While SrTiO3 exhibits promising electronic transport properties, its high thermal conductivity (κ) is detrimental for its use as a thermoelectric material. Here, we investigate the influence of oxygen non-stoichiometry on κ in bulk SrTiO3 ceramics. A significant reduction in κ was achieved in oxygen deficient SrTiO3−δ, owing to the presence of oxygen vacancies that act as phonon scattering centers. Upon oxidation of SrTiO3−δ, the κ of pristine SrTiO3 was recovered, suggesting that oxygen vacancies were indeed responsible for the reduction in κ. Raman spectroscopy was used as an independent tool to confirm the reduction of oxygen vacancies in SrTiO3−δ upon oxidation.

This article describes an unexplored transport phenomenon where a mildly viscoelastic medium encroaches a narrow capillary channel under the action of surface-tension force. The ultimate goal of the study is to provide the penetration length and the intrusion rate of the liquid as functions of time. The resulting analysis would be instrumental in building an inexpensive and convenient rheometric device which can measure the temporal scale for viscoelastic relaxation from the stored data of the aforementioned quantities. The key step in the formulation is a transient eigenfunction expansion of the instantaneous velocity profile. The time-dependent amplitude of the expansion as well as the intruded length are governed by a system of integro-differential relations which are derived by exploiting the mass and momentum conservation principles. The obtained integro-differential equations are simultaneously solved by using a fourth-order Runge–Kutta method assuming a start-up problem from rest. The resulting numerical solution properly represents the predominantly one-dimensional flow which gradually slows down after an initial acceleration and subsequent oscillation. The computational findings are independently verified by two separate perturbation theories. The first of these is based on a Weissenberg number expansion revealing the departure in the unsteady imbibition due to small but finite viscoelasticity. In contrast, the second one explains the long-time behaviour of the system by analytically predicting the decay features of the dynamics. These asymptotic results unequivocally corroborate the simulation inferring the accuracy of the numerics as well as the utility of the simplified mathematical models.

Electrical transport and microstructure of interfaces between nm-thick films of various perovskite oxides grown by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) on TiO2- terminated SrTiO3 (STO) substrates are compared. LaAlO3/STO and KTaO3/STO interfaces become quasi-2DEG after a critical film thickness of 4 unit cell layers. The conductivity survives long anneals in oxygen atmosphere. LaMnO3/STO interfaces remain insulating for all film thicknesses and NdGaO3/STO interfaces are conducting but the conductivity is eliminated after oxygen annealing. Medium-energy ion spectroscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy detect cationic intermixing within several atomic layers from the interface in all studied interfaces. Our results indicate that the electrical reconstruction in the polar oxide interfaces is a complex combination of different mechanisms, and oxygen vacancies play an important role.

Nonlinear optical effects are revealed when strong light fields interact with matter. It has been shown that nanomaterials exhibit properties which are very different from the bulk, and in many cases, the nonlinear optical (NLO) efficiency of nanomaterials is found to be higher in comparison. Recently there has been substantial interest in developing novel NLO media for various applications. Even though several organic as well as inorganic materials have been studied in this connection, only a limited number of NLO reports exist for oxide nanomaterials. Therefore, in this paper we present results of NLO measurements recently conducted in our laboratory in three different oxide nanosystems. It is found that oxide nanomaterials are generally robust, and exhibit good NLO efficiencies, which make them potential candidates for photonic and optoelectronic applications.

Prior to 2009 dengue fever had not been reported in the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago. In 2009, a few patients with dengue fever-like illness were reported, some of whom tested positive for dengue antibodies. In 2010, 516 suspected cases were reported, including some with dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS); 80 (15·5%) were positive for dengue antibodies. DENV RNA was detected in five patients and PCR-based typing showed that three of these belonged to serotype 1 and two to serotype 2. This was confirmed by sequence typing. Two clones of dengue virus, one belonging to serotype 1 and the other to serotype 2 appeared to be circulating in Andaman. Emergence of severe diseases such as DHF and DSS might be due to recent introduction of a more virulent strain or because of the enhancing effect of sub-neutralizing levels of antibodies developed due to prior infections. There is a need to revise the vector-borne disease surveillance system in the islands.

In this paper, we report on the growth and fabrication of thin film Si photovoltaic devices on photonic structures which were fabricated on steel and PEN and Kapton substrates. Both amorphous Si and thin film nanocrystalline Si devices were fabricated. The 2 dimensional photonic reflector structures were designed using a scattering matrix theory and consisted of appropriately designed holes/pillars which were imprinted into a polymer layer coated onto PEN, Kapton and stainless steel substrates. The photonic structures were coated with a thin layer of Ag and ZnO. Both single junction and tandem junction (amorphous/amorphous and amorphous/nanocrystalline) cells were fabricated on the photonic layers. It was observed that the greatest increase in short circuit current and efficiency in these cells due to the use of photonic reflectors was in nanocrystalline Si cells, where an increase in current approaching 30% (compared to devices fabricated on flat substrates) was obtained for thin (∼ 1 micrometer thick i layers) films of nano Si deposited on steel structures. The photonic structures (which were nanoimprinted into a polymer) were shown to stand up to temperatures as large as 300 C, thereby making such structures practical when a steel (or glass) of kapton substrate is used. Detailed measurements and discussion of quantum efficiency and device performance for various photonic back reflector structures on steel, kapton and PEN substrates will be presented in the paper.

Faecal specimens of diarrhoea cases (n=2495, collected between November 2007 and October 2009) from Infectious Diseases and Beliaghata General (ID&BG) Hospital, Kolkata, India, were screened by RT–PCR using specific primers targeting region C of the capsid gene of noroviruses (NoVs) to determine the seasonal distribution and clinical characteristics of NoVs associated with diarrhoea. NoV infection was detected in 78 cases, mostly in children aged <2 years. In 22/78 positive cases, the virus was detected as the sole agent; others were as mixed infections with other enteric pathogens. Sequencing of NVGII strains showed clustering with GII.4 NoVs followed by GII.13 and GII.6 NoVs. Clinical characteristics of the diarrhoeic children and adults in Kolkata indicated that NoV infections were detected throughout the year and were associated with a mild degree of dehydration.

Burn rates of various nano-energetic composites were measured by two techniques; on-chip method and conventional optical method. A comparison is presented to confirm the validity of on-chip method. On-chip initiators were prepared using platinum heater films and nanoenergetic composites. Thin film Pt heaters were fabricated with different dimensions and ignition delay was studied using a nano-energetic composite of CuO nano-rods and Al-nano-particles. The ignition delay as a function of electrical power is presented for the same energetic composite. Heater with smaller surface area is found to be more efficient, which may be due to the lower heat losses.

Current approaches of mixing fuel and oxidizer nanoparticles or adding fuel nanoparticles to oxidizer gel lead to an overall reduced interfacial area of contact between them and thus, limit their burn rates severely. We have developed an approach of self-assembling fuel nanoparticles around an oxidizer matrix using a monofunctional polymer, poly(4)-vinyl pyridine (P4VP). The polymer has been used to accomplish binding of fuel and oxidizer in a molecularly engineered manner. We use composite of Al-nanoparticles and CuO nanorods for executing this self-assembly. TEM images of this composite confirms the self-assembly of Al-nanoparticles around the oxidizer nanorods. The burn rate of self-assembled composite has been found significantly higher than that of the composite prepared by simple mixing.

Lattice dynamical and electronic transition changes due to V and Co doped ZnO have been investigated using optical techniques. Vanadium and Co doped ZnO pellets were prepared using conventional ceramic processing route and thin films were fabricated by pulsed laser deposition. Raman spectra of Zn1-xVxO targets showed many additional peaks in the range of 230 to 350 cm-1 and 750 to 900 cm-1. Integrated intensities of these additional modes decreased with increase of temperature as similar to the host ZnO modes, which precludes electronic Raman scattering to be the origin. Raman peaks for stoichiometric Zn3(VO4)2 and Zn2V2O7 compounds also had additional peaks that can be attributed to the secondary phases formed in the compositions of Zn1-xVxO. Raman spectra of Zn1-xCoxO showed no additional modes besides ZnO modes, however, the intensity of the second order peak at 540 cm-1 was increased due to Co doping. Thin films of Zn1-xCoxO exhibited highly c-axis orientation deposited on (001)Al2O3 substrates. The optical absorption of the films showed that the band gap decreased with increase of Co concentrations at room temperature along with the sub bandgap absorptions due to d-d transitions of Co2+.

The highest efficiency CuIn 1-x Ga x Se2 (CIGS) solar cells use thin-film polycrystalline CIGS absorber layers. We have applied variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry (VASE) to characterize the dielectric functions of polycrystalline thin films of CIGS with Ga: (In + Ga) ratios ranging from 0.18 to 1.0. The Cu: (In + Ga) ratios in these films are approximately 0.90, which is the ratio that yields the highest efficiency CIGS devices. Spectra were measured over the energy range 0.7 to 5.0 eV at room temperatures. Models used to analyze the ellipsometry data include the full multi-layer structure of the sample, which enables us to report the actual dielectric function rather than the pseudo-dielectric function. We present data on how the critical points change with composition, and compare and contrast our results with measurements of single-crystal and bulk polycrystalline samples reported in the literature. Auger electron spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and X-ray diffraction have been used to verify the homogeneity, surface roughness, and phase purity, respectively.

An epidemiological study was carried out to find out the aetiological agent for diarrhoeal disorders in the cyclone and flood affected areas of Orissa, India. Rectal swabs collected from 107 hospitalized diarrhoea patients were bacteriologically analysed to isolate and identify the various enteropathogens. Detection of toxic genes among E. coli and V. cholerae was carried out by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay. Of the 107 rectal swabs analysed, 72·3% were positive for V. cholerae O1 Ogawa, 7·2% for V. cholerae O139, 1·2% for E. coli (EAggEC) and 1·2% for Shigella flexneri type 6. Using multiplex PCR assay it was found that all V. cholerae isolates were ctxA positive and El Tor biotype. Strains of V. cholerae O1 were observed to be resistant to nalidixic acid, furazolidone, streptomycin, co-trimoxazole and ampicillin. Except for nalidixic acid, the resistance pattern for O139 was identical to that of O1 strains. Representative strains of V. cholerae were further characterized by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) analysis and ribotyping. Both O1 and O139 V. cholerae strains exhibited the R3 pattern of ribotype and belonged to a similar pattern of RAPD compared with that of Calcutta strains. Early bacteriological and epidemiological investigations have revealed the dominance of V. cholerae O1 among the hospitalized patients in cyclone affected areas of Orissa. Drinking water scarcity and poor sanitation were thought to be responsible for these diarrhoeal outbreaks. Timely reporting and implementation of appropriate control measures could contain a vital epidemic in this area.

We have developed an electrodeposition bath based on a buffer solution so that the stability of the electrodeposition process is enhanced and no metal oxides or hydroxides precipitate out of solution. The buffer-solution-based bath also deposits more gallium in the precursor films. Asdeposited precursors are stoichiometric or slightly Cu-rich CuIn1−XGaXSe2 (CIGS). Only a minimal amount of indium was added to the electrodeposited precursor films by physical vapor deposition to obtain a 9.4%-efficient device.

Active surveillance of Vibrio parahaemolyticus infection among hospitalized patients in Calcutta, India, showed the appearance of the O4[ratio ]K68 serovar for the first time in March 1998 alongside the continued predominant incidence of the O3[ratio ]K6 serovar. Strains belonging to both these serovars have been reported to possess pandemic potential. The genomes of O3[ratio ]K6 and O4[ratio ]K68 strains and for comparison, non-O3[ratio ]K6 and non-O4[ratio ]K68 strains isolated from two different countries, India and Thailand, were examined by different molecular techniques to determine their relatedness. The O3[ratio ]K6 and O4[ratio ]K68 strains from Calcutta and Bangkok carried the tdh gene but not the trh gene. Characterization of representative strains of these two serovars by ribotyping and by arbitrarily primed-polymerase chain reaction (AP-PCR) showed that the isolates had identical ribotype and DNA fingerprint. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) performed with the same set of strains yielded nearly similar restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) patterns for the O3[ratio ]K6 and O4[ratio ]K68 isolates from Calcutta and Thailand. Phylogenetic analysis of the NotI RFLP showed that the O3[ratio ]K6 and O4[ratio ]K68 strains formed a cluster with 78–91% similarity thus indicating close genetic relationship between the two different serovars isolated during the same time-frame but from widely separated geographical regions. The non-O3[ratio ]K6 and non-O4[ratio ]K68, in contrast, showed different ribotype, AP-PCR and PFGE patterns.

We consider sufficient conditions for stochastic equivalence of convex ordered random variables. Our main results apply to all convex ordered distributions on the real line and improve on a recent result of Huang and Lin [8] for equality in distribution of convex ordered survival times. Illustrative applications include testing for equality in distribution with convex ordered alternatives and demonstrating several earlier results on stochastic equivalence as special cases.

Thin-films of YBa2Cu3O7 (YBCO) superconductor precursor were synthesized using an electrodeposition process. The YBCO precursor thin films were deposited on Ag foils using pulsed potential deposition conditions of 10 s at - 4 V and 10 s at -1 V (versus Ag reference electrode). The post-annealed films showed zero electrical resistance at 60 K. The procedures for the fabrication of a high precision micro-sensor using YBCO superconductor for measurement of weak magnetic fields are outlined. The micro-sensor templates were patterned using X-rays and precursor films were deposited into the features.

Silkworm larvae infected transovarially with Nosema bombycis were fed with an aqueous suspension of Bavistin (50% carbendazim w/w) at 2 and 3% concentrations. The treatments increased the survival of worms and reduced the pebrine infection in the lot significantly, although complete elimination of infection was not observed. Significant beneficial effects of the treatments at 2 and 3% were also observed with respect to larval, cocoon and cocoon shell weights and cocoon to shell ratio. However, treatments with Bavistin at 4% concentration produced an adverse effect on cocoon characters.

DNA replication in the spermatogonial cells of Schistocerca gregaria and Gryllotalpa fossor has been analysed. This study has demonstrated the presence of at least two discrete populations of spermatogonial cells in both the insects with different intermitotic timings. The replication pattern of the sex chromosome in Schistocerca seems to be dependent on the pycnosity status, whereas, in Gryllotalpa, it is independent of the condensation pattern.

An investigation of the ion beam mixing of Mo and Ta layers with 304 stainless steel and the potentiodynamic polarization behavior of the modified surfaces are described.

Alternating thin layers (<100Å) of stainless steel (304) and either Mo or Ta were deposited by electron beam evaporation. Ion mixing was performed with 2 MeV Ni+ at a fluence of 5 × 1016cm−2. Examination of the mixed surfaces with TEN revealed characteristics of the amorphous phase and in some cases being embedded with crystalline regions for both Mo and Ta mixed stainless steel surfaces. The amorphous surfaces were tested for their corrosion behavior in 1M H2SO4 and O.1M NaCl solutions by the potentiodynamic polarization method. Significantly improved corrosion behavior were obtained for modified surfaces compared to unmodified stainless steel.