Rapid, ultraviolet-induced, reversibly switchable wettability of superhydrophobic/superhydrophilic surfaces

• Yunlu Pan,
• Wenting Kong,
• Bharat Bhushan and
• Xuezeng Zhao

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 866–873, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.87

• superhydrophilic, and were thereafter heated in an air-dry oven until they recovered their superhydrophobic property – this cycle was repeated until the surfaces could no longer recover the superhydrophobic property. For each concentration of PFOS, five identical samples were prepared for statistical reliability

Nanocomposite–parylene C thin films with high dielectric constant and low losses for future organic electronic devices

• Marwa Mokni,
• Gianluigi Maggioni,
• Abdelkader Kahouli,
• Sara M. Carturan,
• Walter Raniero and
• Alain Sylvestre

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 428–441, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.42

• gate dielectric, which is a crucial requirement for the performance of the OFETs and for the device reliability. Charge-carrier mobility is improved in the presence of this polymer [17]. PPXC is also an appropriate hydroxyl-free gate dielectric and prevents trapping of electrons at the semiconductor

• C/Al2O3 bilayers applied to medical devices exhibit a longer-term reliability in comparison to pure PPXC. The goal of this study is to improve the electrical properties of parylene C used in advanced electronic devices [52][53][54] as a gate dielectric or an insulation coating. The challenge is to

Advanced scanning probe lithography using anatase-to-rutile transition to create localized TiO₂ nanorods

• Julian Kalb,
• Vanessa Knittel and
• Lukas Schmidt-Mende

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 412–418, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.40

• . This is related to the high refractive index of TiO2, the size of the nanorods, and the dielectric antenna effect of the stringed nanorods [46]. To test the reliability of the presented method, the writing process was repeated with several probes. The spring constant is different for each probe even if

Scanning probe microscopy for energy-related materials

• Rüdiger Berger,
• Benjamin Grévin,
• Philippe Leclère and
• Yi Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2019, 10, 132–134, doi:10.3762/bjnano.10.12

• dynamics in order to study charge carrier lifetimes. This contribution focuses on a mathematical model to calculate time constants [3]. Such a model is critical for understanding the photophysics at the nanometer scale. Amelie Axt and co-workers discuss the applicability and reliability of different ways

Exploring the photoleakage current and photoinduced negative bias instability in amorphous InGaZnO thin-film transistors with various active layer thicknesses

• Dapeng Wang and
• Mamoru Furuta

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2573–2580, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.239

• applying a large negative VDS bias of VDS < VGS during NBIS [18]. These studies imply that the fabrication parameters for the active layer should be well taken into account to improve the reliability of oxide TFTs. The active layer thickness is a key parameter to modify the performance of a-IGZO TFTs. Some

• suggests that to improve the reliability of oxide TFTs under light irradiation and gate bias stresses, the quality of the active layer and interface engineering should be taken into account. (a) Schematic cross-sectional view and (b) the initial transfer characteristics of a-IGZO TFTs with various active

Evidence of friction reduction in laterally graded materials

• Roberto Guarino,
• Gianluca Costagliola,
• Federico Bosia and
• Nicola Maria Pugno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2443–2456, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.229

• The overall system of equations is solved with a fourth-order Runge–Kutta algorithm. The simulation is repeated many times, extracting each time new friction coefficients from the statistical distributions, for statistical reliability. An integration time step of 10−8 s is sufficient to reduce the

Performance analysis of rigorous coupled-wave analysis and its integration in a coupled modeling approach for optical simulation of complete heterojunction silicon solar cells

• Ziga Lokar,
• Benjamin Lipovsek,
• Marko Topic and
• Janez Krc

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2315–2329, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.216

• management coatings. Conclusion In the paper, we have analyzed the RCWA performance in terms of reliability and accuracy of the optical simulation of solar cell structures, in particular for HJ Si solar cells with textures for light management. For efficient simulation of whole HJ Si solar cells, including

Electrospun one-dimensional nanostructures: a new horizon for gas sensing materials

• Muhammad Imran,
• Nunzio Motta and
• Mahnaz Shafiei

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2128–2170, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.202

High-throughput synthesis of modified Fresnel zone plate arrays via ion beam lithography

• Kahraman Keskinbora,
• Umut Tunca Sanli,
• Margarita Baluktsian,
• Corinne Grévent,
• Markus Weigand and
• Gisela Schütz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2049–2056, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.194

• , demonstrating the reliability of the SPSP-E process. On average, a 60 nm period was successfully achieved in the outermost part, with consistent quality around the FZP as shown in the SEM images of Figure 2b,c. The line profile over the last 17 periods, taken from the marked region in SEM image of Figure 2c is

Fabrication of photothermally active poly(vinyl alcohol) films with gold nanostars for antibacterial applications

• Mykola Borzenkov,
• Maria Moros,
• Claudia Tortiglione,
• Serena Bertoldi,
• Nicola Contessi,
• Silvia Faré,
• Angelo Taglietti,
• Agnese D’Agostino,
• Piersandro Pallavicini,
• Maddalena Collini and
• Giuseppe Chirico

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 2040–2048, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.193

• measure of the temperature increase. The photothermal effect was measured at four different points of each film. The emissivity of the films is 1.3% higher than water (for which the thermocamera was calibrated), justifying the reliability of remote measurement by the thermocamera [9][10]. Testing of

A differential Hall effect measurement method with sub-nanometre resolution for active dopant concentration profiling in ultrathin doped Si_1−xGe_x and Si layers

• Richard Daubriac,
• Emmanuel Scheid,
• Hiba Rizk,
• Richard Monflier,
• Sylvain Joblot,
• Rémi Beneyton,
• Pablo Acosta Alba,
• Sébastien Kerdilès and
• Filadelfo Cristiano

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1926–1939, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.184

• most challenging process, we show the reliability of the SC1 chemical solution (NH4OH/H2O2/H2O) with its slow etch rate, stoichiometry conservation and low roughness generation. The reliability of a complete DHE procedure, with an etching step as small as 0.5 nm, is demonstrated on a dedicated 20 nm

• accuracy of final calculated values. Then, we demonstrate the reliability of a complete DHE procedure on a dedicated SiGe test structure fabricated by CVD and uniformly doped in situ during growth. Finally, we will apply our DHE method to the investigation of dopant activation achieved by advanced

• induced by the etch process is always negligible and is not expected to have any impact on the reliability of the Hall effect measurements. The results of the Hall effect measurements (raw data RS, NH and µH) performed before etch and after each removal step are reported in Figure 6 as functions of the

The inhibition effect of water on the purification of natural gas with nanoporous graphene membranes

• Krzysztof Nieszporek,
• Tomasz Pańczyk and
• Jolanta Nieszporek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1906–1916, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.182

• employing the OPLS all-atom force field. The reliability of the applied force field has already been verified [9][16][17] and shows a good agreement with experimental as well as theoretical data [18]. Simulations were performed in a cuboid box of 5.1 nm × 4.9 nm × 16 nm with two graphene sheets located at z

Know your full potential: Quantitative Kelvin probe force microscopy on nanoscale electrical devices

• Amelie Axt,
• Ilka M. Hermes,
• Victor W. Bergmann,
• Niklas Tausendpfund and
• Stefan A. L. Weber

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1809–1819, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.172

• minimized. We furthermore investigate the influence of stray electric fields by adding a metal electrode underneath the sample. The goal of this work is to complement the previous comparative KPFM studies by a comprehensive investigation on the reliability of the potential mapping of five common KPFM

Direct AFM-based nanoscale mapping and tomography of open-circuit voltages for photovoltaics

• Katherine Atamanuk,
• Justin Luria and
• Bryan D. Huey

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1802–1808, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.171

• performance; solar cell; tomographic AFM; Introduction Cadmium Telluride (CdTe) is an inexpensive thin-film photovoltaic with ca. 5% of the 2017 global market share for solar cells. To optimize the efficiency and reliability of these, or any electronic devices, a thorough understanding of their composition

• micro-scale. Such novel SPM-based measurements can be crucial to advancing the fundamental understanding, and ultimately performance and reliability, of a wide range of photosensors, photoactivated catalysts, and photovoltaics. pcAFM measurement of a CdTe/CdS solar cell, during specimen illumination

Evaluation of replicas manufactured in a 3D-printed nanoimprint unit

• Manuel Caño-García,
• Morten A. Geday,
• Manuel Gil-Valverde,
• Xabier Quintana and
• José M. Otón

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1573–1581, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.149

• purpose was to obtain a reliable instrument at minimum cost, with the lowest reduction in performance. To test reliability and performance of the unit, a large number of samples made of different polymer materials have been prepared. The purpose of this work is twofold: On one hand, given a set of

• important conclusion derived from the results concerns the reliability of the system. The performance of the nanoimprint unit – notwithstanding its fabrication with a 3D printer – can be considered satisfactory, providing the correct material is employed. This opens the opportunity of creating sophisticated

Colorimetric detection of Cu²⁺ based on the formation of peptide–copper complexes on silver nanoparticle surfaces

• Gajanan Sampatrao Ghodake,
• Surendra Krishna Shinde,
• Rijuta Ganesh Saratale,
• Avinash Ashok Kadam,
• Ganesh Dattatraya Saratale,
• Asad Syed,
• Fuad Ameen and
• Dae-Young Kim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1414–1422, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.134

• known amount of Cu2+ in Cu2+-spiked water samples demonstrates reliability of the established sensing probe. Detection limit of Cu2+ reported using various colorimetric methods and surface chemistries. Acknowledgements This research was supported by National Research Foundation South Korea under the

A novel copper precursor for electron beam induced deposition

• Caspar Haverkamp,
• George Sarau,
• Mikhail N. Polyakov,
• Ivo Utke,
• Marcos V. Puydinger dos Santos,
• Silke Christiansen and
• Katja Höflich

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 1220–1227, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.113

• reliability of the measurement. A room temperature four-point-probe electrical measurement yielded a conductive material with 1.26 MOhm in the as-deposited state. The estimated resistivity was 1 Ohm·cm, what is six orders of magnitude larger than the value for pure copper [16]. However, the presented

Comparative study of sculptured metallic thin films deposited by oblique angle deposition at different temperatures

• Susann Liedtke,
• Christoph Grüner,
• Jürgen W. Gerlach and
• Bernd Rauschenbach

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 954–962, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.89

• electron microscopy (SEM). Cross-sectional images of the samples were obtained by cleaving the samples before SEM-measurements. The tilt angles as well as the film height with respect to the substrate normal were determined manually. To provide a statistical reliability of the results, a considerably large

Towards 3D crystal orientation reconstruction using automated crystal orientation mapping transmission electron microscopy (ACOM-TEM)

• Aaron Kobler and
• Christian Kübel

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 602–607, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.56

• aperture in the diffraction pattern. To compare the orientation contribution of each pixel to the cross-correlation indices for both contributing twin crystallites and to their reliability (ratio of cross-correlation indices for the tested orientations), all three measures are plotted versus the distance

• (Figure 1g). The distance is measured from the left green marker in Figure 1f to all others, normal to the twin boundary. Although all three curves follow similar trends (apart from being flipped upside down, as blue cross-correlation index and reliability), it was shown that the cross-correlation indices

• and reliability values cannot be used as a measure for the thickness ratio [34]. To illustrate this, Figure 1e shows two halves of a crystal orientation map of the same area but evaluated with two different filter settings. The two twin crystallites of the grain, marked in Figure 1f, appear completely

Colloidal solution of silver nanoparticles for label-free colorimetric sensing of ammonia in aqueous solutions

• Alessandro Buccolieri,
• Antonio Serra,
• Gabriele Giancane and
• Daniela Manno

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 499–507, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.48

• fluid can be efficiently solved by developing methods for the detection of chemical species in the fluid itself. This approach has several advantages, including minimal fluid management and therefore greater reliability of the result. There are many analytical methods to detect ammonia. Electrochemical

Review: Electrostatically actuated nanobeam-based nanoelectromechanical switches – materials solutions and operational conditions

• Liga Jasulaneca,
• Jelena Kosmaca,
• Raimonds Meija,
• Jana Andzane and
• Donats Erts

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 271–300, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.29

• demonstrated NEM switching devices is provided, and together with their operational parameters, the reliability issues and impact of the operating environment are discussed. Finally, the most common NEM switch failure modes and the physical mechanisms behind them are reviewed and solutions proposed. Keywords

• : nanocontacts; nanoelectromechanical switches; nanowires; NEM; reliability; Review Introduction Nanoelectromechanical (NEM) switches represent a class of nanoscale devices, integrating both electrical and mechanical functionality of nanostructures to process external stimuli applied to the device and

• up to 1015 cycles without failing [59][62][63]. Thus, the reliability of NEM switches is one of the most critical issues that slow down wider adoption of this technology. Further efforts are necessary to select the material combination and suitable architecture that meet the requirements for

Combined scanning probe electronic and thermal characterization of an indium arsenide nanowire

• Tino Wagner,
• Fabian Menges,
• Heike Riel,
• Bernd Gotsmann and
• Andreas Stemmer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2018, 9, 129–136, doi:10.3762/bjnano.9.15

• active devices both in positive and negative ways. In conventional logic devices, hot spots lead to signal degradation and reliability issues. In certain memristive devices, however, the breaking and formation of bonds upon local self-heating is the basis of their function [2]. The importance of electro

The rational design of a Au(I) precursor for focused electron beam induced deposition

• Ali Marashdeh,
• Thiadrik Tiesma,
• Niels J. C. van Velzen,
• Sjoerd Harder,
• Remco W. A. Havenith,
• Jeff T. M. De Hosson and
• Willem F. van Dorp

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2753–2765, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.274

• small crystals sitting on a supporting material, the reliability of quantitative EDS is limited. It is also known that crystals of such organometallic complexes can be sensitive to electrons [12]. However, in these experiments we do consider EDS to be very useful. Firstly, the EDS measurements are

Synthesis of [{AgO₂CCH₂OMe(PPh₃)}_n] and theoretical study of its use in focused electron beam induced deposition

• Jelena Tamuliene,
• Julian Noll,
• Peter Frenzel,
• Tobias Rüffer,
• Alexander Jakob,
• Bernhard Walfort and
• Heinrich Lang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2615–2624, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.262

• ]. Values of the hardness >3 eV and softness <0.1 eV indicate high chemical stability and hence 2 can be considered as such, indicating reliability of the approach applied. This nicely corresponds with the experimentally observed properties of 2 (see above). The electronic structure of monomeric 2 is

Amplified cross-linking efficiency of self-assembled monolayers through targeted dissociative electron attachment for the production of carbon nanomembranes

• Sascha Koch,
• Christopher D. Kaiser,
• Paul Penner,
• Michael Barclay,
• Lena Frommeyer,
• Daniel Emmrich,
• Patrick Stohmann,
• Tarek Abu-Husein,
• Andreas Terfort,
• D. Howard Fairbrother,
• Oddur Ingólfsson and
• Armin Gölzhäuser

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2562–2571, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.256

• , for instance, helium ion microscopy (HIM) [1][8]. However, since the latter procedure has to be conducted for each individual exposure time it is significantly more labor intensive. Nevertheless, for reasons of reliability, here we have applied both these approaches to follow the cross-linking of the