The dispersion properties of surface acoustic wave devices on AlN/LiNbO3 film/substrate structure

Highly c-axis oriented aluminum nitride (AlN) films were deposited on z-cut LiNbO₃ substrates by reactive rf magnetron sputtering. The crystalline properties investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that AlN film with (0 0 2) preferred orientation was improved by an increase of the deposition time within the experimental range. However, the surface morphology of AlN film measured by scanning probe microscopy (SPM) showed that the roughness was getting worse with increase of deposition time. Surface acoustic wave (SAW) properties, measured by a network analyzer in the structure consisting of highly c-axis AlN films on z-cut LiNbO₃ substrates, were investigated. The phase velocity (V_P) was significantly increased by the increase of h/λ, where h is the thickness of AlN film and λ is the wavelength. However, the insertion loss (IL) of SAW filters was also increased by the increase of h/λ. Experimental results on the temperature characteristics of SAW devices are also presented.     

Micro-Raman analysis on LiNbO3 substrates and surfaces: Compositional homogeneity and effects of etching and polishing processes on structural properties

In this work we report on micro-Raman analysis on lithium niobate (LN) substrates in order to study the compositional homogeneity of the crystals and to clear up the effects of etching and polishing processes on the surface of wafers and crystals.The fact that the linewidth of some Raman modes scale with the composition of LN crystals, together with the use of a confocal microscope, allowed a three-dimensional determination of the sample stoichiometry and of the crystalline quality. This local tool can supply additional information, which can be complementary to the electro-optic coefficients, carefully measured as well in order to check functional parameters.Raman spectra from buried regions were obtained on as-grown, etched and polished crystals and wafers. The depth profile of the peak energy and the linewidth of the Raman mode at 872 cm⁻¹ indicate that mechanical processing of surfaces causes, in some cases, structural modifications till a depth of 15 μm.     

Geometric and electronic structure of positively and negatively poled LiNbO3 (0 0 0 1) surfaces

The effect of ferroelectric poling direction on the structure and electronic properties of the LiNbO₃ (0 0 0 1) surface was characterized. Low energy and reflection high energy electron diffraction indicated that both the positively and negatively poled surfaces were (1 × 1) with no evidence of longer range periodic reconstructions. Low energy ion scattering spectra from both surfaces were dominated by scattering from oxygen atoms. X-ray and ultraviolet photoelectron spectra also showed little difference between the positively and negatively poled surfaces, with the exception of a high binding energy shoulder on the O 1s core level of the negative surface. Exposure of the surfaces to atomic hydrogen caused reduction of the surface Nb rather than an increase in intensity on the high binding energy side of the O 1s peak, indicating that the shoulder on the O 1s peak on the negative surface was not due to surface hydroxyl groups. Temperature programmed desorption measurements indicated that the nearly stoichiometric LiNbO₃ samples were susceptible to loss of Li₂O starting at temperatures as low as 500 K, independent of the poling direction. An adatom/vacancy model is proposed in which oxygen ad-anions accumulate on one side of the crystal while oxygen anion vacancies are created on the opposite surface. This model can explain the apparent oxygen termination of both surfaces and the observed (1 × 1) periodicity of the surfaces, and also effectively screens the thickness dependent electric field associated with the polar orientation of the crystal.     

Structural, electrical and piezoelectric properties of LiNbO3 thin films for surface acoustic wave resonators applications

In this work, 0.30 μm thick LiNbO₃ layers have been deposited by sputtering on nanocrystalline diamond/Si and platinised Si substrates. The films were then analyzed in terms of their structural and optical properties. Crystalline orientations along the (0 1 2), (1 0 4) and (1 1 0) axes have been detected after thermal treatment at 500 °C in air. The films were near-stoichiometric and did not reveal strong losses or diffusion in lithium during deposition or after thermal annealing. Pronounced decrease of the roughness on top of the LiNbO₃ layer and at the interface between LiNbO₃ and diamond was also observed after annealing, compared to the bare nanocrystalline diamond on Si substrate. Furthermore, ellipsometry analysis showed a better density and a reduced thickness of the surface layer after post-deposition annealing. The dielectric constant and losses have been measured to 50 and less than 3.5%, respectively, for metal/insulator/metal structures with 0.30 μm thick LiNbO₃ layer. The piezoelectric coefficient d₃₃ was found to be 7.1 pm/V. Finally, we succeeded in switching local domain under various positive and negative voltages.     

Structure and electronic properties calculation of ultrathin α-Al2O3 films on (0 0 0 1) α-Cr2O3 templates

Ab initio total energy Hartree-Fock calculations of ultrathin films of α-Al₂O₃ on (0 0 0 1) α-Cr₂O₃ templates are presented. The surface relaxation, the in-plane reconstruction and the surface and strain energies of the slabs are studied as a function of alumina film thickness. The surface Al layer is found to relax inwards considerably, with the magnitude of the inwards relaxation depending on the thickness of the ultrathin alumina film in a non-linear manner. The calculations also reveal that ultrathin films of alumina lower the surface energy of (0 0 0 1) α-chromia substrates. This indicates that the (0 0 0 1) α-chromia surface provides favourable conditions for the templated growth of α-alumina. However, increasing the alumina film thickness is found to give rise to a significant increase in strain energy. Finally, the electronic properties at the surface of the (0 0 0 1) α-Al₂O₃/α-Cr₂O₃ slabs are investigated. Here it is found that the alumina coating gives rise to an increase in the covalency of the bonds at the surface of the slabs. In contrast, the influence of an alumina layer on the electrostatic potential at the surface of the chromia slab is relatively minor, which should also be beneficial for the templated growth of α-alumina on (0 0 0 1) α-chromia substrates.     

Optoelectronic properties of LixAxNbO3 (A=Na, K, Rb, Cs, Fr) crystals

The structural and optoelectronic properties of Li_xA_xNbO₃ (A=Na, K, Rb, Cs, Fr and x=0, 0.5) compounds have been investigated by the generalized gradient approximation within density functional theory. The calculated fundamental direct band gap of pure LiNbO₃ is 3.32 eV. It is found that the substitution of alkali elements drastically change the optoelectronic nature of the compound from direct to indirect bandgap semiconductor and the fundamental gap also decreases. The nature of the compound is ionic with strong bonds between alkali ions and O, while there are partial covalent bonds between Nb and O. The calculated static refractive index of pure LiNbO₃ is 2.43 for the perpendicular plane to the c-axis, while 2.37 for the parallel plane to the c-axis. So these values are intensively dependent on the substitution of alkali metals. The calculated electron energy loss spectra are in good agreement with the experimental results. It also predicts some extra interesting peaks, which have not been observed in experiments.     

Surface morphological changes and magnetic properties of Sc-substituted Y3Fe5O12 epitaxial films deposited on the GGG substrate

Sc-doped YIG films were grown on (1 1 1) oriented GGG crystalline substrate with disorientation angle within the range 0-25′. Sc³⁺ ion substitution was varied within the range 0.25-0.3 per formula unit. The films demonstrate different types of surface morphology versus film growth rate and substrate disorientation. Conditions for existence of these types of the surface morphology were defined. The field dependence of magnetic susceptibility at magnetization reversal in film plane and Faraday rotation at wavelength 633 nm for a magnetic field applied in perpendicular direction were measured to characterize the films grown. Films with “mirror-like” surface demonstrate a planar magnetization at room temperature.     

高温条件下Ga3PO7晶体热学及声表面波性质的理论研究

高温压电晶体是许多机电器件必需的一种多功能材料, Ga₃PO₇晶体的居里温度高达1364 ℃, 可应用于高温极限条件. 但是预测高温极限条件下晶体的结构以及物理性质的问题采用实验研究的手段非常困难, 而理论上的预测未见研究. 本文采用密度泛函-准谐振近似理论计算了温度在0-1200 ℃范围内Ga₃PO₇ 晶体的结构常数和热学性质, 结果表明Ga₃PO₇晶体的晶格常数a和c随温度的升高呈线性增大, 且c方向受温度影响更为显著; 晶体的密度随温度的升高而减小, 计算的a 和c方向平均热膨胀系数分别为1.67×10^-6 K^-1和3.58×10^-6 K^-1, 高温区定压热容为2.067 J/g·K, 与实验值一致. 计算了从常温到高温下该晶体的弹性常数以及体弹性模量的变化, 研究了高温条件下的声表面波特性, 发现随着温度的升高, 声表面波速度浮动较小, 而机电耦合系数略有增大; 在传播角为151° 时该晶体具有较好的温度稳定性且机电耦合系数达到最大值, 这表明Ga₃PO₇ 晶体是一种有望应用于高温环境下的压电晶体.     

Co on thin Al2O3 films grown on Ni3Al(1 0 0)

The growth of Co on thin Al₂O₃ layers on Ni₃Al(1 0 0) was investigated by Auger electron spectroscopy, high resolution electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS), and scanning tunneling microscopy. At 300 K, Co grows in three-dimensional clusters on top of the Al₂O₃ layer. A defect structure of the alumina layer plays a crucial role during the early stage of Co growth. After deposition of 10 Å of Co, a complete screening of the dipoles of the Al₂O₃ layer due to the Co film is found in the EELS measurements. Annealing the Co film reveals a process of coalescence of Co clusters and, above 700 K, diffusion of the Co atoms through the oxide film into the substrate takes place.     

Investigation of quasi lateral-field-excitation on (yxl)-17° LiNbO3 single crystal

Quasi lateral-field-excitation (LFE) on LiNbO₃ crystal is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. It is found that when the driving electric field direction is parallel to the crystallographic X-axis of the piezoelectric substrate, (yxl)-17° LiNbO₃ LFE bulk acoustic wave devices work on quasi-LFE mode. The experimental results agreed with the theoretical prediction well. The results provide the cut of LiNbO₃ crystal for quasi-LFE bulk acoustic wave devices, which is important for designing high performance LFE sensors on LiNbO₃ substrates.     

The effect of ferroelectric polarization on the interaction of water and methanol with the surface of LiNbO3(0 0 0 1)

Water and methanol temperature programmed desorption (TPD) measurements were performed on the positive (c⁺) and negative (c⁻) surfaces of poled ferroelectric lithium niobate (LiNbO₃) single crystals. The results indicate that the molecule-surface interactions are both coverage and polarization-dependent. From a comparison of the TPD spectra for the positive and negative surfaces, it is shown that the desorption temperatures of water and methanol are consistently lower on the negative surface by 15 K and 20 K, respectively. The TPD spectra were simulated using the Polanyi-Wigner equation with a coverage-dependent energy term. These calculations show that the polarization dependence of the desorption temperature is due to a difference in the zero-coverage desorption energies on the two surfaces equal to a few kJ per mole. The mechanism for the polarization effect is explored with in situ pyroelectric voltage measurements, which indicate that a surface voltage of ±2 mV develops in the LiNbO₃(0 0 0 1) samples during TPD measurements. The magnitude of the pyroelectric-induced surface charge is heating rate dependent.     

Effect of deposition temperature on orientation and electrical properties of (K0.5Na0.5)NbO3 thin films by pulsed laser deposition

Lead-free ferroelectric K_0.5Na_0.5NbO₃ (KNN) thin films have been prepared on Pt/TiO₂/SiO₂/Si substrates by pulsed laser deposition process. The structures, crystal orientations and electrical properties of thin films have been investigated as a function of deposition temperature from 680 °C to 760 °C. It is found that the deposition temperature plays an important role in the structures, crystal orientations and electrical properties of thin films. The crystallization of thin films improves with increasing deposition temperature. The thin film deposited at 760 °C exhibits strong (0 0 1) preferential orientation, large dielectric constant of 930 and the remnant polarization of 8.54 μC/cm².     

Magnetic properties of R4Co3 (R = Gd, Y) compounds as observed by NMR

The zero field spin echo nmr spectrum of Gd₄Co₃ taken at 4.2 K is analysed and discussed on the basis of having magnetic moments of Co atoms at different structural lattice sites. For Y₄Co₃ the spin echo nmr spectrum taken as a function of the external field is discussed and explained on the basis of the coexistence of Co atoms carrying localized magnetic moments and paramagnetic Co atoms in this compound at determined structural sites.     

Vacuum-deposited wave-guiding layers on STW resonators based on LiTaO3 substrate as love wave sensors for chemical and biochemical sensing in liquids

A promising approach to apply the Love wave concept to commercially available low-loss surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices of the type Murata SAF 380 is presented. Thin wave-guiding layers of variable thickness are coated on the piezoelectric substrate of the devices. Two different layer materials were used: sputtered SiO₂ and a new polymer in this field, parylene C (poly-[2-chloro-p-xylylene]). Insertion loss, resonance frequency, frequency changes during protein precipitation and noise of the devices are discussed as a function of the thickness of the wave-guiding layer. It is demonstrated that the application of an optimized wave-guiding layer increases the sensitivity. When using SiO₂ as wave-guiding layer, an optimum layer thickness of 4 μm leads to a detection limit of 1.7 pg/mm². Therefore, the detection limit is improved by factor 7.7 as compared to uncoated SAW devices. Parylene-coated devices reach a detection limit of 2.9 pg/mm² at an optimum layer thickness of 0.5 μm. This corresponds to an improvement by factor 4.3. As the SAW devices used in this study are commercially available at low costs, applying appropriate wave-guiding layers permits an application as chemical or biochemical sensors with excellent sensitivities. Moreover, parylene-coated devices combine the sensitivity increase by excitation of Love waves with an excellent protective effect against corrosive attacks by the surrounding medium. Therefore, these sensors are most suitable for biosensing in conducting buffer solutions.     

Thermal decomposition and electrical conductivity of M(OH)3 and MOOH (M=Y, lanthanide)

The thermal decomposition of M(OH)₃ (M=Y, La, Nd, Sm, Gd) with the Y(OH)₃ structure was examined by the TG and DTA methods. Y(OH)₃, Nd(OH)₃, and Sm(OH)₃ decomposed to MOOH and then to M₂O₃. The decomposition of La(OH)₃ and Gd(OH)₃ occurred via the following schemes: La(OH)₃→LaOOH→La₂O₃·1/2H₂O→La₂O₃, and Gd(OH)₃→Gd₂O₃·3/2H₂O→GdOOH→Gd₂O₃. The highest conductivity of 5.9×1o^?9Scm^?1 at 250°C was found in Gd(OH)₃ and that of 8.9×10^?7 S cm^?1 400°C in GdOOH. The continuous-wave ¹H NMR absorption spectrum of LaOOH at room temperature exhibited no doublet line shape. This shows that protons are magnetically isolated from each other, and very little H₂O and H₃O⁺ can exist.     

Magnetic properties of Sm3(Fe, Mo)29NX interstitial nitride

Sm₃(Fe, Mo)₂₉N_x nitride has been synthesized at 823 K for 2.5 h by gas phase reaction under 1 atm of nitrogen. The nitride retains the structure of parent compound. The unit cell volume of the nitride is 4.7% greater than that of the parent compound. Introduction of nitrogen leads to an increase of Curie temperature T_c from 445 K for the parent to 704 K for the nitride, and an increase of saturation magnetization M_s from 135 A m²/kg for the parent to 152 A m²/kg for the nitride at 4.2 K, and from 107 A m²/kg for the parent to 137 A m²/kg for the nitride at 300 K. The nitride exhibits uniaxial anisotropy with an anisotropy field B_a of 20.5 T at 4.2 K and 14.6 T at 300 K.     

Surface termination, composition and reconstruction of Fe3O4(001) and γ-Fe2O3(001)

We address a current controversy concerning the nature of the surfaces of Fe₃O₄(001) and γ-Fe₂O₃(001) grown on MgO(001) by molecular beam epitaxy. Despite recent claims to the contrary, we show that γ-Fe₂O₃(001) unambiguously exhibits a (1×1) surface net, in contrast to Fe₃O₄(001), which assumes a R45 reconstruction. In addition, we present high-energy-resolution Fe 2p and O 1s core-level photoelectron spectra obtained at both normal and grazing emission for γ-Fe₂O₃(001) and Fe₃O₄(001). These spectra show that the Fe₃O₄(001) surface has a higher Fe(III)/Fe(II) ratio than the bulk, and that the asymmetry in the O 1s line shape for Fe₃O₄(001) is due to final state effects rather than the presence of a surface oxygen or hydroxyl species.     

Structural, magnetic and electric properties of HoMnO3 films on SrTiO3(001)

HoMnO₃ films were grown on pure and Nb-doped SrTiO₃ (001) substrates by pulsed laser deposition. The films grew epitaxially with the c-axis along the substrate normal. Varying the deposition temperature between 650 and 850 °C did not significantly affect the structural and magnetic properties of the films, whereas growth in oxygen partial pressures below 0.01 mbar lead to a degradation of the structural properties. Some of the films had a ferromagnetic-like magnetic phase transition at about 45 K, probably related to Mn₃O₄ precipitates; this magnetic response was isotropic. The Ho sublattice was found to be paramagnetic down to 5 K, but showing a pronounced anisotropy with the c-axis being the hard axis. The films showed a distinct dielectric anomaly at 16 K that depended on voltage and slightly on frequency in the range between 1 kHz and 1 MHz. The magnetoelectric effect was large with an in-plane field of 8 T suppressing the dielectric anomaly completely.     

Fe:LiNbO3和(Fe,Tb):LiNbO3晶体中入射光强

用一种新的测量方法在不同入射光强下同时观测了Fe:LiNbO3和(Fe,Tb):LiNbO3晶体中光致折射率变化Δns、吸收系数α和光电导σph与入射光强I的依赖关系, 并从理论上对观测结果给予了初步解释。     

Hydroxylated α-Al2O3 (0 0 0 1) surfaces and metal/α-Al2O3 (0 0 0 1) interfaces

X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was applied to study the hydroxylation of α-Al₂O₃ (0 0 0 1) surfaces and the stability of surface OH groups. The evolution of interfacial chemistry of the α-Al₂O₃ (0 0 0 1) surfaces and metal/α-Al₂O₃ (0 0 0 1) interfaces are well illustrated via modifications of the surface O1s spectra. Clean hydroxylated surfaces are obtained through water- and oxygen plasma treatment at room temperature. The surface OH groups of the hydroxylated surface are very sensitive to electron beam illumination, Ar⁺ sputtering, UHV heating, and adsorption of reactive metals. The transformation of a hydroxylated surface to an Al-terminated surface occurs by high temperature annealing or Al deposition.