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At least 721 records · Page 40
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2014

Strain-engineered band parameters of graphene-like SiC monolayer

Using full-potential density functional theory (DFT) calculations we show that the band gap and effective masses of charge carriers in SiC monolayer (ML-SiC) in graphene-like two-dimensional honeycomb structure are tunable by strain engineering. ML-SiC was found to preserve its flat 2D graphene-like structure under compressive strain up to 7%. A transition from indirect-to-direct gap-phase is predicted to occur for a strain value lying within the interval (1.11 %, 1.76%). In both gap-phases band gap decreases with increasing strain, although the rate of decrease is different in the two gap-phases. Effective mass of electrons show a non-linearly decreasing trend with increasing tensile strain in the direct gap-phase. The strain-sensitive properties of ML-SiC, may find applications in future strain-sensors, nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS) and nano-optomechanical systems (NOMS) and other nano-devices.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Geometric treatment of conduction electron scattering by crystal lattice strains and dislocations

The problem of conduction electron scattering by inhomogeneous crystal lattice strains is addressed using a tight-binding formalism and the differential geometric treatment of deformations in solids. In this approach, the relative positions of neighboring atoms in a strained lattice are naturally taken into account, even in the presence of crystal dislocations, resulting in a fully covariant Schrödinger equation in the continuum limit. Unlike previous work, the developed formalism is applicable to cases involving purely elastic strains as well as discrete and continuous distributions of dislocations—in the latter two cases, it clearly demarcates the effects of the dislocation strain field and core. It also differentiates between elastic and plastic strain contributions, respectively. The electrical resistivity due to the strain field of edge dislocations is then evaluated and the resulting numerical estimate for Cu shows good agreement with reported experimental values. This indicates that the electrical resistivity of edge dislocations in metals is not entirely due to the core, contrary to current models. Application to the study of strain effects in constrained quantum systems is also discussed.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Large area strain analysis using scanning transmission electron microscopy across multiple images

Here, we apply revolving scanning transmission electron microscopy to measure lattice strain across a sample using a single reference area. To do so, we remove image distortion introduced by sample drift, which usually restricts strain analysis to a single image. Overcoming this challenge, we show that it is possible to use strain reference areas elsewhere in the sample, thereby enabling reliable strain mapping across large areas. As a prototypical example, we determine the strain present within the microstructure of a Ni-based superalloy directly from atom column positions as well as geometric phase analysis. While maintaining atomic resolution, we quantify strain within nanoscale regions and demonstrate that large, unit-cell level strain fluctuations are present within the intermetallic phase.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Strain and lattice orientation distribution in SiN/Ge complementary metal–oxide–semiconductor compatible light emitting microstructures by quick x-ray nano-diffraction microscopy

This paper presents a study of the spatial distribution of strain and lattice orientation in CMOS-fabricated strained Ge microstripes using high resolution x-ray micro-diffraction. The recently developed model-free characterization tool, based on a quick scanning x-ray diffraction microscopy technique can image strain down to levels of 10{sup −5} (Δa/a) with a spatial resolution of ∼0.5 μm. Strain and lattice tilt are extracted using the strain and orientation calculation software package X-SOCS. The obtained results are compared with the biaxial strain distribution obtained by lattice parameter-sensitive μ-Raman and μ-photoluminescence measurements. The experimental data are interpreted with the help of finite element modeling of the strain relaxation dynamics in the investigated structures.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Analysis of transverse shear strains in pre-twisted thick beams using variational asymptotic method

The cross-sectional stiffness matrix is derived for a pre-twisted, moderately thick beam made of transversely isotropic materials and having rectangular cross sections. An asymptotically-exact methodology is used to model the anisotropic beam from 3-D elasticity, without any further assumptions. The beam is allowed to have large displacements and rotations, but small strain is assumed. The strain energy is computed making use of the beam constitutive law and kinematical relations derived with the inclusion of geometrical nonlinearities and an initial twist. The energy functional is minimized making use of the Variational Asymptotic Method (VAM), thereby reducing the cross section to a point on the beam reference line with appropriate properties, forming a 1-D constitutive law. VAM is a mathematical technique employed in the current problem to rigorously split the 3-D analysis of beams into two: a 2-D analysis over the beam cross-sectional domain, which provides a compact semi-analytical form of the properties of the cross sections, and a nonlinear 1-D analysis of the beam ref-erence curve. In this method, as applied herein, the cross-sectional analysis is performed asymptotically by taking advantage of a material small parameter and two geometric small parameters. 3-D strain components are derived using kinematics and arranged in orders of the small parameters. Closed-form expressions are derived for the 3-D non-linear warping and stress fields. Warping functions are obtained by the minimization of strain energy subject to certain set of constraints that render the 1-D strain measures well-defined. The zeroth-order 3-D warping field thus yielded is then used to integrate the 3-D strain energy density over the cross section, resulting in the 1-D strain energy density, which in turn helps identify the corresponding cross-sectional stiffness matrix. The model is capable of predicting interlaminar and transverse shear stresses accurately up to first order.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Strain control magnetocrystalline anisotropy of Ta/FeCo/MgO heterostructures

Using ab initio electronic structure calculations, we have investigated the effect of epitaxial strain on magnetocrystalline anisotropy (MCA) of Ta/FeCo/MgO heterostructure. At small expansive strains on the FeCo layer, the system exhibits perpendicular MCA (PMA). Strain not only has a profound effect on the value of MCA but also induces a switching of magnetic easy axis. Analysis of the energy- and k-resolved distribution of orbital characters of the minority-spin band reveals that a significant contribution to PMA at zero strain arises from the spin-orbit coupling between occupied d{sub x{sup 2}−y{sup 2}} and unoccupied d{sub xy} states, derived from Fe at the FeCo/MgO interface. The strain effect is attributed to strain-induced shifts of spin-orbit coupled d-states. Our work demonstrates that strain engineering can open a viable pathway towards tailoring magnetic properties for spintronic applications.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2015

Tunable biaxial in-plane compressive strain in a Si nanomembrane transferred on a polyimide film

A method of creating tunable and programmable biaxial compressive strain in silicon nanomembranes (Si NMs) transferred onto a Kapton{sup ®} HN polyimide film has been demonstrated. The programmable biaxial compressive strain (up to 0.54%) was generated utilizing a unique thermal property exhibited by the Kapton HN film, namely, it shrinks from its original size when exposed to elevated temperatures. The correlation between the strain and the annealing temperature was carefully investigated using Raman spectroscopy and high resolution X-ray diffraction. It was found that various amounts of compressive strains can be obtained by controlling the thermal annealing temperatures. In addition, a numerical model was used to evaluate the strain distribution in the Si NM. This technique provides a viable approach to forming in-plane compressive strain in NMs and offers a practical platform for further studies in strain engineering.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Super-stretchable metallic interconnects on polymer with a linear strain of up to 100%

Metal interconnects in flexible and wearable devices are heterogeneous metal-polymer systems that are expected to sustain large deformation without failure. The principal strategy to make strain tolerant interconnect lines on flexible substrates has comprised of creating serpentine structures of metal films with either in-plane or out-of-plane waves, using porous substrates, or using highly ductile materials such as gold. The wavy and helical serpentine patterns preclude high-density packing of interconnect lines on devices, while ductile materials such as Au are cost prohibitive for real world applications. Ductile copper films can be stretched if bonded to the substrate, but show high level of cracking beyond few tens of % strain. In this paper, we demonstrate a material system consisting of Indium metal film over an elastomer (PDMS) with a discontinuous Cr layer such that the metal interconnect can be stretched to extremely high linear strain (up to 100%) without any visible cracks. Such linear strain in metal interconnects exceeds that reported in literature and is obtained without the use of any geometrical manipulations or porous substrates. Systematic experimentation is carried out to explain the mechanisms that allow the Indium film to sustain the high strain level without failure. The islands forming the discontinuous Cr layer are shown to move apart from each other during stretching without delamination, providing strong adhesion to the Indium film while accommodating the large strain in the system. The Indium film is shown to form surface wrinkles upon release from the large strain, confirming its strong adhesion to PDMS. A model is proposed based upon the observations that can explain the high level of stretch-ability of the Indium metal film over the PDMS substrate.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Strain in epitaxial Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} grown on GaN and graphene substrates: A reflection high-energy electron diffraction study

Topological insulator (TI) has been one of the focus research themes in condensed matter physics in recent years. Due to the relatively large energy bandgap, Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} has been identified as one of the most promising three-dimensional TIs with application potentials. Epitaxial Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} by molecular-beam epitaxy has been reported by many groups using different substrates. A common feature is that Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} grows readily along the c-axis direction irrespective of the type and condition of the substrate. Because of the weak van der Waals interaction between Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} quintuple layers, the grown films are reported to be strain-free, taking the lattice constant of the bulk crystal. At the very initial stage of Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} deposition, however, strain may still exist depending on the substrate. Strain may bring some drastic effects to the properties of the TIs and so achieving strained TIs can be of great fundamental interests as well as practical relevance. In this work, we employ reflection high-energy electron diffraction to follow the lattice constant evolution of Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} during initial stage depositions on GaN and graphene, two very different substrates. We reveal that epitaxial Bi{sub 2}Se{sub 3} is tensile strained on GaN but strain-free on graphene. Strain relaxation on GaN is gradual.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Highly tunable magnetism in silicene doped with Cr and Fe atoms under isotropic and uniaxial tensile strain

We have investigated the magnetic properties of silicene doped with Cr and Fe atoms under isotropic and uniaxial tensile strain by the first-principles calculations. We find that Cr and Fe doped silicenes show strain-tunable magnetism. (1) The magnetism of Cr and Fe doped silicenes exhibits sharp transitions from low spin states to high spin states by a small isotropic tensile strain. Specially for Fe doped silicene, a nearly nonmagnetic state changes to a high magnetic state by a small isotropic tensile strain. (2) The magnetic moments of Fe doped silicene also show a sharp jump to ∼2 μ{sub B} at a small threshold of the uniaxial strain, and the magnetic moments of Cr doped silicene increase gradually to ∼4 μ{sub B} with the increase of uniaxial strain. (3) The electronic and magnetic properties of Cr and Fe doped silicenes are sensitive to the magnitude and direction of the external strain. The highly tunable magnetism may be applied in the spintronic devices.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Growth and characterization of highly tensile strained Ge{sub 1−x}Sn{sub x} formed on relaxed In{sub y}Ga{sub 1−y}P buffer layers

Ge{sub 0.94}Sn{sub 0.06} films with high tensile strain were grown on strain-relaxed In{sub y}Ga{sub 1−y}P virtual substrates using solid-source molecular beam epitaxy. The in-plane tensile strain in the Ge{sub 0.94}Sn{sub 0.06} film was varied by changing the In mole fraction in In{sub x}Ga{sub 1−x}P buffer layer. The tensile strained Ge{sub 0.94}Sn{sub 0.06} films were investigated by transmission electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and Raman spectroscopy. An in-plane tensile strain of up to 1% in the Ge{sub 0.94}Sn{sub 0.06} was measured, which is much higher than that achieved using other buffer systems. Controlled thermal anneal experiment demonstrated that the strain was not relaxed for temperatures up to 500 °C. The band alignment of the tensile strained Ge{sub 0.94}Sn{sub 0.06} on In{sub 0.77}Ga{sub 0.23}P was obtained by high resolution x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The Ge{sub 0.94}Sn{sub 0.06}/In{sub 0.77}Ga{sub 0.23}P interface was found to be of the type I band alignment, with a valence band offset of 0.31 ± 0.12 eV and a conduction band offset of 0.74 ± 0.12 eV.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2016

Insight into magnetic, ferroelectric and elastic properties of strained BiFeO{sub 3} thin films through Mössbauer spectroscopy

We have studied the magnetic order of highly strained (001)-oriented BiFeO{sub 3} (BFO) thin films using {sup 57}Fe Conversion Electron Mössbauer Spectrometry. From 90 K to 620 K the films exhibit a collinear antiferromagnetic structure, in contrast with the cycloidal structure observed in bulk BFO. Moreover, we find that both the planar magnetic anisotropy for compressive strain and out-of-plane anisotropy for tensile strain persist from 90 K up to the Néel temperature (T{sub N}), which itself shows only a weak strain dependence. An analysis of the line asymmetry of the paramagnetic doublet for temperatures above T{sub N} is used to reveal the strain-dependent rotation of the polarization direction, consistent with previous observations. Our results show that the lattice dynamics in BFO films are strongly strain-dependent, offering avenues toward acoustic phonon devices. Finally, we use the versatility of Mössbauer spectroscopy technique to reveal various multi-property features including magnetic states, polarization direction and elastic strain.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2020

Facile and quantitative estimation of strain in nanobubbles with arbitrary symmetry in 2D semiconductors verified using hyperspectral nano-optical imaging

When layers of van der Waals materials are deposited via exfoliation or viscoelastic stamping, nanobubbles are sometimes created from aggregated trapped fluids. Though they can be considered a nuisance, nanobubbles have attracted scientific interest in their own right owing to their ability to generate large in-plane strain gradients that lead to rich optoelectronic phenomena, especially in the semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides. Determination of the strain within the nanobubbles, which is crucial to understanding these effects, can be approximated using elasticity theory. However, the Föppl–von Kármán equations that describe strain in a distorted thin plate are highly nonlinear and often necessitate assuming circular symmetry to achieve an analytical solution. Here, we present an easily implemented numerical method to solve for strain tensors of nanobubbles with arbitrary symmetry in 2D crystals. The method only requires topographic information from atomic force microscopy and the Poisson ratio of the 2D material. We verify that this method reproduces the strain for circularly symmetric nanobubbles that have known analytical solutions. Finally, we use the method to reproduce the Grüneisen parameter of the E' mode for 1L-WS2 nanobubbles on template-stripped Au by comparing the derived strain with measured Raman shifts from tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy, demonstrating the utility of our method for estimating localized strain in 2D crystals.

2D materials↗
DOE OSTI2021

Localized strain profile in surface electrode array for programmable composite multiferroic devices

In this work, we investigate localized in-plane strains on the microscale, induced by arrays of biased surface electrodes patterned on piezoelectrics. Particular focus is given to the influence that adjacent electrode pairs have on one another to study the impact of densely packed electrode arrays. We present a series of X-ray microdiffraction studies to reveal the spatially resolved micrometer-scale strain distribution. The strain maps with micrometer-scale resolution highlight how the local strain profile in square regions up to 250 x 250 lm 2 in size is affected by the surface electrodes that are patterned on ferroelectric single-crystal [Pb(Mg 1/3 Nb 2/3 )O 3 ] x -[PbTiO 3 ] 1-x . The experimental measurements and simulation results show the influence of electrode pair distance, positioning of the electrode pair, including the angle of placement, and neighboring electrode pair arrangements on the strength and direction of the regional strain. Our findings are relevant to the development of microarchitected strain-mediated multiferroic devices. The electrode arrays could provide array-addressable localized strain control for applications including straintronic memory, probabilistic computing platforms, microwave devices, and magnetic-activated cell sorting platforms.

42 ENGINEERING↗
DOE OSTI2021

Characterization of the strain-rate–dependent mechanical response of single cell–cell junctions

Cell–cell junctions are essential components in multicellular structures and often experience strains of different magnitudes and rates. However, their mechanical behavior is currently underexplored due to the lack of techniques to quantitatively characterize junctional stress–strain relationships. Here we developed a polymeric microstructure to strain the mutual junction of a single cell pair while simultaneously recording the junction stress and observed previously unseen strain-rate–dependent junction responses. We showed that cytoskeleton growth could relax the stress buildup and prevent junction failure at low strain rates, while high strain rates led to synchronized junction failures at remarkably large strains (over 200%). We expect this platform and our biophysical understanding to form the foundation for the rate-dependent mechanics of cell–cell junctions.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2023

Evolution of dislocation substructures in metals via high-strain-rate nanoindentation

Deformation at high strain rates often results in high stresses on many engineering materials, potentially leading to catastrophic failure without proper design. High-strain-rate mechanical testing is thus needed to improve the design of future structural materials for a wide range of applications. Although several high-strain-rate mechanical testing techniques have been developed to provide a fundamental understanding of material responses and microstructural evolution under high-strain-rate deformation conditions, these tests are often very time consuming and costly. In this work, we utilize a high-strain-rate nanoindentation testing technique and system in combination with transmission electron microscopy to reveal the deformation mechanisms and dislocation substructures that evolve in pure metals from low (10 –2 s –1 ) to very high indentation strain rates (10 4 s –1 ), using face-centered cubic aluminum and body-centered cubic molybdenum as model materials. The results help to establish the conditions under which micro- and macro-scale tests can be compared with validity and also provide a promising pathway that could lead to accelerated high-strain-rate testing at substantially reduced costs.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2012

Strain Effect on the Diffusion of Interstitial Mn in GaAs

The influence of external strain on the diffusion barriers of interstitial Mn in GaAs is studied using the first-principles calculations within the density functional theory. The diffusion barrier changes with strain in different manners: linear on the tensile strain and nonlinear on compressive strain, in contrast to the linear behavior of the continuum elastic model. The discrepancy between the continuum elastic model and the results of the first-principles method is attributed to the energy-level crossing caused by strain. Moreover, we find that the external strain can not only effectively change the diffusion barrier (even to zero, at certain strain), but also the position of saddle points along the migration path. Our finding provides an alternative way to reduce the population of interstitial Mn in GaAs, thus correspondingly to increase the Curie temperature of this system.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2017

Strain coupling of oxygen non-stoichiometry in perovskite thin films

The effects of strain and oxygen vacancies on perovskite thin films have been studied in great detail over the past decades and have been treated separately from each other. While epitaxial strain has been realized as a tuning knob to tailor the functional properties of correlated oxides, oxygen vacancies are usually regarded as undesirable and detrimental. In transition metal oxides, oxygen defects strongly modify the properties and functionalities via changes in oxidation states of the transition metals. However, such coupling is not well understood in epitaxial films, but rather deemed as cumbersome or experimental artifact. Only recently it has been recognized that lattice strain and oxygen non-stoichiometry are strongly correlated in a vast number of perovskite systems and that this coupling can be beneficial for information and energy technologies. Recent experimental and theoretical studies have focused on understanding the correlated phenomena between strain and oxygen vacancies for a wide range of perovskite systems. These correlations not only include the direct relationship between elastic strain and the formation energy of oxygen vacancies, but also comprise highly complex interactions such as strain-induced phase transitions due to oxygen vacancy ordering. Therefore, we aim in this review to give a comprehensive overview on the coupling between strain and oxygen vacancies in perovskite oxides and point out the potential applications of the emergent functionalities strongly coupled to oxygen vacancies.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗