Cylindrical-confinement-induced phase behaviours of diblock copolymer melts

The phase behaviours of diblock copolymers under cylindrical confinement are studied in two-dimensional space by using the self-consistent field theory. Several phase parameters are adjusted to investigate the cylindrical-confinement-induced phase behaviours of diblock copolymers. A series of lamella-cylinder mixture phases, such as the mixture of broken-lamellae and cylinders and the mixture of square-lamellae and cylinders, are observed by varying the phase parameters, in which the behaviours of these mixture phases are discussed in the corresponding phase diagrams. Furthermore, the free energies of these mixture phases are investigated to illustrate their evolution processes. Our results are compared with the available observations from the experiments and simulations respectively, and they are in good agreement and provide an insight into the phase behaviours under cylindrical confinement.

Electron states and electron Raman scattering in semiconductor double cylindrical quantum well wire

The differential cross section for an electron Raman scattering process in a semiconductor GaAs/AlGaAs double quantum well wire is calculated,and expressions for the electronic states are presented.The system is modeled by considering T = 0 K and also with a single parabolic conduction band,which is split into a subband system due to the confinement.The gain and differential cross-section for an electron Raman scattering process are obtained.In addition,the emission spectra for several scattering configurations are discussed,and interpretations of the singularities found in the spectra are given.The electron Raman scattering studied here can be used to provide direct information about the efficiency of the lasers.

SELF-ASSEMBLY OF LINEAR TRIBLOCK COPOLYMERS UNDER CYLINDRICAL NANOPORE CONFINEMENTS

The self-assembly of linear ABC triblock copolymers under cylindrical confinements is investigated in two- dimensional space using the real-space self-consistent field theory. The effects of confinement degrees and preferential strengths on the triblock copolymer phase behaviors with special polymer parameters are first considered. On one hand, different confinement degrees cause different phase behaviors in nanopores with the neutral surfaces. Moreover, the strongly preferential surface fields can surpass the confinement degrees and volume fractions in determing the confined phase behaviors. On the other hand, in contrast, confined morphologies are more sensitive to the variations in the A-preferential surface field strength. Subsequently, the incompatibility degrees between different blocks are systematically varied under cylindrical nanopore confinements. Under cylindrical nanopore confinements, the morphologies are very sensitive to the variations in the incompatibility degrees. Meanwhile, nanopore confinements can affect order-disorder and order-order transition points in the bulk. The corresponding free, internal, and entropic energies as well as the order parameters are also quantificationally examined to deeply investigate the confined phase mechanisms, and a number of morphological transitions are confirmed to be of first-order. These findings may guide the design of novel nanostructures based on triblock copolymers by introducing confinements.

Characteristics of the recirculation zone in a cylindrical confined space and its suppression by an annular orifice plate

The accumulation of pollutants in the recirculation zone can worsen ventilation.It is critical to reduce recirculation zones to improve the ventilation efficiency of buildings.However,the variation rule of the recirculation zone in a cylindrical confined space(CCS)is unclear,and there are few solutions to suppress or eliminate the recirculation zone at present.In this paper,an annular deflector orifice plate for suppressing the recirculation zone was developed based on the structural characteristics of the CCS.This device is simple in structure and can be used flexibly.Through experiments and numerical simulations,the variation rule of the recirculation zone length and the influence of structural parameters of the device on the vortex suppression were explored.Firstly,empirical formulas for calculating the length of the recirculation zone in the CCS were obtained.In addition,it was proved that placing the annular orifice plate inside the CCS effectively reduced the recirculation zone and improved the ventilation efficiency.Compared to the system without the annular orifice plate,the dimensionless length of the recirculation zone was decreased by 76.3%,and the time to completely discharge the pollutants from the CCS was decreased by 16.7%.Finally,parameters of the annular orifice plate that form the best vortex suppression effect were proposed:the porosity range was 40%–50%,uniform in shape with equal ring spacing,and placed more than one inlet diameter away from the inlet.The results help guide the ventilation design of CCS.

Dual Effects of Interfacial Interaction and Geometric Constraints on Structural Formation of Poly(butylene terephthalate)Nanorods

When the size of the material is smaller than the size of the molecular chain,new nanostructures can be formed by crystallizing polymers in nanoporous alumina.However,the effect of pore wall and geometric constraints on polymer nanostructures remains unclear.In this study,we demonstrate three new restricted nanostructures{upright-,flat-and tilting-ring}in polybutylene terephthalate(PBT)nanorods prepared from nanoporous alumina.The dual effects of geometrical constraints and interfacial interactions on the formation of PBT nanostructures were investigated for the first time by using X-ray diffraction and Cerius^(2) modeling packages.Under weak constraints,the interaction between pore wall and the PBT rings is dominant and the ring plane tends to be parallel to the pore wall and radiate outward to grow the upright-ring crystals.Surprisingly,in strong 2D confinement,a structural formation reversal occurs and geometrical constraints overpower the effect of pore wall.Rings tend to pile up vertically or obliquely along the long axis of the rod,so the flat-and tilting-ring crystals are predominate in the constrained system.In principle,our study of the nanostructure formation based on the geometrical constraints and the pore wall interfacial effects could provide a new route to manipulate the chain assembly at the nanoscale,further improving the performance of polymer nanomaterial.