Investigation of the temperature dependences of the electrical resistance of SmS single crystals at different pressures

The pressure-induced shift of impurity levels under hydrostatic pressure at T = 300 K (−9.6 meV/MPa) has been obtained from measurements of the temperature dependences of the electrical resistance of SmS single crystals at different pressures. The obtained value confirms the validity of the existing model of the semiconductor-metal phase transition in samarium monosulfide.     

Investigation of impurity levels in thin polycrystalline SmS films

Data obtained in the study of the behavior with temperature of the electrical resistance of thin polycrystalline SmS films (thickness ～0.5–0.8 μm) performed in the temperature region 4.2–440 K have been used to correct the band structure model of this material. It has been shown that the main impurity levels in thin polycrystalline SmS films are levels corresponding to localized states close to the conduction band bottom, as well as the impurity donor levels E _i which belong to Sm ions filling vacancies in the S sublattice. The tail of localized states has been found to extend up to the energy of impurity donor levels.     

Concentration model of semiconductor-metal phase transitions in SmS

Model calculations explaining the mechanism of the semiconductor-metal phase transition in SmS are carried out. The model, slightly modified, draws upon methods employed earlier to account for the concentration mechanism of piezoelectric resistance and thermovoltaic effect in SmS. The stable results are obtained from calculations for the phase transition pressure under hydrostatic compression (P _c ～ 700 MPa at T = 300 K). On this basis, it is concluded that the 4f levels of samarium ions and their excited states determine the value of P _c . The proposed model is universal in character and can be applied to calculations of other effects in SmS, which are associated with Mott transitions and are accompanied by collective carrier delocalization.     

Thermoelectric behaviour of SmS and Sm0.84Gd0.16S at high pressures and temperatures

The 4f→ 5d electronic phase transition in SmS has been studied using thermoelectric power as a probe. The variation of thermopower with pressure in Sm_0.84Gd_0.16S and in the high pressure phase of SmS is anomalous, characterized by a rather large pressure coefficient. The temperature coefficient of thermopower in Sm_0.84Gd_0.16S is large and negative at low pressures leading to a change of sign at higher temperatures. The anomalies can be understood on the basis of the ICF model.     

Chemical analysis of semiconducting and metallic SmS thin films by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

We studied the chemical state of semiconducting and metallic SmS thin films by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), which were fabricated using dual-target magnetron sputtering by controlling the power applied to both metal and chalcogenide targets. On the basis of the valence band spectra obtained, it was suggested that semiconducting SmS has the final state corresponding to the Sm²⁺(4f⁶) configuration below the Fermi level, and metallic SmS has mainly the Sm³⁺(4f⁵) final state and a virtual band state in the Sm 5d band, contributing to the delocalization of 4f electrons and the emergence of metallic conductivity (4f⁶d⁰-4f⁵d¹). Thus, the spectra of our fabricated SmS thin films correspond to the band structure obtained from the dielectric property. This is the first work performed on the intrinsically prepared metallic SmS while the former works done for the sample transformed from semiconductor to metal phase by hard polishing.     

Pressure-induced polymorphism in enstatite (MgSiO3) at room temperature: clinoenstatite and orthoenstatite

The phase transition of a synthetic clinoenstatite in a diamond-anvil cell has been studied by using Raman spectroscopy at various pressures and room temperature. The phenomena observed in clinoenstatite have been compared with that observed in orthoenstatite. It is found that the pressure-induced phase transitions in the two enstatites are reversible, but with different transition pressures and transition behavior. An analysis of Raman spectra has revealed that the two enstatites have different high-pressure polymorphs. This result suggests that the space group of the high-pressure polymorph of orthoenstatite is not of C2/c, and that orthoenstatite and orthoferrosilite have different transition routes at room temperature and high pressure. The compressional behavior of the high-PC2/c enstatite is also discussed according to the pressure dependences of Raman frequencies.     

Electrical conductivity of SmS polycrystals

The electrical conductivity of SmS polycrystals has been studied in the temperature range 300?C870 K. It has been shown that, at 300 K ?? T ?? 700 K, the concentration of conduction electrons is determined by electron transfer from impurity donor levels, and at T > 700 K, by that from the samarium 4f levels.     

Effect of hydrostatic pressure on the Raman spectrum of anatase (TiO2)

Raman spectra of anatase have been investigated under pressures up to 60 kbar and at room temperature. A pressure-induced phase transition is observed at pressures above 25.6 kbar. The 197 cm^-1 mode (at 1 atm.) of six Raman active modes exhibits anomalous pressure dependence in which the frequency decreases with increasing pressure. This mode may be significant in the phase transition. The remaining modes show usual behavior.     

Temperature dependence of the SmS lattice parameter

The behavior of the lattice parameter of single-crystal SmS with temperature was studied by x-ray diffractometry in the range 100–700 K. The observed features are assigned to a temperature-induced variation in the filling of the Sm²⁺f-shell ground-state multiplet levels. The temperature dependence of the thermal expansion coefficient of SmS was measured. It is shown that the lattice constant behavior in samples that exhibit a pronounced emf generation effect under heating is influenced by the transition of defect samarium ions from the divalent to trivalent state and that the effect itself derives from phase transitions in SmS.     

The kinetics of relaxation of magnetization fluctuations near the phase transition from paramagnetic state to ferromagnetic state with domain structure

The equations of motion describing relaxation of magnetization fluctuations in the paramagnetic state for a uniaxial ferromagnet have been solved. In the Landau-Ginzburg functional the demagnetization energy has been taken into account. The finite dimensions of a sample have been considered. It has been shown, that a phase transition is generated by fluctuations containing information about the period of the domain structure at the phase transition point T_c¹. The obtained formulae describe T_c¹ and the period of the domain structure. The results can be used both for bulk materials and thin films.     

Modifications in structural and optical properties of Mn-ion implanted CdS thin films

In this paper, we report on modifications in structural and optical properties of CdS thin films due to 190 keV Mn-ion implantation at 573 K. Mn-ion implantation induces disorder in the lattice, but does not lead to the formation of any secondary phase, either in the form of metallic clusters or impurity complexes. The optical band gap was found to decrease with increasing ion fluence. This is explained on the basis of band tailing due to the creation of localized energy states generated by structural disorder. Enhancement in the Raman scattering intensity has been attributed to the enhancement in the surface roughness due to increasing ion fluence. Mn-doped samples exhibit a new band in their photoluminescence spectra at 2.22 eV, which originates from the d-d (⁴T₁ → ⁶A₁) transition of tetrahedrally coordinated Mn²⁺ ions.     

The suppression of structural phase transformation in LaVO3 and La1−xSrxVO3 thin films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition

Highly oriented (100) thin films of LaVO₃ and La_1−xSr_xVO₃ have been fabricated by pulsed laser deposition in a reducing atmosphere. The films show a transition from insulating to metallic behaviour in the composition region of x, 0.175<x<0.200. In the single crystals of the antiferromagnetic insulating phase, a first-order structural phase transition is observed few degrees below the magnetic transition, which manifests itself as a kink in the temperature dependence of resistivity. In the highly oriented thin films of LaVO₃ and La_1−xSr_xVO₃ fabricated on lattice matched substrates in this study, the structural phase transformation in the insulating phase has been suppressed. The electrical conduction is found to take place via hopping through localized states at low temperatures. The metallic compositions show a non-linear (T^1.5) behaviour in the temperature dependence of resistivity. V (2p) core level spectra of these films show a gradual change in the relative intensities of V³⁺ and V⁴⁺ ions as the value of x increases.     

Surface enhanced Raman scattering of organic sample powders spread over vacuum-evaporated silver thin film

Surface enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) from samples prepared by spreading para-nitrobenzoic acid (PNBA) and adenosine powders over silver thin films was achieved. The SERS intensities of the ionized PNBA on the silver film increase with increased applied pressure through a cover-glass and reach a maximum at 0.6 MPa. In contrast, the signals caused by adenosine remain nearly unchanged under applied pressures of 0-0.6 MPa. Beyond 0.6 MPa, the signals attributable to samples decrease in intensity. Atomic force microprobe images reveal that nanometer-scale surface morphology is changed by 0.8 MPa pressure, suggesting that the decrease in SERS intensity is related to pressure-induced morphological changes. Results obtained in this study indicate that SERS spectra are obtainable easily, without solvents, under ambient conditions using dispersion of the sample powder.     

Specific features of hydrogenation of chromium-doped polycrystalline thin vanadium dioxide films

It has been found that hydrogen penetration into chromium-doped polycrystalline thin vanadium dioxide films occurs with a lower rate than in the case of pure vanadium dioxide films. It has been shown that hydrogenation of films with low chromium concentrations is accompanied by a decrease in the phase transition temperature below T _c = 340 K. However, at room temperature in these hydrogenated films, no traces of M1 monoclinic phase have been observed. As the chromium concentration increases, hydrogenation ceases to be accompanied by the decrease in the phase transition temperature.     

SmS phase transition in thin films prepared by reactive evaporation

Preparation and analysis of thin films containing samarium sulfide (SmS) is presented along with a review of relevant SmS properties. Films were deposited onto unheated substrates by the reactive evaporation of samarium in a backpressure of hydrogen sulfide. This technique yields films that contain significant quantities of impurities; however high-quality SmS crystals are also formed. A phase transition in the SmS crystals was observed both by spectrophotometry and x-ray diffraction. The film optical properties can be modeled with an effective medium calculation. The predicted spectra successfully reproduce the observed qualitative features over a wide range of wavelengths.     

Electrical conductivity and band structure of thin polycrystalline EuS films

A study of the electrical resistance of thin polycrystalline EuS films (0.4–0.8 μm thick) in the temperature range 120–480 K has provided the basis for a model of the band structure of this substance. It has been shown that the main impurity levels in thin polycrystalline EuS films are those related with localized states near the conduction band bottom, as well as the E _i donor levels of Eu ions outside regular lattice sites. The “tail” of the localized states extends in energy up to at least ?0.45 eV.     

The effect of hydrostatic pressure on the ferroelectric phase transition in [NH2(CH3)2]3[Sb2Cl9]

The effect of hydrostatic pressure on the ferroelectric phase transition temperature in [NH₂(CH₃)₂]₃[Sb₂Cl₉] (DMACA) has been studied by electric permittivity measurements at pressures up to 400 MPa. The pressure-temperature phase diagram is given. The phase transition temperature (T_c) increases with increasing pressure up to 150 MPa, passes through a maximum and then decreases with a further increase of pressure. The unexpected nonlinear decrease in T_c with pressure increasing above 150 MPa suggests that the mechanism of ferroelectric phase transition in DMACA is different from hitherto assumed.     

Structure and orbital ordering of ultrathin LaVO3 probed by atomic resolution electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy

Orbital ordering has been less investigated in epitaxial thin films, due to the difficulty to evidence directly the occurrence of this phenomenon in thin film samples. Atomic resolution electron microscopy enabled us to observe the structural details of the ultrathin LaVO₃ films. The transition to orbital ordering of epitaxial layers as thin as ≈4 nm was probed by temperature‐dependent Raman scattering spectroscopy of multilayer samples. From the occurrence and temperature dependence of the 700 cm^–1 Raman active mode it can be inferred that the structural phase transition associated with orbital ordering takes place in ultrathin LaVO₃ films at about 130 K.     

2D-Conductivity of thin Pd films condensed at low temperatures

Resistance measurements have been made on quenched condensed Pd films with thicknesses between 25 Å and 350Å. The films are prepared under different evaporation conditions by varying the system pressure between 10^?8 and 10^?5 mbar. Resistance minima with a logarithmic increase of the sheet resistance are observed for thick films (d<350Å) condensed under intentionally “bad” (10^?5 mbar) vacuum conditions, as well as for thin films (d<50Å) condensed at pressures around 10^?8 mbar. Structure investigations show that the thick films are granular. For these films the relation of granularity to 2D localization is discussed. The thin films are continuous and the logarithmic resistance increase is in agreement with predictions of 2D-theories.     

Magnetic and magneto-optical properties of FeRh thin films

The magnetic and magneto-optical properties of FeRh thin films epitaxially deposited onto MgO(1 0 0) substrates by RF sputter-deposition system have been investigated in conjunction with the structure. An intriguing virgin effect has been found in the M–T curves of the as-deposited FeRh thin films, which is presumably interpreted in term of a change in structural phase when heating. Also, a (negative) maximum peak of Kerr rotation at around 3.8 eV has been observed when FeRh thin films are in ferromagnetic state. The polar Kerr rotation angle is found to increase at temperatures above 100 °C, which corresponds to the antiferromagnet (AF)–ferromagnet (FM) transition of FeRh thin films.