THEORY OF LC BIOMEMBRANE——A PROBE INTO SOFT CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS

Soft condensed-state physics is a disciplinary frontier of 20th-century physics. An interdiscipline in nature, it involves biology, chemistry and even pure mathematics. Taking the liquid crystal (LC) biomembrane as an example, this article expounds the current development trend of this new and promising branch of contemporary physics.

Photoacoustic measurement of the thermal property of condensed matter using a strong light-absorbing surface layer

By using a strong light-absorbing surface layer and front-surface illumination with a low power He-Ne laser ( 6mW), photoacoustic measurements of the thermal effusivities of materials have been made, based on the photoacoustic theory, derived in this paper, of condensed matter with a strong light- absorbing surface layer. This method can eliminate the stray light, give full play to the power of the light irradiation, and improve the signal to noise ratio. The experiment results are in good agreement with the theoretical values.

Why the Central Monster in M87 Should Be a Massive DEO Rather than a SMBH?

In this paper, we show that massive envelopes made of highly compressed normal matter surrounding dark objects (DEOs) can curve the surrounding spacetime and make the systems observationally indistinguishable from their massive black hole counterparts. DEOs are new astrophysical objects that are made up of entropy-free incompressible supranuclear dense superfluid (SuSu-matter), embedded in flat spacetimes and invisible to outside observers, practically trapped in false vacua. Based on highly accurate numerical modelling of the internal structures of pulsars and massive neutron stars, and in combination with using a large variety of EOSs, we show that the mass range of DEOs is practically unbounded from above: it spans those of massive neutron stars, stellar and even supermassive black holes: thanks to the universal maximum density of normal matter, , beyond which normal matter converts into SuSu-matter. We apply the scenario to the Crab and Vela pulsars, the massive magnetar PSR J0740 6620, the presumably massive NS formed in GW170817, and the SMBHs in Sgr A* and M87*. Our numerical results also reveal that DEO-Envelope systems not only mimic massive BHs nicely but also indicate that massive DEOs can hide vast amounts of matter capable of turning our universe into a SuSu-matter-dominated one, essentially trapped in false vacua.

Why the Energy Density of the Universe Is Lower and Upper-Bounded? Relaxing the Need for the Cosmological Constant

Recently, it was argued that the energy density of the supranuclear dense matter inside the cores of massive neutron stars must have reached the , beyond which supranuclear dense matter becomes incompressible entropy-free gluon-quark superfluid. As this matter is also confined and embedded in flat spacetime, it is Lorentz invariant and could be treated as vacuum. The lower bound of matter in the universe may be derived using the following observational constraints: 1) The average energy density of the observable universe is erg/cc, 2) The observable universe is remarkably flat, and 3) the Hubble constant is a slowly decreasing function of cosmic time. Based thereon, I argue that the energy density in nature should be bounded from below by the average density of our vast and flat parent universe, , which is, in turn, comparable to the vacuum energy density , and amounts to erg/cc. When the total energy density is measured relative to , then both GR and Newtonian field equations may consistently model the gravitational potential of the parent universe without invoking cosmological constants. Relying on the recently proposed unicentric model of the observable universe, UNIMOUN, the big bang must have warped the initially flat spacetime into a curved one, though the expansion of the fireball doomed the excited energy state to diffuse out and return back to the ground energy state that governs the flat spacetime of our vast parent universe.

Foundation of the Unicentric Model of the Observable Universe—UNIMOUN

In view of the growing difficulties of ΛCDM-cosmologies to compete with recent highly accurate cosmological observations, I propose the alternative model: the Unicentric Model of the Observable UNiverse (UNIMOUN). The model relies on employing a new time-dependent -metric for the GR field equations, which enables reversible phase transitions between normal compressible fluids and incompressible quantum superfluids, necessary for studying the cosmic evolution of the observable universe. The main properties of UNIMOUN read: 1) The observable universe was born in a flat spacetime environment, which is a tiny fraction of our infinitely large and flat parent universe, 2) Our big bang (BB) happened to occur in our neighbourhood, thereby endowing the universe the observed homogeneity and isotropy, 3) The energy density in the universe is upper-bounded by the universal critical density , beyond which matter becomes purely incompressible, rendering formation of physical singulareties, and in particular black holes, impossible, 4) Big bangs are neither singular events nor invoked by external forces, but rather, they are common self-sustaining events in our parent universe, 5) The progenitors of BBs are created through the merger of cosmically dead and inactive neutron stars and/or through “supermassive black holes” that are currently observed at the centres of most massive galaxies, 6) The progenitors are made up of purely incompressible entropy-free superconducting gluon- quark superfluids with (SuSu-matter), which endows these giant objects measurable sizes, 7) Spacetimes embedding SuSu-matter are conformally flat. It is shown that UNIMOUN is capable of dealing with or providing answers to several fundamental open questions in astrophysics and cosmology without invoking inflation, dark matter or dark energy.

Hubble Tension versus the Cosmic Evolution of Hubble Parameter in the Unicentric Model of the Observable Universe

Recently, a unicentric model of the observable universe (UNIMOUN) was proposed. Accordingly, big bangs are common events in our infinitely large, flat, homogeneous and isotropic parent universe. Their progenitors are clusters of cosmically dead and massive neutron stars that merged after reaching the ultimate lowest quantum energy state, where the matter is in an incompressible superconducting gluon-quark superfluid state and zero-entropy, hence granting the resulting progenitors measurable sizes and immunity to collapsing into black holes. Our big bang happened to occur in our neighbourhood, thereby enduing the universe, the observed homogeneity and isotropy. As the enclosed mass of the progenitor was finite, the dynamically expanding curved spacetimes embedded the fireball started flattening to finally diffuse into the flat spacetime of the parent universe. By means of general relativistic numerical hydrodynamical calculations, we use the H-metric to follow the time-evolution of the spacetime embedding the progenitor during the hadronization and the immediately following epochs. Based thereon, we find that the kinetic energy of newly created normal matter increases with distance in a self-similar manner, imitating thereby outflows of nearly non-interacting particles. On cosmic time scales, this behaviour yields a Hubble parameter, H(t), which decreases slowly with the distance from the big bang event. Given the sensitivity of the data of the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) from Planck to the underlying cosmological model, we conclude that UNIMOUN is a viable alternative to ΛCMD-cosmologies.

Evidence for False Vacuum States inside the Cores of Massive Pulsars and the Ramification on the Measurements of Their True Masses

Based on the theory and observations of glitching pulsars, we show that the ultra-cold supranuclear dense matter inside the cores of massive pulsars should condensate in vacua, as predicated by non-perturbative QCD. The trapped matter here forms false vacuums embedded in flat spacetimes and completely disconnected from the outside world. Although the vacuum expectation value here vanishes, the masses and sizes of these incompressible superfluid cores are set to grow with cosmic times, in accord with the Onsager-Feynman superfluidity analysis. We apply our scenario to several well-studied pulsars, namely the Crab, Vela, PSR J0740+6620 and find that the trapped mass-contents in their cores read {0.15,0.55,0.64}, implying that their true masses are {1.55,2.35,2.72} , respectively. Based thereon, we conclude that: 1) The true masses of massive pulsars and neutron stars are much higher than detected by direct observations and, therefore, are unbounded from above, 2) The remnant of the merger event in GW170817 should be a massive NS harbouring a core with 1.66 .

First-Principles Study of Structural Stabilities, Electronic and Optical Properties of SrF2 under High Pressure

An investigation of structural stabilities, electronic and optical properties of SrF2 under high pressure is conducted using a first-principles calculation based on density functional theory （DFT） with the plane wave basis set as implemented in the CASTEP code. Our results predict that the second high-pressure phase of SrF2 is of a Ni2In- type structure, and demonstrate that the sequence of the pressure-induced phase transition of SrF2 is the fluorite structure （Fm3m） to the PbC12-type structure （Pnma）, and to the Ni2In-type phase （P63/mmc）. The first and second phase transition pressures are 5. 77 and 45.58 GPa, respectively. The energy gap increases initially with pressure in the Fm3m, and begins to decrease in the Pnma phases at 30 GPa. The band gap overlap metallization does not occur up to 210 GPa. The pressure effect on the optical properties is discussed.

Existence of Shear Horizontal Surface Waves in a Magneto-Electro-Elastic Material

The existence of shear horizontal surface waves in a magneto-electro-elastic （MEE） half-space with hexagonal （6mm） symmetry is investigated. The surface of the MEE half-space is mechanically free, but subjected to four types of electromagnetic boundary conditions. These boundary conditions are electrically open/magnetically closed, electrically open/magnetically open, electrically closed/magnetically open and electrically closed/magnetically dosed. It is shown that except for the electrically open/magnetically closed condition, the three other sets of electromagnetic boundary conditions allow the propagation of shear horizontal surface waves.

AlGaN-Based Deep-Ultraviolet Light Emitting Diodes Fabricated on AlN/sapphire Template

We report on the growth and fabrication of deep ultraviolet （DUV） light emitting diodes （LEDs） on an AIN template which was grown on a pulsed atomic-layer epitaxial buffer layer. Threading dislocation densities in the AlN layer are greatly decreased with the introduction of this buffer layer. The crystalline quality of the AlGaN epilayer is further improved by using a low-temperature GaN interlayer between AlGaN and AlN. Electroluminescences of different DUV-LED devices at a wavelength of between 262 and 317nm are demonstrated. To improve the hole concentration of p-type AlGaN, Mg-doping with trimethylindium assistance approach is performed. It is found that the serial resistance of DUV-LED decreases and the performance of DUV-LED such as EL properties is improved.

Synthesis and Properties of Magnetic Composites of Carbon Nanotubes/Fe Nanoparticle

Magnetic composites of carbon nanotubes （CNTs） are synthesized by the in situ catalytic decomposition of benzene at temperatures as low as 400℃ over Fe nanoparticles （mean grain size = 26 nm） produced by sol-gel fabrication and hydrogen reduction. The yield of CNT composite is up to about 3025% in a run of 6 h. FE- SEM and HRTEM investigations reveal that one-dimensional carbon species are produced in a large quantity. A relatively high value of magnetization is observed for the composite due to the encapsulation of ferromagnetic Fe3 C and/or α-Fe. The method is suitable for the mass-production of CNT composites that contain magnetic nanoparticles.

Phase-Transition and Magnetic Moment of the Gd3＋ Ion in the Gd2Fe17 Compound

The structure and magnetic phase transitions of the Gd2Fe17 compound are investigated by using a differential thermal/thermogravimetric analyzer, x-ray diffraction, and magnetization measurements. The result shows that there are two phase structures for the Gd2Fe17 compound： the hexagonal Th2Nilr-type structure at high temperatures （above 1243℃）, and the rhombohedral Th2Zn17-type structure, respectively. A method to measure the magnetic moments of the Gd-sublattice and the Fe-sublattice in the Gd2Fe17 compound is presented. The moments of the Gd-sublattice and the Fe-sublattice in the Gd2Fe17 compound from 77 to 500 K are measured in this way with a vibrating sample magnetometer. A detailed discussion is presented.

Energy Transfer from Ce^3＋ to Eu^2＋ in LiSrBO3 and Its Potential Application in UV-LED-Based White LEDs

Ce3＋/Eu2＋ codoped LiSrBO3 phosphor is synthesized, and its luminescent characteristics are investigated. LiSrBO3：Ce3＋,Eu2＋ phosphor exhibits varied hues from blue to white and eventually to yellow by resonance-type energy transfer from Ce3＋ ion to Eu2＋ ion and tuning the relative proportion of Ce3＋/Eu2＋ properly. Energy transfer mechanism in LiSrBOa：Ce3＋, Eu2＋ phosphor is dominated by the dipole-dipole interaction, and the critical distance of the energy transfer is estimated to be about 2 nm by both spectral overlap and concentration quenching methods. Under UV radiation, white light is generated by coupling 436 and 565nm emission bands attributed to Ce3＋ and Eu2＋ radiations, respectively.

Simulation of Light Intensification Induced by Defects of Polished Fused Silica

Light intensity distribution in the vicinity of inclusions and etched cracks in polished fused silica at wavelength scale are simulated by using the finite-difference time-domain algorithm. Light intensity enhancement factor as functions of diameter and refractive index of inclusions are investigated, more than 10 times that of incident beam is obtained in the simulation. We model the etched crack in close proximity to a real structure, which is characterized by AFM. We find that the peak light intensity of the crack is a function of its cross sectional breadth depth ratio, providing good hints for the effective processing of fused silica samples to improve the damage threshold.

Mechanical Reinforcement and Piezoelectric Properties of PZT Ceramics Embedded with Nano-Crystalline

The double-scale lead zirconate titanate （PZT） piezoelectric ceramics were prepared by the solid state processing with PZT nano-crystalline and micro-powder. The microstructures, electrical and mechanical properties of the double-scale PZT are investigated. All the sintered ceramics exhibit a single perovskite structure and the grain size of the dou ble-scale PZT reduces due to the incorporation of PZT nano-crystalline. Compared to normal PZT, the mechanical properties increase significantly and the piezoelectric properties decrease slightly. Mechanisms responsible for the reinforcement of the double-scale PZT are discussed.

Preparation and Thermal Characterization of Diamond-Like Carbon Films

Diamond-like carbon （DLC） films are prepared on silicon substrates by microwave electron cyclotron resonance plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition. Raman spectroscopy indicates that the films have an amorphous structure and typical characteristics. The topographies of the films are presented by AFM images. Effective thermal conductivities of the films are measured using a nanosecond pulsed photothermal reflectance method. The results show that thermal conductivity is dominated by the microstructure of the films.

Effects of Grain Boundary Barrier in ZnO/Si Heterostructure

The influence of ZnO microstructure on electrical barriers is investigated using capacitance-voltage （C - V）, current-voltage （I- V） and deep level transient spectroscopy （DLTS） measurements. A deep level center located at Ec - 0.24 eV obtained by DLTS in the ZnO films is an intrinsic defect related to Zni. The surface states in the ZnO grains that have acceptor behavior of capturing electrons from Zni defects result in the formation of grain barriers. In addition, we find that the current transport is dominated by grain barriers after annealing at 600℃ at 02 ambient. With the increment of the annealing temperature, the current transport mechanism of ZnO/Si heterostructure is mainly dominated by thermo-emission.