A thin diamond-like carbon (DLC) film was deposited onto a densely packed "forest" of vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes (VACNT). DLC deposition caused the tips of the CNTs to clump together to form a microstructured surface. Field-emission tests of this new composite material show the typical low threshold voltages for carbon nanotube structures (2 V μm(-1)) but with greatly increased emission current, better stability, and longer lifetime.
Amorphous As2S8 chalcogenide glass is shown to undergo changes in the refractive index upon exposure to ultraviolet light. This phenomenon is employed to fabricate an As2S8 stripe waveguide, which is shown to be an effective guided mode device with a useful switching functionality based on the photo-optical effect.
Chirality deeply impacts the macroscopic properties on all scales of the universe from elemental particles through biological structures up to astronomic systems. Specifically, chiral liquid crystals give rise to self-organized macrostructures with unparalleled properties. Here we present easy experiments with a special class of chiral liquid crystals that show temperature-induced selective reflection of light (thermochromic effect). Understanding this thermochromic effect allows undergraduate students better realize important properties of super and supramolecular systems.
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