Controlled Growth of Zn-Polar ZnO Films on Al-Terminated α-Al2O3(0001) Surface by Using Wurtzite MgO Buffer

The controlled growth of Zn-polar ZnO fihns on Al-terminated α-Al203 （0001） substrates is investigated by the radio-frequency plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy method. Prior to the growth, α-Al2O3 （0001） surface is modified by an ultrathin MgO layer, which serves as a uniform template for epitaxy of Zn-polar ZnO films. The microstructures of ZnO/MgO/Al2O3 interface are investigated by in-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction observations and ex-situ high-resolution transmission electron microscopy characterization. It is found that under Mg-rich condition, the achievement of the wurtzite MgO ultrathin layer plays a key role in the subsequent growth of Zn-polar ZnO. An interracial atomic model is proposed to explain the mechanism of polarity selection of both MgO and ZnO films.     

Effects of diffraction conditions and processes on rheed intensity oscillations during the MBE growth of GaAs

The RHEED intensity oscillation technique has received wide-spread attention for the study of MBE growth dynamics, but insufficient consideration has been given to the diffraction conditions and processes involved. We report here a systematic investigation of the intensity oscillation behaviour as a function of diffraction parameters (azimuth, incidence angle, specular and non-specular beams), with constant growth conditions for GaAs films on GaAs (001) substrates.We show that many reported anomalies attributed to growth effects, such as phase differences and periodicity variations, can be accounted for entirely by diffraction events, provided it is realised that multiple scattering processes are the dominant cause of RHEED intensity variations during growth.The technique can provide valuable information on growth behaviour, but only if diffraction-dependent effects are first eliminated.     

A mild reduction-phosphidation approach to nanocrystalline GaP

Nanocrystalline gallium phosphide (GaP) has been prepared through a reduction-phosphidation by using Ga, PCl₃ as gallium and phosphorus sources and metallic sodium as reductant at 350 °C. The XRD pattern can be indexed as cublic GaP with the lattice constant of a=5.446 Å. The TEM image shows particle-like polycrystals and flake-like single crystals. The PL spectrum exhibits one peak at 330 nm for the as-prepared nanocrystalline GaP.     

The application of RHEED intensity effects to interrupted growth and interface formation during MBE growth of GaAs/(Al,Ga)As structures

There is a diffraction-induced phase effect in the RHEED intensity oscillation technique used in MBE, whereby intensity maxima only correspond to monolayer completion for very restricted conditions. In particular, the angle of incidence of the primary beam is extremely critical. The effect occurs because the total intensity at the measured position of the specular beam is always derived from at least two different diffraction processes, which do not have the same phase relation to monolayer formation. It can be accomodated either by a systematic series of measurements to establish an empirical relationship between incidence angle and phase, or by Fourier transform techniques. Unless full account is taken of this purely diffraction-induced effect, very misleading results can be obtained for the time constants of the recovery period following cessation of growth and this is illustrated for GaAs. The effect also has important implications for the growth-interrupt technique. In addition, it is shown that for heterojunction formation in the GaAs/(Al, Ga)As system, adatom (Ga and Al) migration lengths are of greater importance than the position in the monolayer at which the composition is changed, and that RHEED can provide only limited information on the interface structure.     

LEED structure analysis of a Co{001} surface

A {001} surface of face-centered-cubic cobalt was cleaned to the point of elimination of all impurities except carbon and oxygen, which were reduced to minimum terminal amounts. A LEED structure analysis of this surface, using 12 intensity spectra at 3 angles of incidence, reveals that the atomic arrangement corresponds to truncation of the bulk structure but with about 4% contraction of the first interlayer spacing along 〈001〉 with respect to the bulk.     

Self-organized in-plane incorporation of Si atoms in GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy

The preferential attachment of Si atoms at misorientation steps on vicinal GaAs(001) surfaces has been studied by RHEED. By analysing the time evolution of the specular beam intensity and the change in surface reconstruction during Si deposition we show that a self-organized Si incorporation along the step edges takes place. The observed (3×2) structure is due to an ordered array of dimerized Si atoms with missing dimer rows. Taking into account the structure of the (3×2) unit mesh and its orientation with respect to the As-terminated or Ga-terminated steps, a characteristic minimum in the RHEED intensity recording corresponds to the number of Ga step-edge sites. Since the preferential path for Ga as well as for Si adatom diffusion is along the [110] direction, the critical terrace width for wirelike Si attachment is much larger for a misorientation toward (111)As than for a misorientation toward (111)Ga. Despite the high local impurity concentration, the Si-modified surface can be overgrown with GaAs without adverse effects on the growth front. This is promising for the fabrication of doping wires.     

Quantum Theory of Electronic Double-Slit Diffraction

Phenomena of electron, neutron, atomic and molecular diffraction have been studied in many experiments, and these experiments have been explained by some theoretical works. We study electronic double-slit diffraction with a quantum mechanical approach and obtain the following results： （1） When the ratio of d ＋ a /a=n （n = 1,2, 3,...）, orders n, 2n, 3n,... are missing in diffraction pattern. （2） When the ratio of d＋a/a≠ n （n =1,2, 3,...）, there is a not missing order in diffraction pattern. （3） The slit thickness c has a large affect on the electronic diffraction pattern, which is a new quantum effect. We believe that all the predictions in our work can be tested by the electronic double slit diffraction experiment.     

Refit Silver Nanostructures Using a Convergent Electron Beam

Using a superionic conductor AgI thin film and a direct current electric field, we synthesize silver nanowires in diameter of about lOOnm. In order to refit the prepared nanowires, the samples are irradiated by a convergent electron beam （200 k V） inside a transmission electron microscope to prepare new small silver nanostructures. The new nanostructures are investigated in situ by high-resolution transmission electron microscope. This electron- induced crystal growth method is useful for technical applications in fabrication of nanodevices.     

SPA-LEED studies of growth of Ag on Ag(111) at low temperatures

The surface morphology after deposition of Ag on Ag(111) at low temperatures (130–200 K) has been studied in detail with SPA-LEED (Spot-Profile Analysis of Low-Energy Electron Diffraction). The surface roughness and the mean terrace size have been quantitatively determined under various conditions. At 130 K the surface roughness increases with coverage exactly according to the relation = ^1/2, which indicates that the inter-layer diffusion can be neglected at 130 K. Although the mean terrace length decreases with increasing coverage (following an approximate power law of ^–2/3) for all studied coverages, it is much larger than expected for a pure random or Poisson-growth mode without any diffusion of the adatoms. Therefore, Ag grows on Ag(111) at this temperature without interlayer diffusion but with intra-layer diffusion. The intralayer diffusion barrierE _d has been determined by measuring the temperature dependence of the two-dimensional island density according to the nucleation theory (supposing a critical nucleus size of one). The obtained valueE _c=0.18 eV agrees with the theoretical calculations and previous measurements. Furthermore, from comparing measured and Monte-Carlo-simulated (MC) surface roughness at different deposition temperatures we obtain E=0.05 eV as a lower limit for the additional barrier at steps.     

Surface phase diagram and temperature induced phase transitions of Sn/Cu(1 0 0)

Room temperature deposition of Sn on Cu(1 0 0) gives rise to a rich variety of surface reconstructions in the submonolayer coverage range. In this work, we report a detailed investigation on the phases appearing and their temperature stability range by using low-energy electron diffraction and surface X-ray diffraction. Previously reported reconstructions in the submonolayer range are p(2 × 2) (for 0.2 ML), p(2 × 6) (for 0.33 ML), ()R45° (for 0.5 ML), and c(4 × 4) (for 0.65 ML). We find a new phase with a structure for a coverage of 0.45 ML. Furthermore, we analyze the temperature stability of all phases. We find that two phases exhibit a temperature induced reversible phase transition: the ()R45° phase becomes ()R45° phase above 360 K, and the new phase becomes p(2 × 2) also above 360 K. The origin of these two-phase transitions is discussed.     

Short range order in high-T c superconductors investigated by electron diffraction

Observation of modulated diffuse streaks in electron diffraction patterns of Tl₂Ba₂CuO₆ and YBa₂Cu₃O_7– ceramic superconductors is reported. These streaks are parallel with the c-axis and the intensity modulation has a period in reciprocal space which is larger than the c*-parameter. This behaviour is interpreted in terms of disordered sublattices. It is shown that the fine structure results from short range order in two successive homologous layers forming one bi-layer and that the intensity modulation in the diffuse streaks therefore allows one to determine which of the bi-layers in the material exhibit disorder.Research assistant of the National Fund for Scientific Research, Belgium     

Effect of oxygen segregation on the surface structure of single-crystalline niobium films on sapphire

Single-crystalline Nb films are grown on (1120) oriented sapphire substrates by electron-beam evaporation in ultra-high vacuum. The films are studied in-situ by RHEED and Auger analysis. At a substrate temperature T _S=750° C the RHEED pattern shows a smooth growth of bcc-Nb in the [110] direction. In addition to the fundamental streaks, we observe superlattice streaks of fractional order in several azimuthal directions. The reciprocal lattice of the surface is determined. The basic vectors of the superlattice in real space are given by b ₁=2a ₁, b ₂=–a ₁+3a ₂ where a ₁ and a ₂ are the basic vectors of the Nb (110) surface. Auger analysis shows that the surface of these films is contaminated with oxygen. Therefore, the superstructure is attributed to a modified surface structure due to segregated oxygen, possibly having diffused from the sapphire to the film surface. The superstructure dissappears during further evaporation of Nb at T _S<450° C with a concomitant decrease of the oxygen signal. Nb films on sapphire with a clean, oxygen-free surface can only be prepared at lower temperatures in an island-growth mode.     

New reconstruction-stoichiometry correlation for GaAs(0 0 1) surface treated by atomic hydrogen

The structure, stoichiometry and electronic properties of the GaAs(0 0 1)-(2 × 4)/c(2 × 8) surface treated by cycles of atomic hydrogen (AH) exposure and subsequent annealing in UHV were studied with the aim of preparing the Ga-rich surface at low temperatures. Low energy electron diffraction showed reproducible structural transformations in each cycle: AH adsorption at the (2 × 4)/c(2 × 8) surface led to the (1 × 4) structure at low AH exposure and to a (1 × 1) surface at higher AH exposure with subsequent restoration of the (2 × 4)/c(2 × 8) structure under annealing at 450 °C. The cycles of AH treatment preserved the atomic flatness of the GaAs(1 0 0) surface, keeping the mean roughness on to about 0.15 nm. The AH treatment cycles led to the oscillatory behavior of 3dAs/3dGa ratio with a gradual decrease to the value characteristic for the Ga-rich surface. Similar oscillatory variations were observed in the work function. The results are consistent with the loss of As from the surface as a result of the desorption of volatile compounds which are formed after reaction with H. The prepared Ga-rich GaAs(0 0 1) surface showed the stability of the (2 × 4)/c(2 × 8) structure up to the annealing temperature of 580 °C.     

Oxygen-segregation-controlled epitaxy of Y2O3 films on Nb(110)

We demonstrate a very simple and reliable method of manufacturing clean, single-crystalline Y₂O₃ films on Nb(110) substrates in situ. The method exploits the oxygen bulk contamination of Nb as a source of clean oxygen. For substrate temperatures above 800 K oxygen segregation to the Nb surface is so efficient, that yttrium becomes oxidized during deposition without any background oxygen pressure required in the ultrahigh vacuum system. The crystallinity and stoichiometry of these films can be tuned by the deposition temperature. For Y deposition at 1300 K the formation of well-ordered (111)-oriented Y₂O₃ films is achieved. Received: 19 April 2000 / Accepted: 20 April 2000 / Published online: 23 August 2000     

Bi induced step-flow growth in the homoepitaxial growth of Au(1 1 1)

Homoepitaxial growth of Au on Bi-covered Au(1 1 1) was studied at room temperature using reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). From observations of RHEED it is found that the Au(1 1 1) (23 × 1) reconstruction structure changes to a (1 × 1) by about 0.16-0.5 ML deposition of Bi and to a (2√3 × 2√3)R30° by about 1.0 ML deposition of Bi, respectively. The surface morphology evolution by Bi deposition leads to a change of Au homoepitaxial growth behavior from layer-by-layer to step flow. This indicates that the surface diffusion distance of Au atoms on the Bi-precovered (1 × 1) and (2√3 × 2√3)R30° surfaces is longer than that on the Au(1 1 1) (23 × 1) clean surfaces. A strong surface segregation of Bi was found at top of surface. It is concluded that Bi atoms acted as an effective surfactant in the Au homoepitaxial growth by promoting Au intralayer mass transport.     

Sb induced (7×7) to (1×1) surface phase transformation of the Si(111) surface

Adsorption of Sb at a very low flux rate results in an epitaxial layer-by-layer growth on Si(111) surface held at room-temperature. Band-bending is not observed for submonolayer Sb coverages while sharp changes in the photoemission features are observed for 1.0 monolayer (ML) Sb adsorption. Changes in the core level binding energy and width in X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, surface related feature in Electron energy loss spectroscopy and spot intensity ratios in Low energy electron diffraction studies suggest a surface phase transition upon adsorption of 1.0 monolayer of Sb. A plausible model is proposed to explain the abrupt metal-semiconductor transformation at this critical coverage of 1.0 ML.     

Formation of NaCl-type Cr carbide by carbon ion implantation

A new NaCl-type simple structured fcc chromium carbide was observed after 50 keV carbon-ion implantation into pure Cr thin films. The lattice constant was 0.403 nm determined by electron diffraction. TEM in situ annealing showed that the new phase was stable up to a temperature around 300°C. Auger spectra confirmed the formation of the carbide. The formation energy of the carbide calculated by Miedema's empirical method was –7 cal/mol.     

Dual-oriented thin crystals of molybdenum grown under Ar+ ion bombardment

Ar⁺ sputtering of an Cu(111) surface while simultaneously supplying Mo atoms is known to induce an oriented growth of Mo thin crystals, or seed-layers, on evolving conical Cu protrusions. The seed-layers thus formed are shown to be dual-oriented, or bicrystalline, consisting of columnar crystallites grown homo-epitaxially. The orientation relationship between the two types of crystallites was (100)_I (111)_II with [001]_I [110]_II, and this bicrystallinity probably resulted from a non-uniform charge-up of the layers' growth front. As concluded from high-resolution electron microscopy, the Mo(100) stacking is elastically converted into the Mo(111) stacking and vice versa, under the influence of tensile stress. The homo-epitaxy that the seed-layers exhibited is believed to reflect the mutual convertibility of the Mo(100) and (111) stackings.     

Studies of magnetic properties of small particles by electron holography

Received: 6 June 1997/Accepted: 12 June 1997     

Surface structure and phase transition of Ge(1 1 1)-3 × 3-Pb studied by reflection high-energy positron diffraction

We studied the structures and the phase transition of Pb/Ge(1 1 1) surface by using the reflection high-energy positron diffraction. The surface structures at 60 K and 293 K have the 3 × 3 and √3 × √3 periodicities, respectively. The rocking curves measured at both temperatures are nearly the same. This indicates that the equilibrium positions of the surface atoms do not change according to the phase transition. From the analysis of the rocking curve based on the dynamical diffraction theory, we found that at both temperatures the surface structures are composed of the so-called one-up and two-down model. The 3 × 3-√3 × √3 phase transition for the Pb/Ge(1 1 1) surface is interpreted in terms of order-disorder transition.