In this study, we reveal the crystallography, crystallinity, and amorphization of low-dimensional crystals of the topological insulator and phase change material Sb₂Te₃ within both discrete and bundled single walled carbon nanotubes with a diameter range spanning 1.3-1.7 nm by a combination of electron diffraction, aberration-corrected high resolution imaging, and variable dose electron beam irradiation. We further reveal that electron diffraction indicates that the crystallinity of the host single walled carbon nanotubes is largely unaffected by this process indicating that mass loss during the observed in situ glass transition had not occurred and that the template had maintained its structural integrity. Such a transition would not be possible with any other common nanoporous template for which the pores would be enlarged due to likely sintering.
We report on preparation and electrical characterization of the epitaxial BaTiO₃ (BTO), BiFeO₃ (BFO) thin films and BFO/BTO bi- and multilayers, grown on (001) SrTiO₃ (STO) and (LaAlO₃)_{0.3}(Sr₂TaAlO₆)_{0.7} (LSAT) substrates. The ferroelectric properties were characterized using the electric force microscopy method to image and switch the electric domains. This fabrication process opens the routes towards wide study of magnetoelectric effect in complex oxide heterostructures.
Bilayered epitaxial BiFeO_3/YBa_2Cu_3O_7 films were fabricated on (100) [(LaAlO_3)_{0.3}(Sr_2TaAlO_6)_{0.7}] substrates by sputtering method. For structural comparison the bilayered BiFeO_3/La_{0.67}Sr_{0.33}MnO_3 films were also deposited on (100) SrTiO_3 substrates. A weak ferromagnetic moment is observed in BiFeO_3/YBa_2Cu_3O_7 films. The mechanism responsible for weak ferromagnetic moment arises presumably from the epitaxy strain induced canted antiferromagnetic structure.
We study the superconductor-insulator transition in Si/Nb/Si trilayers, in which the thickness of Si is fixed at 10 nm, and the nominal thickness of Nb changes in the range between d = 20 nm down to d = 0.3 nm. The transmission electron microscopy indicates the formation of the mixed Nb-Si layer for small d. Both the thickness-induced, and the magnetic-field induced superconductor-insulator transition is observed. The crossing point of the isotherms at the critical field B_{c} decreases with decreasing d, and it is T-independent at temperatures below 300 mK. At larger fields the weak peak in magnetoresistance appears in some of the films.
We report on growth of GaN nanocolumns by plasma assisted MBE on (111) silicon substrates and on their characterization. The nanocolumns nucleate on the substrate spontaneously without use of any catalyst, probably by the Volmer-Weber mechanism. Transmission electron microscopy analysis shows high crystalline quality of GaN nanocolumns and their good alignment with the c-axis being perpendicular to the substrate. Preliminary results on use of GaN nanocolumns in gas sensor devices are presented.
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