseudomonas count and 2.1 logs reduction in the Enterobacteriaceae count was achieved at 30oC while at 60ºC TPC dropped by 2.4 logs and Pseudomonas and Enterobacteriaceae counts were reduced by 5.9 and 2.1 logs, respectively to below the detection limit of 1 CFU mL-1. Combining PEF treatment with heat increased the inactivation level of all enzymes which showed an increasing trend with increasing field intensity and temperature. Treatment time (4.8, 9.6, 19.2, 28.8 and 38.4 µs) was controlled by either changing the pulse frequencies (100-400 Hz) or product flow rate (30-240 mL min-1) at a constant field intensity of 31 kV cm-1 and it was found that changing the flow rate was a more effective way of enzyme inactivation than changing the frequency due to longer exposure time of enzymes to heat and field intensity. The size of casein micelles and fat globules was not affected by PEF treatment while severe heating of milk at 97oC for 10 min decreased both micelle and fat globule sizes marginally. The coagulation time of rennet-induced gels made from PEF-treated (35 to 50 kV cm-1) milks (whole and skim) increased as the treatment intensity increased, but remained shorter than gels made from pasteurised milk. The PEF treatment of milk at various field intensities and temperatures adversely affected the G′, G′′ and firmness of gels, but the effects were less pronounced than in gels made from pasteurised milks. This study concludes that for successful application in milk processing the PEF treatment needs to be combined with mild heat treatment. This approach could achieve safer milk with less damage to milk functionality. However, the quest for a suitable quality assurance indicator enzyme will need more extensive studies.

The PEF treatments were conducted at field intensities of 25-37 kV cm-1 (up to 50 kV cm-1)and temperature range of 30°C to 75ºC. Native milk enzymes selected for the study included alkaline phosphatase, lipase, xanthine oxidase and plasminand microbiological study included determining Total Plate Count (TPC) and Pseudomonas and Enterobacteriaceae counts in skim milk. At 30ºC PEF treatment at maximum field intensity inactivated AlP by 42% while at 60oC inactivation was higher (67%). Under these treatment conditions less than1 log reduction in TPC and Pseudomonas count and 2.1 logs reduction in the Enterobacteriaceae count was achieved at 30oC while at 60ºC TPC dropped by 2.4 logs and Pseudomonas and Enterobacteriaceae counts were reduced by 5.9 and 2.1 logs, respectively to below the detection limit of 1 CFU mL-1. Combining PEF treatment with heat increased the inactivation level of all enzymes which showed an increasing trend with increasing field intensity and temperature. Treatment time (4.8, 9.6, 19.2, 28.8 and 38.4 µs) was controlled by either changing the pulse frequencies (100-400 Hz) or product flow rate (30-240 mL min-1) at a constant field intensity of 31 kV cm-1 and it was found that changing the flow rate was a more effective way of enzyme inactivation than changing the frequency due to longer exposure time of enzymes to heat and field intensity. The size of casein micelles and fat globules was not affected by PEF treatment while severe heating of milk at 97oC for 10 min decreased both micelle and fat globule sizes marginally. The coagulation time of rennet-induced gels made from PEF-treated (35 to 50 kV cm-1) milks (whole and skim) increased as the treatment intensity increased, but remained shorter than gels made from pasteurised milk. The PEF treatment of milk at various field intensities and temperatures adversely affected the G′, G′′ and firmness of gels, but the effects were less pronounced than in gels made from pasteurised milks. This study concludes that for successful application in milk processing the PEF treatment needs to be combined with mild heat treatment. This approach could achieve safer milk with less damage to milk functionality. However, the quest for a suitable quality assurance indicator enzyme will need more extensive studies.

<p>The magnitude of an electric field possible to apply in a capillary separation system is limited, because a high electric field causes a too high current through the capillary. Application of the electric field <i>in-line</i> will give an increased conductivity in the column, further increasing the risk of too high currents. The conductivity changes were found to result from an overall increase in ionic strength within the electric field. The increase in ionic strength is caused by the increase in mobile phase ions with electrophoretic velocity against the flow, together with OH^- or H₃O⁺ ions (depending on polarity) formed at the inlet electrode. Further it was found that the use of a pressurized reservoir or splitting of the flow at the inlet electrode could significantly limit the conductivity changes and thereby the maximum applicable electric field strengths could be increased.</p>

The magnitude of an electric field possible to apply in a capillary separation system is limited, because a high electric field causes a too high current through the capillary. Application of the electric field in-line will give an increased conductivity in the column, further increasing the risk of too high currents. The conductivity changes were found to result from an overall increase in ionic strength within the electric field. The increase in ionic strength is caused by the increase in mobile phase ions with electrophoretic velocity against the flow, together with OH- or H3O+ ions (depending on polarity) formed at the inlet electrode. Further it was found that the use of a pressurized reservoir or splitting of the flow at the inlet electrode could significantly limit the conductivity changes and thereby the maximum applicable electric field strengths could be increased.

The objective of this thesis is to develop high dielectric constant nanoparticle dispersion for switchable aircraft antenna systems. Two steps were designed to achieve the objective. First, obtain high dielectric, high aspect ratio nanoparticles and disperse them in dielectric oil medium. Second, manipulate the particle-oil dispersion using an external alternating current (AC) electric field to increase the effective dielectric constant. In order to obtain high dielectric dispersions, different sizes and shapes of titanium dioxide (TiO2) and barium titanate (BaTiO3) nanoparticles were purchased and measured. However, after a number of experiments detailed in the thesis, it was found that none of the commercially available nanoparticles could satisfy our requirements for a minimum effective dielectric constant. Thus, to achieve the goals above, we synthesized high aspect ratio BaTiO3 nanowires with BaC2O4 and TiO2 powders as precursors using a molten salt method. The as-synthesized BaTiO3 nanowires were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) mapping. The nanowires have a diameter ranging from 100 nm to 300 nm, and their lengths range from 1.5 micrometers to 5 micrometers. Mechanical stirring and bath sonication were used to obtain even colloidal dispersions. Different concentrations of BaTiO3 nanoparticles well dispersed in the oil medium were successfully manipulated using AC electric field. To monitor the change in microstructure of BaTiO3 nanoparticles, optical microscopy was used to observe the alignment of particles in the sample under the applied electric field. Various parameters including the magnitude, frequency, and duration of the electric field, and the concentration of BaTiO3 nanoparticles were investigated to achieve the optimal alignment of nanoparticles. The experimental results were validated by theoretical analysis using Maxwell-Garnett mixing rule. It was demonstrated that the effective dielectric constant of the colloidal dispersions would increase with the increase of the magnitude, frequency and duration of applied electric field. Synthesized BaTiO3 nanowire-based dispersions exhibit significant enhancement of the effective dielectric constant compared to other colloidal materials. The effective dielectric constant of 5 wt percent BaTiO3-oil dispersions could reach up to 10 when aligned at 1000 V/mm electric field at 1 kHz frequency for 1 hour.

The results of a solid-state 11B NMR study of a series of boronic acids, boronic esters, and boronic acid catechol cyclic esters with aromatic substituents are reported in this thesis. Boron-11 electric field gradient (EFG) and chemical shift (CS) tensors obtained from analyses of spectra acquired in magnetic fields of 9.4 T and 21.1 T are demonstrated to be useful for gaining insight into the molecular and electronic structure about the boron nucleus. It can be concluded that when adequate electronic variation is present in the compounds being studied, Ω is generally the most characteristic boron NMR parameter of the molecular and electronic environment for boronic acids and esters. Importantly, these data are only reliably accessible in ultrahigh magnetic fields. The experimental span values result from a delicate interplay of several competing factors, including hydrogen bonding, the value of the dihedral angle, and the type of aromatic ring system present.