Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are categorized as some of inexpensive thin-film solar cells. The basis and foundation of these cells is a semiconductor that consists of an electrolyte and a light-sensitive anode. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is a semiconductor that plays the role of anode and is the main constituent of these cells. In this paper, we have addressed the functionality and performan...

Pb(Zr0.52Ti0.48)O3 (PZT) films with (001) orientation were deposited on Pt(111)/Ti/SiO2/Si(100) substrates using pulsed laser deposition. Variation of the laser pulse rate during the deposition of the PZT films was found to play a key role in the control of the microstructure and to change strongly the piezoelectric response of the thin film. The film deposited at low pulse rate has a denser co...

We present the first micromachined rotational electret power generator, linearized theoretical model of electret power generation, and novel method to produce uniformly charged electret. We also improved our previously developed [ I , 21 thin film Teflon AF 1601-S electret technology with respect to dielectric thickness, charge uniformity, and processability. In demonstration, our prototype pow...

The indentation of a brittle film on a ductile substrate is analysed for obtaining the interface toughness. This measurement method of adhesion provides a simple technique for sampling a small area of the interface on practical geometries with common laboratory equipment. Mechanics solutions are presented to access the interface toughness, Fc, from measurements of the applied load, delamination...

Specular X-ray reflectivity (XR) and quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) measurements were used to determine the absorption of water into thin poly(4-ammonium styrenesulfonic acid) films from saturated vapor at 25 degrees C. The effect of film thickness on the absorption kinetics and overall absorption was investigated in the range of thickness from (3 to 200) nm. The equilibrium swelling of all ...

We report an experimental investigation on the effect of mutual diffusion in polymeric systems on film drainage between two captive drops. The main objective is to study the influence of diffuse interfaces on film drainage. This is done by using material combinations with different interfacial properties and interferometric visualization of the film between two interacting drops. For highly dif...

Successful application of sol-gel, metalorganic decomposition, or hydrothermal routes to ceramic thin films depends on the mechanical integrity of the precursor film. Above a critical thickness, a precursor film will crack or decohere from the substrate during drying. The cracking and thickness of thin metalorganic precursor films were simultaneously observed during drying using a standard opti...

The thickness dependence of the topographic and magnetic structure of ultrathin Fe films grown on polycrystalline NiO films under ultrahigh vacuum ~UHV! conditions was studied to investigate the growth mechanism of the ferromagnetic film and the corresponding magnetic interaction with the antiferromagnetic substrate. Externally prepared NiO films of 60 nm thickness were cleaned by heating in UH...

We present an asymptotic analysis of the thickness of the liquid film that coats a smooth solid substrate when it is withdrawn from a bath of non-Newtonian fluid, and compare our results with experimental measurements. The film thickness is, to a good approximation, uniform above the point where the film is withdrawn from the fluid bath, and depends on the rotation rate, the fluid properties an...