Atul Srivastava

Blueshift in optical band gap in nanocrystalline Zn1−xCaxO films deposited by sol-gel method

A blueshift in the optical band gap of nanocrystalline Zn1−xCaxO thin films has been obtained. A 12.72% enhancement in the band gap of ZnO thin films has been obtained using Ca dopant for the first time. The band gap widens from 3.38 to 3.81 eV as the Ca concentration increases from x=0 to x=0.15. The films are deposited by sol-gel method and have a hexagonal wurtzite phase with no indication of calcium. Grain size lies in the range of 12–92 nm. Atomic force micrographs indicate much smaller rms surface roughness showing significantly smooth surfaces.

Optical sensor for determining adulteration in a liquid sample

An optical sensor for determining the proportional composition of two liquids in a mixture is developed. It is based on observing changes in the reflected light intensity at the glass-mixture interface brought about by the changes in the proportion of one liquid over that of the other in the mixture. Sample mixtures for this investigation here have been prepared by changing the concentration of substances such as kerosene and diesel fuel in a fixed volume of petrol. A procedure for identifying as well as evaluating the concentration of kerosene or of diesel fuel or of a mixture of the two in a sample of petrol has been reported. Evaporation of these sample mixtures is carried out by exposing them to a constant flow of air at the same temperature as that of the sample mixtures. Experimental determination of the changes in the reflected intensity are carried out by using an arrangement in which one of the two isosceles surfaces of a right-angled isosceles prism is interfaced with the sample mixture. Experimentally determined values for some of these changes are compared with the theoretical estimates for them obtained from Fresnels equation.

Cd1-xZnxS/ZnS core/shell quantum dot ferroelectric liquid crystal composite system: analysis of faster optical response and lower operating voltage

Cd1−xZnxS/ZnS core/shell-structured quantum dot (QD)-doped ferroelectric liquid crystal (FLC) Felix 17/000 has been investigated in the present study. In the SmC* phase, the effect of QD on the dielectric and electro-optical properties of FLC has been studied as a function of dopant concentration. A substantial change in the different parameters like tilt angle, spontaneous polarisation, response time and relative permittivity has been observed for the composite system. Nearly two times faster response of the composite system with lower operating voltage is one of the promising results of the present study. The faster optical response along with the decreased value of spontaneous polarisation can be utilised in low power consumption liquid crystal displays.

Effect of toxic gases on humidity sensing property of nanocrystalline ZnO film

Humidity sensing property of nanocrystalline ZnO film has been investigated over a range of 5–90RH%. Contrary to more popular electrical approach, a novel optoelectronic sensing method has been used. Performance of the humidity sensor is affected by the presence of toxic gases in atmosphere. To gauge this effect, the humidity sensing properties of the film are studied by exposing it to the environment of H2S, SO2, and CH3OH one by one. The zinc oxide film is deposited using print and fire technology. X-ray diffraction of the film shows polycrystalline structure with average grain size of 33.5nm. The effect of toxic gases on the humidity sensing behavior of the film is explained while studying surface morphology of the film. The least detectable change (LDC) in humidity is evaluated for each case. For unexposed film it is found to be 0.14RH%. The LDC in the case of SO2-exposed film is recovered back almost completely by heat treatment.

New approach to the measurement of refractive index

A new approach for the measurement of a refractive index is presented, following the introduction of a novel feature based on the selection of a large number of angles of incidence along a direction of symmetry at the prism-ambient interface, without moving the incident beam. This gives rise to very high sensitivities over a refractive index range determined by the divergence of this beam.

Optoelectronic refractometer characterized by high sensitivity over a wide range of refractive index

A new design for a prism-based optoelectronic refractometer proposed earlier has been investigated. Experimental results are found to be in close agreement with theoretical calculations. For a given refractive index of the prism material, the divergence of the incident conical beam and angles of the prism determine the range of refractive index of the ambient over which the refractometer remains highly sensitive. Incident conical beams of higher divergences are found to enlarge this range. This refractometer is more robust and user-friendly than other such refractometers reported in the literature. Such a device can be useful for on-line measurements of refractive indices in process control systems.

Fiber optical sensor for the determination of adulteration in petrol

The newly designed prism based fiber optical refractometer sensor has been used to determine adulteration in petrol. A procedure for identification of the adulterant and determination of its concentration in a sample of petrol has been reported. Substances like kerosene, diesel, a mixture of these two or of aviation gasoline and kerosene have been used as adulterants.

Prism-based fiber optical refractometer sensor

The new design for the prism based refractometer sensor presented here is characterized by its high sensitivity over a wide range of refractive indices of the ambient. The refractometer is more robust and user friendly than other such refractometers reported in literature.

Effect of metallic silver nanoparticles on the alignment and relaxation behaviour of liquid crystalline material in smectic C* phase

The influence of silver nanoparticles dispersed in a Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal (FLC) on the properties of the resultant composite system has been investigated by thermal, electro–optical, and dielectric methods. We show that the concentration of thiol capped silver nanoparticles is a critical factor in governing the alignment of nanoparticles (NPs) in the host FLC. The orientation of NPs in composite samples affects the ordering of the LC (Liquid Crystal) phase and consequently changes the various phase transition temperatures of the host LC. Formation of self-assembled 2D (two dimensional) arrays of nanoparticles is observed for high concentration of dopant in the LC, oriented perpendicular to the direction of rubbing. We propose that the molecular interaction between the thiol capped NPs and LC molecules is the key factor behind such an arrangement of NPs. Orientation of NPs has affected the relaxation behaviour and various other material parameters, significantly. A noteworthy change in DC conductivity articulates our proposed idea of the formation of 2D array of NPs perpendicular to the direction of rubbing. This comprehensive study endorses the importance of dopant concentration in modifying the properties of the host LC material.The influence of silver nanoparticles dispersed in a Ferroelectric Liquid Crystal (FLC) on the properties of the resultant composite system has been investigated by thermal, electro–optical, and dielectric methods. We show that the concentration of thiol capped silver nanoparticles is a critical factor in governing the alignment of nanoparticles (NPs) in the host FLC. The orientation of NPs in composite samples affects the ordering of the LC (Liquid Crystal) phase and consequently changes the various phase transition temperatures of the host LC. Formation of self-assembled 2D (two dimensional) arrays of nanoparticles is observed for high concentration of dopant in the LC, oriented perpendicular to the direction of rubbing. We propose that the molecular interaction between the thiol capped NPs and LC molecules is the key factor behind such an arrangement of NPs. Orientation of NPs has affected the relaxation behaviour and various other material parameters, significantly. A noteworthy change in DC conductiv...

Analysis of faster optical response in core/shell nanocrystals ferroelectric liquid crystal composite

The paper presents the way that colour can serve solving the problem of calibration points indexing in a camera geometrical calibration process. We propose a technique in which indexes of calibration points in a black-and-white chessboard are represented as sets of colour regions in the neighbourhood of calibration points. We provide some general rules for designing a colour calibration chessboard and provide a method of calibration image analysis. We show that this approach leads to obtaining better results than in the case of widely used methods employing information about already indexed points to compute indexes. We also report constraints concerning the technique. Nowadays we are witnessing an increasing need for camera geometrical calibration systems. They are vital for such applications as 3D modelling, 3D reconstruction, assembly control systems, etc. Wherever possible, calibration objects placed in the scene are used in a camera geometrical calibration process. This approach significantly increases accuracy of calibration results and makes the calibration data extraction process easier and universal. There are many geometrical camera calibration techniques for a known calibration scene [1]. A great number of them use as an input calibration points which are localised and indexed in the scene. In this paper we propose the technique of calibration points indexing which uses a colour chessboard. The presented technique was developed by solving problems we encountered during experiments with our earlier methods of camera calibration scene analysis [2]-[3]. In particular, the proposed technique increases the number of indexed points points in case of local lack of calibration points detection. At the beginning of the paper we present a way of designing a chessboard pattern. Then we describe a calibration point indexing method, and finally we show experimental results. A black-and-white chessboard is widely used in order to obtain sub-pixel accuracy of calibration points localisation [1]. Calibration points are defined as corners of chessboard squares. Assuming the availability of rough localisation of these points, the points can be indexed. Noting that differences in distances between neighbouring points in calibration scene images differ slightly, one of the local searching methods can be employed (e.g. [2]). Methods of this type search for a calibration point to be indexed, using a window of a certain size. The position of the window is determined by a vector representing the distance between two previously indexed points in the same row or column. However, experiments show that this approach has its disadvantages, as described below. * E-mail: A.Nowakowski@ire.pw.edu.pl Firstly, there is a danger of omitting some points during indexing in case of local lack of calibration points detection in a neighbourhood (e.g. caused by the presence of non-homogeneous light in the calibration scene). A particularly unfavourable situation is when the local lack of detection effects in the appearance of separated regions of detected calibration points. It is worth saying that such situations are likely to happen for calibration points situated near image borders. Such points are very important for the analysis of optical nonlinearities, and a lack of them can significantly influence the accuracy of distortion modelling. Secondly, such methods may give wrong results in the case of optical distortion with strong nonlinearities when getting information about the neighbouring index is not an easy task. Beside this, the methods are very sensitive to a single false localisation of a calibration point. Such a single false localisation can even result in false indexing of a big set of calibration points. To avoid the above-mentioned problems, we propose using a black-and-white chessboard which contains the coded index of a calibration point in the form of colour squares situated in the nearest neighbourhood of each point. The index of a certain calibration point is determined by colours of four nearest neighbouring squares (Fig.1). An order of squares in such foursome is important. Because the size of a colour square is determined only by the possibility of correct colour detection, the size of a colour square can be smaller than the size of a black or white square. The larger size of a black or white square is determined by the requirements of the exact localisation step which follows the indexing of calibration points [3]. In this step, edge information is extracted from a blackand-white chessboard. This edge information needs larger Artur Nowakowski, Wladyslaw Skarbek Institute of Radioelectronics, Warsaw University of Technology, Nowowiejska 15/19, 00-665 Warszawa, A.Nowakowski@ire.pw.edu.pl Received February 10, 2009; accepted March 27, 2009; published March 31, 2009 http://www.photonics.pl/PLP