Laser ablation of graphite in different buffer gases

The KrF-laser ablation of graphite into 300 Torr of He, Ne, Ar, and Xe has been studied by fast imaging of the plasma emission and post-deposition analyses of collected film deposits. In each case, the soot which was redeposited on the irradiated rod following ablation was highly fullerene-deficient compared to the material collected on the sample disk 1.5 cm from the rod, as determined by laser desorption Fourier Transform Mass Spectrometry (FTMS) Investigation of the plasma plume propagation using fast ICCD photography reveals three main phases to the expansion: (1) forward motion, deceleration and stopping of the leading edge of the plume, (2) an apparent reflected shock within the plume which propagates backward and reflects from the rod surface, (3) coalescence of these two components, resulting in continued expansion and dissipation of the plasma and the appearance of glowing ultrafine particles. For the laser plume propagating in 300 Torr of Xe the characteristic time intervals for these three phases are 0-300 ns, 300-1000 ns, and 1-1000 {mu}s for phases (1), (2), and (3) respectively. The possible explanation of the observed difference in fullerene content is discussed on the basis of different plasma phases resulting in soot deposition on the rod and sample disk. The measurement of ro-vibrational spectra of electronically excited C{sub 2} has been performed. Rotational and vibrational temperatures, T{sub R} = 3000 {+-} 300K and T{sub V} = 6000 {+-} 500K have been obtained from the comparison of measured and calculated C{sub 2} -Swan band emission

Highly doped p-ZnTe films and quantum well structures grown by nonequilibrium pulsed laser ablation

Highly p-doped ZnTe films have been grown on semi-insulating GaAs (001) and unintentionally doped (p-type) GaSb (001) substrates by pulsed KrF (248 nm) excimer laser ablation of a ZnTe target through an N{sub 2} ambient, without the use of any assisting (DC or AC) plasma source. Free hole concentrations in the mid-10{sup 19} cm{sup {minus}3} to > 10{sup 20} cm{sup {minus}3} range have been obtained. This appears to be the first time that any wide band gap (E{sub g} {ge} 2 eV) II-VI compound (or other) semiconductor has been impurity-doped from the gas phase by pulsed-laser ablation (PLA). The maximum carrier concentrations also may be the highest obtained for ZnTe by any method thus far. Because pulsed laser deposition is inherently digital, attractive deposition rates can be combined with precise control of layer thickness in epitaxial multilayered structures. Typical deposition conditions are < 0.5 {angstrom} per laser pulse, with crystalline quality governed by tradeoffs between substrate temperature, pulse repetition rate, and the focused pulsed laser energy density. PLA`s capability for growth of very thin epitaxial layers is being exploited and studied through growth of doped heteroepitaxial quantum well structures in the nearly lattice-matched ZnTe/CdSe//GaSb(substrate) system. Results obtained from growth and characterization of heterostructures in this system will be presented

Growth of Highly Doped P-Type Znte Films by Pulsed Laser ablation in Molecular Nitrogen

Highly p-doped ZnTe films have been grown on semi-insulating GaAs (001) substrates by pulsed-laser ablation (PLA) of a stoichiometric ZnTe target in a high-purity N{sub 2} ambient without the use of any assisting (DC or AC) plasma source. Free hole concentrations in the mid-10{sup 19} cm{sup {minus}3} to > 10{sup 20} cm{sup {minus}3} range were obtained for a range of nitrogen pressures The maximum hole concentration equals the highest hole doping reported to date for any wide band gap II-VI compound. The highest hole mobilities were attained for nitrogen pressures of 50--100 mTorr ({approximately}6.5-13 Pa). Unlike recent experiments in which atomic nitrogen beams, extracted from RF and DC plasma sources, were used to produce p-type doping during molecular beam epitaxy deposition, spectroscopic measurements carried out during PLA of ZnTe in N{sub 2} do not reveal the presence of atomic nitrogen. This suggests that the high hole concentrations in laser ablated ZnTe are produced by a new and different mechanism, possibly energetic beam-induced reactions with excited molecular nitrogen adsorbed on the growing film surface, or transient formation of Zn-N complexes in the energetic ablation plume. This appears to be the first time that any wide band gap (Eg > 2 eV) II-VI compound (or other) semiconductor has been impurity-doped from the gas phase by laser ablation. In combination with the recent discovery that epitaxial ZnSe{sub l-x}S{sub x} films and heterostructures with continuously variable composition can be grown by ablation from a single target of fixed composition, these results appear to open the way to explore PLA growth and doping of compound semiconductors as a possible alternative to molecular beam epitaxy

Recent advances in pulsed-laser deposition of complex-oxides

Pulsed-laser deposition (PLD) is one of the most promising techniques for the formation of complex-oxide heterostructures, superlattices, and well-controlled interfaces. The first part of this paper presents a review of several useful modifications of the process, including methods inspired by combinatorial approaches. We then discuss detailed growth kinetics results, which illustrate that 'true' layer-by-layer (LBL) growth can only be approached, but not fully met, even though many characterization techniques reveal interfaces with unexpected sharpness. Time-resolved surface x-ray diffraction measurements show that crystallization and the majority of interlayer mass transport occur on time scales that are comparable to those of the plume/substrate interaction, providing direct experimental evidence that a growth regime exists in which non-thermal processes dominate PLD. This understanding shows how kinetic growth manipulation can bring PLD closer to ideal LBL than any other growth method available today.Comment: 37 pages, 9 figures. Revie

Nanoscale Science, Engineering and Technology Research Directions

This report describes important future research directions in nanoscale science, engineering and technology. It was prepared in connection with an anticipated national research initiative on nanotechnology for the twenty-first century. The research directions described are not expected to be inclusive but illustrate the wide range of research opportunities and challenges that could be undertaken through the national laboratories and their major national scientific user facilities with the support of universities and industry

Collisional effects of background gases on pulsed laser deposition plasma beams

The penetration of energetic pulsed ablation plumes through ambient gases is experimentally characterized to investigate a general phenomenon believed to be important to film growth by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Under typical PLD conditions involving background gases, the ion flux in the ablation plume is observed to split into distinct fast and slow components over a limited range of distances. The fast component is transmitted with near-initial velocities and high kinetic energies, potentially damaging to growing films at these distances. Formation of the second, significantly-slowed component correlates with the bright contact front formation observed in fast ICCD imaging studies. This general effect is explored in detail for the case of yttrium ablation into argon, a single-element target into an inert gas. Time-resolved optical absorption spectroscopy and optical emission spectroscopy are employed to simultaneously view the populations of both excited and ground states of Y and Y{sup +} for comparison with quantitative intensified-CCD photography of the visible plume luminescence and ion flux measurements made with fast ion probes during this phenomenon. These measurements confirm that, in addition to the bright significantly-slowed front which has been described by shock or drag propagation models, a fast-component of target material is transmitted to extended distances for some ambient pressures with near-initial velocities