We demonstrated fabrication of nanogap electrodes with flat and thin Au films by using laterally enhanced growth of Au electrodeposition and applied the electrodes for electrical measurement of poly(3-methylthiophene) (P3MT) nanowires. The Au electrodeposition was performed on microgap electrodes following an organic modification process on an insulator surface of the microgap electrodes. Then, P3MT nanowires were aligned between the nanogap electrodes for transistor property measurement. The result suggested that the fabricated nanogap electrodes were suitable to apply for electrical properties measurement of such organic nanowires because of small difference in height between top of the electrodes and the insulator surface.

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A Co (catalyst)-Ti-coated silicon foil on which carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are directly grown by thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) with/without H₂ and using different temperatures/volume flow rates of NH₃ is optionally pretreated with hydrogen-plasma. Thereafter the CNTs are treated with nitrogen-plasma, and a manganese-cobalt-zinc oxide film is deposited on the CNTs by radio frequency sputtering. For the CNT electrode, at the 100th cycle of potential cycling, its specific capacitance at a CNT growing temperature of 750°C is higher than those at 700 or 800°C and the higher the NH₃ flow rate while growing CNTs, the higher the specific capacitance. Furthermore, the specific capacitance of the manganese-cobalt-zinc oxide/CNT electrode for the CNTs grown in 50 cm³ min⁻¹ NH₃ is higher than that without NH₃.

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A microstructure analysis along the trench depth direction of Cu wires as a function of the purity of plating materials was carried out using electron backscattering diffraction (EBSD) analysis combined with advanced CMP technique. The Cu wire plated with high purity plating materials (6N-electrolyte and 8N-anode) was found to have 13% larger grains and 50% lower ratio of small grains (less than 45 nm) than those for the Cu wire plated with conventional purity plating materials (3N-electrolyte and 3N-anode) at the bottom region of the trench after annealing. A grain growth model in the trench depth direction was also investigated.

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In this article, we presented the surface treatment of stainless steel (SS430 and SS304) by electrochemical method. Furthermore, the surface treated stainless steel substrates (SS430 and SS304) were used as back electrodes to fabricate the DSSC structures. We have discussed the enhancement in reflection light data for surface treated stainless steel substrates (SS430 and SS304) and the overall performance of Dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) structures. In this article, our focus is to demonstrate the surface treatment of stainless steel substrate (SS430 and SS304) and its application to Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). The overall results show that the I-V response in DSSC is sensitive to the surface properties of stainless steel (SS430 and SS304). Some more surface treatment of the substrate will be suggested in the further research.

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Anode performances in electrode reactions and in hydrogen producing reactions of propane fuel were investigated for four cermet anodes of Ni-YSZ, Ni-ScSZ, Ni-SDC, and Ni-CeO₂ under open circuit voltage (OCV) condition. Electrode reaction process was essentially the same for the Ni-YSZ and the Ni-ScSZ anodes and for the Ni-SDC and the Ni-CeO₂ anodes, respectively, but there was a clear difference between Ni-zirconia cermet anodes and Ni-ceria cermet anodes. From the X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) results, conditions of adsorbed oxygen on the nickel surface were different between the Ni/YSZ system and the Ni/GDC system, although the surface conditions of nickel metal were not influenced by the oxide component.

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The Ni(OH)₂ particles were synthesized by infinite dilute method. The as-prepared particles are α-Ni(OH)₂, which are well dispersed and have a fish scale morphology. The electrochemical tests show that the particles have relatively high capacitance and excellent capacitive retention. The good structure and excellent performance suggest its promising application in supercapacitor.

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The mechanical properties and corrosion resistance of SA508-4Ni-Cr-Mo low carbon alloy steel are elucidated using tensile testing, Charpy impact testing, fracture surface analysis and in-situ electrochemical noise (EN) technique. The metallographic structures are characterized by metallographic microscope combining with transmission electron microscope (TEM), and the fracture morphology is characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM). The intercritical heat treatment (IHT) is introduced to heat the SA508-4 steel. The experimental observations reveal that the metallographic structure of SA508-4 steel is fine and uniform after different heat treatment, with martensite and lower bainite structures. The strength and toughness of SA508-4Ni-Cr-Mo are confirmed higher than that of SA508-3Mn-Ni-Mo steel used for reactor pressure vessels (RPV) at present. The IHT decreases the yield strength and toughness. EN results show that the noise resistance of SA508-4 steel decreased with the elevated temperature from 27 to 250°C, illustrating the passivity degradation of SA508-4 induced by the elevated temperature.

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Electrochemical one-dimensional two-component cellular automata have been tested as to how peak potential separation is related to the parameters corresponding to the electron transfer rate and the sweep rate. Limiting behavior toward 60 mV has been observed, which is consistent with the conventional analytical calculations, and is discussed from the view point of Nernstian limits of the present model.

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