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Chen, Shu

Publications and source records attributed to Chen, Shu.

6 records
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2022

Real-space nanoimaging of THz polaritons in the topological insulator Bi 2 Se 3

Plasmon polaritons in topological insulators attract attention from a fundamental perspective and for potential THz photonic applications. Although polaritons have been observed by THz far-field spectroscopy on topological insulator microstructures, real-space imaging of propagating THz polaritons has been elusive so far. Here, we show spectroscopic THz near-field images of thin Bi 2 Se 3 layers (prototypical topological insulators) revealing polaritons with up to 12 times increased momenta as compared to photons of the same energy and decay times of about 0.48 ps, yet short propagation lengths. From the images we determine and analyze the polariton dispersion, showing that the polaritons can be explained by the coupling of THz radiation to various combinations of Dirac and massive carriers at the Bi 2 Se 3 surfaces, massive bulk carriers and optical phonons. Our work provides critical insights into the nature of THz polaritons in topological insulators and establishes instrumentation and methodology for imaging of THz polaritons.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Comparison of 20 nm silver nanoparticles synthesized with and without a gold core. Structure, dissolution in cell culture media, and biological impact on macrophages

Widespread use of silver nanoparticles raises questions of environmental impact and toxicity. Both silver particles and silver ions formed by particle dissolution may impact biological systems. Therefore it is important to understand the characteristics of silver nanoparticles and their stability in relevant media. The synthesis route can impact physical and chemical characteristics of the particles and we report the characterization and solution stability of three types of silver nanoparticles (20 nm particles with and without gold cores and 110 nm particles with gold cores) in cell culture media with serum proteins: FBS10%/RPMI. These nanoparticles were synthesized in aqueous solution and characterized using both in situ and ex situ analysis methods. Dissolution studies were carried at particle concentrations from 1 µg/ml to 50 µg/ml. Particles with gold cores had smaller crystallite size and higher apparent solubility than pure silver particles. A dissolution model was found to describe the time variation of particle size and amount of dissolved silver for particle loadings above 9 µg/ml. An effective solubility product obtained from fitting the data was higher for the 20 nm gold core particles in comparison to the pure silver or 110 nm particles. Dissolution of the nanoparticles was enhanced by presence of serum proteins contained in fetal bovine serum. In addition, the protocol of the dispersion in the medium was found to influence particle agglomeration and dissolution. Results show that particle structure can impact the concentration of dissolved silver and the dose to which cells would be exposed during in vitro studies.

59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES↗
DOE OSTI2015

The preparation and characterization of iron fluorides polymorphs FeF{sub 3}·0.33H{sub 2}O and β-FeF{sub 3}∙3H{sub 2}O as cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Graphical abstract: Better rate capability and cycling performance were observed for β-FeF{sub 3}·3H{sub 2}O/C prepared by mechano-chemical synthesis. - Highlights: • A novel mechano-chemical preparation method. • The use of NH{sub 4}F as starting material. • Better electro-chemical performance in the case of β-FeF{sub 3}·3H{sub 2}O/C. - Abstract: Two kinds of iron fluorides, FeF{sub 3}·0.33H{sub 2}O and β-FeF{sub 3}∙3H{sub 2}O, have been synthesized by different chemical routes using Fe(NO{sub 3}){sub 3}·9H{sub 2}O and NH{sub 4}F as precursors and investigated as cathode materials for secondary lithium batteries. β-FeF{sub 3}·3H{sub 2}O was obtained via a mechano-chemical process and FeF{sub 3}·0.33H{sub 2}O was obtained by a precipitation reaction from ethanol solution. To further improve their electrochemical properties, a ball milling process with carbon has been used to form composites. The fluorides were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal analysis, FTIR spectroscopy, galvanostatic charge/discharge and cyclic voltammetry measurements. The results showed that the as-prepared β-FeF{sub 3}·3H{sub 2}O/C exhibited better rate performance and cycling stability. It exhibited an initial discharge capacity of 199.6 mA h g{sup −1} at a current density of 20 mA g{sup −1} in a voltage range of 1.8–4.5 V and still reserved a discharge capacity of about 146.5 mA h g{sup −1} after 10 cycles. Only a capacity loss of 15 mA h g{sup −1} and 7 mA h g{sup −1} was observed when the current density was at 40 mA g{sup −1} and 80 mA g{sup −1}, respectively.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

A continuous cold atomic beam interferometer

We demonstrate an atom interferometer that uses a laser-cooled continuous beam of {sup 87}Rb atoms having velocities of 10–20 m/s. With spatially separated Raman beams to coherently manipulate the atomic wave packets, Mach–Zehnder interference fringes are observed at an interference distance of 2L = 19 mm. The apparatus operates within a small enclosed area of 0.07 mm{sup 2} at a bandwidth of 190 Hz with a deduced sensitivity of 7.8×10{sup −5} rad/s/√(Hz) for rotations. Using a low-velocity continuous atomic source in an atom interferometer enables high sampling rates and bandwidths without sacrificing sensitivity and compactness, which are important for applications in real dynamic environments.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗