Microstructure and strain analysis of GaN epitaxial films using in-plane grazing incidence x-ray diffraction

This paper investigates the major structural parameters, such as crystal quality and strain state of （001）-oriented GaN thin films grown on sapphire substrates by metalorganic chemical vapour deposition, using an in-plane grazing incidence x-ray diffraction technique. The results are analysed and compared with a complementary out-of-plane x- ray diffraction technique. The twist of the GaN mosaic structure is determined through the direct grazing incidence t of （100） reflection which agrees well with the result obtained by extrapolation method. The method for directly determining the in-plane lattice parameters of the GaN layers is also presented. Combined with the biaxial strain model, it derives the lattice parameters corresponding to fully relaxed GaN films. The GaN epilayers show an increasing residual compressive stress with increasing layer thickness when the two dimensional growth stage is established, reaching to a maximum level of-0.89 GPa.

Nested grazing incidence optics for x ray detection

Grazing incidence optics （GIO） is the most important compound in an x-ray detection system; it is used to concentrate the x-ray photons from outer space. A nested planar GIO for x-ray concentration is designed and developed by authors in this paper; planar segments are used as the reflection mirror instead of curved segments because of the simple process and low cost. After the complex assembling process with a special metal supporter, a final circle light spot of φ 12 mm was obtained in the visible light testing experiment of GIO; the effective area of 1710.51 mm^2@ 1 keV and 530 mm^2@8 keV is obtained in the x-ray testing experiment with the GIO-SDD combination, which is supposed to be a concentrating detector in xray detection systems.

Neutralization process of Xe^q＋ ion grazing on Al（111） surface

A code has been developed to simulate the neutralization and grazing process of slow highly charged ion Xe^q＋ on Al（111） surface under the classical-over-the-barrier model. The image energy gain of Xeq＋ ions are calculated and compared with experiment data. The simulation results of image energy gain are in good agreement with the experiment data. Meanwhile, in the present work, the reflection coefficient of incident Xe^q＋ on Al（111） surface as a function of the incidence angle, energy and charge state is also studied.

Modification of Classical SPM for Slightly Rough Surface Scattering with Low Grazing Angle Incidence

Based on the impedance/admittance rough boundaries, the reflection coefficients and the scattering cross section with low grazing angle incidence are obtained for both VV and HH polarizations. The error of the classical perturbation method at grazing angle is overcome for the vertical polarization at a rough Neumann boundary of infinite extent. The derivation of the formulae and the numerical results show that the backscattering cross section depends on the grazing angle to the fourth power for both Neumann and Dirichlet boundary conditions with low grazing angle incidence. Our results can reduce to that of the classical small perturbation method by neglecting the Neumann and Dirichlet boundary conditions.

Hard X-ray focusing resolution and efficiency test with a thickness correction multilayer Laue lens

The multilayer Laue lens(MLL) is a diffractive focusing optical element which can focus hard X-rays down to the nanometer scale. In this study, a WSi_(2)/Si multilayer structure consisting of 1736 layers, with a 7.2-nm-thick outermost layer and a total thickness of 17 μm, is prepared by DC magnetron sputtering. Regarding the thin film growth rate calibration, we correct the long-term growth rate drift from 2 to 0.6%, as measured by the grazing incidence X-ray reflectivity(GIXRR). A one-dimensional line focusing resolution of 64 nm was achieved,while the diffraction efficiency was 38% of the-1 order of the MLL Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility(SSRF) with the BL15U beamline.

Charge transport in monolayer poly(3-hexylthiophene) thin-film transistors

It is found that ultrathin poly（3-hexylthiophene） （P3HT） film with a 2.5 nm-thick layer exhibits a higher mobility of 5.0× 10-2 cm2/V-s than its bulk counterpart. The crystalline structure of the as-fabricated ultrathin P3HT layer is verified by atomic force microscopy as well as grazing incidence X-ray diffraction. Transient measurements of the as-fabricated transistors reveal the influence of the interface traps on charge transport. These results are explained by the trap energy level distribution at the interface manipulated by layers of polymer film.

In situ studies on the positive and negative effects of 1,8-diiodoctane on the device performance and morphology evolution of organic solar cells

The introduction of solvent additives is one of the most common approaches for enhancing the power conversion efficiency of organic solar cells(OSCs).However,the use of solvent additives has some negative effects,and an understanding of how solvent additives affect OSCs is currently limited.In this study,we developed an in situ grazing incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering(GIWAXS)technique in the SAXS beamline(BL16 B1)at the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility,and the additive effects of1,8-diiodoctane(DIO)on the performance and morphology evolution of the PTB7-Th/PC71 BM device was investigated in depth.The results revealed that the crystal size increased with the volume ratio of DIO,and a drastic evolution of lattice space and crystal coherence length was observed during thermal annealing for the first time,to our knowledge.The discrete PC71BM molecules dissolved by DIO have an effect similar to that of the nucleating agent for PTB7-Th,boosting the crystallization of PTB7-Th,reducing phase separation,and inducing more drastic morphological evolution during thermal annealing.Our results provide a deep perspective for the mechanism of solvent additives,while also showing the significance and feasibility of the in situ GIWAXS technique we developed at BL16 B1.

Evaluation of both composition and strain distributions in InGaN epitaxial film using x-ray diffraction techniques

The composition and stain distributions in the InGaN epitaxial films are jointly measured by employing various x-ray diffraction （XRD） techniques, including out-of-plane XRD at special planes, in-plane grazing incidence XRD, and reciprocal space mapping （RSM）. It is confirmed that the measurement of （204） reflection allows a rapid access to estimate the composition without considering the influence of biaxial strain. The two-dimensional RSM checks composition and degree of strain relaxation jointly, revealing an inhomogeneous strain distribution profile along the growth direction. As the film thickness increases from 100 nm to 450 nm, the strain status of InGaN films gradually transfers from almost fully strained to fully relaxed state and then more In atoms incorporate into the film, while the near-interface region of InGaN films remains pseudomorphic to GaN.

Nano structure evolution in P3HT:PC_(61)BM blend films due to the effects of thermal annealing or by adding solvent

Crystallographic dynamics of blend films of regioregular poly（3-hexylthiophene）（P3HT） mixed with [6-6-]-phenylC61-butyric acid methyl ester（PC61BM） treated by thermal annealing or by adding solvent 1,8-diiodooctane（DIO） are characterized by 2D-grazing incidence x-ray diffraction（2D-GIXRD）. The results show that the P3 HT chains are primarily oriented with the thiophene ring edge-on to the substrate, with a small fraction of chains oriented plane-on. The interplanar spacing becomes narrow after being treated by DIO, and the coherence length of the P3 HT crystallites increases after being treated by thermal annealing or DIO, which is accompanied by a change in the orientation angle of the P3 HT lamellae. The increased ordering of P3 HT packing induced by thermal annealing or adding DIO contributes to enhanced photovoltaic performance.

Numerical study of the Ne-like Cr x-ray laser at 28.6nm

We investigate the Ne-like Cr x-ray laser at 28.6 nm by using a modified ID lagrangian hydrodynamic code MEDI03 coupled with an atomic physics data package and a 2D ray tracing code as a post-processor. The laser pumping configuration includes two prepulses and one main pulse. The first prepulse normally irradiates the target, while the second prepulse and the main pulse irradiate the target at grazing-incident angles. We predict that saturation can be achieved for the Ne-like Cr x-ray lasers with a total pumping energy of 125mJ, Good beam qualities with no deflecting angle and a small divergence angle of 5 mrad are observed.

In-situ temperature-controllable grazing incidence X-ray scattering of semiconducting polymer thin films under stretching

The advancement in grazing incidence X-ray scattering(GIWAXS)techniques at synchrotron radiation facilities has significantly deepened our understanding of semiconducting polymers.However,investigation of ultrathin polymer films under tensile conditions poses challenge,primarily due to limitations associated with the lack of suitable sample preparation methods and new stretching devices.This study addresses these limitations by designing and developing an in-situ temperature-controllable stretching sample stage,which enables real-time structural measurements of ultrathin polymer films at Beijing Synchrotron Radiation Facility.In particular,we report,for the first time,in-situ GIWAXS results of representative semiconducting polymer thin films under variable-temperature stretching.This research has overcome the limitations imposed by sample constraints,thus facilitating the achievement of valuable insights into the behavior of ultrathin polymer films under tensile conditions.Distinct changes in the molecular ordering and packing within the polymer thin films as a result of increasing applied strain and temperature have been uncovered.This study promotes future developments in the field,thus enabling the design and optimization of intrinsically stretchable electronic devices and other technologically relevant applications.

7 kHz sub-nanosecond microchip laser amplified by a grazing incidence double pass slab amplifier

To obtain short pulse width and high peak power laser, a 7 kHz sub-nanosecond microchip laser amplified by a grazing incidence double pass slab amplifier is experimentally demonstrated in this Letter. We use a compact side-pumped Nd∶YVO4 bounce amplifier with grazing incidence beam for achieving high gains and power extraction. Laser output power of 7.37 W at 7 kHz, 1.2 MW pulse peak power with 877 ps duration and 1.05 mJ energy, 25 pm spectral width, and near diffraction limited mode beam quality are achieved, and the optical-to-optical efficiency is 18%. The laser is packaged in a volume of 356 mm × 226 mm × 84 mm and may be used for applications such as laser altimeters and ladar systems.

Amorphous nonstoichiometric oxides with tunable room-temperature ferromagnetism and electrical transport

Material functionalities strongly depend on the stoichiometry,crystal structure,and homogeneity.Here we demonstrate an approach of amorphous nonstoichiometric inhomogeneous oxides to realize tunable ferromagnetism and electrical transport at room temperature.In order to verify the origin of the ferromagnetism,we employed a series of structural,chemical,and electronic state characterizations.Combined with electron microscopy and transport measurements,synchrotron-based grazing incident wide angle X-ray scattering,soft X-ray absorption and circular dichroism clearly reveal that the roomtemperature ferromagnetism originates from the In0.23Co0.77O1-v,amorphous phase with a large tunable range of oxygen vacancies.The room-temperature ferromagnetism is tunable from a high saturation magnetization of 500 emu cm-3 to below 25 emu cm-3,with the evolving electrical resistivity from5×103μΩ cm to above 2.5×105 μΩ cm.Inhomogeneous nano-crystallization emerges with decreasing oxygen vacancies,driving the system towards non-ferromagnetism and insulating regime.Our work unfolds the novel functionalities of amorphous nonstoichiometric inhomogeneous oxides,which opens up new opportunities for developing spintronic materials with superior magnetic and transport properties.

Strong circularly polarized luminescence from quantum dots/2D chiral perovskites composites

Chiral perovskites(CPs)have attracted enormous attentions since they have combined chirality and optoelectrical properties well which is promising in circularly polarized luminescence(CPL)application and of great importance for future spin-optoelectronics.However,there is a key contradiction that in chiral perovskites chirality distorts the crystal structure,leading to poor photoluminescence(PL)properties.Achieving the balance between chirality and PL is a major challenge for strong CPL from chiral perovskites.Differently,two-dimensional(2D)chiral perovskite has shown fascinating chiral induced spin selectivity(CISS)effect which can act as spin injector under ambient conditions.Here,we propose an effective strategy to achieve high CPL activity generated from quantum dots(QDs)by introducing 2D chiral perovskite as a chiral source,providing spin polarized carriers through the CISS effect.The as-synthesized QDs/CP composites exhibit dissymmetry factors(glum)up to 9.06×10^(−3).For the first time,we performed grazing incident wide angle X-ray scattering(GIWAXS)measurements,showing the chirality originates from the distorted lattices caused by the large chiral organic cations.Besides,time-resolved PL(TR-PL)measurements verify the enhanced CPL activity should be attributed to the charge transport between two components.These findings provide a useful method to achieve CPL in QDs/2D chiral perovskite heterojunctions which could be promising in spinoptoelectronics application.

High resolution X-ray diffraction investigation of epitaxially grown SrTiO_3 thin films by laser-MBE

SrTiO3 thin films are epitaxially grown on DyScO3, LaAlO3 substrates with/without buffer layers of DyScO3 and SrRuO3 using laser-MBE. X-ray diffraction methods, such as high resolution X-ray diffraction, grazing incident X-ray diffraction, and reciprocal space mapping are used to investigate the lattice structure, dislocation density, in-plane lattice strain distribution along film thickness. From the measurement results, the effects of substrate on film lattice quality and microstructure are discussed.

Different mechanisms of improving CH_(3)NH_(3)PbI_(3) perovskite solar cells brought by fluorinated or nitrogen doped graphdiyne

Fluorinated and nitrogen-doped graphdiyne(F/N-GDY)have been used in the active layer of perovskite solar cells(PSCs)for the first time.The introduction of heteroatoms turns out to be an effective method for boosted solar cells performance,which increases by 32.8%and 33.0%,better than the pristine or GDY doped PSCs.The enhanced performance can be attributed firstly to the superiority of F/N-GDY originated from the unique structure and optoelectronic properties of GDY.Then,both can further reduce surface defects and improve surface and bulk crystallinity than pristine GDY.What's more,efficiency increase caused by F-GDY is mainly attributed to the improvement of fill factor(FF),while the higher short-circuit current(Jsc)plays more important role by N-GDY doping.Most importantly,the detailed mechanism brought about by doping of F-GDY or N-GDY is expounded by systematical characterizations,especially the synchrotron radiation technique.Doping of F-GDY causes Pb and forms new Pb-F bonds between F-GDY and Pb ions.Doping of N-GDY or GDY brings about Pb(N-GDY doping induces more deviation than that of GDY due to the participation of imine N),improving its electron density and conductivity.

GISAXS and SAXS studies on the spatial structures of Co nanowire arrays

The spatial structures of magnetic Co nanowire array embedded in anodic aluminium membranes were investigated by grazing incidence small angle X-ray scattering （GISAXS） and conventional small angle X-ray scattering （SAXS） techniques. Compared with SEM observation, the GISAXS and SAXS measurements can get more overall structural information in a large-area scale. In this study, the two-dimensional GISAXS pattern was well reconstructed by using the IsGISAXS program. The results demonstrate that the hexagonal lattice formed by the Co nanowires is distorted （a ≈105 nm, b ≈95 nm）. These Co nanowires are isolated into many structure domains with different orientations with a size of about 2 p_m. The SAXS results have also confirmed that the nanopore structures in the AAM can be retained after depositing Co nanowires although the Co nanowires can not completely but only just fill up the nanopores. These results are helpful for understanding the global structure of the Co nanowire array.