Defectos superficiales en Au (001) generados mediante bombardeo iónico y nanoindentación

Tesis de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias Físicas, leída el 21-05-2002Hemos estudiado los defectos superficiales en Au(001) 5x20 generados mediante dos diferentes técnicas experimentales: bombardeo iónico de baja energía y nanoindentación. Hemos analizado estos defectos con microscopía de efecto túnel (STM). Los experimentos de bombardeo de iones Ar+ con energía E=600 eV revelan que los defectos producidos a muy bajas dosis son dipolos de dislocación bidimensionales. Se forman mediante la difusión anisótropa y agregación de las vacantes generadas por cada uno de los impactos iónicos. A dosis media observamos transformaciones estructurales en la reconstrucción, que puede rotar o desaparecer. Finalmente, a altas dosis, observamos una superficie nanoestructurada, con cráteres formando un red que puede llegar a tener un cierto orden a corto alcance. Respecto a los defectos producidos por nanoindentación identificamos los mecanismos incipientes de deformación plástica en una superficie fcc (001). Por un lado, se emiten dislocaciones helicoidales que mediante deslizamiento dan lugar a terrazas alrededor del punto de indentación. Por otro lado, observados y caracterizamos la emisión, hasta distancias del orden de cientos de angstroms, de semilazos de dislocación disociados emergentes, que son fruto del desplazamiento plástico expulsado a lo largo de un sistema de deslizamiento principal del cristalDepto. de Estructura de la Materia, Física Térmica y ElectrónicaFac. de Ciencias FísicasTRUEpu

Diseño e implementación de un laboratorio virtual para el estudio de "Defectos puntuales en cristales iónicos"

El programa: Diseño e implementación de un laboratorio virtual para el estudio de "Defectos puntuales en cristales iónicos" enseña de forma interactiva las reglas de balance necesarias para escribir las ecuaciones de defectos en los cristales iónicos, usando la notación de Kröger-Vink para los defectos puntuales

Magnetism in nanometer-thick magnetite

The oldest known magnetic material, magnetite, is of current interest for use in spintronics as a thin film. An open question is how thin can magnetite films be and still retain the robust ferrimagnetism required for many applications. We have grown 1-nm-thick magnetite crystals and characterized them in situ by electron and photoelectron microscopies including selected-area x-ray circular dichroism. Well-defined magnetic patterns are observed in individual nanocrystals up to at least 520 K, establishing the retention of ferrimagnetism in magnetite two unit cells thick

Epsilon iron oxide: Origin of the high coercivity stable low Curie temperature magnetic phase found in heated archeological materials

The identification of epsilon iron oxide (-Fe2O3) as the low Curie temperature high coercivity stable phase (HCSLT) carrying the remanence in heated archeological samples has been achieved in samples from two archeological sites that exhibited the clearest evidence of the presence of the HCSLT. This uncommon iron oxide has been detected by Confocal Raman Spectroscopy (CRS) and characterized by rock magnetic measurements. Large numbers of -Fe2O3 microaggregates (in CO) or isolated clusters (in HEL) could be recognized, distributed over the whole sample, and embedded within the ceramic matrix, along with hematite and pseudobrookite and with minor amounts of anatase, rutile, and maghemite. Curie temperature estimates of around 170 degrees C for CO and 190 degrees C for HEL are lower than for pure, synthetic -Fe2O3 (227 degrees C). This, together with structural differences between the Raman spectra of the archeologically derived and synthetic samples, is likely due to Ti substitution in the -Fe2O3 crystal lattice. The -Fe2O3--Fe2O3--Fe2O3 transformation series has been recognized in heated archeological samples, which may have implications in terms of their thermal history and in the factors that govern the formation of -Fe2O3

Formation of a magnetite/hematite epitaxial bilayer generated with low energy ion bombardment

We have used a low-energy ion bombardment to fabricate an epitaxial single-crystalline magnetite/hematite bilayer grown on Au(111). This non-conventional fabrication method involves the transformation of the upper layers of a single-crystalline hematite thin film to single-crystalline magnetite, a process driven by the preferential sputtering of oxygen atoms and favoured by the good structural matching of both phases. We show the reversibility of the transformation between hematite and magnetite, always keeping the epitaxial and single- crystalline character of the films. The magnetic characterization of the bilayer grown using this method shows that the magnetic response is mainly determined by the magnetite thin film, exhibiting a high coercivity. Published by AIP Publishing

Ag-AgO nanostructures on glass substrates by solid-state dewetting: From extended to localized surface plasmons

We present here a study on the modification of morphological and plasmonic properties of Ag thin films deposited on glass substrates upon annealing in air at different temperatures. Initially, Ag films are continuous and exhibit extended surface plasmons with a resonant absorbance that depends on the film thickness. The dewetting process promotes the formation of nanoparticles with different sizes, shapes, and agglomerations states, besides a partial oxidation from Ag to AgO at surface level. The final Ag-AgO nanostructures are dependent on the annealing temperature and initial film thickness. The optical properties evolve from those typical of metallic films with high reflectivity and extended surface plasmon resonance toward localized surface plasmons characteristic of nanoparticles. The optical evolution and the final plasmonic response are evaluated according to the morphological and structural features of nanostructures. Published by AIP Publishing

A Physical optics simulator for multireflector THz imaging systems

This article presents a physical optics-based simulator for the analysis of terahertz (THz) imaging systems. The simulation starts by calculating the electromagnetic interactions inside the multireflector system and the incident field that the focusing system creates on the target under inspection. In a second step, the electric field that the modeled target scatters back to the system receiver, is also calculated. This allows to predict the imaging behavior of the system for different targets before manufacturing. The simulator results are validated by using measurements from an existing 300-GHz standoff imaging system. This contribution aims to help in the development of better imaging systems for security applications in the near future.Atlantic Research Center for Information and Communication TechnologiesMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. TEC2015-65353-RMinisterio de Economía y Competitividad | Ref. TEC2015-73908-JINAgencia Estatal de Investigación | Ref. TEC2017-87061-C3-1-RXunta de Galicia | Ref. GRC2015/01

A combined micro-Raman, X-ray absorption and magnetic study to follow the glycerol-assisted growth of epsilon-iron oxide sol-gel coatings

[EN] Epsilon iron oxide (ε-FeO) coatings on Si(100) substrates are obtained by an easy one-pot sol-gel recipe assisted by glycerol in an acid medium. Glycerol, given its small dimensions, enables the formation of ε-FeO nanoparticles with a size of a few nanometers and the highest purity is reached in coatings after a densification treatment at 960 °C. The structural and compositional evolution up to 1200 °C is studied by confocal Raman microscopy and X-ray absorption spectroscopy techniques, correlating the existing magnetic properties. We report a novel characterization method, which allows monitoring the evolution of the precursor micelles as well as the intermediate and final phases formed. Furthermore, the inherent industrial technology transfer of the sol-gel process is also demonstrated with the ε-FeO polymorph, impelling its application in the coatings form.This work has been supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MCINN, Spain) through the projects PIE: 2021-60-E-030, PIE: 2010-6-OE-013, PID2019-104717RB-I00 (2020–2022), MAT2017-86540-C4-1-R, RTI2018-095856-B-C21 (2019–2021), RTI2018-097895-B-C43 and RTI2018-095303-A-C52. The authors are grateful to The ESRF (France), MCINN and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC, Spain) for the provision of synchrotron radiation facilities and to the BM25-SpLine Staff for their valuable help. A.S.and A.M.-N acknowledge financial support from Comunidad de Madrid (Spain) for an “Atracción de Talento Investigador” Contract 2017-t2/IND5395 and 2018-T1/IND-10360, respectivel

In Vivo Near-Infrared Imaging Using Ternary Selenide Semiconductor Nanoparticles with an Uncommon Crystal Structure

The implementation of in vivo fluorescence imaging as a reliable diagnostic imaging modality at the clinical level is still far from reality. Plenty of work remains ahead to provide medical practitioners with solid proof of the potential advantages of this imaging technique. To do so, one of the key objectives is to better the optical performance of dedicated contrast agents, thus improving the resolution and penetration depth achievable. This direction is followed here and the use of a novel AgInSe2 nanoparticle-based contrast agent (nanocapsule) is reported for fluorescence imaging. The use of an Ag2Se seeds-mediated synthesis method allows stabilizing an uncommon orthorhombic crystal structure, which endows the material with emission in the second biological window (1000–1400 nm), where deeper penetration in tissues is achieved. The nanocapsules, obtained via phospholipid-assisted encapsulation of the AgInSe2 nanoparticles, comply with the mandatory requisites for an imaging contrast agent—colloidal stability and negligible toxicity—and show superior brightness compared with widely used Ag2S nanoparticles. Imaging experiments point to the great potential of the novel AgInSe2-based nanocapsules for high-resolution, whole-body in vivo imaging. Their extended permanence time within blood vessels make them especially suitable for prolonged imaging of the cardiovascular system