Abrupt GaP/Si hetero-interface using bistepped Si buffer

We evidence the influence of the quality of the starting Si surface on the III-V/Si interface abruptness and on the formation of defects during the growth of III-V/Si heterogeneous crystal, using high resolution transmission electron microscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy. GaP layers were grown by molecular beam epitaxy on vicinal Si (001). The strong effect of the Si substrate chemical preparation is first demonstrated by studying structural properties of both Si homoepitaxial layer and GaP/Si heterostructure. It is then shown that choosing adequate chemical preparation conditions and subsequent III-V regrowth conditions enables the quasi-suppression of micro-twins in the epilayer. Finally, the abruptness of GaP/Si interface is found to be very sensitive to the Si chemical preparation and is improved by the use of a bistepped Si buffer prior to III-V overgrowth

Compared efficacy of preservation solutions in liver transplantation: A long-term graft outcome study from the european liver transplant registry

International audienceBetween 2003 and 2012, 42 869 first liver transplantations performed in Europe with the use of either University of Wisconsin solution (UW; N = 24 562), histidine-tryptophan-ketoglutarate(HTK; N = 8696), Celsior solution (CE; N = 7756) or Institute Georges Lopez preservation solution (IGL-1; N = 1855) preserved grafts. Alternative solutions to the UW were increasingly used during the last decade. Overall, 3-year graft survival was higher with UW, IGL-1 and CE (75%, 75% and 73%, respectively), compared to the HTK (69%) (p 12 h or grafts used for patients with cancer (p < 0.0001). For partial grafts, 3-year graft survival was 89% for IGL-1, 67% for UW, 68% for CE and 64% for HTK (p = 0.009). Multivariate analysis identified HTK as an independent factor of graft loss, with recipient HIV (+), donor age ≥65 years, recipient HCV (+), main disease acute hepatic failure, use of a partial liver graft, recipient age ≥60 years, no identical ABO compatibility, recipient hepatitis B surface antigen (-), TIT ≥ 12 h, male recipient and main disease other than cirrhosis. HTK appears to be an independent risk factor of graft loss. Both UW and IGL-1, and CE to a lesser extent, provides similar results for full size grafts. For partial deceased donor liver grafts, IGL-1 tends to offer the best graft outcome

Structural and morphological evolution of Co on faceted Pt/W(111) surface upon thermal annealing

International audienceThe structural and morphological changes of a 1.1 monolayer (ML) Pt deposit on W(1 1 1) have been investigated in situ, in ultra-high vacuum, as a function of the annealing temperature from 700 to 1340 K, by a combination of grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and grazing incidence small-angle X-ray scattering. Before annealing, the thin Pt layer is two-dimensional and lattice-matched to the W(1 1 1) surface. The faceting of Pt/W(1 1 1) towards nanoscale three-sided pyramids with {2 1 1} facets has been detected from 715 K. At this stage, the pyramids, which have a 5-nm average lateral size, cover nearly perfectly the surface. At higher temperatures, they increase in size. The role of the edge energy in the nanofaceting process is discussed. In addition, 4 MLs Co are deposited at room temperature on the smallest Pt/W pyramids. The obtained three-dimensional Co islands are correlated with the Pt/W nanopyramids and Co is relaxed on Pt/W. At approximately 800 K, a CoPt alloy is formed and becomes better ordered as the annealing temperature increases. At 1100 K, both defaceting and phase separation begin; the CoPt alloy segregates on the W(1 1 1) flat surface, while Co forms an epitaxial layer on the {2 1 1} facets. In addition, in the temperature range of 1100–1200 K, a great majority of {2 1 1} large facets coexist with some {1 1 0} small facets. Finally, the surface becomes flat again at 1250 K

Self-Organized Growth of Nanoparticles on a Surface Patterned by a Buried Dislocation Network

International audienceThe self-organized growth of Co nanoparticles is achieved at room temperature on an inhomogenously strained Ag(001) surface arising from an underlying square misfit dislocation network of 10 nm periodicity buried at the interface between a 5 nm-thick Ag film and a MgO(001) substrate. This is revealed by in situ grazing-incidence small-angle x-ray scattering. Simulations of the data performed in the distorted wave Born approximation framework demonstrate that the Co clusters grow above the dislocation crossing lines. This is confirmed by molecular dynamic simulations indicating preferential Co adsorption on tensile sites

Nitrogen-related intermediate band in P-rich GaNxPyAs1−x−y alloys

Abstract The electronic band structure of phosphorus-rich GaNxPyAs1−x−y alloys (x ~ 0.025 and y ≥ 0.6) is studied experimentally using optical absorption, photomodulated transmission, contactless electroreflectance, and photoluminescence. It is shown that incorporation of a few percent of N atoms has a drastic effect on the electronic structure of the alloys. The change of the electronic band structure is very well described by the band anticrossing (BAC) model in which localized nitrogen states interact with the extended states of the conduction band of GaAsP host. The BAC interaction results in the formation of a narrow intermediate band (E− band in BAC model) with the minimum at the Γ point of the Brillouin zone resulting in a change of the nature of the fundamental band gap from indirect to direct. The splitting of the conduction band by the BAC interaction is further confirmed by a direct observation of the optical transitions to the E+ band using contactless electroreflectance spectroscopy

Nitrogen-related intermediate band in P-rich GaNxPyAs1-x-y alloys.

The electronic band structure of phosphorus-rich GaNxPyAs1-x-y alloys (x ~ 0.025 and y ≥ 0.6) is studied experimentally using optical absorption, photomodulated transmission, contactless electroreflectance, and photoluminescence. It is shown that incorporation of a few percent of N atoms has a drastic effect on the electronic structure of the alloys. The change of the electronic band structure is very well described by the band anticrossing (BAC) model in which localized nitrogen states interact with the extended states of the conduction band of GaAsP host. The BAC interaction results in the formation of a narrow intermediate band (E- band in BAC model) with the minimum at the Γ point of the Brillouin zone resulting in a change of the nature of the fundamental band gap from indirect to direct. The splitting of the conduction band by the BAC interaction is further confirmed by a direct observation of the optical transitions to the E+ band using contactless electroreflectance spectroscopy

Coherent

Frozen-in phason fluctuations in single grains of icosahedral \chem{Al}-\chem{Pd}-\chem{Mn} quasicrystals have been studied by high-resolution coherent X-ray scattering. Bragg peak widths scale as expected for a distribution of uniform phason strains. Strong relaxation of the uniform phason strain is observed after sample annealing. Large intensity fluctuations or speckle patterns are observed in the Bragg peaks due to the uniform phason strain distribution in the sample. Speckle patterns are also observed in the diffuse scattering located close to the Bragg reflections and are related to long-wavelength phason fluctuations taking place in the sample

Elastic Constants, Optical Phonons, and Molecular Relaxations in the High Temperature Plastic Phase of the CH3NH3PbBr3 Hybrid Perovskite.

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