The influence of Fermi surface anisotropy and the charge carrier surface scattering kinetics on the electrical conductivity of a thin metal film in the view of the quantum size effect

The electrical conductivity of a thin metal film in an alternating electric field is calculated considering the quantum size effect. The Fermi surface of the metal has the shape of an ellipsoid of rotation, the main axis of which is parallel to the plane of the film. The quantum kinetic equation obtained from the von Neumann equation (the Liouville quantum equation) is solved. The Soffer model is used as the boundary conditions for the distribution function. The dependence of the electrical conductivity on the film thickness is analyzed. A comparison is made with experimental data on the electrical conductivity of bismuth thin films.

Whispering gallery mode resonance excitations on a partially gold coated bottle microresonator

The study on the excitations of whispering gallery mode (WGM) resonances optical bottle microresonator (BMR) partially coated with a thin gold Au metal film is presented. The BMR was fabricated through “soften-and-compress” technique on a small section of standard optical fibre. Depositing Au particles on the spheroidal curvature of the BMR surface yields a thin metal-film of a meniscus profile with 200 nm maximum gold thickness and tapered edges. A polarization resolved experimental setup was used to excite TE- and TM-mode resonances. Coupling strengths of the excited WGMs would vary with different coupling arrangements relative to the position of the meniscus Au film. Calculated Q-factor values of composite TE and TM mode resonances were determined to be in the range 1800 and 2700, respectively.

Evolution of Shock-Induced Pressure in Laser Bioprinting

Laser bioprinting with gel microdroplets that contain living cells is a promising method for use in microbiology, biotechnology, and medicine. Laser engineering of microbial systems (LEMS) technology by laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT) is highly effective in isolating difficult-to-cultivate and uncultured microorganisms, which are essential for modern bioscience. In LEMS the transfer of a microdroplet of a gel substrate containing living cell occurs due to the rapid heating under the tight focusing of a nanosecond infrared laser pulse onto thin metal film with the substrate layer. During laser transfer, living organisms are affected by temperature and pressure jumps, high dynamic loads, and several others. The study of these factors’ role is important both for improving laser printing technology itself and from a purely theoretical point of view in relation to understanding the mechanisms of LEMS action. This article presents the results of an experimental study of bubbles, gel jets, and shock waves arising in liquid media during nanosecond laser heating of a Ti film obtained using time-resolving shadow microscopy. Estimates of the pressure jumps experienced by microorganisms in the process of laser transfer are performed: in the operating range of laser energies for bioprinting LEMS technology, pressure jumps near the absorbing film of the donor plate is about 30 MPa. The efficiency of laser pulse energy conversion to mechanical post-effects is about 10%. The estimates obtained are of great importance for microbiology, biotechnology, and medicine, particularly for improving the technologies related to laser bioprinting and the laser engineering of microbial systems.

Cost-Effective Fabrication of Fractal Silicon Nanowire Arrays

Silicon nanowires (Si NWs) emerged in several application fields as a strategic element to surpass the bulk limits with a flat compatible architecture. The approaches used for the Si NW realization have a crucial impact on their final performances and their final cost. This makes the research on a novel and flexible approach for Si NW fabrication a crucial point for Si NW-based devices. In this work, the novelty is the study of the flexibility of thin film metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) for the fabrication of Si NWs with the possibility of realizing different doped Si NWs, and even a longitudinal heterojunction p-n inside the same single wire. This point has never been reported by using thin metal film MACE. In particular, we will show how this approach permits one to obtain a high density of vertically aligned Si NWs with the same doping of the substrate and without any particular constraint on doping type and level. Fractal arrays of Si NWs can be fabricated without any type of mask thanks to the self-assembly of gold at percolative conditions. This Si NW fractal array can be used as a substrate to realize controllable artificial fractals, integrating other interesting elements with a cost-effective microelectronics compatible approach.

Resonant Subwavelength and Nano-Scale Grating Structures for Biosensing Application: A Comparative Study

Resonant-based sensors are attractive optical structures due to the easy detection of shifts in the resonance location in response to variations in the analyte refractive index (RI) in comparison to non-resonant-based sensors. In particular, due to the rapid progress of nanostructures fabrication methods, the manufacturing of subwavelength and nano-scale gratings in a large area and at a low cost has become possible. A comparative study is presented involving analysis and experimental work on several subwavelength and nanograting structures, highlighting their nano-scale features’ high potential in biosensing applications, namely: (i) Thin dielectric grating on top of thin metal film (TDGTMF), which can support the excitation of extended surface plasmons (ESPs), guided mode resonance, or leaky mode; (ii) reflecting grating for conventional ESP resonance (ESPR) and cavity modes (CMs) excitation; (iii) thick dielectric resonant subwavelength grating exhibiting guided mode resonance (GMR) without a waveguide layer. Among the unique features, we highlight the following: (a) Self-referenced operation obtained using the TDGTMF geometry; (b) multimodal operation, including ESPR, CMs, and surface-enhanced spectroscopy using reflecting nanograting; (c) phase detection as a more sensitive approach in all cases, except the case of reflecting grating where phase detection is less sensitive than intensity or wavelength detection. Additionally, intensity and phase detection modes were experimentally demonstrated using off-the-shelf grating-based optical compact discs as a low-cost sensors available for use in a large area. Several flexible designs are proposed for sensing in the visible and infrared spectral ranges based on the mentioned geometries. In addition, enhanced penetration depth is also proposed for sensing large entities such as cells and bacteria using the TDGTMF geometry.

Manufacturing Of Aluminum Coating On 3D-Printed Onyx With Cold Spray Technology

Composite materials are widely used as main parts and structural components in different fields, especially for automotive and military applications. Although these materials supply different advantages comparing to the metals, their implementation in engineering applications is limited due to low electrical and thermal properties and low resistance to erosion. To enhance these above-mentioned properties, the metallization of composite materials by creating a thin metal film on their surface can be achieved. Among different coating deposition techniques, Cold Spray appears to be the most suitable one for the metallization of temperature-sensitive materials such as polymers and composites with a thermoplastic matrix. This process relies on kinetic energy for the formation of the coating rather than on thermal energy and consequent erosion and degradation of the polymer-based composite can be avoided. In the last years, a new method to produce composite materials, as known as Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF), has been developed for industrial applications. This technique consists of a 3D printing process that involves the thermal extrusion of thermoplastic polymer and fibers in the form of filaments from a heated mobile nozzle. The implementation of this new technique is leading to the manufacturing of customized composite materials for the cold spray application. In the presented experimental campaign, Onyx material is used as a substrate. This material is made of Nylon, a thermoplastic matrix, and chopped carbon fibers randomly dispersed in it. Aluminum powders were cold sprayed on the Onyx substrate with a low-pressure cold spray (LPCS) system. This study aims to investigate the possibility of the metalizing 3D-printed composite material by cold spray technology. For this purpose, optical and microscopical analyses are carried out. Based on the results, the feasibility of the process and the influence of the morphology of the substrate are discussed, and optimal spraying conditions are proposed.