Effects of swift heavy ion irradiation on the electrical characteristics of Au/n-GaAs Schottky diodes

Metal-semiconductor diode of Au/n-GaAs is studied under the irradiation of swift heavy ion (SHI) beam (80 MeV ¹⁶O⁶⁺), using in situ current-voltage characterization technique. The diode parameters like ideality factor, barrier height, and leakage current are observed to vary with irradiation fluence. Significantly, the diode performance improves at a high fluence of 2 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻² with a large decrease of reverse leakage current in comparison to the original as deposited sample. The Schottky barrier height (SBH) also increases with fluence. At a high irradiation fluence of 5 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻² the SBH (0.62 ± 0.01 eV) is much larger than that of the as deposited sample (0.55 ± 0.01 eV). The diode parameters remain stable over a large range of irradiation up to fluence of 8 × 10¹³ ions cm⁻². A prominent annealing effect of the swift ion beam owing to moderate electronic excitation and high ratio of electronic energy loss to the nuclear loss is found to be responsible for the improvement in diode characteristics.     

Electrical characteristics of the hydrogen pre-annealed Au/n-GaAs Schottky barrier diodes as a function of temperature

We investigated the passivation effects of hydrogen gas on the Au/n-GaAs Schottky barrier diodes in a wide temperature range. Reference diodes were prepared by evaporating barrier metal on semiconductor wafers un-annealed in N₂ gas atmosphere. The other diodes were made by evaporating barrier metal on n-GaAs semiconductor substrates annealed in H₂ atmosphere. Then, electrical measurements of all diodes were carried out by using closed-cycle Helium cryostat by steps of 20 K in the temperature range of 80-300 K in dark. The basic diode parameters such as ideality factor and barrier height were consequently extracted from electrical measurements. It was seen that ideality factors increased and barrier heights decreased with the decreasing temperature. The case was attributed to barrier inhomogeneity at the metal/semiconductor interface. Barrier heights of the diodes made from samples annealed in H₂ gas atmosphere were smaller than those of reference diodes at low temperatures. Here, it was ascribed to the fact that hydrogen atoms passivated dangling bonds on semiconductor surface in accordance with former studies.     

Effect of swift heavy ion irradiation on photoluminescence properties of ZnO/PMMA nanocomposite films

We report a study on the SHI induced modifications on structural and optical properties of ZnO/PMMA nanocomposite films. The ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized by the chemical route using 2-mercaptoethanol as a capping agent. The structure of ZnO nanoparticles was confirmed by XRD, SEM and TEM. These ZnO nanoparticles were dispersed in the PMMA matrix to form ZnO/PMMA nanocomposite films by the solution cast method. These ZnO/PMMA nanocomposite films were then irradiated by swift heavy ion irradiation (Ni⁸⁺ ion beam, 100 MeV) at a fluence of 1×10¹¹ ions/cm². The nanocomposite films were then characterized by XRD, UV-vis absorption spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy. As revealed from the absorption spectra, absorption edge is not changed by the irradiation but the optical absorption is increased. Enhanced green luminescence at about 527 nm and a less intense blue emission peak around 460 nm were observed after irradiation with respect to the pristine ZnO/PMMA nanocomposite film.     

Structural and magnetic study of swift heavy ion irradiated W/Fe multilayer structure

The present study reports the effect of swift heavy ion irradiation on structural and magnetic properties of sputtered W/Fe multilayer structure (MLS) having bilayer compositions of [W(10 Å)/Fe(20 Å)]_10BL. The MLS is irradiated by 120 MeV Au⁹⁺ ions of fluences 1×10¹³ and 4×10¹³ ions/cm². Techniques like X-ray reflectivity (XRR), cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (X-TEM) and DC magnetization with a vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) are used for structural and magnetic characterization of pristine and irradiated MLS. Analysis of XRR data using Parratt’s formalism shows a significant increase in W/Fe layer roughness. X-TEM studies reveal that intra-layer microstructure of Fe layers in MLS becomes nano-crystalline on irradiation. DC magnetization study shows that with spacer layer thickness interlayer coupling changes between ferromagnetic to antiferromagnetic.     

AFM and electronic transport studies of swift heavy ion irradiated Mn/p-Si bilayer structure

Mn/p-Si structures have been realised by electron beam evaporation of manganese on etched and cleaned p-Si wafers. Bilayer structures have been irradiated by swift heavy ions (of 100 MeV Fe⁷⁺ having a fluence of 1 × 10¹³ ions/cm²). The electronic transport features across the bilayer of the structure (i.e. I–V characteristics across the Mn/p-Si interface) show a significant increase of current (by two orders of magnitude) for the irradiated ones as compared to un-irradiated ones. I–V characteristics across the interface has also been recorded in presence of in-plane (i.e., along the plane of the interface) magnetic field which show a significant magnetic field sensitivity for the irradiated ones. The surface morphological studies from AFM show a granular structure with open face having micro-particles in it, prior to the irradiation and round shaped embedded granular structure after the irradiation. XRD data show the formation of manganese silicide (Mn₅Si₂). The results are understood in the realm of interfacial intermixing which is tailored by the swift heavy ion irradiation.     

Effect of swift heavy ion irradiation on thermal,optical and structural properties of poly vinylidene chloride

Poly vinylidene chloride (PVDC) irradiated with lithium (50 MeV), carbon (85 MeV), nickel (120 MeV) and silver ions (120 MeV) having fluence range of 1 × 10¹¹ ions/cm² to 3 × 10¹² ions/cm² have been studied using different techniques i.e. XRD (X-ray diffraction), FTIR (Fourier transform infrared), UV–Visible and TGA (thermo-gravimetric analysis). In XRD analysis, the intensity of diffraction peaks of PVDC irradiated with lithium ions was enhanced at lower fluence as compared to pristine. The shift in optical absorption edge in irradiated PVDC was correlated with the decrease in optical band gap energy. The distinguishable characteristic peaks were observed due to UV–Vis analysis, in lithium irradiated samples of PVDC at higher fluences. The % age decrease in optical band gap energy for the respective ions were 30.9%, 34.16%, 81.1%, 87.02% respectively. Formation of double carbon bonds and breaking of C–O and C–Cl bonds with the release of Cl in irradiated PVDC was observed in FTIR spectra. In Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), the % age weight loss observed for irradiated samples with increase in ion fluence was lesser than the % age weight loss observed in pristine sample.     

Optical and electrical properties of swift heavy ion beam-irradiated polycarbonate/polystyrene bilayer films

Polycarbonate/polystyrene bilayer films prepared by solvent-casting method were irradiated with 55 MeV carbon ion beam at different fluences ranging from 1×10¹¹ to 1×10¹³ ions cm^?2. The structural, optical, surface morphology and dielectric properties of these films were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV–visible spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, optical microscopy and dielectric measurements. The XRD pattern shows that the percentage of crystallinity decreases while inter-chain separations increase with ion fluence. UV–visible spectroscopy shows that the energy band gap decreases and the number of carbon atoms in nanoclusters increase with the increase in ion fluences. The refractive index is also found to decrease with the increase in the ion fluence. Optical microscopy shows that after irradiation polymeric bilayer films color changes with ion fluences. The FTIR spectra evidenced a very small change in cross-linking and chain scissoring at high fluence. Dielectric constant decreases while dielectric loss and AC conductivity increase with ion fluences.     

Swift heavy ion induced capacitance and dielectric properties of Ni/n-GaAs Schottky diode

The in-situ capacitance and dielectric properties of 25 MeV C⁴⁺ ion irradiated Ni/n-GaAs Schottky barrier diode (SBD) were studied at 100 kHz in the fluence range 5 × 10¹⁰ – 5 × 10¹³ ions/cm². The investigation shows reduction in capacitance and charge density with increase in ion fluence. Consequent changes were observed in other related parameters like conductance, dielectric constant, dielectric loss, loss tangent and electrical modulus. The results were interpreted in terms of generation of swift heavy ion induced acceptor trap states by electronic energy loss mechanism. Besides, the switch over characteristics of depletion to inversion regions in the CV plot reveals minority carrier recombination centers also. The dispersion and relaxation peaks observed in bias dependent dielectric plots were ascribed to the polarization and relaxation mechanism due to the interfacial trap states. The traps and recombination centers were found to alter the barrier characteristics of the fabricated SBD depending upon the ion fluence.     

X-ray photoelectron and X-ray Auger electron spectroscopy studies of heavy ion irradiated C60 films

The influence of 200 MeV Au ion irradiation on the surface properties of polycrystalline fullerene films has been investigated. The X-ray photoelectron and X-ray Auger electron spectroscopies are employed to study the ion-induced modification of the fullerene, near the surface region. The shift of C 1s core level and decrease in intensity of shake-up satellite were used to investigate the structural changes (like sp² to sp³ conversion) and reduction of π electrons, respectively, under heavy ion irradiation. Further, X-ray Auger electron spectroscopy was employed to investigate hybridization conversion qualitatively as a function of ion fluence.     

Electrical transport study of structural phase transitions in C60 films and the effect of swift heavy ion irradiation

Three phase transitions (face centered to simple cubic, surface rearrangement from (2×2) to (1×1) and glass transition) in fullerene thin films and the effect of 150 MeV Ti ion irradiation on these transitions have been studied, using temperature dependence of electrical resistivity measurements. The structural properties of the C₆₀ thin films are studied by X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy and UV-vis spectroscopy. It is observed that defect creation by ion irradiation in the films lead to quenching and broadening of structural phase transitions but the transition temperatures did not show significant shifting under ion irradiation.     

Investigation of annealing effects on the structural, magnetic and transport properties of Co/GaAs(0 0 1) thin films

Present paper deals with the structural, magnetic and transport studies of as-deposited as well as annealed Co/GaAs(0 0 1) thin film at different temperatures. The X-ray diffraction measurements show oriented growth of as-deposited Co film in the hcp (0 0 2) direction. However, the sample annealed at higher temperatures shows formation of ternary Co₂GaAs phase at the interface. Corresponding magnetic and transport measurements show decrement in magnetization and resistivity with annealing temperatures. The observed reductions in magnetization and resistivity values are mainly attributed to the formation of ternary Co₂GaAs phase at the interface.     

Investigation of structural and optical properties of 100 MeV F7+ ion irradiated Ga10Se90-xAlx thin films

Present work focuses on the effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation of 100 MeV F⁷⁺ ions by varying the fluencies in the range of 1 × 10¹² to 1 × 10¹³ ions/cm² on the morphological, structural and optical properties of polycrystalline thin films of Ga₁₀Se_90-xAl_x (x = 0, 5). Thin films of ~300 nm thickness were deposited on cleaned Al₂O₃ substrates by thermal evaporation technique. X-ray diffraction pattern of investigated thin films shows the crystallite growth occurs in hexagonal phase structure for Ga₁₀Se₉₀ and tetragonal phase structure for Ga₁₀Se₈₅Al₅. The further structural analysis carried out by Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy verifies the defects or disorder of the investigated material increases after SHI irradiation. The optical parameters absorption coefficient (α), extinction coefficient (K), optical band gap (E_g) and Urbach’s energy (E_U) are determined from optical absorption spectra data measured from spectrophotometry in the wavelength range 200–1100 nm. It was found that the values of absorption coefficient and extinction coefficient increase while the value of optical band gap decreases with the increase in ion fluence. This post irradiation change in the optical parameters was interpreted in terms of bond distribution model.     

Nanometer-scale spatial inhomogeneities of the chemical and electronic properties of an ion implanted Mn-Ge alloy

Electron energy loss spectroscopy maps using a transmission electron microscope were used to investigate with nanometer spatial resolution the Mn distribution of a Mn_xGe_1−x ion implanted alloy (x ? 4%). Mn is fully diluted in the Ge matrix in a subsurface implanted layer, showing concentration inhomogeneities at the nm scale. In the deep implanted layers the presence of Mn rich clusters—either amorphous or in the Mn₅Ge₃ phase—is directly evidenced. Scanning Tunneling Microscopy/Spectroscopy directly shows that the Mn₅Ge₃ clusters are metallic, while those smaller and amorphous are semiconducting with 0.45 ± 0.05 eV band gap. The Ge matrix with Mn dilution is semiconducting with 0.60 ± 0.05 eV gap. Electronic structure results are compared with ab-initio calculations.     

Electrical, structural and surface morphological properties of thermally stable low-resistance W/Ti/Au multilayer ohmic contacts to n-type GaN

A W/Ti/Au multilayer scheme has been fabricated for achieving thermally stable low-resistance ohmic contact to n-type GaN (4.0 × 10¹⁸ cm⁻³). It is shown that the as-deposited W/Ti/Au contact exhibits near linear I-V behaviour. However, annealing at temperature below 800 °C the contacts exhibit non-linear behaviour. After annealing at a temperature in excess of 850 °C, the W/Ti/Au contact showed ohmic behaviour. The W/Ti/Au contact produced specific contact resistance as low as 6.7 × 10⁻⁶ Ω cm² after annealing at 900 °C for 1 min in a N₂ ambient. It is noted that the specific contact resistance decreases with increase in annealing temperature. It is also noted that annealing the contacts at 900 °C for 30 min causes insignificant degradation of the electrical and thermal properties. It is further shown that the overall surface morphology of the W/Ti/Au stayed fairly smooth even after annealing at 900 °C. The W/Ti/Au ohmic contact showed good edge sharpness after annealing at 900 °C for 30 min. Based on the Auger electron spectroscopy and glancing angle X-ray diffraction results, possible explanation for the annealing dependence of the specific contact resistance of the W/Ti/Au contacts are described and discussed.     

中小尺寸CdS和CdTe团簇结构与电子性质的第一性原理研究

基于密度泛函理论(DFT)的第一性原理方法(DMOL3程序),在广义梯度近似(GGA)下,计算了中小尺寸II~VI族(CdS)n和(CdTe)n团簇的基态结构、最高占据轨道(HOMO)和最低未占据轨道(LUMO)的能隙、结合能等,比较了(CdS)n和(CdTe)n两种团簇的基态结构,能隙与结合能随尺寸变化关系的差异等.     

Structural evolution at the initial growth stage of perylene on Au(1 1 1)

We report on the structural evolution at the initial growth stage of perylene thin films on Au(1 1 1) surface. Scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy have been employed to investigate the structural and electronic properties at 78 K. Rapid molecular diffusion was observed at low submonolayer coverage. Molecules form an ordered structure at monolayer coverage. For the second layer, impinging molecules nucleate into molecular islands with an ordered intermediate structure.     

Crystal growth of superconductive PrBa2Cu3O7−y

Superconductive PrBa₂Cu₃O_7−y (Pr123) crystals have been grown successfully by the travelling-solvent floating-zone (TSFZ) method using 3.7–5.8% PrO, 27–37% BaO, and 60–69% CuO composition solution with the 0.1–0.4% oxygen mixed argon gas atmosphere. The grown crystals have been identified to be Pr123 by a precession camera, X-ray powder diffractions and scanning electron microscopy–X-ray energy dispersion spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). Some portion of the grown TSFZ crystal boules show bulk superconductivity below about 80 K after annealing in oxygen.     

Formation of and phase transitions in electrodeposited tellurium atomic layers on Au(1 1 1)

Detailed studies of the structures formed by the electrodeposition of atomic layers of Te on Au(1 1 1) surfaces from aqueous solutions were performed using in situ scanning tunneling microscopy (STM), as well as by UHV-EC techniques such as low energy electron diffraction and Auger electron spectroscopy. There are two features in the voltammetry that may be considered underpotential deposition (UPD). However, from the voltammetry, it is clear that the deposition process is kinetically slow, and from this study it appears that several atomic layer structures are actually formed at overpotentials. Prior to deposition, a surface excess of a tellurium oxide species coats the surface. This layer is then converted to a Au(1 1 1)(√3×√3)R30°–Te structure with an array of domain walls, at 1/3 ML. The initial structure appears to have a symmetric array of walls, resulting in a (13×13) periodicity, which then converts to a less symmetric structure where the domain walls form rhombi, with a larger periodicity. During the second UPD feature, the coverage increases, forming a (√7×√13) unit cell at 0.36 ML and then a (3×3) at 0.44 ML. Commensurate with the formation of these higher coverage structures, a roughening transition takes place, where the surface becomes pitted, resulting in about 40% of the surface being covered with single atom deep pits. This process appears to be related to the pits formed in the surfaces of self-assembled monolayers (SAM) of thiols on Au surfaces, and layers of Se and S on Au surfaces. Several theories have been suggested to account for these pits. The model that appears to best explain the pits is based on shrinking of the size of the underlying Au atoms, reconstructing the underlying Au. There also appears to be a high coverage structure, near 0.9 ML, that forms at potentials near where the (3×3) forms, but only by holding the potential for an extended period of time. Subsequent dissolution of this high coverage structure produces domains of disordered Te atoms, which gradually decrease in coverage until the (3×3) is again formed at 0.44 ML.     

Atomic structure of the Si(103)1 × 1-In surface

To test the model that was originally proposed for the Si(103)1 × 1-Al facets and was later on tested with STM to be correct for the Ge(103)1 × 1-In facets, in the present paper we have studied the Si(103)1 × 1-In surface by means of the QKLEED/CMTA technique. A unit cell of the model consists of an indium atom, which sits in an adatom position and forms three sp²-like bonds with bulk silicon atoms, and a surface silicon atom with a dangling bond. The model has passed the QKLEED/CMTA test and the best parameters of it have been obtained. It has been noticed in the experiment that the clean Si(103) surface has a surprisingly high thermal stability.