Asymmetric Coordination Toward a Photoinduced Single‐Chain Magnet Showing High Coercivity Values

PtCo hard magnets have specialized applications owing to their relatively high coercivity combined with corrosion resistance and ductility. Increased intrinsic coercivity has been recently obtained by rapid solidification processing of PtCo alloys containing boron. After rapid solidification by double anvil splat quenching and subsequent annealing for 30 minutes at 650°C, an alloy with composition Pt42Co45B13 (at.%) exhibited intrinsic coercivity up to 14kOe. This represents a significant improvement compared to the average coercivities in conventional binary PtCo alloys of 5 to 8 kOe.Rapidly solidified specimens of Pt42Co45B13 (at.%) were annealed at 650°C and 800°C for 30 minutes. The magnetic behavior was characterized by measuring the coercive force (Hc). Samples for TEM analysis were mechanically thinned to 100 μm, dimpled to about 30 nm, and ion milled to electron transparency in a Gatan Duomill at 5 kV and 1 mA gun current. The incident ion beam angle was set at 15° and the samples were liquid nitrogen cooled during milling. These samples were analyzed with a Philips CM20T TEM/STEM operated at 200 kV.

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Transmission Electron Microscopy of oriented Co84Cr14Ta2 thin films for longitudinal magnetic recording

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100088099 ◽

1991 ◽

Vol 49 ◽

pp. 756-757

Author(s):

T. P. Nolan

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Electron Microscopy ◽

Transmission Electron Microscopy ◽

Low Cost ◽

Low Noise ◽

Information Storage ◽

High Coercivity ◽

Magnetic Alloy ◽

Magnetic Media ◽

Transmission Electron

Thin film magnetic media are being used as low cost, high density forms of information storage. The development of this technology requires the study, at the sub-micron level, of morphological, crystallographic, and magnetic properties, throughout the depth of the deposited films. As the microstructure becomes increasingly fine, widi grain sizes approaching 100Å, the unique characterization capabilities of transmission electron microscopy (TEM) have become indispensable to the analysis of such thin film magnetic media.Films were deposited at 225°C, on two NiP plated Al substrates, one polished, and one circumferentially textured with a mean roughness of 55Å. Three layers, a 750Å chromium underlayer, a 600Å layer of magnetic alloy of composition Co84Cr14Ta2, and a 300Å amorphous carbon overcoat were then sputter deposited using a dc magnetron system at a power of 1kW, in a chamber evacuated below 10-6 torr and filled to 12μm Ar pressure. The textured medium is presently used in industry owing to its high coercivity, Hc, and relatively low noise. One important feature is that the coercivity in the circumferential read/write direction is significandy higher than that in the radial direction.

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Cryo-electron microscopy of two-dimensional crystals of reduced type B botulinum neurotoxin

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100123052 ◽

1992 ◽

Vol 50 (1) ◽

pp. 530-531

Author(s):

P. F. Flicker ◽

V.S. Kulkarni ◽

J. P. Robinson ◽

G. Stubbs ◽

B. R. DasGupta

Keyword(s):

Disulfide Bonds ◽

Clostridium Botulinum ◽

Structural Changes ◽

Two Dimensional ◽

Type B ◽

Single Chain ◽

Muscle Paralysis ◽

Cryo Electron Microscopy ◽

Disulfide Linkages ◽

Intracellular Action

Botulinum toxin is a potent neurotoxin produced by Clostridium botulinum. The toxin inhibits release of neurotransmitter, causing muscle paralysis. There are several serotypes, A to G, all of molecular weight about 150,000. The protein exists as a single chain or or as two chains, with two disulfide linkages. In a recent investigation on intracellular action of neurotoxins it was reported that type B neurotoxin can inhibit the release of Ca++-activated [3H] norepinephrine only if the disulfide bonds are reduced. In order to investigate possible structural changes in the toxin upon reduction of the disulfide bonds, we have prepared two-dimensional crystals of reduced type B neurotoxin. These two-dimensional crystals will be compared with those of the native (unreduced) type B toxin.

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Fine structure and properties of defects in naturally occurring silicates and oxides

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100175430 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 48 (4) ◽

pp. 460-461

Author(s):

David R. Veblen

Keyword(s):

Chemical Reactions ◽

High Resolution Electron Microscopy ◽

Extended Defects ◽

Single Chain ◽

Naturally Occurring ◽

Resolution Electron ◽

Fine Structures ◽

Image Simulations ◽

Similar Crystal Structure

Extended defects and interfaces control many processes in rock-forming minerals, from chemical reactions to rock deformation. In many cases, it is not the average structure of a defect or interface that is most important, but rather the structure of defect terminations or offsets in an interface. One of the major thrusts of high-resolution electron microscopy in the earth sciences has been to identify the role of defect fine structures in reactions and to determine the structures of such features. This paper will review studies using HREM and image simulations to determine the structures of defects in silicate and oxide minerals and present several examples of the role of defects in mineral chemical reactions. In some cases, the geological occurrence can be used to constrain the diffusional properties of defects.The simplest reactions in minerals involve exsolution (precipitation) of one mineral from another with a similar crystal structure, and pyroxenes (single-chain silicates) provide a good example. Although conventional TEM studies have led to a basic understanding of this sort of phase separation in pyroxenes via spinodal decomposition or nucleation and growth, HREM has provided a much more detailed appreciation of the processes involved.

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Elemental mass loss in silicate minerals during x-ray analysis

Proceedings, annual meeting, Electron Microscopy Society of America ◽

10.1017/s0424820100177155 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 48 (4) ◽

pp. 804-805

Author(s):

P.E. Champness ◽

R.W. Devenish

Keyword(s):

Mass Loss ◽

Current Density ◽

Damage Mechanism ◽

Beam Current ◽

Single Chain ◽

Plagioclase Feldspar ◽

X Ray ◽

Alkali Ions ◽

Structural Order ◽

Sheet Silicate

It has long been recognised that silicates can suffer extensive beam damage in electron-beam instruments. The predominant damage mechanism is radiolysis. For instance, damage in quartz, SiO2, results in loss of structural order without mass loss whereas feldspars (framework silicates containing Ca, Na, K) suffer loss of structural order with accompanying mass loss. In the latter case, the alkali ions, particularly Na, are found to migrate away from the area of the beam. The aim of the present study was to investigate the loss of various elements from the common silicate structures during electron irradiation at 100 kV over a range of current densities of 104 - 109 A m−2. (The current density is defined in terms of 50% of total current in the FWHM probe). The silicates so far ivestigated are:- olivine [(Mg, Fe)SiO4], a structure that has isolated Si-O tetrahedra, garnet [(Mg, Ca, Fe)3Al2Si3AO12 another silicate with isolated tetrahedra, pyroxene [-Ca(Mg, Fe)Si2O6 a single-chain silicate; mica [margarite, -Ca2Al4Si4Al4O2O(OH)4], a sheet silicate, and plagioclase feldspar [-NaCaAl3Si5O16]. Ion- thinned samples of each mineral were examined in a VG Microscopes UHV HB501 field- emission STEM. The beam current used was typically - 0.5 nA and the current density was varied by defocussing the electron probe. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectra were collected every 10 seconds for a total of 200 seconds using a Link Systems windowless detector. The thickness of the samples in the area of analysis was normally 50-150 nm.

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