We characterized two samples consisting of photoresist layers on silicon with square arrays of square holes by spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE) and Mueller matrix polarimetry (MMP). Hole lateral dimensions and depths were determined by fitting either SE data taken in conventional planar geometry or MMP data in general conical diffraction configurations. A method for objective determination of the optimal measurement conditions based on sensitivity and parameter correlations is presented. When applied to MMP, this approach showed that for one of the samples the optimal incidence angle was 45°, much below the widely used 70° value. The robustness of the dimensional characterisation based on MMP is demonstrated by the high stability of the results provided by separated fits of the data taken at different azimuthal angles.

This paper deals with the causal modeling of a Traveling Wave Ultrasonic Motor; the aim of the study is to build an approach which may take into account the physical contact responsible for the pull-out phenomenon, but straightforward enough to be useful for control. As the parameters available for the modeling can not be obtained following the well known electromechanical equivalent scheme identification, a new identification method is proposed. In this purpose, the model of the motor is expressed in the traveling wave rotating frame.

Undoped and Al and In doped ZnO films were deposited on flexible PET substrates by Reactive Pulsed Laser Deposition (R-PLD). The morphological and structural characteristics of the obtained structures were investigated by AFM, SEM and XRD respectively. The transmittance spectra were recorded in the 300–1200 nm wavelength range and the electrical conductivity was measured. The samples appeared as granular and polycrystalline with high transparency and had a good electrical conductivity. The crystallinity of the undoped ZnO films improved with increasing pressure of the reactive oxygen gas. Doping of ZnO with Al or In modified the energy band gap and the resistivity of the material. The possibility for the application of such structures for the development of hybrid photovoltaic cells on flexible substrates will be demonstrated.

Dielectric barrier discharges (DBDs) are commonly used for gas effluent cleanup and ozone generation. For these applications, the energy efficiency of the discharge is a major concern. This paper reports on investigations carried out on the voltage shape applied to DBD reactor electrodes, aiming to evaluate a possible energy efficiency improvement for ozone production. Two DBD reactor geometries were used: pin-to-pin and cylinder-to-cylinder, both driven either by a bi-directional power supply (voltage rise rate 1 kV/μs) or by a pulsed power supply (voltage rise rate 1 kV/ns). Ozone formed in dry air was measured at the reactor outlet. Special attention was paid to discharge input power evaluation using different methods including instantaneous current-voltage product and transferred charge-applied voltage figures. The charge transferred by the discharges was also correlated to the ozone production. It is shown that, in the case of the DBD reactors under investigation, the applied voltage shape has no influence on the ozone production efficiency. For the considered voltage rise rate, the charge deposit on the dielectric inserted inside the discharge gap is the important factor (as opposed to the voltage shape) governing the efficiency of the discharge – it does this by tailoring the duration of the current peak into the tens of nanosecond range.

The development of a new passive wireless pressure sensor, based on an electromagnetic transduction approach, is reported. The sensing element is a flexible high resistivity silicon membrane located above a coplanar quarter-wavelength resonator. The comprehensive coverage of the physical bases is beyond the scope of this paper. For the remote extraction of the applied pressure value, the passive pressure sensor is connected to a broadband horn antenna via a coaxial delay line. When interrogated by a frequency modulated continuous wave radar, the level of the backscattered signal changes versus the pressure applied to the proof body. Through this interrogation principle, the sensor provides load impedance that is reflected back to the radar reader: the measured dynamic is about 0.8 dBm/bar. This completely passive and wireless pressure telemetry micro-sensor has been designed, fabricated and characterized, thereby eliminating the need for contact, signal processing circuits, and power supplies needed by conventional active sensors.

Composite films containing silver nanoparticles embedded in diamond-like carbon (DLC) matrix were deposited on glass substrates by using capacitatively coupled plasma (CCP) chemical vapour deposition techninique (CVD). Particle size and metal volume fraction were tailored by varying the relative amount of methane of a gas mixture of methane + argon in the plasma. Optical constants of the films were evaluated. Bonding environment in these films were obtained from Raman and FTIR studies. Blue-shift of the surface plasmon resonance peak in the optical absorbance spectra of the films could be associated with the reduction of the particle size while red shift was associated with the increase in volume fraction of metal particles. The experimental results have been discussed in light of the existing Mie theory.

Thin lead sulfide films were grown on single crystal GaAs(100) substrates by chemical deposition using Pb(NO3)2 and CS(NH2)2 with excess of NaOH in aqueous solution at a range of deposition temperatures 0–50 °C. The microstructure and morphology evolution were studied as a function of the deposition conditions, resulting in a wide range of microstructures. Ultrahigh resolution scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy indicated a systematic change in particle shape and surface morphology as a function of deposition temperature and deposition time. X-ray diffraction of 200–500 nm thick films indicated a dominant $\langle 110\rangle$ texture throughout the deposition temperature range. At deposition temperatures above 40 °C, single crystal films were obtained. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy analyses showed a unique (011)PbS||(100)GaAs and [100]PbS||[011]GaAs orientation relationship.

The optical absorption in organic solar cells, and hence theirefficiency to convert sunlight into electricity, is limitedby both a confined spectral absorption range and the very thin active layers which are required since polymers have short charge carrier diffusionlengths. We propose to make the most of thisapparent 'drawback' by using transparent contacts on both sides ofthe diode, leading to brilliant red-coloured semitransparent solarcells. Such cells are interesting for new, aesthetically appealingapplications where coloured glasses or foils with the additionalbenefit of providing electric power are desired. Maybe even moreimportantly – such semitransparent solar cells are essential formechanically stacked tandem arrays where two subcells arecombined. We investigated different cathodes based on Al-doped ZnO and thin LiF and Al layers. Apparently, the different cathode layer preparation conditions strongly influence the cellperformance. Our standard LiF/Al cells donot usually require annealing for improved efficiencies, incontrast to cells with sputtered cathodes. For the latter, athermal post-treatment can greatly enhance the performance,depending on the sputtering process. We could demonstrate power conversion efficiencies of up to 3.4% for single cells and up to 4.2% for stacked tandem arrays.

Removal of molecular atmospheric pollutants by non-thermal plasmas is under study since the beginning of the eighties. It has been shown that pulsed electrical discharges, such as dielectric barrier or corona discharges, are powerful means to eliminate Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) from the ambient air, or to treat flue gases which contain nitrogen oxide. However it is now recognised that, for several pollutants, the use of the plasma alone does not allow a complete elimination of the undesirable molecule. For example NO is oxidised in the air plasma to form other oxides like NO2 and N2O5, and reactions of oxygen atoms or hydroxyl radicals produced by the discharge with VOCs can lead not only to H2O and CO2 but to a number of by-products following the partial oxidation of the molecule, which can be as undesirable than the compound to be initially removed from effluents. This is particularly the case when the electrical energy deposited in the gas flow must be kept as low as possible in order to design a low energy cost equipment. As a result addition of a catalyst together with the pulsed discharge is now investigated in various laboratories in order to achieve a complete oxidation of VOCs, i.e. the so-called de-COV process, or a complete reduction of NOX (NO and NO$_{2})$ to produce N2 and O2, i.e. the so-called de-NOX process, at low energy consumption. This paper is a short review of works which have been done these last years in that domain, specifically on NOX and some selected VOC molecules.

Indium-tin oxide (ITO) thin layers are obtained by an IBS (Ion Beam Sputtering) deposition process. We elaborated ITO films on flexible substrates of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), under soft conditions of low temperatures and fulfilling the requirements of fabrication processes of the organic optoelectronic components. With a non thermally activated (20 °C) ITO deposition assisted by an oxygen flow (1 cm3/min), we got an optical transmittance of 90% in the visible range, a resistivity around 10−3 Ω.cm and a surface roughness lower than 1.5 nm. Thus we realized flexible organic light-emitting diodes (FOLEDs) with good performances: a maximum luminance of 12000 cd/m2 at a voltage of 19 V and a maximum luminous power efficiency around 1 lm/W at a voltage of 10 V (or a maximum current efficiency of 4 cd/A at 14 V) for the (PET(50 μm)/ITO(200 nm)/TPD(40 nm)/Alq3(60 nm)/Ca/Al) structure.

Dielectricthin-film helicoidal bianisotropic mediums (TFHBMs)are rotationally nonhomogeneous nano-engineered materialsof recent vintage. Here,optical signatures of axially excited TFHBM slabsare calculated after solving a boundary value problem,after assuming the chosenmaterials to have single-resonance Lorentzian dielectric response properties.The spectrum of co- and cross-polarized reflectancesand transmittances, true and apparent circular dichroisms, trueand apparent linear dichroisms, ellipticity transformation,and optical rotation are presented. The role of the structural period in thespectral location of the circular Bragg phenomenon isdelineated, and measures to deepen thatphenomenon are discussed. The effects ofstructural handedness on the spectrum are also identified.

In this study, the efficiency of different types of pulsed electrical discharges for the removal of organic pollutants from wastewater has been determined. Three discharge types, either in the water volume or in close proximity to the water surface are studied. The production of hydrogen peroxide in pure water, and the degradation of two typical pollutants (4-chlorophenol and 4-nitrophenol) is measured together with the amount of electrical energy dissipated in discharges. It is shown that the energy yield for the degradation of organic pollutants, expressed in terms of degraded moles per Joule, strongly depends on the discharge type. The highest efficiency is obtained with pulsed corona discharges in humid air above the water surface. A lower efficiency is found with spark discharges in water, and the less efficient process is constituted by streamer discharges in water. The influence of ferrous ions added to solutions is also very different according to the discharge type. This helps to get a better understanding of the degradation processes involved with the different discharge types.

Plasmas are energetic media that can give birth to dust particles due to the presence of reactive gases or plasma-surface interactions. Industrial plasmas are often concerned by these dust particles that can be either unwanted or useful for the process. For fusion plasmas, production of dust particles from wall erosion is a serious issue for performance and safety reasons. In this article, some aspects of dusty plasmas with potential implications for plasma experimenters will be discussed. Convenient ways for detecting the presence or the growth of dust particles will be presented. The spatial distribution of the dust cloud during the plasma phase determines the subsequent dust particle deposition. It will be shown that some reactor regions can attract or repeal these dust particles. Finally, the dust particle dynamics after the plasma extinction will be investigated. A special attention will be paid on the residual electric charge that can stay attached on the dust particle surface and on its implications for dust particle control or deposition.

We have fabricated and characterised colloidal silver nanoparticles by the electrical arc discharge method in DI water. Size and optical properties of the silver nanoparticles were studied versus different arc currents. Optical absorption indicates a plasmonic peak at 392 nm for 10 A which increases to 398 nm for 20 A arc current. This reveals that by raising the arc current the size of the nanoparticles increases. Optical absorption of silver nanoparticles after 3 weeks shows precipitation of them in a water medium. The effect of different surfactant and stabilizer concentrations such as cethyl trimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), sodium citrate, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS), sodium di-2-ethylsulfosuccinate (AOT) and carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) on the stability of silver nanoparticles was investigated. The colloidal silver nanoparticles with 100 μM concentration were stable for more than 3 months at 50 μM CTAB and 6 months at 10 μM sodium citrate concentration, respectively. SEM images of the sample prepared at 50 μM CTAB concentration reveal uniform and fine nanoparticles. The mean size from TEM images is about 14 nm. TEM images of the sample prepared at 10 μM sodium citrate concentration show a shell of citrate that covers the silver nanoparticles.

The presence of materials with a relative large difference in permeability has a harmful influence on the convergence of Krylov subspace iterative solvers. Some slow converging components are not cured by preconditioning and correspond to eigenvectors reflecting the domains with relatively low permeable material. Approximations for those eigenvectors are determined using physical knowledge of the problem. The iterative solution process is split up in a small problem counting for the separated eigenmodes and a full-size problem out of which the slow converging modes are removed. This deflated preconditioned solver is faster converging compared to more common approaches, such as the incomplete Cholesky conjugate gradient method.

Reactively evaporated thin films of tantalum oxide are prepared on glass substrate, using electron beam heating, for optical applications. Firstly, the deposition was carried out at 0.20 nm/s, with substrate temperature of 200 °C, and oxygen flow rate was varied from 0.0 to 30.0 sccm to study the effect of flow rate on optical constants. The optical constants evaluated by using transmission data of the samples, with curve fitting, show a strong dependence on oxygen flow rate. Oxygen flow rate of 10.0 sccm has been found to give reasonably high index (n:2.11 at $\lambda =500$  nm) and low absorption of the order of 10−3 in most part of the desired spectrum (380–850 nm). However, for oxygen flow rates below 10.0 sccm and above 20.0 sccm the films have exhibited low index and comparatively high absorption. In the next step, deposition rates were varied from 0.10–0.30 nm/s with steps of 0.01, keeping oxygen flow rate and substrate temperature constant at 10.0 sccm and 200 °C respectively, to optimize the film properties. A variation in refractive index and extinction coefficient values is observed with varying deposition rates. An increase in refractive index (n:2.125 at $\lambda =500$  nm) with reduced absorption (“k” of the order of 10−4) is achieved over the entire spectrum for the film deposited at 0.10 nm/s. The film was found to be highly adherent to the substrate as revealed by qualitative adhesive tape peel test. Keeping in view the application of the work, calculation of optical constants was extended up to 1100 nm for the sample deposited at 0.10 nm/s. The results have shown nearly constant optical constant values over the extended range making the film useful over a broad spectral region. AFM studies show that the surface is extremely smooth and compact, giving average and rms roughness values of 5.51 and 7.174 Å respectively, for the studied area of $2.5~\mu\times2.5~\mu$ . XRD and SEM studies carried out for structural analysis show that the film is generally amorphous with a sign that crystalline structure could be achieved at little higher substrate temperatures. The surface of the film is very smooth, free of voids, with the particle size in the range of 17–35 nm, calculated from SEM studies. The film has exhibited compact and dense structure. The work reported in this paper will be useful in tailoring the optical properties of Ta2O5 as per requirement.

Recombination processes in GaAsN, GaInAsN, and GaAsSbN compounds have been analysed and compared. The following properties like: broad photoluminescence band at energy of ~ 0.85 eV, an emission band aproximately 80 meV below band gap energy, and annealing-induced blue shift of the energy gap have been found for all three compounds. In order to explain these features a simple band gap diagram with N defect-related levels close to conduction band edge and fluctuations in the energy of the conduction band minimum has been proposed.

During nanoindentation of MgO, a pop-in phenomenon has been observed, that is, an abrupt increase in penetration depth at a critical load. Atomic force microscopy investigations have been performed to characterise the dislocation structure in the vicinity of the indented area. The pop-in has been found to be the first stage of plastic deformation during nanoindentation. This phenomenon is ascribed to the nucleation and further propagation of interstitial loops of dislocations beneath the indenter. A three-dimensional model for a flat ended indenter is developed.

This paper, which deals with the winding modeling of ac multi-phase machines with a regular distribution of the stator slots, details an original matrix modeling of the stator winding. First, the properties of the balanced multi-phase windings (with integral-slot and fractional-slot patterns) are analysed. The winding function approach, one of the most common way to model the winding distribution effects on the stator rotating field, is then introduced. For multi-phase machines, it will be shown that the pole number generated by the winding distribution depends on a new parameter: the circularity index. The discrete nature of the winding, imposed by the stator slots, leads to the development of a discrete modeling of the winding obtained from sampling the winding function: two matrices, the winding function matrix and the distribution function matrix, are introduced to characterize the multi-phase winding. This matrix approach is thus a concise way to calculate the winding factors and to estimate the set of self and mutual stator inductances for smooth air gap multi-phase machines. A particularly original method of obtaining an analytical expression for the leakage mutual inductance is described. The results are validated with two experimental 5-phase PM machines by using experimental measurements and numerical simulations.

We have fabricated heterojunction solar cells comprising active layers of perylene diimide (PDI) or perylene bisbenzimidazole (CONPER, conjugated perylene dye) as electron acceptor and ZnPC as donor. Bilayer solar cells were produced by successive evaporation of zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPC) and perylene diimide (PDI) or perylene bisbenzimidazole (CONPER) on glass substrates coated with indium doped tin oxide. Active layers with different thickness were evaporated. The bilayer cells were characterized under simulated AM 1.5 illumination (100 mW/cm2). The best results were obtained for the device structure of ITO/PEDOT/ZnPC (40 nm)/perylene bisbenzimidazole (60 nm)/Al (70 nm).