[en] The influence of excess surfactant concentration on the uniformity and self-assembly of dip-coated FePt nanoparticle films on thermally oxidized Si substrates is reported. The nanoparticle solution in non-polar solvents contains excess surfactant, which is varied in a range from 10^-6 to 10^-1 parts by volume. Uniform, homogeneous films of nanoparticles are obtained only in a narrow range of excess surfactant concentration of about 10^-3 parts by volume

[en] An ion-molecule reaction has been studied by measuring the momentum of both the reactant and the product ions. This is carried out in an ordered molecular film of CD₃I where electron stimulated desorption causes the reaction CD₃⁺+ CD₃I→ C₂D₅⁺+DI. The close similarity of the normal momentum of CD₃⁺ and C₂D₅⁺ indicates that a sticky collision occurs in which, to within 10%, the momentum of the reactant ion is transferred to the momentum of the product ion. The measurement represents the first use of molecularly aligned species to study momentum effects in an ion-molecule reaction

[en] We present a method for data storage in continuous ferroelectric (FE) media, applicable to storage systems based on one or more scanning probes. Written FE domains are read back in a destructive fashion by applying a constant voltage of magnitude greater than the coercive voltage, as is done in FE random access memory (FeRAM). The resulting flow of screening charges through the readback amplifier provides sufficient signal to allow readback of domains of minimum dimension of the order of 10 nm at MHz rates, orders of magnitude faster than previously demonstrated techniques for readback of domains in continuous FE media.

[en] A multiple-tip ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) scanning tunneling microscope (MTSTM) with a scanning electron microscope (SEM) for imaging and molecular-beam epitaxy growth capabilities has been developed. This instrument (nanoworkbench) is used to perform four-point probe conductivity measurements at μm spatial dimension. The system is composed of four chambers, the multiple-tip STM/SEM chamber, a surface analysis and preparation chamber, a molecular-beam epitaxy chamber, and a load-lock chamber for fast transfer of samples and probes. The four chambers are interconnected by a unique transfer system based on a sample box with integrated heating and temperature-measuring capabilities. We demonstrate the operation and the performance of the nanoworkbench with STM imaging on graphite and with four-point-probe conductivity measurements on a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) crystal. The creation of a local FET, whose dimension and localization are, respectively, determined by the spacing between the probes and their position on the SOI surface, is demonstrated