Synthesis and characterization of laser ablated TiNi films

TiNi thin films with BaTiO₃ and PbZr_0.52Ti_0.48O₃ (PZT) as buffer layers were deposited on Si(100) substrates by the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method. Buffer layers (BaTiO₃ and PZT) were deposited at 600 °C in oxygen (O₂) environment and TiNi films were deposited on the top of the buffer layer in presence of 15 mTorr nitrogen (N₂) at various deposition temperatures (50, 300, and 500 °C). Synthesis and characterization of TiNi films were investigated from the crystallographic point of view by using X-ray diffractometer (XRD) and atomic force microscope (AFM) techniques. It is found that buffer layer of BaTiO₃ and PZT have improved the crystallinity of TiNi films deposited at higher temperatures. The TiNi/PZT film was uniform compared to TiNi/BaTiO3 film with the exception of agglomerates that appeared throughout the layer.     

Laser ablation of YBa2Cu3O7-x: the wavelength dependence

Formation mechanisms of atomic and oxide ions in a plume (laser-induced plasma) produced by the laser ablation of a YBa₂Cu₃O_7-x (YBCO) target was studied by time-of-flight (TOF) analysis. The dependence of the TOF spectra on the laser wavelengths (266 nm and 1064 nm) was examined to elucidate photochemical phenomena in the plume. Significant changes in the relative enrichment of metal oxide and oxygen ions as well as their TOF distributions were observed by the injection of an oxygen jet to the plume, which induces reactive scattering of the YBCO plume and the oxygen jet.     

Ferroelectric Properties of Bi3.25La0.75Ti3O12 Thin Films Crystallized inDifferent N2/O2 Ambients

Bi3.25La0.75 Ti3O12 （BLT） ferroelectric thin films are deposited by sol-gel method and annealed for crystallizaion in total l eccm N2/02 mixed gas with various ratio at 750℃ for 30rain. The effect of crystallization ambient on the structural and ferroelectric properties of the BLT films is studied. The growth direction and grain size of BLT film are revealed to affect ferroeleetric properties. Alter the BLT film is annealed in 20%O2, the largest P~ value is obtained, which is ascribed to an increase of random orientation and large grain size. The fatigue property is improved with the concentration of oxygen in the ambient increasing, which is ascribed to annealing in the ambient with high concentrated oxygen adequately decreasing the defects related to lack of oxygen.     

Pulsed laser deposition of tantalum pentoxide film

We report thin tantalum pentoxide (Ta₂O₅) films grown on quartz and silicon substrates by the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique employing a Nd:YAG laser (wavelength 5=532 nm) in various O₂ gas environments. The effect of oxygen pressure, substrate temperature, and annealing under UV irradiation using a 172-nm excimer lamp on the properties of the grown films has been studied. The optical properties determined by UV spectrophotometry were also found to be a sensitive function of oxygen pressure in the chamber. At an O₂ pressure of 0.2 mbar and deposition temperatures between 400 and 500 °C, the refractive index of the films was around 2.18 which is very close to the bulk Ta₂O₅ value of 2.2, and an optical transmittance around 90% in the visible region of the spectrum was obtained. X-ray diffraction measurements showed that the as-deposited films were amorphous at temperatures below 500 °C and possessed an orthorhombic (#-Ta₂O₅) crystal structure at temperatures above 600 °C. The most significant result of the present study was that oxygen pressure could be used to control the composition and modulate optical band gap of the films. It was also found that UV annealing can significantly improve the optical and electrical properties of the films deposited at low oxygen pressures (<0.1 mbar).     

Influence of oxygen pressure on structural and optical properties of Al2O3 optical waveguides prepared by pulsed laser deposition

Pure and europium doped alumina waveguides have been prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition using a KrF excimer laser at oxygen pressures in the range from 10^-7 to 0.1 mbar. The composition of the films and the doping ion concentration were determined by Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy. From X-ray diffraction measurements, a progressive growth of %-Al₂O₃ crystallites is observed as the oxygen pressure decreases. After annealing treatment, the alumina films are constituted of !-Al₂O₃ crystallites while europium doped alumina films remain constituted of %-Al₂O₃ crystallites. The films have optical waveguiding properties. The mean refractive index of the film increases as oxygen pressure decreases.     

Structural and electrical properties of La0.5Sr0.5CoO3 films on SrTiO3 and porous a-Al2O3 substrates

Films of La_0.5Sr_0.5CoO₃ (LSCO) have been deposited on specially treated TiO₂-terminated (001) SrTiO₃ substrate surfaces and on macroporous polycrystalline !-Al₂O₃ substrates, having a mean pore diameter of 80 nm, by pulsed laser deposition. The films deposited on SrTiO₃ are good conducting, (001) textured, and exceptionally smooth (1-2 Å for 100 nm thick films). LSCO films deposited on porous !-Al₂O₃ are polycrystalline and exhibit good crystallographic and electrical properties despite the large substrate roughness and the differences in lattice parameters and crystal structure between the film and the substrate. Different growth modes have been observed on the porous !-Al₂O₃ substrates depending on the oxygen pressure during film deposition. Films grown at an oxygen pressure of 10^-1 mbar are macroporous, whereas films grown at 10^-2 mbar completely cover the substrate pores. In the latter case, strain effects lead to film cracking.     

Formation Mechanisms of Electrical Conductivity and Optical Properties of ZnO:N Film Produced by Annealing Treatment

The effects of annealing on the chemical states of N dopant, electrical, and optical properties of N-doped ZnO film grown by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) are investigated. Both the as-grown ZnO:N film and the film annealed in N₂ are of n-type conductivity, whereas the conductivity converts into p-type conductivity for the film annealed in O₂. We suggest that the transformation of conductivity is ascribed to the change in ratio of the N molecular number on O site (N₂)_O to the N atom number on O site (N_O) in ZnO:N films under the various annealed atmosphere. For the ZnO:N film annealed in N₂, the percentage content of (N₂)_O is larger than that of N_O, i.e.the ratio >1, resulting in the n-type conductivity. However, in the case of the ZnO:N film annealed in O₂, the percentage content of (N₂)_O is fewer than that of N_O, i.e., the ratio <1, giving rise to the p-type conductivity. There is an obvious difference between low-temperature (80K) PL spectra of ZnO:N film annealed in N₂ and that of ZnO:N film annealed in O₂. An emission band located at 3.358eV is observed in the spectra of the ZnO:N film after annealed in N₂, this emission band is due to donor-bound exciton (D⁰X). After annealed in O₂, the PL of the donor-bound exciton disappeared, an emission band located at 3.348eV is observed, this emission band is assigned to acceptor-bound exciton (A⁰X).     

高温超导体低温、高压下的物理性质的研究

 在3~20 GPa压力范围内，测量了含氧量较低的YBa₂Cu₃O_7-δ（δ=0.46）单晶压力增强效应（dT_c/dp=4.9KGPa^-1）；YBa₂Cu₃O₇（T_c0=90 K）单晶在压力下临界电流密度随压力变化；外磁场H=30 kO_e时，T_c与磁场、压力关系；压力达16.5 GPa下，Bi₂Sr₂CaCu₂O_x单晶T_c(p)关系（dT_c/dp=-0.4 KGPa^-1）。发现Y系高温超导体的温度压力导数dT_c/dp与T_c0中间呈dT_c/dp=b-mT_c0线性关系（b、m为常数）。结合压力下Y系超导体结构相变和含氧量对T_c影响，分析这类超导体T_c有很强的正压力效应的原因。把实验结果同几种超导电性微观理论模型进行了分析和比较。     

Vacuum Annealing Induced Room-Temperature Ferromagnetism in Co0.1Ti0.9O2-δ Films Prepared by Sol-Gel Method

The Co-doped TiO2 films （Co0.1Ti0.9O2-δ） are prepared on silicon substrates by sol-gel method and post annealing. TheCo0.1Ti0.9O2-δ film annealed in air is non-ferromagnetic at room temperature. After further annealed in a vacuum, the room-temperature ferromagnetism （RTFM） is observed. Experimental evidences show that the RTFM in the Co0.1Ti0.9O2-δ film may come from the Co-doped TiO2 matrix and is related to the oxygen vacancies created by vacuum annealing.     

1D-ACAR Spectra of YBa2－xSrxCu3Oy

The measurements of one-dimensional angular correlation of positron annihilation radiation (1D-ACAR) spectra,superconducting critical temperature,lattice parameters and oxygen contents have been made on YBa_2－xSr_xCu₃O_y high temperature supercnductor system.It was found that the substitution of Sr for Ba weakens the orthorhombic symmery,suppresses T_C,hardly changes oxygen content and does not disturb the electronic structure of Cu-O chains.Based on the above results.the authors propose that the localized electronic structure of Cu-O plane is a dominating factor for high temperature superconductivity in 1:2:3 phase superconductors.     

Adsorption and dissociation of O2 on CuCl(1 1 1) surface: A density functional theory study

The adsorption and dissociation of O₂ on CuCl(1 1 1) surface have been systematically studied by the density functional theory (DFT) slab calculations. Different kinds of possible modes of atomic O and molecular O₂ adsorbed on CuCl(1 1 1) surface and possible dissociation pathways are identified, and the optimized geometry, adsorption energy, vibrational frequency and Mulliken charge are obtained. The calculated results show that the favorable adsorption occurs at hollow site for O atom, and molecular O₂ lying flatly on the surface with one O atom binding with top Cu atom is the most stable adsorption configuration. The O-O stretching vibrational frequencies are significantly red-shifted, and the charges transferred from CuCl to oxygen. Upon O₂ adsorption, the oxygen species adsorbed on CuCl(1 1 1) surface mainly shows the characteristic of the superoxo (O₂⁻), which primarily contributes to improving the catalytic activity of CuCl, meanwhile, a small quantity of O₂ dissociation into atomic O also occur, which need to overcome very large activation barrier. Our results can provide some microscopic information for the catalytic mechanism of DMC synthesis over CuCl catalyst from oxidative carbonylation of methanol.     

Low-temperature growth of Y2O3 thin films by ultraviolet-assisted pulsed laser deposition

Thin Y₂O₃ films have been grown on (100) Si using an in-situ ultraviolet-assisted pulsed laser deposition (UVPLD) technique. When compared to conventional pulsed laser deposited (PLD) films under similar conditions, the UVPLD-grown films exhibited better structural and optical properties, especially those grown at lower substrate temperatures, from 200 °C to 400 °C. X-ray diffraction investigations showed that the films grown were highly crystalline and textured. According to X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry investigations, UVPLD-grown Y₂O₃ films have a better overall stoichiometry and contain less physisorbed oxygen than the conventional PLD-grown films. The refractive index values, measured in the range 300-750 nm by using variable-angle spectroscopic ellipsometry, were similar to those of a reference Y₂O₃ film.     

Cation Effect on Copper Chemical Mechanical Polishing

We examine the effect of cations in solutions containing benzotriazole （BTA） and H202 on copper chemical mechanical polishing （CMP）. On the base of atomic force microscopy （AFM） and material removal rate （MRR） results, it is found that ammonia shows the highest MRR as well as good surface after CMP, while KOH demonstrates the worst performance. These results reveal a mechanism that small molecules with lone-pairs rather than molecules with steric effect and common inorganic cations are better for copper CMP process, which is indirectly confirmed by open circuit potential （OCP）.     

A kinetic Monte Carlo/UBI-QEP model of O2 adsorption on fcc (1 1 1) metal surfaces

The previously developed kinetic Monte Carlo model of molecular oxygen adsorption on fcc (1 0 0) metal surfaces has been extended to fcc (1 1 1) surfaces. The model treats uniformly all elementary steps of the process—O₂ adsorption, dissociation, recombination, desorption, and atomic oxygen hopping—at various coverages and temperatures. The model employs the unity bond index—quadratic exponential potential (UBI-QEP) formalism to calculate coverage-dependent energetics (atomic and molecular binding energies and activation barriers of elementary steps) and a Metropolis-type algorithm including the Arrhenius-type reaction rates to calculate coverage- and temperature-dependent features, particularly the adsorbate distribution over the surface. Optimal values of non-energetic model parameters (the spatial constraint, a travel distance of “hot” atoms, attempt frequencies of elementary steps) have been chosen. Proper modifications of the fcc (1 0 0) model have been made to reflect structural differences in the fcc (1 1 1) surface, in particular the presence of two different hollow sites (fcc and hcp). Detailed simulations were performed for molecular oxygen adsorption on Ni(1 1 1). We found that at very low coverages, only O₂ adsorption and dissociation were effective, while O₂ desorption and O₂ and O diffusion practically did not occur. At a certain O + O₂ coverage, the O₂ dissociation becomes the fastest process with a rate one-two orders of magnitude higher than adsorption. Dissociation continuously slows down due to an increase in the activation energy of dissociation and due to the exhaustion of free sites. The binding energies of both molecular and atomic oxygen decrease with coverage, and this leads to greater mobility of atomic oxygen and more pronounced desorption of molecular oxygen. Saturation is observed when the number of adsorbed molecules becomes approximately equal to the number of desorbed molecules. Simulated coverage dependences of the sticking probability and of the atomic binding energy are in reasonable agreement with experimental data. From comparison with the results of the previous work, it appears that the binding energy profiles for Ni(1 1 1) and Ni(1 0 0) have similar shapes, although at any coverage the absolute values of the oxygen binding energy are higher for the (1 0 0) surface. For metals other than Ni, particularly Pt, the model projections were found to be too parameter-dependent and therefore less certain. In such cases further model developments are needed, and we briefly comment on this situation.     

某些稀土氧化物的高温高压合成及其结构稳定性研究

 首次用高压高温方法，在3.2~4.0 GPa，1 000~1 300 ℃下，对CeO₂-R₂O₃（R=Eu，Gd），CeO₂-Tb₄O₁₁，Pr₆O₁₁-Tb₄O₇稀土氧化物进行合成实验，得到具有F型结构的CeEuO_3.5，CeGdO_3.5，CeTbO_3.5；B型结构的CeEuO₃，CeGdO₃，CeTbO₃，PrTbO₃和P型结构的PrTbO₃。PrTbO₃是迄今自然界尚未发现，文献未见报导过的新物质。对上面的产物和NdYbO₃、PrTmO₃，利用高、低温X射线衍射实验，检测了其结构的稳定性，结果指出：从300 ℃直到1 000 ℃，发生由B型CeRO_x向F型CeRO_x（R=Eu，Gd，Tb）、B型PrTbO₃向C型PrTbO₃的结构转变。F型CeRO_x属于氧缺位萤石型结构。     

Modelling and Optimization for Deposition of SiOxNy Films by Radio-Frequency Reactive Sputtering

SiOxNy films are deposited by reactive sputtering from a Si target in Ar/O2/N2 atmospheres. In order to achieve the control of film composition and to keep a high deposition rate at the same time, a new sputtering model based on Berg＇s work is provided for the condition of double reactive gases. Analysis based on this model shows that the deposition process can easily enter the target-poisoning mode when the preset gas flow （N2 in this work） is too high, and the film composition will change from nitrogen-rich to SiO2-like with the increase of oxygen supply while keeping the N2 supply constant. The modelling results are confirmed in the deposition process of SiOxNy. Target self-bias voltages during sputtering are measured to characterize the different sputtering modes. FTIR-spectra and dielectric measurements are used to testify the model prediction of composition. Finally, an optimized sputtering condition is selected with the O2/N2 flow ratio varying from 0 to I and N2 supply fixed at I sccm. Average deposition rate of 17nm/min is obtained under this selected condition, which has suggested the model validity and potential for industry applications.     

Additivity Rule for Electron-Molecule Total Cross Section Calculations at 50-5000 eV： A Geometrical Approach

To quantify the changes of the geometric shielding effect in a molecule as the incident electron energy varies, we present an empirical fraction, which represents the total cross section （TCS） contributions of shielded atoms in a molecule at different energies. Using this empirical fraction, a new formulation of the additivity rule is proposed. Using this new additivity rule, the TCSs for electron scattering by CO2, C2H2, C6H12 （cyclo-hexane） and CsH16 （cyclo-octane） are calculated in the range 50-5000 e V. Here the atomic cross sections are derived from the experimental TCS results of simple molecules （H2, O2, CO）. The quantitative TCSs are compared with those obtained by experiments and other theories, and good agreement is attained over a wide energy range.     

Molecular and atomic adsorption states of oxygen on Cu(111) at 100–300 K

Adsorption states of oxygen on Cu(111) at 100–300 K were investigated by means of HREELS. Two molecular species were characterized by different OO stretching frequencies (v(OO)) at 610 cm⁻¹ and 820–870 cm⁻¹, which are assigned to the peroxo-like species (O²⁻₂) adsorbed in a bridged form and the one in a bidentate form bound on an atop site, respectively. The bridged peroxo species is preferred at the low coverage and the atop peroxo species becomes dominant at the higher coverage. In addition to the peaks due to the molecular oxygen, a peak assigned to v(CuO) of atomic oxygen was observed at 370 cm⁻¹ at the high coverage. The frequency of this mode was higher than the frequency reported for Cu(111) exposed to oxygen above 300 K, indicating that the adsorption state of atomic oxygen formed at 100 K is different from that above 300 K. The v(OO) modes became faint after annealing to 170 K because of O₂ dissociation. The v(CuO) mode of the atomic oxygen formed at 100 K remained up to 230 K and disappeared after annealing to 300 K. No desorption of O₂ was detected on annealing to 300 K. It was also found that vibrational spectra for adsorbed NH₃ are influenced by the adsorption states of atomic oxygen on Cu(111).     

Epitaxial Properties of Co-Doped ZnO Thin Films Grown by Plasma Assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy

High quality Co-doped ZnO thin films are grown on single crystalline Al2O3（0001） and ZnO（0001） substrates by oxygen plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy at a relatively lower substrate temperature of 450℃. The epitaxial conditions are examined with in-situ reflection high energy electron diffraction （RHEED） and ex-situ high resolution x-ray diffraction （HRXRD）. The epitaxial thin films are single crystal at film thickness smaller than 500nm and nominal concentration of Co dopant up to 20%. It is indicated that the Co cation is incorporated into the ZnO matrix as Co^2＋ substituting Zn^2＋ ions. Atomic force microscopy shows smooth surfaces with rms roughness of 1.9 nm. Room-temperature magnetization measurements reveal that the Co-doped ZnO thin films are ferromagnetic with Curie temperatures Tc above room temperature.     

Oxidation of Ni(Pt)Si by molecular vs. atomic oxygen

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) has been used to characterize the oxidation of a clean Ni(Pt)Si surface under two distinct conditions: exposure to a mixed flux of atomic and molecular oxygen (O + O₂; PO+O₂ = 5 × 10⁻⁶ Torr) and pure molecular oxygen (O₂; PO₂ = 10⁻⁵ Torr) at ambient temperatures. Formation of the clean, stoichiometric (nickel monosilicide) phase under vacuum conditions results in the formation of a surface layer enriched in PtSi. Oxidation of this surface in the presence of atomic oxygen initially results in formation of a silicon oxide overlayer. At higher exposures, kinetically limited oxidation of Pt results in Pt silicate formation. No passivation of oxygen uptake of the sample is observed for total O + O₂ exposure <8 × 10⁴ L, at which point the average oxide/silicate overlayer thickness is 23 (3) Å (uncertainty in the last digit in parentheses). In contrast, exposure of the clean Ni(Pt)Si surface to molecular oxygen only (maximum exposure: 5 × 10⁵ L) results in slow growth of a silicon oxide overlayer, without silicate formation, and eventual passivation at a total average oxide thickness of 8(1) Å, compared to a oxide average thickness of 17(2) Å (no silicate formation) for the as-received sample (i.e., exposed to ambient.) The aggressive silicon oxidation by atomic oxygen, results in Ni-rich silicide formation in the substrate and the kinetically limited oxidation of the Pt.