Natural plants consist of a hierarchical architecture featuring an intricate network of highly interconnected struts and channels that not only ensure extraordinary structural stability, but also allow efficient transport of nutrients and electrolytes throughout the entire plants. Here we show that a hyperaccumulation effect can allow efficient enrichment of selected metal ions (for example, Sn...

The development of new fabrication techniques of plasmonic nanocomposites with specific properties is an ongoing issue in the plasmonic and nanophotonics community. In this paper we report detailed investigations on the modifications of the microstructural and plasmonic properties of metal-titania nanocomposite films induced by swift heavy ions. Au-TiO2 and Ag-TiO2 nanocomposite thin films with...

Monte Carlo simulations of pattern-dependent charging during interlevel dielectric ~ILD! deposition in high-density plasmas reveal that the initial conformality of the ILD film plays a crucial role in metal line charging up and the subsequent degradation to the buried gate oxide to which the metal line is connected. Line charging occurs when the top dielectric is thick enough to prevent tunneli...

The local field properties of metal–dielectric films are investigated in terms of the probability distribution function (PDF). For metal coverage p; close to the percolation threshold we obtain a wide, lognormal PDF which for low metal concentrations gradually transforms into a scaling, power-law distribution function. Strong enhancement of the local fields in a broad spectral range is verified...

By one-step pyrolysis of a unique "cage-in-cage" cobalt metal-organic framework, nitrogen-doped carbon cubes embedded with numerous metallic Co nanoparticles were obtained. A considerable amount of Co particles was encapsulated in thin carbon shells and formed the core-shell-like Co@C structure. With about 60 wt% Co particles in the prepared sample, the nanocomposites of Co nanoparticles and ni...

We theoretically investigate three-dimensional plasmonic waveguide-cavity structures, built by side-coupling stub resonators that consist of plasmonic coaxial waveguides of finite length, to a plasmonic coaxial waveguide. The resonators are terminated either in a short or an open circuit. We show that the properties of these waveguide-cavity systems can be accurately described using a single-mo...

We present an experimental and theoretical study of the optical properties of metal-dielectric-metal structures with patterned top metallic surfaces, in the THz frequency range. When the thickness of the dielectric slab is very small with respect to the wavelength, these structures are able to support strongly localized electromagnetic modes, concentrated in the subwavelength metal-metal region...

The effect of nanosilica surface chemistry on the electrical behavior of epoxy-based nanocomposites is described. The nanosilica was reacted with different volumes of (3-glycidyloxypropyl)trimethoxysilane and the efficacy of the process was demonstrated by infrared spectroscopy and combustion analysis. Nanocomposites containing 2 wt % of nanosilica were prepared and characterized by scanning el...

a r t i c l e i n f o Low-voltage electrowetting requires a thin dielectric capacitor and field strengths approaching 1 MV/cm. Unlike traditional metal/dielectric/metal capacitors, the conducting electrowetted liquid can electrically propagate through the smallest dielectric defects or pores, even for the best barrier polymers such as Parylenes, leading to catastrophic failure such as electroly...

The conductivity mismatch in the composite insulation of high voltage direct current (HVDC) cable accessories causes electric field distribution distortion and even insulation breakdown. Therefore, a liquid silicone rubber (LSR) filled with SiC nanoparticles is prepared for the insulation of cable accessories. The micro-morphology of the SiC/LSR nanocomposites is observed by scanning electron m...