In this study, we investigated thermotolerance, several physiological responses and damage to reproductive cells in chlorpyrifos-resistant (Rc) and -susceptible (Sm) strains of the diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella subjected to heat stress. The chlorpyrifos resistance of these strains was mediated by a modified acetylcholinesterase encoded by an allele, ace1R, of the ace1 gene. Adults of the Rc strain were less heat resistant than those of the Sm strain; they also had lower levels of enzymatic activity against oxidative damage, higher reactive oxygen species contents, weaker upregulation of two heat shock protein (hsp) genes (hsp69s and hsp20), and stronger upregulation of two apoptotic genes (caspase-7 and -9). The damage to sperm and ovary cells was greater in Rc adults than in Sm adults and was temperature sensitive. The lower fitness of the resistant strain, compared with the susceptible strain, is probably due to higher levels of oxidative stress and apoptosis, which also have deleterious effects on several life history traits. The greater injury observed in conditions of heat stress may be due to both the stronger upregulation of caspase genes and weaker upregulation of hsp genes in resistant than in susceptible individuals.

This is the first report of microsatellite markers (simple sequence repeats, SSR) for fall webworm, Hyphantria cunea (Drury) (Lepidoptera: Arctiidae), an important quarantine pest in some European and Asian countries. Here, we developed 48 microsatellite markers for H. cunea from SSR enrichment libraries. Sequences isolated from libraries were sorted into four categories and analyzed. Our results suggest that sequences classified as Grouped should not be used for microsatellite primer design. The genetic diversity of microsatellite loci was assessed in 72 individuals from three populations. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 2 to 5 with an average of 3. The observed and expected heterozygosities of loci ranged from 0 to 0.958 and 0 to 0.773, respectively. A total of 18 out of 153 locus/population combinations deviated significantly from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium. Moreover, significant linkage disequilibrium was detected in one pair of loci (1275 pairs in total). In the neutral test, two loci were grouped into the candidate category for positive selection and the remainder into the neutral category. In addition, a complex mutation pattern was observed for these loci, and FST performed better than did RST for the estimation of population differentiation in different mutation patterns. The results of the present study can be used for population genetic studies of H. cunea.

The thermodynamic La–Sr–Mn–Cr–O oxide database is obtained as an extension of thermodynamic descriptions of oxide subsystems using the calculation of phase diagrams approach. Concepts of the thermodynamic modeling of solid oxide phases are discussed. Gibbs energy functions of SrCrO4, Sr2.67Cr2O8, Sr2CrO4, and SrCr2O4 are presented, and thermodynamic model parameters of La–Sr–Mn–Chromite perovskite are given. Experimental solid solubilities and nonstoichiometries in La1−xSrxCrO3−δ and LaMn1−xCrxO3−δ are reproduced by the model. The presented oxide database can be used for applied computational thermodynamics of traditional lanthanum manganite cathode with Cr-impurities. It represents the fundament for extensions to higher orders, aiming on thermodynamic calculations in noble symmetric solid oxide fuel cells.

The high Al content AlGaN epilayers have been obtained by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), and the optical property has been investigated by photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. Longitudinal-optic (LO) phonon mode has been studied by Raman scattering. Further analysis shows that the edge dislocation is an important factor influencing optical quality of AlGaN epilayers, and it also shows that the correlation between the A1 (LO) polar modes and the edge dislocation is intensive, which may be expected to become a characterization method of the related crystal defects.

The influence of pressure on the MOCVD grown InAlN/AlN/GaN heterostructure has been investigated by high-resolution X-ray diffraction, Hall measurement and atomic force microscopy. High pressure is beneficial to increase indium incorporation efficiency. The electrical properties of InAlN/AlN/GaN heterostructure become better with the pressure decreasing from 100 Torr to 50 Torr. Indium droplets tend to form on the InAlN surface at high pressure. The edge of the indium droplet is the Al-rich region while the interior is the In-rich region, demonstrated by the phase-contrast mode. Phase contrast across the V-defect is strong on the surface of InAlN grown at low pressure (50 Torr) whereas it is not evident at high pressure (100 Torr), indicating that large stress in the InAlN film will enhance the compositional variation.

The efficiency of acousto-optic interaction in single-mode strip silica waveguide is analyzed theoretically by determining the overlap integral between the optical and acoustic field distributions. The results show that there is a good overlap of the optical and SAW fields in the low SAW frequency range. At high acoustic frequencies, the overlap integral decreases with increasing acoustic frequency. At 216 MHz, the maximum of 0.8544 for the overlap integral is obtained, provided the H/Λ equals 0.02. At last, the diffraction efficiencies for acoustic frequency of 216 MHz are calculated as a function of the square root of acoustic power for different acoustic apertures.

The I-V characteristics of AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors in the temperature range between 100 K and 300 K are studied. It is found that both the maximum drain-source current and transconductance decrease with the increase of temperature. Decrease of the electron mobility with increasing temperature is considered to be the main cause for that condition. The threshold voltage shows a forward shift, which can be explained by the increase of Schottky barrier with increasing temperature. It is found that at VGS = 0 V the drain-source current reduces with the ascending temperature, which should be due to the variation of the electron mobility with the temperature. While at VGS = −5 V the drain-source current is found to increase with the ascending temperature, it is suggested to be caused by the positive temperature coefficient of the electron transport in the depleted region.

The temperature dependence of the I-V characteristics on Au/Ni-HEMT Schottky contacts was measured and analyzed. Large deviations from the thermionic emission and thermionic-field emission model were observed in the I-V-T characteristics. The thin surface barrier model only fits the measured curves in the high bias region, but deviates drastically in the low bias region. Using a revised thin surface barrier model, the calculated curves match well with the measured curves. It is also found that tunneling emission model is the dominant current transport mechanism at low temperature, yet thermionic-field emission model is the dominant current transport mechanism at high temperature.

Efficient generation regime with a high power output has been experimentally realized in a klystron-like relativistic backward wave oscillator, in which a modulation cavity is inserted between the slow wave structure to decrease the energy spread of modulated beam electrons, and an extraction cavity is employed at the end of the slow wave structure to further recover energy from the electron beam. At a guiding magnetic field of 2.2 T, a microwave pulse with power of 6.5 GW, frequency of 4.26 GHz, pulse duration of 38 ns, and efficiency of 36% was generated when the diode voltage was 1.1 MV, and diode current was 16.4 kA. When the diode voltage was 820 kV, efficiency up to 47% with microwave power 4.4 GW was also realized experimentally.

An important component of the U.S. effort to achieve thermonuclear ignition in 2010 on the National Ignition Facility is the development of high quality 2 mm diameter spherical capsules to function as the ablator and contain the cryogenic DT fuel. Three ignition capsule designs have been developed, and detailed fabrication specifications for each design have been established and placed under change control. A research program with activities coordinated mainly between Lawrence Livermore, General Atomics and Los Alamos is underway to demonstrate fabrication of capsules meeting specifications. The point design for ignition campaigns beginning in 2010 is a Cu-doped Be capsule that has a radial gradient in Cu dopant level in the capsule wall. This capsule is being produced by sputter deposition of Be and Cu onto either a hollow glow discharge polymer (GDP) spherical mandrel or a solid spherical mandrel, followed by removal of the mandrel and polishing of the capsule. A key goal in the U.S. is to demonstrate fabrication of this capsule by the end of 2006. Two other ignition capsule designs are also being developed as contingencies to the point design. One contingency design is a GDP capsule that has a radial Ge dopant level in its wall. This capsule is produced by co-deposition of Ge and GDP onto a PAMS mandrel followed by thermal removal of the mandrel. The second contingency design is a uniform Cu-doped Be capsule that is fabricated from high purity fine grain Be0.3at.%Cu alloy using a precision machining route followed by polishing. Ignition targets to be fielded in 2010 will be filled with DT fuel through a small fill hole. Laser drilling capability has been developed and used to drill approximately 5 μm diameter holes through capsule walls for DT filling. Characterization methods necessary for characterizing capsules are being developed.

Controlling the characteristics of nanowires in order to later construct nanoarchitecture and nanocomponents for nanodevice and nanosensor applications is essential. Metal oxide nanowires are aligned using the Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) technique to uniaxially compress the nanowires. A surfactant monolayer of metal oxide nanowires is fabricated, and then compressed on an aqueous subphase. The compression yields an array of aligned nanowires, which is transferred to a planar substrate. Cutting areas of the array are defined by electron beam nanolithography. After an etching process, it is shown that the metal oxide nanowires have been successfully cut. With further refinement of this technique, the nanowires can be used to construct basic building blocks of nanodevices and nanosensors.

Metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) TixCyNz films were deposited by using tetrakis-dimethylamino-titanium (TDMAT) and NH3 as a reaction gas at temperatures from 325 to 400°C with multi-layer Ar/NH3 plasma treatment. Effects of annealing and Ar/NH3 plasma treatment on the microstructure, composition, and electrical properties of TixCyNz films were studied. By multi-layers plasma treatment, the resistivity of TixCyNz barriers decreased from 960 to 548 νΔ–cm and the concentration of oxygen in barrier films are also decreased. The integration of the TixCyNz with low-k methylsilsesquiazane (MSZ) was investigated through Cu/CVD-TixCyNz/SiO2 and Cu/CVD-TixCyNz /MSZ capacitors after being annealed in furnace at temperatures from 500 to 800°C. With thermal annealing in N2 ambient for 30 min, Cu/CVD-TixCyNz/ MSZ structure remains metallurgically stable up to 700°C.

The structural evolution in amorphous silicon and germanium thin films has been investigated by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) in conjunction with autocorrelation function (ACF) analysis. The results established that the structure of as-deposited semiconductor films is of a high density of nanocrystallites embedded in the amorphous matrix. In addition, from ACF analysis, the structure of a-Ge is more ordered than that of a-Si. The density of embedded nanocrystallites in amorphous films was found to diminish with annealing temperature first, then to increase. The conclusions also corroborate well with the results of diminished medium-range order in annealed amorphous films determined previously by a variable coherence microscopy method.

Angle-resolved photoemission extended fine structure (ARPEFS) was used to determine the structure of c(2×2)P/Fe(100) for the first time. P 1s core-level photoemission data were collected normal to the (100) surface and 45° off-normal along the [011] direction at room temperature. A close analysis of the auto-regressive linear prediction based Fourier transform and multiple-scattering spherical-wave calculations indicate that the P atoms adsorb in the high-coordination four-fold hollow sites. The P atoms bond 1.02 Å above the first layer of Fe atoms and the Fe-P-Fe bond angle is 140.6°. Additionally, it was determined that there is no expansion of the Fe surface. Self-consistent-field Xα scattered wave calculations were performed for the c(2×2)P/Fe(100) and the c(2×2)S/Fe(100) systems. These independent results are in excellent agreement with this P/Fe structure and the S/Fe structure previously published, confirming the ARPEFS determination that the Fe1-Fe2 interlayer spacing is contracted from the bulk value for S/Fe but not for P/Fe.

A transmission electron microscopy study of the microstructural development for (111)Si wafers implanted with Ti ions and annealed subsequently at 950 °C is presented. The as-implanted wafers have a Ti-rich amorphous layer at the surface with embedded silicides, which correspond to a crystalline form of TiSi2 that has not been reported previously. Below this lies a Ti-lean crystalline layer with extensive radiation damage. The annealed layers have large incoherent islands of C54 TiSi2, with a layered microstructure in the Si between them consisting of twins, then topotaxial silicides, then dislocation loops. It is proposed that this microstructure arises from silicide growth prior to epitaxial regrowth, whereas for the continuous epitaxial films observed previously at lower annealing temperatures, epitaxial regrowth precedes silicide development.

Metastable face—centered cubic (fcc) Co was grown epitaxially on (111)Si with an intermediate Cu layer in an ultrahigh vacuum chamber at room temperature. The metastable fcc—Co was grown to extend to a thickness of 30 nm. Polycrystalline and epitaxial hexagonal close—packed (hcp) Co was grown on (111)Si without and with 3 nm or thicker intermediate Cu layer, respectively. The key to the successful growth of fcc—Co is to deposit Co directly onto a thin (2 nm or thinner) interface compound (—Cu, which is of hcp structure and consisting of 11.2 to 14.0 at.% Si. The growth of the metastable phase is attributed to the attainment of an appropriate electron/atomratio at the interface to favor the formation of the fcc—Co.

Interfacial reactions and thermal stability of ultrahigh vacuum deposited multilayered Mo/Si structures have been investigated by high resolution transmission electron microscopy in conjunction with fast Fourier transform and auto–correlation function analysis. For samples with nominal atomic ratios Mo:Si = 1:2 and 3:1, well defined multilayered Mo/Si structures were obtained after annealing at 250 °C for 30 min. On the other hand, distinct multilayered MoSi2/Si structure was formed only for Mo:Si = 1:2 samples after annealing at 650 °C for 1 h.

Multiphases were observed to form simultaneously in samples annealed at 400–500 °C. After 650 °C annealing for 1 h, tetragonal MoSi2 was the only silicide phase observed for the Mo:Si = 1:2 samples, whereas both tetragonal and hexagonal MoSi2 were present in Mo:Si = 3:1 samples. The stability of the multilayered Mo/Si structures was found to depend critically on the atomic ratios of constituent elements, bilayer period and annealing conditions. The results are interpreted in terms of the delicate balance between intermixing of constituent atoms and silicide formation.

The formation of amorphous interlayers (a–interlayers) by solid–state diffusion in ultrahigh vacuum deposited polycrystalline Ti thin film on germanium and Sil-xGex alloys grown on (001)Si has been investigated by transmission electron microscopy and Auger electron spectroscopy.

Amorphous interlayers, less than 2 nm in thickness, were observed to form in all as–deposited samples. The growth of a–interlayers was found to vary non–monotonically with the composition of Si–Ge alloys in annealed samples. On the other hand, the formation temperature of crystalline phase was found to decrease with the Ge content. The results are compared with that of the Ti/Si system. The formation mechanism are discussed in terms of thermodynamic and kinetic factors.