Dislocation nucleation in SiGe nanoscale islands formed during heteroepitaxial growth

A model is proposed to predict the critical parameters (shape, size, element composition) of nanoislands for dislocation nucleation. The onset of plastic relaxation of three-dimensional islands formed during heteroepitaxy in the Stranski-Krastanov mode are considered theoretically for the Ge/Si(100) heterosystem as an example. The study is based on a combination of numerical and analytical approaches to the calculation of strains in three-dimensional island containing a dislocation. It is confirmed that dislocation nucleation in three-dimensional SiGe islands is not limited by the kinetic barrier.     

Metal-induced reconstructions of the silicon(111) surface

We have used scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) to study changes in the structure of the Si(111) surface induced by deposition of the group III metals In and Ga. For both metals, several different ordered reconstructions are seen as a function of coverage. The STM images provide new structural information on each of these reconstructions. With In metal deposition, we have seen the surface reconstructions √3×, √3, √31× √31, √7×√3 and 4×1 as the coverage increases. In the case of Ga on Si(111), we have studied structures that exist up to 0·7 ML. At 1/3 ML, there is a √3×√3 structure identical to that of In. Above 0·3 ML there is a different phase that may correspond to the (6·3times6·3) RHEED pattern reported in this coverage range. This surface tends to grow as triangular islands at higher coverages.     

Quantitative analysis of HOLZ line splitting in CBED patterns of epitaxially strained layers

A SiGe layer epitaxially grown on a silicon substrate is experimentally studied by convergent beam electron diffraction (CBED) experiments and used as a test sample to analyse the higher-order Laue zones (HOLZ) line splitting. The influence of surface strain relaxation on the broadening of HOLZ lines is confirmed. The quantitative fit of the observed HOLZ line profiles is successfully achieved using a formalism particularly well-adapted to the case of a z-dependent crystal potential (z being the zone axis). This formalism, based on a time-dependent perturbation theory approach, proves to be much more efficient than a classical Howie-Whelan approach, to reproduce the complex HOLZ lines profile in this heavily strained test sample.     

Formation of large ordered domains in benzenethiol self-assembled monolayers on Au(1 1 1) observed by scanning tunneling microscopy

Benzenethiol (BT) self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on Au(1 1 1) were prepared as a function of solution temperature after immersion in a 1 mM ethanol solution for 1 day. The surface structures of BT SAMs were examined by means of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). Although BT molecules usually form disordered SAMs containing the Au adatom islands at room temperature, we found that they formed two-dimensional ordered SAMs containing a large size domain at a high solution temperature of 50 or 75 °C. High-resolution STM imaging revealed that BT SAMs on Au(1 1 1) formed at 50 °C have a (2×3√2)R23° packing structure. From our STM study, we revealed that two-dimensional ordered BT SAMs on Au(1 1 1) can be obtained by changing the solution temperature.     

Morphology and Nanomechanical Properties of ZDDP Antiwear Films as a Function of Tribological Contact Time

We have employed scanning force microscopy (SFM) and nanoindentation analysis to track the evolution of tribologically generated antiwear films derived from zinc dialkyldithiophosphate (ZDDP) as a function of rubbing time. The SFM images reveal that film morphology evolves with time through a growth mechanism consisting of three stages. In the first stage nucleation on active sites at the steel surface leads to the growth of distinct segregated islands. In the second stage the islands coalesce causing the film to spread over a larger fraction of the surface. In the final stage continuous rubbing induces the large islands to divide into smaller, densely packed structures. In contrast to the observed morphological changes, rubbing time does not strongly influence the nanomechanical properties of the films. This highlights the importance of film morphology in determining the effectiveness of ZDDP antiwear films. We also observe large variation in both the morphology and nanomechanical properties that are likely due to the heterogeneity in contact pressure at the pin-sample interface of the wear rig.     

An active manufacturing method of surface micro structure based on ordered grinding wheel and ultrasonic-assisted grinding

At present, many studies have shown that crosshatch micro structures can effectively improve surface performance. This paper presents a method for manufacturing micro structure based on ultrasonic-assisted grinding (UAG) and ordered grinding wheel. Firstly, the parameters of ordered grinding wheel and the surface characteristic parameters in relation to working performance are proposed. According to the kinematics of grinding, the governing equation between the surface characteristic parameters and the machining parameters is established. Based on the proposed characteristic parameters, the pattern parameters and machining parameters are inversely solved by the governing equation. The crosshatch micro structure manufacturing based on ordered grinding wheel and ultrasonic-assisted grinding is achieved, and because the fabrication technology of the grinding wheel is not mature, its correctness and feasibility are preliminary verified by the numerical simulation method and grinding experiment. The paper method is original for the active manufacturing of the crosshatch micro structure and is of reference value for the micro structure active manufacturing.     

Producing arrays of graphene and few-layer graphene quantum dots in a fluorographene matrix

Conductive islands (quantum dots) of graphene and few-layer graphene in a fluorinated graphene matrix were produced by chemical functionalization of graphene in aqueous hydrofluoric acid. The structures formed were investigated by measuring the current-voltage characteristics and by means of an atomic-force microscope used to measure the surface topography and lateral forces. The presence of conductive islands in the fluorinated matrix was shown, and their sizes were determined.     

Epitaxial Ag wires with a single grain boundary for electromigration

Test structures for electromigration with defined grain boundary configurations can be fabricated using focused ion beam (FIB). We present a novel approach of combining epitaxial growth of Ag islands with FIB milling. Depending on the growth parameters, bi-crystalline Ag islands can be grown on Si(111) surfaces and can be structured into wires by FIB. To avoid doping effects of the used Ga FIB, silicon on insulator (SOI) substrates are used. By cutting through the device layer of the SOI substrate with deep trenches, the Ag wire can be electrically separated from the rest of the substrate. In this way, Ag wires with one isolated grain boundary of arbitrary direction can be assembled. Using scanning electron microscopy we demonstrate the feasibility of our approach.     

微型机械的摩擦学特性及其表面润滑技术的研究

综述了微型机械的摩擦学特性,阐述了微型机械中摩擦学问题研究的重要性,分析了影响微摩擦力的关键因素。基于目前国内外对微型机械表面润滑问题的研究现状,探讨了LB膜、自组装膜和分子沉积膜各自的特点及其在微型机械表面润滑领域的应用进展,对它们性能的优缺点进行了比较,并提出降低微型机械的表面能是减轻微摩擦磨损的有效措施。     

Convergent beam electron diffraction extinction distance measurements for quantitative analysis of si(1-x),Ge(x)

A new method to determine the concentration of germanium in Si(1-x) Ge(x) single crystals is presented. It is based on extinction distance measurements by means of convergent beam electron diffraction (CBED). The two-beam condition CBED intensity oscillation (the so-called rocking curve) is measured for the 004 diffracted beam and compared with a numerical simulation. Using the two-beam dynamical diffraction approximation theory, this approach yields very precise values for both specimen thickness and effective extinction distance (Ultramicroscopy 87 (2001) 5). First a theoretical extinction distance zetag(x) for strain relaxed Si(1-x)Ge(x) is calculated assuming a solid solution and using tabulated atomic scattering factors of silicon and germanium atoms. It is found that for single crystals zetag(x) decreases from 156 nm in pure silicon to 90 nm in pure germanium. Measurements on calibrated strain relaxed SiGe layers with variable germanium concentrations show an excellent agreement between experimental and calculated extinction distances zetag(x). As a consequence the experimental extinction distance zetag(x) becomes an indirect measure of the germanium concentration with a 1-2 at % sensitivity. The method turns out to be insensitive to strain as experimental zetag(x) values obtained on strained SiGe layers fit the theoretical extinction distance curve calculated for strain relaxed SiGe.     

Development of a Technology for Creating Structured Capillary-Porous Coatings by Means of 3D Printing for Intensification of Heat Transfer during Boiling

Application of the method of layer-by-layer selective laser sintering of a metal powder for depositing capillary-porous coatings with a prescribed porosity onto heat-releasing surfaces is considered. Implementation of this method in experimental investigations of the boiling process on modified surfaces allows broad-range variations of the main parameters of microstructured capillary-porous coatings and other three-dimensional structures: material, porosity, amplitude (height), thickness of the residual layer and wavelength of capillary-porous coatings, and size and shape of three-dimensional ordered microtextures. It is demonstrated that the use of this technology can increase the heat transfer coefficient the case of boiling on the surface with a capillary-porous coating by several times as compared to the uncoated surface.

     

Advanced semiconductor diagnosis by multidimensional electron-beam-induced current technique

We present advanced semiconductor diagnosis by using electron-beam-induced current (EBIC) technique. By varying the parameters such as temperature, accelerating voltage (V(acc)), bias voltage, and stressing time, it is possible to extend EBIC application from conventional defect characterization to advanced device diagnosis. As an electron beam can excite a certain volume even beneath the surface passive layer, EBIC can be effectively employed to diagnose complicated devices with hybrid structure. Three topics were selected to demonstrate EBIC applications. First, the recombination activities of grain boundaries and their interaction with Fe impurity in photovoltaic multicrystalline Si (mc-Si) are clarified by temperature-dependent EBIC. Second, the detection of dislocations between strained-Si and SiGe virtual substrate are shown to overcome the limitation of depletion region. Third, the observation of leakage sites in high-k gate dielectric is demonstrated for the characterization of advanced hybrid device structures.     

Advances in polishing of internal structures on parts made by laser-based powder bed fusion

The internal structures of metallic products are important in realizing functional applications. Considering the manufacturing of inner structures, laser-based powder bed fusion (L-PBF) is an attractive approach because its layering principle enables the fabrication of parts with customized interior structures. However, the inferior surface quality of L-PBF components hinders its productization progress seriously. In this article, process, basic forms, and applications relevant to L-PBF internal structures are reviewed comprehensively. The causes of poor surface quality and differences in the microstructure and property of the surface features of L-PBF inner structures are presented to provide a perspective of their surface characteristics. Various polishing technologies for L-PBF components with inner structures are presented, whereas their strengths and weaknesses are summarized along with a discussion on the challenges and prospects for improving the interior surface quality of L-PBF parts.     

Topography of YBa2Cu3O7-δ single crystals,spectroscopy of thin films and sintered YBa2Cu3O7-δ: theory and STM observations

We report topographic scanning tunnelling microscopy measurements on the (001) and (100) surfaces of YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ single crystals, together with a theoretical basis by which the surface structures can be understood. We show that it is possible to obtain reproducible topographic data on a clean (001) and (100) surface in air. The results show various structures at scales from 0·1 to 100 nm. Among the observed features on the (001) surface were growth steps which had heights that were multiples of the lattice constant in the [001] direction. This indicates that the bulk crystal structure extends to the surface, and that the surface is relatively stable, even in humid air. We also found small (013) facets on the (001) surface, in accordance with theoretical pradictions. Occasionally, we found evidence for a one-dimensional corrugation on the surface. This is possibly a direct consequence of the orthorhombic distortion in the a-b plane with ordered oxygen vacancies, which gives rise to chain-like Cu-O structures along the b-axis. In addition, we measured the energy gap of sintered pellets and thin films of this superconductor, using a low-temperature STM. We discuss some effects which may influence the measurements and present criteria to check for these effects. We found an energy gap of δ=14±2 eV, in good agreement with the BCS pradiction 2δ/kT_c=3·5. This is not contradicted by the results we obtained by far infrared spectroscopy and Andreev reflection measurements.     

Features of triboformation of the steel surface layer using lubricating materials modified with nanodispersed β-sialon

The results of triboengineering tests have revealed the effectiveness of β-sialon nanodispersed particles as an additive to lubricating materials oiling heavily loaded friction units. The method of X-ray structural analysis has established that use of β-sialon as an additive leads to the appearance of steel structures in the surface layer distinct in having a larger parameter of the crystalline lattice, reduced relative mean quadratic micro-deformation, and sparser dislocations, ensuring better triboengineering characteristics of friction couples. The main tribological effect of β-sialon in the lubricating material is that the mechanical energy of deformation converts into the chemical energy of formation of a new structure—an ordered surface layer.     

Nanoscale TiO island formation on the SrTiO3(001) surface studied by in situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy

The formation and time evolution of TiO islands on SrTiO3(001) surface facets at 970 degrees C are studied by in situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The exact surface morphology of the islands and the interface between the islands and the SrTiO3 bulk are characterized by profile imaging in cross-section. At the initial stage of formation, the islands contain crystal defects which disappear after annealing times for longer than 100 min. Lattice parameter measurement from the HRTEM images reveals that the crystal islands may be identified as TiO. They are faceted in shape, having the {001} and {011} facet components. During annealing for about 2.5 h the islands grow to sizes of 3-4 nm in equivalent sphere radius, and shrink again during longer annealing. The interface between the TiO islands and the SrTiO3 bulk also shows faceting.     

Two-dimensional ordering of pentafluorobenzenethiol self-assembled monolayers on Au(1 1 1) prepared by ambient-pressure vapor deposition

Formation and surface structures of pentafluorobenzenethiol (PFBT) self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) on Au(1 1 1) prepared by ambient-vapor phase deposition were examined by means of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) as a function of deposition temperature. PFBT SAMs formed at room temperature have disordered phases with bright aggregated domains, which are very similar to benzenethiol SAMs. As deposition temperature increases to 50 °C, partially ordered domains and large aggregated domains appeared. High-resolution STM clearly revealed that PFBT SAMs formed at 75 °C were composed of long-range, two-dimensional (2D) ordered domains, which can be described as a c(2×√3) structure. The results of this study clearly demonstrate that deposition temperature is a crucial factor for obtaining PFBT SAMs on Au(1 1 1) with a high degree of structural order.     

Composition and stress analysis in Si structures using micro-raman spectroscopy

Strained silicon (Si) technology enables improvements in complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) performance and functionality via replacement of the bulk, cubic-crystal Si substrate with an Si substrate that contains a tetragonally distorted, biaxially strained Si thin film at the surface. Here we use Raman spectroscopy to allow us to characterise growth processes of strained si, and to characterise the resulting level of strain/stress in the si and the effect it has on the underlying layer of graded SiGe.     

Origin of phase shift in atomic force microscopic investigation of the surface morphology of NR/NBR blend film

Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to study the morphology and surface properties of NR/NBR blend. Blends at 1/3, 1/1 and 3/1 weight ratios were prepared in benzene and formed film by casting. AFM phase images of these blends in tapping mode displayed islands in the sea morphology or matrix-dispersed structures. For blend 1/3, NR formed dispersed phase while in blends 1/1 and 3/1 phase inversion was observed. NR showed higher phase shift angle in AFM phase imaging for all blends. This circumstance was governed by adhesion energy hysteresis between the device tip and the rubber surface rather than surface stiffness of the materials, as proved by force distance measurements in the AFM contact mode.     

Crystallographic analysis of freeze-fracture electron micrographs: application to the structure determination of cubic lipid–water phases

An original approach combining freeze-fracture electron microscopy and quantitative image processing has been developed as an alternative to X-ray analysis. It has been applied to the crystallographic study of different lipid–water cubic phases [bicontinuous or micellar and of type I (oil-in-water) or type II (water-in-oil)] and has enabled significant advances in the study of these phases. Freeze-fracture electron microscopy has revealed that the cubic phases fracture preferentially along a few crystallographic directions which appeared on the images as noisy planar fracture surfaces containing periodic information. The visibility of the corresponding unit cells has been considerably improved by image-filtering techniques based on correlation averaging, allowing a quantitative analysis of the fracture images to be made. This analysis yielded faithful information on the symmetries of the cubic structure (rotation axes and mirror planes) as well as on the structure of the cubic phase itself. Eventually, the different parameters that determine the most favourable fracture pathways within the structures were established. This novel approach constitutes a powerful tool of general interest, complementary to X-ray diffraction, for solving complex ordered macromolecular structures at low resolution.