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Carbon nanotubes are carbon based structures with outstanding electronical and mechanical properties. They are used in a wide range of applications, usually embedded in polymer in the form of composites, in order to affect the electronic behavior of the matrix material. However, as the nanotubes properties are directly dependent on their intrinsic structure, it is necessary to select specific nanotubes depending on the application, which can be a complicated and inefficient process. This makes it attractive to be able to reduce the amount of material used in the composites. In this thesis, focus is placed on the electrical properties of the composites. A simple patterning method is presented which allows the use of extremely low amounts of nanotubes in order to increase the electrical conductivity of diverse polymers such as polystyrene (PS) or poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT). This method is called nanoimprint lithography and uses a flexible mold in order to pattern composite films, leading to the creation of conducting nanotube networks, resulting in vertically conducting samples (from the bottom of the film to the top of the imprinted patterns). In parallel, X-ray diffraction measurements have been conducted on thin P3HT polymer films. These were prepared on either silicon substrate or on graphene, and the influence of the processing conditions as well as of the substrate on the crystallinity of the polymer have been investigated. The knowledge of the crystalline structure of P3HT is of great importance as it influences its electronic properties. Establishing a link between the processing conditions and the resulting crystallinity is therefore vital in order to be able to make opto-electronic devices such as transistor or photovoltaic cells.

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The simple cubic ReO₃-type framework has all of the key features required for negative thermal expansion (NTE) arising from the transverse thermal motion of bridging atoms and rotation of rigid polyhedra. Although ReO₃ itself only displays low NTE below ambient temperature, there is a potentially large family of isostructural fluorides and oxyfluorides that could display NTE. However, the coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) of ReO₃-type materials range from strongly positive to strongly negative. Through extensive use of in situ synchrotron diffraction, this thesis examines the thermal expansion of several ReO₃-type fluorides and oxyfluorides, demonstrating the effects on CTE and related properties of both cation and anion substitution and the disorder produced by these structural changes.

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Magnetic frustration is the underpinning theme to all of the magnetic oxide systems explored in this dissertation. The materials studied in this thesis belong to two topical families of interest in modern condensed matter physics, namely, the rare-earth titanates R2Ti2O7 and the double perovskites A2BB'O6. Chapter 1 provides the theoretical background necessary to understand the crystalline systems studied in this thesis. Chapter 2 explains the necessity of utilizing neutron scattering and x-ray experiments to tease out the key signatures which were essential to formulating the conclusions made in each study. Chapter 3 outlines the neutron scattering techniques which were employed to investigate the crystal systems. The first objective of this thesis is to understand effect of “stuffing” on the ground state anisotropy of the quantum spin liquid candidate Yb2Ti2O7 via an investigation of the crystal-field excitations in intentionally stuffed samples. The pentultimate study was performed on the monoclinic crystal systems, La2LiRuO6 and La2LiOsO6, to discern the effect of lattice distortions on the spin-orbit induced magnetic ground state of 4d3 and 5d3 double perovskites based on Ru and Os magnetic ions. The final investigation involves an inelastic neutron scattering investigation of magnetic ground states in three d2 double perovskites, Ba2CaOsO6, Ba2MgOsO6 and Ba2ZnOsO6. Here, we make the case for novel octupolar order below their respective transition temperatures T* of 50 K, 49 K and 30 K based on information provided by neutron scattering, heat capacity, muon spin relaxation and synchrotron x-ray diffraction studies. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

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The aim of the present doctoral thesis was to reveal the active deformation mechanisms in novel high strength magnesium (Mg) alloys using advanced in-situ techniques with high time and space resolutions. The deformation behavior of two extruded Mg-LPSO alloys with a different volume fraction of the long-period stacking ordered (LPSO) phase was investigated in tension and compression at room temperature and in compression at 200 řC, 300 řC, and 350 řC. In order to support the results obtained by in-situ acoustic emission and synchrotron diffraction methods, detailed microstructure investigation was provided by transmission and scanning electron microscopy, particularly the backscattered electron imaging and electron backscatter diffraction technique were used. The results indicate that both temperature and the LPSO phase content significantly influence the plasticity of the magnesium matrix, particularly they affect the activation of extension twins and non-basal slip. Moreover, both parameters have a high impact on the formation of the deformation kinks in the LPSO phase. Keywords: Mg-LPSO alloys, deformation mechanisms, acoustic emission, synchrotron diffraction, in-situ methods.

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