Magnetically Deformable Liquid Mirrors from Surface Films of Silver Nanoparticles

ChemPhysChem ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 981-986 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna M. Ritcey ◽  
Ermanno Borra
Author(s):  
Julie Gingras ◽  
Jean-Philippe Déry ◽  
Hélène Yockell-Lelièvre ◽  
Ermanno Borra ◽  
Anna M. Ritcey

2008 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 3900-3908 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luc Faucher ◽  
Ermanno F. Borra ◽  
Anna M. Ritcey

We report the preparation of metal liquid-like films (MELLFs) of silver nanoparticles stabilized by thiolate surface ligands. These surface films, composed of particles with diameters of about 100 nm, are highly reflective and can be employed in the fabrication of liquid mirrors. A number of different thiols are considered as stabilizing ligands, including alkanethiols, aromatic thiols and dithiols. Under identical preparation conditions, some lead to the spontaneous formation of reflective surface films, whereas others do not. Shorter chain alkanethiols (C2 to C8), thiophene and thiophenol are found to be effective whereas longer chain alkanethiols (C10 and C12) and short dithiols (C2 and C3) do not produce reflective films. Ethanethiol and propanethiol protected particles form surface films with reflectivities in the near-IR that surpass those of a previous generation of MELLFs prepared with 1,10-dimethylphenanthroline as the ligand. This enhanced reflectivity is attributed to a more closely packed nanoparticle film with a higher metal volume fraction. The closer proximity of the particles, however, leads to enhanced coupling of their surface plasmon resonance and increased absorption in the visible region of the spectrum. Short chain dithiols do not produce MELLFs but rather provoke particle aggregation. In the case of 1,2-ethanedithiol, the particles are found to precipitate in a continuous organic matrix, presumably caused by oxidative polymerization of the dithiol to a polydisulfide. Finally, preliminary investigations indicate that a large variety of organic solvants can be employed in the preparation of thiol protected MELLFs.


2011 ◽  
Vol 675-677 ◽  
pp. 287-290
Author(s):  
Long Jia Wu ◽  
Yu Guang Wang ◽  
Lian Meng Zhang

Reflective liquid-like films of silver nanoparticles simultaneously have metallic luster and the macroscopic properties of a fluid. Owing to their special properties, the films can be potential materials for the component of a new kind of liquid mirrors. The influence of different sizes of nanoparticles on the films reflectivity has been considered in this study. A great improvement on the reflectivity of the films has been found with the increase in the silver nanoparticles’ size. Additionally, the volume of the liquid substrate also has an effect on the reflectivity of the films. Characterization of the films by X-ray diffraction indicates that the liquid-like films are mainly composed of fcc silver nanoparticles rather than silver compounds.


Author(s):  
R.A. Ploc

Samples of low-nickel Zircaloy-2 (material MLI-788-see(1)), when anodically polarized in neutral 5 wt% NaCl solutions, were found to be susceptible to pitting and stress corrosion cracking. The SEM revealed that pitting of stressed samples was occurring below a 2000Å thick surface film which behaved differently from normal zirconium dioxide in that it did not display interference colours. Since the initial film thickness was approximately 65Å, attempts were made to examine the product film by transmission electron microscopy to deduce composition and how the corrosion environment could penetrate the continuous layer.


Author(s):  
T. E. Mitchell ◽  
R. B. Schwarz

Traditional oxide glasses occur naturally as obsidian and can be made easily by suitable cooling histories. In the past 30 years, a variety of techniques have been discovered which amorphize normally crystalline materials such as metals. These include [1-3]:Rapid quenching from the vapor phase.Rapid quenching from the liquid phase.Electrodeposition of certain alloys, e.g. Fe-P.Oxidation of crystals to produce amorphous surface oxide layers.Interdiffusion of two pure crystalline metals.Hydrogen-induced vitrification of an intermetal1ic.Mechanical alloying and ball-milling of intermetal lie compounds.Irradiation processes of all kinds using ions, electrons, neutrons, and fission products.We offer here some general comments on the use of TEM to study these materials and give some particular examples of such studies.Thin specimens can be prepared from bulk homogeneous materials in the usual way. Most often, however, amorphous materials are in the form of surface films or interfacial films with different chemistry from the substrates.


Author(s):  
J. Bentley ◽  
E. A. Kenik

Common artifacts on analytical electron microscope (AEM) specimens prepared from bulk materials are surface films with altered structure and composition that result from electropolishing, oxidation, hydrocarbon contamination, or ion milling (preferential sputtering or deposition of sputtered specimen or support material). Of course, the best solution for surface films is to avoid them by improved specimen preparation and handling procedures or to remove them by low energy ion sputter cleaning, a capability that already exists on some specialized AEMs and one that is likely to become increasingly common. However, the problem remains and it is surprising that surface films have not received more attention with respect to composition determination by energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDS) and electron energy loss spectrometry (EELS).For EDS, an effective first-order correction to remove the contribution of surface films on wedge shaped specimens is to subtract from the spectrum of interest a spectrum obtained under identical conditions (probe current, diffracting conditions, acquisition live time) from a thinner region of the specimen.


Author(s):  
Randall W. Smith ◽  
John Dash

The structure of the air-water interface forms a boundary layer that involves biological ,chemical geological and physical processes in its formation. Freshwater and sea surface microlayers form at the air-water interface and include a diverse assemblage of organic matter, detritus, microorganisms, plankton and heavy metals. The sampling of microlayers and the examination of components is presently a significant area of study because of the input of anthropogenic materials and their accumulation at the air-water interface. The neustonic organisms present in this environment may be sensitive to the toxic components of these inputs. Hardy reports that over 20 different methods have been developed for sampling of microlayers, primarily for bulk chemical analysis. We report here the examination of microlayer films for the documentation of structure and composition.Baier and Gucinski reported the use of Langmuir-Blogett films obtained on germanium prisms for infrared spectroscopic analysis (IR-ATR) of components. The sampling of microlayers has been done by collecting fi1ms on glass plates and teflon drums, We found that microlayers could be collected on 11 mm glass cover slips by pulling a Langmuir-Blogett film from a surface microlayer. Comparative collections were made on methylcel1ulose filter pads. The films could be air-dried or preserved in Lugol's Iodine Several slicks or surface films were sampled in September, 1987 in Chesapeake Bay, Maryland and in August, 1988 in Sequim Bay, Washington, For glass coverslips the films were air-dried, mounted on SEM pegs, ringed with colloidal silver, and sputter coated with Au-Pd, The Langmuir-Blogett film technique maintained the structure of the microlayer intact for examination, SEM observation and EDS analysis were then used to determine organisms and relative concentrations of heavy metals, using a Link AN 10000 EDS system with an ISI SS40 SEM unit. Typical heavy microlayer films are shown in Figure 3.


2019 ◽  
Vol 107 (3) ◽  
pp. 305
Author(s):  
Mengmei Geng ◽  
Yuting Long ◽  
Tongqing Liu ◽  
Zijuan Du ◽  
Hong Li ◽  
...  

Surface-enhanced Raman Scattering (SERS) fiber probe provides abundant interaction area between light and materials, permits detection within limited space and is especially useful for remote or in situ detection. A silver decorated SERS fiber optic probe was prepared by hydrothermal method. This method manages to accomplish the growth of silver nanoparticles and its adherence on fiber optic tip within one step, simplifying the synthetic procedure. The effects of reaction time on phase composition, surface plasmon resonance property and morphology were investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), ultraviolet-visible absorption spectrum (UV-VIS absorption spectrum) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that when reaction time is prolonged from 4–8 hours at 180 °C, crystals size and size distribution of silver nanoparticles increase. Furthermore, the morphology, crystal size and distribution density of silver nanoparticles evolve along with reaction time. A growth mechanism based on two factors, equilibrium between nucleation and growth, and the existence of PVP, is hypothesized. The SERS fiber probe can detect rhodamin 6G (R6G) at the concentration of 10−6 M. This SERS fiber probe exhibits promising potential in organic dye and pesticide residue detection.


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