Related papers: Quantifying the coupling between strain and cation…
While structure refinement is routinely achieved for simple bulk materials, the accurate structural determination still poses challenges for thin films due on the one hand to the small amount of material deposited on the thicker substrate…
Oxides exhibiting insulator-metal transitions are promising candidates for next generation ultrafast electronic switching devices. However, critical gaps remain in understanding the onset of strain and its dynamics as these materials…
Copper oxide thin films are deposited on quartz substrates by DC magnetron sputtering and the effect of deposition temperature on their optoelectronic properties is examined in detail. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction…
Precisely determining the oxidation states of metal cations within variable-valence transition metal oxides remains a significant challenge, yet it is crucial for understanding and predicting the properties of these technologically…
We report on the local electronic structure of Fe impurities in MgO thin films. Using soft x-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) we verified that the Fe impurities are all in the 2+ valence state. The fine details in the line shape of the Fe…
We studied structural, optical and magnetic properties of high-quality 5 and 15% Co-doped ZnO films grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) on (0001)-sapphire substrates. Magnetic force microscopy (MFM) and magnetic…
To study the size and strain rate dependency of copper polycrystalline microstructures, a multi-layered copper/Al$_2$O$_3$ thin film was deposited on a Si substrate using a hybrid deposition system (combining physical vapour and atomic…
We report the low temperature growth of vertically aligned ZnO nanocolumns on Si substrates by using reactive radio frequency magnetron sputtering.High sputtering pressure combined with low substrate temperatures induce a pronounced self…
Nanometer thin single-walled carbon nanotube (CNT) films collected from the aerosol chemical deposition reactors have gathered attention for their promising applications. Densification of these pristine films provides an important way to…
Vanadium dioxide (VO$_2$) is a strongly-correlated material that exhibits insulator-to-metal transition (IMT) near room temperature, which makes it a promising candidate for applications in nanophotonics or optoelectronics. However,…
Titanium dioxide (TiO2) is a key material in optoelectronic and energy conversion technologies, including solar cells and photocatalysis. However, integrating TiO2 into flexible or temperature-sensitive devices requires deposition…
Molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) has emerged as a promising, cost-effective catalyst for hydrogen production via water splitting. We investigate the structural and electrocatalytic properties of MoS2 thin films deposited on different substrates…
Complex oxide thin films and heterostructures offer a wide range of properties originating from the intrinsic coupling between lattice strain and magnetic/electronic ordering. This article reviews experimental, phenomenological, and…
Aims: To calculate chemistry and gas temperature of evolving protoplanetary disks with decreasing mass or dust settling, and to explore the sensitivity of gas-phase tracers. Methods: The density and dust temperature profiles for a range of…
Near-field optical microscopy can be used as a viable route to understand the nanoscale material properties below the diffraction limit. On the other hand, atomically thin two-dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) are the…
A systematic investigation has been performed to optimize the microstructure of $\mathrm{L1_0-FePt-SiO_x}$ granular thin film as recording media for heat-assisted magnetic recording. The FePt-BN nucleation layer, which is stable even at…
We study the effect of substrate induced strain on the structural, transport, optical and electronic properties of Sr$_2$CoNbO$_6$ double perovskite thin films. The reciprocal space mapping, $\phi$-scan and high-resolution…
A continuum dynamical model is developed to determine the morphological and compositional instabilities on the free surface of heteroepitaxial alloy films in the absence of growth. We use linear stability analysis to study the early…
The interaction of high-energy electrons and X-ray photons with soft semiconductors such as halide perovskites is essential for the characterisation and understanding of these optoelectronic materials. Using nano-probe diffraction…
Bulk rhenium trioxide (ReO3) has an unusually high electrical conductivity and, being nanosized, has promising catalytic properties. However, the production of pure ReO3 thin films is challenging due to the difficulty to stabilize rhenium…