Interaction of iron atoms with the oxidized silicon surface

The room-temperature interaction of iron atoms with the oxidized Si(100)2×1 surface at a coverage from a submonolayer to four monolayers is studied by core-level photoelectron spectroscopy using synchrotron radiation. Computer simulation of the Si 2p core electron spectra demonstrates that iron atoms penetrate beneath the silicon oxide even at room temperature. This process causes the initial silicon phases at the SiO_x/Si interface to disappear; gives rise to a complex ternary phase involving Fe, O, and Si atoms; and favors the formation of a Fe-Si solid solution at the interface.     

Introduction of nickel surface layer atoms into silicon

Results of experimental studies of the process of introduction of nickel atoms into silicon upon irradiation of layered Ni-Si structures by argon ions are presented. Following irradiation, specimen composition was studied using back scattering of helium ions. Processing of the back scattering spectra was performed by an improved method using an analytical approach. The effects of annealing temperature and dosage on the process of formation of the suicide NiSi are studied.Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Fizika, No. 7, pp. 36–40, July, 1989.     

Interaction of iron atoms with the Si(100)-2 × 1 surface

Interaction of iron atoms with the Si(100)-2 × 1 surface at room temperature is studied by core-level photoelectron spectroscopy using synchrotron radiation for Fe coverages ranging from a fraction of a monolayer to six monolayers. It is shown that the Fe/Si(100)-2 × 1 interface is chemically active: the Fe-Si solid solution forms early in deposition of iron on silicon. When the Fe coverage reaches four to five monolayers, the state of the system is changed and Fe₃Si silicide arises.     

Interaction of dopant atoms with stacking faults in silicon

The width of a stacking fault ribbon bound by a pair of partial dislocations in silicon crystals was unchanged when boron and gallium atoms of p-type dopant were agglomerated nearby the ribbon by annealing, even though the width increased when n-type dopant atoms were agglomerated as previously reported [Y. Ohno, Y. Tokumoto, I. Yonenaga, Thin Solid Films, accepted for publication]. The origin of the width-increase in n-type crystals was proposed as the reduction of the stacking fault energy, from 58±5 down to 46±5 mJ/m², due to an electronic interaction between the ribbon and the n-type dopant atoms, and the interaction energy was estimated to be 0.15±0.05 eV. On the other hand, the interaction of p-type dopant atoms with stacking faults was not detected.     

Characteristics of Au/n-Si surface barrier nuclear radiation detectors with a nanometer native oxide layer

The effect of a surface charge on the characteristics of silicon surface barrier detectors with a nanometer oxide layer is studied. Interaction between the surface charge and a metal or a semiconductor at an oxide layer thickness of less than 1 or more than 2 nm, respectively, is taken into account. The application of silicon detectors with an oxide layer having a thickness of more than 2 nm in detecting nuclear resonance reactions is considered.     

The recoilless fraction of the oxide surface layer formed on small iron particles

Small iron particles with oxide surface layer were studied by Mössbauer Spectroscopy at various temperatures in the range of 5K to 300K. The Debye temperature of the oxide layer and the temperature dependence of f2/f1 were obtained, where f1 and f2 are the recoilless fractions for the inner α-iron core and the oxide layer respectively. Furthermore, the method of estimating the thickness of the oxide layer was improved.     

Interaction between antimony atoms and micropores in silicon

The interaction between Sb atoms and micropores of a getter layer in silicon is studied. The getter layer was obtained via implantation of Sb⁺ ions into silicon and subsequent heat treatment processes. The antimony atoms located in the vicinity of micropores are captured by micropores during gettering annealing and lose its electrical activity. The activation energy of capture process to the pores for antimony is lower than that of antimony diffusion in silicon deformation fields around microvoids on the diffusion process.     

Distinctive features of time-resolved photoluminescence of porous silicon coated with a layer of diamondlike carbon

Time-resolved photoluminescence from porous silicon coated with a diamondlike carbon film is investigated. The intensity of the photoluminescence from the carbon film is obserd to increase after deposition, and there is an accompanying change in the intensity and a shortwavelength shift of the photoluminescence band of porous silicon that depends on the porosity of its original layers. These changes are explained by the formation of carbon nanoclusters on the surface of the silicon filaments. Zh. Tekh. Fiz. 68, 83–87 (April 1998)     

Interaction between two hydrogen atoms approaching a metal surface

Two regimes of HH interaction outside a metal surface are considered: (i) Beyond the spill-out region of the metal electrons (physisorption) (ii) Embedded protons in the electron spill-out. Using an extension of the Heitier-London model to treat (i), the H₂ binding energy for the molecule parallel to the surface is reduced, whereas for the perpendicular configuration stronger binding obtains. In (ii), the asymptotic form of the screening charge round a single proton is considered, in a linear response framework, and for an infinite barrier model of the surface. If the screened potential has no singularities in k space, then the interaction energy ΔE(X), X being the distance between the protons, falls off as X^?5 times an oscillatory function, for H₂ parallel to the planar metal surface. The effect of self-consistency on this result is then examined and it is concluded that the asymptotic interaction energy is unchanged in form, though the amplitude is altered.     

Improved performance of microcrystalline silicon solar cell with graded-band-gap silicon oxide buffer layer

Microcrystalline silicon(μc-Si:H) solar cell with graded band gap microcrystalline silicon oxide(μc-Si Ox:H) buffer layer is prepared by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition and exhibits improved performance compared with the cell without it. The buffer layer moderates the band gap mismatch by reducing the barrier of the p/i interface, which promotes the nucleation of the i-layer and effectively eliminates the incubation layer, and then enhances the collection efficiency of the cell in the short wavelength region of the spectrum. The p/i interface defect density also decreases from 2.2 × 1012cm-2to 5.0 × 1011cm-2. This graded buffer layer allows to simplify the deposition process for the μc-Si:H solar cell application.     

Thermoelectrics from silicon nanoparticles: the influence of native oxide

Thermoelectric materials were synthesized by current-assisted sintering of doped silicon nanoparticles produced in a microwave-plasma reactor. Due to their affinity to oxygen, the nanoparticles start to oxidize when handled in air and even a thin surface layer of native silicon oxide leads to a significant increase in the oxide volume ratio. This results in a considerable incorporation of oxygen into the sintered pellets, thus affecting the thermoelectric performance. To investigate the necessity of inert handling of the raw materials, the thermoelectric transport properties of sintered nanocrystalline silicon samples were characterized with respect to their oxygen content. An innovative method allowing a quantitative silicon oxide analysis by means of electron microscopy was applied: the contrast between areas of high and low electrical conductivity was attributed to the silicon matrix and silicon oxide precipitates, respectively. Thermoelectric characterization revealed that both, electron mobility and thermal conductivity decrease with increasing silicon oxide content. A maximum figure of merit with zT = 0.45 at 950 °C was achieved for samples with a silicon oxide mass fraction of 9.5 and 21.4% while the sample with more than 25% of oxygen clearly indicates a negative impact of the oxygen on the electron mobility.     

Single-layer graphene oxide films on a silicon surface

A method is proposed to produce large-area single-layer graphene oxide films on the surface of semiconductor silicon wafers by precipitation from aqueous suspensions. Graphene oxide is synthesized from natural crystalline graphite during chemical oxidation and represents a wide-gap insulator. Single-layer graphene with a homogeneous-fragment size up to 50 μm can be formed by the reduction of graphene oxide films, and this size is significantly larger than those achieved to date.     

Direct observations of the behavior of single silicon atoms on a metal surface

The behavior of single silicon adatoms on the W {110} plane has been successfully studied for the first time. Single atom diffusion parameters are found to be E_d = 0.70 ± 0.07 eV, and $\text{d}{}_0\text{= 3.08 × 10}{}^{\mathrm{?4}}\text{× 10}{}^{\mathrm{\pm 1.28}}\text{solcm}{}^2\text{s}$. The field desorption behavior of Si atoms is similar to that of metal adatoms. SiSi adatom-adatom interaction shows nonmonotonic distance dependence, but the repulsive region around 3.2 Å is much weaker than those found in metal adatom interactions.     

Interaction of nitrogen dioxide molecules with the surface of silicon nanocrystals in porous silicon layers

The methods of infrared absorption spectroscopy and electron paramagnetic resonance are used for studying the effect of adsorption of NO₂ molecules, which are strong acceptors of electrons, on the electronic and optical properties of silicon nanocrystals in mesoporous silicon layers. It is found that the concentration of free charge carriers (holes) in silicon nanocrystals, which exhibits a nonmonotonic dependence on the NO₂ pressure, sharply increases in the presence of these molecules. At the same time, a monotonic increase in the concentration of dangling silicon bonds (P_b1 centers) is observed. A microscopic model proposed for explaining this effect presumes the formation of donor-acceptor pairs P ₊ ^b1 -(NO₂)^? on the surface of nanocrystals, which ensure an increase in the hole concentration in nanocrystals, as well as P_b1 centers, which are hole-trapping centers. The proposed model successfully explains a substantial increase in photoconductivity (by two or three orders of magnitude) in the layers of porous silicon in the presence of NO₂ molecules; the increment in the concentration of free charge carriers is detected within an order of magnitude of this quantity. The results can be used in designing electronic and luminescence devices based on silicon nanocrystals.     

Surface waves and mode conversion at a surface coated with an elastic heavy layer

A surface wave of frequency lying within bulk band of transverse waves is found in an elastic medium coated with a thin layer endowed with a surface mass density, surface Young's modulus and surface bending modulus. The wave is a particular case of surface resonance with infinite lifetime. In materials with negative Poisson's ratio (auxetics) the wave exists even for coating material with zero bending modulus, whereas with positive Poisson's ratio it requires the surface bending modulus to be larger than the surface Young's modulus. The manifestation of this wave in the reflection coefficient seems promising for fabrication of devices showing monochromator properties.     

Manipulated localized surface plasmon resonances in silver nanoshells coated with a spherical anisotropic layer

<正>The influences of the anisotropy of the outer spherically anisotropic(SA) layer on the far-field spectra and nearfield enhancements of the silver nanoshells are investigated by using a modified Mie scattering theory.It is found that with the increase of the anisotropic value of the SA layer,the dipole resonance wavelength of the silver nanoshell first increases and then decreases,while the local field factor(LFF) reduces.With the decrease of SA layer thickness, the dipole wavelength of the silver nanoshell shows a distinct blue-shift.When the SA layer becomes very thin,the modulations of the anisotropy of the SA layer on the plasmon resonance energy and the near-field enhancement are weakened.We further find that the smaller anisotropic value of the SA layer is helpful for obtaining the larger near-field enhancement in the Ag nanoshell.The geometric average of the dielectric components of the SA layer has a stronger effect on the plasmon resonance energy of the silver nanoshell than on the near-field enhancement.