Synthesis of a large area ReS2 thin film by CVD for in-depth investigation of resistive switching: effects of metal electrodes, channel width and noise behaviour.

The anisotropic crystal structure and layer independent electrical and optical properties of ReS2 make it unique among other two-dimensional materials (2DMs), emphasizing a special need for its synthesis. This work discusses the synthesis and in-depth characterization of a 1 × 1 cm2 large and few layered ReS2 film. Vibrational modes and excitonic peaks observed from the Raman and photoluminescence (PL) spectra corroborated the formation of a ReS2 film with a 1.26 eV bandgap. High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) images and selected area electron diffraction (SAED) patterns inferred the polycrystalline nature of the film, while cross-sectional field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) indicated planar growth with ∼10 nm thickness. The chemical composition of the film analysed through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) indicated the formation of a ReS2 film with a Re : S atomic ratio of 1 : 1.75, indicating a small amount of non-stoichiometric RexSy. Following the basic characterization studies, the ReS2 film was tested for resistive switching (RS) device application in which the effects of different metal electrodes (Pt/Au and Ag/Au) and different channel widths (200, 100, and 50 µm) were studied. The highest memory window equal to 108 was obtained for the Ag/Au electrode while Pt/Au showed a memory window of 102. RS for the former was ascribed to the formation of a conducting filament (CF) because of the migration of Ag+ ions, while defect mediated charge carrier transport led to switching in the Pt/Au electrode. Furthermore, the RHRS/RLRS ratio achieved in this work (108) is also of the highest magnitude reported thus far. Furthermore, a comparison of devices with Ag/Au electrodes but with different channel widths (50, 100 and 200 µm) gave insightful results on the existence of multiple resistance states, device endurance and retention. An inverse relationship between the retention time and the device's channel width was observed, where the device with a 50 µm channel width showed a retention time of 48 hours, and the one with a 200 µm width showed stability only up to 3000 s. Furthermore, low frequency noise measurements were performed to understand the effect of defects in the low resistance state (LRS) and the high resistance state (HRS). The HRS exhibited Lorentzian noise behaviour while the LRS exhibited Lorentzian only at low current bias which converged to 1/f noise at higher current bias.

Tailoring the Vertical and Planar Growth of 2D WS2 Thin Films Using Pulsed Laser Deposition for Enhanced Gas Sensing Properties.

In this study, pulsed laser deposition has been utilized for the controllable synthesis of WS2 thin films with growth orientation ranging from vertically to horizontally aligned layers, and the effect of growth parameters has been investigated. The growth of thin films on SiO2 substrates at three different pressures (30, 50, and 70 mTorr) and three different temperatures (400, 500, and 600 °C) has been studied. Detailed characterizations carried out on the as-grown layers clearly show the formation of the 2H-WS2 phase and its morphological evolution with deposition conditions. Atomic force microscopy and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy have been used to deduce the growth mechanism of the vertical and planar films with different deposition parameters. The samples grown with a combination of lower temperatures and higher pressures exhibit a vertical flake-like growth with a flake thickness of ∼2-5 nm. However, at higher temperatures and lower pressures, the film growth is observed to be rather planar. The gas sensing parameters and the underlying mechanism have been observed to be quite different for vertically and horizontally grown layers. The vertical layers showed a selective response toward NO2 gas at room temperature (RT) with a limit of detection less than 50 ppb. In comparison, a very subdued and poor gas sensing response was recorded for the planar film at RT. A large specific area and abundance of active edge sites along with the flat basal plane present in the vertically grown layers seem to be responsible for efficient gas sensing toward NO2.

Localized surface plasmon resonance-enhanced solar-blind Al0.4Ga0.6N MSM photodetectors exhibiting high-temperature robustness.

The appealing properties of tunable direct wide bandgap, high-temperature robustness and chemical hardness, make AlxGa1-xN a promising candidate for fabricating robust solar-blind photodetectors (PDs). In this work, we have utilized the optical phenomenon of localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) in metal nanoparticles (NPs) to significantly enhance the performance of solar-blind Al0.4Ga0.6N metal-semiconductor-metal PDs that exhibit high-temperature robustness. We demonstrate that the presence of palladium (Pd) NPs leads to a remarkable enhancement by nearly 600, 300, and 462%, respectively, in the photo-to-dark current ratio (PDCR), responsivity, and specific detectivity of the Al0.4Ga0.6N PD at the wavelength of 280 nm. Using the optical power density of only 32µW cm-2at -10 V, maximum values of ∼3 × 103, 2.7 AW-1, and 2.4 × 1013Jones are found for the PDCR, responsivity and specific detectivity, respectively. The experimental observations are supported by finite difference time domain simulations, which clearly indicate the presence of LSPR in Pd NPs decorated on the surface of Al0.4Ga0.6N. The mechanism behind the enhancement is investigated in detail, and is ascribed to the LSPR induced effects, namely, improved optical absorption, enhanced local electric field and LSPR sensitization effect. Moreover, the PD exhibits a stable operation up to 400 K, thereby exhibiting the high-temperature robustness desirable for commercial applications.

Modifying the Thermoelectric Transport of Sb2Te3 Thin Films via the Carrier Filtering Effect by Incorporating Size-Selected Gold Nanoparticles.

Hot energy carrier filtering as a means to improve the thermoelectric (TE) property in Sb2Te3 thin film samples having size-selected Au nanoparticles (NPs) is investigated in the present study. Nonagglomerated Au NPs with a very narrow size distribution grown by an integrated gas-phase synthesis setup are incorporated into the Sb2Te3 thin film synthesized by RF magnetron sputtering. TE properties have been investigated as a function of size-selected Au NP concentrations and compared with that of a nanocomposite sample having non-size-selected Au NPs. An increase in the Seebeck coefficient and power factor, along with a slight decrease in electrical conductivity, is observed for samples with a NP size of minimum variance. Further, the Kelvin probe force microscopy and conducting atomic force microscopy techniques were employed to understand the nature of the interface and charge transport across the Sb2Te3 matrix and Au NPs. The study provides an opportunity to modulate the TE properties in Sb2Te3 thin films by constructing a metal-semiconductor heterostructure through controlling the concentration and randomness to achieve a high TE performance.

Growth of Large-Area 2D MoS2 Arrays at Pre-Defined Locations Using Stencil Mask Lithography.

The growth of MoS2 layers of desired dimensions at predefined locations is essential for fabricating opto-electronic devices based solely on MoS2 or on hetero-structures based on MoS2. Here we present a new route for patterned growth of MoS2 by combining radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering, stencil mask lithography and vapour phase sulfurization. The present method does not involve chemical etchants and organic photoresist and hence provides a simplified process of achieving MoS2 patterns. Here, the control over the number of layers (mono, few and bulk) of MoS2 is achieved by varying the thickness of Mo films. The statistical variation in thickness i.e., number of MoS2 layers within the individual patterns is investigated from Raman mappings which revealed the uniform growth of 3-4 MoS2 layers. From Kelvin probe force microscopy, the surface potential values of MoS2 patterns lie in the range -350 to -370 mV, which is consistent with 2D MoS2 layer with thickness of 3-4 layers. The surface potential analysis across individual patterns indicates weakly n-type doping of few layers MoS2 with Fermi level located ~0.83-0.85 eV below the conduction band edge.

Scanning thermal probe microscope method for the determination of thermal diffusivity of nanocomposite thin films.

A commercial scanning thermal microscope has been upgraded to facilitate its use in estimating the radial thermal diffusivity of thin films close to room temperature. The modified setup includes a microcontroller driven microhotplate coupled with a Bluetooth module for wireless control. The microcontroller board (Arduino Leonardo) is used to generate a bias of suitable voltage amplitude and pulse duration which is applied across the microhotplate contact pads. A corresponding heat pulse from the Pt heating element (1 mm(2)) embedded within the microhotplate is delivered to the lower surface of the thin film (25 mm(2)) deposited over it. The large difference in the dimensions of the heating source and the thin film surface causes heat to flow radially outwards on the top surface of the latter. The decay of this radial heat wave as it flows outwards is recorded by the scanning thermal microscope in terms of temperature-time (T-t) profiles at varying positions around the central heating zone. A fitting procedure is suggested to extract the thermal diffusivity value from the array of T-t profiles. The efficacy of the above setup has been established by evaluating the thermal diffusivities of Bi2Te3 and Bi2Te3:Si thin film samples. Further, with only minor alterations in design the capabilities of the above setup can be extended to estimate the axial thermal diffusivity and specific heat of thin films, as a function of temperature.

Synthesis and characterization of monodispersed orthorhombic manganese oxide nanoparticles produced by Bacillus sp. cells simultaneous to its bioremediation.

A heavy metal resistant strain of Bacillus sp. (MTCC10650) is reported. The strain exhibited the property of bioaccumulating manganese, simultaneous to its remediation. The nanoparticles thus formed were characterized and identified using energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX), high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). When the cells were challenged with manganese, the cells effectively synthesized nanoparticles of average size 4.62±0.14nm. These were mostly spherical and monodispersed. The ex situ enzymatically synthesized nanoparticles exhibited an absorbance maximum at 329nm. These were more discrete, small and uniform, than the manganese oxide nanoparticles recovered after cell sonication. The use of Bacillus sp. cells seems promising and advantageous approach. Since, it serves dual purposes of (i) remediation and (ii) nanoparticle synthesis. Considering the increasing demand of developing environmental friendly and cost effective technologies for nanoparticle synthesis, these cells can be exploited for the remediation of manganese from the environment in conjunction with development of a greener process for the controlled synthesis of manganese oxide nanoparticles.

Synthesis and luminescence properties of alumina encapsulated InN nanorods.

The present study reports a two-step procedure to synthesize InN nanorods inside the pores of an anodic alumina membrane. In the first step, pores of the membrane are filled with indium via electrodeposition. The second step involves nitridation of the as-deposited nanorods by room temperature plasma annealing. X-ray diffraction studies reveal that as-deposited nanorods consist of In, In2O3 and In(OH)3 phases which get converted to mixed hexagonal and cubic phase InN on plasma annealing. Cross sectional scanning electron microscope study reveals nanorod diameter and length to be 150 nm and 1 microm respectively. X-ray mapping results establish that uniform distribution of nitrogen throughout the length of nanorod has been achieved as a result of plasma annealing. Observation of photoluminescence peaks at 1.4 and 1.6 eV corresponding, to the absorption edges of cubic and hexagonal phases of InN show that room temperature photoemission is due to band to band recombination. The use of alumina as a template for nanorod growth prevents post-deposition agglomeration and provides mechanical strength. Possibility of total internal reflection at the InN-Al2O3 interface makes these structures ideally suitable to reduce the emitted light intensity losses.

A bioconjugate of Pseudomonas cepacia lipase with alginate with enhanced catalytic efficiency.

A bioconjugate of Pseudomonas cepacia lipase with alginate was prepared by simple adsorption. Atomic force microscope (AFM) images showed that this bioconjugate resulted from adsorption rather than entrapment of the enzyme as enzyme molecules were visible on the gel surface. The soluble bioconjugate exhibited increased enzyme activity in terms of high effectiveness factor (effectiveness factor was 3 for the immobilized preparation) and greater Vmax/Km value (Vmax/Km increased 25 times upon immobilization). This constitutes one of the less frequently observed instances of lipase activation by lid opening as a result of binding to a predominantly hydrophilic molecule. The bioconjugate was also more stable at 55 degrees C as compared to the free enzyme and could be reused for oil hydrolysis up to 4 cycles without any loss in activity. Fluorescence emission spectroscopy showed that the immobilized enzyme had undergone definite conformational changes.