Evolution of step-terrace structure at Si–SiO2 interface in SIMOX substrate during annealing

The step-terrace structures at the interface between the Si layer and the buried SiO₂ layer of a Separation by IMplanted OXygen substrate has been observed by using atomic force microscopy (AFM) after removing the SiO₂ and Si layers. The time evolution of the Si–SiO₂ interface roughness during high-temperature annealing was analyzed by the scaling analysis of AFM data. The correlation length exhibited a nice correspondence to the size of square domain structures. Decreasing in the index of the length scale indicates that the growth mechanism changes as the annealing proceeds.     

AFM observations of latent fission tracks on surfaces: amorphous SiO2 and quartz

Preliminary results of a systematic AFM experimental investigation of the surface ‘track’ effects produced by the passage of fission fragments from a californium (²⁵²Cf) source into amorphous SiO₂ and quartz are described. Fission fragments from the source were collimated using a 10 μm thick aluminum foil and comprised fragments with the usual binary distribution of energies—light and heavy—79.4 and 103.8 MeV. Irradiations and AFM measurements were carried out in air at normal room temperature and pressure. Remarkably high sputtering yields/fragment were discovered, and in the case of crystalline quartz the ejecta was found to be arranged in an ordered manner. A brief discussion is given of a part likely to be played by electronic energy loss induced Coulomb explosion of target atoms for each point of fragment entry.     

Band bending at the Si(1 1 1)–SiO2 interface induced by low-energy ion bombardment

Experiments employing photoreflectance spectroscopy have uncovered band bending due to electrically active defects at the Si(1 1 1)–SiO₂ interface after sub-keV Ar⁺ ion bombardment. The band bending of about 0.5 eV resembles that for Si(1 0 0)–SiO₂, and both interfaces exhibit two kinetic regimes for the evolution of band bending upon annealing due to defects healing. The healing takes place about an order of magnitude more quickly at the (1 1 1) interface, however, probably because of less fully saturated bonding and higher compressive stress.     

Real-time monitoring of SiO2/Si(1 1 1) interlayer etching by Brewster-angle reflectometry

A transitory etching regime after SiO₂ dissolution and before bulk Si(1 1 1) etching in neutral NH₄F solutions was monitored by in situ Brewster-angle reflectometry (BAR). An observed intermediate increase of the BAR reflectance signal is attributed to a fast dissolution of a stressed/strained interlayer beneath the SiO₂/Si(1 1 1) interface. Similar effects were observed on thin thermal oxides (18.2 nm), grown on float zone silicon, as well as on ultra-thin native oxides (1.2 nm) on Czochralsky silicon. Native oxide covered samples showed an increased surface roughness in the course of interlayer dissolution while the surface is progressively covered with compounds of fluorinated silicon. The etch rate, determined by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and compared to the etch rate of bulk silicon, is increased by a factor of four. In the limit of extended etching, the known low etch rates for silicon in 40% NH₄F are observed. Structural and chemical properties of the interfacial layer were analyzed by synchrotron radiation photoelectron spectroscopy (SRPES) which confirmed the presence of Si^3+/4+ valence states throughout the interlayer and by near open-circuit potential (N-OCP) dark current measurements. As a result, oxide etch rates in NH₄F in the pH-range 7–8 as well as the silicon interlayer depth can be assessed by in situ BAR.     

Synthesis and characterization of monodispersed CdS nanoparticles in SiO2 fibers by sol–gel method

Cadmium sulfide (CdS) has been synthesized by a sol–gel route in order to obtain chemically protected, stable nanoparticles. The CdS nanoparticles in the SiO₂ gel matrix were dried to form monoliths of 1 in. diameter. The TEOS:H₂O:HCl:C₂H₅OH and TEOS/Cd mole ratios were varied to obtain narrow size distributed CdS nanoparticles. The UV absorption measurements indicated sharp absorption at 260 and 350 nm for different precursor compositions. SiO₂ gel containing the CdS nanoparticles was spin coated onto substrates in order to monitor the surface morphology of the samples. Scanning electron microscope measurements revealed formation of CdS nanoparticles within the branches of gel-network. Depending upon the mole ratio of additives and drying method, fibers or monolithic tablets of CdS nanoparticles could be produced.     

Atomic force microscopy study on surface morphology of {0 0 1} faces of [MnHg(SCN)4(H2O)2]·2C4H9NO crystals

The growth morphologies of the {0 0 1} faces of [MnHg(SCN)₄(H₂O)₂]·2C₄H₉NO (MMTWD) crystals grown at 17 °C at a supersaturation of σ = 0.5 have been investigated by ex situ atomic force microscopy (AFM).Various spiral growth hillocks are described and discussed. Surface morphology changes as a result of dissolving the surface materials by absorbed moisture in air are also detected. The microcrystals are suggested to be as a result of the reconstruction of amorphous aggregates on the surfaces.     

Sub-layer growth of MnHg(SCN)4(C2H6OS)2 crystal

Growth steps and 2D nuclei are observed by AFM on the {0 0 1} faces of MnHg(SCN)₄(C₂H₆OS)₂ (MMTD) crystals. Measurements of the heights of steps and nuclei show the lowest value is equal to c/4. According to the interplanar distance modification established by Donney and Harker, the lowest height should be c/2. Appearance of the sub-layer growth is correlative with the crystal structure of MMTD.     

Observing the effect of water vapor on post-irradiated surface morphology of SiO2 and Si3N4 insulators by atomic force microscopy

In this work, we investigated the effect of water-vapor treatment on the surface morphology of SiO₂ and Si₃N₄ insulators before and after Co⁶⁰ gamma-ray irradiation by using the atomic force microscopy (AFM) operated under non-contact mode. Before irradiation, no apparent surface morphology change was found in SiO₂ samples even they were water vapor treated. However, bright spots were found on post-irradiated water-vapor-treated SiO₂ sample surfaces but not on those without water-vapor treatment. We attributed the bright spots to the negative charge accumulation in the oxide due to charge balancing between hydroxyl (OH⁻) ions adsorbed on SiO₂ surface and electron-hole pairs (ehps) generated during irradiation since they can be annealed out after low temperature annealing process. On the contrary, no bright spots were observed on post-irradiated Si₃N₄ samples with and without water-vapor treatment. This result confirms that Si₃N₄ is a better water-resist passivation layer than SiO₂ layer.     

Silicon nanoparticles formation in annealed SiO/SiO2 multilayers

We present a study on amorphous SiO/SiO₂ superlattice performed by grazing-incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS). Amorphous SiO/SiO₂ superlattices were prepared by high-vacuum evaporation of 3 nm thin films of SiO and SiO₂ (10 layers each) onto Si(1 0 0) substrate. After the deposition, samples were annealed at 1100 °C for 1 h in vacuum, yielding to Si nanocrystals formation. Using a Guinier approximation, the shape and the size of the crystals were obtained. The size of the growing nanoparticles in the direction perpendicular to the film surface is well controlled by the bilayer thickness. However, their size varies more significantly in the direction parallel to the film surface.     

Sintering of glasses in the system RO–Al2O3–BaO–SiO2 (R=Ca, Mg, Zn) studied by hot-stage microscopy

Glass–ceramics for sealing solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs) were developed by sintering and crystallization of the powdered glass seal. The non-isothermal sintering kinetics and crystallization kinetics were studied for four glasses in the system 50SiO₂·(45−x)BaO·xRO·5Al₂O₃ (R=Ca, Mg, Zn and x=0, 15) (mol%). Hot-stage microscopy (HSM) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) measurements demonstrated that it is possible to first sinter and then crystallize these glasses obtaining glass–ceramic seals with thermal expansion coefficients in the range 9–12×10⁻⁶ K⁻¹.

The non-isothermal sintering kinetics was analyzed by computer simulations using a previously reported model of sintering for polydispersed glass powders which takes into account the particle size distribution, surface energy and viscosity. Good agreement was found between the measured kinetics with HSM and the calculated kinetics for all glasses.     

Ellipsometric spectroscopy study of photoluminescent Si/SiO2 systems obtained by magnetron co-sputtering

Si nanograins embedded in silica matrix were obtained by magnetron cosputtering of both Si and SiO₂ at different substrate temperature (200–700°C) and thermal annealing at 1100°C. The samples were characterized by ellipsometric spectroscopy, high-resolution electron microscopy observations and photoluminescence. The highest excess of Si atoms was found to be incorporated for deposition temperature near 400–500°C, giving rise to a maximum PL and a shift of the peak position towards lower energy. These features might be interpreted in terms of quantum size effects and of density of grains, even though the interface states seem to be involved in the improvement of the photoluminescence efficiency.     

Correlation of size and oxygen bonding at the interface of Si nanocrystal in Si–SiO2 nanocomposite: A Raman mapping study

Raman spectroscopy/mapping is used to investigate the variation of Si phonon wavenumbers, i.e., lower wavenumber (LW ~ 495–510 cm⁻¹) and higher wavenumber (HW ~ 515–519 cm⁻¹) phonons, observed in Si–SiO₂ multilayer nanocomposite (NCp) grown using pulsed laser deposition. Sensitivity of Raman spectroscopy as a local probe to surface/interface is effectively used to show that LW and HW phonons originate at surface (Si–SiO₂ interface) and core of Si nanocrystals, respectively. The consistent picture of this understanding is developed using Raman spectroscopy monitored laser heating/annealing and cooling experiment at the site of the desired wavenumber, chosen with the help of Raman mapping. Raman spectra calculations for Si₄₁ cluster with oxygen and hydrogen termination show strong mode at 512 cm⁻¹ for oxygen terminated cluster corresponding to the vibration of surface Si atoms. This supports our attribution of LW phonons to be originating at the Si–SiO₂ surface/interface. These results along with XPS show that nature of interface (oxygen bonding) in turn depends on the size of nanocrystals and LW phonons originate at the surface of smaller Si nanocrystals. The understanding developed can conclude the ongoing debate on large variation in Si phonon wavenumbers of Si–SiO₂ NCps in the literature. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thermally-induced morphological transition in WOx deposited on a ZrO2(1 0 0) substrate

A combined atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) study of tungsten oxide model catalysts is presented. The model catalysts were prepared by applying the real preparation method to a ZrO₂(1 0 0) single crystal support. AFM imaged several granular structures of scattered dimensions on the surface of ZrO₂(1 0 0) in the as prepared samples. After heating, at low loading the tungsten species rearranged into small WO_x particles strongly interacting with the substrate. At high tungsten content large WO₃ aggregates also formed. XPS analysis confirmed these changes. The estimated surface density of the interacting W-containing species closely matched that of real catalysts.     

Anharmonic V–V pumping and asymmetric electron-elementary excitation interaction in emission and absorption of O2(Δg) in the crystalline phases of oxygen

Three luminescence bands in the yellow and red spectral region, which are related to the ¹Δ_g¹Δ_g→³Σ_g^{− 3}Σ_g⁻ double electronic transition of O₂, have been investigated in the , β, and γ phase of solid oxygen. The temperature dependence of the intensity of the yellow band is strongly influenced by emission from higher vibrational levels of O₂(¹Δ_g), which are populated by anharmonic V–V pumping. The broken mirror symmetry of the luminescence and absorption bands in the phase of solid O₂ points to an interaction between the electrons and the elementary excitations of the crystal, which is different in the ground and excited electronic states, e.g., a quadratic electron–phonon interaction.     

Binding energies of elements at the interface between oxygen-ion-irradiated ZrO2–Y2O3 films and an iron substrate

Binding energies of elements at the interface of oxygen-ion-irradiated ZrO₂–Y₂O₃ films on an iron substrate were investigated by using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) combined with ion etching. In addition to Zr or Fe simple binary suboxides, it is found that some Zr–O–Fe-like bonding configuration is formed due to ion irradiation, which has a favorable effect on the adhesion of the film to the substrate.     

Nature of intrinsic luminescence in the glasses of CaO–Ga2O3–GeO2 system

The intrinsic luminescence of glasses of the CaO–Ga₂O₃–GeO₂ system has been investigated. High chemical purity and optical quality glasses, both undoped and doped with transition and rare-earth ions with different compositions, were obtained by high-temperature synthesis. The influences of the basic glass composition, impurities (Cr³⁺, Mn²⁺, Eu²⁺, Nd³⁺, Ho³⁺, Er³⁺, and Ce³⁺) and different kinds of excitation, on the intrinsic luminescence of the CaO–Ga₂O₃–GeO₂ glasses were investigated. The nature and possible mechanisms of the intrinsic luminescence in glasses of this system are discussed. The proposed models of intrinsic luminescence are supported by electron spin resonance spectroscopy.     

Line-mixing and collision induced absorption for O2–CO2 mixtures in the oxygen A-band region

The absorption by O₂–CO₂ mixtures in the region of the oxygen A-band near 760 nm has been measured in the laboratory at room temperature and for total pressures up to about 80 atm. As done in our previous studies for O₂–N₂ mixtures the contribution of the “allowed” A-band transitions have been calculated both accounting for line-mixing effects and disregarding this process. The differences between computed spectra and measured values enable extraction of the collision induced absorption (CIA) contribution, which, after removal of the O₂–O₂ contribution, provides, for the first time, the O₂–CO₂ CIA. It is shown that neglecting line-mixing overestimates absorption in the wings and underestimates absorption at the P and R branch peaks, and that the O₂–CO₂ CIA has an integrated intensity, in the A-band region, about 1.5 times larger than that of for pure O₂ and almost 10 times greater than for O₂–N₂.     

Decay of nano-islands located on Au(1 0 0) electrode in room temperature molten salt (EMImBF4)

The behaviour of nano-islands located on an Au(1 0 0) single crystal surface in contact with a room temperature molten salt, that is, 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (EMImBF₄), has been investigated using electrochemical atomic force microscopy (EC-AFM) under potential control. It was found from the in situ EC-AFM observations that a nano-island located on an Au(1 0 0) electrode collapses in EMImBF₄ in the potential range between −1.05 and 0.2 V (vs. Ag/Ag⁺ in EMImBF₄). It was also found that the nano-islands decay faster when the Au(1 0 0) electrode potential is more positive. These in situ EC-AFM observations reveal that the behaviour of the nano-island in the EMImBF₄ shown above is quite similar to that observed in a sulfuric acid aqueous solution.     

Preparation of LiMn2O4 thin films by a sol–gel method

LiMn₂O₄ thin films were prepared by a sol–gel method using spin-coating and annealing processes. Anhydrous Mn(CH₃COCHCOCH₃)₃ (manganese acetylacetonate) and LiCH₃COCHCO–CH₃ (lithium acetylacetonate) were chosen as source materials. The film electrochemical properties depended on the drying temperature even when subjected to the same annealing conditions. The discharge capacity of annealed film increased as the drying temperature was increased. However, the rate of capacity fading during cycling increased as the drying temperature was increased.     

Studies of sol–gel TiO2 and Pt/TiO2 catalysts for NO reduction by CO in an oxygen-rich condition

The textural properties, morphological features, surface basicity and oxygen reduction behaviours of titania and Pt supported titania catalysts synthesized via a sol–gel method were studied by means of N₂ physisorption, SEM, TEM, CO₂-TPD and H₂-TPR techniques. Mesostructured TiO₂ shows a very narrow pore size distribution that uniformly centred at about 4 nm. High resolution TEM images confirmed that most of Pt particles on Pt/TiO₂-SG had a size smaller than 2 nm. Both the titania support and Pt loaded catalysts chiefly contained weak basic sites with small amount of strong basic sites. Loading Pt did not significantly alter the surface reduction characters of titania, indicating a weak interaction between Pt metals and titania support. Catalytic evaluation revealed that the selectivity of NO reduction over titania was insensitive to variation of textural property. On the bare titania, low NO conversion but high selectivity to N₂O was obtained. However, the Pt/TiO₂-SG catalysts exhibited high NO conversion and high selectivity to N₂, which is assumed to relate to NO dissociation catalysed by the metallic Pt clusters. In addition, when the reaction temperature was above 200 °C, 3–11% NO₂ was yielded over the Pt/TiO₂-SG catalysts, which was discussed on a basis of reaction competition, metal-support interaction and NO dissociation.