Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) are nowadays intensively studied composites due to their excellent gas barrier properties and biocompatibility. Despite their applicative features being highly explored, the interface properties and structural film evolution of DLC coatings on PET during deposition processes are still sparsely investigated. In this study two different types of DLC films were gradually deposited on PET by radio frequency plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (RF-PECVD) using acetylene plasma. The surface morphology of the deposited samples has been analyzed by atomic force microscopy (AFM). Their chemical composition was investigated by diffusive reflectance infrared Fourier transform (DRIFT) and Raman spectroscopy analysis and the surface wettability by contact angle measurements. Subplantation processes and interface effects are revealed through the morphological and chemical analysis of both types. During plasma deposition processes the increasing carbon load causes the rise of intrinsic film stress. It is proven that stress release phenomena cause the transition between polymer-like to a more cross-linked DLC network by folding dehydrogenated chains into closed 6-fold rings. These findings significantly lead to an enhanced understanding in DLC film growth mechanism by RF-PECVD processes.

Leveraging magnetoelastic coupling, we show a power efficient mechanism for exciting nitrogen-vacancy centers in diamond.

Magnetic field noise from magnons can reduce the lifetimes of proximate spins and degrade the performance of spin based technologies. However, spatial and temporal averaging over the area of typical field sensors makes measuring magnetic field noise challenging. Here, we use an ensemble of nitrogen-vacancy (NV) point-defects in diamond to measure the spectral profile of thermally excited spinwave noise at room temperature as a function of the distance away from a 20 nm thick Permalloy (Py) thin film. We systematically vary the separation between the NV and Py layers using a silicon-dioxide wedge and measure the longitudinal relaxation rate of the NV center ms = 0 state as a function of the separation. The measured spinwave-induced relaxation of an ensemble of NV centers is well described by a magnetostatic model of dipole fields from the spinwaves. We furthermore find that our all-optical, nonperturbative measurements of the spinwave noise can be used to extract information about the ferromagnetic source, such as magnetization, damping, and fluctuating amplitude. This technique is amenable to application with stand-off from ferromagnetic elements and from buried structures.

Novel polyurethane/sodium triphosphate nanoparticles were synthesized to enhance the blood compatibility of blood-contacting materials.

Electrical switching of Néel order in an antiferromagnetic insulator is desirable as a basis for memory applications. Unlike electrically-driven switching of ferromagnetic order via spin-orbit torques, electrical switching of antiferromagnetic order remains poorly understood. Here we investigate the low-field magnetic properties of 30 nm thick, c-axis oriented α-Fe 2 O 3 Hall devices using a diamond nitrogen-vacancy (NV) center scanning microscope. Using the canted moment of α-Fe 2 O 3 as a magnetic handle on its Néel vector, we apply a saturating in-plane magnetic field to create a known initial state before letting the state relax in low field for magnetic imaging. We repeat this procedure for different in-plane orientations of the initialization field. We find that the magnetic field images are characterized by stronger magnetic textures for fields along [ 11 20] and [11 20], suggesting that despite the expected 3-fold magneto-crystalline anisotropy, our α-Fe 2 O 3 thin films have an overall in-plane uniaxial anisotropy. We also study current-induced switching of the magnetic order in α-Fe 2 O 3 . We find that the fraction of the device that switches depends on the current pulse duration, amplitude and direction relative to the initialization field. Specifically, we find that switching is most efficient when current is applied along the direction of the initialization field.

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