An investigation of ultrahigh-density ferroelectric data storage based on scanning nonlinear dielectric microscopy (SNDM) is described. To obtain fundamental knowledge of high-density ferroelectric data storage, several studies of nanodomain formation in a congruent lithium tantalate single crystal were conducted. This paper is a summary report consisting of the most recent experimental data from investigations of ferroelectric high density data storage.

A local atomic electric dipole moment distribution of Si atoms on Si(111)-(7 x 7) surface is clearly resolved by using a new technique called noncontact scanning nonlinear dielectric microscopy. The dc-bias voltage dependence of the atomic dipole moment on the Si(111)-(7 x 7) surface is measured. At the weak applied voltage of -0.5 V, a positive dipole moment is detected on the Si adatom sites, whereas a negative dipole moment is observed at the interstitial sites of inter Si adatoms. Moreover, the quantitative dependence of the surface dipole moment as a function of the applied dc voltage is also revealed at a fixed point above the sample surface. This is the first successful demonstration of direct atomic dipole moment observation achieved in the field of capacitance measurement.

Space-based microgravity environments have been utilized to obtain a highly ordered crystal because of the lack of gravity-induced convection. A superconducting magnet-based quasi-microgravity is also expected to contribute to the enhancement of the quality of protein crystals. We here report a case study on protein crystallization using fifteen kinds of samples in a magnetic field gradient, which was sufficient for magnetic levitation of water droplets. In three cases, rod-type crystals were aligned perpendicular to the crystallization plate, exhibiting magnetic orientation parallel to the direction of the magnetic field. Five proteins showed improvement in crystal quality evaluated by the resolution limit in X-ray diffraction experiments and the overall B-factor of the crystal. Our data support the idea that the reduced-gravity environment produced by a high magnetic field gradient can be used to obtain enhanced-quality protein crystals, aiding in the determination of their precise crystal structures.

The gauge-links connecting the parton field operators in the hadronic matrix elements appearing in the transverse momentum dependent distribution functions give rise to T -odd effects. Due to the process-dependence of the gauge-links the T -odd distribution functions appear with different prefactors. A consequence is that in the description of single spin asymmetries the parton distribution and fragmentation functions are convoluted with gluonic pole cross sections rather than the basic partonic cross sections. In this paper we calculate the gluonic pole cross sections encountered in single spin asymmetries in hadronhadron scattering. The case of back-to-back pion production in polarized proton-proton scattering is worked out explicitly. It is shown how T -odd gluon distribution functions originating from gluonic pole matrix elements appear in twofold.

Non-contact scanning nonlinear dielectric microscopy (NC-SNDM) operated under ultra high vacuum (UHV) conditions was developed. This microscopy enables the simultaneous measurement of the topography and dielectric properties of a specimen. For electrically conductive materials, the tunnelling current is also measurable. The atomic structure of Si(111)7 × 7 was successfully resolved using this new SNDM technique. This is the first report on the achievement of atomic resolution in capacitance measurements.