National Institute Of Materials Physics - Romania

Publications

847 articles found

701. Gas-sensing by Polymer-Iron nanocomposite materials

Authors: Tomescu, A; Simion, CE; Alexandrescu, R; Morjan, I; Scarisoreanu, M

Published: 2007, CAS 2007 INTERNATIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR CONFERENCE, VOLS 1 AND 2, PROCEEDINGS, +, DOI:

Electrical properties of new Polymer-Iron nanocomposite materials obtained by laser pyrolysis were investigated, in order to find applications for the detection of reducing gases. The aim of this paper was to prove the necessity of complex experimental investigation in order to point out the contribution of different types of adsorption. Usually resistance measurement cannot fully describe the surface interactions. The electron affinity changes are of real interest for in-field conditions which always involve humidity of surrounding gas-atmosphere. On the other hand, the nanocomposite materials can be a solution for specific gas-sensing properties.

702. Triple-barrier resonant tunneling: A transfer matrix approach

Authors: Simion, CE; Ciucu, CI

Published: 2007, ROMANIAN REPORTS IN PHYSICS, 59, 817, DOI:

A theoretical study of resonant tunneling in multilayered heterostructures is presented based on an exact solution of the Schrodinger equation under the application of a constant electric field and a uniform magnetic field. By use of the transfer matrix approach, the transmissivity of the structure is determined as a function of the incident electron energy. The results show good agreement with other existing models as well as with the bound-state energies. The solutions obtained are exact and can be generated easily by using MathCad. Based on these calculations, a new class of resonant tunneling superlattice devices can be designed.

703. P-type ZnO thin films grown by RF plasma beam assisted Pulsed Laser Deposition

Authors: Epurescu, G; Dinescu, G; Moldovan, A; Birjega, R; Dipietrantonio, F; Verona, E; Verardi, P; Nistor, LC; Ghica, C; Van Tendeloo, G; Dinescu, A

Published: JUL-DEC 2007, SUPERLATTICES AND MICROSTRUCTURES, 42, 84, DOI: 10.1016/j.spmi.2007.04.072

The high exciton binding energy and band gap energy of ZnO thin films open the prospect of fabricating semiconductor lasers in the ultraviolet spectral range. A prerequisite for laser diode fabrication is highly p-doped ZnO which was not reproducibly obtained up to now. Without intentional doping ZnO exhibits n-type conduction. ZnO thin films have been obtained by radio-frequency assisted pulsed laser deposition. A metallic Zn target was used for ablation in an oxygen and nitrogen RF discharge. The electrical and morphological properties of the films grown on Si were studied by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), optical absorption and Hall Effect measurements for different ratios between the nitrogen and oxygen content. The AFM images of the as grown ZnO films reveal high quality surfaces with low values for the surface roughness and a sharp distribution of grains sizes as an effect of the RF discharge. The XRD patterns for all samples exhibit only (002) and (004) peaks indicating that the c-axis is always oriented normal to the substrate surface. The films present p-type conductivity with different carrier concentration and mobility depending on the nitrogen/oxygen ratio. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

704. Mesoseopic ordering in the 0.9 Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O-3-0.1 PbTiO3 relaxor ferroelectric: a HRTEM study

Authors: Nistor, LC; Ghica, C; Van Tendeloo, G

Published: 2007, PHYSICA STATUS SOLIDI C - CURRENT TOPICS IN SOLID STATE PHYSICS, VOL 4, NO 3, 4, +, DOI: 10.1002/pssc.200673753

We report a microstructural and compositional study of a 90% Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O-3 - 10% PbTiO3 ceramic sample. High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) revealed the presence of compositional ordered nano-domains (1 - 4 mn), observable in two specific orientations, [0 (1) over bar 1] and [1 1 (2) over bar]. However, the visibility and the ordering degree of the nano-domains on the HRTEM images are not at all obvious. Fourier filtering of the images clearly revealed the ordered domains. Antiphase boundaries lying in the (111) planes separate them, while (100) and (111) facets separate the ordered domains from the disordered matrix. Their shape is plate-like, not uniformly spread in the disordered matrix. Their average size varies in different regions of the sample, most probably due to a non-uniform distribution of Ti, as observed by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. (c) 2007 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

705. Comparative characterization of PbS macro- and nano-crystalline photoresistive detectors

Authors: Iordache, G; Buda, M; Stancu, V; Botila, T

Published: 2007, CAS 2007 INTERNATIONAL SEMICONDUCTOR CONFERENCE, VOLS 1 AND 2, PROCEEDINGS, 202, DOI: 10.1109/SMICND.2007.4519680

A comparative study of photodetector performance for nano- and micro-crystalline PbS thin layers is presented Both types of PbS films were obtained using the Chemical Bath Deposition method. To prepare nano-crystalline thin films we used a short reaction time with no doping Bi added At low levels of irradiance (0.1 mW/cm(2)) and room temperature (RT), the macro-crystalline PbS outperforms its nano-crystalline counterpart, by a factor of 6 for the value of Delta R/R-dark. However the nano-crystalline photodetectors show significantly lower optical quenching for large values of irradiance (approximate to 500 mW/cm(2)) at RT and better Delta R/R-dark performance at lower temperature, with an optimum temperature Of 150 K. The low frequency noise behavior is a superposition of 1/f flicker noise at low frequency and generation-recombination and thermal noise at higher frequency. The proportionaliiy factor between the 1/f noise and the DC dark current for the series resistor is 1.5 times larger for the nano-crystalline photodetector at room temperature.

706. Quantum confinement modeling of electrical and optical processes in nanocrystalline silicon

Authors: Ciurea, ML; Iancu, V; Stavarache, I

Published: DEC 2006, JOURNAL OF OPTOELECTRONICS AND ADVANCED MATERIALS, 8, 2160, DOI:

The paper presents a quantum confinement model for the electrical transport, the phototransport and the photoluminescence phenomena in nanocrystalline silicon. The infinite rectangular quantum well was proved to be the best choice for the investigated systems - nanocrystalline porous silicon and silicon nanodots embedded in an amorphous silicon dioxide matrix. Previous microstructure investigations have shown that the nanocrystalline porous silicon is formed by a nanowire network, so that the electron Hamiltonian is the sum of a one-dimensional Bloch-like Hamiltonian and a two-dimensional infinite rectangular quantum well. In the case of the silicon nanodots, the quantum well is three-dimensional. In both cases, the quantum well introduces quantum confinement levels in the band gap, the investigated phenomena being related with transitions between these levels.

707. Characterization of {111} planar defects induced in silicon by hydrogen plasma treatments

Authors: Ghica, C; Nistor, LC; Bender, H; Richard, O; Van Tendeloo, G; Ulyashin, A

Published: NOV 11 2006, PHILOSOPHICAL MAGAZINE, 86, 5151, DOI: 10.1080/14786430600801443

Microstructural characterization by transmission electron microscopy of the {111} planar defects induced in Si by treatment in hydrogen plasma is discussed. The {111} defects are analyzed by conventional ( TEM) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). Quantitative image processing by the geometrical phase method is applied to the experimental high-resolution image of an edge-on oriented {111} defect to measure the local displacements and strain field around it. Using these data, a structural model of the defect is derived. The validity of the structural model is checked by high-resolution image simulation and comparison with experimental images.

708. Electronic transport in Si-SiO2 nanocomposite films

Authors: Ciurea, ML; Teodorescu, VS; Iancu, V; Balberg, I

Published: MAY 20 2006, CHEMICAL PHYSICS LETTERS, 423, 228, DOI: 10.1016/j.cplett.2006.03.070

We report experimental investigations and modeling of the electronic transport in Si-SiO2 nanocomposite films. The current-voltage characteristics measured at room temperature are interpreted as due to high field-assisted tunneling. The activation energies from the current-temperature curves,are given by the energy separations between quantum confinement electronic states, determined from a quantum well model. Consequently, the calculated mean diameter of a nanodot (5.2 nm) is in good agreement with the microstructure data (5 nm). Also, the potential barrier between nanocrystalline Si and amorphous SiO2, previously obtained for nanocrystalline oxidized porous Si (2.2 eV), is confirmed. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

709. Growth and characterization of high density stoichiometric SiO2 dot arrays on Si through an anodic porous alumina template

Authors: Kokonou, M; Nassiopoulou, AG; Giannakopoulos, KP; Travlos, A; Stoica, T; Kennou, S

Published: MAY 14 2006, NANOTECHNOLOGY, 17, 2151, DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/17/9/011

In this work, we present the fabrication and full characterization of stoichiometric SiO2 nanoisland arrays ( dots) on silicon, grown through an anodic porous alumina template. Atomic force and transmission electron microscopy (AFM, TEM) were used to characterize the morphology, size, size distribution and density of the dots as a function of the anodization time used. It was found that dot density is lower for very short anodization times, and it stabilizes after a certain time. The dot height increases rapidly after nucleation, reaching values of 8 - 10 nm. With prolonged oxidation the dots continue to nucleate to fill the available area on the silicon surface underneath the porous alumina, while the well developed dots grow in height and width, reaching saturation values at 14 and 55 nm respectively. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and electron energy loss spectroscopy ( EELS) were used to investigate the stoichiometry and surface coverage of the dots.

710. Electron-trapping centers and interstitials in chlorinated SrCl2 : Fe single crystals

Authors: Ghica, D; Nistor, SV; Goovaerts, E; Schoemaker, D; Vrielinck, H; Callens, F

Published: MAY 2006, PHYSICAL REVIEW B, 73, DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.73.174103

Electron-trapped Fe+-type centers, produced by x-ray irradiation at 80 K and further annealing at higher temperatures in iron-doped SrCl2 single crystals grown in chlorine gas, have been investigated by electron paramagnetic resonance. The Fe+(III) and Fe+(IIIa) centers, produced by annealing at temperatures higher than 200 K, exhibit monoclinic local symmetry with the two g down arrow- tensor principal axes situated in the (110) plane slightly tilted away from the [001] and [1-10] directions, respectively. The Fe+(IV) center, observed after several cycles of irradiation and annealing to 700 K, exhibits tetragonal local symmetry around < 100 > and a well-resolved four-component structure, attributed to the superhyperfine interaction with a neighboring monovalent impurity ion. The presence and properties of the low symmetry radiation-induced Fe+ paramagnetic centers are attributed to trapping and the thermally activated movement of chlorine interstitials. Both precursor Fe2+ and resulting Fe+ centers are perturbed by these interstitials, which are introduced in SrCl2:Fe crystals during growth under a chlorine atmosphere.