Investigation of low- and high-resistance Ni–Ge–Au ohmic contacts to n+ GaAs using electron microbeam and surface analytical techniques

1996 ◽  
Vol 11 (5) ◽  
pp. 1244-1254 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy E. Lumpkin ◽  
Gregory R. Lumpkin ◽  
K. S. A. Butcher

A process for the formation of low-resistance Ni–Ge–Au ohmic contacts to n+ GaAs has been refined using multivariable screening and response surface experiments. Samples from the refined, low-resistance process (which measure 0.05 ± 0.02 Ω · mm) and the unrefined, higher resistance process (0.17 ± 0.02 Ω · mm) were characterized using analytical electron microscopy (AEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), and x-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) depth profiling methods. This approach was used to identify microstructural differences and compare them with electrical resistance measurements. Analytical results of the unrefined ohmic process sample reveal a heterogeneous, multiphase microstructure with a rough alloy-GaAs interface. The sample from the refined ohmic process exhibits an alloy which is homogeneous, smooth, and has a fine-grained microstructure with two uniformly distributed phases. XPS analysis for the refined ohmic process sample indicates that the Ge content is relatively depleted in the alloy (relative to the deposited Ge amount) and enriched in the GaAs. This is not evidenced in the unrefined ohmic process sample. Our data lead us to conclude that a smooth, uniform, two-phase microstructure, coupled with a shift in Ge content from the post-alloy metal to the GaAs, is important in forming low-resistance ohmic contacts.

Author(s):  
M. Tamizifar ◽  
G. Cliff ◽  
R.W. Devenish ◽  
G.W. Lorimer

Small additions of copper, <1 wt%, have a pronounced effect on the ageing response of Al-Mg-Si alloys. The object of the present investigation was to study the effect of additions of copper up to 0.5 wt% on the ageing response of a series of Al-Mg-Si alloys and to use high resolution analytical electron microscopy to determine the composition of the age hardening precipitates.The composition of the alloys investigated is given in Table 1. The alloys were heat treated in an argon atmosphere for 30m, water quenched and immediately aged either at 180°C for 15 h or given a duplex treatment of 180°C for 15 h followed by 350°C for 2 h2. The double-ageing treatment was similar to that carried out by Dumolt et al. Analyses of the precipitation were carried out with a HB 501 Scanning Transmission Electron Microscope. X-ray peak integrals were converted into weight fractions using the ratio technique of Cliff and Lorimer.


Author(s):  
K. J. Morrissey

Grain boundaries and interfaces play an important role in determining both physical and mechanical properties of polycrystalline materials. To understand how the structure of interfaces can be controlled to optimize properties, it is necessary to understand and be able to predict their crystal chemistry. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM), analytical electron microscopy (AEM,), and high resolution electron microscopy (HREM) are essential tools for the characterization of the different types of interfaces which exist in ceramic systems. The purpose of this paper is to illustrate some specific areas in which understanding interface structure is important. Interfaces in sintered bodies, materials produced through phase transformation and electronic packaging are discussed.


Author(s):  
Gejing Li ◽  
D. R. Peacor ◽  
D. S. Coombs ◽  
Y. Kawachi

Recent advances in transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and analytical electron microscopy (AEM) have led to many new insights into the structural and chemical characteristics of very finegrained, optically homogeneous mineral aggregates in sedimentary and very low-grade metamorphic rocks. Chemical compositions obtained by electron microprobe analysis (EMPA) on such materials have been shown by TEM/AEM to result from beam overlap on contaminant phases on a scale below resolution of EMPA, which in turn can lead to errors in interpretation and determination of formation conditions. Here we present an in-depth analysis of the relation between AEM and EMPA data, which leads also to the definition of new mineral phases, and demonstrate the resolution power of AEM relative to EMPA in investigations of very fine-grained mineral aggregates in sedimentary and very low-grade metamorphic rocks.Celadonite, having end-member composition KMgFe3+Si4O10(OH)2, and with minor substitution of Fe2+ for Mg and Al for Fe3+ on octahedral sites, is a fine-grained mica widespread in volcanic rocks and volcaniclastic sediments which have undergone low-temperature alteration in the oceanic crust and in burial metamorphic sequences.


Minerals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 727
Author(s):  
Shiyun Jin ◽  
Huifang Xu ◽  
Seungyeol Lee

The enigmatic Bøggild intergrowth in iridescent labradorite crystals was revisited in light of recent work on the incommensurately modulated structures in the intermediated plagioclase. Five igneous samples and one metamorphic labradorite sample with various compositions and lamellar thicknesses were studied in this paper. The lamellar textures were characterized with conventional transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The compositions of individual lamellae were analyzed with high-resolution energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) mapping and atom probe tomography (APT). The average structure states of the studied samples were also compared with single-crystal X-ray diffraction data (SC-XRD). The Na-rich lamellae have a composition of An44–48, and the Ca-rich lamellae range from An56 to An63. Significant differences between the lamellar compositions of different samples were observed. The compositions of the Bøggild intergrowth do not only depend on the bulk compositions, but also on the thermal history of the host rock. The implications on the subsolidus phase relationships of the plagioclase feldspar solid solution are discussed. The results cannot be explained by a regular symmetrical solvus such as the Bøggild gap, but they support an inclined two-phase region that closes at low temperature.


2017 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 47-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
Uschi M. Graham ◽  
Robert A. Yokel ◽  
Alan K. Dozier ◽  
Lawrence Drummy ◽  
Krishnamurthy Mahalingam ◽  
...  

This is the first utilization of advanced analytical electron microscopy methods, including high-resolution transmission electron microscopy, high-angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy mapping to characterize the organ-specific bioprocessing of a relatively inert nanomaterial (nanoceria). Liver and spleen samples from rats given a single intravenous infusion of nanoceria were obtained after prolonged (90 days) in vivo exposure. These advanced analytical electron microscopy methods were applied to elucidate the organ-specific cellular and subcellular fate of nanoceria after its uptake. Nanoceria is bioprocessed differently in the spleen than in the liver.


Clay Minerals ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 36 (3) ◽  
pp. 307-324 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. D. Ruiz Cruz

AbstractMixed-layered phyllosilicates with composition intermediate between mica and chlorite were identified in very low-grade metaclastites from the Malàguide Complex (Betic Cordilleras, Spain), and studied by X-ray diffraction, and transmission and analytical electron microscopy. They occur both as small grains in the rock matrix, and associated with muscovitechlorite stacks. Transmission electron microscope observations revealed a transition from chlorite to ordered 1:1 interstratifications through complex 1:2 and 1:3 interstratifications. Analytical electron microscopy data indicate a composition slightly different from the sum of discrete trioctahedral chlorite and dioctahedral mica. The types of layer transitions suggest that mixed-layer formation included two main processes: (1) the replacement of a brucite sheet by a cation sheet in the chlorite structure; and (2) the precipitation of mica-like layers between the chlorite layers. The strongest diffraction lines in oriented X-ray patterns are: 12.60 Å (002), 7.98 Å (003), 4.82 Å (005) and 3.48 Å (007).


1997 ◽  
Vol 3 (S2) ◽  
pp. 673-674
Author(s):  
M. Rühle ◽  
T. Wagner ◽  
S. Bernath ◽  
J. Plitzko ◽  
C. Scheu ◽  
...  

Heterophase boundaries play an important role in advanced materials since those materials often comprise different components. The properties of the materials depend strongly on the properties of the interface between the components. Thus, it is important to investigate the stability of the microstructure with respect to annealing at elevated temperatures. In this paper results will be presented on the structure and composition of the interfaces between Cu and (α -Al2O3. The interfaces were processed either by growing a thin Cu overlayer on α- Al2O3 in a molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) system or by diffusion bonding bulk crystals of the two constituents in an UHV chamber. To improve the adhesion of Cu to α -Al2O3 ultrathin Ti interlayers were deposited between Cu and α - Al2O3.Interfaces were characterized by different transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques. Quantitative high-resolution electron microscopy (QHRTEM) allows the determination of the structure (coordinates of atoms) while analytical electron microscopy (AEM) allows the determination of the composition with high spatial resolution.


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