Teppei Nishi

Multilayered polycrystallization in single-crystal YSZ by laser-shock compression

A single shot of an ultra-intense laser with 0.8 J of energy and a pulse width of 110 fs (peak intensity of W cm−2) is divided into two beams and the two beams counter-irradiated onto a 0.5 mm-thick single crystal yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ), changing the YSZ into a multilayered polycrystalline state. The laser-driven shock wave of the intensity 7.6 Pa penetrated the crystal as deep as 96 m, causing formation of a four-layered structure (the first layer from the surface to 12 m, the second from 12 to 28 m, the third from 28 to 96 m, and the fourth from 96 to 130 m, respectively). The grain size of the first layer was 1 m, while that of the second layer was broken into a few tens nanometers. The grain size of the third layer was a few hundred nanometers to a few ten micrometers. The area deeper than 96 m remained as a single crystal. The plasma heat wave might remelt the first layer, resulting in the grain size becoming larger than that of the second layer. The surface polycrystallization seems to maintain the residual stresses frozen in the film thickness direction. Our experimentally observed spatial profile of the grain size can be explained by this shock and heat waves model.

Novel method for Ag colloidal cluster formation by laser ablation at the air–liquid interface

We report a novel method for formation of sub-nanoclusters by laser ablation at the air–liquid interface. The density of plasma induced by laser ablation at the air–liquid interface should be lower than that produced by laser ablation in liquid. In the lower density plasma, the produced clusters rarely grow or aggregate into larger clusters because the collision probability is low, resulting in the formation of small clusters. Ag sub-nanoclusters were observed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). These results show that low-density plasma can be applied to small-cluster formation and that laser ablation at the air–liquid interface produces a good reactive field for the formation of sub-nanoclusters. Our results highlight the importance of low-density plasma induced at the air–liquid interface for sub-nanocluster formation.

Amorphous nanostructuralization in HOPG by 1014 W cm-2 laser

This reports provide an amorphous nanostructuralization technique on the surface modification in Highly Oriented Pyrolytic Graphite (HOPG) by using a femtosecond laser. We showed, for the first time, that the surface of HOPG is changed to the amorphous nanostructuralization graphite by using a femtosecond laser-driven compression technique. Our results also suggest that the HOPG surface is changed until the deeper area from the surface by the laser-driven shock wave. A single shot of a femtosecond laser beam (1.27 ~ 1.33×1014 Wcm~2 in intensity, with 2 mm-diameter, and 110 fs in pulse width) is irradiated under the vacuum ambience onto a 2 mm-thick of HOPG. The calculated impact pressures on a sample was 8.3 ~ 8.7 GPa. Crystal structure in the HOPG were analyzed using a Raman spectroscopy and an X-ray diffraction, those analyzing depth from the surface were 50 nm and 350 μm, respectively.

Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry Study on the Increase in the Amount of Pr Atoms for Cs-Ion-Implanted Pd/CaO Multilayer Complex with Deuterium Permeation

To investigate the nuclear transmutation of Cs into Pr reported in this journal by Iwamura and coworkers, we have measured the amount of Pr atoms in the range as low as ~1×1010 cm-2 using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry for Cs-ion-implanted Pd/CaO multilayer complexes before and after deuterium permeation. The amount of Pr was initially at most 2.0×1011 cm-2 and it increased up to 1.6×1012 cm-2 after deuterium permeation. The increase in the amount of Pr could be explained neither by deuterium permeation-stimulated segregation of Pr impurities nor by external contamination from the experimental environment during the permeation. No increase in Pr was observed for permeation with hydrogen. These findings suggest that the observed increase in Pr with deuterium permeation can be attributed to a nuclear origin, as reported by Iwamura and coworkers, although the amount of the increase in Pr is two orders of magnitude less than that reported by them.