The role of stoichiometric vacancy periodicity in pressure-induced amorphization of the Ga2SeTe2 semiconductor alloy

We observe that pressure-induced amorphization of Ga2SeTe2 (a III-VI semiconductor) is directly influenced by the periodicity of its intrinsic defect structures. Specimens with periodic and semi-periodic two-dimensional vacancy structures become amorphous around 10-11 GPa in contrast to those with aperiodic structures, which amorphize around 7-8 GPa. The result is a notable instance of altering material phase-change properties via rearrangement of stoichiometric vacancies as opposed to adjusting their concentrations. Based on our experimental findings, we posit that periodic two-dimensional vacancy structures in Ga2SeTe2 provide an energetically preferred crystal lattice that is less prone to collapse under applied pressure. This is corroborated through first-principles electronic structure calculations, which demonstrate that the energy stability of III-VI structures under hydrostatic pressure is highly dependent on the configuration of intrinsic vacancies

Detection of crystalline phase in cross-section multilayer thin film by High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy

High-resolution transmission electron microscopy has proven to be very useful in direct detection of crystalline phases that exist over extremely small volumes, yielding information about structure, orientation, and, under appropriate circumstances, composition. In this paper, we report the detection of a crystalline phase in the tungsten-rich layer of an annealed 7 nm-period tungsten-carbon multilayer produced at the Center for X-Ray Optics at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory.The multilayers were prepared by dc magnetron sputtering at floating temperature. The argon sputter gas pressure was 0.0020 torr. Different techniques were employed to produce cross-section and plan-view samples for TEM. For cross-section samples, 70 bilayers of W and C were sputtered on semiconductor-grade Si (111) wafers. For plan-view samples, the substrates on which the multilayer was grown consisted of 3 mm-diameter 300-mesh copper microscope grids, mounted on glass slide with Crystalbond® vacuum adhesive. After a deposition of 4 bilayers of W-C, keeping the same sputtering parameters as those of the Si substrates to guarantee the same layer thicknesses, the glass slide was soaked in acetone to disolve the Crystalbond®, leaving the multilayer spanning the holes of the copper grids. Both the Si-substrate and copper-grid samples were annealed at 500°C for 4 hours under vacuum of 10−6 torr. The annealed Si-substrate sample was then prepared for cross-section by mechanical grinding, and ion milling in a cold stage at 5kV. The cross-section sample was studied in a JEOL JEM 200CX with ultrahigh resolution goniometer, with the eletron beam parallel to the [112] of the Si substrate. The plan-view sample was studied in a Philips 301 operating at 100kV.</jats:p

Microstructure and Stability Comparison of Nanometer Period W/C, Wc/C, and Ru/C Multilayer Structures

AbstractMultilayer structures of W/C, WC/C, and Ru/C, of various periods were prepared and studied by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. Comparison of the phases in the layered structures is made for as-prepared and annealed samples. Both as-prepared and annealed WC/C multilayers are predominantly amorphous, while the phases in the W/C depend on the periods. The 2 nm period W/C multilayer remains amorphous after annealing, and the longer periods recrystallize to form W2C. The layered microstructures of W/C and WC/C are stable on annealing at all periods, while the amorphous Ru-rich layers in the 2 nm period Ru/C multilayer agglomerate upon annealing to form elemental hexagonal Ru crystallites. Larger period Ru/C multilayers show stable layered structures, and indicate hexagonal Ru in the Ru-rich layers. X-ray measurements show that the multilayer periods expand on annealing for all metal-carbon multilayers studied.</jats:p

In situ TEM Studies of agglomeration of sub-nanometer Ru layers in Ru/C multilayers

Nanometer period Ru/C multilayers are one of the prime candidates for normal incident reflecting mirrors at wavelengths &lt; 10 nm. Superior performance, which requires uniform layers and smooth interfaces, and high stability of the layered structure under thermal loadings are some of the demands in practical applications. Previous studies however show that the Ru layers in the 2 nm period Ru/C multilayer agglomerate upon moderate annealing, and the layered structure is no longer retained. This agglomeration and crystallization of the Ru layers upon annealing to form almost spherical crystallites is a result of the reduction of surface or interfacial energy from die amorphous high energy non-equilibrium state of the as-prepared sample dirough diffusive arrangements of the atoms. Proposed models for mechanism of thin film agglomeration include one analogous to Rayleigh instability, and grain boundary grooving in polycrystalline films. These models however are not necessarily appropriate to explain for the agglomeration in the sub-nanometer amorphous Ru layers in Ru/C multilayers. The Ru-C phase diagram shows a wide miscible gap, which indicates the preference of phase separation between these two materials and provides an additional driving force for agglomeration. In this paper, we study the evolution of the microstructures and layered structure via in-situ Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), and attempt to determine the order of occurence of agglomeration and crystallization in the Ru layers by observing the diffraction patterns.</jats:p

Effects of Microstructure and Interfacial Roughness on Normal Incidence Reflectivity of Ru/C and Ru/B4C Multilayers at 7 nm Wavelength

Recent developments of x-ray multilayers have focused on understanding and controlling the roughness at the interfaces to achieve high reflectance at wavelengths below 10 nm. The structure at the interfaces in generaldepends on the microstructures inside the layers, and on the interactions between the layer materials in multilayers. Studies of the microstructure-interfacial roughness relationship, and their effects on the reflectance performance are hence important in design of the multilayers.</jats:p

Comparison of Microstructure and Thermal Stability of Short Period X-Ray Multilayers

detail studies of x-ray multilayer microstructures and stability are essential to a complete understanding of these nano-scali metastable materials, and may lead to synthesis of multilayers of improved performance. The microstructures and phases inside the layers depend upon the period, and show different behaviors for different materials systems.1,2 Their response to thermal treatment likewise depends on the materials combinations and the period. In this project, the microstructures and their thermal stability of various period W/C, WC/C, Ru/C and Ru/B4C multilayers are investigated by High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM) and x-ray diffraction.</jats:p