Microstructure related influence on the electrical properties of pulsed laser ablated (Ba, Sr)TiO3 thin films

The microstructural dependence of electrical properties of (Ba, Sr)TiO3(BST) thin films were studied from the viewpoint of dc and ac electrical properties. The films were grown using a pulsed laser deposition technique in a temperature range of 300 to 600 degrees C, inducing changes in grain size, structure, and morphology. Consequently, two different types of films were realized, of which type I, was polycrystalline, multigrained, while type II was [100] oriented possessing a densely packed fibrous microstructure. Leakage current measurements were done at elevated temperatures to provide evidence of the conduction mechanism present in these films. The results revealed a contribution from both electronic and ionic conduction. In the case of type I films, two trapping levels were identified with energies around 0.5 and 2.73 eV, which possibly originate from oxygen vacancies V-O and Ti3+ centers, respectively. These levels act as shallow and deep traps and are reflected in the current-voltage characteristics of the BST thin films. The activation energy associated with oxygen vacancy motion in this case was obtained as 1.28 eV. On the contrary, type II films showed no evidence of deep trap energy levels, while the identified activation energy associated with shallow traps was obtained as 0.38 eV. The activation energy obtained for oxygen vacancy motion in type II films was around 1.02 eV. The dc measurement results were further elucidated through ac impedance analysis, which revealed a grain boundary dominated response in type I in comparison to type II films where grain response is highlighted. A comparison of the mean relaxation time of the two films revealed three orders of magnitude higher relaxation time in the case of type I films. Due to smaller grain size in type I films the grains were considered to be completely depleted giving rise to only grain boundary response for the bulk of the film. The activation energy obtained from conductivity plots agree very well with that of dc measurements giving values 1.3 and 1.07 eV for type I and type II films, respectively. Since oxygen vacancy transport have been identified as the origin of resistance degradation in BST thin films, type I films with their higher value of activation energy for oxygen ion mobility explains the improvement in breakdown characteristics under constant high dc field stress. The role of microstructure in controlling the rate of degradation is found useful in this instance to enhance the film properties under high electric field stresses. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-8979(00)00418-7].

High-temperature dielectric response in pulsed laser deposited Bi1.5Zn1.0Nb1.5O7 thin films

Cubic pyrochlore Bi1.5Zn1.0Nb1.5O7 thin films were deposited by pulsed laser ablation on Pt(200)/SiO2/Si at 500, 550, 600, and 650 degrees C. The thin films with (222) preferred orientation were found to grow at 650 degrees C with better crystallinity which was established by the lowest full-width half maxima of similar to 0.38. The dielectric response of the thin films grown at 650 degrees C have been characterized within a temperature range of 270-650 K and a frequency window of 0.1-100 kHz. The dielectric dispersion in the thin films shows a Maxwell-Wagner type relaxation with two different kinds of response confirmed by temperature dependent Nyquist plots. The ac conduction of the films showed a varied behavior in two different frequency regions. The power law exponent values of more than 1 at high frequency are explained by a jump-relaxation-model. The possibility of grain boundary related large polaronic hopping, due to two different power law exponents and transformation of double to single response in Nyquist plots at high temperature, has been excluded. The ``attempt jump frequency'' obtained from temperature dependent tangent loss and real part of dielectric constants, has been found to lie in the range of their lattice vibronic frequencies (10(12)-10(13) Hz). The activation energy arising from a large polaronic hopping due to trapped charge at low frequency region has been calculated from the ac conduction behavior. The range of activation energies (0.26-0.59. eV) suggests that the polaronic hopping at low frequency is mostly due to oxygen vacancies. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. doi:10.106311.3457335]

Applications of reverse saturable absorbers in laser science

A variety of applications exist for reverse saturable absorbers (RSAs) in the area of optical pulse processing and computing. An RSA can be used as power limiter/pulse smoother and energy limiter/pulse shortner of laser pulses. A combination of RSA and saturable absorber (SA) can be used for mode locking and pulse shaping between high power laser amplifiers in oscillator amplifier chain. Also, an RSA can be used for the construction of a molecular spatial light modulator (SLM) which acts as an input/output device in optical computers. A detailed review of the theoretical studies of these processes is presented. Current efforts to find RSAs at desired wavelength for testing these theoretical predictions are also discussed.

Temperature-dependent chirped coherent phonon dynamics in Bi2Te3 using high-intensity femtosecond laser pulses

Degenerate pump-probe reflectivity experiments have been performed on a single crystal of bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) as a function of sample temperature (3 K to 296 K) and pump intensity using similar to 50 femtosecond laser pulses with central photon energy of 1.57 eV. The time-resolved reflectivity data show two coherently generated totally symmetric A(1g) modes at 1.85 THz and 3.6 THz at 296 K which blue-shift to 1.9 THz and 4.02 THz, respectively, at 3 K. At high photoexcited carrier density of similar to 1.7 x 10(21) cm(-3), the phonon mode at 4.02 THz is two orders of magnitude higher positively chirped (i.e the phonon time period decreases with increasing delay time between the pump and the probe pulses) than the lower-frequency mode at 1.9 THz. The chirp parameter, beta is shown to be inversely varying with temperature. The time evolution of these modes is studied using continuous-wavelet transform of the time-resolved reflectivity data. Copyright (C) EPLA, 2010

Study of electrical properties of pulsed excimer laser deposited strontium titanate films

Polycrystalline SrTiO3 films were prepared by pulsed excimer laser ablation on Si and Pt coated Si substrates. Several growth parameters were varied including ablation fluence, pressure, and substrate temperature. The structural studies indicated the presence of [100] and [110] oriented growth after annealing by rapid thermal annealing at 600-degrees-C for 60 s. Deposition at either lower pressures or at higher energy densities encouraged film growth with slightly preferred orientation. The scanning electron microscopy studies showed the absence of any significant particulates on the film surface. Dielectric studies indicated a dielectric constant of 225, a capacitance density of 3.2 fF/mum2, and a charge density of 40 fC/mum for films of 1000 nm thick. The dc conductivity studies on these films suggested a bulk limited space charge conduction in the high field regime, while the low electric fields induced an ohmic conduction. Brief time dependent dielectric breakdown studies on these films, under a field of 250 kV/cm for 2 h, did not exhibit any breakdown, indicating good dielectric strength.

Pulsed laser deposited ZnO:In as transparent conducting oxide

Zinc oxide (ZnO) and indium doped ZnO (IZO) thin films with different indium compositions were grown by pulsed laser deposition technique on corning glass substrate. The effect of indium concentration on the structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties of the film was studied. The films were oriented along c-direction with wurtzite structure and highly transparent with an average transmittance of more than 80% in the visible wavelength region. The energy band gap was found to decrease with increasing indium concentration. High transparency makes the films useful as optical windows while the high band gap values support the idea that the film could be a good candidate for optoelectronic devices. The value of resistivity observed to decrease initially with doping concentration and subsequently increases. IZO with 1% of indium showed the lowest resistivity of 2.41 x 10(-2) Omega cm and large transmittance in the visible wavelength region. Especially 1% IZO thin film was observed to be a suitable transparent conducting oxide material to potentially replace indium tin oxide. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of laser processing parameters on the structure of ductile iron

Laser processing of structure sensitive hypereutectic ductile iron, a cast alloy employed for dynamically loaded automative components, was experimentally investigated over a wide range of process parameters: from power (0.5-2.5 kW) and scan rate (7.5-25 mm s(-1)) leading to solid state transformation, all the way through to melting followed by rapid quenching. Superfine dendritic (at 10(5) degrees C s(-1)) or feathery (at 10(4) degrees C s(-1)) ledeburite of 0.2-0.25 mu m lamellar space, gamma-austenite and carbide in the laser melted and martensite in the transformed zone or heat-affected zone were observed, depending on the process parameters. Depth of geometric profiles of laser transformed or melt zone structures, parameters such as dendrile arm spacing, volume fraction of carbide and surface hardness bear a direct relationship with the energy intensity P/UDb2, (10-100 J mm(-3)). There is a minimum energy intensity threshold for solid state transformation hardening (0.2 J mm(-3)) and similarly for the initiation of superficial melting (9 J mm(-3)) and full melting (15 J mm(-3)) in the case of ductile iron. Simulation, modeling and thermal analysis of laser processing as a three-dimensional quasi-steady moving heat source problem by a finite difference method, considering temperature dependent energy absorptivity of the material to laser radiation, thermal and physical properties (kappa, rho, c(p)) and freezing under non-equilibrium conditions employing Scheil's equation to compute the proportion of the solid enabled determination of the thermal history of the laser treated zone. This includes assessment of the peak temperature attained at the surface, temperature gradients, the freezing time and rates as well as the geometric profile of the melted, transformed or heat-affected zone. Computed geometric profiles or depth are in close agreement with the experimental data, validating the numerical scheme.

Structural and transport properties of high energy ion irradiated YBCO

The effects of 100 MeV Oxygen and 200 MeV Silver ions on the structural and transport properties of YBCO thin films are reported. Both normal state and superconducting properties were studied on Laser ablated and high pressure oxygen sputtered films. Precise electrical resistance and critical current measurements near T-c were made and the data obtained were analysed in the light of existing models of para-coherence near T-c and the other aspects of radiation damage arising from microstructural studies such as atomic force microscopy (AFM). There was evidence of sputtering by high energy ions from AFM measurement. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Alternating current conduction and impedance spectroscopy analysis on pulsed excimer laser ablated (Pb, La)TiO3 thin films

Lanthanum doped lead titanate (PLT) thin films were identified as the most potential candidates for the pyroelectric and memory applications. PLT thin films were deposited on Pt coated Si by excimer laser ablation technique. The polarization behavior of PLT thin films has been studied over a temperature range of 300 K to 550 K. A universal power law relation was brought into picture to explain the frequency dependence of ac conductivity. At higher frequency region ac conductivity of PLT thin films become temperature independent. The temperature dependence of ac conductivity and the relaxation time is analyzed in detail. The activation energy obtained from the ac conductivity was attributed to the shallow trap controlled space charge conduction in the bulk of the sample. The impedance analysis for PLT thin films were also performed to get insight of the microscopic parameters, like grain, grain boundary, and film-electrode interface etc. The imaginary component of impedance Z" exhibited different peak maxima at different temperatures. Different types of mechanisms were analyzed in detail to explain the dielectric relaxation behavior in the PLT thin films.

Three-dimensional computational modeling of momentum, heat, and mass transfer in a laser surface alloying process

A three- dimensional, transient model is developed for studying heat transfer, fluid flow, and mass transfer for the case of a single- pass laser surface alloying process. The coupled momentum, energy, and species conservation equations are solved using a finite volume procedure. Phase change processes are modeled using a fixed-grid enthalpy-porosity technique, which is capable of predicting the continuously evolving solid- liquid interface. The three- dimensional model is able to predict the species concentration distribution inside the molten pool during alloying, as well as in the entire cross section of the solidified alloy. The model is simulated for different values of various significant processing parameters such as laser power, scanning speed, and powder feedrate in order to assess their influences on geometry and dynamics of the pool, cooling rates, as well as species concentration distribution inside the substrate. Effects of incorporating property variations in the numerical model are also discussed.

Interface states of laser ablated BaTiO3 and Ba0.9Ca0.1TiO3 thin films in MFS structure determined by DLTS and C – V technique

BaTiO3 and Ba0.9Ca0.1TiO3 thin films were deposited on the p – type Si substrate by pulsed excimer laser ablation technique. The Capacitance – Voltage (C-V) measurement measured at 1 MHz exhibited a clockwise rotating hysteresis loop with a wide memory window for the Metal – Ferroelectric – Semiconductor (MFS) capacitor confirming the ferroelectric nature. The low frequency C – V measurements exhibited the response of the minority carriers in the inversion region while at 1 MHz the C – V is of a high frequency type with minimum capacitance in the inversion region. The interface states of both the MFS structures were calculated from the Castagne – Vaipaille method (High – low frequency C – V curve). Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS) was used to analyze the interface traps and capture cross section present in the MFS capacitor. There were distinct peaks present in the DLTS spectrum and these peaks were attributed to the presence of the discrete interface states present at the semiconductor – ferroelectric interface. The distribution of calculated interface states were mapped with the silicon energy band gap for both the undoped and Ca doped BaTiO3 thin films using both the C – V and DLTS method. The interface states of the Ca doped BaTiO3 thin films were found to be higher than the pure BaTiO3 thin films.

The ω Phase Formation during Laser Cladding and Remelting of Quasicrystal Forming AlCuFe on Pure Aluminum

We report the formation ω phase in the remelted layers during laser cladding and remelting of quasicrystal forming Al65Cu23.3Fe11.7 alloy on pure aluminum. The ω phase is absent in the clad layers. In the remelted layer, the phase nucleates at the periphery of the primary icosahedral phase particles. A large number of ω phase particles forms enveloping the icosahedral phase growing into aluminum rich melt, which solidify as α-Al solid solution. On the other side it develops an interface with aluminum. A detailed transmission electron microscopic analysis shows that ω phase exhibits orientation relationship with icosahedral phase. The composition analysis performed using energy dispersive x-ray analyzer suggests that this phase has composition higher aluminum than the icosahedral phase. The analysis of the available phase diagram information indicates that the present results represent large departure from equilibrium conditions. A possible scenario of the evolution of the ω phase has been suggested.

Growth and study of BaZrO3 thin films by pulsed excimer laser ablation

Thin films of BaZrO3 (BZ) were grown using a pulsed laser deposition technique on platinum coated silicon substrates. Films showed a polycrystalline perovskite structure upon different annealing procedures of in-situ and ex-situ crystallization. The composition analyses were done using Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) and Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The SIMS analysis revealed that the ZrO2 formation at the right interface of substrate and the film leads the degradation of the device on the electrical properties in the case of ex-situ crystallized films. But the in-situ films exhibited no interfacial formation. The dielectric properties have been studied for the different temperatures in the frequency regime of 40 Hz to 100kHz. The response of the film to external ac stimuli was studied at different temperatures, and it showed that ac conductivity values in the limiting case are correspond to oxygen vacancy motion. The electrical modulus is fitted to a stretched exponential function and the results clearly indicate the presence of the non-Debye type of dielectric relaxation in these materials.

High energy Li ion irradiation effects in ferroelectric PZT and SBT thin films

The ferroelectric Pb(Zr0.53Ti0.47)O-3 (PZT) and SrBi2Ta2O9 (SBT) thin films were prepared by laser ablation technique. The dielectric analysis, capacitance-voltage, ferroelectric hysteresis and DC leakage current measurements were performed before and after 50 MeV Li3+ ion irradiation. In both thin films, the irradiation produced some amount of amorphisation, considerable degradation in the ferroelectric properties and change in DC conductivity. On irradiation of these thin films, the phase transition temperature [T-c] of PZT decreased considerably from 628 to 508 K, while SBT exhibited a broad and diffuse transition with its T-c decreased from 573 to 548 K. The capacitance-voltage curve at 100 kHz showed a double butterfly loop with a large decrease in the capacitance and switching voltage. There was decrease in the ferroelectric hysteresis loop, remanant polarisation and coercive field. After annealing at a temperature of 673 K for 10 min while PZT partially regained the ferroelectric properties, while SBT did not. The DC conductivity measurements showed a shift in the onset of non-linear conduction region in irradiated SBT. The degradation of ferroelectric properties of the irradiated thin films is attributed to the irradiation-induced partial amorphization and the pinning of the ferroelectric domains by trapped charges. The regaining of properties after annealing is attributed to the thermal annealing of the defects generated during the irradiation. (C) 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.

Transient analysis in Al-doped barium strontium titanate thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition

Thin films of (Ba0.5Sr0.5)TiO3 (BST) with different concentrations of Al doping were grown using a pulsed laser deposition technique. dc leakage properties were studied as a function of Al doping level and compared to that of undoped BST films. With an initial Al doping level of 0.1 at. % which substitutes Ti in the lattice site, the films showed a decrease in the leakage current, however, for 1 at. % Al doping level the leakage current was found to be relatively higher. Current time measurements at elevated temperatures on 1 at. % Al doped BST films revealed space-charge transient type characteristics. A complete analysis of the transient characteristics was carried out to identify the charge transport process through variation of applied electric field and ambient temperature. The result revealed a very low mobility process comparable to ionic motion, and was found responsible for the observed feature. Calculation from ionic diffusivity and charge transport revealed a conduction process associated with an activation energy of around 1 eV. The low mobility charge carriers were identified as oxygen vacancies in motion under the application of electric field. Thus a comprehensive understanding of the charge transport process in highly acceptor doped BST was developed and it was conclusive that the excess of oxygen vacancies created by intentional Al doping give rise to space-charge transient type characteristics. © 2001 American Institute of Physics.