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At least 37 records · Page 2

High Mobility, High Carrier Density SnSe 2 Field‐Effect Transistors with Ultralow Subthreshold Swing and Gate‐Controlled Photoconductance Switching

2D and layered semiconductors are considered as promising electronic materials, particularly for applications that require high carrier mobility and efficient field-effect switching combined with mechanical flexibility. To date, however, the highest mobility has been realized primarily at low carrier concentration. Here, it is shown that few-layer/multilayer SnSe 2 gated by a solution top gate combines very high room-temperature electron mobility (up to 800 cm 2 V −1 s −1 ), along with large on-off current ratios (>10 5 ) and a subthreshold swing below the thermodynamic limit (50 mV per decade) in field-effect devices, at exceptionally large sheet carrier concentrations of ≈10 13 cm −2 . Observed mobility enhancements upon partial depletion of the channel point to near-surface defects or impurities as the mobility-limiting scattering centers. Under illumination, the resulting gap states give rise to gate-controlled switching between positive and negative photoconductance. The results qualify SnSe 2 as a promising layered semiconductor for flexible and wearable electronics, as well as for the realization of advanced approaches to photodetection.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗

Fabrication of flexible perovskite solar cells via rapid thermal annealing

Adaptability, lightweight, and low cost of materials make flexible perovskite solar cells essential for the perovskite technology to breach commercial photovoltaic markets. Roll-to-roll manufacturing has great potential for high-throughput perovskite manufacturing; however, conventional annealing methods are not capable of producing flexible perovskite solar cells at scale. Conventional methods are time consuming and may compromise functionality of flexible substrates under tension. Here, we introduce a bladecoated perovskite thin film on flexible ITO-coated PET annealed via rapid thermal annealing (RTA) that reduces post-deposition processing time from ~150 s to ~14 s. As a result, performance was not sacrificed for scalability as a perovskite solar cell was produced with a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 14.58%.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Tuning the Mechanical Properties of a Polymer Semiconductor by Modulating Hydrogen Bonding Interactions

Conjugation breakers (CBs) with different H-bonding chemistry and linker flexibility are designed and incorporated into a Diketopyrrolopyrrole (DPP)-based conjugated polymer backbone. The effects of H-bonding interactions on polymer semiconductor morphology, mechanical properties and electrical performance are systematically investigated. We observe that CBs with H-bonding self-association constant >0.7 or denser packing tendency are able to induce higher polymer chain aggregation and crystallinity in as-casted thin film, resulting in higher modulus and crack on-set strain. Additionally, the rDoC (relative degree of crystallinity) of the stretched thin film with the highest crack on-set strain only suffers a small decrease, suggesting the main energy dissipation mechanism is the breakage of H-bonding interactions. By contrast, other less stretchable polymer films dissipate strain energy through the breakage of crystalline domains, indicated by drastic decrease in rDoC. Furthermore, we evaluate their electrical performance under mechanical strain in fully stretchable field-effect transistors. The polymer with the highest crack on-set strain has the least degradation in mobility as a function of strain. Overall, these observations suggest that we can aptly tune the mechanical properties in polymer semiconductors by modulating intermolecular interactions, such as H-bonding chemistry and linker flexibility. Such understanding provides molecular design guidelines for future stretchable semiconductors.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Semiconductor superlattice photodetectors

A superlattice photomultiplier and a photodetector based on the real space transfer mechanism were studied. The wavelength for the first device is of the order of a micron or flexible corresponding to the bandgap absorption in a semiconductor. The wavelength for the second device is in the micron range (about 2 to 12 microns) corresponding to the energy of the conduction band edge discontinuity between an Al/(sub x)Ga(sub 1-x)As and GaAs interface. Both devices are described.

Chuang, S. L.↗

Synthesis and Physical Properties of Manganese Chromium Nitride Thin Films Grown via Molecular Beam Epitaxy

Here, we demonstrate the ability to grow epitaxial thin films of manganese–chromium nitride (Mn x Cr 1–x N) across the entire composition range on magnesium oxide (MgO) (1 0 0) surfaces by molecular beam epitaxy. By independently controlling the ratio of the atomic fluxes of manganese and chromium, the compositional dependence of structural and electrical transport properties is determined. Soft X-ray absorption shows that the valence states of Cr( 3+ ) and Mn( 3+ ) remain identical among these MnCrN epitaxial films. The metallic transport behavior of binary manganese nitride (MnN) and chromium nitride (CrN) is suppressed in the ternary alloys. Changes in room temperature electrical resistivity of up to 100 times and 5 orders of magnitude at cryogenic temperatures are observed. This work expands the variety of nitride compounds available for epitaxial integration and could provide additional flexibility for the development of metal–semiconductor–insulator junctions for spintronic devices.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Multi-Band GaAs/AlGaAs Quantum Well Infrared Photodetector (QWIP) Focal Plane Arrays

The GaAs/AlGaAs based Quantum Well Infrared Photodetectors (QWIPs) afford greater flexibility than the usual extrinsically doped semiconductor IR detectors because the wavelength of the peak response and cutoff can be continuously tailored over any wavelength between 6-20 micrometers. The spectral band width of these detectors can be tuned from narrow (DELTA)lamba/lamba approx. 10 %)) to wide (DELTA)lamba/lamba approx. 50 %) allowing various applications. Also, QWIP offers multi-color infrared cameras which is capable of simultaneously acquiring images in different infrared bands. Each pixel of such array consists of vertically stacked, independently readable, QWIP detectors sensitive in different narrow infrared bands. In this article, we discuss the development and results of the 640 x 512 dual-band and four-band QWIP FPAs.

Bandara, S. V.↗

High Sensitivity Long-Wavelength Infrared QWIP Focal Plane Array Based Instrument for Remote Sensing of Icy Satellites

GaAs based Quantum Well Infrared Photodetector (QWIP) technology has shown remarkable success in advancing low cost, highly uniform, high-operability, large format multi-color focal plane arrays. QWIPs afford greater flexibility than the usual extrinsically doped semiconductor IR detectors. The wavelength of the peak response and cutoff can be continuously tailored over a range wide enough to enable light detection at any wavelength range between 6 and 20 micron. The spectral band-width of these detectors can be tuned from narrow (Deltalambda/lambda is approximately 10%) to wide (Deltalambda/lambda is approximately 40%) allowing various applications. Furthermore, QWIPs offer low cost per pixel and highly uniform large format focal plane arrays due to mature GaAs/AlGaAs growth and processing technologies. The other advantages of GaAs/AlGaAs based QWIPS are higher yield, lower l/f noise and radiation hardness (1.5 Mrad). In this presentation, we will discuss our recent demonstrations of 640x512 pixel narrow-band, broad-band, multi-band focal plane arrays, and the current status of the development of 1024x1024 pixel long-wavelength infrared QWIP focal plane arrays.

Gunapala, S.↗

Multi-band quantum well infrared photodetectors

The GaAs/AlGaAs based Quantum Well Infrared Photodetectors (QWIPs) afford greater flexibility than the usual extrinsically doped semiconductor IR detectors because the wavelength of the peak response and cutoff can be continuously tailored over any wavelength between 6-20 mu m.

IR quantum well thermal imaging multi-spectral↗

Mechanical, Morphological, and Charge Transport Properties of NDI Polymers with Variable Built‐in Π‐Conjugation Lengths Probed by Simulation and Experiment

Abstract Mechanically deformable polymeric semiconductors are a key material for fabricating flexible organic thin‐film transistors (FOTFTs)—the building block of electronic circuits and wearable electronic devices. However, for many π‐conjugated polymers achieving mechanical deformability and efficient charge transport remains challenging. Here the effects of polymer backbone bending stiffness and film microstructure on mechanical flexibility and charge transport are investigated via experimental and computational methods for a series of electron‐transporting naphthalene diimide (NDI) polymers having differing extents of π‐conjugation. The results show that replacing increasing amounts of the π‐conjugated comonomer dithienylvinylene (TVT) with the π‐nonconjugated comonomer dithienylethane (TET) in the backbone of the fully π‐conjugated polymeric semiconductor, PNDI‐TVT 100 (yielding polymeric series PNDI‐TVT x , 100 ≥x≥ 0), lowers backbone rigidity, degree of texturing, and π–π stacking interactions between NDI moieties. Importantly, this comonomer substitution increases the mechanical robustness of PNDI‐TVT x while retaining efficient charge transport. Thus, reducing the TVT content of PNDI‐TVT x suppresses film crack formation and dramatically stabilizes the field‐effect electron mobility upon bending (e.g., 2 mm over 2000 bending cycles). This work provides a route to tune π–π stacking in π‐conjugated polymers while simultaneously promoting mechanical flexibility and retaining good carrier mobility in FOTFTs.

Chemistry↗

Phase-Locked Semiconductor Lasers With Separate Contacts

Individual current feeds enable better uniformity and flexible control. Separate contacts for lasers in array enable control of output radiation pattern and compensation of manufacturing nonuniformities among lasers. Concept of separate current control described for two-laser array in "Semiconductor Laser Phased Array" (NPO-15963).

Katz, Joseph↗

Inverse metal-assisted chemical etching of germanium with gold and hydrogen peroxide

Abstract Metal-assisted chemical etching (MACE) is a flexible technique for texturing the surface of semiconductors. In this work, we study the spatial variation of the etch profile, the effect of angular orientation relative to the crystallographic planes, and the effect of doping type. We employ gold in direct contact with germanium as the metal catalyst, and dilute hydrogen peroxide solution as the chemical etchant. With this catalyst-etchant combination, we observe inverse-MACE, where the area directly under gold is not etched, but the neighboring, exposed germanium experiences enhanced etching. This enhancement in etching decays exponentially with the lateral distance from the gold structure. An empirical formula for the gold-enhanced etching depth as a function of lateral distance from the edge of the gold film is extracted from the experimentally measured etch profiles. The lateral range of enhanced etching is approximately 10–20 μ m and is independent of etchant concentration. At length scales beyond a few microns, the etching enhancement is independent of the orientation with respect to the germanium crystallographic planes. The etch rate as a function of etchant concentration follows a power law with exponent smaller than 1. The observed etch rates and profiles are independent of whether the germanium substrate is n-type, p-type, or nearly intrinsic.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Local p‐ and n‐Type Doping of an Oxide Semiconductor via Electric‐Field‐Driven Defect Migration

Layered oxides exhibit high ionic mobility and chemical flexibility, attracting interest as cathode materials for lithium-ion batteries and the pairing of hydrogen production and carbon capture. Recently, layered oxides emerged as highly tunable semiconductors. For example, by introducing anti-Frenkel defects, the electronic hopping conductance in hexagonal manganites is increased locally by orders of magnitude. Here, local acceptor and donor doping in Er(Mn,Ti)O3 is demonstrated, facilitated by the controlled splitting of anti-Frenkel defects under applied d.c. voltage. By combining density functional theory calculations, scanning probe microscopy, atom probe tomography, and scanning transmission electron microscopy, it is shown that the oxygen defects can readily be moved through the layered crystal structure, leading to nano-sized interstitial-rich (p-type) and vacancy-rich (n-type) regions. The resulting pattern is comparable to dipolar npn-junctions and stable on the timescale of days. These findings reveal the possibility of temporarily functionalizing oxide semiconductors at the nanoscale, giving additional opportunities for the field of oxide electronics and the development of transient electronics in general.

He, Jiali↗

Boron Nitride Solid-State Neutron Detectors

The goal of this project is to build upon the work performed under the Texas Tech IDEAS project (DE-AR0000964 monitored by Dr. Isik Kizilyalli) to bring the developed B-10 enriched hexagonal boron nitride (h- 10 BN or 10 BN or BN) semiconductor neutron detector technology to the next level of maturity. In comparison to He-3 ( 3 He) gas detectors, BN neutron detectors possess all the intrinsic advantages of semiconductor devices: light weight, compact size, fast response speed, high spatial resolution, high temperature and low voltage operation capability, ease of mass production via existing semiconductor infrastructures, low cost of operation and maintenance, flexible form factors, and durability. The project will develop a prototype h- 10 BN neutron detector as a potential replacement for the 3 He gas neutron detectors (LND 25185 or equivalent) used in various neutron survey meters currently produced and commercialized by Ludlum Measurements, Inc. (LMI). To increase the overall detection efficiency, it is essential to maximize the collection efficiency of charge carriers (electrons and holes) generated by the nuclear reaction, which demands a further push to achieve 10 BN epilayers with improved material quality. The material growth processes will be guided by characterization of structural, optical, and electrical properties of h-BN. Selective devices will be calibrated at LMI. During ARPA-E supporting period, the key material parameters of h-BN produced by metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), including the layer thickness, mobility-lifetime product, surface recombination field and detector size for maintaining a high charge collection efficiency all have been improved by several orders of magnitude. These improvements have enabled the realization of high-performance h 10BN semiconductor thermal neutron detectors. Presently, h- 10 BN thermal neutron detectors developed under ARPA-E’s support hold the record high detection efficiency among all solid-state detectors at 59%. With further development in manufacturing, there is no question that h-BN detectors will replace the traditional He-3 gas detectors in certain application areas by offering obvious advantages of semiconductor technologies over gas detectors and opportunities for users to dedicate the scarce and expensive supply of He-3 gas to other application areas where substitutes of He-3 gas are not possible.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Stretchable form of single crystal silicon for high performance electronics on rubber substrates

The present invention provides stretchable, and optionally printable, semiconductors and electronic circuits capable of providing good performance when stretched, compressed, flexed or otherwise deformed. Stretchable semiconductors and electronic circuits of the present invention preferred for some applications are flexible, in addition to being stretchable, and thus are capable of significant elongation, flexing, bending or other deformation along one or more axes. Further, stretchable semiconductors and electronic circuits of the present invention may be adapted to a wide range of device configurations to provide fully flexible electronic and optoelectronic devices.

Rogers, John A.↗

From Salt to Electronics: Heteroepitaxy and GaAs Solar Cells

This paper presents work on the heteroepitaxy of salts, specifically fluorides, on semiconductor and heteroepitaxy of semiconductor on salts. Fluorides layers are deposited on commercial Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) wafers followed by the heteroepitaxial growth of GaAs using metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). The fluoride layers consist of 2 lattice-engineered layers of alkaline-earth compounds to match with GaAs, and are used to sandwich another alkaline-earth compound with higher water-solubility as sacrificial layer. The triple fluoride layers enable liftoff of free-standing semiconductor films which can be further transferred to desirable substrates. 2D-X-ray Diffraction (2D-XRD) measurements confirm epitaxial growth of both the fluorides and the subsequently grown GaAs films. Single junction (SJ) solar cell devices based on thus prepared films show a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 10.3% under 1 sun illumination. After the completion of device fabrications, the GaAs film is lifted off from the substrate by a novel water-assisted epitaxial liftoff (H 2 O-ELO) technique and transferred to a cheaper substrate. The original GaAs wafer is recycled and reused twice. Devices based on reused substrates show no significant degradation in performance. Lastly, the semiconductor-salt-semiconductor scheme has great implications in high performance, flexible, and large area electronics.

14 SOLAR ENERGY↗

Synchrotron characterization of high-Z, current-mode x-ray detectors

Fast x-ray detectors are critical tools in pulsed power and fusion applications, where detector impulse response of a nanosecond or better is often required. Semiconductor detectors can create fast, sensitive devices with extensive operational flexibility. There is typically a trade-off between detector sensitivity and speed, but higher atomic number absorbers can increase hard x-ray absorption without increasing the charge collection time, provided carriers achieve high velocity. This paper presents x-ray pulse characterization conducted at the Advanced Photon Source of x-ray absorption efficiency and temporal impulse response of current-mode semiconductor x-ray detectors composed of Si, GaAs, and CdTe.

47 OTHER INSTRUMENTATION↗