The Effects of Kcn Etching on Cu-Rich Epitaxial CuInSe2 Thin Films

1996 ◽  
Vol 426 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Fons ◽  
S. Nikl ◽  
A. Yamada ◽  
M. Nishitanp ◽  
T. Wada ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Surface Region ◽  
Etching Time ◽  
Cation Sublattice ◽  
Epitaxial Thin Films ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Integrated Intensity

AbstractA series of Cu-rich CuInSe2 epitaxial thin films were grown by molecular beam epitaxy on GaAs(001) substrates from elemental sources at a growth temperature of 450 °C. All samples were grown with an excess of Cu. Electron microprobe analysis (EPMA) indicated a Cu/ In ratio of about 2.1–2.6 in the as-grown films. Additionally, the Se/ (In+Cu) ratio was observed to be ∼0.95 indicating that the films were slightly Se poor. These Cu-rich samples were etched in a KCN solution for periods ranging from 30 seconds to 3 minutes. EPMA measurements indicated that the bulk Cu/ In ratio was reduced to ∼0.92 in all films regardless of etching time. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was used to characterize the topology of each sample before and after etching. These measurements indicated that the precipitates present on the as-grown films were removed and large nearly isotropic holes were etched into the sample to a depth of over 1000 Å even for etching times as short as 30 seconds. The samples were also evaluated both before and after etching using a Phillips MRD diffractometer with parallel beam optics and a 18,000 watt Cu rotating anode X-ray source in the chalcopyrite [001], [101], and [112] directions. A peak was observed at ∼15 degrees in the [001] scan after etching consistant with the presence of the ordered vacancy compound, CuIn3Se5. Additionally the integrated intensity ratios of the chalcopyrite (202) reflection to the chalcopyrite (101) reflection ∝(fCu-fIn)2 along the [101] direction indicated the presence of a near-surface region containing cation sublattice disorder that was subsequently removed by the etching process.

scholarly journals The Physicochemical and Antibacterial Properties of Chitosan-Based Materials Modified with Phenolic Acids Irradiated by UVC Light

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (12) ◽  
pp. 6472
Author(s):  
Beata Kaczmarek-Szczepańska ◽  
Marcin Wekwejt ◽  
Olha Mazur ◽  
Lidia Zasada ◽  
Anna Pałubicka ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Antimicrobial Activity ◽  
Ferulic Acid ◽  
Phenolic Acid ◽  
Food Packaging ◽  
Antibacterial Properties ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Before And After

This paper concerns the physicochemical properties of chitosan/phenolic acid thin films irradiated by ultraviolet radiation with wavelengths between 200 and 290 nm (UVC) light. We investigated the preparation and characterization of thin films based on chitosan (CTS) with tannic (TA), caffeic (CA) and ferulic acid (FA) addition as potential food-packaging materials. Such materials were then exposed to the UVC light (254 nm) for 1 and 2 h to perform the sterilization process. Different properties of thin films before and after irradiation were determined by various methods such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), mechanical properties and by the surface free energy determination. Moreover, the antimicrobial activity of the films and their potential to reduce the risk of contamination was assessed. The results showed that the phenolic acid improving properties of chitosan-based films, short UVC radiation may be used as sterilization method for those films, and also that the addition of ferulic acid obtains effective antimicrobial activity, which have great benefit for food packing applications.

Two conductive mechanisms in LaMnO3 thin film: Adiabatic and nonadiabatic small polaronic hopping

2021 ◽  
pp. 2150310
Author(s):  
Weiyuan Wang ◽  
Jiyu Fan ◽  
Huan Zheng ◽  
Jing Wang ◽  
Hao Liu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Theoretical Models ◽  
Magnetic Phase Transitions ◽  
Epitaxial Thin Films ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Epitaxial Relationship ◽  
Reciprocal Space Mapping ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Out Of Plane

We have presented the structural, surface morphology, magnetic and resistivity data for perovskite LaMnO3 epitaxial thin films which are fabricated on well-oriented (001) LaAlO3 substrates by pulsed laser deposition technique. X-ray diffraction [Formula: see text]–[Formula: see text] linear scans and reciprocal space mapping measurement confirm that the out-of-plane and in-plane epitaxial relationship are LMO(001)/LAO(001) and LMO(110)/LAO(110), respectively. Surface roughness determined by atomic force microscopy was no more than 0.3 nm. In the whole studied temperature range, all films only show a paramagnetic behavior instead of any magnetic phase transitions. Correspondingly, the electron transport behaviors always exhibit an insulting state as the temperature changes from high to low. However, we find that none of theoretical models can individually be used to understand their conductive mechanisms. Further studies indicated that charge carries of high and low temperature region obey adiabatic and nonadiabatic small polaronic hopping mechanisms, respectively. This finding offers new ways of exploiting the abnormal ferromagnetism in LaMnO3 multilayer thin films.

scholarly journals Epitaxial Stabilization of Single-Crystal Multiferroic YCrO3 Thin Films

Nanomaterials ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 2085
Author(s):  
Yogesh Sharma ◽  
Elizabeth Skoropata ◽  
Binod Paudel ◽  
Kyeong Tae Kang ◽  
Dmitry Yarotski ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Single Crystal ◽  
Magnetic Transition ◽  
Close Correlation ◽  
Layer By Layer ◽  
Epitaxial Thin Films ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Magnetic Transition Temperature ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force

We report on the growth of stoichiometric, single-crystal YCrO3 epitaxial thin films on (001) SrTiO3 substrates using pulsed laser deposition. X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy reveal that the films grew in a layer-by-layer fashion with excellent crystallinity and atomically smooth surfaces. Magnetization measurements demonstrate that the material is ferromagnetic below 144 K. The temperature dependence of dielectric permittivity shows a characteristic relaxor-ferroelectric behavior at TC = 375–408 K. A dielectric anomaly at the magnetic transition temperature indicates a close correlation between magnetic and electric order parameters in these multiferroic YCrO3 films. These findings provide guidance to synthesize rare-earth, chromite-based multifunctional heterostructures and build a foundation for future studies on the understanding of magnetoelectric effects in similar material systems.

Electrical Characteristics of Schottky Contacts on Ge-Doped 4H-SiC

2014 ◽  
Vol 778-780 ◽  
pp. 706-709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marilena Vivona ◽  
Kassem Al Assaad ◽  
Véronique Soulière ◽  
Filippo Giannazzo ◽  
Fabrizio Roccaforte ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Schottky Barrier ◽  
Schottky Diodes ◽  
Sample Surface ◽  
Schottky Contacts ◽  
Electrical Characteristics ◽  
Conductive Atomic Force Microscopy ◽  
Near Surface ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Before And After

We report on the electrical characteristics of Ni/4H-SiC Schottky contacts fabricated on a Ge-doped 4H-SiC epilayer. The morphology and the current mapping carried out by conductive atomic force microscopy on the epilayer allowed observing nanoscale preferential conductive paths on the sample surface. The electrical characteristics of Ni contacts have been studied before and after a rapid thermal annealing process. A highly inhomogeneous Schottky barrier was observed in as-deposited diodes, probably related to the surface electrical inhomogeneities of the 4H-SiC epilayer. A significant improvement of the Schottky diodes characteristics was achieved after annealing at 700°C, leading to the consumption of the near surface epilayer region by Ni/4H-SiC reaction. After this treatment, the temperature behavior of the ideality factor and Schottky barrier height was comparable to that observed on commercial 4H-SiC material.

scholarly journals Effect of Hydrofluoric Acid Surface Treatments on Surface Roughness and Three-Point Flexural Strength of Suprinity Ceramic

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nazanin Keshmiri ◽  
Homayoon Alaghehmand ◽  
Faraneh Mokhtarpour
Keyword(s):  
Surface Roughness ◽  
Flexural Strength ◽  
Hydrofluoric Acid ◽  
Testing Machine ◽  
Etching Time ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Before And After

Objectives: This study aimed to evaluate the effects of hydrofluoric acid (HF) concentration and etching time on the surface roughness (SR) and three-point flexural strength of Suprinity and to analyze the surface elements before and after etching. Materials and Methods: To measure the SR, 70 specimens of Suprinity (2×4×5mm3) were assigned to seven groups (n=10). Six groups were etched for 20, 60, and 120 seconds with 5% and 10% HF and 7th group was the control group. Specimens were evaluated using atomic force microscopy (AFM). One specimen from each group was used to analyze the surface elements using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). For measuring the three-point flexural strength, 60 specimens were divided into six groups (n=10) and etched as previously described. The flexural strength was measured using a universal testing machine. T-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), and two-way ANOVA were used for statistical analyses (P<0.05). Results: The 10% concentration of HF caused higher SR compared to the 5% HF. The effect of HF concentration on the flexural strength was significantly different in the 20- and 60-second etching groups. Different etching times had no significantly different effect on the SR. With 5% HF, the flexural strength was significantly higher for 20-second etching time than for the etching times of 60 and 120 seconds. With 10% HF, there was a significant difference in flexural strength between etching times of 20 and 120 seconds. The atomic percentage (at%) of silica was enhanced by increasing the etching time. Conclusions: The best surface etching protocol comprises 10% HF used for 20 seconds.

The Effect of Miscut Angle and Miscut Direction of Vicinal (001) SrTiO3 Substrates on The Domain Structure of Epitaxial SrRuO3 Thin Films

1997 ◽  
Vol 474 ◽  
Author(s):  
Q. Gan ◽  
R. A. Rao ◽  
C.B Eom
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Domain Structure ◽  
Epitaxial Thin Films ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Orthorhombic Unit Cell ◽  
Metallic Oxide ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Step Flow Growth ◽  
Miscut Angle

ABSTRACTWe have grown epitaxial thin films of isotropie metallic oxide SrRuC>3 on both exact and vicinal (001) SrTiO3 substrates with miscut angle (α) up to 5.0° and miscut direction (β) up to 37° away from the in-plane [010] axis. The effects of both α and β on the epitaxial growth and domain structure of epitaxial SrRuC>3 thin films were studied by x-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy (AFM). On vicinal SrTiO3 substrates with a large miscut angle (α = 1.7°, 2.0°, 4.1°, and 5.0°) and miscut direction close to the [010] axis, single crystal epitaxial (110)° SrRuO3 thin films were obtained. [The superscript o refers to the Miller indices based on the orthorhombic unit cell.] Decreasing the substrate miscut angle or aligning the miscut direction close to the [110] axis (β = 45°) resulted in an increase of 90° domains in the plane. The films grown on vicinal substrates displayed a significant improvement in crystalline quality and in-plane epitaxial alignment as compared to the films grown on exact (001) SrTiO3 substrates. AFM revealed that as the miscut angle increased the growth mechanism changed from two dimensional nucleation to step flow growth.

scholarly journals Chemical bath deposition of textured and compact zinc oxide thin films on vinyl-terminated polystyrene brushes

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 ◽  
pp. 102-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nina J Blumenstein ◽  
Caroline G Hofmeister ◽  
Peter Lindemann ◽  
Cheng Huang ◽  
Johannes Baier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Film Growth ◽  
Polymer Brush ◽  
Oriented Attachment ◽  
Zno Films ◽  
Island Growth ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Angle Measurements ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Before And After

In this study we investigated the influence of an organic polystyrene brush on the deposition of ZnO thin films under moderate conditions. On a non-modified SiO x surface, island growth is observed, whereas the polymer brush induces homogeneous film growth. A chemical modification of the polystyrene brushes during the mineralization process occurs, which enables stronger interaction between the then polar template and polar ZnO crystallites in solution. This may lead to oriented attachment of the crystallites so that the observed (002) texture arises. Characterization of the templates and the resulting ZnO films were performed with ζ-potential and contact angle measurements as well as scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Infrared spectroscopy (IR) measurements were used to investigate the polystyrene brushes before and after modification.

scholarly journals Highly c-axis Oriented ZnO Thin Films by Sol-gel Method

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Taner Kutlu ◽  
Necdet H. Erdogan ◽  
Nazmi Sedefoglu ◽  
Hamide Kavak
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Annealing Temperature ◽  
Optical Measurement ◽  
Sol Gel ◽  
Zno Films ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Coating Method

Abstract This study reports the effect of annealing temperature on the structural, morphological, and optical properties of ZnO (Zinc Oxide) thin films deposited on a glass substrate by the sol-gel spin coating method. Those properties of ZnO were examined with UV-Vis, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), and X-ray diffraction (XRD), before and after annealing. XRD results revealed that all the samples had a highly c-axis oriented wurtzite structure. A 1 (LO) mode in Raman spectra also confirmed the highly oriented ZnO films. Optical measurement indicated that transmittance of the films was above %85, and the optical band gap slightly decreased with the increasing annealing temperature from 350 to 550 °C. Morphological analysis displayed that increasing annealing temperature improved surface morphology and enlarged the grain size from 2-3 nm for as-deposited samples to 150 nm for annealed at 550 °C.

Structural and Surface Morphology Changes in CuInSe2 Thin Films as a Function of Cu/In Ratio

1996 ◽  
Vol 441 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Fons ◽  
S. Niki ◽  
A. Yamada ◽  
D. J. Tweet
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Molecular Beam ◽  
Morphological Changes ◽  
Epitaxial Thin Films ◽  
X Ray Diffraction ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
The Ideal

AbstractDue to its high near bandedge absorption, CuInSe2 is considered to be one of the most promising solar cell materials. As CuInSe2 films are usually grown by metastable processes, the Cu/In ratio often deviates from the ideal ratio of unity. To investigate the structural and morphological changes induced by such stoichiometric variations we have grown a series of epitaxial CuInSe2 epitaxial thin films with varying Cu/In ratios by molecular beam epitaxy on GaAs(001) substrates from elemental sources at a growth temperature of 450° C. Overall structural, microstructural and surface morphological changes were observed by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy, respectively. It was observed that as films deviated from stoichiometry, twinning occurred preferentially on the anion {1 · 1 · 2} planes.

Atomic Force Microscopy Characterization of ZnTe Epitaxial Thin Films

2003 ◽  
Vol 42 (Part 1, No. 7B) ◽  
pp. 4706-4709 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petr Klapetek ◽  
Ivan Ohlídal ◽  
Alberto Montaigne-Ramil ◽  
Alberta Bonanni ◽  
David Stifter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Thin Films ◽  
Atomic Force Microscopy ◽  
Epitaxial Thin Films ◽  
Force Microscopy ◽  
Atomic Force ◽  
Microscopy Characterization ◽  
Atomic Force Microscopy Characterization
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document