Wagga Wagga CMM 2016

Contribution List

49. Pluto: the next frontier for studies of condensed matter

Dr Helen Brand (Australian Synchrotron.)

03/02/2016, 09:00

Oral

Invited talk

In July this year, the NASA New Horizons spacecraft completed an historic flyby of the Plutonian system, the first spacecraft to visit Pluto. The long-awaited data from this mission will take months to be returned in full to Earth. However, the wealth of data received so far, although small in volume, is already providing amazing insights into the surface morphology and geochemistry of Pluto...

122. The Australian Synchrotron in 2015 – Turning Bright Ideas into Brilliant Outcomes

Prof. Michael James (Australian Synchrotron)

03/02/2016, 09:30

Contributed talk

When VIP visitors come to the Australian Synchrotron (Commonwealth Ministers & their minders, Directors of national and international laboratories & research institutes; VCs & DVCRs; my Mother-in-Law;…) we like to play a little game to try and impress them and to demonstrate the impact of our efforts. It goes a little like this: Mike: “Pick a topic, any topic, and I will tell you how we...

12. Microsecond-resolved insights by SAXS and WAXS into the early stages of CdS quantum dot formation

Prof. Andreas Magerl (University Erlangen-Nürnberg)

03/02/2016, 09:45

Contributed talk

Semiconducting nanoparticles (quantum dots) show a wide range of potential applications due to their unique size-dependent physical and chemical properties. A major issue today concerns the make of such particles with a sufficient control of the particle size, shape and polydispersity, which calls for a good understanding of the formation mechanisms involved. We have developed a free liquid...

40. Crystalline self-stratification in polymer thin films

Eliot Gann (Australian Synchrotron)

03/02/2016, 10:00

Invited talk

The orientation of molecules within thin films is of critical importance to the emerging field of organic electronics. Particularly in the case of solution processable polymers and small molecules, where alkyl side chains, included for solubility, impede conduction along that molecular direction, understanding and controlling the molecular orientation both at surfaces and in the bulk of thin...

21. Quantitative Femtosecond Charge Transfer Dynamics at Organic/Electrode Interfaces Studied by Core-Hole Clock Spectroscopy

Dr Dongchen Qi (Department of Chemistry and Physics, LIMS, La Trobe University)

03/02/2016, 11:00

Invited talk

Organic semiconductors have important applications in organic electronics and other novel hybrid devices. In these devices, the transport of charge carriers across the interfaces between organic molecules and electrodes plays an important role in determining the device performance. Charge transfer dynamics at these interfaces usually occurs at the several femtoseconds timescale which presents...

76. Reactions of dihalogenated 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophenes on metal surfaces

Dr Jennifer MacLeod (QUT)

03/02/2016, 11:30

Contributed talk

Conducting polymers are a key component of modern technologies: they are used in batteries and in displays, and they have a promising future in solar conversion and emerging technologies like flexible electronics. The polymer formed from 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene, known as poly-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene or PEDOT, is used in a variety of applications, primarily because of its low bandgap,...

74. Vacancy-mediated electrical conductivity in lithium fluoride upon moderate heating

Dr David Hoxley (La Trobe University)

03/02/2016, 11:45

Contributed talk

The challenge posed by charge accumulation at the interfaces of low dimensional electronic devices has resulted in a wide range of novel architectures as well as potential applications in organic electronics such as organic photovoltaics. These devices include, among others, organic light-emitting diodes and organic thin-film transistors. Within such devices, the use of lithium fluoride (LiF)...

56. Unconventional Molecular Weight Dependence of Charge Transport in a High Mobility n-type Semiconducting Polymer

Mr Masrur Morshed Nahid (Monash University)

03/02/2016, 12:00

Contributed talk

Semiconducting polymers are of interest for a range of applications including organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs), polymer solar cells and flexible electronics. When used as the active layer in solution-processed organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) one usually finds that charge carrier mobility increases with increasing molecular weight, due to the ability of longer chains to bridge...

71. An Approach to Degradation Mechanisms using Numerical Model Fitting in Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence (TADF) Organic Light Emitting Diodes (OLEDs)

Dr Tadahiko Hirai (CSIRO)

03/02/2016, 12:15

Contributed talk

We approach degradation mechanisms in green thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) by a numerical model fitting method included a Schottky numerical model to evaluate barrier height of carrier injection at interfaces. Using temperature dependent current-voltage (I-V) behavior of hole only (HOD) device ; glass / ITO (100nm) / HAT-CN (10) / Tris-PCz...

88. Engineering the Diamond Surface for Quantum Technologies

Dr Alastair Stacey (Centre of Excellence for Quantum Computation and Communication Technology, The University of Melbourne)

03/02/2016, 14:00

Invited talk

Quantum technologies promise exciting and transformative futures in many areas of human endeavour. An example is the field of bio-sensing, where quantum probes are already being used to answer fundamental questions about living cells. In these applications diamond often takes centre stage, as a material which simultaneously exhibits both bio-friendly and quantum-friendly properties. This...

18. Solvent restructuring at colloidal nanoparticle surfaces

Ms Mirijam Zobel (Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nürnberg)

03/02/2016, 14:30

Contributed talk

Interfaces are the key to understand manifold chemical and physical processes, for instance catalytic reactions as well as nanoparticle nucleation and growth. Nanoparticle surfaces have a strong tendency to restructure to strained atomic arrangements in order to stabilize themselves at their finite size [1,2]. But also restructuring of the solvent molecules takes place. The presence of...

82. One-step synthesis of n-type Mg$_2$Ge

Mr Rafael Santos (Australian Institute of Innovative Materials (AIIM), University of Wollongong)

03/02/2016, 14:45

Contributed talk

Magnesium-based thermoelectric materials (Mg$_2$X, X = Si, Sn, Ge) have received considerable attention due to their availability, low toxicity and reasonably good thermoelectric performance. However, the synthesis of these materials with high purity is challenging due to the volatility and high vapor pressure of magnesium. In the current study, single phase *n*-type Mg$_2$Ge has been...

94. Towards Realisation of High-Performance Thermoelectrics for Energy Conversion

Dr Zhigang Chen (the University of Queensland)

03/02/2016, 15:00

Invited talk

Thermoelectric materials directly convert thermal energy into electrical energy, offering a green and sustainable alternative for the global energy market.[1, 2] So far, extensive investigations have been made to improve the thermoelectric efficiency, which governed by the dimensionless figure-of-merit ZT ( ), where σ is the electrical conductivity, S is the Seebeck coefficient, T is the...

46. The endless possibilities of graphene on heteroepitaxial silicon carbide

Prof. Francesca Iacopi (Griffith University, Queensland Micro and Nanotechnology Centre)

04/02/2016, 08:45

Invited talk

Epitaxial graphene grown using solid source carbon from silicon carbide wafers has been for long time the only route to obtain high quality graphene directly grown at the wafer –level, which is crucial to realise the promise of graphene for nanodevices. Nonetheless, the capability of obtaining comparable quality of graphene on silicon as opposed to silicon carbide wafers, would open an immense...

31. Capturing the transition from 3C SiC(111) to graphene by XPS and STM in Ultra High Vacuum

Prof. Nunzio Motta (Queensland University of Technology)

04/02/2016, 09:15

Contributed talk

By using X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Scanning Tunneling Microscopy we have been able to follow the time evolution of graphene layers obtained by annealing 3C SiC(111)/Si(111) crystals at different temperatures. Analysis of the atomic resolution images and of the Carbon signal provides a clear picture of the graphene formation. We have been able to visualise by STM the first steps of...

15. NEXAFS characterisation of CVD graphene on copper

Mr Hud Wahab (UNSW Canberra)

04/02/2016, 09:30

Contributed talk

Technology development and device-design based upon graphene materials require reliable techniques for mass production that are time-robust and reproducible. CVD-synthesis is expected to be the prime candidate for such up-scaling. Copper is a preferred substrate for CVD. Details of the graphene-copper substrate interactions in regard to mechanical stability and electronic band structure are...

25. Graphene Nanoplatelet Biodegradable Nanocomposites: A Comparative Study

Ms Sima Kashi (School of Civil, Environmental and Chemical Engineering, RMIT University)

04/02/2016, 09:45

Contributed talk

With excellent characteristics such as high mechanical properties and electrical conductivity, graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) can be used for reinforcing polymers and developing novel materials. In the current study, different concentrations of GNPs (0-15 wt%) were embedded into poly lactide and poly (butylene adipate-co-terephthalate) which are among the leading biodegradable polymers....

36. Quest for zero loss: the materials selection problem in plasmonics

Prof. Michael Cortie (University of Technology Sydney)

04/02/2016, 10:00

Oral

Contributed talk

Under specific conditions incoming light can excite a wavelike oscillatory resonance in the free electrons of a conducting material. When this oscillation propagates along a surface it is usually termed a surface plasmon polariton; when confined to a discrete nanoparticle as a standing wave it is more correctly termed a localised surface plasmon resonance (LSPR). There is currently...

52. Development of Hydrophilic Materials for Nanofiltration Membrane Achieving Dual Resistance to Fouling and Chlorine

Dr Xi Quan Cheng (School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), Harbin Institute of Technology, Harbin 150001, P.R. China;Manufacturing Flagship ,CSIRO, Private Bag 33, Clayton South MDC, VIC 3169, Australia.)

04/02/2016, 10:15

Contributed talk

A hydrophilic thin-film-composite (TFC) nanofiltration (NF) membrane has been developed through the interfacial polymerization (IP) of amino-functional polyethylene glycol (PEG) and trimesoyl chloride. The selective layer is formed on a polyethersulfone (PES) support that is characterized using FTIR, XPS and SEM, and is dependent on monomer immersion duration, and the concentration of monomers...

69. Atomic-scale understanding of CO2 adsorption processes in metal-organic framework (MOF) materials using neutron scattering and ab initio calculations

Josie Auckett (ANSTO)

04/02/2016, 11:00

Invited talk

The dependence of the industrialised world on fossil-fuel energy generation technologies and consequent increase in atmospheric CO₂ concentrations has been blamed for emerging adverse climate effects, including an increase in global mean temperatures [1]. Until renewable, carbon-free energy sources can be efficiently harnessed to meet the world’s energy needs, interim measures are...

105. Crystallographic and magnetic structure study in SrCo3-x by high resolution x-Ray and neutron powder diffraction

Ms Fenfen Chang (The school of physics, university of New South Wales, NSW 2052)

04/02/2016, 11:30

Contributed talk

Transition metal oxides (TMOs) represent a wide set of materials with a broad range of functionalities, including superconductivity, magnetism, and ferroelectricity, which can be tuned by careful choice of parameters such as strain, oxygen content, and applied electric and magnetic fields [1-4]. This tunability makes TMO’s ideal candidate materials for use in developing novel information and...

37. Hydrates under pressure – new insights from sulfuric acid hydrates

Dr Helen Maynard-Casely (Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation)

04/02/2016, 11:45

Contributed talk

Hydrates are a rich and diverse class of materials that display a wide range of structures and properties – a feature that is only exaggerated when they are subjected to high-pressures. Consequently, these have implications on our understanding of many outer solar system bodies, where hydrates are amongst the dominant materials found there. For Europa and Ganymede, two moons under...

22. Inelastic neutron scattering as a means for determining the magnetic exchange interactions in the frustrated quantum spin chain, Linarite.

Dr Kirrily Rule (The Bragg Institute, ANSTO)

04/02/2016, 12:00

Contributed talk

One of the simplest models exhibiting one dimensional (1D) frustrated quantum interactions is the so called J1-J2 model. In this model competing ferromagnetic nearest-neighbour interactions (J1>0) and antiferromagnetic next-nearest-neighbours (J2<0) can give rise to novel phenomena such as multiferroicity for spiral spin states. Linarite, PbCuSO¬4(OH)2 is a natural mineral ideally suited to...

58. An investigation of magnetic structure and spin reorientation in Cr and Mn doped rare earth ferrites using neutron powder diffraction

Dr Xinzhi Liu (China Institute of Atomic Energies, Beijing, 102413, China/Bragg institute, ANSTO, 2232, NSW)

04/02/2016, 12:15

Contributed talk

Rare earth orthoferrite RFeO₃ is a family of perovskite with fantastic property, such as ultra-fast spin switching[1], photomagnetic excitation[2]and multiferrocity[3]. These properties usually determined by their magnetic structure and unique spin reorientation(SR) effect. The antisymmetric interaction(DM interaction)[4] induce a weak ferromagnetism at room temperature, while the...

106. X-radiation in health and disease: Novel approaches to the study of disease processes and therapy

Prof. Damian Myers (The University of Melbourne)

04/02/2016, 14:00

Invited talk

Our current medical knowledge and understanding of human biology and physiology have been predicated by our capacity to image organs, body structures, different types of tissues and particular cell types. These imaging modalities range from advanced microscopy for imaging of cells and tissues through to 2D and 3D macroscopic techniques for imaging of tissues and organs. Soft tissues in...

95. Investigation of Targeting Capabilities of Peptide-conjugated Endocannabinoid-based lipid Nanoassemblies in the Treatment of Arthritis

Ms Nicola Barrie (CSIRO, Manufacturing)

04/02/2016, 14:30

Contributed talk

Nicola Barrie, Marina Ali, Nicholas Manolios, Minoo J. Moghaddam1 Dept Rheumatology, Westmead Hospital and University of Sydney; and 1Manufacturing Flagship, CSIRO, North Ryde. **Aims**: To develop a novel drug delivery system using cannabinoid amphiphiles and evaluate the synovial homing capabilities of peptide-conjugated nanoparticles for the targeted treatment of arthritic...

32. Sodium for securing future renewable energy supply

Dr Manickam Minakshi (Murdoch University)

04/02/2016, 14:45

Contributed talk

The storage and recovery of electrical energy is widely recognized as one of the most important areas for energy research. Although renewable energy such as i.e. wind and solar generated electricity is becoming increasingly available in many countries including Australia, these sources provide only intermittent energy. Thus, energy storage systems are required for load levelling, allowing...

35. Bi(III)-containing lanthanum germanium apatite-type oxide ion conductors and their structure-property relationships

Mr Matthew Tate (Bragg Institute, ANSTO)

04/02/2016, 15:00

Contributed talk

Oxide ion conductors are used in a wide variety of applications, including oxygen sensors and separation membranes, but are undergoing significant study for their use in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs), which allow for the direct conversion of chemical to electrical energy. Apatite-type silicates and germanates, La_9.33+x(TO₄)₆O_2+3x/2 (T...

75. Low temperature effect of lithium diffusion in 18650-type MNC battery

Dr Chun-Ming Wu (NSRRC)

04/02/2016, 15:15

Contributed talk

Investigations of the phenomena in atomic scale are essential for fully understandings of the activities in battery operation. The battery is known to be operated in a broad temperature range below and above the ambient temperature. Temperature change could affect the performance, and might even raise safety issue. Li-platting, where metallic Li-ions accumulate onto the graphite anode, is a...

77. A Morphotropic Phase Boundary in Samarium-modified Bismuth Ferrite Thin Films

Nagarajan Valanoor (UNSW Australia)

05/02/2016, 08:45

Invited talk

Interfacial control of a polar (rhombohedral)-to-non-polar (orthorhombic) phase transition in (001) oriented epitaxial BiFeO3/(Bi1-xSmx)FeO3 superlattices is presented. We demonstrate controlling the composition at which a polar phase transformation takes place by tuning the strength of the interlayer interactions while holding the average composition constant. It is shown that the thickness...

87. Reversible electrochromism, elasto-optic and thermo-optic effects in BiFeO3 films

Dr Daniel Sando (School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales)

05/02/2016, 09:15

Contributed talk

Chromism refers to a change in optical absorption of a material upon application of stimulus; e.g. photochromism – light; thermochromism – heat; electrochromism – electric charge; magnetochromism – magnetic field. This phenomenon has wide applications, in for example so-called ‘smart glass’ which can be switched from a transparent to opaque state through the application of voltage, heat, or...

104. Effects of $^{18}$O isotope substitution in multiferroic $R$MnO$_3$ ($R$=Tb, Dy)

Mr Paul Graham (University of New South Wales)

05/02/2016, 09:30

Contributed talk

Multiferroic materials demonstrate desirable attributes for next-generation multifunctional devices as they exhibit coexisting ferroelectric and magnetic orders. In type-II multiferroics, coupling exists that allows ferroelectricity to be manipulated via magnetic order and vice versa, offering potential in high-density information storage and sensor applications. Despite extensive...

61. Growth and Properties of Strain-tuned SrCoOx (2.5≤x<3) Thin Films

Mr Hu Songbai (UNSW Australia)

05/02/2016, 09:45

Contributed talk

Controlling material properties by strain is one of the main concepts of thin film growth technology. By altering the order parameter in ferroic materials with which the lattice is coupled, new properties can be achieved, e.g. in perovskite SrCoOx which was identified as a parent phase of strong spin-phonon coupling materials. Here, we present results on a strain-induced...

113. Experimental observations of grain-scale property coupling in electroceramics

John Daniels (UNSW)

05/02/2016, 10:00

Contributed talk

Fundamental understanding of electro-mechanical properties of ceramics requires detailed multi-length-scale analysis methods. Previously, information of the grain-scale property coupling of elastic strain and domain switching behavior under electric fields has been unobtainable from the bulk of an electro-ceramic material. Here, grain resolved scattering methods have been used to investigate...

5. Gamma irradiation effect on optical and laser damage performance of KDP crystals

Dr Xiaodong Yuan (Research Center of Laser Fusion, China Academy of Engineering Physics)

05/02/2016, 10:15

Contributed talk

KDP (KH2PO4) is a nonlinear transparent dielectric crystalline material used in various laser systems for harmonic generation. It has been used for inertial confinement fusion in the National Ignition Facility, USA. However, the physical and chemical properties of the KDP crystals may degrade under γ and neutron radiations. Therefore, it is important to understand the effects of radiations on...

85. Two-dimensional Coulomb gas at negative temperature

Dr Tapio Simula (Monash University)

05/02/2016, 11:00

Invited talk

Lars Onsager is perhaps best known as the recipient of 1968 Nobel Prize in chemistry and by his tour de force solution to the two-dimensional Ising model. However, his remarkable insight predicting the quantisation of vorticity in superfluid helium and the statistical mechanics description of two-dimensional turbulence have received much less attention. In this talk, I will briefly review...

10. Multimode photon-assisted tunnelling in superconducting quantum circuits

Dr Matt Woolley (UNSW Canberra)

05/02/2016, 11:30

Contributed talk

Among the most exciting recent advances in the field of superconducting quantum circuits is the ability to coherently couple microwave photons in low-loss cavities to quantum electronic conductors [1]. These hybrid quantum systems hold great promise for quantum information processing applications, and they enable the exploration of new physical regimes of light-matter interactions. The...

53. Focusing of electrons and holes in semiconductors: from semi-classical dynamics to spintronics

Mr Samuel Bladwell (The University of New South Wales)

05/02/2016, 11:45

Contributed talk

The dynamics of charge carriers in spin-orbit coupled systems is a vital area of investigation for the extremely active field of spintronics. Controlling and manipulating the flow of electrons and holes serves as the foundation of an entire class of spintronic devices, most notably the Datta-Das spin transistor \cite{Datta1990}. In this talk, I give an overview of the dynamics of charge...

8. A ¹⁶¹Dy-Mössbauer spectroscopy investigation of DyCrO₄

Dr Glen Stewart (UNSW Canberra), Prof. Sean Cadogan (UNSW Canberra), Dr Wayne Hutchison (UNSW Canberra)

The rare earth (R) chromates RCrO₄ form with the tetragonal zircon type structure (space group I4₁/amd). They are of interest because of competing ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic super-exchange interactions between the 3d (Cr⁵⁺) and 4f (R³⁺) sites, believed to be responsible for the giant magnetocaloric effect observed recently for R = Gd, Dy and...

80. A Novel method for the preparation of a monolithic alumina catalyst support

Dr Mohamad Hassan Amin (The Centre for Advanced Materials &amp; Industrial Chemistry in the school of Applied Science, RMIT University)

First used to facilitate oxidation reactions in 1800s, heterogeneous catalysts now play important roles in many other catalytic processes, such as hydrocarbon reforming, polymerization, hydrogenation, dehydrogenation, long-chain hydrocarbons cracking and isomerization reactions. Nowadays, heterogeneous catalysis is the core of most modern conversion processes in the natural gas reforming,...

44. Advanced Sample Environment Support for Neutron Instruments at the Bragg Institute, ANSTO.

Dr Norman Booth (ANSTO)

Over the last few years a number of advancements have been made in sample environments available to scientists visiting the Neutron Beam Facility run by the Bragg institute at ANSTO (Lucas Heights). Conventional sample environment equipment allows experiments to be carried out from 35mK to 1700K, magnetic fields up to 12T and electric fields up to 10kV. These extremes are not available on all...

99. Amplitude of charge density wave in cuprates

Mr Yaroslav Kharkov (UNSW)

Discovery of charge density wave (CDW) in the pseudogap phase is the most significant breakthrough in physics of cuprates in the past few years. The CDW has been reported in YBCO [1,2] and other cuprates [3,4] by several experimental groups. Even though the microscopic mechanism of CDW and its relation to superconductivity remains a puzzle, it is firmly established that CDW is...

42. An $^{57}$Fe Mössbauer Study of the Ordinary Chondrite meteorite Lynch-001

Ms Nancy N. Elewa (UNSW Canberra)

The Lynch-001 meteorite is classified as an ordinary chondrite of the petrologic group L5-6 that has undergone ‘minor to moderate’ terrestrial weathering (A/B class). It was found in the Nullarbor desert in Western Australia in 1977 at the coordinates 31° 1' S / 127° 13' E [1]. Here, we report the characterization of the Fe-bearing phases in this chondrite using $^{57}$Fe Mössbauer...

70. An EPR Study of Tawny Ports, and Coffee Favoured Liqueurs

Dr Gordon (D.Sc.) Troup (School of Physics and Astronomy. Monash University, Clayton 3800,Vic. Australia)

This study is the delayed continuation of a project started in 1994, with red and white wines. The delay was by requested studies on whiskies and brandies. It now continues with Australian tawny ports ( fortified wines) and coffee flavoured liqueurs. Four well known Australian tawny ports and two imported coffee liqueurs were purchased commercially. The EPR spectrometer was a Bruker with a...

108. Azimuthal dependence of planar orbits in the crossed fields diamagnetic Kepler problem in silicon

Mr Colin Bleasdale (University of Wollongong)

The diamagnetic Kepler problem has been the basis of much work since the observation of oscillations in the spectrum of Barium in an external magnetic field by Garton & Tomkins [1]. These oscillations were related to the chaotic motion of the electron perpendicular to the applied magnetic field. Further work lead to a great understanding of the effects classical chaos has on quantum atomic...

2. Biocompatible magnesium based ultrastable metallic glass (SMG) thin films

Mr Scott Gleason (UNSW Australia)

Ultrastable metallic glass (SMG) thin films of magnesium based biocompatible alloys are produced via physical vapour deposition (PVD) techniques. SMG thin films are achieved via refinement of PVD power, pressure, and substrate temperatures. The SMG thin films display improved thermal and kinetic properties differentiating them from similar tradition bulk quenched or vapour deposited alloys....

67. Combinatorial synthesis of piezoelectric materials using an inkjet printer

Mr Frederick Marlton (Student)

Piezoelectrics are used in a wide variety of technology applications and currently their best performing compositions are lead-based. Legislative requirements will impose serious restrictions on the use of these lead-based materials in consumer devices over the coming years and currently no viable lead-free alternative exists. A potential pathway for the discovery of such a unique material is...

115. Complex Magnetic Structure in strained nanoscale bismuth ferrite thin films

Prof. Clemens Ulrich (The University of New South Wales)

Multiferroic materials demonstrate excellent potential for next-generation multifunctional devices, as they exhibit coexisting ferroelectric and magnetic orders. Bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3) is a rare exemption where both order parameters coexist far beyond room temperature, making it the ideal candidate for technological applications. In particular, multiferroic thin films are the most promising...

110. Contrasting strain mechanisms in lead-free piezoelectric ceramics

Dr Neamul Hayet Khansur (UNSW Australia)

Piezoelectric ceramics find a wide range of applications in advanced technological fields. Most of the currently used electro-active ceramics contain lead (Pb). Environmental concerns and limitations in high temperature performances of lead based compositions have spurred the field of lead-free electroceramics research. Compositions based on bismuth sodium titanate (BNT), sodium potassium...

9. Cooperative Behaviour of Physical Systems

Dr Trevor Finlayson (University of Melbourne)

Natural systems exhibiting critical phenomena are driven by fluctuations and have become the focus of attention across many branches of the physical and biological sciences. In the field of neuroscience for example, neurons in the brain appear to sit near a critical point where, on the one side there is stability with neurons ready to respond to stimuli, while on the other side, they fire in...

117. Curing of large size construction for space exploitation

Dr Alexey Kondyurin (School of Physics, University of Sydney)

Space exploitation is impossible without large space structures. We need to make sufficient large volume of pressurized protecting frames for crew, passengers, space processing equipment, & etc. We have to be unlimited in space. Now the size and mass of space constructions are limited by possibility of a launch vehicle. It limits our future in exploitation of space by humans and in...

39. Determining fundamental properties from diffraction: electric field induced strain and piezoelectric coefficient

Dr Manuel Hinterstein (UNSW Australia, Schoolof Materials Science and Engineering)

Piezoelectric ceramics exhibit the remarkable property to couple elastic strain and polarization under the influence of an applied electric field. Among the various types of piezoelectric devices, especially actuators rely on high electric fields to generate high strains and forces. Prominent examples for actuators are multilayer stack actuators used for nanopositioning or in modern combustion...

93. Development of a compact X-ray source

Ms Emily Wern Jien Yap (UNSW Australia/CSIRO Mineral Resources)

Since their discovery by Wilhelm Röntgen in 1895, X-rays have become a valuable tool for characterising the composition and structure of matter. The X-ray tube has long been central to techniques such as X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. However, the external high-voltage power supply, size and costs associated with X-ray tube technology have limited the wider...

116. Development of high-pressure single-crystal neutron diffraction on the Laue diffractometer, KOALA, at OPAL

Prof. Garry McIntyre (ANSTO)

Hydrogen bonds are one of the most important classes of intermolecular interaction, and accurate H-atom positions are critical for analysis of the energy terms which determine the thermodynamic stability of molecular crystals. At ambient pressure and low temperatures, H atoms can often be located by X-ray diffraction, and X-ray data can provide an accurate picture of the intermolecular...

84. Diffuse X-ray Scattering: Probing the Nano-scale Disorder in the Lead-Free Piezoelectric Na_0.5Bi_0.5TiO₃

Mr Patrick Tung (University of New South Wales)

Understanding the relationship between the properties of piezoelectrics and its atomic structure is important in enhancing their properties. With the addition of enforced legislations motivating the removal of lead in all electronic products, research into the fundamental properties of lead-free piezoelectric materials is vital. A promising lead-free piezoelectric is...

62. Do porosity templates improve the performance of supercapacitor electrode materials?

Ms Shaymaa Albohani (Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Murdoch University)

It is well recognised that to fully harness the potential of renewable energy generation, advances in materials to store and release that captured energy are required. Supercapacitors, with their fast charge-discharge rates, long life span, and high power density are one of the most promising targets for such applications. In order to maximise the performance of supercapacitors, electrode...

119. Dynamical Mechanism of Phase Transitions in A-site Ferroelectric Relaxor (Na1/2Bi1/2)TiO3

Dr Guochu Deng (ANSTO)

The dynamical phase transition mechanism of (Na1/2Bi1/2)TiO3 (NBT) was studied using inelastic neutron scattering. Softening of multiple phonon modes were observed to correlate with the phase transition sequence of NBT. As usual, the softening of the zone centre transverse optic (TO) modes Δ5 and Σ3 was observed in (200) and (220) zone, showing the Ti vibration instabilities in TiO6 octahera...

29. Electrolytic manganese dioxide from secondary sources suitable for energy storage applications

Dr Avijit Biswal (Murdoch UNiversity)

Recycling of material from secondary/spent catalysts is utmost essential in the present day1. A novel approach has been made to synthesize electrolytic manganese dioxides (EMD) from secondary sources2, such as manganese cake (EMDCake), manganese leach residue (EMDLR) and cobalt manganese bromide spent catalyst sludge (EMDCMBS). The synthesized materials were characterised using various...

83. Epitaxial (001) BiFeO3 thin-films with excellent ferroelectric properties by chemical solution deposition-The role of gelation

Nagarajan Valanoor (UNSW Australia)

High quality phase pure (001) epitaxial bismuth ferrite (BiFeO3; BFO) thin films have been realized by chemical solution deposition. A thorough chemical investigation of the precursor molecular changes during gelation reveals that control of the delicate balance between gelation and metal nitrate precipitation through solvent evaporation is the key to a homogenous gel, necessary to ultimately...

73. Epitaxial Growth of Spinel Iron Vanadate Thin Films on Perovskite Substrate

Mr Dongyi Zhou (School of Materials Sci. &amp; Eng. UNSW)

Epitaxial spinel FeV2O4 (FVO) films of ~80 nm thickness were grown on (001) SrTiO3 (STO(001)) substrates by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. By using in-situ RHEED, we find that FVO grows in an island growth mode with a spot-like RHEED pattern observed. Both the X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis showed that the FVO film have a single-phase...

57. EPR Study of a 'Capsule' Brewed Coffee and its Decaffeinated Version

Dr Gordon (D.Sc.) Troup (School of Physics and Astronomy. Monash University, Clayton 3800,Vic. Australia)

Ten or fifteen years ago or less, sensory evaluation of a decaff. coffee would easily recognize it from its caffeinated form. With the development of the capsule method of coffee brewing, this is no longer true. Take-home coffee machines for this method are readily available, and give accurate volumes of hot water for the style of coffee required, e.g. short black, long macchiato. Does the...

86. First spectrum measured on EMU, the cold-neutron backscattering spectrometer at the Bragg Institute, ANSTO

Dr Gail Iles (ANSTO)

The cold-neutron backscattering spectrometer, EMU, one of the four spectrometers at ANSTO received its commissioning licence in 2015. This allowed opening the neutron beam onto the instrument and after measuring nominal background radiation we made our first measurements with the instrument. EMU is based on Si (111) crystal backscattering and extracts neutrons from a cold neutron guide via a...

41. G-factors of hole bound states in spherically symmetric potentials in cubic semiconductors

Mr Dmitry Miserev (UNSW, Sydney, Australia)

Holes in cubic semiconductors have effective spin 3/2 and as a result they have very strong spin orbit interaction as compared with that of electrons. High spin 3/2 provides the complex kinematic structure in coupling between spin and momentum. The strength/complexity creates a variety of new opportunities for spintronics, semiconductors' based artificial topological materials, quantum point...

121. Generalised requirements for ferroelectric domain sharing over grain boundaries

Ms Sukriti Mantri (UNSW)

Ferroelectric materials are utilised in a range of technologically important devices. For cost reasons, they are mostly used in the polycrystalline form. Observations of the microstructure and domain structure in polycrystalline ferroelectrics and its effect on ferroelectric performance has been extensively studied. Some of these observations show the frequent occurrence of continuous...

4. Helium ion implantation dose dependent microstructure and laser damage of sapphire

Dr Zhan Sui (Shanghai Institute of Laser Plasma, Shanghai, 201800, China)

Sapphire is used in diagnostic systems for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), where it will play important roles as electrical insulation and optical components. It is one of the optical candidate materials to be used in the high power solid-state laser driver for inertial confinement fusion (ICF). It is thus necessary to investigate the radiation effect in alumina...

19. Improved Micro-CT of SiC/SiC Ceramic Matrix Composites

Dr John Thornton (DST Group)

Ceramic matrix composites composed of silicon carbide fibres in a silicon carbide matrix (SiC/SiC) are being introduced into gas turbine engines. Their introduction will increase engine thrust by allowing high operating temperatures and also reduce weight. Unlike monolithic ceramics they are effectively tough with elastic energy being consumed in fibre pull-out during crack propagation....

68. In situ characterisation of calcium carbonate prenucleation clusters around the solubility limit using Small Angle X-ray Scattering technique.

Mr Jonathan AVARO (Southern Cross University)

In the classical nucleation theory, a mineral will form in supersaturated solution by the random collision of dissolved ions to yield transient clusters through a dynamic and reversible process. Random addition of dissolved ions eventually causes a “critical cluster” size to be reached, at which point the process becomes essentially irreversible and the first mineral crystal is considered to...

63. In-situ diffuse scattering experiment on stress-induced ferroelastic transformation in Ti-15Nb-2.5Zr-4Sn

Dr Edward Obbard (UNSW Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Telecommunications), Prof. Yulin Hao (Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science)

Research to optimize the biocompatibility of titanium alloys for orthopaedic applications focusses on minimizing the Young’s modulus of quenched, β-phase (Im-3m) titanium by adjusting the concentration of β-stabilizing elements. Ti-15Nb-2.5Zr-4Sn has the lowest Young’s modulus yet measured in any forged titanium alloy of less than 50 GPa. This composition also possesses a controllable thermal...

23. Incommensurate magnetic order in PrNiAl$_4$

Mr Reyner White (UNSW Canberra)

The *R*NiAl$_4$ intermetallic series (where *R* = Ln$^{3+}$) has been the subject of much investigation over a number of years. These compounds are known to possess some interesting magnetic behaviours including multiple magnetic phases and metamagnetism. TbNiAl$_4$, ErNiAl$_4$ and NdNiAl$_4$ are all known to have incommensurate magnetic structures determined from neutron diffraction[1-3],...

47. ion irradiation induced porosity in Ge/SiGe alloys

Mrs Huda Alkhaldi (ANU)

Over the past two decades, nanoporous semiconductors such as Si, Ge and SixGe1-x alloys have attracted remarkable interest in both fundamental research and industrial applications. Such materials can be used as filters[1], sensors[2], and as anodes for electric batteries[3]. Much research has focused on studying porosity in Ge, dating back to 1982[4], where it was reported that...

114. Kaolinite and halloysite – does octahedral Fe2+ introduce the extra water into halloysite?

Prof. John Cashion (Monash University)

Halloysite is a member of the kaolinite (kandite) group of minerals. The kaolinite structure is made up of a tetrahedral silica sheet and an octahedral alumina sheet, bonded together into an aluminosilicate layer. Kaolinite can be written as Al2Si2O5(OH)4, while halloysite is ideally Al2Si2O5(OH)4.2H2O, and usually has a high degree of disorder. The additional water molecules occur as...

111. Low Pressure Synchrotron X-ray Powder Diffraction of Cu_5-x<em>M</em>_xSbO₆ (M = Cr, Mn, W)

Mr Daniel Jeremy Wilson (The University of Auckland)

The large crystallographic and chemical diversity of copper-based metal oxides is one of their highlighting features and cause for pursuit into copper based material research. An interesting feature seen in copper based metal oxides is the coexistence of different copper oxidation states, in different crystallographic positions, within the same compound [1-3]. This can lead to a mixture of...

72. Low-energy crystal-field excitations observed using inelastic Neutron Scattering

Dr Gail Iles (ANSTO)

The time-of-flight spectrometer, PELICAN, at ANSTO operates two choppers which provide a fixed initial energy of neutrons to the sample. Configuring the instrument to a wavelength of 4.75Å, sets this initial neutron energy to 3.6meV. By phasing the choppers, however, harmonic wavelengths can be obtained such as λ/2, etc. By measuring a powder sample of ErNiAl4 at λ/2 (λ=4.75Å) we could...

91. Mechanical meta-materials: beyond conventional property limits

Lijun Wang (UNSW)

Meta-materials have attracted significant interests over the past decades due to their unique properties for industrial applications. Some meta-materials, such as Sn-BaTiO3 (BT)[1, 2], ZnAl-BaTiO3 [3, 4] (Metal matrix composites), are classed as metal matrix composites (MMCs) and have been demonstrated to have ultra-high stiffness due to the inclusion of BT particulates which undergoes a...

100. Mechanism of enhancement of the electron g-factor in quantum point contacts

Prof. Oleg Sushkov (University of New South Wales)

The electron g-factor measured in a quantum point contact by source-drain bias spectroscopy is significantly larger than its value in a two-dimensional electron gas. This enhancement, established experimentally in numerous studies, is an outstanding puzzle. In the present work we explain the mechanism of this enhancement in a theory accounting for the electron-electron interactions....

50. Modelling TiO2 supported Au cluster photocatalyst using DFT and SCC-DFTB approaches

Mr Junda Li (University of Adelaide)

Photocatalysis, which exploits the use of clean and infinite solar energy, has the potential to be one of the most influential solutions to green and sustainable chemistry. Titanium dioxide-based catalysts have shown great capability in photocatalysis due to its non-toxic, stable and highly active properties. However, the reaction efficiency is still too low for practical applications. To...

7. Multigelator organogels-mixture of gelators assembled by different driving forces

Dr Jingyu Chen (Deakin Univ, Geelong, Australia, Institute of Frontier Materials)

In this study, an organogel composed of two low molecular weight gelators with distinct structures has been studied. One of the gelators is the derivative of anthracene with fluorescence, the other is based on glutamic acid. The gelation process and the structure of the self-assembled fibres have been studied with optical microscopes, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and rheometer. The...

27. Nanoscale Ferroelectric domain structure of bismuth ferrite BiFeO3 under different strains

Mr Abdullah Alsubaie (student)

The effect of induced epitaxial strain on ferroelectric properties of thin films has received increased research interest in recent years. Researching studies have shown that the polarization[1], piezoelectricity[2], domain structure[3], and phase stability[2] of these materials in thin films can be modified by strain because of the inherent coupling between the elastic and ferroelectric...

66. Neutron diffraction study of double tungstates Li₂M^II(WO₄)₂ (M=Co and Ni)

Dr Chin-Wei Wang (National Synchrotron Research Center)

Neutron diffraction study of double tungstates Li2MII(WO4)2 (M=Co and Ni) The isostructural Li2Co(WO4)2 and Li2Ni(WO4)2 crystallize in the triclinic structure (space group P-1, Z =1). The crystal structures can be viewed as alternating layers of WO layers and Li-MO layers alone the b-axis. The WO layers built up of edge-sharing WO6 octahedra forming infinite zigzag chains alone the a-axis...

51. Non-equilibrium field theory and decay widths: a new golden rule

Mr Harley Scammell (The University of New South Wales)

Motivated by magnetic quantum systems in the regime of finite temperatures and close vicinity to a quantum critical point, we develop a generalisation of the Fermi Golden Rule appropriate to handle the calculation of large decay widths. The ‘generalised golden rule’ is a self-consistent procedure, and the central results are generic. However, the present study specifically considers an O(3)...

103. Optical bistability due to nonlinear surface plasmon polaritons in graphene

Mr Matthew Sanderson (Wollongong University)

Optical bistability is found to occur under reasonable fields in a prism-air-graphene-dielectric structure. Due to this field, the reflection characteristics of the structure are modified such that the absorption peak which results in surface plasmon polariton (SPP) excitation is shifted such that bistability arises. This effect is due to the nature of the nonlinear SPP's which have their...

98. Phase Transition studies of MnSb2-xTaxSb2O6

Hyung-Been Kang (The University of Auckland)

Recently, the trigonal modification (sg. P321) of MnSb2O6 has drawn significant attention as it could be an unusual type of multiferroic behaviour and weakly polar material [1]. The magnetic susceptibility of MnSb2O6 shows a short range ordering below 200 K and long range ordering is observed below the Neel temperature (TN = 12.5 K) resulting in an incommensurately ordered three-dimensional...

60. Photoconductivity of nanoscale grain boundaries in two-dimensional ZnO platelets

Mrs Nastaran Faraji Ouch Hesar (UNSW)

The response of individual grain boundaries in polycrystalline ZnO platelets to light illumination on the nanoscale is studied using scanning probe based techniques. While many previous studies show the UV responses of ZnO, we find that even in the visible light range below the bandgap grain boundaries are sensitive to light, which is attributed to defect accumulation and local changes of the...

30. Physical, thermal and $^{57}$Fe Mössbauer studies of Y$_2$Fe$_2$Si$_2$C

Mr Resta Susilo (UNSW Canberra)

R2Fe2Si2C (R = rare-earths) compounds crystallise in the monoclinic Dy2Fe2Si2C-type structure with the C2/m space group. Previous magnetic studies revealed no magnetic phase transition in Y2Fe2Si2C down to 2 K [1], thus indicating that Y2Fe2Si2C acts as an ideal non-magnetic reference material for investigating the magnetism of the R2Fe2Si2C system. Accordingly, we have used Y2Fe2Si2C as a...

118. Polyurethane medical implants improved by plasma immersion ion implantation

Ms Irina Kondyurina (School of Medicine, University of Sydney)

Polyurethane is used in medicine for permanently implanted devices due to its elasticity, mechanical strength, biostability, biocompatibility and hemocompatibility. However, the immune system recognises polyurethane as foreign and initiates an immune response that can result in a range of negative consequences as foreign body rejection, inflammation, pain and dysfunction of the implant. We use...

79. Positive effect of an internal depolarization field in ultrathin epitaxial ferroelectric films

Mr Guangqing Liu (UNSW Australia)

The effect of intentionally introducing a large depolarization field in (001)-oriented, epitaxial Pb(Zr_0.2 Ti_0.8 )O₃ (PZT) ultra-thin films grown on La_0.67 Sr_0.33 MnO₃ (LSMO) buffered SrTiO₃ (STO) substrates is investigated. Inserting between 3 to 10 unit cells of STO between two 3nm thick PZT films significantly...

14. Pressure induced, reversible, fourfold enhancement of the magnetic ordering temperature in transition metal monomers

Dr Christopher Woodall (University of Edinburgh)

Since the discovery of Single-Molecule Magnets (SMMs) in 1993 there has been extensive interest in understanding,[1] developing and tuning the nature of magnetic interactions within molecules the with emphasis on potential device miniaturisation and a bottom-up approach to building components. More recently attention has shifted from large polymetallic clusters of paramagnetic metal ions known...

96. Prodrug Amphiphile Nanoparticles of Gemcitabine and 5-Fluorouracil

Mr Jerikho Bulanadi (CSIRO)

Prodrug analogues of the chemotherapeutic drugs gemcitabine and 5-fluorouracil have been developed in order to overcome the severe systemic toxicity and limitations often associated with these types of drugs such as lack of selectivity, high toxicity, low bioavailability, poor pharmacokinetic profiles, and low stability. Prodrug modification was achieved through the covalent attachment of...

92. Quantitative 3D Strain Mapping in Nanodiamonds using Bragg Coherent Diffractive Imaging (BCDI)

Mr Muhammad Salman Maqbool (ARC CoE for Advanced Molecular Imaging, Department of Physics and Chemistry, La Trobe University)

Nanodiamonds (NDs) with nitrogen vacancy (N-V) centres have been shown to be useful for applications involving cellular tracking in vivo at the molecular level. The sustained fluorescence of these nanodiamonds is related to their structure, and is supposed to be influenced by the strain distribution inside the crystals. In nanocrystals even relatively small amounts of strain can induce large...

34. Rational design of multiferroic superlattices

Dr Claudio Cazorla (School of Materials Science and Engineering, UNSW Australia)

Multiferroics, materials that typically display ferroelectricity and magnetism, have generated a tremendous flurry of interest in recent years due to their fundamental complexity and potential for applications in nanoelectronics and energy conversion. Finding in nature single-phase compounds with those properties, however, has proved extremely difficult. Such a scarcity of bulk multiferroic...

16. Refractive index of graphite and graphene at wavelengths spanning the carbon 1s edge

Mr Hud Wahab (UNSW Canberra)

Due to the resonantly enhanced birefringence of graphite and graphene across the carbon 1s absorption edge, these materials may open up new avenues for optical devices such as x-ray half- or quarter-wave plates. Such applications, however, require the knowledge of the refractive index across the carbon 1s absorption edge which is near 285 eV. Data for graphite are uncertain and the respective...

102. Skyrmions and Hopfions in frustrated ferromagnets

Mr Yaroslav Kharkov (UNSW)

Magnetic skyrmion is a two-dimensional 'hedgehog-like' spin texture, characterized by non-zero topological number. Stability of skyrmions is topologically protected, therefore they can be potentially used as information carriers in magnetic memory devices. Skyrmions have been experimentally observed in several materials, such as chiral magnets and thin magnetic films with long-range...

54. Spin drift in Rashba systems with tilted magnetic fields

Mr Samuel Bladwell (The University of New South Wales)

It is well known in Plasma physics that combinations of electric and magnetic fields lead to the drift of charge particles. In this work, we show that with the addition of a tilted magnetic field, drift analogous to that observed in plasmas occurs in systems with Rashba SO interactions. The resulting drift of the charge carriers has a direction dependent on the spin, rather than the charge of...

6. Spin transitions in cementite

Dr Simon Clark (Macquarie University)

It was proposed over 45 years ago by W.S. Fyfe that the effect of pressure deep inside the Earth may be to collapse the atomic orbitals of iron from the high-spin to the low-spin state. This transition would represent a major change in chemical-bonding character for one of the most important elements in the Earth with predictions suggesting as much as a 45% collapse in the ionic volume of...

33. Spin-polarized single and double electron spectroscopies

Prof. Jim Williams (School of Physics, UWA)

Spin-polarized single- and two-electron reflection spectroscopies with various kinematics for W(110) and W(100) crystals, with deposited thin films of Co, Fe, and/or Ag, reveal many aspects of structure and scattering asymmetries [1-5]. The experimental apparatus and methodology are a subset of the time-coincidence pulsed two electron scattering approach [2] in which the experimental variables...

120. Steels and intermetallics under extreme conditions

Prof. Klaus-Dieter Liss (ANSTO)

Materials are being designed and engineered for ever superior mechanical and operational properties, such as steels for lighter cars and energy-absorbing behavior in an accident, and titanium aluminides for lighter airplane turbine blades. The manufacturing of such materials may involve processes at extreme conditions, under high pressure or high temperature. Examples are high-pressure torsion...

81. Stress and electric-field dependence of the induced phase symmetry in BNT-xBT

Mr Mohammad Jahangir Hossain (The School of Materials Science and Engineering, UNSW Australia)

The solid solution system Bi1/2Na1/2TiO3 – xBaTiO3 (BNT-BT) has attracted wide research interest in the scientific community as a potential high-strain lead-free piezoelectric material. The electro-mechanical coupling mechanisms in a series of BNT-BT solid solutions with the BT content ranging from 5 mol% to 8 mol% in 0.25 mol% steps have been studied using in situ high-energy synchrotron...

48. Structures of Silane SAMs on Oxide Surfaces

Prof. Andreas Magerl (University Erlangen-Nürnberg)

While the structure of thiols on crystalline gold is dominated by the strong covalent bond between gold and sulfur atoms promoting an epitaxial coverage, the situation is much more delicate for silanes on crystalline or amorphous oxide surfaces due to the complex headgroup-surface interaction competing with the chain-chain interaction. By synchrotron X-ray reflectivity and grazing incidence...

3. Supramolecular assembly of small molecular gelators mediated by additives

Dr Jingliang Li (Deakin University)

Small molecule gel (SMG) is a class of supramolecular material that is formed by low molecular weight gelators in solvents. SMGs have important application in many fields such as foods, cosmetics and pharmaceutics. The properties of these materials depend on their multi-level (hierarchical) structure and affect their applications. Significant efforts in the past years have been devoted to...

28. Synthesis and characterisation of CoMoO4 nanospheres with improved supercapacitive performance

Dr Maryam Barmi (Murdoch University)

Electrochemical energy storage has been the main topic of interest in the recent years. The important features of electrochemical energy storage include low maintenance, excellent efficiency, cycling stability and environmental friendliness. There are ranges of candidates that can be employed as electrodes for supercapacitors.[1-3] Metal molybdate has attracted interest due to its...

101. Temperature and magnetic field dependent magnetization of nanoparticulate ZnFe2O4 produced by maechanocamical synthesis

Mrs Faizun Nesa (Bragg Institute, Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation)

ZnFe2O4 is basically a non-inverted ferrite which is enormously used as ferrofluids, magnetoelectric refrigeration and contrast agent for magnetic resonance imaging. A series of nanoparticulate ZnFe2O4 of average sizes Φ ˜ 9 nm to 90 nm with a range of inversion 0.008 to 0.35 has been produced by mechnochemical synthesis. The blocking temperature of the investigated samples has increased with...

97. Terahertz Characteristaion of 3D Printed Plastics

Mr Jarrod Colla (University of Wollongong)

Spectra of 3D printed plastics are presented. The recent surges forward in 3D printing technology has seen its application to a wide variety of fields from healthcare to art. Typically users are interested in the mechanical properties and uses of 3D printed objects however we explore the potential of optical properties and uses. In this work 20 commercially available plastics have been...

90. Terahertz Spectroscopic Characterizations for Graphite Nanofibers and Graphite

Mr Hao ZHANG (School of Physics and Institute for Superconducting & Electronic Materials, University of Wollongong, NSW 2522 Australia)

Terahertz (THz) time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) is a powerful technique to study materials properties such as complex dielectric response and conductivity in the far-infrared spectral region, with the advantages of high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), noncontact optical probe, and measuring the amplitude and phase of electric field simultaneously thus not requiring Kramers-Kronig (K-K)...

45. The magnetic properties and magnetocaloric effect in (Mn$_{1-x}$Ni$_x$)CoGe

Dr Wayne Hutchison (The University of New South Wales)

Magnetic refrigeration based on magnetocaloric effect is considered as a potential alternative to the conventional gas-compression based refrigeration [1], because the former can improve energy efficiency and reduce emission of environment-harmful chemicals. Materials with first-order magneto-structural transitions are of great interest for large magnetocaloric effect, e.g. Gd5(Si,Ge)4 and...

38. The role of dielectric function for the control of coupled dipole resonances in dimers of dissimilar metallic nanorods

Mr Glen Fletcher (University of Technology Sydney)

The position and intensity of plasmon resonances in metallic nanostructures depends acutely on the complex dielectric function of the materials used and, of course, on the geometry, e.g. [1]. Ideally, the material or materials should possess a high DC conductivity and an absence of interband transitions in the visible part of the spectrum. Materials available vary from low-loss (Ag or K) to...

17. Theory of controlling avalanche process of carrier in short pulse laser irradiated dielectrics

Prof. Xiaodong Yuan (China Academy of Engineering Physics)

Short pulse lasers (<10 ps) are used routinely for the investigations of high peak-power laser-matter interactions, such as laser micromachining [1-2], laser-driven accelerators, ultrafast dynamics in atoms and solids, and laser modulation spectrum in solids. However, laser-induced damage (LID) in optical components is still a limiting factor for the development of higher power laser systems...

107. THz Spectroscopy of Artists' Pigments, Binders and Canvas

Mr Andrew Squires (University of Wollongong)

Recent developments in Terahertz (THz) radiation open up applications in non-destructive and non-invasive analysis of artworks of cultural significance. This spearheads large interest in areas such as conservation science [1]. This arises due to favorable THz characteristics, which show large transmission for materials such as paints and plastics, as well as biological materials such as wood...

55. Towards understanding the magnetic structure of DyN, a ferromagnetic semiconductor

Mr Jacob Evans (Macquarie University)

Towards understanding the magnetic structure of DyN, a ferromagnetic semiconductor Jacob P. Evans, 1 Glen Stewart, 2 Sean Cadogan, 2 Wayne Hutchison, 2 Emma Mitchell 3 and James E. Downes, 1 1. MQ Photonics Research Centre, Department of Physics and Astronomy – Macquarie University, NSW 2109, Australia 2. School of Physical, Environmental and Mathematical Sciences, UNSW Canberra – at...

112. Vibrational studies using neutrons

Dr Anton Stampfl (Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation)

Several neutron spectrometers are available for use at the Bragg Institute. In particular a low energy band pass neutron spectrometer that operates in the range of ~50-1200 ${cm}^{-1}$ has very recently been commissioned and first experiments run on TAIPAN. The so-called Beryllium-filter spectrometer is predominantly used to obtain vibrational density of states spectra from those materials...