Engineering topics

Beck, Kenneth M

Publications and source records attributed to Beck, Kenneth M.

6 records

DOE OSTI2011

Plasmonic enhancement of thin-film solar cells using gold-black coatings

Coatings of conducting gold-black nano-structures on commercial thin-film amorphous-silicon solar cells enhance the short-circuit current by 20% over a broad spectrum from 400 to 800 nm wavelength. The efficiency, i.e. the ratio of the maximum electrical output power to the incident solar power, is found to increase 7% for initial un-optimized coatings. Metal blacks are produced cheaply and quickly in a low-vacuum process requiring no lithographic patterning. The inherently broad particle-size distribution is responsible for the broad spectrum enhancement in comparison to what has been reported for mono-disperse lithographically deposited or self-assembled metal nano-particles. Photoemission electron microscopy reveals the spatial-spectral distribution of hot-spots for plasmon resonances, where scattering of normally-incident solar flux into the plane increases the effective optical path in the thin film to enhance light harvesting. Efficiency enhancement is correlated with percent coverage and particle size distribution, which are determined from histogram and wavelet analysis of scanning electron microscopy images. Electrodynamic simulations reveal how the gold-black particles scatter the radiation and locally enhance the field strength.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

DOE OSTI2011

Exciton-driven highly hyperthermal O-atom desorption from nanostructured CaO

We report qualitatively new highly-hyperthermal (HHT) oxygen atom emission from nanostructured CaO excited by 6.4 eV nanosecond laser pulses. The kinetic energy distribution of emitted O-atoms peaks at 0.7 eV, which is over four times greater than previously observed. Excitation of MgO and CaO nanostructures with UV laser pulses is known to result in thermal and hyperthermal emission of oxygen atoms when photons with energies below and above the band gap, respectively, are used. The highly energetic atomic desorption we observe, following bulk excitation, challenges the conventional view that bulk excitation can only induce thermal desorption. Using density functional theory and an embedded cluster method, we propose a mechanism for this HHT feature based on the interaction of surface holes with bulk excitons. These experimental and theoretical results suggest that specific atomic desorption mechanisms in wide-bandgap materials can be controlled by selective electronic excitation of not only the surface but also the bulk of these materials

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2011

Plasmonic Field Enhancement of Individual Nanoparticles by Correlated Scanning and Photoemission Electron Microscopy

We present results of a combined two-photon photoemission and scanning electron microscopy investigation to determine the electromagnetic enhancement factors of silver-coated spherical nanoparticles deposited on an atomically flat mica substrate. Femtosecond laser excitation, of the nanoparticles, produces intense photoemission, attributed to near-resonant excitation of localized surface plasmons. Enhancement factors are determined by comparing the respective two-photon photoemission yield measured for equal areas between single nanoparticles to that of the surrounding flat surface. For s-polarized, 400 nm (~ 3.1 eV) femtosecond radiation a distribution of enhancement factors are found with a large percentage (77%) of the nanoparticles falling within a median range. A correlated scanning electron microscopy analysis demonstrated that the nanoparticles typifying the median of the distribution were characterized by ideal spherical shapes and defect-free morphologies. The single largest enhancement factors were in contrast produced by a very small percentage (8%) of the total, for which evidence of silver defect anomalies were found that contributed to the overall structure of the nanoparticle. Comparisons are made between the experimentally measured enhancement factors and previously reported theoretical predictions of the localized surface plasmon near-field intensities for isolated nanometer-sized silver spheres.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2010

Materials Applications of Photoelectron Emission Microscopy

Photoelectron emission microscopy (PEEM) is a versatile technique that can image a variety of materials including metals, semiconductors and even insulators. Under favorable conditions the most advanced aberration corrected instruments have a spatial resolution approaching 2 nm. Although PEEM cannot compete with transmission or scanning electron microscopies for ultimate resolution, the technique is much more gentle and has the unique advantage of imaging structure as well as electronic and magnetic states on the nanoscale. Since the image contrast is derived from spatial variations in electron photoemission intensity, PEEM is ideal for interrogating both static and dynamic electronic properties of complex nanostructured materials. PEEM can be performed using a variety of photoexcitation sources including synchrotron emission, femtosecond laser pulses and conventional UV lamp emission. Each source has advantages, for example, fs laser excitation enables time-resolved imaging for study of ultrafast dynamics of surface intermediate states while tunable synchrotron sources allow chemically specific excitation. Even more detail can be extracted from energy resolved PEEM. Here, we review the key principles and contrast mechanisms of PEEM and briefly summarize materials applications of PEEM with examples of a thermally-induced structural phase transformation in barium titanate, inter-diffusion between thin metal copper and ruthenium layers, and multiphoton imaging of polystyrene nanoparticles on a silver coated substrate.

43 PARTICLE ACCELERATORS↗

DOE OSTI2010

Surface-Specific Laser Matter Interactions and Dynamics

Neutral magnesium atom desorption is induced using infrared and visible femtosecond laser pulses at energies well below the excitation threshold of the bulk material. We find that infrared femtosecond laser excitation of MgO nanocrystalline samples desorbs neutral Mg-atoms with hyperthermal kinetic energies ranging from 0.1 to 0.6 eV, while visible femtosecond excitation desorbs neutral Mg-atoms with thermal kinetic energies ranging from 0.01 to 0.1 eV. The hyperthermal kinetic energy distribution is similar to the distribution observed previously under nanosecond laser excitation in the ultraviolet. The hyperthermal kinetic energy distribution supports the contention that emission is induced predominantly by electron trapping at Mg corner surface sites. The results demonstrate that femtosecond photon pulses can serve as a powerful tool for probing desorption dynamics at surfaces.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗

DOE OSTI2010

Effect of Surface Charge on Laser-induced Neutral Atom Desorption

When an ionic metal oxide crystal is cleaved, inhomogeneous electrical charging of the surface can be a result. Such an effect has been well-documented in magnesium oxide (100). For example, recent rigorous AFM studies indicate that nanoscale charged clusters of MgO are created during cleavage, with high concentrations often located at terrace step edges.[1] In addition, ablation processes of freshly cleaved magnesium oxide crystals may be effected by remnant surface charging and microstructures.[2] We report here that such surface charging strongly impacts even neutral atom desorption, even under conditions of extremely mild excitation of surface terrace features. In our experiments, single crystal MgO (100) is cleaved in air and placed in an ultra-high vacuum chamber (UHV). We irradiate the crystal at 6.4 eV, photon energy resonant with five-coordinated (5-C) terrace sites and probe desorbing neutral oxygen atoms. It is found that a significant fraction of desorbed neutral oxygen atoms from the charged surface possess kinetic energies in excess of 0.7 eV. This is in contrast to uncharged samples (discharged in vacuo over 24 hours) that display a near-thermal oxygen atom distribution.

72 PHYSICS OF ELEMENTARY PARTICLES AND FIELDS↗