Tailoring Properties of Hafnium Nitride Thin Film via Reactive Gas-Timing RF Magnetron Sputtering for Surface Enhanced-Raman Scattering Substrates

This study successfully demonstrated the tailoring properties of hafnium nitride (HfN) thin films via reactive gas-timing (RGT) RF magnetron sputtering for surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) substrate applications. The optimal RGT sputtering condition was investigated by varying the duration time of the argon and nitrogen gas sequence. The RGT technique formed thin films with a grain size of approximately 15 nm. Additionally, the atomic ratios of nitrogen and hafnium can be controlled between 0.24 and 0.28, which is greater than the conventional technique, resulting in a high absorbance in the long wavelength region. Moreover, the HfN thin film exhibited a high Raman signal intensity with an EF of 8.5 × 104 to methylene blue molecules and was capable of being reused five times. A superior performance of HfN as a SERS substrate can be attributed to its tailored grain size and chemical composition, which results in an increase in the hot spot effect. These results demonstrate that the RGT technique is a viable method for fabricating HfN thin films with controlled properties at room temperature, which makes them an attractive material for SERS and other plasmonic applications.

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Au nanocluster arrays on self-assembled block copolymer thin films as highly active SERS substrates with excellent reproducibility

RSC Advances ◽

10.1039/c6ra05225h ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 6 (45) ◽

pp. 38716-38723 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Yale Shen ◽

Yuanjun Liu ◽

Wei Wang ◽

Fan Xu ◽

Chao Yan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Sers Substrate ◽

Sers Substrates ◽

Highly Active ◽

Surface Enhanced ◽

Surface Enhanced Raman ◽

Enhanced Raman Scattering ◽

Self Assembled ◽

Excellent Reproducibility

We demonstrate the fabrication of uniform Au nanocluster arrays utilizing a self-assembled polystyrene-block-poly(4-vinylpyridine) (PS-b-P4VP) thin film as the template and their application as a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate.

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PROPERTIES OF ALL-SOLID-STATE LITHIUM-ION RECHARGEABLE BATTERIES DEPOSITED BY RF MAGNETRON SPUTTERING

Modern Physics Letters B ◽

10.1142/s021798491350156x ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 27 (22) ◽

pp. 1350156 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

R. J. ZHU ◽

Y. REN ◽

L. Q. GENG ◽

T. CHEN ◽

L. X. LI ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Solid State ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Coulombic Efficiency ◽

Electronic Conductivity ◽

Lithium Ion ◽

Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Rechargeable Batteries ◽

Voltage Range

Amorphous V 2 O 5, LiPON and Li 2 Mn 2 O 4 thin films were fabricated by RF magnetron sputtering methods and the morphology of thin films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy. Then with these three materials deposited as the anode, solid electrolyte, cathode, and vanadium as current collector, a rocking-chair type of all-solid-state thin-film-type Lithium-ion rechargeable battery was prepared by using the same sputtering parameters on stainless steel substrates. Electrochemical studies show that the thin film battery has a good charge–discharge characteristic in the voltage range of 0.3–3.5 V, and after 30 cycles the cell performance turned to become stabilized with the charge capacity of 9 μAh/cm2, and capacity loss of single-cycle of about 0.2%. At the same time, due to electronic conductivity of the electrolyte film, self-discharge may exist, resulting in approximately 96.6% Coulombic efficiency.

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Fabrication and Testing of All-solid-state Nanoscale Lithium Batteries Using LiPON for Electrolytes

E3S Web of Conferences ◽

10.1051/e3sconf/20185301008 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 53 ◽

pp. 01008

Author(s):

Feihu Tan ◽

XiaoPing Liang ◽

Feng Wei ◽

Jun Du

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Solid State ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Specific Capacity ◽

Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Open Circuit ◽

Working Pressure ◽

Thin Film Battery ◽

A Current

The amorphous LiPON thin film was obtained by using the crystalline Li3PO4 target and the RF magnetron sputtering method at a N2 working pressure of 1 Pa. and then the morphology and composition of LiPON thin films are analysed by SEM and EDS. SEM shows that the film was compact and smooth, while EDS shows that the content of N in LiPON thin film was about 17.47%. The electrochemical properties of Pt/LiPON/Pt were analysed by EIS, and the ionic conductivity of LiPON thin films was 3.8×10-7 S/cm. By using the hard mask in the magnetron sputtering process, the all-solid-state thin film battery with Si/Ti/Pt/LiCoO2/LiPON/Li4Ti5O12/Pt structure was prepared, and its electrical properties were studied. As for this thin film battery, the open circuit voltage was 1.9 V and the first discharge specific capacity was 34.7 μAh/cm2·μm at a current density of 5 μA/cm-2, indicating that is promising in all-solidstate thin film batteries.

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Enhanced UV Photon-response of Tin Nano Cluster Loaded- laser Irradiated ZnO Thin film detector

MRS Proceedings ◽

10.1557/opl.2011.206 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 1288 ◽

Author(s):

Rashmi Menon ◽

K. Sreenivas ◽

Vinay Gupta

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Surface States ◽

Response Speed ◽

Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Fast Response ◽

Zno Thin Films ◽

Zno Thin Film ◽

Photo Response

ABSTRACTZinc Oxide (ZnO), II-VI compound semiconductor, is a promising material for ultraviolet (UV) photon sensor applications due to its attractive properties such as good photoconductivity, ease processing at low temperatures and excellent radiation hardness. The rf magnetron sputtering is a suitable deposition technique due to better control over stoichiometry and deposition of uniform film. Studies have shown that the presence of surface defects in ZnO and subsequently their passivation are crucial for enhanced photo-response characteristics, and to obtain the fast response speed. Worldwide efforts are continuing to develop good quality ZnO thin films with novel design structures for realization of an efficient UV photon sensor. In the present work, UV photon sensor is fabricated using a ZnO thin films deposited by rf magnetron sputtering on the corning glass substrate. Photo-response, (Ion/Ioff) of as-grown ZnO film of thickness 100 nm is found to be 3×103 with response time of 90 ms for UV intensity of 140 μW/cm2 (λ = 365 nm). With irradiation on ZnO thin film by pulsed Nd:YAG laser (forth harmonics 266 nm), the sensitivity of the UV sensor is found to enhance. The photo-response increases after laser irradiation to 4x104 with a fast response speed of 35 ms and attributed to the change in surface states and the native defects in the ZnO thin film. Further, enhancement in the ultraviolet (UV) photo-response (8×104) of detector was observed after integrating the nano-scale islands of Sn metal on the surface of laser irradiated ZnO thin film.

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Structural, Morphological and Adhesion Properties of Cofeb Thin Films Deposited by DC Magnetron Sputtering

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.802.47 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 802 ◽

pp. 47-52

Author(s):

Chuleerat Ibuki ◽

Rachasak Sakdanuphab

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Grain Size ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Crystalline Structure ◽

Glass Substrate ◽

Intrinsic Stress ◽

Dc Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Adhesion Properties ◽

Sputtering Power

In this work the effects of amorphous (glass) and crystalline (Si) substrates on the structural, morphological and adhesion properties of CoFeB thin film deposited by DC Magnetron sputtering were investigated. It was found that the structure of a substrate affects to crystal formation, surface morphology and adhesion of CoFeB thin films. The X-Ray diffraction patterns reveal that as-deposited CoFeB thin film at low sputtering power was amorphous and would become crystal when the power increased. The increase in crystalline structure of CoFeB thin film is attributed to the crystalline substrate and the increase of kinetic energy of sputtering atoms. Atomic Force Microscopy images of CoFeB thin film clearly show that the roughness, grain size, and uniformity correlate to the sputtering power and the structure of substrate. The CoFeB thin film on glass substrate shows a smooth surface and a small grain size whereas the CoFeB thin film on Si substrate shows a rough surface and a slightly increases of grain size. Sticky Tape Test on CoFeB thin film deposited on glass substrate indicates the adhesion failure with a high sputtering power. The results suggest that the crystalline structure of substrate affects to the atomic bonding and the sputtering power affects to intrinsic stress of CoFeB thin film.

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Crystal Growth of β-FeSi2 Thin Film on (100), (110) and (111) Plane of Si and Yittria-stabilized Zirconia Substrates

MRS Proceedings ◽

10.1557/proc-980-0980-ii05-47 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 980 ◽

Author(s):

Kensuke Akiyama ◽

Satoru Kaneko ◽

Takanori Kiguchi ◽

Takashi Suemasu ◽

Takeshi Kimura ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Crystal Growth ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Iron Silicide ◽

Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Single Element ◽

Stabilized Zirconia ◽

Crystalline Film ◽

Anions And Cations

AbstractIron silicide thin films were prepared on silicon (Si) and yittria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) substrates using RF magnetron sputtering and evaporation methods. Epitaxial b-FeSi2 thin films were grown on (100) and (111) planes of Si and YSZ substrates, while noncrystallized films were deposited on (110) plane of both Si and YSZ substrates. The epitaxial relationships between the b-FeSi2 and YSZ were the same as those between b-FeSi2 and Si, in the case of (100) and (111) planes. It is possible that epitaxial b-FeSi2 film can be grown when substrates and b-FeSi2 surfaces consist of either a single element or only cations, while the crystalline film was not shown when either substrate or b-FeSi2 surface consists of a mixture of anions and cations or iron and silicon.

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Gold Nanofilm-Coated Porous Silicon as Surface-Enhanced Raman Scattering Substrate

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app9224806 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 9 (22) ◽

pp. 4806 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ibrahim Khalil ◽

Chia-Man Chou ◽

Kun-Lin Tsai ◽

Steven Hsu ◽

Wageeh A. Yehye ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Porous Silicon ◽

Raman Scattering ◽

Film Thickness ◽

Sers Substrate ◽

Au Film ◽

Surface Enhanced ◽

Surface Enhanced Raman ◽

Enhanced Raman Scattering ◽

Au Thin Film

Metallic film-coated porous silicon (PSi) has been reported as a lucrative surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate. The solution-based fabrication process is facile and easy; however, it requires additional reducing agent and extra chemical treatment, as well as hinders the suitability as a reproducible SERS substrate due to irregular hot spot generation via irregular deposition of metallic nanocrystallites. To address this issue, we report a unique one-step electronic beam (e-beam) physical vapor deposition (PVD) method to fabricate a consistent layer of gold (Au) nanofilm on PSi. Moreover, to achieve the best output as a SERS substrate, PSi prepared by electrochemical etching was used as template to generate an Au layer of irregular surface, offering the surface roughness feature of the PSi–Au thin film. Furthermore, to investigate the etching role and Au film thickness, Au-nanocrystallites of varying thickness (5, 7, and 10 nm) showing discrete surface morphology were characterized and evaluated for SERS effect using Rhodamine 6G (R6G). The SERS signal of R6G adsorbed on PSi–Au thin film showed a marked enhancement, around three-fold enhancement factor (EF), than the Si–Au thin film. The optimal SERS output was obtained for PSi–Au substrate of 7 nm Au film thickness. This study thus indicates that the SERS enhancement relies on the Au film thickness and the roughness feature of the PSi–Au substrate.

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Effect of Temperature on the Optical and Morphological Properties of Zinc Oxide Thin Films Prepared by RF Magnetron Sputtering

Advanced Materials Research ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/amr.1115.422 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 1115 ◽

pp. 422-425

Author(s):

Souad A.M. Al-Bat’hi ◽

Maizatulnisa Othman

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Grain Size ◽

Zinc Oxide ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Radio Frequency ◽

Deposition Temperature ◽

Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Morphological Properties ◽

Zno Thin Films ◽

Effect Of Temperature

This investigation deals with the effect of temperature on the optical and morphological properties of Zinc Oxide thin films prepared by radio-Frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering technique. In the present work, zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films have been deposited on glass substrates from 50°C to 300°C by radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The effects of deposition temperature on the crystallization behaviour and optical properties of the films have been studied. The thin films were characterized using Ultraviolet Visible Spectroscopy (UV-VIS), Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM) and X-ray Diffraction Analysis (XRD). From the UV-VIS testing, the average transmission percentage of the films is between 80-95% for all deposition temperatures meanwhile the energy gap of ZnO thin films varies from 3.26 eV to 3.35 eV which is not much different from the theoretical value. Also, the grain size is getting smaller from 3.886nm, 3.216nm, 3.119nm and 3.079nm with respect to the increasing deposition temperature 50°C, 100°C, 200°C and 300°C respectively whereas the average grain size per intercept value is increasing. The patterns of the peak were about the same for all deposition temperature where the thin films have polycrystalline hexagonal wurtzite structure with the orientation perpendicular (002) to the substrate surface (c-axis orientation) at 34.5(2θ).

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Conductivity of Yittria-Stabilized Zirconia Nanostructure Electrolyte for Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Application by Using RF Magnetron Sputtering

Solid State Phenomena ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/ssp.268.352 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 268 ◽

pp. 352-357

Author(s):

S.Y. Jaffar ◽

Yussof Wahab ◽

Rosnita Muhammad ◽

Z. Othaman ◽

Zuhairi Ibrahim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Rf Magnetron Sputtering ◽

Stabilized Zirconia ◽

Deposition Parameter ◽

Deposition Parameters ◽

Ysz Thin Film ◽

Temperature Rate ◽

Lower Temperature

Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) thin films were deposited successfully using RF magnetron sputtering. The substrate had been used are sapphire glass. A pure ceramic of Zr-Y is synthesized and processed into a planar magnetron target which is reactively sputtered with an Argon-Oxygen gas mixture to form Zr-Y-O nanostructure. The aim of this research is to study the conductivity and roughness YSZ thin film by using RF magnetron sputtering by varying the temperature deposition parameter. By lowering the YSZ thin film into nanostructure would enable for SOFC to be operate at lower temperature below 400°C. The YSZ nanostructure were controlled by varying the deposition parameters, including the deposition temperature and the substrate used. The crystalline of YSZ structure at 100W and temperature 300°C. The surface morphology of the films proved that at 300°C temperature rate deposition showed optimum growth morphology and density of YSZ thin films. Besides, the high deposition subtrate temperature affected the thickness of YSZ thin film at 80nm by using surface profiler. A higher rate of deposition is achievable when the sputtering mode of the Zr-Y target is metallic as opposed to oxide. YSZ is synthesizing to obtain the optimum thin film for SOFC application.

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