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At least 703 records · Page 39
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2025

Strain Effects in SrHfO 3 Films Grown by Hybrid Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Perovskite oxide heterostructures host a large number of interesting phenomena such as ferroelectricity, which are often driven by octahedral distortions in the crystal that may induce polarization. SrHfO 3 (SHO) is a perovskite oxide with a pseudocubic lattice parameter of 4.08 Å that previous density functional theory (DFT) calculations suggest can be stabilized in a ferroelectric P4mm phase when stabilized with sufficient compressive strain. Additionally, it is insulating and possesses a large band gap and a high dielectric constant, making it an ideal candidate for oxide electronic devices. Here, to test the viability of epitaxial strain as a driver of ferroic phase transitions, SHO films were grown by hybrid molecular beam epitaxy (hMBE) with a tetrakis(ethylmethylamino)hafnium(IV) source on GdScO 3 and TbScO 3 substrates. Strained SHO phases were characterized using X-ray diffraction, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, and scanning transmission electron microscopy to determine the space group of the strained films, with the results compared to those of DFT-optimized models of phase stability versus strain. Contrary to past reports, we find that compressively strained SrHfO 3 undergoes octahedral tilt distortions without associated ferroelectric polarization and most likely takes on the I4/mcm phase with the a 0 a 0 c – tilt pattern.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2021

Thermal Atomic Layer Deposition of Gold: Mechanistic Insights, Nucleation, and Epitaxy

An in situ microbalance and infrared spectroscopic study of alternating exposures to Me2Au(S2CNEt2) and ozone illuminates the organometallic chemistry that allows for the thermal atomic layer deposition (ALD) of gold. In situ quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) studies resolve the nucleation delay and island growth of Au on a freshly prepared aluminum oxide surface with single cycle resolution, revealing inhibition for 40 cycles prior to slow nucleation and film coalescence that extends over 300 cycles. In situ infrared spectroscopy informed by first-principles computation provides insight into the surface chemistry of the self-limiting half-reactions, which are consistent with an oxidized Au surface mechanism. X-ray diffraction of ALD-grown gold on silicon, silica, sapphire, and mica reveals consistent out-of-plane oriented crystalline film growth as well as epitaxially directed in-plane orientation on closely lattice-matched mica at a relatively low growth temperature of 180 degrees C. A more complete understanding of ALD gold nucleation, surface chemistry, and epitaxy will inform the next generation of low-temperature, nanoscale, textured depositions that are applicable to high surface area supports.

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

Phase-controlled electrochemical activity of epitaxial Mg-spinel thin films

We report an approach to control the reversible electrochemical activity (i.e., extraction/insertion) of Mg 2+ in a cathode host through the use of phase-pure epitaxially stabilized thin film structures. The epitaxially stabilized MgMn 2 O 4 . (MMO) thin films in the distinct tetragonal and cubic phases are shown to exhibit dramatically different properties (in a nonaqueous electrolyte, Mg(TFSI) 2 in propylene carbonate): tetragonal MMO shows negligible activity while the cubic MMO (normally found as polymorph at high temperature or high pressure) exhibits reversible Mg 2+ activity with associated changes in film structure and Mn oxidation state. Lastly, these results demonstrate a novel strategy for identifying the factors that control multivalent cation mobility in next generation battery materials.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2018

Control of Polar Orientation and Lattice Strain in Epitaxial BaTiO 3 Films on Silicon

Conventional strain engineering of epitaxial ferroelectric oxide thin films is based on the selection of substrates with a suitable lattice parameter. In this work, we show that the variation of oxygen pressure during pulsed laser deposition is a flexible strain engineering method for epitaxial ferroelectric BaTiO 3 films either on perovskite substrates or on Si(001) wafers. This unconventional growth strategy permits continuous tuning of strain up to high levels (ε > 0.8%) in films greater than one hundred nanometers thick, as well as selecting the polar axis orientation to be either parallel or perpendicular to the substrate surface plane.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2018

Dissolution Kinetics of Epitaxial Cadmium Carbonate Overgrowths on Dolomite

Thin films grown on mineral surfaces can immobilize toxic metals in natural systems, but the effects of epitaxy and film thickness on dissolution rates of the overgrowth are typically unknown. To explore these effects, otavite (CdCO 3 ) films were grown on dolomite (104) surfaces from aqueous solutions containing [Cd] = [Ca] = [CO 3 ] = 0.2 mM for 1–48 h and then dissolved in deionized water. Films of various thicknesses and strain states were obtained by varying the growth reaction time. Growth for up to 3 h produced strained thin films with Cd coverages of <4.3 ± 0.6 equivalent monolayers (ML) (corresponding to a thickness of up to 17 Å), whereas reaction times of up to 48 h produced thicker films with as many as 114 ± 14 equivalent ML of Cd. Intrinsic dissolution rates were measured as a function of otavite film thickness by a combination of synchrotron X-ray fluorescence, specular X-ray reflectivity, and atomic force microscopy. As a result, the initial dissolution rates for unstrained films were comparable to those reported for synthetic otavite powders, whereas the thinnest films (<3.1 ± 1.1 ML) dissolved at a 50% slower rate, indicating that epitaxial strain effectively enhanced their stability. We discuss potential reasons for this difference.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Hybrid Molecular Beam Epitaxy for Single-Crystalline Oxide Membranes with Binary Oxide Sacrificial Layers

The advancement in thin-film exfoliation for synthesizing oxide membranes has led to possibilities for creating artificially assembled heterostructures with structurally and chemically incompatible materials. The sacrificial layer method is a promising approach to exfoliate as-grown films from a compatible material system, allowing for their integration with dissimilar materials. Nonetheless, the conventional sacrificial layers often possess an intricate stoichiometry, thereby constraining their practicality and adaptability, particularly when considering techniques such as molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). This is where easy-to-grow binary alkaline-earth-metal oxides with a rock salt crystal structure are useful. These oxides, which include (Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba)O, can be used as a sacrificial layer covering a much broader range of lattice parameters compared to conventional sacrificial layers and are easily dissolvable in deionized water. In this study, we show the epitaxial growth of the single-crystalline perovskite SrTiO 3 (STO) on sacrificial layers consisting of crystalline SrO, BaO, and Ba 1–x Ca x O films, employing a hybrid MBE method. Our results highlight the rapid (≤5 min) dissolution of the sacrificial layer when immersed in deionized water, facilitating the fabrication of millimeter-sized STO membranes. Using high-resolution X-ray diffraction, atomic-force microscopy, scanning transmission electron microscopy, impedance spectroscopy, and scattering-type near-field optical microscopy (SNOM), we demonstrate single-crystalline STO membranes with bulk-like intrinsic dielectric properties. The employment of alkaline earth metal oxides as sacrificial layers is likely to simplify membrane synthesis, particularly with MBE, thus expanding the research and application possibilities.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2025

Overcoming Secondary Nucleation of Misoriented Domains during Wafer-Scale Epitaxy of Single-Crystal Graphene on Ge(110)

The wafer-scale synthesis of single-crystal graphene on technologically important substrates is a major challenge inhibiting the development of next-generation devices that harness the exceptional electronic, thermal, and mechanical properties of single-crystal graphene. Here, in this work, the factors controlling the domain orientation of graphene grown epitaxially on Ge(110) are elucidated, and this insight is utilized to produce graphene with minimal polycrystallinity. In the early stages of growth, most graphene islands have unidirectionally aligned lattices. However, we discover a secondary nucleation phenomenon in which misoriented graphene domains nucleate near/from the island edges, introducing defective grain boundaries and significantly increasing polycrystallinity throughout growth. We find that secondary nucleation occurs when islands grow over Ge steps, which form because of an interplay between the island growth and Ge surface topography evolution. Strategies for suppressing secondary nucleation are developed, enabling the synthesis of graphene in which the predominant crystal orientation has high coverage >99% and low rotational spread <0.6°. This work overcomes the irreproducibility of graphene epitaxy on Ge(110) reported in the literature, providing a route toward the large-area synthesis of single-crystal graphene on technologically useful semiconductors.

chemical vapor deposition↗
DOE OSTI2017

Flexible Multiferroic Bulk Heterojunction with Giant Magnetoelectric Coupling via van der Waals Epitaxy

Magnetoelectric nanocomposites have been a topic of intense research due to their profound potential in the applications of electronic devices based on spintronic technology. Nevertheless, in spite of significant progress made in the growth of high-quality nanocomposite thin films, the substrate clamping effect still remains a major hurdle in realizing the ultimate magnetoelectric coupling. To overcome this obstacle, an alternative strategy of fabricating a self-assembled ferroelectric–ferrimagnetic bulk heterojunction on a flexible muscovite via van der Waals epitaxy is adopted. In this paper, we investigated the magnetoelectric coupling in a self-assembled BiFeO 3 (BFO)–CoFe 2 O 4 (CFO) bulk heterojunction epitaxially grown on a flexible muscovite substrate. The obtained heterojunction is composed of vertically aligned multiferroic BFO nanopillars embedded in a ferrimagnetic CFO matrix. Moreover, due to the weak interaction between the flexible substrate and bulk heterojunction, the interface is incoherent and, hence, the substrate clamping effect is greatly reduced. The phase-field simulation model also complements our results. The magnetic and electrical characterizations highlight the improvement in magnetoelectric coupling of the BFO–CFO bulk heterojunction. A magnetoelectric coupling coefficient of 74 mV/cm·Oe of this bulk heterojunction is larger than the magnetoelectric coefficient reported earlier on flexible substrates. Finally and therefore, this study delivers a viable route of fabricating a remarkable magnetoelectric heterojunction and yet flexible electronic devices that are robust against extreme conditions with optimized performance.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2020

Phase-Selective Epitaxial Growth of Heterophase Nanostructures on Unconventional 2H-Pd Nanoparticles

Heterostructured, including heterophase, noble-metal nanomaterials have attracted much interest due to their promising applications in diverse fields. However, great challenges still remain in the rational synthesis of well-defined noble-metal heterophase nanostructures. Furthermore, we report the preparation of Pd nanoparticles with an unconventional hexagonal close-packed (2H type) phase, referred to as 2H-Pd nanoparticles, via a controlled phase transformation of amorphous Pd nanoparticles. Impressively, by using the 2H-Pd nanoparticles as seeds, Au nanomaterials with different crystal phases epitaxially grow on the specific exposed facets of the 2H-Pd, i.e., face-centered cubic (fcc) Au (fcc-Au) on the (002)h facets of 2H-Pd while 2H-Au on the other exposed facets, to achieve well-defined fcc-2H-fcc heterophase Pd@Au core–shell nanorods. Moreover, through such unique facet-directed crystal-phase-selective epitaxial growth, a series of unconventional fcc-2H-fcc heterophase core–shell nanostructures, including Pd@Ag, Pd@Pt, Pd@PtNi, and Pd@PtCo, have also been prepared. Impressively, the fcc-2H-fcc heterophase Pd@Au nanorods show excellent performance toward the electrochemical carbon dioxide reduction reaction (CO 2 RR) for production of carbon monoxide with Faradaic efficiencies of over 90% in an exceptionally wide applied potential window from –0.9 to –0.4 V (versus the reversible hydrogen electrode), which is among the best reported CO 2 RR catalysts in H-type electrochemical cells.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2017

Molecular Beam Epitaxy of Highly Crystalline Monolayer Molybdenum Disulfide on Hexagonal Boron Nitride

Atomically thin molybdenum disulfide (MoS 2 ), a direct-band-gap semiconductor, is promising for applications in electronics and optoelectronics, but the scalable synthesis of highly crystalline film remains challenging. Here we report the successful epitaxial growth of a continuous, uniform, highly crystalline monolayer MoS 2 film on hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) by molecular beam epitaxy. Atomic force microscopy and electron microscopy studies reveal that MoS 2 grown on h-BN primarily consists of two types of nucleation grains (0° aligned and 60° antialigned domains). By adopting a high growth temperature and ultralow precursor flux, the formation of 60° antialigned grains is largely suppressed. Further, the resulting perfectly aligned grains merge seamlessly into a highly crystalline film. Large-scale monolayer MoS 2 film can be grown on a 2 in. h-BN/sapphire wafer, for which surface morphology and Raman mapping confirm good spatial uniformity. Our study represents a significant step in the scalable synthesis of highly crystalline MoS 2 films on atomically flat surfaces and paves the way to large-scale applications.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Spin injection from epitaxial Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} films to ZnO films

The fully epitaxial Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}/ZnO heterostructures were fabricated by reactive dc sputtering (Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}) and rf sputtering (ZnO) on c-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} substrates. The epitaxial relationship is verified to be Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4}(111)<110>(parallel sign)ZnO(0002)<1120> by {phi} scans. The nonlinear and rectifying properties of I-V curves were observed in the heterostructures. The transport mechanism across the interface between Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} and ZnO is thermal emission and the Schottky barrier is calculated to be 0.51 eV. The magnetoresistance of the heterostructures is symmetric and depends on current. The spin polarization of the transport electrons from Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} into ZnO is determined to be 28.5% at 30 K.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2010

Study of epitaxial multiferroic BiFeO{sub 3} films

Multiferroic BiFeO{sub 3} epitaxial thin films are prepared using pulsed laser deposition method on single crystal SrTiO{sub 3}(001) substrates. The prepared films are characterized by [001] growth and the in-plane {phi}-scans haven shown that the films are characterized by ''cube-on-cube'' epitaxial growth. The photoelectron spectroscopy results confirm the presence of Fe{sup 3+} only. Better magnetic properties are observed in the case of less thickness BiFeO{sub 3} film as compared to higher thickness, which could be due to the in-plane strain effect.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Static and dynamic magnetic properties of epitaxial Co{sub 2}FeAl Heusler alloy thin films

Structural and magnetic properties of epitaxial Co{sub 2}FeAl Heusler alloy thin films were investigated. Films were deposited on single crystal MgO (001XS) substrates at room temperature, followed by an annealing process at 600 deg. C. MgO and Cr buffer layers were introduced in order to enhance crystalline quality, and improve magnetic properties. Structural analyses indicate that samples have grown in the B2 ordered epitaxial structure. VSM measures show that the MgO buffered sample displays a magnetization saturation of 1010 {+-} 30 emu/cm{sup 3}, and Cr buffered sample displays a magnetization saturation of 1032 {+-} 40 emu/cm{sup 3}. Damping factor was studied by strip-line ferromagnetic resonance measures. We observed a maximum value for the MgO buffered sample of about 8.5 x 10{sup -3}, and a minimum value of 3.8 x 10{sup -3} for the Cr buffered one.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Epitaxial strain and antiferromagnetism in Heusler Fe{sub 2}VSi thin films

The effects of biaxial strain on the electrical and magnetic properties of an antiferromagnetic Heusler compound Fe{sub 2}VSi were systematically investigated. A series of epitaxial Fe{sub 2}VSi thin films on MgAl{sub 2}O{sub 4} and MgO substrates were fabricated with different tensile strains by varying the substrate-lattice mismatch and the film thickness. The strain was characterized by the ratio of the out-of-plane lattice parameter c to the in-plane lattice parameter a; this ratio c/a varied from 0.987 to 0.998 at room temperature. The tensile epitaxial strain was found to increase the antiferromagnetic Neel temperature T{sub N} to 193 K, which is 70 K higher than that for the unstrained bulk material. A clear dependence of T{sub N} on c/a was observed, which is consistent with theoretical predictions in which the band Jahn-Teller effect plays a significant role.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Growth rate induced monoclinic to tetragonal phase transition in epitaxial BiFeO{sub 3} (001) thin films

Epitaxial BiFeO{sub 3} thin films were deposited on SrRuO{sub 3} buffered SrTiO{sub 3} (001) substrates at different growth rates by varying the radio frequency sputtering power. With increasing growth rate, the crystal structure of BiFeO{sub 3} films develops from monoclinic lattice to a mixture phase of tetragonal lattice T{sub 1} with c/a{approx}1.05 and giant tetragonal lattice T{sub 2} with c/a{approx}1.23, finally to a single tetragonal phase T{sub 2}, as shown by high resolution synchrotron x-ray diffraction reciprocal space mappings. The observed phase transitions, induced by film growth rate, offer an alternative strategy to manipulate crystalline phases in epitaxial ferroelectric thin films.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Electronic-grade GaN(0001)/Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}(0001) grown by reactive DC-magnetron sputter epitaxy using a liquid Ga target

Electronic-grade GaN (0001) epilayers have been grown directly on Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} (0001) substrates by reactive direct-current-magnetron sputter epitaxy (MSE) using a liquid Ga sputtering target in an Ar/N{sub 2} atmosphere. The as-grown GaN epitaxial films exhibit low threading dislocation density on the order of {<=}10{sup 10} cm{sup -2} determined by transmission electron microscopy and modified Williamson-Hall plot. X-ray rocking curve shows narrow full-width at half maximum (FWHM) of 1054 arc sec of the 0002 reflection. A sharp 4 K photoluminescence peak at 3.474 eV with a FWHM of 6.3 meV is attributed to intrinsic GaN band edge emission. The high structural and optical qualities indicate that MSE-grown GaN epilayers can be used for fabricating high-performance devices without the need of any buffer layer.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

X-ray combined analysis of fiber-textured and epitaxial Ba(Sr,Ti)O{sub 3} thin films deposited by radio frequency sputtering

A complete study is given in this paper on the structural properties of Ba(Sr,Ti)O{sub 3} (BST) thin films which present various preferred orientations: (111) and (001) fiber and epitaxial textures. The films are deposited in situ at 800 deg. C by sputtering on Si/SiO{sub 2}/TiO{sub x}/Pt substrates and the orientation is controlled by monitoring the concentration of O{sub 2} in the reactive plasma or by prior deposition of a very thin TiO{sub x} buffer layer between BST films and substrates. The epitaxial films are obtained on (001)-alpha-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} substrates covered with TiO{sub x} buffer layers. In order to analyze finely the preferred orientations, the texture, the microstructural features, and the anisotropy-related quantities such as residual stresses in the films, the conventional Bragg-Brentano {theta} - 2{theta} x-ray diffraction diagrams is shown not to be sufficient. So, we systematically used x-ray combined analysis, a recently developed methodology which gives access to precise determination of the structure (cell parameters and space group) of the films, their orientation distributions (texture strengths and types) and mean crystallite sizes, their residual stresses. This fine structural analysis shows important modifications between the film qualities which induce differences in BST films electrical behavior, permittivity, loss tangent, and tunability.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2011

Element-specific study of epitaxial NiO/Ag/CoO/Fe films grown on vicinal Ag(001) using photoemission electron microscopy

NiO/Ag/CoO/Fe single crystalline films are grown epitaxially on a vicinal Ag(001) substrate using molecular beam epitaxy and investigated by photoemission electron microscopy. We find that after zero-field cooling, the in-plane Fe magnetization switches from parallel to perpendicular direction of the atomic steps of the vicinal surface at thinner CoO thickness but remains in its original direction parallel to the steps at thicker CoO thickness. CoO and NiO domain imaging result shows that both CoO/Fe and NiO/CoO spins are perpendicularly coupled, suggesting that the Fe magnetization switching may be associated with the rotatable-frozen spin transition of the CoO film.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗