Near the critical point, isothermal interfacial zones are investigated starting from a non-local density of energy. From the equations of motion of thermocapillary fluids [1], we point out a new kind of adiabatic waves propagating along the interfacial layers. The waves are associated with the second derivatives of densities and propagate with a celerity depending on the proximity of the critic...

Organic semiconductor photovoltaics offer a promising route to low-cost, scalable, emissions-free electricity generation. However, achieving higher power conversion efficiencies is critical before these devices can play a larger role in our future energy generation landscape. Organic photovoltaic devices are currently limited by two primary challenges: (1) a trade-off between light absorption a...

The pathway of interfacial self-assembly of large-scale, highly ordered 2D nanoparticle/polymer monolayer or bilayer arrays from a toluene solution at an air/water interface was investigated using grazing-incidence small-angle scattering at a synchrotron source. Interfacial-assembly of the ordered nanoparticle/polymer array was found to occur through two stages: formation of an incipient random...

A density of states Monte Carlo formalism is used to calculate the interfacial tension of a simple fluid ~3D Ising model! and of free-standing polymer films on a lattice. Good agreement is found between the results of these calculations and literature values. The proposed approach is efficient and provides the surface tension over a wide range of temperature from a single simulation. It has the...

For interfacial interactions of “separable type” the existence is proved of stable multiphase equilibrium states minimizing the total energy which includes a sharp interface contribution along interfaces separating the phases. The second gradients of deformation do not occur; the theory is based on interfacial null lagrangians as determined in [11–12]. The interfacial interaction is always of s...

The interfacial reaction and energy level alignment at the Si/transition metal oxide (TMO, including MoO3-x, V2O5-x, WO3-x) heterojunction are systematically investigated. We confirm that the interfacial reaction appears during the thermal deposition of TMO, with the reaction extent increasing from MoO3-x, to V2O5-x, and to WO3-x. The reaction causes the surface oxidation of silicon for faster ...

Polymers are used in biological micro-nanoelectromechanical systems BioMEMS/NEMS applications due to their desirable mechanical properties, biocompatibility, and reduced cost relative to silicon microfabrication processes. Understanding the interfacial properties of the films that are used in BioMEMS/NEMS serves as a useful tool in obtaining higher device yield and greater mechanical reliabilit...

Experiments show that vacancies in solids may coalesce into voids and self-organize into a superlattice. The voids have diameters around 10 nm and spacing of tens of nanometers. This paper develops a phase-field model to study this behavior, which incorporates the free energy of mixing, interfacial energy and elastic energy. Vacancy diffusion is described by a Cahn–Hilliard type nonlinear diffu...