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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 289 records · Page 16
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2015

Horizontal molecular orientation in solution-processed organic light-emitting diodes

Horizontal orientation of the emission transition dipole moments achieved in glassy vapor-deposited organic thin films leads to an enhancement of the light out-coupling efficiency in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Here, our combined study of variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry and angle dependent photoluminescence demonstrates that such a horizontal orientation can be achieved in glassy spin-coated organic films based on a composite blend of a heptafluorene derivative as a dopant and a 4,4′-bis(N-carbazolyl)-1,1′-biphenyl as a host. Solution-processed fluorescent OLEDs with horizontally oriented heptafluorene emitters were then fabricated and emitted deep blue electroluminescence with an external quantum efficiency as high as 5.3%.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Structural properties and dielectric function of graphene grown by high-temperature sublimation on 4H-SiC(000-1)

Understanding and controlling growth of graphene on the carbon face (C-face) of SiC presents a significant challenge. In this work, we study the structural, vibrational, and dielectric function properties of graphene grown on the C-face of 4H-SiC by high-temperature sublimation in an argon atmosphere. The effect of growth temperature on the graphene number of layers and crystallite size is investigated and discussed in relation to graphene coverage and thickness homogeneity. An amorphous carbon layer at the interface between SiC and the graphene is identified, and its evolution with growth temperature is established. Atomic force microscopy, micro-Raman scattering spectroscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometry, and high-resolution cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy are combined to determine and correlate thickness, stacking order, dielectric function, and interface properties of graphene. The role of surface defects and growth temperature on the graphene growth mechanism and stacking is discussed, and a conclusion about the critical factors to achieve decoupled graphene layers is drawn.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Synthesis, characterization and properties of yellow-light-emitting polyethers containing bis(styryl)anthracene units

Aromatic aliphatic polyethers containing bis(styryl)anthracene units in the main chain separated by flexible spacer of 11 (AND52) or 12 (AND53) methylene units, were synthesized and characterized aiming to be applied as emitting materials in polymer light emitting diode (PLED) devices. The polymers are soluble in common organic solvents and have average molecular weight of about 15kDa. Differentiations owing to an odd-even number of methylene units (χ=11 vs χ=12) are observed in their optical properties in solid state. Thin films as well as PLED devices were fabricated via conventional spin-coating process. Initially, various parameters have been investigated concerning the solubility of the polymers, the effect of film thickness on the electrical properties, and their thermal stability. The optical properties of the two polymers were investigated by NIR-Vis-far UV spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). The accurate determination of the thickness and the optical constants (refractive index and dielectric function as a function of wavelength) were derived. These provide substantial insights into the final design of the optimum final multi-layer structure of the PLEDs, if we take into account that the external quantum efficiency (EQE) of electroluminescence (EL) strongly depends on the optical interference of the beams of emitted light that have been multiply reflected from the layer interfaces. The morphological characterization of the AND52 and AND53 polymeric thin films was carried out using atomic force microscopy (AFM), while current density-voltage (J-V) characteristics of the devices were studied by electrical measurements. The single PLED devices were switched on at relatively low operation voltages, showing the potential as backplanes for active matrix PLED applications. In this perspective, it can be assumed that further studies of the presented materials will enable the development of flexible PLEDs with the possibility to scale up their dimensions for bigger active area devices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

In-situ ellipsometric characterization of the growth of porous anisotropic nanocrystalline ZnO layers

ZnO films have increasingly been in the spotlight due to their largely varied electro-physical and optical properties. For several applications, porous anisotropic nanocrystalline layers are especially interesting. To study the growth kinetics of such films during different fabrication processes, a powerful non-destructive in-situ technique is required. In this work, both ex-situ and in-situ spectroscopic ellipsometry are used along with advanced modelling techniques that are able to take both the anisotropy and the porosity of the films into account. Scanning electron microscopy, along with nitrogen absorption methods for measuring porosity, validated the ellipsometric data and proposed model. The film, grown by chemical bath deposition, was monitored from around 700 to 1800 nm in thickness. This same principle can now be used to monitor any other porous and/or anisotropic structure in an effective in-situ manner, e.g., growth of porous anodic aluminium oxides, nano-porous silica films, etc.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Thermal stability of vapor-deposited stable glasses of an organic semiconductor

Vapor-deposited organic glasses can show enhanced kinetic stability relative to liquid-cooled glasses. When such stable glasses of model glassformers are annealed above the glass transition temperature T{sub g}, they lose their thermal stability and transform into the supercooled liquid via constant velocity propagating fronts. In this work, we show that vapor-deposited glasses of an organic semiconductor, N,N′-bis(3-methylphenyl)-N,N′-diphenylbenzidine (TPD), also transform via propagating fronts. Using spectroscopic ellipsometry and a new high-throughput annealing protocol, we measure transformation front velocities for TPD glasses prepared with substrate temperatures (T{sub Substrate}) from 0.63 to 0.96 T{sub g}, at many different annealing temperatures. We observe that the front velocity varies by over an order of magnitude with T{sub Substrate}, while the activation energy remains constant. Using dielectric spectroscopy, we measure the structural relaxation time of supercooled TPD. We find that the mobility of the liquid and the structure of the glass are independent factors in controlling the thermal stability of TPD films. In comparison to model glassformers, the transformation fronts of TPD have similar velocities and a similar dependence on T{sub Substrate}, suggesting universal behavior. These results may aid in designing active layers in organic electronic devices with improved thermal stability.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2015

Nanocrystalline zinc ferrite films studied by magneto-optical spectroscopy

Ferrimagnetic Zn-ferrite (ZnFe{sub 2}O{sub 4}) films can be grown with the ferromagnetic resonance linewidth of 40 Oe at 9.5 GHz without going through a high temperature processing. This presents interest for applications. The work deals with laser ablated ZnFe{sub 2}O{sub 4} films deposited at O{sub 2} pressure of 0.16 mbar onto fused quartz substrates. The films about 120 nm thick are nanocrystalline and their spontaneous magnetization, 4πM{sub s}, depends on the nanograin size, which is controlled by the substrate temperature (T{sub s}). At T{sub s} ≈ 350 °C, where the grain distribution peaks around ∼20–30 nm, the room temperature 4πM{sub s} reaches a maximum of ∼2.3 kG. The films were studied by magnetooptical polar Kerr effect (MOKE) spectroscopy at photon energies between 1 and 5 eV. The complementary characteristics were provided by spectral ellipsometry (SE). Both the SE and MOKE spectra confirmed ferrimagnetic ordering. The structural details correspond to those observed in MgFe{sub 2}O{sub 4} and Li{sub 0.5}Fe{sub 2.5}O{sub 4} spinels. SE experiments confirm the insulator behavior. The films display MOKE amplitudes somewhat reduced with respect to those in Li{sub 0.5}Fe{sub 2.5}O{sub 4} and MgFe{sub 2}O{sub 4} due to a lower degree of spinel inversion and nanocrystalline structure. The results indicate that the films are free of oxygen vacancies and Fe{sup 3+}-Fe{sup 2+} exchange.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Optical and magneto-optical studies of martensitic transformation in Ni-Mn-Ga magnetic shape memory alloys

Optical and magneto-optical properties of single crystal of Ni{sub 50.1}Mn{sub 28.4}Ga{sub 21.5} magnetic shape memory alloy during its transformation from martensite to austenite phase were systematically studied. Crystal orientation was approximately along (100) planes of parent cubic austenite. X-ray reciprocal mapping confirmed modulated 10 M martensite phase. Temperature depended measurements of saturation magnetization revealed the martensitic transformation at 335 K during heating. Magneto-optical spectroscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry were measured in the sample temperature range from 297 to 373 K and photon energy range from 1.2 to 6.5 eV. Magneto-optical spectra of polar Kerr rotation as well as the spectra of ellipsometric parameter Ψ exhibited significant changes when crossing the transformation temperature. These changes were assigned to different optical properties of Ni-Mn-Ga in martensite and austenite phases due to modification of electronic structure near the Fermi energy during martensitic transformation.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Investigation of optical and interfacial properties of Ag/Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5} metal dielectric multilayer structure

One-dimensional periodic metal-dielectric multilayer thin film structures consisting of Ag and Ta{sub 2}O{sub 5} alternating layers are deposited on glass substrate using RF magnetron sputtering technique. The spectral property of the multilayers has been investigated using spectrophotometry technique. The optical parameters such as refractive index, extinction coefficient, band gap etc., along with film thickness as well as the interfacial layer properties which influence these properties have been probed with spectroscopic ellipsometry technique. Atomic force microscopy has been employed to characterize morphological properties of this metal-dielectric multilayer.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Optical and local structural study of Gd doped ZrO{sub 2} thin films deposited by RF magnetron sputtering technique

ZrO{sub 2} samples with 0, 7, 9, 11, 13 % Gd doping have been prepared by RF magnetron sputtering deposition technique for solid oxide fuel cell application. The optical properties of the samples have been studied by transmission spectrophotometry and spectroscopic ellipsometry while the local structure surrounding Zr sites has been characterized by extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) measurement at Zr K edge with synchrotron radiation. It has been observed that beyond 11% Gd doping, band gap decreases and refractive index increases significantly and also oxygen and Zr coordinations surrounding Zr sites increase which indicates the formation of Gd clustering in ZrO{sub 2} matrix beyond this doping concentration.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Optical and electrical properties of TiOPc doped Alq{sub 3} thin films

The Titanyl phthalocyanine (TiOPc) was doped in Tris (8-hydroxyquinolinato) aluminum (Alq3) with different concentration. The thin film of optimized doping concentration was studied extensively for optical and electrical properties. The optical properties, studied using ellipsometry, absorption and photoluminescence. The absorption peak of Alq{sub 3} and TiOPc was observed at 387 nm and 707 nm and the photo-luminescence intensity (PL) peak of doped thin film was observed at 517 nm. The DC and AC electrical properties of the thin film were studied by current density-voltage (J-V) characteristics and impedance over a frequency range of 100 Hz - 1 MHz. The electron mobility calculated from trap-free space-charge limited region (SCLC) is 0.17×10{sup −5} cm{sup 2}/Vs. The Cole-Cole plots shows that the TiOPc doped Alq{sub 3} thin film can be represented by a single parallel resistance R{sub P} and capacitance C{sub P} network with a series resistance R{sub S} (10 Ω). The value of R{sub P} and C{sub P} at zero bias was 1587 Ω and 2.568 nF respectively. The resistance R{sub P} decreases with applied bias whereas the capacitance C{sub P} remains almost constant.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Dielectric function in the spectral range (0.5–8.5)eV of an (Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}){sub 2}O{sub 3} thin film with continuous composition spread

We determined the dielectric function of the alloy system (Al{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}){sub 2}O{sub 3} by spectroscopic ellipsometry in the wide spectral range from 0.5 eV to 8.5 eV and for Al contents ranging from x = 0.11 to x = 0.55. For the composition range x < 0.4, we observe single phase material in the β-modification and for larger Al content also the occurrence of γ-(Al,Ga){sub 2}O{sub 3}. We derived spectra of the refractive index and the absorption coefficient as well as energy parameters of electronic band-band transitions by model analysis of the dielectric function. The dependence of the dielectric functions lineshape and the energy parameters on x is highly continuous, reflecting theoretical expectations. The data presented here provide a basis for a deeper understanding of the electronic properties of this material system and may be useful for device engineering.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Optical constants of Cu(In, Ga)Se{sub 2} for arbitrary Cu and Ga compositions

The optical constants of Cu(In, Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGS)-based polycrystalline layers with different Cu and Ga compositions are parameterized completely up to a photon energy of 6.5 eV assuming several Tauc-Lorentz transition peaks. Based on the modeled optical constants, we establish the calculation procedure for the CIGS optical constants in a two-dimensional compositional space of (Cu, Ga) by taking the composition-induced shift of the critical point energies into account. In particular, we find that the variation of the CIGS optical constants with the Cu composition can be modeled quite simply by a spectral-averaging method in which the dielectric function of the target Cu composition is estimated as a weighted average of the dielectric functions with higher and lower Cu compositions. To express the effect of the Ga composition, on the other hand, an energy shift model reported earlier is adopted. Our model is appropriate for a wide variety of CIGS-based materials having different Cu and Ga compositions, although the modeling error increases slightly at lower Cu compositions [Cu/(In + Ga) < 0.69]. From our model, the dielectric function, refractive index, extinction coefficient, and absorption coefficient for the arbitrary CIGS composition can readily be obtained. The optical database developed in this study is applied further for spectroscopic ellipsometry analyses of CIGS layers fabricated by single and multi-stage coevaporation processes. We demonstrate that the compositional and structural characterizations of the CIGS-based layers can be performed from established analysis methods.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

A comparison of light-coupling into high and low index nanostructured photovoltaic thin films

Periodically structured electrodes are typically introduced to thin-film photovoltaics for the purpose of light management. Highly effective light-trapping and optimal in-coupling of light is crucial to enhance the overall device performance in such thin-film systems. Here, wavelength-scale structures are transferred via direct laser interference patterning to electron-selective TiO{sub 2} electrodes. Two representative thin-film solar cell architectures are deposited on top: an organic solar cell featuring blended P3HT:PCBM as active material, and a hybrid solar cell with Sb{sub 2}S{sub 3} as inorganic active material. A direct correlation in the asymmetry in total absorption enhancement and in structure-induced light in-coupling is spectroscopically observed for the two systems. The structuring is shown to be beneficial for the total absorption enhancement if a high n active material is deposited on TiO{sub 2}, but detrimental for a low n material. The refractive indices of the employed materials are determined via spectroscopic ellipsometry. The study outlines that the macroscopic Fresnel equations can be used to investigate the spectroscopically observed asymmetry in light in-coupling at the nanostructured TiO{sub 2} active material interfaces by visualizing the difference in reflectivity caused by the asymmetry in refractive indices.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Atomic-layer deposited thulium oxide as a passivation layer on germanium

A comprehensive study of atomic-layer deposited thulium oxide (Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3}) on germanium has been conducted using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), vacuum ultra-violet variable angle spectroscopic ellipsometry, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), and electron energy-loss spectroscopy. The valence band offset is found to be 3.05 ± 0.2 eV for Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3}/p-Ge from the Tm 4d centroid and Ge 3p{sub 3/2} charge-corrected XPS core-level spectra taken at different sputtering times of a single bulk thulium oxide sample. A negligible downward band bending of ∼0.12 eV is observed during progressive differential charging of Tm 4d peaks. The optical band gap is estimated from the absorption edge and found to be 5.77 eV with an apparent Urbach tail signifying band gap tailing at ∼5.3 eV. The latter has been correlated to HRTEM and electron diffraction results corroborating the polycrystalline nature of the Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3} films. The Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3}/Ge interface is found to be rather atomically abrupt with sub-nanometer thickness. In addition, the band line-up of reference GeO{sub 2}/n-Ge stacks obtained by thermal oxidation has been discussed and derived. The observed low reactivity of thulium oxide on germanium as well as the high effective barriers for holes (∼3 eV) and electrons (∼2 eV) identify Tm{sub 2}O{sub 3} as a strong contender for interfacial layer engineering in future generations of scaled high-κ gate stacks on Ge.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Mid-infrared to ultraviolet optical properties of InSb grown on GaAs by molecular beam epitaxy

Spectroscopic ellipsometry was used to investigate the optical properties of an InSb film grown on a GaAs (100) substrate, and to compare the optical properties of InSb film with those of bulk InSb. The film was grown by molecular beam epitaxy under conditions intended to form 90° misfit dislocations at the InSb-GaAs interface. The complex dielectric function obtained in a wide spectroscopic range from 0.06–4.6 eV shows the critical point transitions E{sub 0}, E{sub 1}, E{sub 1} + Δ{sub 1}, E{sub 0}{sup ′}, and E{sub 2}. The amplitudes, energy transitions, broadenings, and phase angles have been determined using a derivative analysis. Comparing film and bulk critical point results reveal that the epitaxial film is nearly relaxed and has bulk-like optical characteristics.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Temperature-dependent dielectric functions in atomically thin graphene, silicene, and arsenene

The dielectric functions of atomically thin graphene, silicene, and arsenene have been investigated as a function of temperature. With zero energy gap, more carriers in graphene and silicene are thermally excited as temperature increases and intraband transition strengthens, resulting in the strengthened absorption peak. Yet with large energy gap, interband transition dominates optical absorption of arsenene but it reduces as lattice vibration enhances, inducing the redshift and decreased absorption peak. To validate the theoretical method, the calculated optical constants of isolated graphene are compared with ellipsometry results and demonstrate good agreement.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Room temperature analysis of dielectric function of ZnO-based thin film on fused quartz substrate

A set of sample consist of pure ZnO and Cu-doped ZnO film were grown on fused-quartz substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. Here, we report room temperature spectroscopic ellipsometry analysis (covering energy range of 0.5 to 6.3 eV) of pure ZnO film and Cu doped ZnO film at 8 in at. %. The thickness of pure ZnO and Cu-doped ZnO film using in this study is about 350 nm. To extract the dielectric function of ZnO thin film, multilayer modeling is performed which takes into account reflections at each interface through Fresnel coefficients. This method based on Drude-Lorentz models that connect with Kramers-Kronig relations. The best fitting of Ψ (amplitude ratio) and Δ (phase difference) taken by SE measurement are obtained reasonably well by mean the universal fitting of three different photon incident angles. The imaginary part of dielectric function (ε{sub 2}) show the broad peak at around 3.3 eV assigned as combination of optical band energy edge with excitonic states. The exitonic states could not be observed clearly in this stage. The evolution of extracted dielectric function is observable by introducing 8% Cu as indicated by decreasing of excitonic intensity. This result indicates the screening of excitonic state. This study will bring us to have a good undestanding for the role of Cu impurities for ZnO thin films.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Optical properties analysis of Ta-doped TiO{sub 2} thin films on LaAlO{sub 3} substrates

We study optical properties of Ta-doped TiO{sub 2} thin film on LaAlO{sub 3} substrate using spectroscopy ellipsometry (SE) analysis at energy range of 0.5 – 6.5 eV. Room temperature SE data for Ψ (amplitude ratio) and Δ (phase difference) between p- and s- polarized light waves are taken with multiple incident angles at several spots on the samples. Here, absorption coefficient has been extracted from SE measurements at photon incident angle of 70° for different Ta concentration (0.01, 0.4, and 5 at. %). Multilayer modelling is performed which takes into account reflections at each interface through Fresnel coefficients to obtain reasonably well the fitting of Ψ and Δ data simultaneously. As the results, we estimate that film thickness increases by increasing Ta concentration accompanied by the formation of a new electronic structure. By increasing Ta impurities, the blueshift of absorption coefficient (α) peaks is observable. This result indicates that TiO{sub 2} thin film becomes optically resistive by introducing Ta doping. Schematic model of interband transition inTiO{sub 2}:Ta will be proposed base on obtained optical properties. This study enables us to predict the role of Ta doping on the electronic and optical band structures of TiO{sub 2} thin film.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗