A review of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication using the helium ion microscope

• Frances I. Allen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 633–664, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.52

• ], tungsten [83][84][85], an Fe–Zr alloy [86], a Y2O3/Fe bilayer [87], and nanocluster films of magnetite and core–shell iron–magnetite nanoparticles [88]. In these studies, various implantation effects have been investigated, including the tendency for grain boundaries and interfaces to act as sinks for

Spontaneous shape transition of Mn_xGe_1−x islands to long nanowires

• S. Javad Rezvani,
• Luc Favre,
• Gabriele Giuli,
• Yiming Wubulikasimu,
• Isabelle Berbezier,
• Augusto Marcelli,
• Luca Boarino and
• Nicola Pinto

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 366–374, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.30

• modulates the geometry of the nanostructures. The Mn–Ge alloy nanowires are single-crystalline structures with homogeneous composition and uniform width along their length. The shape evolution towards nanowires occurs for islands with a mean size of ≃170 nm. The wires, up to ≃1.1 μm long, asymptotically

• properties of the Mn–Ge alloy to design and fabricate novel nanodevices. Keywords: nanowires; semi-metallic Ge–Mn alloy; strain-induced growth; Introduction Metallic and semimetallic nanowires (NWs) have attracted vast interest in nanoscale electronic and spintronic systems due to their thermal [1

• −x alloy (x ≤ 5%), the formation of Mn11Ge8 and Mn5Ge3 phases is energetically favoured with a preference for the latter [19][20][21][22][23][24][27][37]. Under the same annealing conditions, for a Mn film thickness of 4.5 ML a drastic change of the resulting morphology is observed with the

TiO_x/Pt₃Ti(111) surface-directed formation of electronically responsive supramolecular assemblies of tungsten oxide clusters

• Marco Moors,
• Yun An,
• Agnieszka Kuc and
• Kirill Yu. Monakhov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 203–212, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.16

• Dresden-Rossendorf, Department of Reactive Transport, Institute of Resource Ecology, Permoserstraße 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany 10.3762/bjnano.12.16 Abstract Highly ordered titanium oxide films grown on a Pt3Ti(111) alloy surface were utilized for the controlled immobilization and tip-induced electric

• alloy surface to different oxygen doses at elevated temperatures results in the formation of several atomically thin and highly ordered TiOx phases, which were described in detail elsewhere [22][23]. Depending on the preparation conditions, up to four different TiOx phases can be prepared on the Pt3Ti

• points, identical oxide phases by electron beam evaporation of Ti on Pt(111) at increased oxygen partial pressures. However, the direct oxidation of the Pt3Ti alloy surface has the advantage of an easier reproducibility and an increased long-range order of the individual oxide phases [22]. For this study

The role of gold atom concentration in the formation of Cu–Au nanoparticles from the gas phase

• Yuri Ya. Gafner,
• Svetlana L. Gafner,
• Darya A. Ryzkova and
• Andrey V. Nomoev

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 72–81, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.6

• and copper alloy ranging from 45 to 200 nm in size and with pronounced pentagonal structures were synthesized in [5] by the joint reduction of gold and copper salts. Here, elemental mapping of Cu and Au, using scanning transmission electron microscopy–energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, confirms the

• , during chemical synthesis, the preferred internal ordering and composition of the nanoparticles of the Cu–Au alloy, even at room temperature, is a very complex process that depends on the particle size and on the environmental properties [10]. Compared to chemical methods, physical methods offer a better

• amorphous carbon or magnesium oxide substrates by the laser evaporation of a bulk alloy with various stoichiometric compositions (Cu–Au, Cu3Au, and Au3Cu). An analysis of individual clusters carried out by using electron diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) showed that Cu

Self-standing heterostructured NiC_x-NiFe-NC/biochar as a highly efficient cathode for lithium–oxygen batteries

• Shengyu Jing,
• Xu Gong,
• Shan Ji,
• Linhui Jia,
• Bruno G. Pollet,
• Sheng Yan and
• Huagen Liang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1809–1821, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.163

• and the NaOH solution, resulting in a Ni(OH)2/NiFe-PBA core–shell structure [44][45][46]. During the calcination process, Ni(OH)2 was converted into NiCx, and the NiFe-PBA core was converted into a NiFe alloy coated with N-doped carbon. The microstructure of NiFe-PBA/PP-T was evaluated by SEM. Figure

• (JCPDS No: 41-1487). In the XRD pattern of NiFe-PBA/PP-700, three peaks at 43.6°, 50.8°, and 74.7° were attributed to the (111), (200), and (220) planes of the Awaruite phase of the Fe0.64Ni0.36 alloy (JCPDS No: 47-1405). After the sample was heated to 900 °C, the three peaks of the Fe0.64Ni0.36 alloy

• were evenly distributed in the selected area. In other words, N-doped carbon was formed as a support material. The images also show that Fe and Ni uniformly covered the entire particles, forming Fe and Ni alloy particles. To gain further information on the chemical state and element composition on the

Mapping of integrated PIN diodes with a 3D architecture by scanning microwave impedance microscopy and dynamic spectroscopy

• Rosine Coq Germanicus,
• Peter De Wolf,
• Florent Lallemand,
• Catherine Bunel,
• Serge Bardy,
• Hugues Murray and
• Ulrike Lüders

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1764–1775, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.159

• , an electrical back contact is created between the microscope chuck and the sample. Results and Discussion The vertical PIN structure Figure 2 shows the surface topography of the cross section of the PIN diode. The different materials used (silicon substrate, epitaxial layers, oxides, and alloy metals

Imaging and milling resolution of light ion beams from helium ion microscopy and FIBs driven by liquid metal alloy ion sources

• Nico Klingner,
• Gregor Hlawacek,
• Paul Mazarov,
• Wolfgang Pilz,
• Fabian Meyer and
• Lothar Bischoff

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1742–1749, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.156

• compared with ion beams such as lithium, beryllium, boron, and silicon, obtained from a mass-separated FIB using a liquid metal alloy ion source (LMAIS) with respect to the imaging and milling resolution, as well as the current stability. Simulations were carried out to investigate whether the

• resolution of Ne+ from a gas field ion source. The comparison allows one to select the best possible ion species for the specific demands in terms of resolution, beam current, and volume to be drilled. Keywords: focused ion beam; gas field ion source; liquid metal alloy ion source; resolution; Introduction

• (MOTISs) [12] or classical FIBs equipped with mass separation and liquid metal alloy ion sources working with suitable alloys containing light elements [2]. In the past, mostly heavier ions have been used in liquid metal alloy ion sources (LMAISs). A number of applications have been shown, including using

Out-of-plane surface patterning by subsurface processing of polymer substrates with focused ion beams

• Serguei Chiriaev,
• Luciana Tavares,
• Vadzim Adashkevich,
• Arkadiusz J. Goszczak and
• Horst-Günter Rubahn

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1693–1703, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.151

• of the polymer. Effects of subsurface and surface processes on the surface morphology have been studied for three polymer materials: poly(methyl methacrylate), polycarbonate, and polydimethylsiloxane, by using focused ion beam irradiation with He+, Ne+, and Ga+. Thin films of a Pt60Pd40 alloy and of

• wrinkle-like micropatterns [23][24]. In this work, we have employed thin films of a Pt60Pd40 alloy and of pristine Au. The primary reason for this choice was the difference in their microstructures, specifically in the availability of structural defects capable of providing the release of gases from

• fabricate a uniform layer that is free from any spinning-induced structural anisotropy [40]. The PC samples were 10 × 10 mm2 square pieces cut from 1.5 mm thick wafers of an optical-grade PC polymer manufactured by microfluidic ChipShop GmbH. Thin metal films of either a Pt60Pd40 alloy or of Au were

Oxidation of Au/Ag films by oxygen plasma: phase separation and generation of nanoporosity

• Abdel-Aziz El Mel,
• Said A. Mansour,
• Mujaheed Pasha,
• Atef Zekri,
• Janarthanan Ponraj,
• Akshath Shetty and
• Yousef Haik

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1608–1614, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.143

• Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Texas A & M University-Kingsville, TX 78363, USA 10.3762/bjnano.11.143 Abstract The oxidation of Au/Ag alloy thin films using radio-frequency oxygen plasma was studied in this work. It was demonstrated that there is a phase separation occurring between

• a few have reported on the oxidation of silver alloys [15][20][21]. Gao et al. investigated the oxidation of Ag/Cu alloy by exposure to atomic oxygen. They demonstrated that the resistance of silver against corrosion by atomic oxygen was improved due to the presence of copper in the alloy [21]. From

• gold/silver oxide nanostructures [20]. Starting from Au/Ag alloy nanospheres, they showed that gold/silver oxide core/shell nanospheres with a hollow interior could be obtained after oxidation using atomic oxygen. In this study we further explored the oxidation and phase separation events observed by

Fabrication of nano/microstructures for SERS substrates using an electrochemical method

• Jingran Zhang,
• Tianqi Jia,
• Xiaoping Li,
• Junjie Yang,
• Zhengkai Li,
• Guangfeng Shi,
• Xinming Zhang and
• Zuobin Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1568–1576, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.139

• nanopores. Results and Discussion Fabrication of arrayed nanopores on the Mg surface Surface roughness and chemical composition have a strong influence on the intensity of Raman signals. PEO was employed to fabricate a porous oxide layer on a Mg alloy surface, which benefits from the increase of surface

• roughness and shows the potential for storing micro- or nanoparticles. During PEO treatment, the intrinsic passivation layer of the Mg alloy is disrupted in random positions through local melting during electrical breakdowns. After cooling by the electrolyte, a stable oxide layer containing arrayed pores is

Proximity effect in [Nb(1.5 nm)/Fe(x)]₁₀/Nb(50 nm) superconductor/ferromagnet heterostructures

• Yury Khaydukov,
• Sabine Pütter,
• Laura Guasco,
• Roman Morari,
• Gideok Kim,
• Thomas Keller,
• Anatolie Sidorenko and
• Bernhard Keimer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 1254–1263, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.109

• the Al2O3(1−102) substrate. Samples grown at this condition possess a high residual resistivity ratio of 15–20. By using neutron reflectometry we show that Fe/Nb superlattices with x < 4 nm form a depth-modulated FeNb alloy with concentration of iron varying between 60% and 90%. This alloy has weak

• between the SLDs of Fe and Nb. Interdiffusion will lead to suppression of the contrast and, hence, of R1. Assuming that the packing density Nav is the same for both layers, we may estimate the concentration of Fe in the FecNb1−c alloy as where = ρ/Nav is the averaged coherent scattering length of the

• a rather low RRR of 3.4, which is attributed to enhanced scattering of conduction electrons at the grain boundaries. Neutron reflectometry has shown that Fe/Nb superlattices with x ≤ 2.5 nm form a depth-modulated FeNb alloy with the concentration of iron varying within the superlattice unit cell

A 3D-polyphenylalanine network inside porous alumina: Synthesis and characterization of an inorganic–organic composite membrane

• Jonathan Stott and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 938–951, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.78

• over calcium hydride and sodium/benzophenone, respectively. For recrystallization n-pentane was dried by distillation over sodium/potassium eutectic alloy. SEM measurements were performed with an XL30 FEG (Philips) system. Contact angles and NIR-spectroscopic analysis were performed with DSA30 (Krüss

Band tail state related photoluminescence and photoresponse of ZnMgO solid solution nanostructured films

• Vadim Morari,
• Aida Pantazi,
• Nicolai Curmei,
• Vitalie Postolache,
• Emil V. Rusu,
• Marius Enachescu,
• Ion M. Tiginyanu and
• Veaceslav V. Ursaki

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 899–910, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.75

• of the alloy composition. Thin films were also prepared by aerosol spray pyrolysis deposition using the same sol–gel precursors for the purpose of comparison. The prepared films were tested for photodetector applications. Keywords: aerosol spray pyrolysis deposition; energy band tails; photodetector

• ; photoluminescence; photosensitivity; spin coating; thin films; ZnMgO semiconductor alloy; Introduction The ZnMgO solid solution system is of interest due to the possibility to tailor many important physical properties by varying their composition. This alloy system covers a wide ultraviolet (UV) spectral range

• structures are used, namely, hexagonal wurtzite structure (w-ZnMgO), cubic rock salt structure (c-ZnMgO) and films with mixed-phase (m-ZnMgO) [5]. Since the crystal structure of the alloy changes from w-ZnMgO to c-ZnMgO with increasing Mg content, the coexistence of two structures in ZnMgO films is

Epitaxial growth and superconducting properties of thin-film PdFe/VN and VN/PdFe bilayers on MgO(001) substrates

• Wael M. Mohammed,
• Igor V. Yanilkin,
• Amir I. Gumarov,
• Airat G. Kiiamov,
• Roman V. Yusupov and
• Lenar R. Tagirov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 807–813, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.65

• ; epitaxial superconductor–ferromagnet heterostructure; palladium–iron alloy (PdFe); vanadium nitride (VN); superconducting spintronics; Introduction Since its invention, rapid single-flux quantum (RSFQ) logic [1][2] based on superconducting digital electronics has been seriously considered as an alternative

• of niobium as a superconductor with a Pd1−xFex alloy as a soft and weak ferromagnet was considered as material of choice for superconducting magnetic random access memories (MRAM) [8][29][30]. However, no further developments towards a prototype using a Pd1−xFex alloy have been demonstrated. There

• impurities and to nanoclustering of the alloy. Following the development of a way to grow single-crystalline, magnetically homogeneous epitaxial Pd1−xFex films on MgO(001) single-crystalline substrates [33], we propose fully epitaxial Pd1−xFex/VN and VN/Pd1−xFex (x ≤ 0.08) building blocks as an alternative

Structural optical and electrical properties of a transparent conductive ITO/Al–Ag/ITO multilayer contact

• Aliyu Kabiru Isiyaku,
• Ahmad Hadi Ali and
• Nafarizal Nayan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 695–702, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.57

• of an ITO sandwich electrode with Ag alloy against heat treatment at 450 °C was carried out by Roh et al. [30]. An appreciable durability and stability of the Ag films was observed. In the present work, the structural, optical and electrical properties of an Al–Ag bilayer between ITO layers (ITO/Al

Luminescent gold nanoclusters for bioimaging applications

• Nonappa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 533–546, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.42

• complexes and SCQD-based nanomaterials. To improve the quantum yield and PL, various approaches have been developed including ligand engineering, selective doping to create alloy clusters, aggregation-induced emission, selective etching and self-assembly [48][49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58]. Ligands

Fabrication of Ag-modified hollow titania spheres via controlled silver diffusion in Ag–TiO₂ core–shell nanostructures

• Bartosz Bartosewicz,
• Malwina Liszewska,
• Bogusław Budner,
• Marta Michalska-Domańska,
• Krzysztof Kopczyński and
• Bartłomiej J. Jankiewicz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2020, 11, 141–146, doi:10.3762/bjnano.11.12

• third peak with a maximum between 358.66 and 358.78 eV and a half width of 1.36–1.40 eV was assigned to a silver alloy with titanium. Its location cannot be linked to any oxidation state of silver. Such a shift of the Ag 3d5/2 peak can only come from alloys of silver with metals of lower

• electronegativity [28]. Wang and collaborators obtained this effect for an Ag/Al alloy in which Ag and Al have electronegativity values of 1.93 and 1.61, respectively [28]. We believe that a similar situation occurs in the case of Ag–TiO2 nanostructures due to the electronegativity of Ti (1.54) being lower than the

Antimony deposition onto Au(111) and insertion of Mg

• Lingxing Zan,
• Da Xing,
• Abdelaziz Ali Abd-El-Latif and
• Helmut Baltruschat

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2541–2552, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.245

• the substrate is roughened on the atomic scale due to alloy formation, as demonstrated by CV and STM. Further multilayer deposition correspondingly leads to a rough deposit with protrusions of up to 3 nm. The cyclic voltammogram for Mg insertion/de-insertion from MgCl2/AlCl3/tetraglyme (MACC/TG

• ) electrolyte into/from a Sb-modified electrode shows a positive shift (400 mV) of the onset potential of Mg deposition compared to that of a bare Au electrode. From the charge of the Mg deposition, we find that the ratio of Mg to Sb is 1:1, which is somewhat less than expected for the Mg3Sb2 alloy. Keywords

• : alloy; antimony; Au(111); electrodeposition; insertion; STM; Introduction Rechargeable batteries have become essential energy storing devices, which are widely used in portable electronic devices and hybrid electric vehicles. Magnesium-based secondary batteries have been regarded as a viable

Formation of metal/semiconductor Cu–Si composite nanostructures

• Natalya V. Yumozhapova,
• Andrey V. Nomoev,
• Vyacheslav V. Syzrantsev and
• Erzhena C. Khartaeva

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2497–2504, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.240

• possibility of the formation of the Cu–Si nanoparticles from both a homogeneous alloy and two initial drops at short distance were shown. A comparative analysis showed that the diameter distribution of copper and silicon atoms in experimental particles coincides with the simulation results with silicon

• liquid alloy and 2) core–shell and Janus-like nanoparticles made of liquid silicon and copper droplets. We have presented new data on the formation of metal/semiconductor nanoclusters, such as the transition of particles from a core–shell structure to a Janus-like structure starting from the liquid state

• molecular dynamics research package [25]. A part of the calculations was performed using the resources of the Information and Computing Center of the Novosibirsk State University. Results and Discussion Modelling a free spherical cluster of a copper/silicon alloy We considered a free spherical cluster of a

Adsorption and desorption of self-assembled L-cysteine monolayers on nanoporous gold monitored by in situ resistometry

• Elisabeth Hengge,
• Eva-Maria Steyskal,
• Rupert Bachler,
• Alexander Dennig,
• Bernd Nidetzky and
• Roland Würschum

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2275–2279, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.219

• ); voltammetry; Findings Nanoporous gold, produced by selective etching of the less noble component of a AuAg master alloy (also known as dealloying), is a very promising material in many applications due to its three-dimensional nanoporous structure. Among many other technological applications as sensing [1][2

• water and the easy handling. The npAu substrate material was fabricated by electrochemically assisted dealloying of Ag75Au25. The alloy was prepared by arc melting, homogenized at 800 °C for 12 h under argon atmosphere, rolled to a sheet of 220 μm in thickness, annealed again at 600 °C for 1 h, and cut

• in rectangular pieces sized 10 × 5 mm. Two representative samples are presented here, referred to as sample A (91 mg) and sample B (86 mg). Given weights refer to the master alloy. Each sample was contacted by five flattened Au wires, attached in line. The mid-positioned wire served as connection to

Nontoxic pyrite iron sulfide nanocrystals as second electron acceptor in PTB7:PC₇₁BM-based organic photovoltaic cells

• Olivia Amargós-Reyes,
• José-Luis Maldonado,
• Omar Martínez-Alvarez,
• María-Elena Nicho,
• José Santos-Cruz,
• Juan Nicasio-Collazo,
• Irving Caballero-Quintana and
• Concepción Arenas-Arrocena

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 2238–2250, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.216

• of these NCs incorporated into the PTB7:PC71BM active layer of bulk-heterojunction ternary organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells. The OPV devices are fabricated with the direct configuration glass/ITO/PEDOT:PSS/PTB7:PC71BM:FeS2/PFN/FM. The Field’s metal (FM) is a eutectic alloy composed of 32.5% Bi, 51

Porous silver-coated pNIPAM-co-AAc hydrogel nanocapsules

• William W. Bryan,
• Riddhiman Medhi,
• Maria D. Marquez,
• Supparesk Rittikulsittichai,
• Michael Tran and
• T. Randall Lee

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1973–1982, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.194

• enhanced extinction compared to molecular chromophores [44][45]. This type of particle generally consists of a single metal or an alloy shell with or without a dielectric silica core [46][47][48]. Fortunately, for biological applications, the optical properties of the nanoshells can be tuned by varying the

Oblique angle deposition of nickel thin films by high-power impulse magnetron sputtering

• Hamidreza Hajihoseini,
• Movaffaq Kateb,
• Snorri Þorgeir Ingvarsson and
• Jon Tomas Gudmundsson

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1914–1921, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.186

• -based shape memory alloy thin films utilized in micro-actuator applications [9]. It is well known that microstructure, texture and structure of thin films can have significant influence on the magnetic and other functional properties of the films. The magnetic properties of evaporated [10][11

TiO₂/GO-coated functional separator to suppress polysulfide migration in lithium–sulfur batteries

• Ning Liu,
• Lu Wang,
• Taizhe Tan,
• Yan Zhao and
• Yongguang Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1726–1736, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.168

• synthesized by selectively dissolving Al atoms from a Ti10Al90 alloy. It can be readily observed that the abundant nanowires and uniform nanopores, with a pore size of ≈40 nm, formed a sea-urchin-like structure. Furthermore, the energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) analysis confirms the homogenous

• potential of the TiO2/GO functional interlayer in next-generation Li/S batteries and presents a novel approach to prepare metal oxide based hybrid coatings for energy storage applications. Experimental Preparation of TiO2/GO composite Ti10Al90 alloy ribbons were fabricated by refining pure Al (99.9 wt

• %) and Ti (99.9 wt %) in an arc furnace, followed by melt spinning under an argon-protected atmosphere. The Ti10Al90 alloy ribbons were immersed in a 2 M NaOH solution for 72 h to prepare nanoporous TiO2 particles at ambient temperature. The resulting powder was washed several times by using deionized

Giant magnetoresistance ratio in a current-perpendicular-to-plane spin valve based on an inverse Heusler alloy Ti₂NiAl

• Yu Feng,
• Zhou Cui,
• Bo Wu,
• Jianwei Li,
• Hongkuan Yuan and
• Hong Chen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 1658–1665, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.161

• Physics, Zunyi Normal College, Zunyi 563002, People’s Republic of China 10.3762/bjnano.10.161 Abstract A Ti2NiAl inverse Heusler alloy based current-perpendicular-to-plane (CPP) spin valve (SV) with various kinds of atomic terminated interfaces has been designed to explore the potential application of

• × 105, and it has great application potential in spintronics devices. Keywords: current-perpendicular-to-plane geometry; Heusler alloy; nonequilibrium Green’s function; spin transport; spintronics; spin valve; Introduction Since the first theoretical prediction of the half metallicity of Heusler

• alloys [1], there has been explosive interest in manipulating the electron spin in a Heusler-alloy-based spintronic device [2][3][4]. As one of the most important spintronics devices, a current-perpendicular-to-plane (CPP) spin valve (SV) based on the giant magnetoresistive (GMR) effect consists of a