Made three samples on Thursday last week - two 4 layer gold nanoparticle samples (15 and 20 mN), and one 8 layer sample (20 mN). So today and yesterday I have been learning how to use the D8 X-ray diffractometer across in chemistry with Jonathan Howse. It has been really cool learning how to use it all, and how it all works. I think I just about get everything, but I get the feeling that next time I am going to be doing it alone...
The first result for the 4 layer sample deposited at 20 mN looks very promising, better than the last set obtained as far as I can tell. Jon has been really helpful too, and I have learnt a lot about using the diffractometer and XRR/NR in general. He even told me the best place to get hold of silicon from at the moment
Tim is back from Japan tomorrow too - I hope it has all gone well over there. Hopefully we will have some nice AFM images of my gold nanoparticles when he gets back too. I think I have figured out why we get two layers from every dip using the LS technique when one would clasically expect to get only one layer. It will be good to find out if I am correct, and whether no one has ever thought of it again!
An action packed week really - I get to see the other 4 layer tomorrow morning. I am also working on the modelling with Neil right now, and have an amplifier on order with Phil for the end trough. Hopefully we can get the end trough computerised and capable of doing isotherms and transfer ratios soon - although I think Phil would like to add some extra gearing in there too.
I've not written anything in quite a while - it's been a hectic few weeks and I am still behind with everything! It was a year since Aaron died on Monday, and so I have been feeling pretty down in the last week or so. You try not to let you get it down, but it's hard not to let it. Tends to be worsened by those around you hassling you, and having a go.
Enough of that though. I have managed to accomplish a few things this week. I fitted the new potentiometer to the trough, and that worked really well. Also managed to get the program to save the new calibration data successfully too - all the files were read only and once that was changed it worked. It is a bug in the program though - it should report that it cannot write to the file.
I took Monday off to keep away from people more than anything else. I also took Tuesday off to go to a Linux conference too at the Sheffield Wednesday ground. It was OK, but I was hoping for better speakers. I really don't know if I would bother again - Sheffield probably isn't the best place for big conferences
I have booked the X-ray reflectometer for next week too - hopefully Monday and Tuesday. Jon has agreed to show me how to use it to do some work on my samples. I am going to do my absolute best to make some good samples tomorrow - hopefully they will produce some good results.
I also have lots of simulation to do as well, and a few new material models to hopefully tweak to the point where they can be published. It's a very busy time - do have some Physoc stuff on too, but I am really not willing to put too much time into it.
What a week it has been! I have been so unbelievably busy this week, and it's finally over. I did make the samples I needed for Japan on Tuesday. First try was on Monday, but cleaning did not go well at all and I basically made one sample all day. Got quite a few done on Tuesday though, and made some really nice samples on glass and silicon.
Also got a couple of palladium nanoparticle films deposited on some silicon and glass. Got promising AFM images from the silicon one, but then there was an accident when Andy copied the files to a zip disk for me and all but one of the files was lost. He said he would take some more with me next week though.
I finished my abstract for the ECOF2004 conference too. It has been checked and sent off now, which is great. Just hope they accept my abstract now. I still haven't finished off the new trough software though - I need to make/get an amplifier built for the area potentiometer. Still not managed to get much modelling done either.
The quiz is next week too, pretty much got that one sorted now. Also just about finished putting the Hicks Ball programme together too, Mark has put some excellent pictures together for it.
What a terrible day! Spent all day in the lab, but only actually managed to desposit 4 layers on to one glass slide. That particular glass slide does actually look very uniform, which is promising, but it took a whole day. The diamond glass cutter has also gone missing, and the trough took an absolute age to clean...
I did get the posters up for the staff-student quiz though, and they look pretty good. Let's hope for a more productive day tomorrow.
This is my first ever blog entry! Not too sure on this whole thing just yet, but I thought I would give it a go... I am hoping to make this place in to some kind of record of my life as a PhD student, and a user/developer of open source software. Hopefully others out there might even find it interesting enough to read
I am an avid user of open source software on the Linux platform. My distro of choice is Gentoo as it allows me a great deal of control over my particular installations. I have gone through the usual distros such as Red Hat, SuSe, Mandrake, Slackware and even Debian. Recently I have been tempted to try one of the BSDs too, but haven't had chance yet.
I am doing a PhD at the University of Sheffield on thin Langmuir films of metallic nanoparticles (specifically gold), and the structural characterisation of them as well as their gas sensing properties. Only just started, but it seems OK so far.
Anyway, I don't want to wear myself out with my very first post.