Nanoscale liquid Al phase formation through beam heating of MgAlO in TEM.

In this study, electron-beam irradiation of a MgAlO single-crystalline thin-film specimen in a transmission electron microscope reveals an unexpected formation of nanoscale liquid Al droplets. Despite the comparable melting temperatures of Mg and Al, the resulting liquid phase is predominantly composed of Al. This predominant presence of Al in the liquid phase is attributed to the selective evaporation of Mg, driven by its higher vapor pressure at elevated temperatures.

Elucidating the role of a unique step-like interfacial structure of η precipitates in Al-Zn-Mg alloy.

Al-Zn-Mg alloys are widely used in the transportation industry owing to their high strength-to-weight ratio. In these alloys, the main strengthening mechanism is precipitation hardening that occurs because of the formation of nano-sized precipitates. Herein, an interfacial structure of η precipitates, one of the main precipitates in these alloys, is revealed using aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and first-principles calculations.

Doubled strength and ductility via maraging effect and dynamic precipitate transformation in ultrastrong medium-entropy alloy.

Demands for ultrahigh strength in structural materials have been steadily increasing in response to environmental issues. Maraging alloys offer a high tensile strength and fracture toughness through a reduction of lattice defects and formation of intermetallic precipitates. The semi-coherent precipitates are crucial for exhibiting ultrahigh strength; however, they still result in limited work hardening and uniform ductility.

Suppressing High-Current-Induced Phase Separation in Ni-Rich Layered Oxides by Electrochemically Manipulating Dynamic Lithium Distribution.

Understanding the cycling rate-dependent kinetics is crucial for managing the performance of batteries in high-power applications. Although high cycling rates may induce reaction heterogeneity and affect battery lifetime and capacity utilization, such phase transformation dynamics are poorly understood and uncontrollable. In this study, synchrotron-based operando X-ray diffraction is performed to monitor the high-current-induced phase transformation kinetics of LiNi Co Mn O .

Faceting-roughening transition of a Cu grain boundary under electron-beam irradiation at 300 keV.

In this study, we examined the beam-irradiation effect on the structural evolution of the grain boundary (GB) in a Cu bicrystal at room temperature using a C-corrected, monochromated transmission electron microscope at an acceleration voltage of 300 keV. Faceting of the GB was observed at a low current density of the electron beam. With increasing current density, the GB became defaceted.

Evidence of Stress Development as a Source of Driving Force for Grain-Boundary Migration in a Ni Bicrystalline TEM Specimen.

In a previous study, using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), we examined grain-boundary migration behavior in a Ni bicrystal. A specimen for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was prepared using focused ion beam. The Ni lamella in the specimen was composed of two grains with surface normal directions of [1 0 0] and [1 1 0].

Analyzing the microstructure and related properties of 2D materials by transmission electron microscopy.

Two-dimensional materials such as transition metal dichalcogenide and graphene are of great interest due to their intriguing electronic and optical properties such as metal-insulator transition based on structural variation. Accordingly, detailed analyses of structural tunability with transmission electron microscopy have become increasingly important for understanding atomic configurations. This review presents a few analyses that can be applied to two-dimensional materials using transmission electron microscopy.

Selective crack suppression during deformation in metal films on polymer substrates using electron beam irradiation.

While cracks are usually considered detrimental, crack generation can be harnessed for various applications, for example in ceramic materials, via directing crack propagation and crack opening. Here, we find that electron beam irradiation prompts a crack suppression phenomenon in a copper (Cu) thin film on a polyimide substrate, allowing for the control of crack formation in terms of both location and shape. Under tensile strain, cracks form on the unirradiated region of the Cu film whereas cracks are prevented on the irradiated region.

Microstructure and Solidification Crack Susceptibility of Al 6014 Molten Alloy Subjected to a Spatially Oscillated Laser Beam.

Oscillating laser beam welding for Al 6014 alloy was performed using a single mode fiber laser and two-axis scanner system. Its effect on the microstructural evolution of the fusion zone was investigated. To evaluate the influence of oscillation parameters, self-restraint test specimens were fabricated with different beam patterns, widths, and frequencies.

Flaw-Containing Alumina Hollow Nanostructures Have Ultrahigh Fracture Strength To Be Incorporated into High-Efficiency GaN Light-Emitting Diodes.

In the present study, we found that α-alumina hollow nanoshell structure can exhibit an ultrahigh fracture strength even though it contains a significant number of nanopores. By systematically performing in situ mechanical testing and finite element simulations, we could measure that the fracture strength of an α-alumina hollow nanoshell structure is about four times higher than that of the conventional bulk size α-alumina. The high fracture strength of the α-alumina hollow nanoshell structure can be explained in terms of conventional fracture mechanics, in that the position and size of the nanopores are the most critical factors determining the fracture strength, even at the nanoscales.

Wall-thickness-dependent strength of nanotubular ZnO.

We fabricate nanotubular ZnO with wall thickness of 45, 92, 123 nm using nanoporous gold (np-Au) with ligament diameter at necks of 1.43 μm as sacrificial template. Through micro-tensile and micro-compressive testing of nanotubular ZnO structures, we find that the exponent m in [Formula: see text], where [Formula: see text] is the relative strength and [Formula: see text] is the relative density, for tension is 1.

Stabilization of a Ga-adlayer structure with the zincblende stacking sequence in the GaN(0 0 0 -1) surface at the nanoscale.

Profile imaging by in situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy is used to elucidate reconstructions of the GaN(0 0 0 -1) surface during annealing in the TEM. We have successfully captured a detailed process of a change from the stacking sequence of the wurtzite to that of the zincblende structure in the topmost three Ga layers for the surface with nanoscale hill-and-valley structures. For ab initio calculations of the change in the sequence, a model structure is approximated by the addition of a 1 × 1 Ga layer on the GaN(0 0 0 -1) surface (i.

Migration mechanism of a GaN bicrystalline grain boundary as a model system.

Using in situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, we have explored migration mechanism of a grain boundary in a GaN bicrystal as a model system. During annealing at 500 °C, the grain-boundary region underwent a decrease in thickness, which occurred by decomposition or sublimation of GaN during annealing at 500 °C coupled with electron-beam sputtering. The decrease in thickness corresponds to an increase in the driving force for migration, because the migration of the grain boundary was driven by the surface energy difference.

In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation of Whitlockite Biocompatibility: Comparative Study with Hydroxyapatite and β-Tricalcium Phosphate.

Biomimicking ceramics have been developed to induce efficient recovery of damaged hard tissues. Among them, calcium phosphate-based bioceramics have been the most widely used because of their similar composition with human hard tissue and excellent biocompatibilities. However, the incomplete understanding of entire inorganic phases in natural bone has limited the recreation of complete bone compositions.

Biofunctionalized ceramic with self-assembled networks of nanochannels.

Nature designs circulatory systems with hierarchically organized networks of gradually tapered channels ranging from micrometer to nanometer in diameter. In most hard tissues in biological systems, fluid, gases, nutrients and wastes are constantly exchanged through such networks. Here, we developed a biologically inspired, hierarchically organized structure in ceramic to achieve effective permeation with minimum void region, using fabrication methods that create a long-range, highly interconnected nanochannel system in a ceramic biomaterial.

Directing the deformation paths of soft metamaterials with prescribed asymmetric units.

By prescribing asymmetric ligaments with different arrangements in elastomeric porous membranes of pre-twisted kagome lattices, the buckling instability is avoided, allowing for smooth and homogenous structural reconfiguration in a deterministic fashion. The stress-strain behaviors and negative Poisson's ratios can be tuned by the pre-twisting angles.

Easy preparation of self-assembled high-density buckypaper with enhanced mechanical properties.

A controlled assembly and alignment of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in a high-packing density with a scalable way remains challenging. This paper focuses on the preparation of self-assembled and well-aligned CNTs with a densely packed nanostructure in the form of buckypaper via a simple filtration method. The CNT suspension concentration is strongly reflected in the alignment and assembly behavior of CNT buckypaper.

Engineering the shape and structure of materials by fractal cut.

In this paper we discuss the transformation of a sheet of material into a wide range of desired shapes and patterns by introducing a set of simple cuts in a multilevel hierarchy with different motifs. Each choice of hierarchical cut motif and cut level allows the material to expand into a unique structure with a unique set of properties. We can reverse-engineer the desired expanded geometries to find the requisite cut pattern to produce it without changing the physical properties of the initial material.

Less strained and more efficient GaN light-emitting diodes with embedded silica hollow nanospheres.

Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) become an attractive alternative to conventional light sources due to high efficiency and long lifetime. However, different material properties between GaN and sapphire cause several problems such as high defect density in GaN, serious wafer bowing, particularly in large-area wafers, and poor light extraction of GaN-based LEDs. Here, we suggest a new growth strategy for high efficiency LEDs by incorporating silica hollow nanospheres (S-HNS).

Statistical analysis on static recrystallization texture evolution in cold-rolled AZ31 magnesium alloy sheet.

Cast AZ31B-H24 magnesium alloy, comprising Mg with 3.27 wt% Al and 0.96 wt% Zn, was cold rolled and subsequently annealed.

Geometry-induced dislocations in coaxial heterostructural nanotubes.

Highly localized dislocations in GaN/ZnO hetero-nanostructures are generated from the residual strain field by lattice mismatches at two interfaces: between the substrate and hetero-nanostructures, and between the ZnO core and GaN shell. The local strain field is measured using tranmission electron microscopy, and the relationship between the nanostructure morphology and the highly localized dislocations is analyzed by a finite element method.

Fatigue-free, electrically reliable copper electrode with nanohole array.

Design and fabrication of reliable electrodes is one of the most important challenges in flexible devices, which undergo repeated deformation. In conventional approaches, mechanical and electrical properties of continuous metal films degrade gradually because of the fatigue damage. The designed incorporation of nanoholes into Cu electrodes can enhance the reliability.

Analysis of transformation plasticity in steel using a finite element method coupled with a phase field model.

An implicit finite element model was developed to analyze the deformation behavior of low carbon steel during phase transformation. The finite element model was coupled hierarchically with a phase field model that could simulate the kinetics and micro-structural evolution during the austenite-to-ferrite transformation of low carbon steel. Thermo-elastic-plastic constitutive equations for each phase were adopted to confirm the transformation plasticity due to the weaker phase yielding that was proposed by Greenwood and Johnson.