In this study, a comparison of the tensile behavior of fully nanotwinned Cu–6 wt.%Al, Cu–2 wt.%Al, and Cu–10 wt.%Ni with stacking fault energies (SFEs) of 6, 37, and 60 mJ/m2, respectively is presented. The samples displayed yield strengths ranging from 830 to 1340 MPa, varying with both alloy content and microstructural parameters. All samples showed low ductility, even though there are tilted twin boundaries present in Cu–10 wt.%Ni. The influence of varying grain width is presented for each alloy and related to both the activation volume and SFE [Figs. 3(a)–3(c)].

In vitro electrophysiology using microelectrode arrays (MEAs) plays an important role in understanding fundamental biologic processes, screening potential drugs and assessing the toxicity of chemicals. Low electrode impedance and ability to sustain viable cultures are the key technology requirements. We show that MEAs consisting of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) doped with poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and coated with poly-L-lysine satisfy these requirements. Hippocampal cell cultures, maintained for 3–6 weeks on these MEAs, give high quality recordings of neural activity. This enables the observation of drug-induced activity changes, which paves the way for using these devices in in vitro drug screening and toxicology applications.

Pulsed electric current sintering offers rapid sintering of many materials compared with hot press sintering. Earlier studies had demonstrated that neither sparks nor plasma formation occur in a typical apparatus such as Dr. Sinter™. Hitchcock et al. showed that electromagnetic radio frequency (rf) emission occurred during the pulsing current and suggested this emission was a relevant augmentation to the hot press sintering in addition to the current flow in the specimen. In this report the importance of rf emission in the sintering process is demonstrated and opportunities to further exploit this approach to improve the sintering process are suggested.

We demonstrate the tungsten disulfide (WS2) thin film catalysts prepared by the sulfurization of vacuum deposited WO3 thin films for efficient hydrogen production with over 90% Faradaic efficiency. The 23-nm-thick WS2 thin film catalyst heterojunction with p-type silicon photocathode could exhibit a photocurrent density of 8.3 mA/cm2 at 0 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE), a low onset potential of 0.2 V versus RHE when photocurrent density reaches −1 mA/cm2 and long-term stability over 10 h. The enhanced catalytic activities of WS2/p-Si photocathodes compared with the bare p-Si photocathode originate from a number of edge sites in the synthesized polycrystalline thin films, which could act as hydrogen evolution catalyst.

SiN x films were grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition on Si substrates with the composition controlled by the flow ratio R: ammonia to silane in the range R = 0.45–1.0. Then SiN x films were annealed at 1100 °C for 30 min to form Si-quantum dots (QDs). Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy study permits estimating SiN x compositions. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra of SiN x films included bands peaked at: 2.87–2.99, 2.42–2.54, 2.10–2.25, and 1.47–1.90 eV. Former three PL bands are attributed to emission via defects in SiN x films. Fourth PL band is assigned to exciton emission in Si QDs, detected by transmission electron microscopy study in films grown at R ≤ 0.67. The nature of non-radiative defects in SiN x films is discussed as well.