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The performance of nanoelectronic and molecular electronic devices relies strongly on the employed functional units and their addressability, which is often a matter of appropriate interfaces and device design. Here, we compare two promising designs to build solid-state electronic devices utilizing the same functional unit. Optically addressable Ru-terpyridine complexes were incorporated in supramolecular wires or employed as ligands of gold nanoparticles and contacted by nanoelectrodes. The resulting small-area nanodevices were thoroughly electrically characterized as a function of temperature and light exposure. Differences in the resulting device conductance could be attributed to the device design and the respective transport mechanism, that is, thermally activated hopping conduction in the case of Ru-terpyridine wire devices or sequential tunneling in nanoparticle-based devices. Furthermore, the conductance switching of nanoparticle-based devices upon 530 nm irradiation was attributed to plasmon-induced metal-to-ligand charge transfer in the Ru-terpyridine complexes used as switching ligands. Finally, our results reveal a superior device performance of nanoparticle-based devices compared to molecular wire devices based on Ru-terpyridine complexes as functional units.
It is common practice to use maximum FAST time-weighted sound pressure levels to assess transient impact noise, as these levels correlate well with human perception of impact noise. Maximum FAST time-weighted levels are known to be dependent on the reverberation time of the receiving room. In previous studies, an analytical correction term was developed using a Dirac impulse. The correction term is used to calculate the maximum FAST time-weighted levels from peak sound pressure levels. Peak levels are independent of the reverberation time of the room. Applying the correction term makes it possible to compare measurement results from different rooms. The correction term has been validated in several studies for the standard rubber impact ball. In this paper, the influence of the source signal (Dirac impulse) on the correction term is studied. Analytical and numerical models are employed to investigate the consequences of stretching the impulse in time and of changing its shape. The results are compared with empirical solutions developed in other studies.
Self-assembled and coherently strained Ge dots were grown on a Si/SiGe superlattice, which was deposited on a flat Si(001) substrate surface patterned with a regular array of straight trenches. The superlattice translates the surface modulation of the substrate into a strain-field modulation, which causes the Ge dots on its surface to form along straight lines above the buried trenches. This approach provides self-assembled Ge dots with excellent lateral periodicity, which might be useful for fabricating dot-based field-effect-transistors (DotFETs). Here, we propose the concept of a modulation-doped p-channel DotFET (p-MOD-DotFET). The p-MOD-DotFET relies on embedded Ge-rich nanostructures, which provide p-channels through the Ge-rich dots. A high Ge concentration in the dots is desirable in order to exploit the high hole mobility of Ge-rich material. We show that the commonly observed Si–Ge intermixing during Si capping of Ge dots can be suppressed by overgrowing the islands at low temperature.
Feldemissionselektronenquellen sind aufgrund ihrer prinzipiellen Vorteile gegenüber Glühkathoden bereits seit längerer Zeit Gegenstand der Forschung und werden bisher nur in einigen Spezialanwendungen erfolgreich eingesetzt. Hierbei werden Einzelspitzen mit Spannungen im kV-Bereich und Strömen im nA-Bereich betrieben. Dagegen werden für miniaturisierte Sensorsysteme eher Spannungen von ca. 100 V und Ströme von ca. 1 mA benötigt. Dazu wurden bisher meist Feldemissionskathoden mit CNTs vorgeschlagen, welche für Anwendungen in der Halbleiterindustrie aufgrund des Kohlenstoffanteils nicht erwünscht sind. Ziel unserer Arbeit ist es, Si-basierte Elektronenquellen zu realisieren, die mit anderen miniaturisierten Vakuumsensoren auf einem Chip integrierbar sind. Mithilfe eines optimierten Herstellungsprozesses konnten wir p-Si-Spitzenarrays mit Spitzenradien von wenigen nm realisieren [1]. Messungen an diesen Strukturen zeigen ein sehr homogenes Emissionsverhalten, das vor allem im Sättigungsbereich bei Emissionsströmen von ca. 10 nA pro Spitze zeitlich stabil (Schwankungen < 5 %) und optisch schaltbar (Faktor > 2.5) ist [2].
The finite element simulation program COMSOL Multiphysics® was used to simulate the emission efficiency of a silicon tip electron source in triode configuration for different geometries and electrode potentials. The simulation predicts a maximum emission efficiency of 84% for an optimized structure. In a second simulation a gate electrode was concentrically arranged above a single CNT column. Here, the efficiency was simulated as a function of gate hole geometry, electrode potentials and distances between the electrodes. The simulation shows that a conical shape of the gate hole results in an efficiency up to nearly 100%.
The study on electrical properties for both 2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethyl-21,23H-porphine Cu (II) (Cu-porphyrin) and 2,3,7,8,12,13,17,18-octaethyl-21,23H-porphine (porphyrin) thin film, which were fabricated using spin coating method was conducted. Porphyrins were diluted with chloroform of various concentrations (0.05 mg/ml, 0.1 mg/ml, 0.5 mg/ml, 2.0 mg/ml and 3.0 mg/ml). The solution was spin coated on top of glass substrates. A layer of aluminum was evaporated on top of the organic thin film through thermal evaporation and shadow mask was placed on top of the organic thin film where two electrodes with a gap of 50 μm were formed. Surface morphology of the organic thin film was observed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and profilometer. Different concentrations of organic solutions greatly affected the molecular packing and arrangement order of the organic thin film and thickness of the organic layer and eventually affected electrical properties of the devices.
The electron current from field-emitting B-doped Si-tip arrays under illumination was studied. An improved cathode design with a patch of 271 tips yielded a reproducible cathode current between 0.2-2000 nA in the electric field range of 3.8-6.6 V/μm. The plateau in the Fowler-Nordheim plot shows the actual carrier depletion and leads to a very stable emission at ~1 μA with a current noise of less than 3.3 %. Color-filtered halogen lamp illumination was used to investigate the photo-sensitivity of the saturation current. The intensity-normalized current switching ratio increases nonlinearly with the photon energy. This hints either for secondary generation in the conduction band or deeper valence band excitation. The first is supported by a rough estimation of the quantum efficiency. Further experiments with a tunable laser and electron spectroscopy are planned.
The influence of laser illumination on the integral as well as on the energy-resolved electron currents from well-defined p-doped Si-tip arrays was investigated. First results have provided stable cathode currents between 100 nA and 500 μA in a field range of 2-20 V/μm. Green laser illumination resulted in an enhanced cathode current and an increased population of the conduction band which can be seen in the spectra. Charging of the cathode surface, however, leads to a shift and broadening of the spectra which complicate their analysis. Therefore, further experiments with a rotatable cathode and a varying number of tips as well as with a tunable laser are planned.
A micromachined process to assemble homogeneous and reproducible tip arrays for field emission applications is developed and characterized. As substrate material p- as well as n-doped silicon is used. Lateral position of the tips is defined by structuring silicon dioxide to discs in a photolithographic process. Vertical structure of the tips is defined by a combination of RIE dry etching with controlled anisotropy and thermally oxidization of silicon in order to sharpen the tips. Hence field emitter arrays (FEAs) can be assembled both as bare and coated cathodes. To assemble field emission diodes, this fabrication process allows placing a metal anode in a micrometer order distance to the tips by a self-aligning procedure. The anode is placed in an evaporation process whereupon sharpening oxide is used as isolator between anode and cathode. Electrical characterization of the cathodes showed very good homogeneity, well alignment and stability over time of emission current from all tips (i.e. 100% efficiency).
The performance of free electron lasers depends on the brilliance of the electron source. Nowadays photo-cathodes (e.g. Cs2Te) are used despite of their high emittance. To develop robust and more brilliant cathodes we have built up an UHV system which enables systematic photoemission (PE) measurements with a tunable pulsed laser (hv) at high electric fields (E). First results on Au and Ag crystals revealed only low quantum efficiency (QE) due to fast electron relaxation. Hence, we have started QE(hv,E) investigations on n- and p-Si wafers. Resonant PE was observed above as well as below the work function O, which can be assigned to optical transitions in the electronic band structure or explained by thermally excited states at the bottom of the conduction band. As expected, only low QE values were achieved even for n-Si probably due to surface oxide. Moreover, a significant rise of the QE peaks above O were obtained for n-Si at E >8 MV/m but limited by the occurrence of parasitic field emission from dust particles.
Efficient and reliable field emission from silicon tip arrays for miniaturized electron sources
(2011)
Silicon-based cathodes with precisely aligned field emitter arrays (FEA) applicable for miniaturized electron sources were successfully developed and fabricated. The cathode chips contain about 3×105 Si tips/cm2 in a triangular array with a tip height of 2.5 μm, tip radius of 20 nm, and lateral distance between tips of 20 μm. Amazingly homogeneous and well-aligned field emission (FE) from all tips (i.e. 100% efficiency) and maximum stable currents of typically 0.1 μA for p- and 0.6 μA for n-type Si were reproducibly achieved. Current-voltage characteristics of p-type Si tips exhibit the expected saturation at around 10 nA due to limited supply of electrons from a depletion layer, while the n-type Si tips show the usual FN behaviour. Additional coating of the Si tips with a 10 nm Au layer resulted in at least 5 times higher average FE current levels i.e. typically 3 μA but lead, however, to a 30% increase of the onset voltage.
We report on the design, fabrication and characterization of p-type silicon field emitter arrays for the application in compact fast switchable electron sources. Since standard silicon technology has been used to prepare the devices, they can be easily integrated with other silicon based sensors and electronic components, too. The emitter arrays consist of approx. 3×105 tips per cm2, with a tip radius less than 20 nm. By using self-aligned processes, an integrated gate electrode with a diameter of 3 μm was placed concentrically around the tips. A mesh of silicon-beams with a grating period of 100 μm and beam width of 20 μm forms the anode of the electron source. A glass wafer (thickness 300 μm) acts as spacer between anode and Si-tip cathode. Characterization of the field emission properties of the emitter arrays was performed by high resolution field emission scanning microscopy. The emitter arrays exhibit a highly stable and very homogeneous emission. A maximum stable current of 0.1 μA per tip was found. A saturation level in the voltage current characteristics, which was found at around 10 nA, supports current stabilisation and will enable optical modulation of the emission current.
We have fabricated a test chip with various hexagonal arrays of B-doped Si tips (height ~ 3 μm, apex radius <; 30 nm, number 1-4447, resistivity 4 Ωcm, 100 orientation) in triangular arrangement (pitch 10 μm, density 1.16×10 6 cm -2 ) in order to systematically investigate the field emission current scaling with the number N of tips. Regulated voltage scans for 1 nA revealed rather efficient emission from nearly all tips of the arrays at an average field of 15 V/μm. The expected current plateau was always obtained at fields around 20 V/μm, but its width strongly increased with N. In this carrier depletion range, the single tip provided a much higher stability (<; 5%) of the current (2-3 nA) than at lower (>; 50 %) and higher currents (>; 30%). Integral current measurements of the hexagonal arrays resulted in a statistically improved current stability (<; 1%) but only a weak increase of the total current with N 0.28 yet. These results will be discussed with respect to the remaining inhomogeneity of the tips.
In order to optimize our field-emitting silicon structures, the influence of geometric parameters like aspect ratio, aperture angle and curvature on the field enhancement factor was investigated by finite element simulations. A universal geometric model consisting of a rounded triangle and elliptic curvatures was taken for modeling a variety of different silicon tip as well as ridge structures. Whereas, a high dependency of the field enhancement on the aperture angle was found, the simulations show that the elliptic curvature affects the field enhancement only marginal.
Silicon-based cathodes with precisely aligned field emitter arrays of sharp tips applicable for miniaturized electron sources were successfully fabricated and characterized. This was made possible by an improved fabrication process using wet thermal oxidation, wet etching, and reactive-ion etching steps with adjustable anisotropy. As substrate materials, both p-doped silicon and n-doped silicon were used. The cathode chips contain about 3 × 10 5 Si tips/cm 2 in a triangular array with tip heights of 2.5 μm, tip radii of less than 30 nm, and spacing of 20 μm. Well-aligned field emission (FE) and excellent homogeneity from all tips (i.e., 100% efficiency) and maximum stable currents of typically 0.1 μA (0.6 μA) for p (n)-type Si were reproducibly achieved. The current-voltage characteristics of the p-Si tips exhibit the expected saturation at around 10 nA with around ten times better current stability, whereas the n-Si tips show the usual Fowler-Nordheim behavior. Additional coating of the Si tips with 5-nm Cr and 10-nm Au layers resulted in improved stability and at least five times higher average FE current limits (about 3 μA) at about 30% higher operation voltage.
The homogeneity of emitters is very important for the performance of field emission (FE) devices. Reactive-ion etching (RIE) and oxidation have significant influences on the geometry of silicon tips. The RIE influences mainly the anisotropy of the emitters. Pressure has a strong impact on the anisotropic factor. Reducing the pressure results in a higher anisotropy, but the etch rate is also lower. A longer time of etching compensates this effect. Furthermore an improvement of homogeneity was observed. The impact of uprating is quite low for the anisotropic factor, but significant for the homogeneity. At low power the height and undercut of the emitters are more constant over the whole wafer. The oxidation itself is very homogeneous and has no observable effect on further variation of the homogeneity. This modified fabrication process allows solving the problem of inhomogeneity of previous field emission arrays.
The high surface to volume ratio of nanoparticles allows a detailed experimental study of the surface phenomena associated with solid bridging. Besides bulk analyses, the local view on the structure and composition via HRTEM is particularly essential. 50 nm core shell particles consisting of a silicon (Si) core and a SiO2 shell were used as model system to understand surface phenomena appearing for Si-based nanostructures. Evaporative drying from de-ionized water shows the most significant bridging effect based on SiO2. There is only a localized deposition of oxides between the particles during the drying process and no overall oxidation. For the deposition material, silicates are the most likely candidates.
The performance of thermal conductivity vacuum gauges can be improved by a well-designed geometry. The lower measurement range limit is determined by the size of the active sensing area and the thermal conduction heat losses through the supporting structures. The upper measurement range is limited by the distance between the heated element and the cold reference plane. Silicon based MEMS-technology gives the possibility to fabricate both sensing structures with suitable areas out of low thermal conductive materials and narrow gaps in order to extend the measurement range in both directions. In this work we present a MEMS-process to fabricate high thermal resistance sensor structures. The rectangular sensitive areas are anchored by four beams and are structured out of low thermal conductive PECVD-siliconnitride films with 1 µm in thickness. The metallic heating structure is completely embedded in the SiN-layer. Both sensitive area and its support beams were released from the silicon bulk material by anisotropic underetching. In this way a free-supporting structure with a gap of 150 μm to the silicon substrate was formed. The influence of the filament geometry and temperature was systematically investigated to determine the properties of the chips as thermal conductivity vacuum gauges. The temperature of the sensitive area was held constant by a self-balancing bridge circuit and the heating power was measured by a Δ-Σ-ADC. The average solid state thermal conductivity is in the order of 106WK1. The measuring range of the most sensitive structures covers 8 orders of magnitude from 105 mbar to 1000mbar.
We report on the field emission properties of GaN LED surfaces. The textured extraction facet acts both as light scattering layer in order to increase the light extraction efficiency of the LED as well as nanostructured cathode surface for the field emission (FE) of electrons. The LED emits blue light with a peak wavelength of around 450 nm. The FE properties were investigated by a scanning microscope. Integral measurements as well as regulated voltage scans for 1 nA FE current over an area of 400 * 400 µm2were used to investigate both overall and local FE properties. A high number of well-distributed emitters with an average field enhancement factor ß of 85 and stable integral emission currents up to 100 µA at an electric field of 80 V/µm (Øanode= 880 µm) were found. Photo-field-emission spectroscopy (PFES) using a tunable pulsed laser revealed an enhanced photo absorption of the InGaN/GaN quantum well structures near the emission wavelength of the LED (<3.5 eV), whereas at high photon energies (>4.1 eV) photoemission from the GaN surface was observed.
In order to improve the uniformity and field emission stability of p-type silicon tip arrays for pulsed sensor applications, we have systematically studied the influence of the fabrication parameters on the tip shape and the specific operating conditions. Based on detailed design calculations of the field enhancement, we have fabricated a series of hexagonal arrays of B-doped Si-tips in a triangular arrangement, each containing a different number of tips (91, 575 and 1300) of 1 μm height, 20 nm apex radius, and 20 μm pitch. The field emission properties of both individual tips and complete arrays were investigated with by field emission scanning microscopy. The current plateaus of these tips typically occur at about 10 nA and 60 V/μm field level. In this carrier depletion range, single tips provide the highest current stability (<; 4%) and optical current switching ratios of ~2.5. Rather homogeneous emission of the tip arrays leads to an almost linear scaling of the saturation current (2 nA/tip) and to a much improved current stability (<; 1%) measured over 1 hour.
Online trace analysis based on UV/Vis spectroscopy requires long detection paths. Therefore an isotropic wet etch process in silicon is developed to fabricate a 300 µm deep channel with low channel wall roughness for desired light guidance application. Four etchant compositions were compared in terms of etching rate, surface roughness and selectivity in a beaker process. The best fitting mixture was selected. To further increase the surface quality (bubble issue) a spin etcher tool is used for producing the channels. The dependence of homogeneity and defect density on media flux, and rotation velocity was investigated. Results show that high rotation velocity and high media flux lead to great defects in the channel wall. Through rotation of the wafer during etching, the etching rate of silicon rises compared to the beaker process due to the rapid removal of etch products and simultaneous supply of fresh etchant. After 38 min of etching, 300 µm deep semi-circular channels with high optical quality (Rq=10 nm±2 nm) over 3 m were produced.
In a recent study at the National Research Council Canada, the sound transmission in cold-formed steel-framed constructions was investigated. The results of direct sound insulation tests of wall and floor assemblies were reported at EURONOISE 2015 and INTERNOISE 2015. This paper focuses on flanking sound transmission in cold-formed steel-framed constructions. A representative full-scale mock-up specimen was constructed in NRC’s 8-room flanking transmission facility. The specimen consists of four loadbearing walls with 152 mm deep steel studs, four non-loadbearing walls with 92mm deep steel studs, and four floor-ceiling assemblies consisting of steel joists and a composite steel deck with gypsum concrete. Measurements were conducted according to the indirect method described in ISO 10848. The individual flanking paths were measured by a sequence of transmission loss measurements in which other transmission paths were suppressed by shielding. For the bare specimen without linings, the sound transmission for horizontally adjacent rooms with continuous subfloors is dominated by the floor-floor flanking paths. Floor coverings or floor toppings are needed to meet the requirements in the National Building Code of Canada. This paper presents details of the measurements, highlights some of the results and discusses implications.
In high-tech processing even smallest concentrations of metal ions in process media are of the utmost significance because they cause expensive production failures. Currently, cost-intensive equipment, special trained staff and time consuming analyses are necessary to detect these contaminations in order to avoid failures. The Centers of Excellence Nanochem and Sensorics at the University of Applied Sciences Regensburg (owner of patent PCT/EP2010/064833) and their industrial partner Micro-Epsilon GmbH are developing a new miniaturized measurement device which allows cost-effective real-time analysis of fluidic media for the first time. The system is fully automated and can be directly connected to wet-etch benches. Hence it allows continuous real-time surveillance of metal contaminations in the ppb-range through absorption spectroscopy in process media. For this purpose a very small sample amount of the process medium and a specific complexing agent are mixed together. This leads to an increase in the molar extinction coefficients and though even smallest contaminations become visible. The main parts of our development are the simulation of the different system components, their production and chemical analyses with the evaluation model.
The mechanical stability of nanostructures depends on the surrounding medium. Their stability was probed by lateral force microscopy in liquid media. Previously reported data on water and isopropanol showed an increase in the fracture strength for the latter. Further tests with other alcohols (ethanol, 1-butanol) also showed an increasing strength. The interface between the liquid and the surface is the decisive factor for the influence of the media. When altering the interface with a cationic surfactant or a self-assembled monolayer, an increase of the fracture force by 100 % compared to de-ionized water could be measured.
Enhanced particle removal processes in wet cleaning as well as drying processes of semiconductor wafers can cause significant lateral forces on surface structures. These forces, however, must not exceed the mechanical stability of structures on the wafer. Thus, a mechanical fracture test was used to assess the lateral mechanical stability of polysilicon line structures in relevant process liquids. The mechanical test was based on nanomanipulation with an atomic force microscope. Compared to fracture tests in air, data acquired in liquid isopropanol revealed a stabilizing effect. The differences in fracture forces can be attributed to a stress corrosion process on the surface. The size of the generated damage was influenced by the viscosity of the surrounding media.
While surface kinetics measurements for single atom diffusion have proliferated, little work exists attempting to measure surface dynamics under equilibrium conditions. We will present our recent work on developing Temporal LEED Spectroscopy (TLS) as a dynamic probe of surfaces capable of kinetics measurements at both high temperatures and surface coverages. By tuning the diffraction to specific structural entities such as steps, islands, etc., and monitoring the diffracted signal as a function of time, dynamics information about these structures can be obtained. As an example we will present TLS results for the dynamics of step fluctuations on Si(001) [1]. We have measured activation energies and identified step-edge diffusion as the rate limiting process for 950K < T < 1130K. Although this result is in apparent disagreement with earlier work, a careful analysis, considering crossover temperatures between different microscopic processes, can reconcile the differences. 1. M. Kammler, et al., Phys. Rev. B (in press).
We present the first demonstration of Temporal LEED Spectroscopy’s ability to measure surface dynamics as shown by a study of step dynamics on vicinal Si(001). While we measure activation energies consistent with other work, the observed microscopic mechanism driving the fluctuations is inconsistent with previous claims. We exclude evaporation/condensation of atoms from the steps as the rate limiting kinetics in the temperature range of this experiment. Possible reasons for these differences are discussed.
Ultrafast X-ray diffraction
(2004)
Many fundamental processes in nature, such as chemical reactions and phase transitions involve rearrangement of the constituent atoms. Such changes cannot be directly measured with visible light and occur transiently on time-scales comparable with the natural oscillation periods of atoms (femtoseconds to picoseconds). We present experiments on Ge-111 films irradiated with 100-fs 800-nm light pulses and probed by a time-delayed sub-ps x-ray pulse at 8 keV. After excitation of a dense electron-hole plasma within the 160-nm film, the ultrafast pathway of lattice disordering is measured as a function laser fluence. For close-to-threshold irradiation, inhomogeneous thermal melting, occurring via surface nucleation of the liquid phase and growth into the bulk determines the dynamics of the solid-to-liquid phase transition. For excitation at about twice the melting threshold, a nonthermal pathway, starting from a highly excited cold solid and relaxing into a hot liquid causes ultrafast melting. At long time delays, nearly perfect recrystallization of a (111) crystal is observed.
Summary form only given. Ultrashort x-ray pulses offer a unique combination of atomic-scale spatial and temporal resolution, which permits direct measurements of structural transients on an ultrafast time scale. Using time-resolved X-ray diffraction with femtosecond, multi-keV X-ray pulses we have studied transient lattice dynamics in optically excited semiconductors.
Summary form only given, as follow. Ultrafast optical-pump, X-ray diffraction probe experiments are providing new ways to study transient processes including the direct observation of the atomic motion by which many solid-state processes and chemical and biochemical reactions take place. Current table-top-terawatt femtosecond laser systems provide an attractive source of few-hundred femtosecond duration bursts of angstrom-scale X-ray radiation with fluxes comparable to standard rotating anode sources. Their compact size enables time resolved structural dynamics to be studied in the small laboratory with temporal resolution better than typical molecular vibrational periods. Ultrafast structural dynamics in crystalline samples are readily studied with such systems and experiments to be discussed in this talk include ultrafast non-thermal solid-to-liquid transition in thin single-crystal Ge-111 films grown on Si-111 substrates; ultrafast non-thermal solid-to-solid transitions in bulk vanadium dioxide from a low temperature insulating phase to a high temperature metallic phase; and harmonic and anharmonic coherent acoustic dynamics in layered Ge-111/Si-111 and bulk GaAs-111 samples. Future improvements in high-average power short-pulse lasers will enable the study of a wider class of materials such as amorphous solids or liquid-phase dynamics of simple molecules, while proposed 4th generation light sources based upon single-pass X-ray free-electron lasers will permit singleshot structural determination of complex biomolecules.
Ultrafast time resolved reflection high energy electron diffraction with tilted pump pulse fronts
(2013)
We present time-resolved RHEED from a laser excited Pb(111) surface using a pulse front tilter for the compensation of the velocity mismatch of electrons and light. The laser pulses with tilted fronts were characterized by a spatially resolving cross correlator. The response of the surface upon excitation was observed to be less than 2 ps.
The first fabrication of Ge p-channel MOSFETs (p-MOSFETs) on Si substrates is reported. A CMOS compatible process based on relaxed Ge layers grown on Si(111) substrates by surfactant mediated epitaxy (SME) was used. The non-optimised low temperature process yielded normally-off Ge p-MOSFETs with record channel drift mobilities of 430 cm<sup>2</sup>/Vs
Using ultrafast, time-resolved, 1.54 angstrom x-ray diffraction, thermal and ultrafast nonthermal melting of germanium, involving passage through nonequilibrium extreme states of matter, was observed. Such ultrafast, optical-pump, x-ray diffraction probe measurements provide a way to study many other transient processes in physics, chemistry, and biology, including direct observation of the atomic motion by which many solid-state processes and chemical and biochemical reactions take place.
We have tested Bi for the surfactant mediated epitaxy of Ge on Si(111). Islanding of Ge is prevented and a 2D layer growth of smooth and continuous Ge films is observed. The lattice mismatch is accommodated by a periodic array of dislocations confined to the Si/Ge interface. The large covalent radius of Bi reduces the binding energy, allowing Very efficient segregation and low doping levels even at low growth temperatures. Unfortunately, this results also in a high Bi desorption flux limiting the possible growth temperatures below 600 degrees C. Consequently the Ge films show a high defect density in the order of 10(8) cm(-2) for stacking faults and 10(9) cm(-2) for dislocations which limit electron Hall mobility to values below 700 cm(2)/V s at room temperature.
Damping of impulsively generated coherent acoustic oscillations in a femtosecond laser-heated thin germanium film is measured as a function of fluence by means of ultrafast x-ray diffraction. By simultaneously measuring picosecond strain dynamics in the film and in the unexcited silicon substrate, we separate anharmonic damping from acoustic transmission through the buried interface. The measured damping rate and its dependence on the calculated temperature of the thermal bath is consistent with estimated four-body, elastic dephasing times (T2) for 7-GHz longitudinal acoustic phonons in germanium.
Transient lattice dynamics in fs-laser-excited semiconductors probed by ultrafast X-ray diffraction
(2001)
A study of lattice dynamics in fs-laser-excited crystalline bulk Ge and Ge/Si-heterostructures, using time-resolved x-ray diffraction, was presented. Fast energy transport deep into the bulk of the material, coherent acoustic phonon dynamics, lattice anharmonicity, and vibrational transport across a buried interfaces were observed. Graphs showing time-dependent shifts of the centroid of the measured rocking curves in the Ge-overlayer and in the Si-substrate for different fluences, were presented.
Time-resolved x-ray diffraction with ultrashort ( approximately 300 fs), multi-keV x-ray pulses has been used to study the femtosecond laser-induced solid-to-liquid phase transition in a thin crystalline layer of germanium. Nonthermal melting is observed to take place within 300-500 fs. Following ultrafast melting we observe strong acoustic perturbations evolving on a picosecond time scale.
We present equilibrium measurements of the dynamics of steps on Si(001) using temporal electron-diffraction spectroscopy. Activation energies and the rate limiting kinetics are identified for 950K<~T<~1130K. Unlike previous studies at higher temperatures, we can exclude evaporation and condensation of atoms or dimers from the step edges as the rate limiting process in this temperature regime. The possible reason for this difference is discussed in terms of a crossover from different rate-limiting kinetics.
Au induced faceting of vicinal Si(1 1 1) has been studied during adsorption at elevated temperature by spot profile analyzing of low energy electron diffraction and after quenching to room temperature by scanning tunneling microscopy. On the surfaces inclined towards five different types of facets form with increasing Au coverage at adsorption temperatures Tads below 800 °C. They are (4 4 3), (7 7 5), (5 5 3), a stepped (2 2 1), and the (3 3 1) facets. Atomic models for the (5 5 3) and (7 7 5) facet planes are proposed on the basis of high resolution STM images. At C we found the formation of an ordered step train which covers the entire surface. With further increasing Au coverage the stepped surface decomposes again into (1 1 1) terraces and step bunches. Driving force is the formation of the Si(1 1 1)-(5×2)–Au reconstruction.
We describe two new approaches to the patterning of Si(1 0 0) surfaces for controlled nucleation of heteroepitaxial Ge semiconductor clusters. In the first method, a Ga ' -focused ion beam in situ to the growth chamber is used to create local regions of enhanced Ga ' concentration and surface topography. It is shown that at low ion doses (Â/10 14 cm (2), implanted Ga causes local nucleation of Ge clusters upon the implanted region. At higher doses (]/10 15 cm (2), a complex surface topography localizes nucleation of Ge clusters. This approach can be used to seed complex patterns of Ge clusters with diameters of tens of nanometers and positional accuracy of sub-100 nm. The second method employs self-assembly of complex strain-stabilized ''quantum quadruplet'' and ''quantum fortress'' structures, whereby cooperative island nucleation around shallow strain-relieving pits is identified during Ge x Si 1(x /Si(1 0 0) heteroepitaxy. These configurations are kinetically limited structures that exist over a range of compositions, growth temperatures, and growth rates, but which are destabilized by strain relaxation (e.g. by the introduction of misfit dislocations) and by growth conditions which provide high adatom surface mobilities. Both methods have broad potential application to nanoelectronic device architectures. 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Surfactant mediated epitaxy of Si(1−x)Gex alloys on Si(111) can, besides technological importance, clarify the influence of the lattice mismatch during surfactant mediated heteroepitaxial growth. For low Ge concentration we find an immediate layer-by-layer growth, whereas at high Ge concentration a roughening transition followed by relaxation of the lattice mismatch in a periodic dislocation network is preferred. This behavior can be explained by comparing the dislocation nucleation rate on a smooth surface with the island nucleation rate on a pseudomorphic film.
We present a new method to analyze the strain state of epitaxial hetero structures by high-resolution spot profile analysis low-energy electron diffraction. From the variation of the spot profiles with the vertical scattering vector we determine the hetero film roughness, the change of interlayer spacing due to tetragonal distortion, and the variation of the interlayer distance due to partial relaxation of the strained rough film. The practical implementation of this method is simple and can be used to determine the onset of strain-relieving defects during the growth process.
The epitaxial growth of Bi on Si(1 1 1) studied by spot profile analyzing low energy electron diffraction shows for low coverage rotationally disordered Bi cluster with preferred orientations following the threefold symmetry of the Si substrate. With further deposition the Bi cluster coalesces and the surface orientation changes from the pseudo cubic Bi(1 1 0) surface orientation of the Bi cluster into the hexagonal Bi(1 1 1) surface of the resulting Bi film.
We analyze the nucleation of dislocations in silicon at spatially localized stress fields generated by silicon nitride pads having a high intrinsic stress. The nucleation and final configuration of the dislocations were studied using hot-stage transmission electron microscopy and were compared with dislocation simulations based on calculations of the stress fields around the pads. We find that the simulated configurations match well with the experimental data, and we show that the dislocation configuration can be controlled by the pad size.
We investigate the fundamental mechanism by which self-assembled Ge islands can be nucleated at specific sites on Si(001) using ultra-low-dose focused ion beam (FIB) pre-patterning. Island nucleation is controlled by a nanotopography that forms after the implantation of Ga ions during subsequent thermal annealing of the substrate. This nanotopography evolves during the annealing stage, changing from a nanoscale annular depression associated with each focused ion beam spot to a nanoscale pit, and eventually disappearing (planarizing). The correspondence of Ge quantum dot nucleation sites to the focused ion beam features requires a growth surface upon which the nanotopography is preserved. A further key observation is that the Ge wetting layer thickness is reduced in patterned regions, allowing the formation of islands on the templated regions without nucleation elsewhere. These results provide routes to the greatly enhanced design and control of quantum dot distributions and dimensions.
The chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of Si and Ge on Si(0 0 1) substrates covered by 1 monolayer of Ga has been studied. Ga modifies surface reactivity and surface atom mobility. We show that islanding occurs during Ga-mediated CVD even in the absence of strain, allowing for the formation of islands without a wetting layer or with a thinner wetting layer. The morphology of the grown layer is highly dependent on kinetic parameters, i.e. growth temperature and growth pressure, that control Si and Ge deposition and Ga desorption. Si Ga-mediated CVD promotes the formation of self-assembled epitaxial Si islands exhibiting {1 1 3} facets. Ge islands grown by Ga-mediated CVD present reduced lateral sizes and an increased surface density compared to non Ga-mediated CVD. The growth morphology (particularly island size and density) can be understood by considering a qualitative model in which atoms are deposited only on sites whose dangling bonds are not passivated by Ga. We suggest that modification of surface reactivity during surfactant-mediated CVD can thus provide a new degree of freedom for quantum dot fabrication.
Ultrafast time resolved transmission electron diffraction (TED) in a reflection geometry was used to study the cooling behavior of self-organized, well defined nanoscale germanium hut and dome clusters on Si(001). The clusters were heated in a pump-probe scheme by fs-laser pulses. The resulting transient temperature rise was then determined from the drop in diffraction intensity caused by the Debye-Waller effect. From a cooling time of τ=177 ps we estimated a strongly reduced heat transfer compared with homogeneous films of equivalent thickness.
Bi(111) films grown on Si(111) at room temperature show a significantly higher roughness compared to Bi films grown on Si(100) utilizing a kinetic pathway based on a low-temperature process. Isochronal annealing steps of 3 min duration each with temperatures up to 200 °C cause a relaxation of the Bi films' lattice parameter toward the Bi bulk value and yield an atomically flat Bi surface. Driving force for the relaxation and surface reordering is the magic mismatch of 11 Bi atoms to 13 Si atoms that emerges at annealing temperatures above 150 °C and reduces the remaining strain to less than 0.2%.
We used ultrafast electron diffraction and density-functional theory calculations to gain insight into the charge density wave (CDW) formation on In/Si(111). Weak excitation by a femtosecond-laser pulse results in the melting of the CDW. The immediate freezing is hindered by a barrier for the motion of atoms during the phase transition: The melted CDW constitutes a long-lived, supercooled phase and is strong evidence for a first-order transition. The freezing into the CDW is triggered by preexisting adsorbates. Starting at these condensation nuclei, the CDW expands one dimensionally on the In/Si(111) surface, with a constant velocity of more than 80 m/s.
Many fundamental processes of structural changes at surfaces occur on a pico- or femtosecond time scale. In order to study such ultra-fast processes, we have combined modern surface science techniques with fs-laser pulses in a pump-probe scheme. Reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) with grazing incident electrons ensures surface sensitivity for the probing electron pulses. Utilizing the Debye-Waller effect, we studied the cooling of vibrational excitations in monolayer adsorbate systems or the nanoscale heat transport from an ultra-thin film through a hetero-interface on the lower ps-time scale. The relaxation dynamics of a driven phase transition far away from thermal equilibrium is demonstrated with the In-induced (8×2) reconstruction on Si(111). This surface exhibits a Peierls-like phase transition at 100K from a (8×2) ground state to (4×1) excited state. Upon excitation by a fs-laser pulse, this structural phase transition is driven into an excited (4×1) state at a sample temperature of 20K. Relaxation into the (8×2) ground state occurs after more than 150 ps.
Microstructural changes in silicon induced by patterning with focused ion beams of Ga, Si and Au
(2013)
We use focused beams of Ga(+), Au(+) and Si(++) ions to induce local microstructural changes in single crystal silicon. The ions were delivered as single spot pulses into thin Si membranes that could subsequently be imaged and annealed in situ in a transmission electron microscope. For each ion, the focused ion beam implantation created an array of amorphous regions in the crystalline membrane. Annealing causes solid phase epitaxial regrowth to take place, but we show that the resulting microstructure depends on the ion species. For Ga(+) and Au(+), precipitates remain after recrystallization, while for Si(++), dislocation loops form around the periphery of each implanted spot. We attribute these loops to defects formed during solid phase epitaxial regrowth, with controlled placement of the loops possible.
From measurements of the transient Debye-Waller effect in Bismuth, we determine the buildup time of the random atomic motion resulting from the electronic relaxation after short pulse laser excitation. The surface sensitive reflection high energy electron diffraction and transmission electron diffraction yield a time constant of about 12 ps and 3 ps, respectively. The different energy transfer rates indicate relatively weak coupling between bulk and surface vibrational modes. (C) 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.
We demonstrate that the nucleation sites of nanoscale, self-assembled Ge islands on Si(001) can be controlled by patterning the Si surface in situ with a focused ion beam. At low doses of 6000 Ga+ ions per <100 nm spot, the selective growth is achieved without modifying the initial surface topography. At larger doses, topographic effects produced by sputtering and redeposition control the selective nucleation sites. Islands grown on irradiated spots are smaller with higher aspect ratio than islands grown on clean Si(001), suggesting a strong surfactant effect of Ga.
We present the results of kinetics experiments on quantum-size-effects (QSE) Pb islands formed on Si(111). We have looked at the evolution of seven-layer Pb islands from five-layer Pb islands due to the transport of Pb atoms from the interisland region, overcoming a barrier at the island edges, and moving to the island tops. By analyzing low-energy electron-diffraction and scanning-tunneling microscopy data, we have estimated the barrier for layer formation in this system to be ∼0.32eV. This energy is much larger than that expected from QSE electronic contributions alone.
Femtosecond X-ray measurement of coherent lattice vibrations near the Lindemann stability limit
(2003)
The study of phase-transition dynamics in solids beyond a time-averaged kinetic description requires direct measurement of the changes in the atomic configuration along the physical pathways leading to the new phase. The timescale of interest is in the range 10(-14) to 10(-12) s. Until recently, only optical techniques were capable of providing adequate time resolution, albeit with indirect sensitivity to structural arrangement. Ultrafast laser-induced changes of long-range order have recently been directly established for some materials using time-resolved X-ray diffraction. However, the measurement of the atomic displacements within the unit cell, as well as their relationship with the stability limit of a structural phase, has to date remained obscure. Here we report time-resolved X-ray diffraction measurements of the coherent atomic displacement of the lattice atoms in photoexcited bismuth close to a phase transition. Excitation of large-amplitude coherent optical phonons gives rise to a periodic modulation of the X-ray diffraction efficiency. Stronger excitation corresponding to atomic displacements exceeding 10 per cent of the nearest-neighbour distance-near the Lindemann limit-leads to a subsequent loss of long-range order, which is most probably due to melting of the material.
We compare in-situ electron microscopy observations of Ge island growth on Si surfaces modulated by different techniques. Si(001) substrates were patterned either using a focused Ga ion beam or lithographically to produce similar feature sizes. In the case of the focused-ion-beam patterned substrates, chemical or strain effects caused by low Ga doses control the positions at which islands nucleate. Nucleation on topographically modulated substrates, with the pattern produced either by high-dose sputtering or lithographically, is controlled by the nature of the side walls of topographic features. The two patterning approaches have different benefits in creating arrays of islands for device applications.
Ultrafast X-ray diffraction
(2005)
For a characterization of interface and “bulk” properties of Ge films grown on Si(111) by Sb surfactant-mediated epitaxy, grazing incidence x-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy have been used. The interface roughness, defect structure, and strain state have been investigated in dependence of film thickness and growth temperature. For all growth parameters, atomically smooth interfaces are observed. For thin Ge layers, about 75% of the strain induced by the lattice mismatch is relaxed by misfit dislocations at the Ge/Si interface. Only a slight increase of the degree of relaxation is found for thicker films. At growth temperatures below about 600 °C, the formation of twins is observed, which can be avoided at higher temperatures.
Sprühbeschichtung stellt einen kostengünstigen und materialeffizienten aber komplexen Prozess dar. Um diese Vorteile für die Abscheidung teurer organischer Halbleiter zu nutzen, wurde ein Sprühbeschichter entwickelt, der neueste Anforderungen an den Prozess erfüllt. Zudem konnten selbstansaugende Mikrosprühdüsen mikrotechnologisch in Silizium realisiert werden, welche bereits eine bis zu vierfache Materialeffizienz im Vergleich zu herkömmlichen airbrush-Düsen nachweisen konnten. Die neueste Düsengeneration zeigt nun eine weiter verbesserte Zerstäubung, was bei gesprühten OPDs zu einer reduzierten Dunkelstromdichte von 9,1×10-6 mA·cm-2 (-5 V) und erhöhten externen Quanteneffizienz von 78,5% (530 nm, -5 V) führt.
Large arrays of femtoliter-sized chambers are important tools for single molecule research as well as bioanalytical applications. We have optimized the design and fabrication of two array types consisting of 250 × 250 (62 500) femtoliter chambers either by surface etching of fused silica slides or by polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) molding. Highly diluted solutions of β-galactosidase were enclosed in such arrays to monitor the fluorogenic reactions of hundreds of individual enzyme molecules in parallel by wide-field fluorescence microscopy. An efficient mechanical sealing procedure was developed to prevent diffusion of the fluorescent reaction product out of the chambers. Different approaches for minimizing non-specific surface adsorption were explored. The signal acquisition was optimized to grant both a large field of view and an efficient signal acquisition from each femtoliter chamber. The optimized femtoliter array has enabled a three-in-one enzyme assay system: First, the concentration of active enzyme can be determined in a digital way by counting fluorescent chambers in the array. Second, the activity of the enzyme bulk solution is given by averaging many individual substrate turnover rates without the need for knowing the exact enzyme concentration. Third-unlike conventional enzyme assays-the distribution of individual substrate turnover rates yields insight into the conformational heterogeneity in an enzyme population. The substrate turnover rates of single β-galactosidase molecules were found to be broadly distributed and independent of the type of femtoliter array. In general, both types of femtoliter arrays are highly sensitive platforms for enzyme analysis at the single molecule level and yield consistent results.
We report on the simulation and fabrication of nanostructured silicon surfaces for field emission (FE) applications, e.g. ionization sensors and x-ray tubes. For the design and optimization of field-emitting silicon structures, the influence of the geometric parameters like tip height, apex radius, aperture angle and curvature shape on the field enhancement factor was investigated by simulation using finite element method. A universal geometric model which describes the real geometry of our silicon structures sufficiently accurate was taken for modeling a variety of different silicon tip structures as well as ridge structures. While a high dependency of the field enhancement on the aspect ratio and the aperture angle was found, the simulations show that the elliptic curvature affects the field enhancement only marginally. Finally, an improved process for fabrication of such silicon structures on n-type as well as p-type substrate is described, using reactive ion etching with adjustable anisotropy, wet thermal oxidation and wet etching.
Silicon micro venturi nozzles for cost-efficient spray coating of thin organic P3HT/PCBM layers
(2017)
Improvements on spray coating are of particular interest to different fields of technology as it is a scalable deposition method and processing from solutions offer various application possibilities outside of typical facilities. When it comes to the deposition of expensive and film-forming media such as organic semiconductors, consumption and nozzle cleaning issues are of particular importance. We demonstrate the simple steps to design and fabricate micro venturi nozzles for economical spray coating with a consumption as low as 30-50 mu l.min(-1). For spray coating an active area of 25 cm(2) a 2.45-4.01 fold coating efficiency is observed compared to a conventional airbrush nozzle set. The electrical characterization of first diodes sprayed with an active layer thickness of similar to 750 nm using a single micronozzle at a coating speed of 1.7 cm(2).min(-1) reveals a good external quantum efficiency of 72.9% at 532 nm and a dark current of similar to 7.4.10(-5) mA.cm(-2), both measured at -2 V. Furthermore, the high resistance of the micronozzles against solvents and most acids is provided through realization in a silicon wafer with silicon dioxide encapsulation, therefore allowing easy and effective cleaning.
Since 2004 the field of graphene research has attracted increasing interest worldwide. Especially the integration of graphene into microelectronic devices has the potential for numerous applications. Therefore, we summarize the current knowledge on this aspect. Surveys show that considerable progress was made in the field of graphene synthesis. However, the central issue consists of the availability of techniques suitable for production for the deposition of graphene on dielectric substrates. Besides, the encapsulation of graphene for further processing while maintaining its properties poses a challenge. Regarding the graphene/metal contact intensive research was done and recently substantial advancements were made towards contact resistances applicable for electronic devices. Generally speaking the crucial issues for graphene integration are identified today and the corresponding research tasks can be clearly defined.
Dieses Projekt befasst sich mit Fragestellungen zur Anwendung von künstlicher Intelligenz im Bereich der Technischen Sauberkeit. Durch Literaturforschungen, die einen Ablauf nach Fettke 2006 haben, werden KI-Anwendungen gesucht, die bereits im Zusammenhang mit der Technischen Sauberkeit verwendet werden. Die Forschungen konnten zwölf Literaturquellen ermitteln.
Durch diese Literaturanalyse wurde festgestellt, dass 91 Prozent CV (Computer Vision) zur Partikelerkennung verwenden. Aus diesem Grund wurde anschließend ein CV Modell zur Partikelerkennung implementiert. Durch die Konfusionsmatrix konnte eine Treffergenauigkeit von 82 Prozent festgestellt werden. Daraus folgt, dass eine Partikelklassifikation möglich ist. Abschließend wurde eine weitere Literaturforschung zu Text Mining Applikationen durchgeführt, da der Bereich der Qualitätsanalyse im Monitoring laut Aufgabenstellung
eingezogen werden sollte. In dieser konnte kein positives Ergebnis erzielt werden, da speziell nach fertigen Anwendungen gesucht wurde, die Analysetexte im Bereich der technischen Sauberkeit kategorisieren
können.
Effiziente Arbeitsabläufe sind für profitable Unternehmen von zentraler Natur. ERP-Systeme können betreffenden Firmen dahingehend helfen, besagte Arbeitsabläufe entsprechend abzubilden und nach Möglichkeit auch zu automatisieren. In dieser Arbeit sollen die notwendigen Schritte zur Bearbeitung einer Lieferantenanfrage primär durch eine Weboberfläche
zur automatisierten Rückführung eingehender Angebote, sowie weiteren Verbesserungen, optimiert werden, was eine Erhöhung der Produktivität, eine Verminderung des Zeitaufwandes, und damit auch eine Reduzierung der Personalkosten zur Folge hat.
Using p-type semiconductors for field emitters is one simple way to realize an integrated current limiter to improve the lifetime of the cathode. In this work, the origin of the current saturation of p-type silicon emitters is investigated in detail. Single emitters are electrically characterized and compared to simulation results. With a simulation model considering a high surface generation rate and elevated tip temperature, a good agreement to the measured data is found. This observation is supported further by alteration of the surface experimentally. Electrical measurements after different treatments in hydrofluoric acid as well as heated and subsequent operation at room temperature are well explained by the influence of surface generation. Furthermore, it is shown that the field penetration leads to a small voltage drop and a strong geometry-dependent reduction of the field enhancement factor.
Die in Flugvorausrichtung weisenden Bauteile von Luftfahrzeugen sind oftmals durch Einschläge aufgrund von Vogelschlag, Hagel oder aufgewirbelten Kleinteilen gefährdet. Diese Einschläge, sogenannte Impacts, weisen bei faserverstärkten Kunststoffen ein stark krümmungs- und materialabhängiges Verhalten und Schadensausmaß auf. Impact-Schädigungen führen oftmals zu hohen Reparaturkosten, welche durch eine genauere Kenntnis des Schadens verringert werden können. Zur Klassifizierung dieser Schädigungen steht dabei vor allem das auftretende Frequenz signal des Impacts im Fokus der Untersuchungen.
Double-layered quantum dots represent a novel realization of a multi-component plasma system. By modelling the system and applying classical concepts we investigate the oscillator strength of the acoustic plasma mode and its dependence on the system parameters. In view of recent experimental results, we discuss the observability of this collective excitation.
We briefly report on calculated addition spectra for electrons in a circular quantum dot with perpendicular magnetic field. We compare our current density functional theory calculations with recent experiments by Tarucha et al. [PRL 77, 3613 (1996)]. We find a very good qualitative agreement of the structures and find an additional effect caused by Hund's first rule in magnetic field, which gives rise to new substructures not discussed in the paper by Tarucha.
Halbleiter-Quantenpunkte sind interessante Objekte, um die Elektron-Elektron-Wechselwirkung eines endlichen Systems im Magnetfeld zu studieren. Aufgrund der Analogie zu natürlichen Atomen werden Quantenpunkte häufig als 'künstliche Atome' bezeichnet. Die Ähnlichkeit zu natürlichen Atomen resultiert aus der Schalenstruktur eines harmonischen Einschlußpotentials, wodurch 'magische' Elektronenzahlen (analog zu Edelgasen) mit vollständig besetzten
(geschlossenen) Schalen und folglich geringer Elektronenaffinität ausgezeichnet werden. Die Stärke des Einschlußpotentials
entspricht einer effektiven 'Kernladung', die mit einer bestimmten Elektronenzahl im System verknüpft ist. Infolge der
geringen Bindungsenergie (einige meV) sowie weiterer Materialparameter kann man in Quantenpunkten magnetfeldabhängige Effekte untersuchen, die mit Niveaukreuzungen im Energiespektrum verbunden sind. Derartige
Effekte treten bereits bei experimentell realisierbaren Magnetfeldern von einigen Tesla auf, im Gegensatz zu natürlichen
Atomen.
Im ersten Teil meiner Arbeit werden die Grundzustandseigenschaften von 2D-Halbleiter-Quantenpunkten auf GaAs-Basis mit wenigen Elektronen (N < 20) untersucht. Die Behandlung der Coulomb-Wechselwirkung mit dem Konzept der Strom-Spin-Dichtefunktional-Theorie von Vignale und Rasolt (1988) erlaubt die Berücksichtigung des Spinfreiheitsgrades
sowie magnetfeldabhängiger Korrelationen. In die dazu benötigte Austausch-Korrelations-Energie gehen geeignete lokale Näherungen ein (Lokale Spindichte- und Vortizitäts-Näherung). Durch Abbildung des Vielteilchenproblems auf ein Kohn-Sham-System mit effektiven Einteilchen-Potentialen, die außer dem Hartree-Potential spinabhängige
Austausch-Korrelations-Potentiale und ein Austausch-Korrelations-Vektorpotential umfassen, können neben der N-Teilchen-Grundzustandsenergie auch die Ladungs- und Spindichte sowie die Stromdichte berechnet werden.
Ground-state calculations based on current spin density-functional theory for circular parabolic quantum dots are presented which reveal interesting spin effects in dependence on an external magnetic field: Hund's first rule (well-known from atomic physics for zero magnetic field) is related to the level occupancy near the Fermi energy and determines the spin configuration of the ground state in finite magnetic field. Consequently, the addition spectrum of the quantum dot exhibits a specific non-monotonous dependence on magnetic field, which is visible in recent quantum transport experiments.
We report on ground-state calculations based on current-spin density-functional theory for circular parabolic quantum dots. Hund's first rule, well-known from atomic physics, applies not only at zero magnetic field; analogous rules, related to the level occupancy near the Fermi energy, determine the spin configuration of the ground state in finite magnetic field. Consequently, the addition spectrum of the quantum dot exhibits a specific non-monotonous dependence on magnetic field. We discuss our results with focus on recent experiments which may already contain indications of this new feature.
We present current-spin density-functional calculations for circular parabolic quantum dots in zero magnetic field. We find the possibility for broken time-reversal symmetry via exchange correlation with spontaneously induced orbital currents. For certain electron numbers, this results in new current textures which give rise to a finite magnetization even for ground states with vanishing total angular momentum.
We employ a self-consistent, dynamic spin-density functional concept beyond the dipole approximation in order to calculate the collective modes of few-electron quantum dots with partial spin polarization. Because of Hund's rule in a magnetic field the mode energies exhibit characteristic discontinuities in their magnetic-field dependence, which is a manifestation of ground-state transitions between different spin configurations. A finite ground-state spin density couples collective charge- and spin-density excitations. We predict their observability in state-of-the-art Raman experiments.
Magnetotransport in lateral superlattices covers a variety of apparently different physics dependent on the amplitude of the modulation potential relative to the Fermi energy ranging from the weakly modulated 2DEG to the antidot lattice. Here we investigate the transition between weak modulation and antidots within the quantum-mechanical theory by studying (i) the single-particle spectrum with respect to quantum signatures of classical chaos and (ii) the change of characteristic features in the magnetoresistance starting from the Kubo formula.
Electronic Raman scattering provides information on excited states, whose collective character as being related to the charge or spin density can be distinguished by using different polarization configurations. We employ time-dependent spin-density functional theory to calculate Raman spectra for circular semiconductor quantum dots with up to 10 electrons for the polarized and depolarized configuration and in dependence on an external magnetic field and the momentum transfer. Our results demonstrate an increase of the collective (or many-particle) character of the excitations with increasing momentum transfer and a mixing of spin- and charge-density modes for excitations from ground states with finite spin density. These results have predictive character, because corresponding experiments on few-electron dots have not yet been performed.
We study the energy-level statistics for electrons in a lateral two-dimensional superlattice in dependence on the strength of the modulation potential at a given perpendicular magnetic field. The interminiband statistics at some selected point in the magnetic Brillouin zone shows a transition from degenerate Landau levels to universal spectral correlations while the corresponding classical dynamics displays a crossover from regular cyclotron orbits to chaotic motion. In terms of the nearest-neighbor spacing distribution, we observe the occurrence of level repulsion for all nonzero modulation amplitudes, which indicates a discontinuous transition to universal fluctuations for the smallest level spacings when the rotational invariance of the system is broken by a finite superlattice potential. In order to test the universality of the transition on larger scales, we propose a random matrix model with one transition parameter for comparison. Confirmed by two different types of potential shapes, we detect an explicit influence of the potential shape on the level spacing distributions, which hence cannot be described by the one-parameter model. Using the spectral rigidity, however, universal long-range fluctuations in the regime of negligible Landau-level mixing are found, in agreement with our random matrix model.
High-power semiconductor packages typically exhibit a 3D heat flow, resulting in large lateral changes in chip and case surface temperature. For single-chip devices we propose to use an unambiguous definition for the junction-to-case thermal resistance as a key parameter, based on a transient measurement technique with much higher repeatability, also for very low thermal resistances compared to a two-point thermal resistance measurement. The technique is illustrated on thermal transient measurements of power MOSFETs. A comparison between different thermal coupling to the ambient is used to demonstrate the method's capability to reveal even subtle internal details of the package. The concept is extended to multichip and stacked-chip structures, where transfer impedances have to be introduced. Here, the dynamic properties of the package are important and complex impedance mapping is the proper way to characterize the package.
Magnetoresistance measurements and theoretical calculations for two-dimensional electron systems under a perpendicular magnetic field are presented which illuminate transport effects due to a periodic electrostatic potential modulation. We focus on features arising from the resolution of the magnetic miniband structure which are beyond the perturbative regime governed by the dispersion of Landau bands. Our non-perturbative quantum-mechanical calculations reveal that the dispersion of individual minibands is responsible for the complicated behaviour of the magnetoresistance in the regime of intermediate modulation strength. In particular, the interplay between miniband and scattering contributions to the conductivity leads to an almost structureless magnetoresistance in this regime followed by the formation of antidot peaks due to the miniband conductivity.
We review ground-state properties and collective excitations of semiconductor quantum dots in a magnetic field obtained from current-spin density-functional theory. Due to exchange-correlation, a generalized Hund’s rule in magnetic field can be established which leads to spin alignment in partially occupied energy shells at the Fermi energy. This results, in distinct spin structures in single-electron addition spectra. Current-dependent exchange-correlation modifies the magnetic-field dependence of the ground state configuration and leads to deviations from plain spin-density calculations. Moreover it gives rise to spontaneous current textures at zero magnetic field. Collective excitation spectra, explicitly calculated for inelastic light scattering, exhibit novel features in their magnetic field dependence due to a finite ground-state spin density.
High-power packages show a characteristic three-dimensional heat flow resulting in large lateral changes in chip and case surface temperature. This paper proposes an unambiguous definition for the R/sub thJC/ junction-to-case thermal resistance as a key parameter of such packages based on a transient measurement technique ensuring high repeatability even at very low R/sub th/ values. The technique is illustrated on thermal transient measurements of high-power MOSFET devices. It is also presented how the same measurement results can be used for die attach quality analysis. Finally, a comparative method is shown for measuring the differences of R/sub th/ values among samples with many times higher resolution compared with a direct R/sub thJC/ measurement.
A semiconductor die typically undergoes a variety of assembly processes, each of them influencing the mechanical stress environment of the chip. We report on a stress-sensitive testchip and its application to measure and characterize the respective stress distributions across the die. Particularly in the field of MEMS and sensor devices, even low stresses might deteriorate the electrical performance of a device significantly, while higher stress levels may even cause cracks and irreversible damage. This is why the present methodology has a high potential to develop into a useful tool in the field of sensor package development. After a brief introduction to the sensing principle, we investigate the stress distribution in various sample assemblies – all of them targeting pressure sensors. Typical low stress packages use silicone based soft elastic encapsulations. Changing to a harder material with a young’s modulus comparable to standard mold compounds, we demonstrate an increase of the average stress level by more than one order of magnitude.
We present ground-state calculations for laterally coupled quantum dots containing 2, 4, and 8 electrons. As our emphasis is on spin effects our results are obtained by applying spin-density functional theory (SDFT). By varying the distance between the centers of the coupled quantum dots, the transition from weak to strong coupling situation is realized. For the 2-electron system we also apply the Heitler-London approximation and analytical concepts to check the reliability of SDFT calculations in this case. In addition we discuss the features of the Coulomb staircase of laterally coupled quantum dots in the weak and strong coupling regimes in comparison to that of a circular parabolic quantum dot.
Precisely aligned high-aspect-ratio (HAR) silicon tip arrays were fabricated using enhanced reactive ion etching with an inductively-coupled-plasma followed by a sharpening oxidation. A gold thin film was then sputtered only on the tips of the HAR structures. Field-emission (FE) properties from Au-coated HAR p-Si tip array cathodes have been systematically investigated by means of field emission scanning microscopy (FESM). A rather high efficiency of the HAR Si structures (71% at 550 V), but limited homogeneous FE with currents of 1-600 nA might be correlated with the varying geometry of the tips and the presence of oxides. I-V measurements of single Au-coated HAR emitters revealed activation effects and the saturation current region at 3 nA. An increase of the saturation current by 4 orders of magnitude was observed during 20 hours of conditioning at constant voltage, which finally resulted in nearly reproducible FN curves with a ß-factor of 473. An excellent stability of the emission current of less than 1 % was obtained during the additional long-time conditioning at constant voltage. Optical switching under halogen lamp illumination resulted in at least 2 times higher saturation currents and showed a linear dependence of the FE current on the light color temperature.
Black silicon structures with integrated gate electrode were realized by using an improved fabrication process. An enhanced insulation layer was achieved by a combination of dry and wet oxidation, and a gold layer was evaporated as gate electrode. The black silicon structures were prepared with a RIE/ICP etching process at room temperature. Arrays of 16 and 100 apertures with buried p-doped black silicon whiskers have been fabricated. These structures have an emitter height of approximately 1.5 μm with tip radii between 5 nm and 30 nm. The whiskers are surrounded by the gate electrode in a distance of 1.5 μm. Integral field emission measurements yielded an onset voltage of 92 V for 16 apertures and 60 V for 100 apertures for an emission current of 1 nA. Maximum emission currents up to 0.2 μA were observed for the array with 100 apertures at a cathode voltage of 200 V. Stability measurements showed a current fluctuation of ± 21% at a mean value of the emission current of 12 nA over a period of 30 minutes for 16 apertures with b-Si whiskers.