STM images from diamond surfaces: steps towards comparisons of experiment and theory

Stable clean and hydrogenated diamond (100) and (111) surface reconstructions found by density functional molecular dynamics (DFMD) are characterized in their surface electronic properties. For sufficiently large surface slab supercells we have calculated the spatially resolved charge densities of the highest occupied surface states at constant height, which are compared with recently obtained images from scanning tunneling microscopy. The calculated charge-density distributions represent signatures of the considered surfaces which might be used to understand and to classify as-grown diamond surfaces.     

Sensing dipole fields at atomic steps with combined scanning tunneling and force microscopy

The electric field of dipoles localized at the atomic steps of metal surfaces due to the Smoluchowski effect were measured from the electrostatic force exerted on the biased tip of a scanning tunneling microscope. By varying the tip-sample bias the contribution of the step dipole was separated from changes in the force due to van der Waals and polarization forces. Combined with electrostatic calculations, the method was used to determine the local dipole moment in steps of different heights on Au(111) and on the twofold surface of an Al-Ni-Co decagonal quasicrystal.     

Intermediate stages of a transformation between a quasicrystal and an approximant including nanodomain structures in the Al-Ni-Co system

Transition states between decagonal quasicrystal and periodic approximants are studied in the Al-Ni-Co system at a measured composition of Al_71.3Ni_11.3Co _17.4 by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and electron diffraction. The nanodomain structures appearing after annealing at 1270 K show periodic fluctuations coherently embedded in domains with the coarse order of a one-dimensional quasicrystal. Further annealing at lower temperatures changes the features of nanodomain structures and results in an increase in more periodic structures. These can be strongly disordered and full of defects but tiling analysis and electron diffraction patterns show that they correspond to locked phason strain values of two closely related periodic approximants. We conclude that the periodic approximants do not result from a continuous increase in phason strain but from the growth of seeds with a locked phason strain.     

Step structure on the fivefold Al-Pd-Mn quasicrystal surface, and on related surfaces

We compare step morphologies on surfaces of Al-rich metallic alloys, both quasicrystalline and crystalline. We present evidence that the large-scale step structure observed on Al-rich quasicrystals after quenching to room temperature reflects equilibrium structure at an elevated temperature. These steps are relatively rough, i.e., have high diffusivity, compared to those on crystalline surfaces. For the fivefold quasicrystal surface, step diffusivity increases as step height decreases, but this trend is not obeyed in a broader comparison between quasicrystals and crystals. On a shorter scale, the steps on Al-rich alloys tend to exhibit local facets (short linear segments), with different facet lengths, a feature which could develop during quenching to room temperature. Facets are shortest and most difficult to identify for the fivefold quasicrystal surface.     

Quasicrystal surfaces: structure and growth of atomic overlayers

We review recent developments in surface studies of single-grain quasicrystals under ultra high-vacuum conditions, focusing on two different topics: surface structure and growth of atomic overlayers on surfaces. Quasicrystalline phases are currently used for investigation of the first topic are icosahedral (i) Al-Pd-Mn, i-Al-Cu-Fe, i-Al-Cu-Ru, i-Ag-In-Yb and decagonal (d) Al-Ni-Co, and d-Al-Cu-Co. We report the progress made with all of these phases. The second topic covers the study of single-element overlayer growth by vapor deposition.     

Recent advances in the study of quasicrystals

Some recent advances in the study of quasicrystals at Ames Laboratory are reviewed. In particular, growth from the melt of large, high-quality, single-grain quasicrystals is described in detail for icosahedral R-Mg-Zn and decagonal Al-Ni-Co. In addition, the magnetic properties of the rare-earth-containing icosahedral R-Mg-Zn quasicrystals are discussed.     

Self-assembly of monatomic complex crystals and quasicrystals with a double-well interaction potential

For the study of crystal formation and dynamics, we introduce a simple two-dimensional monatomic model system with a parametrized interaction potential. We find in molecular dynamics simulations that a surprising variety of crystals, a decagonal, and a dodecagonal quasicrystal are self-assembled. In the case of the quasicrystals, the particles reorder by phason flips at elevated temperatures. During annealing, the entropically stabilized decagonal quasicrystal undergoes a reversible phase transition at 65% of the melting temperature into an approximant, which is monitored by the rotation of the de Bruijn surface in hyperspace.     

Decagonal quasicrystal in the Al–Pd–Mn system

Abstract

A stable decagonal quasicrystal in Al₇₀Pd_30?xMn_x alloys (x = 10–20) was examined by electron diffraction and high-resolution electron microscopy. The decagonal quasicrystalline grains are formed with definite crystallographic relationships to adjacent icosahedral and Al₃Mn crystalline grains. The structure of the decagonal phase, which is formed as the main phase at near Al₇₀Pd₁₀Mn₂₀ composition, is a mixture of decagonal quasicrystalline regions with some linear phason strain and microcrystalline regions. The structures of both regions may be interpreted in terms of quasiperiodic and periodic tilings, constructed with two types of bond lengths, S (about 2 nm) and L (= τ · S, where τ is the Golden ratio), of the same atom cluster with decagonal symmetry.     

Structure of the AlRhCu decagonal quasicrystal: I. A unit-cell approach

Structure of the Al---Rh---Cu decagonal quasicrystal has been studied by high-resolution electron microscopy. The high-resolution structure image shows an aperiodic tiling composed of three kinds of subunits, namely flattened hexagon, crown and five star. Therefore, a structural model of the Al---Rh---Cu decagonal quasicrystal has been constructed in a unit-cell approach, in which the atom arrangements in the subunits have been proposed. It is known that the phase has two layers in a period of 0.4 nm along the unique tenfold axis according to the previous study by electron diffraction method. The ideal model of the Al---Rh---Cu decagonal quasicrystal is proposed as periodic stacking of the layers with quasiperiodic tessellation of the three kinds of subunits, in each layer the two-colour Penrose tiling is obtained if different atom decorations for the same shape subunits are distinguished by white and black colours. Calculated images reproduces well the contrast features of the observed images, which means that the present model is basically correct. Structural relationship between the Al---Rh---Cu decagonal quasicrystal and the previously reported Al---Ni---Co decagonal quasicrystal, which has also a period of 0.4 nm, has also been discussed.     

Aluminium diffusion in decagonal quasicrystals

Aluminium is the majority element in many quasicrystals and expected to be the most mobile element, but its diffusion properties are hardly accessible to experiment. Here we investigate aluminum diffusion in decagonal Al-Ni-Co and Al-Cu-Co quasicrystals by molecular dynamics simulations, using classical effective pair potentials. Above two-thirds of the melting temperature, strong aluminum diffusion is observed. The diffusion constant is measured as a function of temperature and pressure, from which the activation enthalpies and activation volumes are determined. As there are no vacancies in the samples, the diffusion, which is anisotropic, must use a direct mechanism. The high mobility of aluminium is also relevant for structure determination, and will contribute to diffuse scattering. The qualitative behavior of the dynamics is confirmed by ab initio simulations.     

Analytic solutions to a finite width strip with a single edge crack of two-dimensional quasicrystals

In this paper, we investigate the well-known problem of a finite width strip with a single edge crack, which is useful in basic engineering and material science. By extending the configuration to a two-dimensional decagonal quasicrystal, we obtain the analytic solutions of modes I and II using the transcendental function conformal mapping technique. Our calculation results provide an accurate estimate of the stress intensity factors K_I and K_II, which can be expressed in a quite simple form and are essential in the fracture theory of quasicrystals. Meanwhile, we suggest a generalized cohesive force model for the configuration to a two-dimensional decagonal quasicrystal. The results may provide theoretical guidance for the fracture theory of two-dimensional decagonal quasicrystals.     

Fabrication and analysis of buried iron silicide microstructures using a focused low energy electron beam

We fabricated iron and iron silicide microstructures on an Si(1 0 0) clean surface via electron beam induced process of Fe(CO)₅ multilayer and subsequent annealing. The fabricated microstructures were in situ analyzed by Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). We successfully analyzed the coverage and chemical states of the artificial deposited iron structure area-selectively by AES. The artificial iron structure was fabricated after heating to above 350 K to desorb residual Fe(CO)₅ species. The artificial structure was observed even after 1190 K annealing by SEM, but AES measurements showed it to be covered by Si atoms. We concluded that the buried iron silicide microstructure was formed by the present process.     

Elastic fields around a nanosized elliptic hole in decagonal quasicrystals

Based on the variational principle, a continuum theory of surface elasticity and new boundary conditions for qua- sicrystals is proposed. The effect of the residual surface stress on a decagonal quasicrystal that is weakened by a nanoscale elliptical hole is considered. The explicit expressions for the hoop stress along the edge of the hole are obtained using the Stroh formalism. The results show that the residual surface stress and the shape of the hole have a significant effect on the elastic state around the hole.     

Quasicrystalline epitaxial single element monolayers on icosahedral Al-pd-mn and decagonal Al-ni-co quasicrystal surfaces

Single element quasicrystalline monolayers were prepared by deposition of antimony and bismuth on the fivefold surface of icosahedral Al71.5Pd21Mn8.5 and the tenfold surface of decagonal Al71.8Ni14.8Co13.4. Elastic helium atom scattering and low energy electron diffraction of the monolayers show Bragg peaks at the bulk derived positions of the clean surfaces, revealing highly ordered quasicrystalline epitaxial films. Their adatom densities of (0.9+/-0.2)x10(15) cm(-2) and (0.8+/-0.2)x10(15) cm(-2) on Al-Pd-Mn and Al-Ni-Co, respectively, correspond to roughly one adatom per Al atom of the quasicrystalline substrate surfaces.     

Field emission characteristics of carbon nanotubes post-treated with high-density Ar plasma

The field emission characteristics of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) grown by thermal chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and subsequently surface treated by high-density Ar plasma in an inductively coupled plasma reactive ion etching (ICP-RIE) with the various plasma powers were measured. Results indicate that, after treated by Ar plasma with power between 250 and 500 W, the emission current density of the CNTs is enhanced by nearly two orders of magnitude (increased from 0.65 to 48 mA/cm²) as compared to that of the as-grown ones. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were employed to investigate the structural features relevant to the modified field emission properties of CNTs. The SEM images of CNTs subjected to a 500 W Ar plasma treatment exhibit obvious damages to the CNTs. Nevertheless, the turn-on fields decreased from 3.6 to 2.2 V/μm, indicating a remarkable field emission enhancement. Our results further suggest that the primary effect of Ar plasma treatment might be to modify the geometrical structures of the local emission region in CNTs. In any case, the Ar plasma treatment appears to be an efficient method to enhance the site density for electron emission and, hence markedly improving the electric characteristics of the CNTs.     

AFM and SEM characterization of non-toxic vanadium-free Ti alloys used as biomaterials

In this work, three titanium alloys have been studied by means of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to determine their surface topography. The alloys investigated were Ti–6Al–7Nb, Ti–13Nb–13Zr, and Ti–15Zr–4Nb, with no presence of the toxic element V, and with a possible use as biomaterials for osteoarticular prostheses. These alloys were studied at room temperature and also after a thermal treatment at 750 °C during 24 h, which produces a protective surface oxide layer. The aim of the present work is to compare the surface structure and morphology of the alloys, both as-received and after the oxide layer was formed at elevated temperature.     

Electron spectrum and wave functions of icosahedral quasicrystals

Electron spectra and wave functions of icosahedral quasicrystals have been investigated in the tight-binding approximation using the two-fragment structural model (the Amman-MacKay network) with “central” decoration. A quasicrystal has been considered as a limiting structure in a set of optimal cubic approximants with increasing lattice constants. The method of level statistics indicates that the energy spectrum of an icosahedral quasicrystal contains a singular (nonsmooth) component. The density of electron states has been calculated for the first four optimal cubic approximants of the icosahedral quasicrystal, and the respective Lebesgue measures of energy spectra of these approximants have been obtained. Unlike the case of a one-dimensional quasiperiodic structure, the energy spectrum of an icosahedral quasicrystal does not contain a hierarchical gap structure typical of the Cantor set of measure zero in a one-dimensional quasicrystal. Localization of wave functions in an icosahedral quasicrystal has been studied, and their “critical” behavior has been detected. The effect of disorder due to substitutional impurities on electron properties of icosahedral quasicrystals has been investigated. This disorder makes the electron spectrum “smoother” and leads to a tendency to localization of wave functions. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 113, 1009–1025 (March 1998)     

High-temperature surface oxidation of the decagonal AlCoNi quasicrystal

The interaction of oxygen with the 10-fold-symmetry surface of the decagonal Al_72.9Co_16.7Ni_10.4 quasicrystal at high temperatures was investigated by low-energy-electron diffraction and Auger electron spectroscopy. The results are consistent with a well-ordered aluminum-oxide layer possessing a hexagonal antiphase domain structure with a limited lateral size of about 35 Å. We claim that the separation distances of the domain boundaries, separating domains of equal orientation, are primarily a consequence of the preferential cluster nucleation on decagonal Al-Co-Ni. The domains are azimuthally oriented along one direction of the two sets of five twofold-symmetry axes lying on the decagonal surface in accordance with the local symmetry of the quasicrystal surface, while the size of the domains can be explained in terms of self-size-selecting arguments.     

SEM法观察原子吸收石墨炉管表面形貌以及分析性能的研究

本文利用扫描电镜观察了自制以及商品化原子吸收石墨管表面在使用期间的形貌变化,并对不同石墨管材料对分析性能的影响进行了讨论,从扫描电镜图片上观察到了一些有意义的现象。