Anomalous temperature dependence of photoluminescence from a-C : H film deposited by energetic hydrocarbon ion beam

The temperature dependence of photoluminescence (PL) from a-C:H film deposited by CH3+ ion beam has been performed and an anomalous behavior has been reported. A transition temperature at which the PL intensity, peak position and full width at the half maximum change sharply was observed. It is proposed that different structure units. at least three, are responsible for such behavior. Above the transition point. increasing temperature will lead to the dominance of non-radiative recombination process, which quenches the PL overall and preferentially the red part, Possible emission mechanisms have been discussed. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

C离子注入Si中Si-C合金的形成及其特征

利用离子注入和高温退火的方法在 Si中生长了 C含量为 0 .6 %— 1.0 %的 Si1 - x Cx 合金 ,研究了注入过程中产生的损伤缺陷、注入 C离子的剂量及退火工艺对合金形成的影响 ,探讨了合金的形成机理及合金产生的应变分布的起因 .如果注入的 C离子剂量小于引起 Si非晶化的剂量 ,退火过程中注入产生的损伤缺陷容易与 C原子结合形成缺陷团簇 ,难于形成 Si1 - x Cx 合金 ,而预先利用 Si离子注入引进损伤有利于 Si1 - x Cx 合金的形成 ;但如果注入的C离子可以引起 Si的非晶化 ,预先注入产生的损伤缺陷不利于 Si1 - x Cx 合金的形成 .与慢速退火工艺相比 ,快速热退火工艺有利于 Si1 - x Cx 合金的形成 .离子注入的 C原子在空间分布不均匀 ,退火过程中将形成应变不同的 Si1 - x-Cx 合金区域 .

预注入对Si_(1-x)C_x合金形成的影响

室温下在单晶Si中注入 (0 6— 1 5 )at%的C原子 ,部分样品在C离子注入之前在其中注入2 9Si+ 离子产生损伤 ,然后在相同条件下利用高温退火固相外延了Si1 -xCx 合金 ,研究了预注入对Si1 -xCx 合金形成的影响 .如果注入C离子的剂量小于引起Si非晶化的剂量 ,在 95 0℃退火过程中注入产生的损伤缺陷容易与C原子结合形成缺陷团簇 ,难于形成Si1 -xCx 合金 ,预注入形成的损伤有利于合金的形成 .随着C离子剂量的增大 ,注入产生的损伤增强 ,预注入反而不利于Si1 -xCx 合金的形成 ,但当注入C原子的浓度超过固相外延的溶解度时 ,预注入的影响可以忽略 .退火温度升高到 10 5 0℃ ,无论预注入还是未预注入样品 ,C含量低的合金相仍然保留 ,而C含量高的合金相大部分消失 .

不同剂量C离子注入Si单晶中Si_(1-x)C_x合金的形成及其特征

室温下在单晶Si中注入 (0 6— 1 5 ) %的C原子 ,利用高温退火固相外延了Si1-xCx 合金 ,研究了不同注入剂量下Si1-xCx 合金的形成及其特征 .如果注入C原子的浓度小于 0 6 % ,在 85 0— 95 0℃退火过程中 ,C原子容易与注入产生的损伤缺陷结合 ,难于形成Si1-xCx 合金相 .随注入C原子含量的增加 ,C原子几乎全部进入晶格位置形成Si1-xCx 合金 ,但如果注入C原子的浓度达到 1 5 % ,只有部分C原子参与形成Si1-xCx 合金 .升高退火温度 ,Si1-xCx 合金相基本消失 .

C离子注入Si中Si_(1-x)C_x合金的形成及其稳定性

利用离子注入和高温退火的方法在Si中生长了C含量为0.6%~1.0%的Si1?xCx合金, 研究了不同注入剂量下Si1?xCx合金的形成及其在退火过程中的稳定性. 如果注入剂量小于引起Si非晶化的剂量, 850℃退火后, 注入产生的损伤缺陷容易与C原子结合形成缺陷团簇, 难于形成Si1?xCx合金. 随着注入C离子剂量的增大, 注入产生的损伤增强, 容易形成Si1?xCx合金, 但注入的剂量增大到一定程度, Si1?xCx合金的应变将趋于饱和, 即只有部分C原子进入晶格位置形成合金相. Si1?xCx合金一旦形成, 在950℃仍比较稳定, 而温度高于1 000℃, 合金的应力将部分释放. 随着合金中C原子浓度的升高, 合金的稳定性变差.

First-principles calculation of alloy scattering in GexSi1-x

First-principles electronic structure methods are used to find the rates of intravalley and intervalley n-type carrier scattering due to alloy disorder in Si1-xGex alloys. The required alloy scattering matrix elements are calculated from the energy splitting of nearly degenerate Bloch states which arises when one average host atom is replaced by a Ge or Si atom in supercells containing up to 128 atoms. Scattering parameters for all relevant Delta and L intravalley and intervalley alloy scattering are calculated. Atomic relaxation is found to have a substantial effect on the scattering parameters. f-type intervalley scattering between Delta valleys is found to be comparable to other scattering channels. The n-type carrier mobility, calculated from the scattering rate using the Boltzmann transport equation in the relaxation time approximation, is in excellent agreement with experiments on bulk, unstrained alloys.

Characterization of strain relaxation in As ion implanted Si1-xGex epilayers grown by gas source molecular beam epitaxy

Strain relaxation in the As ion implanted Si0.57Ge0.43 epilayers was studied by double-crystal x-ray diffractometry and transmission electron microscopy, and was compared to that in the nonimplanted Si0.57Ge0.43 epilayers. Experimental results show that after rapid thermal annealing (RTA) the x-ray linewidth of the As+-implanted Si0.57Ge0.43 epilayers is narrower than that of the nonimplanted epilayers, and than that of the partially relaxed as-grown samples, which is due primarily to low density of misfit dislocations in the As+-implanted SiGe epilayers. RTA at higher than 950 degrees C results in the formation of misfit dislocations for the nonimplanted structures, and of combinations of dislocations and precipitates (tentatively identified as GeAs) for the As+-implanted epilayers. The results mean that the strain relaxation mechanism of the As+-implanted Si1-xGex epilayers may be different from that of the nonimplanted Si1-xGex epilayers. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics.

Tungsten Silicide Contacts to Polycrystalline Silicon and Silicon-Germanium Alloys

Novel CVD WSi2 technology with low series and contact resistance in SiGe HBTs was achieved. Specific contact resistance to Si1-xGex with 0

Indentation size effect and strain rate sensitivity of nanocrystalline Mg-Al alloys

Deformation Behaviour of microcrystalline (mc) and nanocrystalline (nc) Mg-5%Al alloys produced by hot extrusion of ball-milled powders were investigated using instrumented indentation tests. The hardness values of the mc and nc metals exhibited indentation size effect (ISE), with nc alloys showing weaker ISE. The highly localized dislocation activities resulted in a small activation volume, hence enhanced strain rate sensitivity. Relative higher strain rate sensitivity and the negative Hall-Petch Relationship suggested the increasingly important role of grain boundary mediated mechanisms when the grain size decreased to nanometer region.

Compressive behaviour of nanocrystallilne Mg-5%Al alloys

Magnesium alloys are attracting increasing research interests due to their low density, high specific strength and good mechineability and availability as compared to other structural materials. However, the deformation and failure mechanisms of nanocrystalline Mg alloys have not been well understood. In this work, the deformation behavior of nanocrystalline Mg-5% Al alloys was investigated using compression test, with a focus on the effects of grain size. The average grain size of the Mg-Al alloy was changed from 13 µm to 50 nm via mechanical milling. The results showed that grain size had a significant influence on the yield stress and ductility of the Mg alloys, and the materials exhibited increased strain rate sensitivity with decrease of grain size. The deformation mechanisms were also strongly dependent with the grain sizes.

Deformation behaviours of coarse-grained and nanocrystalline Mg-5wt% Al alloys

Magnesium alloys have been of growing interest to various engineering applications, such as the automobile, aerospace, communication and computer industries due to their low density, high specific strength, good machineability and availability as compared with other structural materials. However, most Mg alloys suffer from poor plasticity due to their Hexagonal Close Packed structure. Grain refinement has been proved to be an effective method to enhance the strength and alter the ductility of the materials. Several methods have been proposed to produce materials with nanocrystalline grain structures. So far, most of the research work on nanocrystalline materials has been carried out on Face-Centered Cubic and Body-Centered Cubic metals. However, there has been little investigation of nanocrystalline Mg alloys. In this study, bulk coarse-grained and nanocrystalline Mg alloys were fabricated by a mechanical alloying method. The mixed powder of Mg chips and Al powder was mechanically milled under argon atmosphere for different durations of 0 hours (MA0), 10 hours (MA10), 20 hours (MA20), 30 hours (MA30) and 40 hours (MA40), followed by compaction and sintering. Then the sintered billets were hot-extruded into metallic rods with a 7 mm diameter. The obtained Mg alloys have a nominal composition of Mg–5wt% Al, with grain sizes ranging from 13 μm down to 50 nm, depending on the milling durations. The microstructure characterization and evolution after deformation were carried out by means of Optical microscopy, X-Ray Diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscopy, Transmission Electron Microscopy, Scanning Probe Microscopy and Neutron Diffraction techniques. Nanoindentaion, compression and micro-compression tests on micro-pillars were used to study the size effects on the mechanical behaviour of the Mg alloys. Two kinds of size effects on the mechanical behaviours and deformation mechanisms were investigated: grain size effect and sample size effect. The nanoindentation tests were composed of constant strain rate, constant loading rate and indentation creep tests. The normally reported indentation size effect in single crystal and coarse-grained crystals was observed in both the coarse-grained and nanocrystalline Mg alloys. Since the indentation size effect is correlated to the Geometrically Necessary Dislocations under the indenter to accommodate the plastic deformation, the good agreement between the experimental results and the Indentation Size Effect model indicated that, in the current nanocrystalline MA20 and MA30, the dislocation plasticity was still the dominant deformation mechanism. Significant hardness enhancement with decreasing grain size, down to 58 nm, was found in the nanocrystalline Mg alloys. Further reduction of grain size would lead to a drop in the hardness values. The failure of grain refinement strengthening with the relatively high strain rate sensitivity of nanocrystalline Mg alloys suggested a change in the deformation mechanism. Indentation creep tests showed that the stress exponent was dependent on the loading rate during the loading section of the indentation, which was related to the dislocation structures before the creep starts. The influence of grain size on the mechanical behaviour and strength of extruded coarse-grained and nanocrystalline Mg alloys were investigated using uniaxial compression tests. The macroscopic response of the Mg alloys transited from strain hardening to strain softening behaviour, with grain size reduced from 13 ìm to 50 nm. The strain hardening was related to the twinning induced hardening and dislocation hardening effect, while the strain softening was attributed to the localized deformation in the nanocrystalline grains. The tension–compression yield asymmetry was noticed in the nanocrystalline region, demonstrating the twinning effect in the ultra-fine-grained and nanocrystalline region. The relationship k tensions < k compression failed in the nanocrystalline Mg alloys; this was attributed to the twofold effect of grain size on twinning. The nanocrystalline Mg alloys were found to exhibit increased strain rate sensitivity with decreasing grain size, with strain rate ranging from 0.0001/s to 0.01/s. Strain rate sensitivity of coarse-grained MA0 was increased by more than 10 times in MA40. The Hall-Petch relationship broke down at a critical grain size in the nanocrystalline region. The breakdown of the Hall-Petch relationship and the increased strain rate sensitivity were due to the localized dislocation activities (generalization and annihilation at grain boundaries) and the more significant contribution from grain boundary mediated mechanisms. In the micro-compression tests, the sample size effects on the mechanical behaviours were studied on MA0, MA20 and MA40 micro-pillars. In contrast to the bulk samples under compression, the stress-strain curves of MA0 and MA20 micro-pillars were characterized with a number of discrete strain burst events separated by nearly elastic strain segments. Unlike MA0 and MA20, the stress-strain curves of MA40 micro-pillars were smooth, without obvious strain bursts. The deformation mechanisms of the MA0 and MA20 micro-pillars under micro-compression tests were considered to be initially dominated by deformation twinning, followed by dislocation mechanisms. For MA40 pillars, the deformation mechanisms were believed to be localized dislocation activities and grain boundary related mechanisms. The strain hardening behaviours of the micro-pillars suggested that the grain boundaries in the nanocrystalline micro-pillars would reduce the source (nucleation sources for twins/dislocations) starvation hardening effect. The power law relationship of the yield strength on pillar dimensions in MA0, MA20 supported the fact that the twinning mechanism was correlated to the pre-existing defects, which can promote the nucleation of the twins. Then, we provided a latitudinal comparison of the results and conclusions derived from the different techniques used for testing the coarse-grained and nanocrystalline Mg alloy; this helps to better understand the deformation mechanisms of the Mg alloys as a whole. At the end, we summarized the thesis and highlighted the conclusions, contributions, innovations and outcomes of the research. Finally, it outlined recommendations for future work.

Compressive behaviour of nanocrystalline Mg-5Al alloys

Magnesium alloys are attracting increasing research interests due to their low density, high specific strength, good machinability and availability as compared to other structural materials. However, the deformation and failure mechanisms of nanocrystalline (nc) Mg alloys have not been well understood. In this work, the deformation behaviour of nc Mg-5Al alloys was investigated using compression test, with focus on the effects of grain size. The average grain size of the Mg- Al alloy was changed from 13 to 50 nm via mechanical milling. The results showed that grain size had a significant influence on the yield stress and ductility of the Mg alloys, and the materials exhibited increased strain rate sensitivity with a decrease in grain size. The deformation mechanisms were also strongly dependent on the grain sizes.

Supramolecular selection in molecular alloys

Complexes of the type \[M(phen)3](PF6)2 (M = Ni(II), Fe(II), Ru(II) and phen = 1,10-phenanthroline) were found to co-crystallize to form molecular alloys (solid solutions of molecules) with general formula \[MAxMB1–x(phen)3](PF6)2·0.5H2O in which the relative concentrations of the metal complexes in the crystals closely match those in the crystallizing solution. Consequently, the composition of the co-crystals can be accurately predicted and controlled by modulating the relative concentrations of the metal complexes in the crystallizing solution. Although they are chemically and structurally similar, complexes of the type \[M(bipy)3](PF6)2 (M = Ni(II), Fe(II), Ru(II) and bipy = 2,2′-bipyridine) display markedly different behavior upon co-crystallization. In this case, the resulting co-crystals of general formula \[MAxMB1–x(bipy)3](PF6)2 have relative concentrations of the constituent complexes that are markedly different from the relative concentrations of the complexes initially present in the crystallizing solution. For example, when the nickel and iron complexes are co-crystallized from a solution containing a 50:50 ratio of each, the result is the formation of some crystals with a higher proportion of iron and others with a higher proportion of nickel. The relative concentrations of the metal complexes in the crystals can vary from those in the crystallizing solutions by as much as 15%. This result was observed for a range of combinations of metal complexes (Ni/Fe, Ni/Ru, and Fe/Ru) and a range of starting concentrations in the crystallizing solutions (90:10 through to 10:90 in 10% increments). To explain this remarkable result, we introduce the concept of “supramolecular selection”, which is a process driven by molecular recognition that leads to the partially selective aggregation of like molecules during crystallization.

Deformation behaviour of nanocrystalline Mg-AI alloys during nanoindentation

The deformation behaviour of Mg-5%AI alloys and its dependence with gain size and strain rate were investigated using nanoindentation. The grain sizes were successfully reduced below 100 nm via mechanical alloying method. It was found that the strain rate sensitivity increased with decreasing grain size. The smaller activation volumes and the plastic deformation mechanisms involving grain boundary activities are considered to contribute to the increase of strain rate sensitivity in the nanocrystalline alloys.