ANSTO has contributed to research led by the University of Sydney, involving doping transition metals in a polymorph of bismuth oxide in a search for more structural stability.
Cubic high-temperature polymorph of bismuth oxide, δ-Bi2O3, is the best known oxide ionic conductor but its narrow stability range (729—817 °C), which is close to its melting temperature of 817 °C precludes its practical use.
A large collaboration, led by Professor Chris Ling and Dr. Julia Wind (as part of her Ph.D.) from the University of Sydney involving researchers from ANSTO and two other universities, has achieved the design and understanding of the complex crystal structure and chemistry behind a commensurate structure within the fast-ion conducting stabilised bismuth oxide, co-doped with chromium and niobium, Bi23CrNb3O45.
The study was published in the Chemistry of Materials.
A team of researchers have demonstrated the viability of the direct piezoelectric effect in a thin film Bismuth Ferrite Material for the first time. The work, published in Nanoscale entitles “Direct and Converse Piezoelectric Responses at the Nanoscale from Epitaxial BiFeO3 Thin Films Grown by Polymer Assisted Deposition” which has gained the cover letter of such journal.
[…]
In this particular research, the BFO was scanned in a novel methodology named “Direct Piezoelectric Force Microscopy” DPFM, a new AFM mode invented in 2017
(https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-017-01361-2 ). The material in this mode is stressed by the AFM tip with nanometric size. The tip applies a force in the range of hundreds of microNewton and measures the generated charge that is created by the material. For the case of BFO material, the piezoelectric characteristics were collected when the tip crosses antiparallel domain configurations, see the following video for a 3D representation of the tip crossing such configuration: https://youtu.be/ir3W2Vk8hCs
I haven’t seen anyone post about this here (and honestly I just felt like stretching the rambly/posting muscles after such a long time away - though I gotta say the new dash is NOT making any of this easy) but the latest patch to the Unleash the Light game updates the storyline and gives us a look into how Bismuth got her most recent regen/outfit.
The game is tragically an Apple Arcade exclusive so I’m sifting through a whole bunch of gameplay clips on YouTube to get the whole picture, alas. It is, however, pretty much the canon tale of some Gempire-dismantling and related events such as the intro with the ex-diamond pearls hanging out with Steven and working on a draft of a constitution-type document, a look at a variety of Gem-controlled planets and colonies, and a bit of democracy-establishing courtesy of Bismuth and some bismuths, all taking place in the time skipped between the original series and the Movie and Future. While I’m bummed it wasn’t handled in the show itself somehow (beyond us seeing the results and the Zircon elections etc.), I’m glad we at least got some glimpses of it here, because it’s something I’ve been really, really invested in for a very long time. It also contains BISMUTH AS A PLAYABLE CHARACTER so I tell you it’s a crime that it isn’t available on a platform I personally have access to (and wouldn’t have, like, moral objections to using, but that’s another can of worms).
But, what I wanted to post about - Bismuth’s regeneration. The relevant bit of the game that got updated is during the boss fight against Demantoid, one of Homeworld’s three bigwig garnets armed with light-army producing prisms (the other two being Hessonite, the main boss from the previous game, and Pyrope - and seeing the other garnets puts Blue Diamond’s assholish comments about Garnet going to the ball on Homeworld into even more context). In fact it’s an expansion of the segment where the bismuths under Demantoid’s command unionise and establish a democracy, and you get an achievement highlighting the importance of voting.
Demantoid, very modern and tech-oriented, wants to use the power vacuum left by the diamonds to impose a new order all of her own, while her counterpart Pyrope is very much an old-fashioned aristocrat whose colonies are kept stuck in the past in some very literal ways. They each control an incredibly powerful prism, just like the one the previous games revolved around and who we see helping the Crystal Gems out in this game - and who once belonged to Hessonite, a general fighting on Earth during the rebellion (aka the yellow doodle of Centi’s commander from Monster Reunion).
Since the Crystal Gems fought against the light armies produced by Hessonite’s prism back in the day and had a tough time of it, Bismuth, it turns out, made a containment chest that could neutralise the prisms - but she never got to use it. Until now, that is.
The plan goes awry, however, as Demantoid uses her beefed-up prism to attack Bismuth and take the containment chest away.
Prompting Bismuth to go into full heroic sacrifice mode:
And despite the game seeming to give you a choice of trying to help Bismuth or getting the chest back, Bismuth herself won’t let you.
With a little callback to her Made of Honor line. Solid, flexible, diamagnetic, and not as dense as you might think.
So, we get the containment chest back…
… but Bismuth isn’t done being a Big Damn Hero.
A little sidenote that Bismuth (and the other bismuths that appear throughout levels set on Demantoid’s colonies, and whose portrayal I find immensely loveable) is here voiced by Miriam Hyman, the same VA who did those few episodes of SUF when Uzo Aduba wasn’t available - and she does a pretty great job imo.
Bismuth is in a pretty tight spot, but the cavalry arrives just in time.
But sadly even the power of puns isn’t enough, and Bismuth gets poofed by Demantoid:
Prompting reactions from the rest of the team and the assembled bismuths, who try to give the CGs a chance to use the chest and contain the prism.
Sadly, Demantoid gets away with her prism, and it all ends on a bittersweet note. The team still has the chest - their one shot at beating the prisms - but Bismuth is out, at least for a little while.
A few stages of Bismuth being unavailable on the party screen later, she reforms in her new outfit - tragically, without a pun.
One thing I have to say I don’t get is - who’s the “special friend” she’s referring to? I’m drawing a complete blank here on anyone in SU wearing an outfit like that, and maybe there’s a wider joke/reference here I’m just not getting. Maybe something completely obvious. Anyway, beats me, so I’m open to suggestions. In any case, that concludes the tale of How Bismuth Got Her Overalls.
To finish off, I just have to point out that when you have Bismuth in your party and she gets defeated in battle, she gets a little band-aid on her cheek:
Look at that. So precious. I love her. Someone give her a hug and a soft blanket immediately and take care of that Bismuth.
