Current lithium‐ion battery technology is gearing towards meeting the robust demand of power and energy requirements for all‐electric transportation without compromising on the safety, performance, and cycle life. The state‐of‐charge (SOC) of a Li‐ion cell can be a macroscopic indicator of the state‐of‐health of the battery. The microscopic origin of the SOC relates to the local lithium content in individual electrode particles and the effective ability of Li‐ions to transport or shuttle between the redox couples through the cell geometric boundaries. Herein, micrometer‐resolved Raman mapping of a transition‐metal‐based oxide positive electrode, Li1‐x(NiyCozAl1‐y‐z)O2, maintained at different SOCs, is shown. An attempt has been made to link the underlying changes to the composition and structural integrity at the individual particle level. Furthermore, an SOC distribution at macroscopic length scale of the electrodes is presented.

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We used in situ spectroscopic ellipsometry to measure the photocatalytic activity of titania films on fused silica and glass substrates. Amorphous and anatase TiO2 films with a variety of microstructures were prepared by reactive sputtering and pyrolytic deposition. The titania films were coated with thin, spin-cast films of stearic acid [CH3(CH2)16COOH] to represent an organic contaminant. Photooxidation rates were determined from ellipsometric measurements of the reduction in stearic acid film thickness during exposure to UV irradiation at 313 or 365 nm. The photooxidation rate was found to be proportional to I α, where I is the irradiance. The exponent α correlated with the TiO2 crystallinity, having values of approximately 0.7 and 0.8 for amorphous and anatase films, respectively. The largest photooxidation rate was observed for the pyrolytically deposited anatase sample on which X-ray reflectometry and spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements detected the presence of a low-density TiO2 surface layer. To assess the performance of these films in practical applications, the specimens were exposed to wavelength and irradiance conditions that simulated a solar UV spectrum. The most photocatalytically active sample had a stearic acid film removal rate of 22 nm/h, which would be suitable for self-cleaning window applications.

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To make a gas sensor suitable for use at high temperatures, we have used a sol-gel-processing technique to bond a copper-exchanged zeolite fluorescence indicator onto the end of an all-silica optical fiber. Experimental results from single-fiber prototype sensors show they can be used to measure either the oxygen concentration or the equivalence ratio for gas mixtures containing weak or strong reductants, respectively.

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A quantum cascade distributed feedback laser operating at 5.2 microm is used to obtain sub-Doppler resolution limited saturation features in a Lamb-dip experiment on the R(13.5)1/2 and R(13.5)3/2 transitions of NO. The dips appear as transmission spikes with full widths of ~ 4.3 MHz. At this resolution the 73 MHz _-doubling of the R(13.5)3/2 line, which is normally obscured by the 130 MHz Doppler broadening, is easily resolved.

Measurements of NO concentrations at sub-ppm levels in vehicle exhaust are needed for emissions certification of future ultra-low emission vehicles. We demonstrate a wavelength-modulation, laser-based, NO detection system suitable for this purpose. A quantum cascade distributed feedback laser (QC-DFB) operating continuous wave (cw) at ∼100 K is frequency modulated at f = 10 kHz and locked to the center of a transition at ∼1921 cm−1 in the fundamental band of NO. The demodulated signal at 2 f of the beam passing through the sample cell directly measures the NO concentration. The cell is a multipass Herriott-type with a 100-m path length. Doppler broadening, pressure broadening, and unresolved Λ doubling combine to yield a pressure for optimum sensitivity of 100 torr and a modulation amplitude of ∼600 MHz. A flowing gas system is used to avoid problems with adsorption and desorption of NO from the cell walls. The reduced pressure eliminates interference from other gas species. Detection of NO concentrations in the few parts-per-billion (ppb) range is demonstrated in diluted exhaust-gas bag samples collected in the vehicle certification process.