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EFFECT OF GERMANIUM DOPING ON ERBIUM SENSITIZATION IN THE ERBIUM DOPED SILICON RICH SILICA MATERIAL SYSTEM
Title
EFFECT OF GERMANIUM DOPING ON ERBIUM SENSITIZATION IN THE ERBIUM DOPED SILICON RICH SILICA MATERIAL SYSTEM.
Creator
Ruhge, Forrest, Kik, Pieter, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The continued size reduction in electronic integrated circuits has lead to a demand for on-chip high-bandwidth and low loss communication channels. Optical interconnects are considered an essential addition to the silicon electronics platform. A major challenge in the field of integrated Si photonics is the development of cost effective silicon compatible light sources. This thesis investigates the sensitization of group IV doped silica films emitting at 1.535μm for applications as...
Show moreThe continued size reduction in electronic integrated circuits has lead to a demand for on-chip high-bandwidth and low loss communication channels. Optical interconnects are considered an essential addition to the silicon electronics platform. A major challenge in the field of integrated Si photonics is the development of cost effective silicon compatible light sources. This thesis investigates the sensitization of group IV doped silica films emitting at 1.535μm for applications as silicon compatible light sources. Thin erbium-doped silica films containing excess silicon and germanium were deposited using a multi-gun sputter system. The composition of the deposited materials was verified by Rutherford Backscattering Spectrometry. Samples from each deposition were annealed in a controlled atmosphere tube furnace at temperatures between 500ºC and 1100ºC for 30 minutes. The photoluminescence spectra from the visible to the near-infrared region were acquired while pumping either near or far from the Er3+ absorption lines. Under both excitation conditions all samples annealed at temperatures below 1000ºC show clear emission at 1.535μm from Er3+ ions in the host material. In the current literature this is attributed to exciton mediated excitation of the Er3+. By contrast, in these studies indirect excitation was observed for samples annealed at temperatures well below the onset of nanocrystal nucleation and growth (between 500ºC and 1000ºC), suggesting excitation via small clusters or lattice defects. These findings could have significant implications in the further development of group IV sensitized silicon compatible gain media.
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Date Issued
2006
Identifier
CFE0001439, ucf:47066
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0001439
Optical and Magnetic properties of nanostructures
Title
Optical and Magnetic properties of nanostructures.
Creator
Nayyar, Neha, Rahman, Talat, Stolbov, Sergey, Ishigami, Marsahir, Hernandez, Florencio, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
In this thesis, Density Functional Theory and Time-Dependent Density-Functional Theory approaches are applied to study the optical and magnetic properties of several types of nanostructures. In studies of the optical properties we mainly focused on the plasmonic and excitonic effects in pure and transition metal-doped noble metal nanochains and their conglomerates. In the case of pure noble metal chains, it was found that the (collective) plasmon mode is pronounceable when the number of atoms...
Show moreIn this thesis, Density Functional Theory and Time-Dependent Density-Functional Theory approaches are applied to study the optical and magnetic properties of several types of nanostructures. In studies of the optical properties we mainly focused on the plasmonic and excitonic effects in pure and transition metal-doped noble metal nanochains and their conglomerates. In the case of pure noble metal chains, it was found that the (collective) plasmon mode is pronounceable when the number of atoms in the chain is larger than 5. The plasmon energy decreases with further with increasing number of atoms (N) and is almost N-independent when N is larger than 20. In the case of coupled pure chains it was found that the plasmon energy grows as square root of the number of chains, and reaches the visible light energy 1.8eV for the case of three parallel chains. Doping of pure Au chains with transition-metal atoms leads in many cases to formation of additional plasmon peaks close in energy to the undoped chain peak. This peak comes from the local charge oscillations around the potential minima created by the impurity atom. The effect is especially pronounced for Ni-doped chains. In the multiple-chain case, we find an unusual hybridization of the two different (local and collective) plasmon modes. Changing the chain size and chemical composition in the array can be used to tune the absorption properties of nanochains. The case of coupled finite (plasmonic) and infinite (semiconductor, excitonic) chains was also analyzed. We find that one can get significant exciton-plasmon coupling, including hybridized modes and energy transfer between these excitations, in the case of doped chains. The impurity atoms are found to work as attraction centers for excitons. This can be used to transform the exciton energy into local plasmon oscillations with consequent emission at desired point (at which the impurity is located). In a related study the optical properties of single layer MoS2 was analyzed with a focus on the possibility of ultrafast emission, In particular, it was found that the system can emit in femto-second regime under ultrafast laser pulse excitations. Finally, we have studied the magnetic properties of FeRh nanostructures to probe whether there is an antiferromagnetic to ferromagnetic transition as a function of the ratio of Fe and Rh atoms, as in the bulk alloy.. Surprisingly, the ferromagnetic phase is found to be much more stable for these nanostructures as compared to the bulk, which suggests that band-type effects may be responsible for this transition in the bulk, i.e. the transition cannot be described in terms of modification of the Heisenberg model parameters.
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Date Issued
2014
Identifier
CFE0005221, ucf:50650
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0005221
Investigation of Optical and Electronic Properties of Au Decorated MoS2
Title
Investigation of Optical and Electronic Properties of Au Decorated MoS2.
Creator
Bhanu, Udai, Khondaker, Saiful, Leuenberger, Michael, Zhai, Lei, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Achieving tunability of two dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) functions calls for the introduction of hybrid 2D materials by means of localized interactions with zero dimensional (0D) materials. A metal-semiconductor interface, as in gold (Au) - molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), is of great interest from the standpoint of fundamental science as it constitutes an outstanding platform to investigate optical and electronic properties due to charge transfer. The applied aspects...
Show moreAchieving tunability of two dimensional (2D) transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) functions calls for the introduction of hybrid 2D materials by means of localized interactions with zero dimensional (0D) materials. A metal-semiconductor interface, as in gold (Au) - molybdenum disulfide (MoS2), is of great interest from the standpoint of fundamental science as it constitutes an outstanding platform to investigate optical and electronic properties due to charge transfer. The applied aspects of such systems introduce new options for electronics, photovoltaics, detectors, catalysis, and biosensing. Here in this dissertation, we study the charge transfer interaction between Au nanoparticals and MoS2 flakes and its effect on Photoluminescence and electronic transport properties. The MoS2 was mechanically exfoliated from bulk single crystal. Number of layers in the flake was identified with the help of AFM and Raman Spectra. Au was deposited by physical vapor deposition method (PVD) in multiple steps to decorate MoS2 flakes.We first study the photoluminescence of pristine and Au decorated MoS2 and shows that in the presence of Au, the photoluminescence of MoS2 quenches significantly. We infer that the PL quenching can be attributed to a change in the electronic structure of the MoS2-Au system. The difference in Fermi level of a of MoS2 and Au results in a 0.4 eV energy level offset, which causes a band bending in the MoS2-Au hybrid. Upon illumination, the electrons in the excited state of MoS2 transfer to Au, leaving a hole behind, thus cause p-doping in MoS2. As electrons from MoS2 are transferred to Au, they do not decay back to their initial ground state, leading to PL quenching in the hybrid system.ivTo study the effect of Au deposition on electronic properties of ultra-thin and multilayers MoS2 flakes, we have fabricated MoS2 FETs from (1) ultra-thin sample (2-4 MoS2 layers) and (2) multilayers samples (more than 20 layers). After each deposition of Au, we measured the electrical characteristics of FET at room temperature. We show that the threshold voltage shifts towards the positive gate voltage as we increase the thickness of Au. This shift in threshold voltage is indicative of p doping of the MoS2. We further show that the field effect mobility of MoS2 FET decrease with Au thickness. We have quantitatively estimated the charge transferring from MoS2 to Au.
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Date Issued
2015
Identifier
CFE0006025, ucf:51013
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006025
CHARACTERIZATION OF DISPERSION AND RESIDUAL STRESS IN NANOPARTICLE REINFORCED HYBRID CARBON FIBER COMPOSITES
Title
CHARACTERIZATION OF DISPERSION AND RESIDUAL STRESS IN NANOPARTICLE REINFORCED HYBRID CARBON FIBER COMPOSITES.
Creator
Selimov, Alex, Raghavan,Seetha, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Hybrid carbon fiber reinforced composites are a new breed of materials that are currently being explored and characterized for next generation aerospace applications. Through the introduction of secondary reinforcements, such as alumina nanoparticles, hybrid properties including improved mechanical properties and stress sensing capabilities can be achieved. In order to maximize these properties, it is necessary to achieve a homogeneous dispersion of particulate filler. Utilizing the...
Show moreHybrid carbon fiber reinforced composites are a new breed of materials that are currently being explored and characterized for next generation aerospace applications. Through the introduction of secondary reinforcements, such as alumina nanoparticles, hybrid properties including improved mechanical properties and stress sensing capabilities can be achieved. In order to maximize these properties, it is necessary to achieve a homogeneous dispersion of particulate filler. Utilizing the photoluminescent properties of alumina, it is possible to compare local levels of particle concentration through emission intensities as a way to determine the effectiveness of the tested manufacturing parameters in increasing material homogeneity. Parameters of these photoluminescence emissions have been established to be stress dependent, which allows for in situ residual stress measurements. It is shown here that the application of silane coupling agents as particle surface treatments improves particle dispersion when compared to untreated samples. Reactive silane coupling agent (RSCA) treatments were found to provide for greater dispersion improvements when compared to non-reactive silane coupling agents (NRSCA). Higher resolution investigations into these samples found that treatment with a reactive coupling agent altered the stress state of particles concentrated around the fiber from a tensile stress state to a compressive stress state. This is proposed to result from bonding of the reactive groups on the coupling agent to the organic groups on the carbon fibers which adjusts the stress state of the particle. Future mechanical tests will verify the effects of the particle surface functionalization treatments on mechanical properties of the composites.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFH0000233, ucf:44669
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFH0000233
NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING METHODS AIDED VIA NUMERICAL COMPUTATION MODELS FOR VARIOUS CRITICAL AEROSPACE AND POWER GENERATION SYSTEMS
Title
NONDESTRUCTIVE TESTING METHODS AIDED VIA NUMERICAL COMPUTATION MODELS FOR VARIOUS CRITICAL AEROSPACE AND POWER GENERATION SYSTEMS.
Creator
Warren, Peter, Ghosh, Ranajay, Raghavan, Seetha, Gou, Jihua, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
A current critical necessity for all industries which utilize various equipment that operates in hightemperature and extreme environments, is the ability to collect and analyze data via non destructivetesting (NDT) methods. Operational conditions and material health must be constantly monitoredif components are to be implemented precisely to increase the overall performance and efficiencyof the process. Currently in both aerospace and power generation systems there are many methodsthat are...
Show moreA current critical necessity for all industries which utilize various equipment that operates in hightemperature and extreme environments, is the ability to collect and analyze data via non destructivetesting (NDT) methods. Operational conditions and material health must be constantly monitoredif components are to be implemented precisely to increase the overall performance and efficiencyof the process. Currently in both aerospace and power generation systems there are many methodsthat are being employed to gather several necessary properties and parameters of a given system.This work will focus primarly on two of these NDT methods, with the ultimate goal of contributingto not only the method itself, but also the role of numerical computation to increase the resolutionof a given technique. Numerical computation can attribute knowledge onto the governing mechanicsof these NDT methods, many of which are currently being utilized in industry. An increase inthe accuracy of the data gathered from NDT methods will ultimately lead to an increase in operationalefficiency of a given system.The first method to be analyzed is a non destructive emmision technique widely referred to asaccoustic ultrasonic thermography. This work will investigate the mechanism of heat generationin acoustic thermography using a combination of numerical computational analysis and physicalexperimentation. Many of the challenges typical of this type of system are addressed in this work.The principal challenges among them are crack detection threshold, signature quality and the effectof defect interactions. Experiments and finite element based numerical simulations are employed,in order to evaluate the proposed method, as well as draw conclusions on the viability for futureextension and integration with other digital technologies for health monitoring. A method to determinethe magnitude of the different sources of heat generation during an acoustic excitation isalso achieved in this work. Defects formed through industrial operation as well as defects formedthrough artificial manufacturing methods were analyzed and compared.The second method is a photoluminescence piezospectroscopic (PLPS) for composite materials.The composite studied in this work has one host material which does not illuminate or have photoluminescenceproperties, the second material provides the luminescence properties, as well asadditional overall strength to the composite material. Understanding load transfer between the reinforcementsand matrix materials that constitute these composites hold the key to elucidating theirmechanical properties and consequent behavior in operation. Finite element simulations of loadingeffects on representative embedded alumina particles in a matrix were investigated and comparedwith experimental results. The alumina particles were doped with chromium in order to achieveluminscence capability, and therefore take advantage of the piezospectrscopic measurement technique.Mechanical loading effects on alumina nanoparticle composites can be captured with Photostimulated luminescent spectroscopy, where spectral shifts from the particles are monitored withload. The resulting piezospectroscopic (PS) coefficients are then used to calculate load transferbetween the matrix and particle. The results from the simulation and experiments are shown tobe in general agreement of increase in load transferred with increasing particle volume fractiondue to contact stresses that are dominant at these higher volume fractions. Results from this workpresent a combination of analytical and experimental insight into the effect of particle volume fractionon load transfer in ceramic composites that can serve to determine properties and eventuallyoptimize various parameters such as particle shape, size and dispersion that govern the design ofthese composites prior to manufacture and testing.
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Date Issued
2018
Identifier
CFE0007262, ucf:52203
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007262
Analysis of residual stress and damage mechanisms of thermal barrier coatings deposited via PS-PVD and EB-PVD
Title
Analysis of residual stress and damage mechanisms of thermal barrier coatings deposited via PS-PVD and EB-PVD.
Creator
Rossmann, Linda, Raghavan, Seetha, Sohn, Yongho, Vaidyanathan, Raj, Ghosh, Ranajay, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are critical to gas turbine engines, as they protect the components in the hot section from the extreme temperatures of operation. The current industry standard method of applying TBCs for turbine blades in jet engines is electron-beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD), which results in a columnar structure that is valued for its high degree of strain tolerance. An emerging deposition method is plasma-spray physical vapor deposition (PS-PVD), capable of...
Show moreThermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are critical to gas turbine engines, as they protect the components in the hot section from the extreme temperatures of operation. The current industry standard method of applying TBCs for turbine blades in jet engines is electron-beam physical vapor deposition (EB-PVD), which results in a columnar structure that is valued for its high degree of strain tolerance. An emerging deposition method is plasma-spray physical vapor deposition (PS-PVD), capable of producing a variety of customizable microstructures as well as non-line-of-sight deposition, which allows more complex geometries to be coated, or even multiple parts at once. The pseudo-columnar microstructure that can be produced with PS-PVD is a possible alternative to EB-PVD. However, before PS-PVD can be used to its full potential, its mechanical properties and behavior must be understood. This work contributes to this understanding by characterizing PS-PVD TBCs that have been thermally cycled to simulate multiple lifetimes (0, 300, and 600 thermal cycles). Residual stress in the thermally grown oxide (TGO) layer is characterized by photoluminescence piezospectroscopy as TGO residual stress is correlated with the lifetime of the coating. Residual stress in the top coat is characterized by Raman spectroscopy, because this stress drives cracking in the top coat that can lead to failure. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) are performed to observe microstructural and phase evolution to provide context and possible explanations for the stress results. In addition, EB-PVD samples of the same thermal cycling history are characterized in the same way so that PS-PVD can be benchmarked against the industry standard. The compressive residual stress in the TGO in both coatings was relieved with thermal cycling due to the TGO lengthening as well as microcracking. The PS-PVD samples had slightly lower TGO stress than the EB-PVD, which is attributed to the greater extent of cracking within the TGO, whereas cracking in the EB-PVD samples was at the TGO/topcoat interface. The PS-PVD cycled samples had significant cracking within the topcoat near the TGO due to both greater porosity than EB-PVD samples and regions of unmelted particles that provide little resistance to cracking. The greater convolution of the TGO in the PS-PVD samples results in greater out-of-plane tensile stresses that cause crack initiation, as well as diverts cracks away from the difficult-to-follow interface. The TGO stress results agree with existing literature and extend the thermal cycling beyond what has previously been reported for PS-PVD coatings, revealing a trend of stress relief and stress values similar to that of EB-PVD coatings in this study and in the literature. Residual stress in the topcoat for both coating types became increasingly compressive with thermal cycling, indicating loss of strain tolerance by sintering. The trend of the YSZ stress for both coating types to become more compressive with cycling and with depth agrees with the literature, and the thermal cycling is longer than has been previously reported for PS-PVD. The two coating types had quite different microstructures and crack modes as well as different as-deposited residual stresses, but after thermal cycling had similar stresses in both the TGO and top coat. No samples experienced spallation. These results indicate that, while PS-PVD coatings have different properties and behavior from EB-PVD coatings, they had comparable levels of damage to EB-PVD coatings of the same lifetime and are a viable alternative to EB-PVD. Further tuning of the processing parameters may result in PS-PVD coatings with even more similar behavior to EB-PVD coatings.
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Date Issued
2019
Identifier
CFE0007717, ucf:52429
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007717
TOWARDS DIRECT WRITING OF 3-D PHOTONIC CIRCUITS USING ULTRAFAST LASERS
Title
TOWARDS DIRECT WRITING OF 3-D PHOTONIC CIRCUITS USING ULTRAFAST LASERS.
Creator
Zoubir, Arnaud, Richardson, Martin, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
The advent of ultrafast lasers has enabled micromachining schemes that cannot be achieved by other current techniques. Laser direct writing has emerged as one of the possible routes for fabrication of optical waveguides in transparent materials. In this thesis, the advantages and limitations of this technique are explored. Two extended-cavity ultrafast lasers were built and characterized as the laser sources for this study, with improved performance over existing systems. Waveguides are...
Show moreThe advent of ultrafast lasers has enabled micromachining schemes that cannot be achieved by other current techniques. Laser direct writing has emerged as one of the possible routes for fabrication of optical waveguides in transparent materials. In this thesis, the advantages and limitations of this technique are explored. Two extended-cavity ultrafast lasers were built and characterized as the laser sources for this study, with improved performance over existing systems. Waveguides are fabricated in oxide glass, chalcogenide glass, and polymers, these being the three major classes of materials for the telecommunication industry. Standard waveguide metrology is performed on the fabricated waveguides, including refractive index profiling and mode analysis. Furthermore, a finite-difference beam propagation method for wave propagation in 3D-waveguides is proposed. The photo-structural modifications underlying the changes in the material optical properties after exposure are investigated. The highly nonlinear processes of the light/matter interaction during the writing process are described using a free electron model. UV/visible absorption spectroscopy, photoluminescence spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy are used to assess the changes occurring at the atomic level. Finally, the impact of laser direct writing on nonlinear waveguide applications is discussed.
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Date Issued
2004
Identifier
CFE0000236, ucf:46252
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0000236
Nitrogen-Containing Materials for Mechanochemical Synthesis, Luminescence Analysis, and Heterogeneous Catalysis
Title
Nitrogen-Containing Materials for Mechanochemical Synthesis, Luminescence Analysis, and Heterogeneous Catalysis.
Creator
Nash, David, Zhai, Lei, Hampton, Michael, Harper, James, Rex, Matthew, Blair, Richard, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
Various inorganic nitrogen-containing materials have been exploited for their different properties. Several nitride materials are commercially attractive due to their mechanical properties making them suitable for ceramic industries and wide bandgaps fitting for use as semiconductor and insulator materials, as well as optoelectronics. Nitride materials can exhibit versatility in applications such as the use of gallium nitride to make blue LEDs, nitrides of titanium and silicon being utilized...
Show moreVarious inorganic nitrogen-containing materials have been exploited for their different properties. Several nitride materials are commercially attractive due to their mechanical properties making them suitable for ceramic industries and wide bandgaps fitting for use as semiconductor and insulator materials, as well as optoelectronics. Nitride materials can exhibit versatility in applications such as the use of gallium nitride to make blue LEDs, nitrides of titanium and silicon being utilized as medical implants for their chemical inertness and hardness, and the heavy use of boron nitride as a solid lubricant in the cosmetic industry. Amines have been used as nitrogen-containing organic ligands in organometallic complexes that exhibit phenomenal photophysical properties. These complexes have been heavily studied for potential applications in optoelectronics and chemical sensing. This dissertation will focus on two nitrogen-containing materials that have yet to be explored for the potential applications to be discussed. The first is hexagonal-boron nitride (h-BN), which was previously mentioned to have a substantial use in the cosmetic industry, giving products such as lipstick, foundation, and blush their slick feeling. Computational models have shown the possibility of altered electronic properties of defect sites in the h-BN sheets. These defect sites will be explored experimentally to determine any catalytic activity. Specifically, the hydrogenation reaction using defect-laden hexagonal-boron nitride will be investigated. Successful catalysis would add to the short list of non-metal catalyst, and provide an alternative catalyst that costs significantly less than the traditional metal catalysts commonly used in commercial industries. The second of the two nitrogen-containing materials is a class of metal complexes based on organometallic clusters of copper(I) iodide. Copper(I) iodide clusters formed with amine ligands have been studied for around four decades and the photophysics behind their photoluminescent properties are well understood. Much of the work has been done for use as a potential emissive material in the optoelectronics field. They have also been studied for applications in the sensing of environmental compounds. Here, research will display its use as a novel sensor for narcotic substances. This forensic application will be further explored to develop and eventually commercialize a complete field drug testing system for law enforcement and crime lab use, with the goal to equip law enforcement personnel with a presumptive drug testing method that is accurate, easy-to-use, safe, adaptable, and affordable. This system will consist of a narcotic drug-indicating test strip, a handheld fluorescence spectrometer manufactured in-house using relatively inexpensive parts, and a mobile app that will leverage photoemission data of the tested drug samples collected by multiple crime labs to provide the ability for sample-to-reference data matching. Law enforcement users would have the ability to rapidly identify an unknown substance by applying it to a test strip, testing it using the spectrometer, and capturing an image of the resulting photoemission and analyzing the spectral profile in search of a match with the support of a cloud database.
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Date Issued
2017
Identifier
CFE0007129, ucf:52297
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0007129
Deposition and characterization studies of boron carbon nitride (BCN) thin films prepared by dual target sputtering
Title
Deposition and characterization studies of boron carbon nitride (BCN) thin films prepared by dual target sputtering.
Creator
Prakash, Adithya, Sundaram, Kalpathy, Kapoor, Vikram, Yuan, Jiann-Shiun, Jin, Yier, Chow, Louis, University of Central Florida
Abstract / Description
As complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) devices shrink to smaller size, the problems related to circuit performance such as critical path signal delay are becoming a pressing issue. These delays are a result of resistance and capacitance product (RC time constant) of the interconnect circuit. A novel material with reduced dielectric constants may compromise both the thermal and mechanical properties that can lead to die cracking during package and other reliability issues. Boron...
Show moreAs complementary metal-oxide semiconductor (CMOS) devices shrink to smaller size, the problems related to circuit performance such as critical path signal delay are becoming a pressing issue. These delays are a result of resistance and capacitance product (RC time constant) of the interconnect circuit. A novel material with reduced dielectric constants may compromise both the thermal and mechanical properties that can lead to die cracking during package and other reliability issues. Boron carbon nitride (BCN) compounds have been expected to combine the excellent properties of boron carbide (B4C), boron nitride (BN) and carbon nitride (C3N4), with their properties adjustable, depending on composition and structure. BCN thin film is a good candidate for being hard, dense, pore-free, low-k dielectric with values in the range of 1.9 to 2.1. Excellent mechanical properties such as adhesion, high hardness and good wear resistance have been reported in the case of sputtered BCN thin films. Problems posed by high hardness materials such as diamonds in high cutting applications and the comparatively lower hardness of c-BN gave rise to the idea of a mixed phase that can overcome these problems with a minimum compromise in its properties. A hybrid between semi-metallic graphite and insulating h-BN may show adjusted semiconductor properties. BCN exhibits the potential to control optical bandgap (band gap engineering) by atomic composition, hence making it a good candidate for electronic and photonic devices. Due to tremendous bandgap engineering capability and refractive index variability in BCN thin film, it is feasible to develop filters and mirrors for use in ultra violet (UV) wavelength region. It is of prime importance to understand process integration challenges like deposition rates, curing, and etching, cleaning and polishing during characterization of low-k films. The sputtering technique provides unique advantages over other techniques such as freedom to choose the substrate material and a uniform deposition over relatively large area. BCN films are prepared by dual target reactive magnetron sputtering from a B4C and BN targets using DC and RF powers respectively. In this work, an investigation of mechanical, optical, chemical, surface and device characterizations is undertaken. These holistic and thorough studies, will provide the insight into the capability of BCN being a hard, chemically inert, low-k, wideband gap material, as a potential leader in semiconductor and optics industry.
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Date Issued
2016
Identifier
CFE0006378, ucf:51496
Format
Document (PDF)
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/ucf/fd/CFE0006378