Fabrication and some properties of ZnO/<Emphasis Type="Italic">A</Emphasis><Superscript>III</Superscript>N heterojunctions

n-ZnO/p-A ^IIIN (A ^III = Ga, Al) heterojunctions have been fabricated, which exhibit relatively strong electroluminescence in the blue-violet spectral range under forward bias. It is shown that ZnO layers grown with rf-discharge activation have a less developed surface with a significant decrease in the sizes and number of zinc clusters. The current-voltage characteristics of the heterostructures obtained have rectifying properties with a cutoff voltage corresponding to the ZnO band gap.     

Surface structural,morphological, and catalytic studies of homogeneously dispersed anisotropic Ag nanostructures within mesoporous silica

Highly dispersed anisotropic Ag nanostructures were synthesized within the channels of 3-aminopropyltrimethoxysilane (APTMS)-modified mesoporous SBA-15 for catalyzing the reduction of p-dinitrobenzene, p-nitrophenol, and p-nitroacetophenone, respectively. A green templating process without involving any reducing agent, by varying the amount (1–10 wt.%) of Ag loading followed by calcination at 350 °C under H₂ led to change in the morphology of Ag nanoparticles from nanospheres (~7–8 nm) to nanorods (aspect ratio ~12–30 nm) without any deformation in mesoporous sieves. In comparison to white bare SBA-15, gray-colored samples were formed with Ag impregnation exhibiting absorption bands at 484 and 840 nm indicating the formation of anisotropic Ag nanostructures within mesoporous matrix. TEM and FE-SEM micrographs confirmed the presence of evenly dispersed Ag nanostructures within as well as on the surface of mesoporous matrix. AFM studies indicated a small decrease in the average roughness of SBA-15 from 20.59 to 19.21 nm for 4 wt.% Ag/m-SBA-15, illustrating the encapsulation of majority of Ag nanoparticles in the siliceous matrix and presence of small amount of Ag nanoparticles on the mesoporous support. Moreover, due to plugging of mesopores with Ag, a significant decrease in surface area from 680 m²/g of SBA-15 to 385 m²/g was observed. The Ag-impregnated SBA-15 catalyst displayed superior catalytic activity than did bare SBA-15 with 4 wt.% Ag-loaded catalyst exhibiting optimum activity for selective reduction of p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol (100 %), p-nitroacetophenone to p-aminoacetophenone (100 %), and p-dinitrobenzene to p-nitroaniline (87 %), with a small amount of p-phenylenediamine formation.

Open image in new window

Graphical abstract This paper demonstrates the spontaneous formation of uniformly dispersed Ag nanospecies of various morphologies (nanospheres, size ~7–8 nm and nanorods, aspect ratio ~12–30 nm), both within as well as on the surface of the mesoporous SBA-15, as a function of increased Ag loading. Surface structural and other physiochemical properties of Ag/m-SBA-15 nanocomposites were considerably influenced w.r.t change in Ag loading. Ag/m-SBA-15 nanocomposites with 4 wt.% Ag loading exhibited the highest selectivity (87 %) for the selective reduction of p-dinitrobenzene to p-nitroaniline and 100 % selectivity for p-nitrophenol to p-aminophenol and p-nitroacetophenone to p-aminoacetophenone, respectively.

     

Room Temperature Spin Accumulation Effect in Boron Doped Si Created by Epitaxial Fe<Subscript>3</Subscript>Si/<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-Si Schottky Contact

To study spin-dependent transport phenomena in Fe₃Si/p-Si structures we fabricated 3-terminal planar microdevices and metal/semiconductor diode using conventional photolithography and wet chemical etching. I?V curve of prepared diode demonstrates rectifying behavior, which indicates the presence of Schottky barrier in Fe₃Si/p-Si interface. Calculated Schottky barrier height is 0.57 eV, which can provide necessary conditions for spin accumulation in p-Si. Indeed, in 3-terminal planar device with Fe₃Si/p-Si Schottky contact Hanle effect was observed. By the analysis of Hanle curves spin lifetime spin diffusion length in p-Si were calculated, which are 145 ps and 405 nm, respectively (at T = 300 K). Spin lifetime strongly depends on temperature which can be related to the fact that spin-dependent transport in our device is realized via the surface states. This gives a perspective of creation of spintronic devices based on metal/semiconductor structure without need for forming tunnel or Schottky tunnel contact.     

Structure and phase composition of thin a-C:H films modified by Ag and Ti

The structure and phase composition of thin a-C:H and a-C:H〈M〉 films (M = Ag, Ti, or Ag + Ti) have been studied by Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The a-C:H〈M〉 films were prepared by ion-plasma magnetron sputtering of a combined target of graphite and metal in an Ar–CH₄ gas mixture. The Raman spectra of these films indicate that their structure is amorphous. The a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films have a more graphitized structure in comparison with pure a-C:H films and films containing only one metal. It is established that carbon in the a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films is in the sp ², sp ³, and C=O states, which are characteristic of the a-C:H, a-C:H〈Ag〉, and a-C:H〈Ti〉 films. In addition, there are also ether (–C–O–C–) or epoxy (?C?O–) carbon groups in the a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films. It has been revealed that silver atoms in the a-C:H〈Ag〉 and a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films form no chemical bonds with carbon, oxygen, and titanium. Titanium in the a-C:H〈Ti〉 and a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films exists in the form of titanium IV oxide (TiO₂).     

Edge electroluminescence of silicon: An amorphous-silicon-crystalline-silicon heterostructure

Silicon edge electroluminescence (EL) was observed on an amorphous-silicon-crystalline-silicon heterostructure (a-Si: H(n)/c-Si(p)) in the temperature range from 77 to 300 K. The room-temperature EL internal quantum efficiency of the heterostructure under study was found to be about 0.1%. A theoretical analysis of the emissive properties of the a-Si: H(n)/c-Si(p) heterostructure was made in terms of the model of an abrupt planar p-n junction and showed that, for optimal doping, the internal quantum efficiency of the EL may be as high as a few percent at a modulation frequency of about 50 kHz.     

Resistive switching effect in metal–oxide–metal structures with ZnO:Li oxide layer

The resistive switching effect in metal–oxide–metal (MOM) structures has been investigated, where the 10% Li-doped ZnO layer was used as an oxide layer, as well as Pt and 20% fluorine doped SnO₂ (SnO₂:F) were used as a bottom electrodes. The current–voltage (I–V) and switching (I–t) characteristics of Ag/ZnO:Li/Pt and Ag/ZnO:Li/SnO₂:F structures were investigated. The unipolar resistive switching is detected in the structures with the Pt, while the use of transparent conductive SnO₂:F electrode instead of Pt, results to the bipolar memory effect.     

Memristive Effect in Two-Layered Structures Based on Lithium Doped ZnO Films

The structure of Au/Li10ZnO/Li1ZnO/LaB₆ consisting of upper Au and lower LaB₆ ohmic electrodes and a p-n junction p-Li10ZnO/n-Li1ZnO, which has the resistive memory where two functions are simultaneously combined, that is, an address access and the process of reading and storing of information is investigated. The resistance ratio (R_reset/R_set = 10), the data storage time (> 3 hours) and the number of switching cycles (> 350) are improved as compared to the corresponding single-layer structures. The resistive memory is explained by the modulation effect of the Li10ZnO layer, the ferroelectric polarization of which, depending on the orientation, changes the width and height of the barrier of the p-n junction formed at the p-Li10ZnO/n-Li1ZnO contact.     

Influence of the semiconductor/metal rear contact on the performance of n(a-Si:H)/i(a-Si:H)/p(c-Si) heterojunction solar cells

The aim of this work is to analyze on the results of using of Al/Ag layer as a rear contact to improve the performance of heterojunction silicon solar cells. An analytical method is presented to extract the physical parameters of the equivalent circuit. These parameters are extracted to simulate the I(V) characteristic of heterojunction silicon solar cells, with Al and Al/Ag rear-metal contact. A good agreement between our analytical method and experimental measurement of electrical characteristics is obtained which show clearly how the Al/Ag rear contact can improve the characteristics of silicon solar cells. The influence of the rear-metal contact on the performance of the c-Si(p)-based bifacial HIT solar cell, i.e., the ZnO/Al/a-Si:H(n)/a-Si:H(i)/c-Si(p)/metal solar cell, is investigated in detail by computer simulation using the AFORS-HET software. Accordingly, the design optimization of the bifacial HIT solar cells on c-Si(p) substrates is provided. These simulation show an optimal conversion efficiency of 23% when the rear-metal contact is perfectly ohmic.     

First-principles study on the electronic and optical properties of Si and Al co-doped zinc oxide for solar cell devices

Electronic and optical properties of co-doped zinc oxide ZnO with silicon (Si) and aluminum (Al), in Zn_1?2x Si _x Al _x O (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.0625) original structure forms, are investigated by the first-principles calculations based on the density functional theory (DFT). The optical constants and dielectric functions are investigated with the full-potential linearized augmented plane wave (FP-LAPW) method and the generalized gradient approximation (GGA) by WIEN2k package. The complex dielectric functions, refractive index and band gap of the pure as well as doped and co-doped ZnO were investigated, which are in good agreement with the available experimental results for the undoped ZnO. Thus, the maximum optical transmittance of the co-doped ZnO of about 95 % was achieved; it is higher than that of pure ZnO. Thus, we showed for the Si–Al co-doped ZnO with x = 0.0315 that the optical transmittance can cover a larger range in the visible light region. In addition, an occurrence of important energy levels around Fermi levels was showed, which is mainly due to doping atoms that lead to an overlap between valence and conduction bands, and consequently to the significant conductor behavior of the Si–Al co-doped ZnO. The original Zn_1?2x Si _x Al _x O structure reveals promising optical and electronic properties, and it can be investigated as good candidates for practical uses as transparent and conducting electrodes in solar cell devices.     

Static and high-frequency hole transport in <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-Si/SiGe heterostructures in the extreme quantum limit

Complex high-frequency (HF), σ^AC = σ₁ ? iσ₂, and static, σ^DC, conductivities, as well as current-voltage characteristics, have been measured in p-Si/SiGe heterostructures with a low hole density (p = 8.2 × 10¹⁰ cm^?2) at temperatures T = 0.3–4.2 K in the ultraquantum limit, when the filling factor is v < 1. In order to determine the components of the HF conductivity, the acoustic contactless method in the “hybrid configuration” is used, when the surface acoustic wave propagates on the surface of the LiNbO₃ piezoelectric and the heterostructure is pressed to the surface by a spring. The conductivities σ₁ and σ₂ are determined from the damping and velocity of the surface acoustic waves that are measured simultaneously with varying the magnetic field. The revealed HF conductivity features—σ₁ ? |σ₂|, the negative sign of σ₂, the threshold behavior of the current-voltage characteristic, and the dependence I ∝ exp(-A/V ^0.3) in the subthreshold region—indicate the formation of a pinned Wigner crystal (glass) in the ultraquantum limit (T = 0.3–0.8 K, B > 14 T).     

Thermophotovoltaic converters on indium arsenide-based compounds

Thermophotovoltaic converters based on multicomponent solid solutions of III–V compounds, specifically, InAsSbP/InAs heterostructures (E _g = 0.35–0.60 eV), that are intended for fabricating IR emitters heated to 1000–2000°C are studied. The use of such narrow-gap heterostructures makes it possible to advance the sensitivity of the elements into the long-wave range and utilize the thermal energy of low-temperature sources more efficiently. Fresh physical approaches to fabricating epitaxial quaternary InAs-based InAsSbP solid solutions with a low carrier concentration and heterostructures with sharp interfaces are presented. Quaternary InAsSbP solid solutions and other related heterostructures offer a number of advantages, such as the possibility of growing perfect structures lattice-matched with the substrate, stress-free interfaces, good electrical and photoelectrical properties (low dark currents and a high external quantum efficiency), and the possibility of flexibly controlling the energy gap by varying the composition of the solid solution. It is shown that InAsSbP films grown on an InAs substrate by liquid-phase epitaxy from supercooled liquid solution and liquid-phase electro-epitaxy with replenishment of liquid solution by growing layer components are uniform in composition and have a perfect crystal structure. Thermophotovolatic p-InAsSbP/n-InAs diode-type heterostructures obtained by the above methods are found to have saturation dark currents close to theoretically predicted values and a wide range of spectral sensitivity, which makes them candidates for thermophotovoltaic elements.     

Characteristics of surface acoustic waves in (11$$\bar 2$$ 0)ZnO film/ R-sapphire substrate structures

(11\(\bar 2\)0)ZnO film/R-sapphire substrate structure is promising for high frequency acoustic wave devices. The propagation characteristics of SAWs, including the Rayleigh waves along [0001] direction and Love waves along [1ī00] direction, are investigated by using 3 dimensional finite element method (3D-FEM). The phase velocity (v _p), electromechanical coupling coefficient (k ²), temperature coefficient of frequency (TCF) and reflection coefficient (r) of Rayleigh wave and Love wave devices are theoretically analyzed. Furthermore, the influences of ZnO films with different crystal orientation on SAW properties are also investigated. The results show that the 1st Rayleigh wave has an exceedingly large k ² of 4.95% in (90°, 90°, 0°) (11\(\bar 2\)0)ZnO film/R-sapphire substrate associated with a phase velocity of 5300 m/s; and the 0th Love wave in (0°, 90°, 0°) (11\(\bar 2\)0)ZnO film/R-sapphire substrate has a maximum k ² of 3.86% associated with a phase velocity of 3400 m/s. And (11\(\bar 2\)0)ZnO film/R-sapphire substrate structures can be used to design temperature-compensated and wide-band SAW devices. All of the results indicate that the performances of SAW devices can be optimized by suitably selecting ZnO films with different thickness and crystal orientations deposited on R-sapphire substrates.     

Powerful diode nanosecond current opening switch made of <Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-silicon (<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-SOS)

The nanosecond semiconductor diode-based opening switch (SOS-diode) capable of switching currents with densities up to several tens of kiloamperes per cubic centimeter represents a p⁺p’Nn⁺ silicon structure fabricated by the deep simultaneous diffusion doping (to about 200 μm) of n-Si by Al and B from one side and P from the other. In the SOS mode, first a short pulse of forward current passes through the diode and then a fast-growing pulse of reverse voltage is applied. A resulting pulse of reverse current carries away injected holes and thereby forms a plasma front in the p’ layer, which moves toward the p’N junction. When the hole concentration in the flow exceeds the dopant concentration in the p’ layer, a space charge region arises in this layer, the resistivity of the diode increases sharply, and the current switches to a load connected parallel to the diode. Early results concerning an alternative configuration of the SOS diode are presented. Here, the diode was made by the rapid simultaneous diffusion of B and P from the opposite sides of a p-Si wafer to a depth of 60-80 μm. If a short pulse of forward current is passed through such a p⁺pn⁺ structure and a pulse of reverse voltage is then applied, a plasma front arising in the p⁺ region moves toward the p⁺p interface through the heavily doped (i.e., low-resistivity) p⁺ region. Having crossed this interface, the front passes into a low-doped region, where the hole concentration in the flow becomes much higher than the dopant concentration and a space charge region causing the current to pass to the load forms at once. It is shown experimentally that, all other things being the same, the time of current breaking in the p-SOS-diode is roughly twice as short as in the conventional n-SOS-diode, switched currents are considerably lower, and the fabrication technique of p-SOS-diodes is much simpler. Ways of optimizing the design of the semiconductor structure of the p-SOS-diode to further raise the speed are outlined.     

Fabrication of composite based on GeSi with Ag nanoparticles using ion implantation

Comparative analysis of the structural and optical properties of composite layers fabricated with the aid of implantation of single-crystalline silicon (c-Si) using Ge⁺ (40 keV/1 × 10¹⁷ ions/cm²) and Ag⁺ (30 keV/1.5 × 10¹⁷ ions/cm²) ions and sequential irradiation using Ge⁺ and Ag⁺ ions is presented. The implantation of the Ge⁺ ions leads to the formation of Ge: Si fine-grain amorphous surface layer with a thickness of 60 nm and a grain size of 20–40 nm. The implantation of c-Si using Ag⁺ ions results in the formation of submicron porous amorphous a-Si structure with a thickness of about 50 nm containing ion-synthesized Ag nanoparticles. The penetration of the Ag⁺ ions in the Ge: Si layer stimulates the formation of pores with Ag nanoparticles with more uniform size distribution. The reflection spectra of the implanted Ag: Si and Ag: GeSi layers exhibit a sharp decrease in the intensity in the UV (220–420 nm) spectral interval relative to the intensity of c-Si by more than 50% owing to the amorphization and structuring of surface. The formation of Ag nanoparticles in the implanted layers gives rise to a selective band of the plasmon resonance at a wavelength of about 820 nm in the optical spectra. Technological methods for fabrication of a composite based on GeSi with Ag nanoparticles are demonstrated in practice.     

Correlation between structural and giant magnetoresistance properties of Fe–Ag nanogranular films

Fe _x Ag_1?x granular thin-films, with the atomic Fe concentration, x, ranging from 0 up to 0.5, were deposited by dc magnetron co-sputtering. The giant magnetoresistance (GMR) intensity is maximum at x _I  = 0.32, while the maximum of GMR efficiency, γ, i.e., the change of GMR intensity for a unit change of reduced squared magnetization, is observed at x _γ = 0.26. Owing to the spin-dependent scattering features, the GMR intensity and γ depend on both the concentration and the arrangement of the magnetic material. Therefore, to explain the difference between x _I and x _γ and to understand how the structural properties affect the magnetoresistive behaviour, we performed magnetization, Mössbauer and X-ray diffraction measurements as a function of x. X-ray data indicate that the granular films exhibit three different regimes: for x < 0.2, they can be described as a Fe–Ag solid solution; for 0.2 < x < 0.32 the Fe–Ag solid solution is still observed and very small Fe precipitates are found; finally, for x > 0.32, a Fe–Ag saturated solid solution is detected, containing bcc Fe clusters whose size is about 10 nm. Differently, for all the concentrations, magnetization data show the presence of Fe precipitates, whose size increases with x, and the Mössbauer investigation confirms this picture. We find that the samples grown at x = x _γ display the finest Fe dispersion within the Ag matrix, as the Fe–Ag solid solution is nearly at saturation and the Fe cluster size is of the order of a few nanometers; this arrangement possibly maximizes the magnetic/non-magnetic interface extension thus enhancing the GMR efficiency. If x is slightly increased, the increase in total Fe content compensates the GMR efficiency reduction, so the GMR intensity maximum is observed.     

Epitaxial growth of zinc oxide by the method of atomic layer deposition on SiC/Si substrates

For the first time, zinc oxide epitaxial films on silicon were grown by the method of atomic layer deposition at a temperature T = 250°C. In order to avoid a chemical reaction between silicon and zinc oxide (at the growth temperature, the rate constant of the reaction is of the order of 10²²), a high-quality silicon carbide buffer layer with a thickness of ~50 nm was preliminarily synthesized by the chemical substitution of atoms on the silicon surface. The zinc oxide films were grown on n- and p-type Si(100) wafers. The ellipsometric, Raman, electron diffraction, and trace element analyses showed that the ZnO films are epitaxial.     

Growth of (GaAs)<Subscript>1 − <Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript>(ZnSe)<Subscript><Emphasis Type="Italic">x</Emphasis></Subscript> solid solution films and investigation of their structural and some photoelectric properties

Single-crystal films of the substitutional solid solution (GaAs)_{1 ? x} (ZnSe) _x (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.80) on GaAs substrates have been grown using liquid phase epitaxy. The X-ray diffraction patterns, photoluminescence spectra, and current-voltage characteristics of the n-(GaAs)-p-(GaAs)_{1 ? x} (ZnSe) _x (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.80) heterostructures prepared have been investigated. The lattice parameters of the film a _f = 5.6544 Å and the substrate a _s = 5.6465 Å have been determined, and the profile of the molecular distribution of the solid solution components has been obtained. The photoluminescence spectrum of the (GaAs)_{1 ? x} (ZnSe) _x (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.80) films exhibits a narrow peak (against the background of the broad luminescence band) with a maximum in the luminescence intensity at a photon energy of 2.67 eV due to the presence of Zn-Se bonds in the structure (ZnSe is covalently bonded to the tetrahedral lattice of the GaAs matrix). It has been shown that the direct branch of the current-voltage characteristics of the structures under investigation is described by an exponential dependence I = I ₀exp(qV/ckT) at low voltages (V > 0.3 V) and by a power-law dependence I ～ V ^α with exponents α = 4 at V = 0.4–0.8 V, α = 2 at V = 0.8–1.4 V, and α = 1.5 at V > 2 V. The experimental results have been explained in the framework of the double-injection model for the n-p-p ⁺ structure under the condition that the concentration distribution of nonequilibrium charge carriers has a minimum.     

Amplitude-phase reflectance spectra of amorphous silicon-based Bragg structures

Amplitude-phase spectra of light reflection from distributed Bragg reflectors and Fabry-Pérot microcavities based on a-Si: H/a-SiO_x: H thin films have been studied. The frequency dependence of the phase difference between the amplitude p-and s-light reflection coefficients within the photonic band gap is measured. The phase spectrum exhibits predominantly a monotonic, close-to-linear frequency behavior, except for spectral regions near the stop band edges and near the singularities related to the microcavity eigenmodes. The experimental spectra are compared with theoretical calculations based on the transfer matrix method and approximate analytical relations. A method based on analyzing amplitude-phase reflectance spectra is proposed for structural characterization of multilayer microcavity systems.     

Structure and Polarization Relaxation of Ba<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>Sr<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>Nb<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>6</Subscript>/(001)Si Films

The structure and dielectric characteristics of strontium barium niobate thin films deposited on single-crystalline silicon substrates without buffer layers are studied. It is found that the c axis in these heterostructures runs largely normally to the substrate surface and the a and b axes are randomly oriented in the plane of the substrate. The polarization relaxation in such heterostructures is investigated. It is shown that the film–substrate interface in the heterostructures grown by rf cathode sputtering may contain a low amount of long-lived charged defects.     

Stoßionisierungskoeffizient α, mittlere Elektronenenergien und die Beweglichkeit von Elektronen in Gasen

From the analysis of oscillograms of electron avalanches values of the ionization coefficient α for electrons were determined for oxygen, methane, carbon dioxide, and some organic vapors atE/p-values between some 100 and several 1000 volts/cm Torr. Over a certainE/p-region the values satisfy the relation α/p=A exp(-Bp/E)for which the constants are given. — Values of the mean diffusion energyD/b of the electrons were determined for oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and some other gases and vapors ranging from 4 evolts atE/p?50–100 to some 20 evolts atE/p of several 1000 volts/cm Torr. These values of the diffusion energy are in agreement with those obtained from values of the ionization coefficient α. — The mobility of the electrons is calculated in dependence on the energyD/b and compared with experimental values. It is shown that satisfactory agreement is obtained only when the first two terms of the expansion of the velocity distribution are taken into account.