Twin crystal structured Al-10 wt.% Mg alloy over broad velocity conditions achieved by high thermal gradient directional solidification

Twin crystal structured Al-10 wt.% Mg alloys that were grown over a broad solidification velocity range were prepared and studied for the first time.The high thermal gradient(G)and growth velocity(V)of directional solidification resulted in the dominant solidification of twins:the twinned dendrite trunks at constant high Vs curved in the G direction with large angles in 7 mm diameter crucibles and invaded regular columnar grains because of a distinct kinetics growth advantage.Transitive deceleration experiments were designed to produce twin crystals that evolved with lower values of V(100,10,and 0.5μm/s)and had a structural coarsening trend.Twin cell growth in the absence of arms occurred at a growth velocity of 10μm/s.A coherency loss was observed at a growth velocity of 0.5μm/s with straight coherent twin boundaries turning into curved incoherent boundaries.Linear theoretical analyses were performed to understand the structural evolution of the twins.These results demonstrate the possibility of producing dense and controlled twin crystals in the Al-Mg system under most industrial production conditions;thus,this approach can be a new structural choice for designing Al-Mg-based alloys that have widespread commercial applications.

DMPFIT: A Tool for Atomic-Scale Metrology via Nonlinear Least-Squares Fitting of Peaks in Atomic-Resolution TEM Images

Despite the wide availability and usage of Gatan’s DigitalMicrograph software in the electron microscopy community for image recording and analysis, nonlinear least-squares fitting in DigitalMicrograph is less straightforward. This work presents a ready-to-use tool, the DMPFIT software package, written in DigitalMicrograph script and C++ language, for nonlinear least-squares fitting of the intensity distribution of atomic columns in atomic-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images with a general two-dimensional (2D) Gaussian model. Applications of the DMPFIT software are demonstrated both in atomic-resolution conventional coherent TEM (CTEM) images recorded by the negative spherical aberration imaging technique and in high angle annular dark field (HAADF) scanning TEM (STEM) images. The implemented peak-finding algorithm based on the periodicity of 2D lattices enables reliable and convenient atomic-scale metrology as well as intuitive presentation of the resolved atomic structures.

Influences of perfluorooctanoic acid on the aggregation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes

The aggregation of multi-walled carbon nanotubes （MWCNTs） in the aqueous phase not only inhibits their extensive utilization in various aspects but also dominates their environmental fate and transport.The role of surfactants at low concentration in the aggregation of MWCNTs has been studied,however the effect of perfluorinated surfactants at low concentration is uncertain.To understand this interfacial phenomenon,the influences of perfluorooctanoic acid （PFOA）,and sodium dodecyl sulfate （SDS） as a control,on MWCNT aggregation in the aqueous phase were examined by the UV absorbency method.Influences of pH and cationic species on the critical coagulation concentration （CCC） value were evaluated.The CCC values were dependent on the concentration of PFOA,however a pronounced effect of SDS concentration on the CCC values was not observed.The CCC values of the MWCNTs were 51.6 mmol/L in NaCl and 0.28 mmol/L in CaCl 2 solutions,which suggested pronounced differences in the effects of Na＋ and Ca2＋ ions on the aggregation of the MWCNTs.The presence of both PFOA and SDS significantly decreased the CCC values of the MWCNTs in NaCl solution.The aggregation of the MWCNTs took place under acidic conditions and was not notably altered under neutral and alkaline conditions due to the electrostatic repulsion of deprotonated functional groups on the surface of the MWCNTs.

Microstructure and secondary phases in epitaxial LaBaCo_2O_(5.5 + δ) thin films

Aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy was employed to investigate the microstructures and secondary phases in LaBaCo2O5.5＋δ（LBCO） thin films grown on SrTiO3 （STO） substrates. The as-grown films showed an epitaxial growth on the substrates with atomically sharp interfaces and orientation relationships of [100]LBCO//[100]STO and （001）LBCO//（001）STO. Secondary phases were observed in the films, which strongly depended on the sample fabrication conditions. In the film prepared at a temperature of 900 ℃, nano-scale CoO pillars nucleated on the substrate, and grew along the [001] direction of the film. In the film grown at a temperature of 1000 ℃, isolated nano-scale C0304 particles appeared, which promoted the growth of {111 } twinning structures in the film. The orientation relationships and the interfaces between the secondary phases and the films were illustrated, and the growth mechanism of the film was discussed.