Characterization of SnO2 nanowires synthesized from SnO by carbothermal reduction process

In this paper, single-crystalline SnO₂ nanowires have been successfully prepared by a carbothermal reduction process employing SnO as the starting material and CuO as the catalyst. Their morphologies, purity and sizes of the products were characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), selected area electron diffraction, X-ray diffraction, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. The FESEM images reveal wire-like and rod-shaped nanowires of about 100–800 μm in length and 30–200 nm in the transverse dimensions. The three observed Raman peaks at 474, 634 and 774 cm⁻¹ indicate the typical rutile phase of the SnO₂ which is in agreement with the X-ray diffraction results. The influence of some reaction parameters, including the temperature and the reaction duration, on the forming, morphology and particle size of SnO₂ crystallize is discussed.     

Ethanol sensing properties of CuO nanowires prepared by an oxidation reaction

The ethanol sensing properties of CuO nanowires prepared by oxidation reaction of copper plate have been examined. The characterization of CuO nanowires by FE-SEM, EDS, and TEM revealed diameters of 100–400 nm and a monoclinic structure with a growth direction along 〈1 1 0〉 direction. The ethanol sensing characteristics of CuO nanowires were studied at ethanol concentrations of 100–1000 ppm and working temperatures of 200–280 °C. An increase of resistance was observed under an ethanol vapor atmosphere due to the p-type semi-conducting property of CuO. It was found that the sensitivity, the response and the recovery time depended on the working temperatures and also ethanol concentration. The sensor exhibited the optimum sensitivity of 1.5 to ethanol vapor concentration of 1000 ppm at the working temperature of 240 °C with a response and recovery time of 110 and 120 s, respectively.     

Pulsed laser deposition and processing of wide band gap semiconductors and related materials

The present work describes the novel, relatively simple, and efficient technique of pulsed laser deposition for rapid prototyping of thin films and multi-layer heterostructures of wide band gap semiconductors and related materials. In this method, a KrF pulsed excimer laser is used for ablation of polycrystalline, stoichiometric targets of wide band gap materials. Upon laser absorption by the target surface, a strong plasm a plume is produced which then condenses onto the substrate, kept at a suitable distance from the target surface. We have optimized the processing parameters such as laser fluence, substrate temperature, background gas pressure, target to substrate distance, and pulse repetition rate for the growth of high quality crstalline thin films and heterostructures. The films have been characterized by x-ray diffraction, Rutherford backscattering and ion channeling spectrometry, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, ultraviolet (UV)-visible spectroscopy, cathodoluminescence, and electrical transport measurements. We show that high quality AlN and GaN thin films can be grown by pulsed laser deposition at relatively lower substrate temperatures (750–800°C) than those employed in metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), (1000–1100°C), an alternative growth method. The pulsed laser deposited GaN films (∼0.5 μm thick), grown on AlN buffered sapphire (0001), shows an x-ray diffraction rocking curve full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 5–7 arc-min. The ion channeling minimum yield in the surface region for AlN and GaN is ∼3%, indicating a high degree of crystallinity. The optical band gap for AlN and GaN is found to be 6.2 and 3.4 eV, respectively. These epitaxial films are shiny, and the surface root mean square roughness is ∼5–15 nm. The electrical resistivity of the GaN films is in the range of 10⁻²–10² Θ-cm with a mobility in excess of 80 cm²V⁻¹s⁻¹ and a carrier concentration of 10¹⁷–10¹⁹ cm⁻³, depending upon the buffer layers and growth conditions. We have also demonstrated the application of the pulsed laser deposition technique for integration of technologically important materials with the III–V nitrides. The examples include pulsed laser deposition of ZnO/GaN heterostructures for UV-blue lasers and epitaxial growth of TiN on GaN and SiC for low resistance ohmic contact metallization. Employing the pulsed laser, we also demonstrate a dry etching process for GaN and AlN films.     

Raman scattering and electrical conductivity of nitrogen implanted MoO3 whiskers

Whiskers of MoO₃ have been grown by a thermal transport process. A set of samples was then implanted with nitrogen ions at a dose of 5 × 10¹⁶ ion/cm². The implanted whiskers changed from transparent to semi-transparent. Raman spectroscopy of the whiskers was observed and compared with those of unimplanted whiskers. The results revealed that the Raman intensity of the implanted whiskers was decreased about 10 times with respect to that of unimplanted whiskers. Only the case of the wave propagation parallel to the a-axis, a lower suppression ratio of the B_3g modes was observed. No extra mode due to the nitrogen implantation was observed. This indicates that implantation could only induce defects and oxygen vacancies but not the structural transformation. From electrical conductivity and Hall measurement, it was found that the whiskers exhibited an n-type semiconductor and its conductivity drastically increased due to the defects and oxygen vacancies.     

Synthesis of MoO3 nanobelts by medium energy nitrogen ion implantation

Ion implantation has been revealed as a potential technique to modify the surface of materials. In this work, MoO₃ nanobelts were synthesized on MoO₃ whisker surfaces by means of ion implantation with 60 keV nitrogen ions at a dose of 1 × 10¹⁶ atom/cm² and characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The result showed that the nanostructures of MoO₃ occurred over the whisker surfaces and had belt-like shapes. The size of the synthesized MoO₃ nanobelts mostly ranged from 20 to 60 nm in width and 300 to 800 nm in length. The nanobelts were found to have an orthorhombic crystal structure with growth preferential in the [001] direction. The growth process of the nanobelts based on the common vapor-solid mechanism is discussed.     

Ethanol sensor based on ZnO and Au-doped ZnO nanowires

ZnO nanowires and Au-doped ZnO nanowires were prepared by oxidation reaction. The oxidation was performed by heating zinc powder and a mixture of zinc and 1 wt% gold powder which was pressed into a tube shape at 600 °C for 24 h. The ethanol sensors based on ZnO nanowires were simply fabricated by applying silver electrode at each end of the tube and inserting a coil heater into the tube. The ethanol sensing properties of ZnO nanowires were observed from the resistance change under ethanol vapor atmosphere. By considering the sensitivity and response time, the optimum operating temperature of the ethanol sensor was found to be 240 °C. Also, it was found that the sensitivity of the sensor based on Au-doped ZnO nanowires exhibits higher value than that of the sensor based on undoped ZnO nanowires.     

Copper incorporation in Mn2+-doped Sn2S3 nanocrystals and the resultant structural,optical, and electrochemical characteristics

Sn₂S₃ nanocrystals (NCs) with both Mn²⁺ doping and Cu²⁺ incorporation were synthesized using a chemical bath deposition method. The Cu²⁺ ions formed an anorthic Mn²⁺-doped Cu₂SnS₃ structure with E_g =?1.44?eV, which altered the material's optical and photo/electrochemical properties. After coating the bare Nb₂O₅ electrode with Mn²⁺-doped Sn₂S₃ or Mn²⁺-doped Cu₂SnS₃ NCs, the photoluminescence spectrum was blue-shifted to 411.13?nm from 411.69?nm. Compared to the sample without Cu²⁺, the Cu²⁺-incorporated sample showed a slightly stronger emission at the same position, possibly due to disorder in the crystalline structure based on variations at the interface of Mn²⁺-doped Cu₂SnS₃ NCs. Electrochemical analysis showed a lower charge transfer resistance in the Mn²⁺-doped Cu₂SnS₃, which is related to its larger electroactive surface area. The larger electroactive surface area is attributed to the Faradaic redox processes at the electrode surface, which suppresses the carrier recombination. The coexistence of Cu²⁺ and Mn²⁺ ions shortened the electron transport pathway at the interface and improved the carrier diffusion coefficient and diffusion length, leading to a higher specific capacitance that implies higher energy storage performance. Finally, the I-V characteristics of the Mn²⁺-doped Cu₂SnS₃-coated Nb₂O₅ electrode under various light illumination conditions indicated its better efficiency in photoresponse, electron generation, and charge collection, owing to a superior charge transport mechanism. Detailed results were obtained about the charge dynamics in the as-prepared photo/electrochemical devices with Cu²⁺ incorporation in the Mn²⁺-doped SnS₃ electrode.     

Rapid Thermal Annealing of Oxide Electrodes for Nonvolatile Ferroelectric Memory Structures

We report on the properties of a ferroelectric stack comprising (La_0.5Sr_0.5)CoO₃ (LSCO)/Pb(Nb,Zr,Ti)O₃ (PNZT)/LSCO deposited on 4 inch diameter platinized Si wafers (Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si). The LSCO electrodes were deposited at room temperature by pulsed laser ablation and the ferroelectric layer was deposited by the sol-gel technique. Rutherford backscattering was performed to confirm the uniformity in composition, thickness and stoichiometry of LSCO across the wafers. Conventional furnace or rapid thermal annealing was performed to crystallize the electrodes. The oxidation resistance of the conducting barrier layers, Pt/Ti, was found to be dependent on the annealing procedure adopted for the bottom electrode. In the case where the bottom LSCO was crystallized by rapid thermal annealing, Rutherford backscattering analysis and transmission electron microscopy studies revealed that there was no oxidation of the Pt/Ti conducting barrier composite. This is in contrast to the observations for in-situ deposition or conventional furnace annealing of the bottom electrode. The resistivity, coercive field and polarization of the ferroelectric stack were uniform across the 4-inch wafers. The ferroelectric capacitors showed no fatigue up to 10¹¹ cycles and no imprint at 100°C. The ferroelectric properties were independent of the annealing procedure used for crystallizing the electrodes.     

Growth kinetic and characterization of Mg(x)Zn1-xO nanoneedles synthesized by thermal oxidation

Mg(x)Zn1-xO nanoneedles were synthesized on alumina substrate by using thermal oxidation technique under normal atmosphere. Zn powder and MgO powder were mixed and heated to form Mg(x)Zn1-xO with x content of 0-0.3 by mol at heating temperature and time of 400-1000 degrees C and 24 h. The morphology of Mg(x)Zn1-xO nanoneedle was characterized by filed emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM). It was found that the needle-like nanostructures with the sharp ends were observed outward from microparticles at 400-800 degrees C. From EDS, XRD, and TEM analysis, it was suggested that Mg(x)Zn1-xO alloy was formed with no segregation of MgO in Mg(x)Zn1-xO alloy after thermal oxidation process. Also, from reflectance spectra, the Mg(x)Zn1-xO nanoneedle exhibited higher energy gap than that of ZnO films for entire Mg content indicating widening band gap energy due to alloying effect. Moreover, we have proposed the growth mechanism of Mg(x)Zn1-xO nanoneedles based on growth kinetic of nucleation formation. This growth model can be explored to explain nanostructure of other metal-oxide alloy prepared by thermal oxidation.