Electron beam-induced crystallization of AlO gate layer on β-GaO MOS capacitors.

Electron irradiation was observed to induce crystallization of amorphous AlO films grown by atomic layer deposition on β-GaO substrates. Growth of large, strongly oriented crystalline γ-AlO regions was induced using conventional-mode transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and observed to propagate outward from the interface as well as from the previously crystallized AlO. A few nm of epitaxial AlO was already visible at the beginning of the crystallization front propagation.

Improving microstructural quantification in FIB/SEM nanotomography.

FIB/SEM nanotomography (FIB-nt) is a powerful technique for the determination and quantification of the three-dimensional microstructure in subsurface features. Often times, the microstructure of a sample is the ultimate determiner of the overall performance of a system, and a detailed understanding of its properties is crucial in advancing the materials engineering of a resulting device. While the FIB-nt technique has developed significantly in the 15 years since its introduction, advanced nanotomographic analysis is still far from routine, and a number of challenges remain in data acquisition and post-processing.

Teaching an Old Material New Tricks: Easy and Inexpensive Focused Ion Beam (FIB) Sample Protection Using Conductive Polymers.

This letter describes an innovative spin-coating system, built from off-the-shelf components, that can easily and inexpensively be integrated into any laboratory environment. Combined with a liquid suspension of conductive polymer, such a "rotary coater" enables simple coating of planar samples to create a physical protective barrier on the sample surface. This barrier aids in charge dissipation during scanning electron microscope and focused ion beam (FIB) imaging and provides wide-scale protection of the sample surface from ion bombardment during FIB imaging and gas-assisted deposition.

Flame synthesis of nanosized Cu-Ce-O, Ni-Ce-O, and Fe-Ce-O catalysts for the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction.

A flame synthesis method has been used to prepare nanosized, high-surface-area Cu-Ce-O, Ni-Ce-O, and Fe-Ce-O catalysts from aqueous solutions of metal acetate precursors. The particles were formed by vaporization of the precursors followed by reaction and then gas to particle conversion. The specific surface areas of the synthesized powders ranged from 127 to 163 m(2)/g.