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The 2000 Nuclear Data Sheets for A = 121 by T. Tamura, with literature cutoff date of July 1,1999 has been updated. The experimental results from various decays and reactions for A=121 mass chain have been compiled and evaluated. The nuclides covered in this evaluation are from {sup 121}Rh to {sup 121}Pr. The data are summarized and presented, together with adopted level schemes.
A complete solid solution between the anion-deficient pyrochlore Ag{sub 2}Sb{sub 2}O{sub 6} and the ideal pyrochlore Cd{sub 2}Sb{sub 2}O{sub 7} has been synthesized through the standard solid state ceramic method. Each composition has been characterized by various different techniques, including powder X-ray diffraction, optical spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance and {sup 121}Sb Mössbauer spectroscopy. Computational methods based on density functional theory complement this investigation. Photocatalytic activity has been studied, and transport properties have been measured on pellets densified by spark plasma sintering. The analysis of the data collected from these various techniques enables a comprehensive characterization of the complete solid solution and revealed an anomalous behavior in the Cd-rich end of the solid solution, which has been proposed to arise from a possible radical O{sup −} species in small concentrations. - Graphical abstract: A complete solid solution between the anion-deficient pyrochlore Ag{sub 2}Sb{sub 2}O{sub 6} and the ideal pyrochlore Cd{sub 2}Sb{sub 2}O{sub 7} has been synthesized and investigated through various techniques including X-ray diffraction, electron paramagnetic spectroscopy, and {sup 121}Sb-Mössbauer spectroscopy. Optical and electrical measurements have been performed, and computational methods have been applied to determine the density of states. Photocatalytic activity was monitored by the degradation of Methylene Blue, and upon cadmium substitution, the degradation amount decreased, which is attributed primarily to the changing optical and electrical properties of the solid solution. Display Omitted - Highlights: • A complete solid solution between Ag{sub 2}Sb{sub 2}O{sub 6} and Cd{sub 2}Sb{sub 2}O{sub 7} has been synthesized. • XRD reveals a relatively constant lattice parameter as the series progresses. • Optical and electrical properties have been measured for the solid solution. • Computational methods have been used to determine the density of states. • Photocatalytic degradation of Methylene Blue decreased upon cadmium substitution.
Tandem solar cells consisting of high bandgap cadmium telluride alloys atop crystalline silicon have potential for high efficiencies exceeding the Shockley-Queisser limit. However, experimental results have fallen well below this goal significantly because of non-ideal current matching and light trapping. In this work, we simulate cadmium zinc telluride (CZT) and crystalline silicon (c-Si) tandems as an exemplary system to show the role that a hybrid light trapping and bandgap engineering approach can play in improving performance and lowering materials costs for tandem solar cells incorporating crystalline silicon. This work consists of two steps. First, we optimize absorption in the crystalline silicon layer with front pyramidal texturing and asymmetric dielectric back gratings, which results in 121% absorption enhancement from a planar structure. Then, using this pre-optimized light trapping scheme, we model the dispersion of the Cd x Zn 1-x Te alloys, and then adjust the bandgap to realize the best current matching for a range of CZT thicknesses. Using experimental parameters, the corresponding maximum efficiency is predicted to be 16.08 % for a total tandem cell thickness of only 2.2 μm.
There is a highly need of an alternate of toxic materials CdS for solar cell applications and indium sulfide is found the most suitable candidate to replace CdS due to its non-toxic and environmental friendly nature. In this paper, the effect of thermal annealing on the structural and optical properties of indium sulfide (In{sub 2}S{sub 3}) thin films is undertaken. The indium sulfide thin films of 121 nm were deposited on glass substrates employing thermal evaporation method. The films were subjected to the X-ray diffractometer and UV-Vis spectrophotometer respectively for structural and optical analysis. The XRD pattern show that the as-deposited thin film was amorphous in nature and crystallinity is found to be varied with annealing temperature. The optical analysis reveals that the optical band gap is varied with annealing. The optical parameters like absorption coefficient, extinction coefficient and refractive index were calculated. The results are in good agreement with available literature.
Heavy metal pollution of water sources has become one of the most serious environmental and health problems nowadays. Chitosan (CHI) and derivatives can be used in the complexation and adsorption of heavy metals in water. Hence, this study compared the influence of CHI and carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC) ligands on the competitive complexation between toxic heavy metal ions with opposite charges Cr(VI) and Cd(II) at different pH values as an alternative and ecologically sustainable proposal for industrial spills of heavy metals into aquatic environments. The properties of the synthesized products and CHI were extensively characterized by several spectroscopy techniques, the competitive kinetics of complexation of metal ions with CHI and two type of CMC (with methanol, CMC 40-ME, and with ethanol, CMC 60-ET) was evaluated by wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (WDXRF). The results clearly indicated the influence of the pH and ligands on the competitive complexation of the cationic or anionic ions. The results demonstrated that O-carboxymethylation of chitosan has occurred with a degree of functionalization of (1.20 ± 0.02) and (0.88 ± 0.02) for CMC 40-ME and CMC 60-ET, respectively, leading to the formation of CMC soluble in alkaline medium (pH range of 3.5 ≤ pH ≤ 6.5 and 4.0 ≤ pH ≤ 8.0 for CMC 40-ME and CMC 60-ET, respectively). In alkaline media, complexation of CMC 40-ME is approximately 10% higher (147.2 ± 0.9 mg g{sup −1}) than CMC 60-ET (99.8 ± 2.9 mg g{sup −1}) with Cd{sup 2+} ions at pH 8.5, and approximately 21% lower [(95 ± 2 mg g{sup −1}) and (96.3 ± 2.8 mg g{sup −1}) for CMC 40-ME and CMC 60-ET, respectively] than CHI (121 ± 6 mg g{sup −1}) for Cr{sub x}O{sub y}{sup z−} ions at pH 3.0. The kinetic analysis showed variations for each ion and a significant difference regarding the complexant towards the negatively charged ions. The CMC 40-ME, in any analyzed pH, the complexation occurred during the first 45 min of the process. These results showed that CMC, as polydentate functional ligand, was more efficient than CHI especially for the complexation of cations in basic media. Therefore, these systems appear to be attractive alternatives for the containment of industrial spills of heavy metals in wastewater.
The electronic spectra of complex acceptors in compensated CdTe:Cl, CdTe:Ag,Cl, and CdTe:Bi,Cl single crystals are studied using low-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements under both nonresonant and resonant excitation of distant donor–acceptor pairs (DAP). The wavelength modulation of the excitation source combined with the analysis of the differential PL signal is used to enhance narrow spectral features obscured because of inhomogeneous line broadening and/or excitation transfer for selectively excited DAPs. For the well-known tetrahedral (T{sub D}) Ag{sub Cd} acceptor, the energies of four excited states are measured, and the values obtained are shown to be in perfect agreement with the previous data. Moreover, splitting between the 2P{sub 3/2} (Γ{sub 8}) and 2S{sub 3/2} (Γ{sub 8}) states is clearly observed for Ag{sub Cd} centers located at a short distance (5–7 nm) from a hydrogen-like donor (Cl{sub Te}). This splitting results from the reduction of the T{sub D} symmetry taking place when the acceptor is a member of a donor–acceptor pair. For the Cl-related complex acceptor with an activation energy of ∼121 meV (A-center), the energies of eight excited states are measured. It is shown that this defect produces low-symmetry central-cell correction responsible for the strong splitting of S-like T{sub D} shells. The energy spectrum of the Bi-related shallow acceptor with an activation energy of ∼36 meV is measured as well. The spectrum obtained differs drastically from the hydrogen-like set of levels, which indicates the existence of repulsive low-symmetry perturbation of the hydrogen-like Coulomb potential. It is also shown that the spectra of selectively excited PL recorded for a macroscopic ensemble of distant donor–acceptor pairs allow one to detect the low symmetry of acceptors of a given type caused by their complex nature or by the Jahn–Teller distortion. This method does not require any additional (external) field and is applicable to acceptors in diverse zinc-blende compound semiconductors.