Explanation of atomic displacement around lattice vacancies in diamond based on electron delocalization

The relationship between unpaired electron delocalization and nearest-neighbor atomic relaxations in the vacancies of diamond has been determined in order to understand the microscopic reason behind the neighboring atomic relaxation. The Density Functional Theory (DFT) cluster method is applied to calculate the single-electron wavefunction of the vacancy in different charge states. Depending on the charge and spin state of the vacancies, at outward relaxations, 84-90% of the unpaired electron densities are localized on the first neighboring atoms. The calculated spin localizations on the first neighboring atoms in the ground state of the negatively charged vacancy and in the spin quintet excited state of the neutral vacancy are in good agreement with Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) measurements. The calculated spin localization of the positively charged vacancy contrasts with the tentative assignment of the NIRIM-3 EPR signal to this center in (p-type) semiconductor diamond. The sign of the lattice relaxation in the diamond vacancy is explained based on the effect of electron delocalization on nearest-neighbor ion-ion screening, and also its effect on the bond length of neighboring atoms.     

强流脉冲电子束辐照下单晶铝中的堆垛层错四面体

利用强流脉冲电子束技术对单晶铝进行了辐照，并利用透射电镜对强流脉冲电子束诱发的空位簇缺陷进行分析.实验结果表明，强流脉冲电子束能够诱发位错圈、孔洞甚至堆垛层错四面体这种通常在高层错能金属中不能形成的空位簇缺陷，并且三种不同类型的空位簇缺陷的形核过程并不同时发生，三种空位簇缺陷存在着密切的关系.根据实验结果提出了堆垛层错四面体形成与生长机理.     

强流脉冲电子束辐照下单晶铝中的堆垛层错四面体

利用强流脉冲电子束技术对单晶铝进行了辐照,并利用透射电镜对强流脉冲电子束诱发的空位簇缺陷进行分析.实验结果表明,强流脉冲电子束能够诱发位错圈、孔洞甚至堆垛层错四面体这种通常在高层错能金属中不能形成的空位簇缺陷,并且三种不同类型的空位簇缺陷的形核过程并不同时发生,三种空位簇缺陷存在着密切的关系.根据实验结果提出了堆垛层错四面体形成与生长机理. 关键词： 强流脉冲电子束 堆垛层错四面体 单晶铝 空位簇缺陷     

Effects of metal-support interactions on the electronic structures of metal atoms adsorbed on the perfect and defective MgO(1 0 0) surfaces

The electronic structures of Ni, Pd, Pt, Cu, and Zn atoms adsorbed on the perfect MgO(1 0 0) surface and on a surface oxygen vacancy have been studied at the DFT/B3LYP level of theory using both the bare cluster and embedded cluster models. Ni, Pd, Pt, and Cu atoms can form stable adsorption complexes on the regular O site of the perfect MgO(1 0 0) surface with the binding energies of 19.0, 25.2, 46.7, and 17.3 kcal/mol, respectively, despite very little electron transfer between the surface and the metal atoms. On the other hand, adsorptions of Ni, Pd, Pt, and Cu atoms show strong interaction with an oxygen vacancy on the MgO(1 0 0) surface by transferring a significant number of electron charges from the vacancy to the adsorbed metal atoms and thus forming ionic bonds with the vacancy site. These interactions on the vacancy site for Ni, Pd, Pt, and Cu atoms increase the binding energies by 25.8, 59.7, 85.2, and 19.1 kcal/mol, respectively, compared to those on the perfect surface. Zn atom interacts very weakly with the perfect surface as well as the surface oxygen vacancy. We observed that the interaction increases from Ni to Pt in the same group and decreases from Ni to Zn in the same transition metal period in both perfect and vacancy systems. These relationships correlate well with the degrees of electron transfer from the surface to the adsorbed metal atom. The changes in the ionization potentials of the surface also correlate with the adsorption energies or degrees of electron transfers. Madelung potential is found to have significant effects on the electronic properties of metal atom adsorptions on the MgO(1 0 0) surface as well as on an oxygen vacancy, though it is more so for the latter. Furthermore, the Madelung potential facilitates electron transfer from the surface to the adsorbed metal atoms but not in the other direction.     

改善Si3N4俘获层过擦现象的第一性原理研究

采用第一性原理方法对如何改善电荷俘获存储器的过擦现象进行了研究. 过擦是由于氮空位中Si原子对电荷的局域能力弱导致, 因此, 在Si₃N₄超胞中分别建立了以C, N, O替换氮空位中的Si原子的缺陷结构作为本文的研究模型. 分别计算了擦写之后体系的巴德电荷分布、相互作用能、态密度, 借以分析替位原子对过擦的影响. 巴德电荷分布的计算结果表明, Si₃N₄在O替位128号Si后的过擦现象被明显改善; C替位128号Si也可以改善过擦, 但由于C替位对电荷的局域作用变弱, 不利于电荷的存储实现; N替位128号Si则不能改善过擦; 而在162和196号Si位置, 三种原子的替换均无法改善过擦现象. 相互作用能的研究表明, 在128号Si位置, 三种原子都能够和氮空位形成团簇, 在体系中稳定存在. 特别地, O替位Si后, 体系中两缺陷的相互吸引作用最弱, 从而写入的电荷能够短暂的打破O团簇的稳定性, 实现电荷重构, 将电荷局域在O团簇周围. 此外, 态密度的分析结果表明O在128号Si位置能够在Si₃N₄禁带中引入深能级缺陷, 深能级局域电荷的能力强. 以上分析证明, O替位可以很好的改善Si₃N₄中的过擦现象. 本文的研究结果为电荷俘获存储器改善过擦提供了一种方法, 对提高器件的电荷保持特性和优化存储窗口具有指导意义.     

EICO measurements of inner-core excited mixed rare-gas clusters

The spectra of deep inner-core excited mixed rare-gas clusters were recorded by using electron ion coincidence (EICO) and multi-hit momentum imaging (MHMI) techniques. The EICO spectra for Ar₉₉Kr₁ clusters reveal that singly charged ions are emitted from the inner-core excited clusters in addition to the multiple charged ions. The dependence of the EICO spectra on photon energy and cluster size suggests that the holes created through vacancy cascade on the krypton atoms are transferred to the surrounding atoms, and that the singly charged ions are the primary product of the krypton photoabsorption. Charge localization is suggested for the inner-core excited mixed rare-gas clusters from the analysis of the EICO peak width. The MHMI measurements give us direct evidence for the strong charge migration from X-ray absorbing atoms to surrounding atoms. The photon energy dependence of the PSD image for fragment ions suggests that the momentum of the fragment ions depends on the number of charges generated by the vacancy cascade.     

Relative energies of surface and defect states: ab initio calculations for the MgO (001) surface

We present the results of calculations of the energy levels of defects at the (001) surface of MgO relative to the top of the valence band and values of defect ionisation potentials and electron affinities. The calculations were made using an embedded cluster method in which a cluster of several tens of ions treated quantum mechanically is embedded in a finite array of polarisable and point ions modelling the crystalline potential and the classical polarisation of the host lattice. The calculated ionisation potential of the ideal surface, which fixes the position of the top of the valence band with respect to the vacuum level, is about 6.7 eV. This value is used as a reference for positioning the energy levels of three charge states of a surface anion vacancy, which are also calculated as ionisation energies with respect to the vacuum level. The surface and vacancy electron affinities are calculated using the same method. As a prototype low-coordinated surface site, we have considered a cube corner. Our calculations predict the splitting of the corner states from the top of the surface valence band by about 1.0 eV. Both unrelaxed and relaxed holes are strongly localised at the corner oxygen ion. The ionisation energies and electron affinities of the corner anion vacancy are calculated. The electrons in the F and F⁺ centres at the corner are shown to be significantly delocalised over surrounding Mg ions.     

Simulation of the Atomic and Electronic Structure of Oxygen Vacancies and Polyvacancies in ZrO<Subscript>2</Subscript>

Cubic, tetragonal, and monoclinic phases of zirconium oxide with oxygen vacancies and polyvacancies are studied by quantum chemical modeling of the atomic and electronic structure. It is demonstrated that an oxygen vacancy in ZrO₂ may act as both an electron trap and a hole one. An electron added to the ZrO₂ structure with an oxygen vacancy is distributed between two neighboring Zr atoms and is a bonding orbital by nature. It is advantageous for each subsequent O vacancy to form close to the already existing ones; notably, one Zr atom has no more than two removed O atoms related to it. Defect levels from oxygen polyvacancies are distributed in the bandgap with preferential localization in the vicinity of the oxygen monovacancy level.     

Energy Characteristics of Small Metal Clusters Containing Vacancies

Self-consistent calculations of spatial distributions of electrons, potentials, and energies of dissociation, cohesion, vacancy formation, and electron attachment, as well as the ionization potential of solid Al _N , Na _N clusters (N ≥ 254), and clusters containing a vacancy (N ≥ 12) have been performed using a model of stable jellium. The contribution of a monovacancy to the energy of the cluster, the size dependences of the characteristics, and their asymptotic forms have been considered. The calculations have been performed on the SKIT-3 cluster at the Glushkov Institute of Cybernetics, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Rpeak = 7.4 Tflops).     

Charge localization dynamics induced by oxygen vacancies on the TiO₂(110) surface

The dynamics of an F center created by an oxygen vacancy on the TiO?(110) rutile surface has been investigated using ab initio molecular dynamics. These simulations uncover a truly complex, time-dependent behavior of fluctuating electron localization topologies in the vicinity of the oxygen vacancy. Although the two excess electrons are found to populate preferentially the second subsurface layer, they occasionally visit surface sites and also the third subsurface layer. This dynamical behavior of the excess charge explains hitherto conflicting interpretations of both theoretical findings and experimental data.     

Some size-dependent electronic properties in charged MgO clusters

Starting from two cubic pieces of a MgO crystal ((3 x 3 x 3) and (5 x 5 x 5)), both containing a central oxygen atom, two clusters are simulated with the help of a DFT-LDA method. These clusters are charged in order to be equivalent to pieces of a neutral crystal. In each cluster, a neutral vacancy analogous to a F center is created by removing the central oxygen atom. Then, F ⁺ and F ^{+ +} centers are simulated by removing one and two electrons. The main differences and similarities between the two sizes of clusters are studied: geometries, Mulliken charges, electronic distributions, gaps, ionisation potentials. An important result is that in any case, when a F center is simulated, the vacancy does not accept more than about one electron, the second one being spread in the rest of the cluster.Received: 17 March 2003, Published online: 12 August 2003PACS: 31.15.Ar Ab initio calculations - 36.40.Wa Charged clusters - 61.72.Ji Point defects (vacancies, interstitials, color centers, etc.) and defect clusters     

On the interaction between a vacancy and self-interstitial atom clusters in metals

Atomic-scale computer simulation is used to study the interaction between a vacancy and a cluster of self-interstitial atoms in metals with hcp, fcc and bcc crystal structure: α-zirconium, copper and α-iron. Effects of cluster size, atomic structure, dislocation nature of the cluster side and temperature are investigated. A vacancy can recombine with any interstitial in small clusters and this does not affect cluster mobility. With increasing sizes clusters develop dislocation character and their interaction with vacancies depends on whether the cluster sides dissociate into partial dislocations. A vacancy recombines only on undissociated sides and corners created with undissociated segments. Vacancies inside the cluster perimeter do not recombine but restrict cluster mobility. Temperature enhances recombination by either increasing the number of recombination sites or assisting vacancy diffusion towards such sites. The results are discussed with relevance to differences in irradiation microstructure evolution of bcc, fcc and hcp metals and higher level theoretical modelling techniques.     

A negatively charged silicon vacancy in SiC: Spin polarization effects

The equilibrium geometry and hyperfine interaction constants of the nearest and next-to-nearest neighbor atoms are calculated for a negatively charged silicon vacancy in the high-spin state in cubic SiC. The calculations are performed within the cluster approach in terms of the density-functional theory (DFT). It is shown that the results of calculations with the use of a 70-atom cluster are in good agreement with experimental data. A detailed consideration is given to spin polarization in the electron subsystem and the applicability of a simple LCAO model that is commonly used in the interpretation of the electron paramagnetic resonance data for semiconductors. The spin density distribution for the defect under investigation is analyzed in terms of localized orbitals.     

Computed positron lifetimes in vacancies and vacancy-iron clusters in gold

Annihilation characteristics are calculated for positrons trapped in clean and impurity decorated vacancy clusters in Au. The positron lifetime depends strongly on the structure of the clusters. In a strongly relaxed vacancy cluster, the lifetime can become smaller than the lifetime in a single vacancy. The substitution of some neighbour atoms of a vacancy cluster by Fe atoms has only a minor effect on the positron lifetimes.     

Electron attachment to strongly polar clusters

Electron localization is studied in formamide cluster anions. The isolated formamide molecule has a large dipole moment and its clusters can give birth to multipole-bound anions as well as valence anions. The vertical valence electron affinity of the isolated molecule is determined by electron transmission spectroscopy. The anion formation process is studied as a function of cluster size with Rydberg electron transfer spectroscopy. DFT calculations of the neutral and negatively-charged cluster structures show that the anion excess electron localizes on a single molecule. The adiabatic valence electron affinity of isolated formamide is deduced from the observation of the cluster size threshold for valence attachment.     

The multiple hydrogen location near a α-Fe vacancy

The interaction between 10 hydrogen atoms and a α-Fe structure having a vacancy (V) has been studied using a cluster model and a semi-empirical theoretical method. The energy of the system was calculated by the atom superposition and electron delocalization molecular orbital method. The electronic structure was studied using the concept of density of states and crystal orbital overlap population curves.For the study of a sequential absorption, the hydrogen atoms were positioned in their energy minima configurations, near to the tetrahedral sites neighboring the vacancy, except the last H atom that was located far from the vacancy. The energy difference for H agglomeration was also computed. The vacancy-H_n complexes become less stable than VH species for more than three hydrogen's.The changes in the electronic structure of Fe atoms near the vacancy were also analyzed. The interactions mainly involve Fe 3d and 4s atomic orbitals. The contribution of Fe p orbitals is much less important. The Fe-Fe bond weakened as new Fe-H and H-H pairs were formed. The effect of H atoms is limited to its first Fe neighbors. The detrimental effect of H atoms on the Fe-Fe bonds can be related to the mechanism for embrittlement in α-Fe.     

Effects of hydrogen and impurities on void nucleation in copper: simulation point of view

The mechanisms of hydrogen influence on vacancy cluster formation in copper are studied using numerical simulations. Vacancy agglomeration in clusters larger than divacancies is found to be energetically favourable, but in pure copper the cluster creation is prevented by the lack of binding between single vacancies. Hydrogen dissolved in the lattice readily accumulates in vacancy-type defects, changing their properties. A single vacancy can accommodate up to six hydrogen atoms. Hydrogen stabilizes divacancies and promotes vacancy cluster nucleation. In larger vacancy clusters, accumulated hydrogen prevents cluster collapse into stacking fault tetrahedra. In small voids, hydrogen prefers to remain in atomic form at the void surface, but when voids become sufficiently large, hydrogen molecules in the void interior can also be formed. Some common impurities in copper (O, S, P and Ag) contribute to void formation by capturing vacancies in their vicinity. In contrast, substitutional Ni has little effect on vacancy clustering but tends to capture interstitial hydrogen.     

Charge redistribution mechanisms of ceria reduction

Charge redistribution at low oxygen vacancy concentrations in ceria have been studied in the framework of the density functional theory. We propose a model to approach the dilute limit using the results of supercell calculations. It allows one to reproduce the characteristic experimentally observed behavior of composition versus oxygen pressure dependency. We show that in the dilute limit the charge redistribution is likely to be driven by a mechanism different from the one involving electron localization on cerium atoms. We demonstrate that it can involve charge localization on light element impurities.     

Investigation of radiation defects in Fe-Cr alloy

Abstract

The kinetics of radiation defect accumulation and subsequent recovery during/after electron irradiation below 273 K, at 323 K and 373 K were investigated for the Fe-15.7 at.% Cr using positron annihilation measurements at room temperature. Formation of vacancy clusters was observed at all of the irradiation temperatures. The formation of clusters and kinetics of their accumulation point to mobility of vacancies at least at room temperature. The cluster rearrangement and variations in the cluster configuration take place during annealing.