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Atomic Scale Structural Characterization of Epitaxial (Cd,Cr)Te Magnetic Semiconductor

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 June 2017

Bastien Bonef Open the ORCID record for Bastien Bonef [Opens in a new window] ,
Hervé Boukari ,
Adeline Grenier ,
Isabelle Mouton ,
Pierre-Henri Jouneau ,
Hidekazu Kinjo  and
Shinji Kuroda
Bastien Bonef*
Affiliation:
University Grenoble Alpes, F-38000 Grenoble, France CEA, INAC-MEM, F-38000 Grenoble, France
Hervé Boukari
Affiliation:
University Grenoble Alpes, F-38000 Grenoble, France CNRS, Institut Néel, F-38000 Grenoble, France
Adeline Grenier
Affiliation:
University Grenoble Alpes, F-38000 Grenoble, France CEA-LETI, MINATEC Campus, F-38054 Grenoble, France
Isabelle Mouton
Affiliation:
University Grenoble Alpes, F-38000 Grenoble, France CEA-LETI, MINATEC Campus, F-38054 Grenoble, France
Pierre-Henri Jouneau
Affiliation:
University Grenoble Alpes, F-38000 Grenoble, France CEA, INAC-MEM, F-38000 Grenoble, France
Hidekazu Kinjo
Affiliation:
Institute of Materials Science, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, 305-8573, Japan
Shinji Kuroda
Affiliation:
Institute of Materials Science, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, 305-8573, Japan
*
* Corresponding author. [email protected]
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Abstract

A detailed knowledge of the atomic structure of magnetic semiconductors is crucial to understanding their electronic and magnetic properties, which could enable spintronic applications. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDX) in the scanning transmission electron microscope and atom probe tomography (APT) experiments reveal the formation of Cr-rich regions in Cd1−x Cr x Te layers grown by molecular beam epitaxy. These Cr-rich regions occur on a length scale of 6–10 nm at a nominal Cr composition of x=0.034 and evolve toward an ellipsoidal shape oriented along <111> directions at a composition of x=0.083. Statistical analysis of the APT reconstructed volume reveals that the Cr aggregation increases with the average Cr composition. The correlation with the magnetic properties of such (Cd,Cr)Te layers is discussed within the framework of strongly inhomogeneous materials. Finally, difficulties in accurately quantifying the Cr distribution in the CdTe matrix on an atomic scale by EDX and APT are discussed.

Keywords

atom probe tomographyenergy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopyscanning transmission electron microscopydiluted magnetic semiconductorsclustering
Type
Materials Science Applications
Information
Microscopy and Microanalysis , Volume 23 , Issue 4 , August 2017 , pp. 717 - 723
Copyright
© Microscopy Society of America 2017 

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