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Search indexed NASA NTRS and DOE OSTI research on propulsion, heat transfer, battery materials and energy systems. Follow report and document links to the original sources.

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At least 271 records · Page 15
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
DOE OSTI2018

Passivation Threshold for the Oxidation of Liquid Silicon and Thermodynamic Non-equilibrium in the Gas Phase

The present study focuses on a specific step of the metallurgical path of purification to provide solar-grade silicon: the removal of boron through the injection of H{sub 2}O(g)-H{sub 2}(g)-Ar(g) (cold gas process). A progressive increase of the oxidant H{sub 2}O(g) concentration at injection increases the speed of the process until a silica layer appears at the surface of the liquid silicon to be purified. It then stops the purification. During the process, silica aerosols may form in the gas boundary layer. This modifies the flows of oxidants and the gas concentrations at the liquid silicon surface. Using a monodimensional model, this article shows that a hypothesis of thermodynamic equilibrium of silica aerosols with the gas phase in the boundary layer has to be dropped in order to explain the appearance of a silica passivating layer. The passivation threshold is defined as the limit concentration of the oxidant at the injection below which there is no silica on the liquid silicon surface and beyond which silica particles appear on the liquid silicon surface. Three experiments of estimation of the passivation threshold with the injection of water vapor are used to confirm an empirical criterion for the prediction of the appearance of the silica layer. Two other sets of experiments with the injection of Ar-O{sub 2} are also being studied where the kinetics of the formation of silica aerosols seems to be slower than when water vapor is used. An optimization of the speed of boron removal under the assumption of a maximal concentration of water vapor before the appearance of a passivating silica layer would require an increase of the liquid silicon surface temperature from the fusion temperature of silicon.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2018

Passive and Semiconducting Properties Assessment of Commercially Pure Tantalum in Hank’s Physiological Solution

In this study, various electrochemical measurements were used to evaluate the passive and semiconducting properties of commercially pure tantalum (Ta) in Hank’s physiological solution at 310 K (37 °C). Potentiodynamic polarization and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy results show that the passivation of pure Ta immersed in Hank’s physiological solution improves over time. Mott–Schottky (M–S) tests indicate that the passive layers of pure Ta in Hank’s physiological solution behave as n-type semiconductors and longer immersion times do not lead to any inversion of semiconducting behavior. Additionally, M–S tests show that as the immersion time increases, the donor density of the passive layer decreases. Finally, scanning electron microscope micrographs and energy-dispersive spectroscopy results reveal that Ta is less likely to experience significant pitting or buildup of undesirable corrosion products after longer immersion times in this physiological solution.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2019

Passive SCR Performance Under Pseudo-Transient Cycle: Challenges and Opportunities for Meeting Tier 3 Emissions

We report that the passive ammonia (NH 3 ) selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system is a potential approach for controlling nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from lean-burn gasoline engines based on utilizing NH 3 generated by a three-way catalyst (TWC) during brief periods of fuel-rich engine operation. NH 3 generated by the TWC is stored and available to reduce NOx on a downstream SCR catalyst during subsequent periods of lean engine operation. Control of the overall passive SCR process can be more challenging than current urea-based approach because it depends explicitly on fuel-rich engine operation, which must be implemented in the context of transient engine operation. Under transient engine operation, significant variation in SCR temperatures is also to be expected. With NH 3 storage capacity highly dependent on exhaust temperatures, proper system architecture and engine operating strategy are needed for effective NH 3 utilization over the SCR catalyst. In this study, the performance of a passive SCR system was evaluated on a 2.0-l BMW lean-burn gasoline direct injection engine under 6-mode pseudo-transient cycle. The aim of this work is to understand how various engine operating strategies change the dynamics of NH 3 generation and utilization, and NOx reduction in the passive SCR system. A 5.9% fuel economy improvement relative to stoichiometric-only operation with 0.018 g/mi of NOx + NMHC emissions were demonstrated over 6-mode pseudo-transient cycle; however, CO emissions were twice the emission standard. In conclusion, the results of this work reveal challenges and opportunities for meeting Tier 3 emissions and improving fuel savings benefits.

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATI↗
DOE OSTI2016

Passivation of Nickel Vacancy Defects in Nickel Oxide Solar Cells by Targeted Atomic Deposition of Boron

Localized trap states, which are deleterious to the performance of many solar-energy materials, often originate from the under-coordinated bonding associated with defects. Recently, the concept of targeted atomic deposition (TAD) was introduced as a process that permits the passivation of trap states using a vapor-phase precursor that selectively reacts with only the surface defect sites. In this work, we demonstrate the passivation of nickel oxide (NiO) with the TAD process using diborane gas for selective, low-temperature deposition of boron (B) under continuous flow in a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) system. NiO is a ubiquitous cathode material used in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), organic photovoltaic devices, and organo-lead halide perovskite solar cells. The deposition of B at 100 °C is shown to follow first-order kinetics, exhibiting saturation at a B to Ni atomic ratio of ~10%. Electrochemical measurements, combined with first-principles calculations, indicate that B passivates Ni vacancy defects by partially saturating the bonding of the oxygen atoms adjacent to the vacancy. p-Type DSSCs were fabricated using TAD-treated NiO and show a modest improvement in photovoltaic performance metrics. The results highlight the potential ubiquity of TAD passivation with a range of atomic precursors and vapor-phase processes.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗
DOE OSTI2024

Intergranular corrosion of Ni-30Cr in high-temperature hydrogenated water after removing surface passivating film

Abstract High-resolution transmission electron microscopy and atom probe tomography are used to characterize the initial passivation and subsequent intergranular corrosion of degraded grain boundaries in a model Ni-30Cr alloy exposed to 360 °C hydrogenated water. Upon initial exposure for 1000 h, the alloy surface directly above the grain boundary forms a thin passivating film of Cr 2 O 3 , protecting the underlying grain boundary from intergranular corrosion. However, the metal grain boundary experiences severe Cr depletion and grain boundary migration during this initial exposure. To understand how Cr depletion affects further corrosion, the local protective film was sputtered away using a glancing angle focused ion beam. Upon further exposure, the surface fails to repassivate, and intergranular corrosion is observed through the Cr-depleted region. Through this combination of high-resolution microscopy and localized passive film removal, we show that, although high-Cr alloys are resistant to intergranular attack and stress corrosion cracking, degradation-induced changes in the underlying metal at grain boundaries make the material more susceptible once the initial passive film is breached.

(S)TEM↗
DOE OSTI2014

Electronic states of lithium passivated germanium nanowires: An ab-initio study

A study of the electronic and structural properties of germanium nanowires (GeNWs) was performed using the ab-initio Density Functional Theory within the generalized gradient approximation where electron-ion interactions are described by ultrasoft pseudopotentials. To study the effects of the lithium in the surface of the GeNWs we compare the electronic band structures of Hydrogen passivated GeNWs with those of partial and totally Li passivated GeNWs. The nanowires were constructed in the [001], [111] and [110] directions, using the supercell model to create different wire diameters. The results show that in the case of partial Li passivation there are localized orbitals near the valence band maximum, which would create a p-doped-kind of state. The total Li passivation created metallic states for all the wires.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Surface passivation of tellurium-doped GaAs nanowires by GaP: Effect on electrical conduction

We report on the surface passivation of Au-assisted Te-doped GaAs nanowires (NWs) grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. The electrical properties of individual free standing NWs were assessed using a tungsten nano-probe inside a scanning electron microscope. The diameter independent apparent resistivity of both strained and relaxed passivated NWs suggests the unpinning of the Fermi level and reduction of sidewalls surface states density. Similar current-voltage properties were observed for partially axially relaxed GaAs/GaP NWs. This indicates a negligible contribution of misfit dislocations in the charge transport properties of the NWs. Low temperature micro-photoluminescence (μ-PL) measurements were also carried out for both uncapped and passivated GaAs NWs. The improvement of the integrated (μ-PL) intensity for GaAs/GaP NWs further confirms the effect of passivation.

77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY↗
DOE OSTI2014

Excellent c-Si surface passivation by low-temperature atomic layer deposited titanium oxide

In this work, we demonstrate that thermal atomic layer deposited (ALD) titanium oxide (TiO{sub x}) films are able to provide a—up to now unprecedented—level of surface passivation on undiffused low-resistivity crystalline silicon (c-Si). The surface passivation provided by the ALD TiO{sub x} films is activated by a post-deposition anneal and subsequent light soaking treatment. Ultralow effective surface recombination velocities down to 2.8 cm/s and 8.3 cm/s, respectively, are achieved on n-type and p-type float-zone c-Si wafers. Detailed analysis confirms that the TiO{sub x} films are nearly stoichiometric, have no significant level of contaminants, and are of amorphous nature. The passivation is found to be stable after storage in the dark for eight months. These results demonstrate that TiO{sub x} films are also capable of providing excellent passivation of undiffused c-Si surfaces on a comparable level to thermal silicon oxide, silicon nitride, and aluminum oxide. In addition, it is well known that TiO{sub x} has an optimal refractive index of 2.4 in the visible range for glass encapsulated solar cells, as well as a low extinction coefficient. Thus, the results presented in this work could facilitate the re-emergence of TiO{sub x} in the field of high-efficiency silicon wafer solar cells.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Passivation layer breakdown during laser-fired contact formation for photovoltaic devices

Low resistance laser-fired ohmic contacts (LFCs) can be formed on the backside of Si-based solar cells using microsecond pulses. However, the impact of these longer pulse durations on the dielectric passivation layer is not clear. Retention of the passivation layer during processing is critical to ensure low recombination rates of electron-hole pairs at the rear surface of the device. In this work, advanced characterization tools are used to demonstrate that although the SiO{sub 2} passivation layer melts directly below the laser, it is well preserved outside the immediate LFC region over a wide range of processing parameters. As a result, low recombination rates at the passivation layer/wafer interface can be expected despite higher energy densities associated with these pulse durations.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Improvement of bias-stability in amorphous-indium-gallium-zinc-oxide thin-film transistors by using solution-processed Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} passivation

We demonstrate back channel improvement of back-channel-etch amorphous-indium-gallium-zinc-oxide (a-IGZO) thin-film transistors by using solution-processed yttrium oxide (Y{sub 2}O{sub 3}) passivation. Two different solvents, which are acetonitrile (35%) + ethylene glycol (65%), solvent A and deionized water, solvent B are investigated for the spin-on process of the Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} passivation—performed after patterning source/drain (S/D) Mo electrodes by a conventional HNO{sub 3}-based wet-etch process. Both solvents yield devices with good performance but those passivated by using solvent B exhibit better light and bias stability. Presence of yttrium at the a-IGZO back interface, where it occupies metal vacancy sites, is confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The passivation effect of yttrium is more significant when solvent A is used because of the existence of more metal vacancies, given that the alcohol (65% ethylene glycol) in solvent A may dissolve the metal oxide (a-IGZO) through the formation of alkoxides and water.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2014

Advanced passivation techniques for Si solar cells with high-κ dielectric materials

Electronic recombination losses at the wafer surface significantly reduce the efficiency of Si solar cells. Surface passivation using a suitable thin dielectric layer can minimize the recombination losses. Herein, advanced passivation using simple materials (Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, HfO{sub 2}) and their compounds H{sub (Hf)}A{sub (Al)}O deposited by atomic layer deposition (ALD) was investigated. The chemical composition of Hf and Al oxide films were determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The XPS depth profiles exhibit continuous uniform dense layers. The ALD-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} film has been found to provide negative fixed charge (−6.4 × 10{sup 11 }cm{sup −2}), whereas HfO{sub 2} film provides positive fixed charge (3.2 × 10{sup 12 }cm{sup −2}). The effective lifetimes can be improved after oxygen gas annealing for 1 min. I-V characteristics of Si solar cells with high-κ dielectric materials as passivation layers indicate that the performance is significantly improved, and ALD-HfO{sub 2} film would provide better passivation properties than that of the ALD-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} film in this research work.

75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS, SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND↗
DOE OSTI2014

Sulfuric acid and hydrogen peroxide surface passivation effects on AlGaN/GaN high electron mobility transistors

In this work, we have compared SiN{sub x} passivation, hydrogen peroxide, and sulfuric acid treatment on AlGaN/GaN HEMTs surface after full device fabrication on Si substrate. Both the chemical treatments resulted in the suppression of device pinch-off gate leakage current below 1 μA/mm, which is much lower than that for SiN{sub x} passivation. The greatest suppression over the range of devices is observed with the sulfuric acid treatment. The device on/off current ratio is improved (from 10{sup 4}–10{sup 5} to 10{sup 7}) and a reduction in the device sub-threshold (S.S.) slope (from ∼215 to 90 mV/decade) is achieved. The sulfuric acid is believed to work by oxidizing the surface which has a strong passivating effect on the gate leakage current. The interface trap charge density (D{sub it}) is reduced (from 4.86 to 0.90 × 10{sup 12 }cm{sup −2} eV{sup −1}), calculated from the change in the device S.S. The gate surface leakage current mechanism is explained by combined Mott hopping conduction and Poole Frenkel models for both untreated and sulfuric acid treated devices. Combining the sulfuric acid treatment underneath the gate with the SiN{sub x} passivation after full device fabrication results in the reduction of D{sub it} and improves the surface related current collapse.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2014

Passivity analysis for a winged re-entry vehicle

Application of simple adaptive control (SAC) theory to the design of guidance and control systems for winged re-entry vehicles has been proven successful. To apply SAC to these non-linear and non-stationary systems, it needs to be Almost Strictly Passive (ASP), which is an extension of the Almost Strictly Positive Real (ASPR) condition for linear, time-invariant systems. To fulfill the ASP condition, the controlled, non-linear system has to be minimum-phase (i.e., the zero dynamics is stable), and there is a specific condition for the product of output and input matrix. Earlier studies indicate that even the linearised system is not ASPR. The two problems at hand are: 1) the system is non-minimum phase when flying with zero bank angle, and 2) whenever there is hybrid control, e.g., yaw control is established by combined reaction and aerodynamic control for the major part of flight, the second ASPR condition cannot be met. In this paper we look at both issues, the former related to the guidance system and the latter to the attitude-control system. It is concluded that whenever the nominal bank angle is zero, the passivity conditions can never be met, and guidance should be based on nominal commands and a redefinition of those whenever the error becomes too large. For the remaining part of the trajectory, the passivity conditions are marginally met, but it is proposed to add feedforward compensators to alleviate these conditions. The issue of hybrid control is avoided by redefining the controls with total control moments and adding a so-called control allocator. Deriving the passivity conditions for rotational motion, and evaluating these conditions along the trajectory shows that the (non-linear) winged entry vehicle is ASP. The sufficient conditions to apply SAC for attitude control are thus met.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2015

Comparative study on hydrostatic strain, stress and dislocation density of Al{sub 0.3}Ga{sub 0.7}N/GaN heterostructure before and after a-Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} passivation

The hydrostatic strain, stress and dislocation densities were comparatively analyzed before and after passivation of amorphous silicon nitride (a-Si{sub 3}N{sub 4}) layer on Al{sub 0.3}Ga{sub 0.7}N/GaN heterostructure by nondestructive high resolution x-ray diffraction (HRXRD) technique. The crystalline quality, in-plane and out-of plane strain were evaluated from triple-axis (TA) (ω-2θ) diffraction profile across the (002) reflection plane and double-axis (DA) (ω-2θ) glancing incidence (GI) diffraction profile across (105) reflection plane. The hydrostatic strain and stress of Al{sub 0.3}Ga{sub 0.7}N barrier layer were increased significantly after passivation and both are tensile in nature. The dislocation density of GaN was also analyzed and no significant change was observed after passivation of the heterostructure. The crystalline quality was not degraded after passivation on the heterostructure confirmed by the full-width-half-maximum (FWHM) analysis.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2015

Passivation of c-Si surfaces by sub-nm amorphous silicon capped with silicon nitride

A sub-nm hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) film capped with silicon nitride (SiN{sub x}) is shown to provide a high level passivation to crystalline silicon (c-Si) surfaces. When passivated by a 0.8 nm a-Si:H/75 nm SiN{sub x} stack, recombination current density J{sub 0} values of 9, 11, 47, and 87 fA/cm{sup 2} are obtained on 10 Ω·cm n-type, 0.8 Ω·cm p-type, 160 Ω/sq phosphorus-diffused, and 120 Ω/sq boron-diffused silicon surfaces, respectively. The J{sub 0} on n-type 10 Ω·cm wafers is further reduced to 2.5 ± 0.5 fA/cm{sup 2} when the a-Si:H film thickness exceeds 2.5 nm. The passivation by the sub-nm a-Si:H/SiN{sub x} stack is thermally stable at 400 °C in N{sub 2} for 60 min on all four c-Si surfaces. Capacitance–voltage measurements reveal a reduction in interface defect density and film charge density with an increase in a-Si:H thickness. The nearly transparent sub-nm a-Si:H/SiN{sub x} stack is thus demonstrated to be a promising surface passivation and antireflection coating suitable for all types of surfaces encountered in high efficiency c-Si solar cells.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
DOE OSTI2021

Efficient passivation of n-type and p-type silicon surface defects by hydrogen sulfide gas reaction

An efficient surface defect passivation is observed by reacting clean Si in a dilute hydrogen sulfide-argon gas mixture (< 5% H2S in Ar) for both n-type and p-type Si wafers with planar and textured surfaces. Surface recombination velocities of 1.5 and 8 cm/s are achieved on n-type and p-type Si wafers, respectively, at an optimum reaction temperature of 550oC that are comparable to the best surface passivation quality used in high efficiency Si solar cells. Surface chemical analysis using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows that sulfur is primarily bonded in a sulfide environment, and synchrotron-based soft x-ray emission spectroscopy of the adsorbed sulfur atoms suggests the formation of S-Si bonds. Furthermore, the sulfur surface passivation layer is unstable in air, attributed to surface oxide formation and a simultaneous decrease of sulfide bonds. However, the passivation can be stabilized by a low-temperature (300oC) deposited amorphous silicon nitride (a-Si:NX:H) capping layer.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2015

Amorphous/crystalline silicon interface passivation: Ambient-temperature dependence and implications for solar cell performance

Silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells feature amorphous silicon passivation films, which enable very high voltages. We report how such passivation increases with operating temperature for amorphous silicon stacks involving doped layers and decreases for intrinsic-layer-only passivation. We discuss the implications of this phenomenon on the solar cell's temperature coefficient, which represents an important figure-of-merit for the energy yield of devices deployed in the field. We show evidence that both open-circuit voltage (Voc) and fill factor (FF) are affected by these variations in passivation and quantify these temperature-mediated effects, compared with those expected from standard diode equations. We confirm that devices with high Voc values at 25°C show better high-temperature performance. Thus, we also argue that the precise device architecture, such as the presence of charge-transport barriers, may affect the temperature-dependent device performance as well.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗
DOE OSTI2018

Sputter-Deposited Oxides for Interface Passivation of CdTe Photovoltaics

Commercial CdTe PV modules have polycrystalline thin films deposited on glass, and devices made in this format have exceeded 22% efficiency. Devices made by the authors with a magnesium zinc oxide window layer and tellurium back contact have achieved efficiency over 18%, but these cells still suffer from an open-circuit voltage far below ideal values. Oxide passivation layers made by sputter deposition have the potential to increase voltage by reducing interface recombination. CdTe devices with these passivation layers were studied with photoluminescence (PL) emission spectroscopy and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) to detect an increase in minority carrier lifetime. Because these oxide materials exhibit barriers to carrier collection, micropatterning was used to expose small point contacts while still allowing interface passivation. TRPL decay lifetimes have been greatly enhanced for thin polycrystalline absorber films with interface passivation. Device performance was measured and current collection was mapped spatially by light-beam-induced current.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗