Annealing temperature dependent structural and optical properties of electrodeposited CdSe thin films

Cadmium selenide films were synthesized using simple electrodeposition method on indium tin oxide coated glass substrates. The synthesized films were post annealed at 200 °C, 300 °C and 400 °C. X-ray diffraction of the films showed the hexagonal structure with crystallite size <3 nm for as deposited films and 3–25 nm for annealed films. The surface morphology of films using field emission scanning electron microscopy showed granular surface. The high resolution transmission electron microscopy of a crystallite of the film revealed lattice fringes which measured lattice spacing of 3.13 Å corresponding to (002) plane, indicating the lattice contraction effect, due to small size of CdSe nanocrystallite. The calculation of optical band gap using UV–visible absorption spectrum showed strong red-shift with increase in crystallite size, indicating to the charge confinement in CdSe nanocrystallite.     

Characterisation of interfaces in nanocrystalline palladium

Structures of grain boundaries and triple line junctions in nanocrystalline materials are of interest owing to large fractions of atoms in nanocrystalline materials being at these interfacial positions. Grain boundary and triple line junction structures in nanocrystalline palladium have been studied using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The main micro structural features observed include the varying atomic structures of grain boundaries and the presence of disordered regions at triple line junctions. Also, there is variation in lattice parameters in different nanocrystalline grains. Geometric phase analysis is used to quantify atomic displacements within nanocrystalline grains. Displacement fields thus detected indicate links to the interface structures.     

STUDY OF MECHANISM OF RQ EMBRITTLEMENT OF Fe_(73.5)Cu_1-Nb_3Si_(13.5)B_9 NANOCRYSTALLINE SOFT MAGNETIC ALLOY

Rapidly quenching embrittlement (RQE) sometimes appears in Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si13.5B9 nanocrystalline soft magnetic alloy (FINEMET) during production process. As a re-sult of RQE the ductility of the as-quenched ribbon drops seriously. The mechanism of RQE has been elucidated in the recent works of current authors. It was believed that RQE is due to the structural relaxation but not related to a-Fe(Si) crystallization. In this paper, the high resolution TEM (HRTEM) method and image digital processing were applied to analyze the HRTEM images of two FINEMET rapidly quenched ribbons with different thicknesses in detail. In the thinner ductile sample, the ordering domains with the size of about 3nm are observed. In the thicker RQE sample, the metastable nanocrystalline domains with the size of 18nm are observed along with the structural relaxation. These domains seem to have Fe3B-like metastable phase struc-ture on nanometer scale. The result indicates that the local atomic ordering regions extend when RQE induced     

Y型纳米碳管的结构表征与光学性能研究

对Y型纳米碳管的形貌和超微观结构进行了SEM、HRTEM和XRD分析，并着重测试了其光学性能。结果表明，碳管内包裹Fe纳米微粒，管径分布在50～60nm之间；纳米碳管呈Y型是由于管内催化剂的粒度不均，使之在生长过程中产生分支；首次报道了产物的发光性能，认为其在红光范围内存在荧光效应。     

Spreading of Cobalt Phase and Silicate Formation in Co/SiO2 Model Catalyst

The electron microscopy technique was used to characterize the cobalt–silica interaction in a model catalyst at high temperature in air. The samples were in the form of thin cobalt films (1 and 4 nm thick) supported on an amorphous layer of SiO₂. It was concluded that cobalt loading determines the evolution of the microstructure, morphology and phase composition. The spreading of the cobalt oxide phase and formation of cobalt silicate was established.     

Al掺杂四针状纳米ZnO生长机制分析

采用热物理法制备不同量Al掺杂的ZnO纳米材料,利用XRD分析掺杂前后试样的物相结构,并通过TEM鉴定粉体中的四针状纳米氧化锌（T-ZnO）结构。结果表明,Al掺杂纳米T-ZnO晶须的结晶过程是气液固（VLS）方式,晶须生长具有择优取向。透射电镜高分辨图像揭示凝固过程中晶须沿[0001]轴向生长,随着时间的延长,Zn原子首先形成核心部分并向外在晶须表面呈台阶状生长,从Al液中带走部分Al原子,进而促成纳米晶须的不断伸长且直径变大。     

Transmission electron microscopy study of extended defect evolution and amorphization in SiC under Si ion irradiation

The damage induced in 3C-SiC epilayers on a silicon wafer by 2.3-MeV Si ion irradiation for fluences of 10¹⁴, 10¹⁵, and 10¹⁶ cm⁻², was studied by conventional and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (TEM/HRTEM). The evolution of extended defects and lattice disorder is followed in both the 3C-SiC film and Si substrate as a function of ion fluence, with reference to previous FTIR spectroscopy data. The likelihood of athermal unfaulting of native stacking faults by point defect migration to the native stacking faults is discussed in relation to damage recovery. Threshold energy densities and irradiation doses for dislocation loop formation and amorphous phase transformation are deduced from the damage depth profile by nuclear collisions. The role of electronic excitations on the damage recovery at high fluence is also addressed for both SiC and Si.     

Effect of pre-annealing on thermal stability of amorphous Zr-Cu-Ni alloy

The influence of pre-annealing on thermal stability of the amorphous Zr70Cu20Ni10 alloy was reported by em-ploying the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) tech-niques. It has been observed that the supercooled liquid region decreases with increasing the annealing time under isothe-mal conditions, indicating that the thermal stability of the amorphous Zr70Cu20Ni10 alloy decreases gradually. HRTEM ob-servations reveal that there exist some ordered atomic clusters in the amorphous matrix at the relaxation stage. These or-dered atomic clusters can be regarded as precursors for the precipitation of the crystalline phases in the subsequent crystal-lization process. The reasons resulting in the decrease in thermal stability of the amorphous Zr70Cu20Ni10 alloy with anneal-ing time are discussed through the Gaussian decomposition for the radial distribution function of the amorphous Zr70Cu20Ni10 alloy.     

氧化硅基FeOOH/TiO_2纳米复合膜的自组装制备与表征

以氧化硅(SiO2)为基底,在其上组装磺酸根(SO3H)为外侧功能团的自组装分子单层。以此为模板,先后采用TiCl4-HCl液相反应体系和FeNO3-HNO3液相反应体系诱导制备了FeOOH/TiO2复合薄膜。通过SEM和HRTEM对该薄膜表征,确定它们分别属于锐钛矿和针铁矿(α-FeOOH)结构,并对其生长机理进行了探讨。TiO2薄膜的形成与基底磺酸基团之间的相互作用有关,α-FeOOH的形成既受基底单分子层磺酸基团的调控,也受到TiO2表面键的化学作用,HRTEM观察到纳米锐钛矿和针铁矿二者可通过合适的界面如TiO2-(004)/(111)-α-FeOOH共晶生长。     

New approach in depositing thick, layered cubic boron nitride coatings by oxygen addition—structural and compositional analysis

Cubic boron nitride (c-BN) can be produced by PVD and PA-CVD techniques by intensive ion bombardment leading to highly stressed films limiting its use in industrial applications. Various attempts have been undertaken to reduce the compressive stress of c-BN thin films. A significant reduction in compressive stress and a substantially improved adhesion was achieved by a new coating concept consisting of a two-step adhesion-promoting base layer, a compositional-graded nucleation layer obtained by a stepwise decrease of the oxygen content in the Ar/N₂/O₂ atmosphere and a low-stressed c-BN:O top layer with controlled oxygen addition. The four-layer c-BN:O film with a thickness of 3 μm was deposited by unbalanced radio frequency magnetron sputtering of a hot-pressed hexagonal boron nitride target on silicon substrates. The adhesion layer was deposited in a mixed Ar/O₂ atmosphere of 0.26 Pa with a stepwise increased nitrogen gas flow and a subsequent increase of the ion energy by increasing the substrate bias from 0 to − 250 V. The c-BN nucleation was gradually initiated by decreasing the O₂ gas flow. The present study was focused on the investigation of the morphology, the microstructure on the nanoscale, and the bonding structure using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-Transmission infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) employing analytical scanning transmission electron microscopy (ASTEM). The HRTEM images revealed a four-layer coating consisting of a gradual nucleation of t-BN, on which a gradual nucleation of c-BN was achieved by decreasing the oxygen gas flow.