Interface effects in spin-polarized metal/insulator layered structures

Recent advances in thin-film deposition techniques, such as molecular beam epitaxy and pulsed laser deposition, have allowed for the manufacture of heterostructures with nearly atomically abrupt interfaces. Although the bulk properties of the individual heterostructure components may be well-known, often the heterostructures exhibit novel and sometimes unexpected properties due to interface effects. At heterostructure interfaces, lattice structure, stoichiometry, interface electronic structure (bonding, interface states, etc.), and symmetry all conspire to produce behavior different from the bulk constituents. This review discusses why knowledge of the electronic structure and composition at the interfaces is pivotal to the understanding of the properties of heterostructures, particularly the (spin polarized) electronic transport in (magnetic) tunnel junctions.     

Robust half-metallicity at the zincblende CrTe(0 0 1) surfaces and its interface with ZnTe(0 0 1)

All electron full potential calculations based on spin density functional theory are performed to study cubic zincblende (ZB) and hexagonal NiAs structures of bulk CrTe, free (0 0 1) surfaces of ZB CrTe, and interface of ZB CrTe with ZnTe(0 0 1). The ferromagnetic NiAs structure is reported to be about 0.26 eV more stable than the ferromagnetic ZB phase while ZB CrTe is found to be a half-metallic ferromagnet with a half-metallic gap of about 2.90 eV. Thermodynamic stability of CrTe(0 0 1) surfaces are studied in the framework of ab-initio thermodynamic. The obtained phase diagram evidences more stability of the Te terminated surface compared with the Cr termination. We discuss that both Te and Cr ideal terminations of CrTe(0 0 1) retain bulk-like half-metallic property but with a reduced half-metallic gap compared with bulk value. The structural, electronic, magnetic, and band alignment properties of the ZB CrTe/ZnTe(0 0 1) interface are computed and a rather large minority valence band offset of about 1.09 eV is observed in this heterojunction.     

Interaction of bathocuproine with metals (Ca, Mg, Al, Ag, and Au) studied by density functional theory

Electronic structure of the interface between a bathocuproine (BCP) molecule and metal surface was studied by density functional theory. The bond energy of BCP with metal surface increased with decreasing work function of metals, that is, Au, Ag, Al, Mg, and Ca in this order. The charge transfer also increased with decreasing metal work function. It was analyzed that the Fermi level and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital of BCP are composed of both BCP and metal orbital component, and electron transport properties across the BCP and metal is discussed based on these analyses.     

Studies on adhesion characteristics and corrosion behaviour of vinyltriethoxysilane/epoxy coating protective system on aluminium

The corrosion stability of vinyltriethoxysilane/epoxy coating protective system on aluminium is strongly related to the strength of bonds forming at the metal/organic coating interface. This article is a study of adhesion, composition, electrochemical and transport properties of epoxy coatings electrodeposited on bare aluminium and aluminium pretreated by vinyltriethoxysilane (VTES) during exposure to 3% NaCl. The VTES film was deposited on aluminium surface from 2% vinyltriethoxysilane solution during 30 s. From the values of adhesion strength (pull-off test), time dependence of pore resistance and coating capacitance of epoxy coating (impedance measurements) and diffusion coefficient of water through epoxy coating (gravimetric liquid sorption measurements), the influence of VTES sublayer on the corrosion stability of the electrodeposited epoxy coating was shown.The work discusses the role of the VTES pretreatment in the enhanced adhesion and corrosion stability of epoxy cataphoretic coating. The electrochemical results showed that the aluminium pretreatment by VTES film improved barrier properties of epoxy coating (greater pore resistance and lower coating capacitance). The lower value of diffusion coefficient of water through epoxy coating indicates the lower porosity, while the smaller adhesion reduction points to better adhesion of epoxy coating on aluminium pretreated by VTES film. The composition of the deposited coatings investigated by XPS enabled the clarification of the bonding mechanism.     

有机铁磁界面自旋极化接触构型效应

基于第一性原理,研究了三种不同的接触构型垂直吸附在镍表面的苯双硫分子的界面自旋极化.结果表明界面自旋极化强烈依赖于接触构型,接触构型的变化可使自旋极化由正值变为负值.通过分析投影态密度,发现界面处镍原子的3d轨道与硫原子的sp³杂化轨道发生了轨道杂化.模拟机械可控断裂结实验中的界面吸附构型,根据计算的界面自旋极化,利用Julliere模型得到磁电阻约为27%,与实验测量结果较为符合.     

Growth velocity and the topography of Ni-Zn binary alloy electrodeposits

We show that the electrodeposition of Ni-Zn alloys at the lowest growth velocities, v < 0.5μm/s, exclusively proceeds from an abnormal co-deposition phenomenon. The growth process in this v region greatly depends on the initial [Co²⁺] concentration of the film deposition bath. A theoretical approach of this process including the role of the saturation surface roughness of the alloy, , leads to an estimation of the transport properties of the ad-atoms involved during the deposit formation. Their surface diffusion coefficient varying between 1.76×10^-10 and 2.40×10^-8 cm^-2/s exhibits a minimal value, D _s = 2.10×10^-10 cm^-2/s located between v = 0.17 and 0.35μm/s. The spatial scaling analysis of the local roughness, σ, examined according to the power-law σ≈L ^α reveals that the resulting roughness exponents concurs with the Kardar-Parisi-Zhang dynamics including the restricted surface diffusion. Two main v regions leads to different fractal textural features of the alloy film surface. Below 0.10 μm/s, the roughness exponent obtained is α≈ 0.6, depicting a limited ad-atom mobility. Over v = 0.30μm/s, this exponent stabilises at α≈ 0.82, indicating an increase of the surface diffusion. Received 16 August 2000 and Received in final form 20 June 2001     

Dielectric loss and electromagnetic absorption performance study of 1T/2H-MoS2/Mo2S3 nanocomposites with different ratios

High dielectric loss materials have an important application in electromagnetic (EM) absorption fields. In this paper, the ternary nanocomposites: 1T/2H-MoS₂/Mo₂S₃ with heterogeneous interfaces are synthesized by hydrothermal method. XRD, XPS, FTIR, SEM, and TEM measurements are applied to study the structure, morphology, and composition. The frequency spectra of complex permittivity (ε_r-f) are measured in 2–18 GHz by vector network analyzer. The results show that the nanocomposites have higher dielectric loss angle tangents than the reported 2H-MoS₂ absorbers. Based on the ε_r-f spectra, the reflection loss-frequency curves ($RL-f$) are simulated at given thicknesses. An effective absorption bandwidth of 5.2 GHz (12.8–18 GHz) and a $RL$ peak of −29.49 dB are achieved in a thin thickness of 1.62 mm, which are comparable to the reported 2H-MoS₂ absorbers with complex composition, showing that the 1T/2H-MoS₂/Mo₂S₃ nanocomposites have great application potential as an EM wave absorber in the K_u band.     

On the role of the interface charge in non-ideal metal–semiconductor contacts

The bias dependent interface charge is considered as the origin of the observed non-ideality in current–voltage and capacitance–voltage characteristics. Using the simplified model for the interface electronic structure based on defects interacting with the continuum of interface states, the microscopic origin of empirical parameters describing the bias dependent interface charge function is investigated. The results show that in non-ideal metal–semiconductor contacts the interface charge function depends on the interface disorder parameter, density of defects, barrier pinning parameter and the effective gap center. The theoretical predictions are tested against several sets of published experimental data on bias dependent ideality factor and excess capacitance in various metal–semicoductor systems.     

Characterization of the surface of positive electrodes for Li-ion batteries using 7Li MAS NMR

The growth and evolution of the interphase, due to contact with the ambient atmosphere or electrolyte, are followed using ⁷Li magic-angle spinning nuclear magnetic resonance (MAS NMR) in the case of two materials amongst the most promising candidates for positive electrodes for lithium batteries: LiFePO₄ and LiMn_0.5Ni_0.5O₂. The use of appropriate experimental conditions to acquire the NMR signal allows observing only the «diamagnetic» lithium species at the surface of the grains of active material. The reaction of LiMn_0.5Ni_0.5O₂ with the ambient atmosphere or LiPF₆ (1 M in Ethylene Carbonated/DiMéthyl Carbonate (EC/DMC)) electrolyte is extremely fast and leads to an important amount of lithium-containing diamagnetic species compared to what can be observed in the case of LiFePO₄. The two studied materials display a completely different surface chemistry in terms of reactivity and/or kinetics of the surface towards electrolyte. Moreover, these results show that MAS NMR is a very promising tool to monitor phenomena taking place at the interface between electrode and electrolyte.     

浅海波导界面对点源振速方向的影响

采用“虚源法”分析计算了浅海波导环境中接收点处点源总振速方向与水平面夹角,侧重讨论确定性界面反射对总振速方向的影响。研究结果表明：总振速方向和接收点与声源的水平距离、两者深度,海底、海面特性以及声速剖面等有关。在等声速均匀浅海波导中,由于确定性界面反射的影响,当直达声掠射角为1°～50°时,合成总振速方向偏离直达声方向达1.5°～10.5°,声速剖面呈负梯度时,偏离程度更甚.