Accelerated Sequential Deposition Reaction via Crystal Orientation Engineering for Low-Temperature,High-Efficiency Carbon-Electrode CsPbBr_(3) Solar Cells

Low-temperature,ambient processing of high-quality CsPbBr_(3)films is demanded for scalable production of efficient,low-cost carbon-electrode perovskite solar cells(PSCs).Herein,we demonstrate a crystal orientation engineering strategy of PbBr_(2)precursor film to accelerate its reaction with CsBr precursor during two-step sequential deposition of CsPbBr_(3)films.Such a novel strategy is proceeded by adding CsBr species into PbBr_(2)precursor,which can tailor the preferred crystal orientation of PbBr_(2)film from[020]into[031],with CsBr additive staying in the film as CsPb_(2)Br_(5)phase.Theoretical calculations show that the reaction energy barrier of(031)planes of PbBr_(2)with CsBr is lower about 2.28 eV than that of(O2O)planes.Therefore,CsPbBr_(3)films with full coverage,high purity,high crystallinity,micro-sized grains can be obtained at a low temperature of 150℃.Carbon-electrode PSCs with these desired CsPbBr_(3)films yield the record-high efficiency of 10.27%coupled with excellent operation stability.Meanwhile,the 1 cm^(2)area one with the superior efficiency of 8.00%as well as the flexible one with the champion efficiency of 8.27%and excellent mechanical bending characteristics are also achieved.

Influence of spiral crystal selector on crystal orientation of single crystal superalloy

To increase efficiency and improve performance, reducing cost and emissions, advanced single crystal Ni-based superalloys are required in aerospace propulsion and power generating gas turbines. With the development of alloy, significant improvements in casting techniques have been achieved by introducing the directionally solidified （DS） casting process followed by single crystal （SX） technique. The deviation of preferred orientation of single crystal superalloys is one of the most important defects in casting. In directional solidification equipment with high temperature gradient, single crystal specimens of DZ417G alloy were prepared successfully by the modified Bridgeman method with spiral grain selector. The orientation was investigated by means of X-ray diffraction （XRD） and electron backscattered diffraction （EBSD）.The results show that the crystal selector with a smaller angle can effectively reduce the deviation of preferred orientation.

Effect of crystal orientation on tensile mechanical properties of single-crystal tungsten nanowire

Based on the high-purity single-crystal tungsten nanowire firstly prepared by the metal-catalyzed vapor-phase reaction method, molecular dynamics method was used to calculate tensile stress-strain curves and simulate microscopic deformation structures of the single-crystal tungsten nanowires with different crystal orientations of 〈100〉, 〈110〉and 〈111〉, in order to reveal the effect of crystal orientation on their tensile mechanical properties and failure mechanisms. Research results show that all of the stress-strain curves are classified into four stages： elastic stage, damage stage, yielding stage and failure stage, where 〈100〉orientation has a special hardening stage after yielding and two descending stages. The crystal orientation has little effect on elastic modulus but great effect on tensile strength, yielding strength and ductility, depending on different atomic surface energies and principal sliding planes. The calculated values of elastic modulus are in good agreement with the tested values of elastic modulus.

Relationship between solid/liquid interface and crystal orientation for pure magnesium solidified in fashion of cellular crystal

The relationship between the solid/liquid interface and the crystal orientation for pure magnesium,which grows in fashion of cellular crystal in unidirectional solidification,was investigated.The results show that the energy of the solid/liquid interface is the lowest during cellular crystal growth of pure magnesium;and the solid/liquid interface is covered by the basal face{0001}and by the crystal face made up of three atoms located at the orientation{0001}0100and two atoms located at the inner of magnesium crystal cell.The strongest bond is formed in the direction of 61.9°viating from the growth direction,and the second strong bond is formed in the directions of 8.5°d 47.7°espectively,deviating from the growth direction.The angle between the basal face{0001} and the growth direction is 61.9°he theoretical analysis results are basically consistent with the experimental results from SUSUMU et al.

Crystallization of NiTi shape memory alloy sputtering-deposition film

The crystallization of NiTi shape memory alloy sputter deposition film in the course of sputtering deposition and that after heat treated were studied. The relationship between the process factors, such as substrate type, temperature, as well as the crystallization when heat treated after plating was investigated. The results show that a new phase precipitates during heat treatment after sputtering deposition and the degree of crystallization among different layers and the stress in grains are obviously different.

Polycrystalline ZnO Films Deposited on Glass by RF Reactive Sputtering

Polycrystalline ZnO films were prepared on glass wafer using Zn targets by radio frequency(RF)reactive sputtering technique under different deposition conditions.X-ray diffraction (XRD) and optical transmittance spectrum were employed to analyze the structure and optical character of the films.The strain and stress in films, as well as the packing density are calculated in terms of refractive index of films measured with an elliptic polarization analyzer.It is the deposition conditions that have great effects on the structural and optical properties of ZnO films.Under the optimal conditions,the only evident peak in XRD spectrum was (002) peak with the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 0.20° showing the grain size of 42.8 nm.The packing density,the stress in (002) plane and the average optical transmittance in the visible region were about 97%,-1.06×10~9 N/m^2 and 92%, respectively.

Effect of crystal orientations and precipitates on corrosion behavior of Al-Cu-Li single crystals

The effect of the crystal orientations and precipitates on the corrosion behavior of Al-Cu-Li single crystals was studied by scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, optical microscopy, immersion testing in exfoliation corrosion solution, and electrochemical testing. The results show that the corrosion rates of different orientations of the aged Al-Cu-Li alloy increase in the order of (001) 1 phase deteriorated the corrosion resistance of the Al-Cu-Li alloy, and the degree of deterioration differed in different crystal plane orientations. The severe localized corrosion of the aged alloy propagates along the crystallography and extends along the {111}Alplane in the form of corrosion bands.

Imaging the crystal orientation of 2D transition metal dichalcogenides using polarization-resolved second-harmonic generation

We use laser-scanning nonlinear imaging microscopy in atomically thin transition metal dichalcogenides(TMDs)to reveal information on the crystalline orientation distribution,within the 2D lattice.In particular,we perform polarization-resolved second-harmonic generation(PSHG)imaging in a stationary,raster-scanned chemical vapor deposition(CVD)-grown WS2 flake,in order to obtain with high precision a spatially resolved map of the orientation of its main crystallographic axis(armchair orientation).By fitting the experimental PSHG images of sub-micron resolution into a generalized nonlinear model,we are able to determine the armchair orientation for every pixel of the image of the 2D material,with further improved resolution.This pixel-wise mapping of the armchair orientation of 2D WS2 allows us to distinguish between different domains,reveal fine structure,and estimate the crystal orientation variability,which can be used as a unique crystal quality marker over large areas.The necessity and superiority of a polarization-resolved analysis over intensity-only measurements is experimentally demonstrated,while the advantages of PSHG over other techniques are analysed and discussed.

Effects of sputtering pressure on nanostructure and nanomechanical properties of AlN films prepared by RF reactive sputtering

Wurtzite aluminum nitride（AlN） films were deposited on Si（100） wafers under various sputtering pressures by radio-frequency（RF） reactive magnetron sputtering. The film properties were investigated by XRD, SEM, AFM, XPS and nanoindenter techniques. It is suggested from the XRD patterns that highly c-axis oriented films grow preferentially at low pressures and the growth of（100） planes are preferred at higher pressures. The SEM and AFM images both reveal that the deposition rate and the surface roughness decrease while the average grain size increases with increasing the sputtering pressure. XPS results show that lowering the sputtering pressure is a useful way to minimize the incorporation of oxygen atoms into the AlN films and hence a film with closer stoichiometric composition is obtained. From the measurement of nanomechanical properties of AlN thin films, the largest hardness and elastic modulus are obtained at 0.30 Pa.

Magnetron sputtering deposition of [FePt/Ag]_n multilayers for perpendicular recording

[FePt/Ag]n multilayers were deposited on glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering and ex situ annealed at 550℃ for 30 min. The effects of inserted Ag layer thickness and the number of bilayer repetitions （n） on the structure and magnetic properties of the multilayers were investigated. It was found that the difference between in-plane and out-of-plane coercivities varied with an increase of inserted Ag layer thickness in the [FePt 2 nm/Ag x nm]10 multilayers. The ratio of out-of-plane coercivity to in-plane coercivity reached the maximum value with the Ag layer thickness of 5 nm, indicating that the Ag layer thickness plays an important role in obtaining perpendicular orientation. For the [FePt 2 nm/Ag 5 um]n multilayers, perpendicular orientation is also influenced by n. The maximum value of the ratio of out-of-plane coercivity to in-plane coercivity appeared when n was given as 8. It was found that the [FePt 2 nm/Ag 5 nm]8 had a high perpendicular coercivity of 520 kA/m and a low in-plane one of 88 kA/m, which shows a strong perpendicular anisotropy.

Magnetic Tunnel Junction Based on MgO Barrier Prepared by Natural Oxidation and Direct Sputtering Deposition

Magnetic tunnel junctions(MTJs) based on MgO barrier have been fabricated by sputtering single crystal MgO target and metal Mg target, respectively, using magnetic sputtering system Nordiko 2000. MgO barriers have been formed by a multi-step deposition and natural oxidization of Mg layer. Mg layer thickness,oxygen flow rate and oxidization time were adjusted and the tunnel magnetoresistance(TMR) ratio of optimal MTJs is over 60% at annealing temperature 385. The(001) MgO crystal structure was obtained when the separation distance between MgO target and substrate is less than 6 cm. The TMR ratio of most MgO based MTJs are over 100% at the separation distance of 5 cm and annealing temperature 340. The TMR ratios of MTJs are almost zero when the separation distance ranges from 6 to 10 cm, due to the amorphous nature of the MgO film.

Structural and magnetic properties of ZnFe_2O_4 films deposited by low sputtering power

To validate the correctness of the Hartman-Perdok Theory （HPT）, which indicates that the { 111 } planes have the lowest surface energy in spinel ferrites, the {111} plane orientated ZnFe204 thin films on Si（100）, Si（111）, and SIO2（500 nm）/Si（111） substrates were obtained through a radio frequency （RF） magnetron sputtering method with a low sputtering power of 80 W. All of the experiments prove that the atom energy determined by sputtering power plays an important role in the orientated growth of the ZnFe204 thin films, and it matches well with HPT. The ZnFe2O4 thin films exhibit ferromagnetism with a magnetization of 84.25 ld/mol at room temperature, which is different from the bulk counterpart （antiferromagnetic as usual）. The ZnFe204 thin films can be used as high-quality oriented inducing buffer layers for other spinel （Ni, Mn）Zn ferrite thin films and may have high potential in magnetic thin films-based devices.

Characterization of Hydroxyapatite Film on Titanium Substrate by Sputtering Technique

Radiofrequeut magnetron sputtering technique was used to produce calcium phosphate coated on the titurdum substrates, and the sputtered coating films were crystallized in an autoclave at 110℃ using a low temperature hydrothermal technique. The crystallization of as-sputtered coating film on the titanium substrates were amorphous calcium phosphate film. However, after the hydrothermal technique, calcium phosphate crystals grew and these were cohumnar crystal. The Ca/P ratio of sputtered coating films in 1.6 to 2.0.

Effects of Ag layers on the SiO2/FePt thin films deposited by magnetron sputtering

The effects of Ag layers with different locations and thicknesses on the structural and magnetic property of SiO2/FePt multilayer films were investigated.The non-magnetic Ag layer plays an important role in inducing（001） orientation and ordering of FePt grains,as well as the SiO2-doping reducing the grain size and the magnetic exchange coupling between grains.When the 10 nm Ag layer is moved from the bottom to the top of the SiO2/FePt multilayer film,the coercivity gradually decreases;the largest difference between the out-of-plane coercivity and the in-plane one is obtained in the sample of [SiO2（2 nm）/FePt（3 nm）]3/Ag（10 nm）/[SiO2（2 nm）/FePt（3 nm）]2.Furthermore,the location of Ag layers was fixed and the thickness was changed.The XRD curves suggest that the intensity of the（001） peak becomes the strongest with the addition of 10 nm Ag layers.

La-doped Copper Nitride Films Prepared by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

Copper nitride film （Cu3N） and La-doped copper nitride films （LaxCu3N） were prepared on glass substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering of a pure Cu and a pure La targets under N2 atmosphere. The results show that La-free film was composed of Cu3N crystallites with anti-ReO3 structure with （111） texture. The formation of the LaxCu3N films is affected strongly by La, and the peak intensity of the preferred crystalline [111]-orientation decreases with increasing the concentration of La. High concentration of La may prevent the formation of the Cu3N from crystallization. Compared with the Cu3N films, the resistivity of the LaxCu3N films have been decreased.

Characterization of DC magnetron sputtering deposited thin films of TiN for SBN/MgO/TiN/Si structural waveguide

Optimal parameters for depositing Titanium nitride （TIN） thin films by DC reactive magnetron sputtering were determined. TiN thin films were deposited on Si （100） substrates by DC reactive magnetron sputtering, at different temperatures, different electrical current values, and different N2/Ar ratios. Structural characteristics of TiN thin films were measured by X-ray diffraction （XRD）; surface morphology of the thin films was characterized using an atomic force microscope （AFM）. The electric resistivity of the TiN films was measured by a four-point probe. In the result, temperature is 500℃, electrical current value is 1.6 A, pure N2 is the reacting gas, TiN thin film has the preferred （200） orientation, resistance is small enough for its use as bottom electrodes.

Surface Modification of NaCl Particles with Metal Films Using the Polygonal Barrel-Sputtering Method

In this study, the surfaces of NaCl particles were modified with metal films using the polygonal barrel-sputtering method. When Pt was sputtered on NaCl particles, the individual particles changed from white to metallic. Characterization of the treated samples indicated that thin Pt metal films were uniformly deposited on the NaCl particles. Immersion of the treated NaCl particles in water revealed that they floated to the surface of the water with the increase in the immersion time, although their original cubic shapes remained unchanged. The floating phenomenon of the Pt-coated NaCl particles, as mentioned above, suggests that NaCl was dissolved by the permeation of water through invisible defects such as grain boundaries in the Pt films, leading to the formation of hollow particle-like materials. It should be noted that uniform film deposition on the NaCl particles could also be achieved by sputtering with Au or Cu. Based on the obtained results, our sputtering method allows uniform surface modification of water-soluble and water-reactive powders that cannot be treated by conventional wet process using water.

Crystallization and Orientation Modulation Enable Highly Efficient Doctor-Bladed Perovskite Solar Cells

With the rapid rise in perovskite solar cells(PSCs)performance,it is imperative to develop scalable fabrication techniques to accelerate potential commercialization.However,the power conversion efficiencies(PCEs)of PSCs fabricated via scalable two-step sequential deposition lag far behind the state-of-the-art spin-coated ones.Herein,the additive methylammonium chloride(MACl)is introduced to modulate the crystallization and orientation of a two-step sequential doctorbladed perovskite film in ambient conditions.MACl can significantly improve perovskite film quality and increase grain size and crystallinity,thus decreasing trap density and suppressing nonradiative recombination.Meanwhile,MACl also promotes the preferred face-up orientation of the(100)plane of perovskite film,which is more conducive to the transport and collection of carriers,thereby significantly improving the fill factor.As a result,a champion PCE of 23.14%and excellent longterm stability are achieved for PSCs based on the structure of ITO/SnO_(2)/FA_(1-x)MA_xPb(I_(1-y)Br_y)_3/Spiro-OMeTAD/Ag.The superior PCEs of 21.20%and 17.54%are achieved for 1.03 cm~2 PSC and 10.93 cm~2 mini-module,respectively.These results represent substantial progress in large-scale two-step sequential deposition of high-performance PSCs for practical applications.

The Influence of Crystallographic Orientation and Grain Boundary on Nanoindentation Behavior of Inconel 718 Superalloy Based on Crystal Plasticity Theory

The crystal plasticity finite element method(CPFEM)is widely used to explore the microscopic mechanical behavior of materials and understand the deformation mechanism at the grain-level.However,few CPFEM simulation studies have been carried out to analyze the nanoindentation deformation mechanism of polycrystalline materials at the microscale level.In this study,a three-dimensional CPFEM-based nanoindentation simulation is performed on an Inconel 718 polycrystalline material to examine the influence of different crystallographic parameters on nanoindentation behavior.A representative volume element model is developed to calibrate the crystal plastic constitutive parameters by comparing the stress-strain data with the experimental results.The indentation force-displacement curves,stress distributions,and pile-up patterns are obtained by CPFEM simulation.The results show that the crystallographic orientation and grain boundary have little influence on the force-displacement curves of the nanoindentation,but significantly influence the local stress distributions and shape of the pile-up patterns.As the difference in crystallographic orientation between grains increases,changes in the pile-up patterns and stress distributions caused by this effect become more significant.In addition,the simulation results reveal that the existence of grain boundaries affects the continuity of the stress distribution.The obstruction on the continuity of stress distribution increases as the grain boundary angle increases.This research demonstrates that the proposed CPFEM model can well describe the microscopic compressive deformation behaviors of Inconel 718 under nanoindentation.

Manipulating Crystal Growth and Secondary Phase PbI_(2)to Enable Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells with Natural Additives

In perovskite solar cells(PSCs),the inherent defects of perovskite film and the random distribution of excess lead iodide(PbI_(2))prevent the improvement of efficiency and stability.Herein,natural cellulose is used as the raw material to design a series of cellulose derivatives for perovskite crystallization engineering.The cationic cellulose derivative C-Im-CN with cyano-imidazolium(Im-CN)cation and chloride anion prominently promotes the crystallization process,grain growth,and directional orientation of perovskite.Meanwhile,excess PbI_(2)is transferred to the surface of perovskite grains or formed plate-like crystallites in local domains.These effects result in suppressing defect formation,decreasing grain boundaries,enhancing carrier extraction,inhibiting non-radiative recombination,and dramatically prolonging carrier lifetimes.Thus,the PSCs exhibit a high power conversion efficiency of 24.71%.Moreover,C-Im-CN has multiple interaction sites and polymer skeleton,so the unencapsulated PSCs maintain above 91.3%of their initial efficiencies after 3000 h of continuous operation in a conventional air atmosphere and have good stability under high humidity conditions.The utilization of biopolymers with excellent structure-designability to manage the perovskite opens a state-of-the-art avenue for manufacturing and improving PSCs.