Refractory metal reactivity towards oxide surface: W/TiO2(1 1 0) case

Reactivity of deposited tungsten towards TiO₂(1 1 0) surface was studied using synchrotron radiation photoemission spectroscopy (both core levels, valence band and resonant photoemission) on Materials Science Beamline at ELETTRA. W depositions carried out at room temperature on TiO₂(1 1 0) surface give rise to an interfacial reaction which leads to a metastable situation due to kinetic limitations. Annealing induces chemical changes which are function of the initial coverage; for fractional coverage, annealing induces completion of oxidation of deposit whereas reduction to metallic tungsten occurs for highest coverage. These results demonstrate that interaction of W with TiO₂(1 1 0) surface is, as the one of molybdenum, driven by a balance between W-O interactions and W-W depending on tungsten atoms density on TiO₂ surface.     

Growth process of CuO(1 1 1) and Cu2O(0 0 1) thin films on MgO(0 0 1) substrate under metal-mode condition by reactive dc-magnetron sputtering

The growth process of CuO and Cu₂O thin films on MgO(0 0 1) substrates by reactive dc-magnetron sputtering was studied by reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) and atomic-force microscopy (AFM). The RHEED pattern and AFM image showed that (1) three-dimensional Cu(0 0 1) islands grew on MgO under the nonreactive sputtering condition, (2) CuO(1 1 1) was deposited layer by layer on MgO at 400 °C under the reactive sputtering condition, and (3) the film deposited at 600 °C in the initial growth stage was composed of three-dimensional Cu islands because O₂ gas could not be incorporated into them due to the low sticking coefficient of O₂ on MgO under the reactive sputtering condition. The layer-by-layer CuO(1 1 1) thin-film growth process is discussed from the viewpoint that Cu and oxygen species are supplied in stoichiometry onto the MgO substrate to form CuO thin-film crystals while maintaining minimum interfacial energy between CuO and MgO.     

Preferentially oriented thin-film growth of CuO(1 1 1) and Cu2O(0 0 1) on MgO(0 0 1) substrate by reactive dc-magnetron sputtering

Copper oxide films deposited on MgO(0 0 1) substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering under the metal-mode condition were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) analyses for structural analysis, and X-ray-excited Auger electron spectroscopy (XAES) for chemical bonding analysis. CuO(1 1 1) thin films grew from their initial growth stage maintaining the same crystallinity on MgO(0 0 1) substrates at 400°C. When the substrate temperature was increased to 600 °C, the as-sputtered films comprise Cu(0 0 1), amorphous Cu₂O phase, and Cu₂O(0 0 1) phase. The Cu(0 0 1) phase was observed at initial growth stage. This is probably because O₂ gas molecules could not sufficiently stick to the MgO substrate at 600 °C. Single phase of Cu₂O(0 0 1) was obtained by the cooling of the as-sputtered films in O₂ atmosphere. The growth of single phase Cu₂O(0 0 1) is considered as a solid-phase heteroepitaxial growth on MgO(0 0 1) surface, which was caused by incorporating O₂ gas into the as-sputtered films.     

Thermal evolution of the morphology of Ni/Ag/Si(111)-√3 × √3 surface

The temperature-driven changes in morphology of the interface formed by room temperature (RT) deposition of Ni atoms onto an Ag/Si(111)-√3 × √3 surface were investigated by scanning tunneling microscopy. Roughly 70% of Ni deposition diffused into bulk substrate within the temperature range between RT and 573 K. The images as obtained after annealing up to 670 K correspond to the formation of nano-sized islands of nickel silicides. Two types of islands, large triangular islands typical of the whole range of applied coverage, and smaller islands of different shapes, coexist at Ni coverage higher than 1 monolayer. Annealing above 870 K led to the formation of a 7 × 7 phase in coexistence with small 5 × 5 domains at the expense of a complete disappearance of the √3 × √3 phase. Also, formation of Ni,Si alloy was observed at the temperature, along with segregation of bulk-dissolved Ni species onto the surface.     

Ductile-brittle behavior at the (1 1 0)[0 0 1] crack in bcc iron crystals loaded in mode I

Fracture experiments performed at room temperature on four test samples made of Fe-3wt.%Si single crystals with an edge crack (1 1 0)[0 0 1] (crack plane, crack front) showed approximately 45° deflections of the crack from the initial crack plane (1 1 0). This behavior appeared to be independent on loading rate. Fractographic analysis confirmed that the cracks were deviated along {1 0 0} planes and the fracture was accompanied by dislocation slip and by twinning. 3D simulations at 300 K by molecular dynamic technique in bcc iron with edge cracks of equivalent orientation indicated that the crack itself could contribute to understanding of this behavior by three processes: twinning on oblique {1 1 2} planes, which hindered growth of the original crack, and by emission of dislocations on oblique {0 1 1} and {1 2 3} planes, which led to separation of the {1 0 0} planes and might cause decohesion and subsequent cleavage fracture along the mentioned planes.     

Microstructural properties of Co thin films grown on p-GaAs (1 0 0) Substrates

Microstructural properties of Co thin films grown on p-GaAs (1 0 0) substrates at room temperature by ion beam-assisted deposition were investigated. An atomic force microscopy image showed that the root mean square of the average surface roughness of the Co film was 32.2 Å, and X-ray diffraction and selected area diffraction pattern measurements showed that Co film layers grown on GaAs (1 0 0) substrates were polycrystalline. A bright-field transmission electron microscopy image showed that the Co/p-GaAs (1 0 0) heterointerface grown at room temperature was sudden. These results provide important information on the microstructural properties for Co thin films grown on p-GaAs (1 0 0) substrates at room temperature.     

Adsorption of Ni on Si(1 0 0) surface

The chemisorption of one monolayer Ni atoms on ideal Si(1 0 0) surface is studied by using the self-consistent tight binding linear muffin-tin orbital method. Energies of adsorption systems of Ni atoms on different sites are calculated. It is found that Ni atoms can adsorb at fourfold site above the surface and bridge site below the surface. The adsorption of Ni atoms can readily diffuse and penetrate into the subsurface. A Ni, Si mixed layer might exist at the Ni-Si(1 0 0) interface. The layer projected density states are calculated and compared with that of the clean surface. The charge transfers are also investigated.     

From uniform Cu thin films to 〈1 1 0〉 and 〈1 1 1〉 columns

This paper reports the transition phenomenon from uniform Cu thin films to 〈1 1 0〉 and 〈1 1 1〉 columns. Using magnetron sputtering technique, we deposit a series of Cu films on an SiO₂/Si(1 1 1) substrate. Characterizations using the scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and the X-ray diffraction (XRD) reveal the morphology, the crystal orientation and the internal strain of the Cu films and columns. The Cu films are always uniform and 〈1 1 1〉 textured during the early stage of deposition. For higher sputtering power and shorter target-substrate distance, the 〈1 1 1〉 uniform film yields to columns as deposition continues. This transition correlates with the internal strain in the uniform film. At moderate strain, the columns are of 〈1 1 0〉 orientation and they nucleate at the grain boundaries of the uniform film. At even higher strain, the columns are of 〈1 1 1〉 orientation and they form by the breakup of grains in the uniform film. Based on the strain characterization and the column formation mechanism, we suggest that strain energy is the driving force of the transitions from uniform films to columns.     

Ultraviolet photodetectors with MgZnO nanowall networks grown by molecular beam epitaxy on Si(1 1 1) substrates

Mg_0.05Zn_0.95O nanowall networks ultraviolet (UV) photodetector was fabricated on Si(1 1 1) by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Based on the Mg_0.05Zn_0.95O nanowall networks, planar geometry photoconductive type metal-semiconductor-metal photodetector was fabricated. At 5 V bias, the peak responsivity of 24.65 A/W was achieved at 352 nm, corresponding to an external quantum efficiency of ∼8490%. Such high external quantum efficiency was attributed to the photoconductive gain, which can be explained by the presence of oxygen-related hole-trap states at the nanowall surface. The response time of 25 ms was determined by the measurements of photocurrent versus modulation frequency.     

A single-stage GM-type pulse tube cryocooler operating at 10.6 K

In order to explore the lowest attainable refrigeration temperature and improve cooling performance at temperatures around 20 K for a single-stage G-M type pulse tube cryocooler (PTC), numerical and experimental studies were performed. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) numerical model known as REGEN was applied to the simulation of a G-M type PTC for the first time. Based on the calculation results, a single-stage G-M type PTC was designed, fabricated and tested. The performance improvement of the regenerator in the temperature range of 10-80 K was investigated. The calculations predicted a lowest temperature of 10 K. A lowest temperature of 10.6 K was achieved experimentally with an input power of 7.5 kW, which is the lowest temperature ever achieved by a single-stage PTC. Further more, the cryocooler can provide a cooling power of 20 W at 20.6 K and 39.5 W at 30 K, respectively.     

Band structure symmetry effects in Gd multilayers grown on W(1 1 2)

We present evidence of coverage-dependent band structure symmetry effects in scanning tunneling microscopy. We find that the symmetry of the Gd induced band located at about 2 eV below the Fermi energy, at the surface Brillouin zone center, appears to be strongly dependent on the atomic structure in the bilayer regime for Gd on W(1 1 2). Light polarization dependent photoemission from this band indicates more d_z² symmetry character for rectangular Gd structures and rather more d_xzd_yz character for the quasi hexagonal bilayer structure. Band symmetry changes accompanying the structural phase transition from rectangular to quasi-hexagonal Gd bilayer structures are consistent with arguments used to explain the apparent STM corrugation observed for Gd on W(1 1 2) (Surf Sci 520(2002)43).     

Thermal stability of the Ta (1 1 1) surface covered with Pd

The thermal stability of Ta(1 1 1) face covered with Pd layers of different thickness was examined by the complementary scanning tunnelling microscope (STM), low-energy electron diffraction (LEED), Auger electron spectroscopy and Δφ techniques. It has been found that for thin layers of θ<3 monolayer (ML) heated to 450 K, uplifts appear on the surface that may be treated as an agglomerated form of Pd adsorbate. For layers thicker than θ>3 ML, facets of the {1 1 0} type were observed upon heating to 700 K. Regardless of the conditions of investigation the faceting of the {2 1 1} type did not appear. During the adsorbate desorption the STM images revealed an ordered arrangement of surface atoms in the form of micropyramids composed of 10 atoms each and equally oriented towards the substrate. The appearance of the pyramids on the surface did not affect the observed LEED pattern.     

Motion and conversion energies of adatom and adatom clusters on gold (0 0 1) surface

Beginning of epitaxial growth of vapor deposition on (0 0 1) surface has been studied by use of molecular dynamics. The activation energies of motion and conversion can be calculated using an embedded atom potential at any temperatures. The activation energy of the motion of a gold adatom on (0 0 1) surface of gold is calculated to be 0.41 eV. The activation energies of dissociation in the direction of a di-adatom is 0.72 eV from the nearest neighbor to the next nearest neighbor, and 0.27 eV from the next nearest neighbor to the third neighbor. Butterfly motion of a di-adatom is 0.42+0.12 eV=0.54 eV. Tri-adatoms are classified by the angle between the two bonds in the adatoms and the lengths of the two bonds. The conversion energies of tri-adatoms have also been calculated. The activation energy for the motion of an adatom on (0 0 1) surface is much higher than those corresponding the motion on (1 1 1) surfaces.     

Ordered mixed surface structures formed by coadsorption of dissimilar metal atoms on Cu(0 0 1)

We have found that various ordered mixed surface structures are formed by coadsorption of two dissimilar metal atoms on Cu(0 0 1) at room tepmerature, using low-energy electron diffraction (LEED) I-V analysis. As coadsorbates, we employed Mg, Bi, Li and K, and surface structures formed by the coadsorption systems of (Mg, Li), (Mg, K) and (Mg, Bi) are presented. A tensor LEED analysis provided detailed geometries of the coadsorbates and the substrate surface. It was found that the surface structures in the above three coadsorption sytems exhibit the restructuring of the Cu(0 0 1) surface. The phase separation into individual adsorbates does not take place, implying that some additional stabilization arises. We demonstrate two origins for the stabilization of the ordered mixed surface structures on Cu(0 0 1). Structures and features formed by the individual adsorption of Mg, Bi, Li and K atoms on Cu(0 0 1) are described first, then those of (2√2×√2)R45°-Mg,Li, (√5×√5)R26.7°-Mg,K, c(2×2)-Mg,Bi, and c(6×4)-Mg,Bi structures formed by the coadsorption are presented. We consider on the basis of the determined structural parameters the question why ordered mixed surface structures are formed instead of the phase separation.     

Study of epitaxial lateral overgrowth of semipolar (1 1 − 2 2) GaN by using different SiO2 pattern sizes

We investigated the growth mode and the crystal properties of lateral epitaxial overgrowth (LEO) semipolar (1 1 − 2 2) GaN by using the various SiO₂ pattern sizes of 6, 8, 10 and 12 μm with the window width of 4.0 μm. By using three-step growth technique, we successfully obtained the fully-coalescenced semipolar (1 1 − 2 2) LEO-GaN films regardless of the SiO₂ pattern sizes. However, the coalescence thickness of LEO-GaN film was decreased with decreasing SiO₂ pattern size, indicating that the coalescence of semipolar (1 1 − 2 2) GaN was easily formed by decreasing the pattern size of SiO₂ mask. The full width at half maximums (FWHMs) of X-ray rocking curves (XRCs) of LEO-GaN films decreased with increasing SiO₂ pattern size. In the pattern size of 4 × 10 μm, we achieved the minimum XRCs FWHM of 537 and 368 arc s with two different X-ray incident beam directions of [1 1 − 2 − 3] and [1 − 1 0 0], respectively. Moreover, the photoluminescence bandedge emission of semipolar (1 1 − 2 2) GaN was 45 times increased by LEO process. Based on these results, we concluded that the LEO pattern size of 4 × 10 μm would effectively decrease crystal defects of semipolar (1 1 − 2 2) GaN epilayer, resulting in an improvement of the optical properties.     

Optical and electrical properties of heat-resistant Sb-doped Sn1 − xHfxO2 transparent conducting films

To examine variations in the transparent conducting properties after annealing at high temperatures, 300-nm thick Sb-doped Sn_1 − xHf_xO₂ (x = 0.00-0.10) films were deposited onto silica glass substrates by the RF sputtering method and annealed in air up to 1000 °C at 200 °C increments. After annealing, all the Sb-doped SnO₂ films were transparent and electrically conductive, but large cracks, which decreased the electrical conductivity, were generated in several films due to crystallization or the thermal expansion difference between the film and substrate. Only the film deposited at room temperature in an Ar and O₂ mixed atmosphere did not crack after annealing, and its electrical conductivity exceeded 100 S cm^− 1 even after annealing at 1000 °C in air. Hf-doping blue shifted the fundamental absorption edges in the UV region in the Sb-doped Sn_1 − xHf_xO₂ films. Additionally, the optical transmission at 310 nm, T₃₁₀, increased as the Hf concentration increased, whereas the electrical conductivity was inversely proportional to the Hf concentration. On the other hand, thinner films (150-nm thick) with x = 0.00 showed both a high electrical conductivity over 100 S cm^− 1 and a high transparency T₃₁₀ = 65% after high temperature annealing.     

TOF-SARS study of hydrogen adsorption and desorption kinetics on Si(1 0 0)

The kinetics of atomic hydrogen isothermal adsorption and desorption on a Si(1 0 0) surface was studied using the time-of-flight scattering and recoiling spectrometry technique at temperatures below and above the thermal desorption threshold. A continuous decrease in saturation coverage with temperature under constant atomic hydrogen exposure has been observed in both regions for temperatures in the range 325-820 K. For T_S=500-650 K, the decrease is described by a kinetic model where Eley-Rideal (ER) abstraction is responsible for hydrogen removal from the surface and hydrogen coverage depends on the temperature due to the changing rate of migration from precursor to primary monohydride sites. For T_S=650 K and higher, in addition to the ER abstraction, the thermal desorption from primary monohydride sites leads to a further decrease of the saturation coverage. The first-order desorption rates after source shut-off have been measured and an activation barrier of 1.89 eV has been obtained.     

Low temperature formation of Si1 − x − yGexSny-on-insulator structures by using solid-phase mixing of Ge1 − zSnz/Si-on-insulator substrates

We proposed the low temperature formation technique of strain-relaxed Si_{1 − x − y}Ge_xSn_y-on-insulator (SGTOI) structures. We found that the solid-phase reaction and the formation of single and uniform Si_{1 − x − y}Ge_xSn_y layer on an insulator after annealing SiO₂/Ge_1 − zSn_z/SOI structures even at a temperature as low as 400 °C. We characterized the crystalline structure of SGTOI, and investigated the effects of annealing, Sn incorporation, and a SiO₂ cap layer on the solid-phase reaction between Ge_1 − zSn_z and SOI layers. The solid-phase reaction is enhanced with a higher Sn content and a thicker SiO₂ cap layer, and then Si_{1 − x − y}Ge_xSn_y layers are more rapidly formed. The SGTOI layer exhibits very low mosaicity and have good crystallinity.     

Adsorption/desorption kinetics of Na atoms on reconstructed Si (111)-7 × 7 surface

Self-assembled nanostructures on a periodic template are fundamentally and technologically important as they put forward the possibility to fabricate and pattern micro/nano-electronics for sensors, ultra high-density memories and nanocatalysts. Alkali-metal (AM) nanostructure grown on a semiconductor surface has received considerable attention because of their simple hydrogen like electronic structure. However, little efforts have been made to understand the fundamental aspects of the growth mechanism of self-assembled nanostructures of AM on semiconductor surfaces. In this paper, we report organized investigation of kinetically controlled room-temperature (RT) adsorption/desorption of sodium (Na) metal atoms on clean reconstructed Si (111)-7 × 7 surface, by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The RT uptake curve shows a layer-by-layer growth (Frank-vander Merve growth) mode of Na on Si (111)-7 × 7 surfaces and a shift is observed in the binding energy position of Na (1s) spectra. The thermal stability of the Na/Si (111) system was inspected by annealing the system to higher substrate temperatures. Within a temperature range from RT to 350 °C, the temperature induced mobility to the excess Na atoms sitting on top of the bilayer, allowing to arrange themselves. Na atoms desorbed over a wide temperature range of 370 °C, before depleting the Si (111) surface at temperature 720 °C. The acquired valence-band (VB) spectra during Na growth revealed the development of new electronic-states near the Fermi level and desorption leads the termination of these. For Na adsorption up to 2 monolayers, decrease in work function (−1.35 eV) was observed, whereas work function of the system monotonically increases with Na desorption from the Si surface as observed by other studies also. This kinetic and thermodynamic study of Na adsorbed Si (111)-7 × 7 system can be utilized in fabrication of sensors used in night vision devices.     

Formation of CuIn1 − xAlxSe2 thin films studied by Raman scattering

CuIn_1 − xAl_xSe₂ (CIAS) thin films (x = 0.06, 0.18, 0.39, 0.64, 0.80 and 1) with thicknesses of approximately 1 μm were formed by the selenization of sputtered Cu―In―Al precursors and studied via X-ray diffraction, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry and micro-Raman spectroscopy at room temperature. Precursor films selenized at 300, 350, 400, 450, 500 and 550 °C were examined via Raman spectroscopy in the range 50-500 cm^− 1 with resolution of 0.3 cm^− 1. Sequential formation of In_xSe_y, Cu_2 − xSe, CuInSe₂ (CIS) and CIAS phases was observed as the selenization temperature was increased. Conversion of CIS to CIAS was initiated at 500 °C. For all CuIn_1 − xAl_xSe₂ products, the A₁ phonon frequency varied nonlinearly with respect to the aluminum composition parameter x in the range 172 cm^− 1 to 186 cm^− 1.