This study examined the degradation of the device performance of InGaZnO4 (IGZO)-based thin-film transistors after annealing at high temperatures in air ambient. Using various characterization methods including scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy, we were able to disclose the details of a two-stage phase transformation that led to the device performance degradation. The Mo electrodes first succumbed to oxidation at moderate temperatures (400∼500 °C) and then the Mo oxide further reacted with IGZO to produce an In–Mo–O compound with some Ga at higher temperatures (600∼700 °C). We analyzed our results based on the thermodynamics and kinetics data available in the literature and confirmed that our findings are in agreement with the experimental results.

Ion implantation has been widely used to improve the mechanical and tribological properties of single crystalline silicon, an essential material for the semiconductor industry. In this study, the effects of four different ion implantations, Ar, C, N, and Ne ions, on the mechanical and tribological properties of single crystal Si were investigated at both the nanoscale and the microscale. Nanoindentation and microindentation were used to measure the mechanical properties and fracture toughness of ion-implanted Si. Nano and micro scratch and wear tests were performed to study the tribological behaviors of different ion-implanted Si. The relationship between the mechanical properties and tribological behavior and the damage mechanism of scratch and wear were also discussed.

The cycling behavior of anode materials based on alloys from the Li(Al1–zZnz) continuous solid solution has been studied. The performance of the most promising composition Li(Al0.8Zn0.2) was tested in half-cells against metallic Li with three different electrolytes and in full Li-ion cells against a V2O5 cathode. The underlying structure evolution during cycling and the most relevant fatigue mechanisms are elucidated by x-ray diffraction, nuclear magnetic resonance, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and reveal a loss of mobile Li due to the ongoing formation of solid electrolyte interfaces. An enhanced stability for Li(Al1–zZnz) electrodes with z˜0.2 results from a peculiar microstructure due to the decomposition of Al and Zn in the Li-poor state and their intermixing in the Li-rich state.

In-depth studies of the two types of Te nanoprecipitates, linear and elliptic, in Cd1–xZnxTe (CZT) crystals grown by a modified vertical Bridgman method have been carried out. Electron diffraction suggests that linear Te nanoprecipitates align their Te atoms in a similar way to CZT structure, while elliptic Te nanoprecipitates cluster Te atoms following the pure trigonal Te structure. The three-dimensional morphology for both linear and elliptic Te nanoprecipitates has been revealed by delicate energy-dispersive x-ray analysis under electron microscopy. The density of elliptic Te nanoprecipitates ranges from 1015 to 1017 cm−3, while linear ones usually several times lower for a certain CZT wafer. The origin of both types of Te nanoprecipitates has been discussed in terms of the local density of intrinsic point defects in CZT. CZT properties are influenced more negatively by elliptic Te nanoprecipitates, which shed light on the methodology for crystal growth: preventing the clustering of intrinsic point defects during the crystal growth will be essential to obtain high quality CZT crystal.

Thin-film transistors (TFTs) with zinc oxide channel layers were fabricated through a simple and low-cost solution process. Precursor solution concentration, annealing temperature, and the process were controlled for the purpose of improving the electrical properties of ZnO TFTs and analyzed in terms of microstructural scope. The fabricated ZnO films show preferential orientation of the (002) plane, which contributes to enhanced electron conduction and a dense surface. The results show that the TFT characteristics of the film are clearly affected by the microstructure. The optimized TFT operates in a depletion mode, shows n-type semiconductor behavior, and is highly transparent (>90%) within the visible light range. It exhibits a channel mobility of 9.4 cm2/V·s, a subthreshold slope of 3.3 V/decade, and an on-to-off current ratio greater than 105. In addition, the result of N2 annealing shows the possibility of improvement in electrical property of the ZnO TFTs.

Oxidation-induced stress evolutions in Ta thin films were investigated using ex situ microstructure analyses and in situ wafer curvature measurements. It was revealed that Ta thin films are oxidized to a crystalline TaO2 layer, which is subsequently oxidized to an amorphous tantalum pentoxide (a-Ta2O5) layer. Initial layered oxidation from Ta to TaO2 phases abruptly induces high compressive stress up to about 3.5 GPa with fast diffusion of oxygen through the Ta layer. Subsequently, it is followed by stress relaxation with the oxidation time, which is related to the slow oxidation from TaO2 to Ta2O5 phases. The initial compressive stress originates from the molar volume expansion during the layered formation of TaO2 from the Ta layer, while the relaxation of the compressive stresses is ascribed to the amorphous character of the a-Ta2O5 layer. According to Kissinger's analysis of the stress evolution during an isochronic heating process, the oxygen diffusion process through the a-Ta2O5 layer is the rate-controlling stage in the layered oxidation process of forming a a-Ta2O5/TaO2/Ta multilayer and has an activation energy of about 190.8 kJ/mol.

Ti/AlTiN/Ti-diamondlike carbon (DLC) composite coatings were deposited by mid-frequency magnetron sputtering and Hall ion source-assisted deposition on high-speed steel W18Cr4V substrates. The coating microstructure and mechanical properties, including hardness, elastic modulus, coefficient of friction, and wear properties were investigated by scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, scratch and ball-on-disk friction tests, respectively. Fairly smooth composite coating with strong interfacial adhesion and good mechanical properties was produced. The substrate bias increases sp3 bonds contents in the DLC layer, thus coating hardness increased from 14 to 24 GPa and elastic modulus from 190 to 230 GPa with the increased substrate bias. Adhesion of interfaces between Ti-DLC and AlTiN layer, AlTiN and the steel substrate decreased with the substrate bias. The coefficient of friction is between 0.10 and 0.15, except when the substrate bias is 500 V, it is 0.2. Composite coating wear resistance increased with the substrate bias.

Applying glass fluxing and cyclic superheating, rapid solidification of undercooled Ni–15at.%Cu alloy was performed by rapidly quenching the sample after recalescence. The evolution of microstructure and microtexture has been analyzed. At both low and high undercoolings, well-developed dendrites, within and around which are distributed by the fine equiaxed grains, are observed. At low undercooling, the completely grain-refined microstructure shows a highly oriented texture without annealing twins, whereas at high undercooling a fully random texture as well as a number of annealing twins is observed. On this basis, all the possible mechanisms for grain refinement, as well as their effects on the microstructure formation, were discussed. The grain refinement at both low and high undercoolings is concluded to originate from dendrite fragmentation. Particularly, at high undercooling, recrystallization, as a consequence of dendrite deformation (by fluid flow) and dendrite fragmentation (which provides grain boundary sites for recrystallization nucleation and for the “appearing” recrystallized grains), occurs and plays a role in the grain refinement and the formation of fully random texture.

In this study, we report a method for the formation and characterization of aligned arrays of amorphous titania nanotubes by anodic oxidation in thin titanium films on SiO2 substrates using fluoride-containing electrolytes. Trends in titania nanotube geometries as a function of synthesis conditions were established. A titania nanotube array surface area of approximately 178 m2/g is reported. The titania nanotubes transitioned to the rutile crystal structure when heated in air at 530 °C–705 °C. The degradation of methylene blue under UV light showed that lower fluoride concentrations in the synthesis electrolyte result in higher photocatalytic activity of the titania nanotubes. These results indicate that the synthesis conditions affect the oxygen content of amorphous nanotubes, which determines their physical and chemical properties.

Electrochemical double layer capacitors, also referred to as supercapacitors, are a promising technology in the field of energy storage. Carbon nanotube (CNT)-based supercapacitors are particularly interesting because of CNTs' high surface area and conductivity. CNT supercapacitors can potentially be used in hybrid electric vehicles due to their higher power density. Comparing energy storage systems that store energy in different ways, such as batteries, fuel cells, supercapacitors, and flywheels, requires that an appropriate set of performance data be collected. A Ragone plot is a log-log plot of a device's energy density versus power density, giving insight into its operational range. A method to obtain Ragone plots for CNT-based supercapacitors in a three-terminal electrochemical cell was adapted from a technique to test commercial capacitors for electric vehicles. Ragone plots for different types of as-grown CNT electrodes in different electrolytes are presented, along with the procedural details of this new method to obtain electrode-specific energy and power densities. Additionally, a theoretical weight calculation for a carbon nanotube film was derived and validated with a direct weight measurement of a CNT film. This weight was used in the specific energy and power densities for the Ragone plot.

Electroless nickel (Ni–P) is a common surface finish used in the ball grid array (BGA) package and interfacial reactions between its surface finish and lead-free solders can form complex intermetallic compound (IMC) layers. The presence of minor elements in lead-free solders either intentionally added or due to impurity contamination during solder manufacturing, can affect the solder-joint performance. In this work, interfacial reactions between Ni–P surface finish and the Sn–Ag–Cu solders were modified by varying Ag and Cu contents and also by adding a small amount of minor elements such as phosphorus (P), indium (In), and germanium (Ge). A transmission electron microscope was used to determine the intermetallic layer phases, compositions, crystal structures, and void defects. Varying the solder alloy elements led to the modulation of voids formation.

This paper reports the development of nonwoven nanofibers of pure and iron-doped titanium dioxide (TiO2) and evaluation of their antimicrobial attributes for using them as disinfectant gauze for wound healing upon brief activation by ultraviolet/infrared (UV/IR) illumination. It was found that the fibers exhibited superior bactericidal affinity when exposed briefly (3–12 s) to either multiphoton laser or infrared radiations. On the other hand, exposure to a UV beam for up to 20 min was not effective in mitigating the bacterial colonization of the Escherichia coli.

The preparation of high-quality ferroelectric PbTiO3-based ultrathin films by chemical solution deposition, using a diol-based sol-gel method, has proved to be successful. However, there is a critical thickness below which the films break up into isolated structures. According to previous studies, above a certain grain size to thickness ratio a microstructural instability occurs and the coatings are no longer continuous. We explore the use of the solvent chemistry to control this phenomenon, as an alternative to the more conventional variation of the crystallization parameters. The use of diols with short C chain lengths leads to films with smaller grain sizes, whose critical thicknesses are lower. A reduction from 40 to 15 nm is achieved by reducing the number of C of the diol used from 5 to 2. A critical value of G/t < 5.0 is necessary to obtain continuous ultrathin films with the processing conditions used.

Irradiation-induced amorphization in nanocrystalline and single-crystal 3C-SiC has been studied using 1 MeV Si+ ions under identical irradiation conditions at room temperature and 400 K. The disordering behavior has been characterized using in situ ion channeling and ex situ x-ray diffraction methods. The results show that, compared with single-crystal 3C-SiC, full amorphization of small 3C-SiC grains (˜3.8 nm in size) at room temperature occurs at a slightly lower dose. Grain size decreases with increasing dose until a fully amorphized state is attained. The amorphization dose increases at 400 K relative to room temperature. However, at 400 K, the amorphization dose for 2.0 nm grains is about a factor of 4 and 8 smaller than for 3.0 nm grains and bulk single-crystal 3C-SiC, respectively. The behavior is attributed to the preferential amorphization at the interface.

Optical absorption and scattering behaviors of lanthanum hexaboride (LaB6) nanoparticulate dispersion coatings with various particle sizes have been investigated in the ultraviolet to near-infrared (NIR) wavelengths for application to solar control filters. Large characteristic near-infrared absorption is introduced as the decreased particle size falls into nanoscale, and its origin is discussed in terms of a localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of conduction electrons. Optical constants of LaB6 have been measured and Mie scattering theory analysis was conducted. The theory was found to generally replicate the optical characteristics, and variations of absorbed and scattered wave fractions as well as the LSPR wavelength have been discussed with varying particle size. The absorption peaks are found as shaped narrower and located at shorter wavelength in theory than in experiment, which is suggested as ascribed mainly to the nonspherical distorted shape of LaB6 nanoparticles.

A sequential procedure of alkaline treatment followed by SiCl4 or hydrothermal treatment has been investigated to obtain a tailored ZSM-5 catalyst for the synthesis of pyridine bases. The major function of alkaline treatment is desilication; however, it is accompanied by the extraction of framework aluminum, which formed the extra-framework alumina and amorphous alumina by realumination. Moreover, a large number of intracrystalline meso- and macropores and silanol groups are created. The desilication and realumination cause the ratio of Lewis acid sites to Brönsted acid sites (L/B) to increase. The subsequent SiCl4 or hydrothermal dealumination increases both L/B ratio and acid strength. The introduced hierarchical pores and changed acid strength distribution by the alkaline treatment improve the stability of the catalysts; the generated stronger acid sites by dealumination benefits the yields of pyridine bases; and the increased L/B by the sequential treatment promotes the selectivity of pyridine over 3-picoline.

Blister features produced by laser-induced delamination of silicon dioxide from silicon substrates were analyzed with thin-film buckling mechanics. These analyses revealed the role of the interaction between the material and the femtosecond (fs)-pulsed laser on blister formation. In particular, it was deduced that the magnitude of the compressive residual film stress within the irradiated region appeared to exceed the intrinsic residual stress obtained from wafer curvature techniques. This apparent increase in the compressive stress after fs-pulsed laser irradiation may be caused by a modification of the oxide, which resulted in a local rarefaction of the film. The results demonstrated important features of the interaction between materials and fs-pulsed laser, including the presence of subtle modification thresholds and the limited role of thermal effects.

After sputter deposition of Sn (layer thickness of 350 nm) on Cu substrates and during subsequent aging at room temperature, Cu and Sn reacted to form the intermetallic phase Cu6Sn5 in the Sn layer at the Cu/Sn interface, which led within a few hours of aging to the development of a compressive stress parallel to the Cu/Sn interface in the Sn layer. One day after aging at room-temperature whisker formation occurred on the surface of the Sn layer. It was shown that whisker growth is associated with long-range Sn diffusion parallel to the Cu/Sn interface. Sn layers of the same thickness sputter deposited on pure Si substrates exhibited throughout the same aging time at room temperature a tensile stress parallel to the Cu/Sn interface (no intermetallic phase formation took place) and whisker formation did not occur. The interrelationship of intermetallic compound formation, stress development, and whisker growth is discussed.

The microstructure and microimpact performance of Sn1Ag0.1Cu0.02Ni0.05In (SAC101NiIn)/AuNi/Cu solder ball joints were investigated after a thermal cycle test (TCT). The joints show complete bulk fracture behavior before TCT. Moreover, TCT facilitated interfacial fracture behavior with lower fracture energy. The intermetallic compounds (IMCs) formed in the solder joints before and after TCT were investigated. TCT induces a variety of structural variations in the solder joints, including slipping bands, whisker formation, the squeezing of the IMC layer, the formation of cavities, the rotation and pop-up of grain, and the deformation and rotation of the entire joint. The variations in fracture behavior induced by TCT are correlated with the structural variations in the solder joints.

A high-molecular-weight perfluoropolyether (PFPE-YR) and a perfluoropolyether containing ammonium phosphate (PFPE-F10) have been evaluated as fluorinated coating for high-surface-area titanium oxides. Coated nano-TiO2 shows hydrophobic properties and excellent buoyancy on water. In addition to photoactivity toward the degradation of toluene in gas phase, specific trial analyses have been completed to estimate the modified titanium oxide features. Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analysis for the surface area determination, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis) for the material electronic band gap, high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), x-ray diffraction (XRD), and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for the morphology, structure, and surface composition, respectively, and water contact angle and infrared (IR) analysis have been performed to estimate the wettability and stability of coated titanium.