Category: Articles

Combined in Situ Photoluminescence and X-ray Scattering Reveals Defect Formation in Lead-Halide Perovskite Films

Posted on by Mario Kotlár

Nada Mrkyvkova*, Vladimír Held, Peter Nádaždy, Riyas Subair, Eva Majkova, Matej Jergel, Aleš Vlk, Martin Ledinsky, Mário Kotlár, Jianjun Tian, Peter Siffalovic

Phys. Chem. Lett. 2021, 12, 41, 10156–10162

https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jpclett.1c02869

Abstract

Lead-halide perovskites have established a firm foothold in photovoltaics and optoelectronics due to their steadily increasing power conversion efficiencies approaching conventional inorganic single-crystal semiconductors. However, further performance improvement requires reducing defect-assisted, nonradiative recombination of charge carriers in the perovskite layers. A deeper understanding of perovskite formation and associated process control is a prerequisite for effective defect reduction. In this study, we analyze the crystallization kinetics of the lead-halide perovskite MAPbI3–xClx during thermal annealing, employing in situ photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy complemented by lab-based grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS). In situ GIWAXS measurements are used to quantify the transition from a crystalline precursor to the perovskite structure. We show that the nonmonotonous character of PL intensity development reflects the perovskite phase volume, as well as the occurrence of the defects states at the perovskite layer surface and grain boundaries. The combined characterization approach enables easy determination of defect kinetics during perovskite formation in real-time.

Formation of CuCrCoFeNiO high entropy alloy thin films by rapid thermal processing of Cu/CrNiO/FeCo multilayers.

Formation of CuCrCoFeNiO high entropy alloy thin films by rapid thermal processing of Cu/CrNiO/FeCo multilayers.

Posted on by Mario Kotlár

Wang, Anni; Oliva Ramírez, Manuel; Caplovicova, Maria; Vretenar, Viliam; Böttcher, Julius; Hopfeld, Marcus; Kups, Thomas; Flock, Dominik; Schaaf, Peter

Surface and coatings technology, ISSN 0257-8972, 405 (2021), 126563

doi.org/10.1016/j.surfcoat.2020.126563

Abstract

This study presents the synthesis of High Entropy Alloy (HEA) films starting from elemental Cu and binary alloy CoFe and CrNiO multilayers, followed by rapid thermal processing (RTP). By that, the HEA films (HEAFs) were formed by phase formation via short-range and fast diffusion processes. Multilayers with a total thickness of 760 nm consisting of 16 repetitions of a Cu (11 nm)/CrNiO (16.5 nm)/CoFe (20 nm) sequence were annealed at temperatures from 600 °C to 1000 °C for 5 min. The reaction products were then analyzed by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) combined with electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS), in order to identify the phase transformations and elemental distributions. A duplex FCC structure containing CrCoFeNiO HEA and pure Cu phase was successfully synthesized at 600 °C and 800 °C by the solid-state reaction. CuCrCoFeNiO HEA formed within in a Cu nanocrystalline matrix. As the annealing temperature increased, the oxygen content in the films decreased, Both HEA and Cu possess significant 〈111〉 preferred orientation. The HEA phase demonstrated a typical microstructure of alloys with intensive nano-twins. Moreover, the grain growth kinetics of the HEA phase was evaluated, and the activation energy was found to be 185(10) kJ/mol. This is comparable to that of conventional stainless steel (~150 kJ/mol) and less than half of the value for CrCoFeNi bulk (434 kJ/mol). A surface energy-driven grain growth mechanism of the HEAFs via multilayer alloy formation is proposed in this study. The mechanical properties, hardness and Young’s modulus, were measured via nanoindentation, and the strengthening mechanism was proposed and compared with current literature.

Effect of Sub-Zero Treatments and Tempering on Corrosion Behaviour of Vanadis 6 Tool Steel

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

Peter Jurči, Aneta Bartkowska, Mária Hudáková, Mária Dománková, Mária Čaplovičová, Dariusz Bartkowski

Materials (Basel). 2021 Jul; 14(13): 3759

doi: 10.3390/ma14133759

Abstract

Sub-zero treatment of Vanadis 6 steel resulted in a considerable reduction of retained austenite amount, refinement of martensite, enhancement of population density of carbides, and modification of precipitation behaviour. Tempering of sub-zero-treated steel led to a decrease in population density of carbides, to a further reduction of retained austenite, and to precipitation of M3C carbides, while M7C3 carbides precipitated only in the case of conventionally quenched steel. Complementary effects of these microstructural variations resulted in more noble behaviour of sub-zero-treated steel compared to the conventionally room-quenched one, and to clear inhibition of the corrosion rate at the same time.

Substrate dependent epitaxy of superconducting niobium nitride thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

T. Roch, M. Gregor, S. Volkov, M. Čaplovičová, L. Satrapinskyy, A. Plecenik

Applied Surface Science, Volume 551, 2021, 149333

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apsusc.2021.149333

Abstract

Niobium nitride (NbN) has suitable mechanical properties for application as protective coatings in mechanical engineering, and also its superconductivity can be utilized in thin film devices for sensorics or in combination with ferromagnet in spintronics. Long-range superconducting proximity effect at the heterostructures with a weak ferromagnet can be used for generation of spin-polarized current. For any operational heterostructure application the high quality NbN thin films need to be prepared. In this work we have investigated impact of the substrates on the structure and preferential orientation of niobium nitride thin films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition at 600 °C on Si (0 0 1), MgO (0 0 1), C-plane and R-plane Al2O3 substrates. Growth parameters have been tuned in order to obtain single superconducting δ-NbN phase. Microstructure was analyzed by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy. Si substrate does not induce the film preferential orientation. Films on MgO are epitaxial (0 0 1) oriented. Films on R-Al2O3 show (1 3 5) orientation with twinned crystallites on the lower symmetry substrate surface. The (1 1 1) epitaxial growth with the largest crystallites and their smallest tilting was achieved on C-Al2O3 substrate leading to the best superconducting properties.

Incorporation mechanism of tungsten in W-Fe-Cr-V-bearing rutile

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

MAJZLAN, Juraj – BOLANZ, Ralph – GÖTTLICHER, Jörg – MIKUŠ, Tomáš – MILOVSKÁ, Stanislava – ČAPLOVIČOVÁ, Mária – ŠTEVKO, Martin – RÖSSLER, Christiane – MATTHES, Christian

In American Mineralogist. Vol. 106, (2021)

https://doi.org/10.2138/am-2021-7653

Abstract

Rutile is a common mineral in many types of ore deposits and can carry chemical or isotopic information about the ore formation. For closer understanding of this information, the mechanisms of incorporation of minor elements should be known. In this work, we have investigated natural rutile crystals with elevated concentrations of WO3 (up to 17.7 wt%), Cr2O3,tot (7.5), V2O3,tot (4.1), FeOtot (7.3), and other metals. X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) of rutile at the Fe K, Cr K, V K, and W L1 and L3 edges shows that all cations are coordinated octahedrally. The average oxidation state of V is +3.8, and that of Cr is near +4. Shell-by-shell fitting of the W L3 EXAFS data shows that W resides in the rutile structure. Raman spectroscopy excludes the possibility of hydrogen as a charge-compensating species. High-resolution TEM and electron diffraction confirm this conclusion as the entire inspected area consists of rutile single crystal with variable amounts of metals other than Ti. Our results show that rutile or its precursors can be efficient vehicles for tungsten in sedimentary rocks, leading to their enrichment in W and possibly later fertility with respect to igneous ore deposits. Leucoxene, a nanocrystalline mixture of Ti and Fe oxides, is an especially suitable candidate for such a vehicle.

Ce ion surface-modified TiO2 aerogel powders: a comprehensive study of their excellent photocatalytic efficiency in organic pollutant removal

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

Thirunavukkarasu Guru Karthikeyan, Monfort Olivier, Motola Martin, Motlochová Monika, Gregor Maroš, Roch Tomáš, Čaplovicová Maria, Lavrikova Aleksandra Y., Hensel Karol, Brezová Vlasta, Jerigová Monika, Šubrt Ján, Plesch, Gustáv

New J. Chem., 2021, 45, 4174-4184

https://doi.org/10.1039/D0NJ05976E

Abstract

Titanium dioxide aerogel (TiAP) powders were prepared by lyophilization of peroxo-polytitanic gels followed by annealing at 800 °C to obtain an anatase structure. The surface modification of TiAP was performed for the first time by low amounts of Ce ions (in the range of 0.0025 to 0.025 wt%) using a wet impregnation method. The photocatalytic activity of the aerogel samples was investigated for the removal of different organic pollutants (i.e., Rhodamine B, phenol and caffeine) and the results were compared with the reference P25. Both TiAP and Ce ion surface-modified TiAP (Ce/TiAP) have exhibited better degradation efficiencies for the removal of pollutants than P25, especially for Ce/TiAP with an enhancement in the degradation efficiencies of +18% and +37% for the removal of caffeine and Rhodamine B, respectively. These results have been partly explained by the high active surface area of Ce/TiAP compared to TiAP as well as its better photoelectrochemical properties which have shown, for instance, ∼10% increased incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency at 360 nm. Interestingly, the energetic position of the valence band maximum of Ce/TiAP is shifted from 3.2 eV to 2.8 eV (compared to TiAP), thus improving the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), especially hydroxyl radicals. Indeed, the presence of HO˙ is confirmed by electron paramagnetic resonance, and fluorescence spectroscopy and their photoinduced generation are enhanced in the case of Ce/TiAP. Finally, the surface modification of TiAP by cerium ions led not only to better photoinduced properties, thus limiting the electron–hole pair recombination, but also to the improvement of ROS generation via different plausible mechanisms.

Thermally induced structural evolution and age-hardening of polycrystalline V1–xMoxN (x ≈ 0.4) thin films

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

Marián Mikula, Stela Uzon, Tomáš Hudec, Branislav Grančič, Martin Truchlý, Tomáš Roch, Peter Švec, Leonid Satrapinskyy, Mária Čaplovičová, Grzegorz Greczynski, Ivan Petrov, Magnus Odén, Peter Kúš, Davide G. Sangiovanni

Surface and Coatings Technology, Volume 405, 2021, 126723

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surfcoat.2020.126723

Abstract

Rocksalt-structure (B1) (V,Mo)N alloys are inherently hard and tough ceramics. However, the mechanical properties and thermal stability of (V,Mo)N solid solutions at temperatures ⪆ 700 °C of relevance for practical applications have not been previously investigated. In this work, we synthesize single-phase B1 polycrystalline V0.57Mo0.43N0.95 coatings to investigate the effects induced by temperature on the nanostructural evolution and hardness (H) of the material. Nanoindentation measurements show that the as-deposited film (H = 23 ± 3 GPa) becomes ≈30% harder (up to 31 ± 2 GPa) upon annealing at 730 °C. Experimental characterization and analyses, based on dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM), reveal that the age-hardening effect originates from decomposition of the solid solution into coherent strained cubic VN-rich/MoN-rich domains. The experimental results are complemented by the composition/temperature (V,Mo)N phase diagram – constructed upon ab initio molecular dynamics free-energies – which indicates that the separation observed in the solid solutions is of spinodal nature. Films annealed at temperatures exceeding 850 °C undergo structural coarsening, with formation of hexagonal MoxNy and cubic VN phases, which cause a decrease in hardness to ≈22 GPa. Our present findings indicate that (V,Mo)N coatings may offer outstanding mechanical performances during operation at elevated temperatures.

ZnO nanoparticles as photodegradation agent controlled by morphology and boron doping

ZnO nanoparticles as photodegradation agent controlled by morphology and boron doping

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

Daniel Furka, Samuel Furka, Mira Naftaly, Erik Rakovský, Mária Čaplovičová, Marián Janek

Catal. Sci. Technol., 2021,11, 2167-2185

https://doi.org/10.1039/D0CY01802C

Abstract

Photolytic degradation of model dyes on pure and boron-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles with pseudohexagonal or elongated spindle-like morphology was investigated. ZnO nanoparticles were prepared by spray-assisted co-precipitation solvothermal synthesis. The bandgap (Eg) of pure ZnO was decreased by boron doping. The prepared nanoparticles were tested for their photocatalytic activity by decomposition of different organic dyes, using phloxine, oxazine and rhodamine as test substances simulating environmental pollutants. The photolysis experiments were done in a 3D printed photoreactor using a photodiode with a wavelength of 365 ± 5 nm as a narrow-line radiation source. The observed first-order reaction kinetics revealed that higher reaction rates were achieved on pseudohexagonal nanoparticles. Increasing the boron content led to accelerated photolysis rates. A significant linear correlation was observed between the optical bandgap energy Eg and the residual dye concentration remaining after 6 hours from the start of the reaction. It was found that ZnO particles with pseudohexagonal morphology decompose organic dyes faster than elongated spindle-like particles, indicating dependence on the surface area as determined by BET analysis. Interestingly, the residual dye concentration varied more strongly with doping when elongated spindle-like nanoparticles were used. It was shown that the efficiency of a photolysis reaction occurring on a solid oxide/solution interface is affected by the crystallographic plane on which it takes place.

Polarization dependent photoluminescence and optical anisotropy in CuPtB-ordered dilute GaAs1-xBi xalloys

Posted on by Viliam Vretenár

PAULAUSKAS, Tadas – ACEECHAVIČIUS, Bronislovas – KARPUS, Vytautas – JOČIONIS, Lukas – TUMĖNAS, Saulius – DEVENSON, Jan – PAČ̌EBUTAS, Vaidas – STANIONYTE, Sandra – STRAZDIENE, Viktorija – GEIAUTIS, Andrejus – ČAPLOVIČOVÁ, Mária – VRETENÁR, Viliam – WALLS, Michael G. – KROTKUS, Arunas

In Journal of Applied Physics. Vol. 128, iss. 19 (2020)

https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0030091

The GaAs1–xBix semiconductor alloy allows one to achieve large bandgap reduction and enhanced spin–orbit splitting energy at dilute Bi quantities. The bismide is currently being developed for near- to mid-infrared lasers, multi-junction solar cells, and photodetectors. In this structure–property relationship study of GaAsBi alloys, we report polarization dependent photoluminescence that reaches a polarization ratio up to 2.4 at room temperature. Polarization dependence is also presented using transmittance spectra, birefringence, and linear dichroism. The optical anisotropy observations agree with the predictions of point symmetry reduction in the CuPtB-type ordered GaAsBi phase. The structural ordering is investigated experimentally from the atomic scale in molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) grown samples on exact and miscut (001) GaAs substrates, as well as on (001) Ge. The latter sample is composed of anti-phase domains in which the ordering axes are rotated by 90° angles. Since the conditions stabilizing the CuPtB ordered phase fall within the typical MBE growth regime of dilute bismides, the optical anisotropy in GaAsBi alloys is expected to be ubiquitous. These findings are important for the future development of GaAsBi-based optoelectronics and also provide new means to analyze structurally complex bismide alloys.

Dehydroaromatization of methane over Mo/ZSM-5 zeolites: influence of aluminum distribution in the crystals

Posted on by Mária Čaplovičová

HORŇÁČEK, Michal – HUDEC, Pavol – JORÍK, Vladimír – ČAPLOVIČOVÁ, Mária – ČAPLOVIČ, Ľubomír – KALIŇÁK, Michal – SMIEŠKOVÁ, Agáta

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11144-020-01887-5

Abstract

Mo/ZSM-5 type catalysts based on two ZSM-5 zeolites with comparable crystal morphology, shape and size, Si/Al in bulk (22–23), acidity and amount of Mo (~ 4.7 wt.%) but having a different (homogeneous and non-homogeneous) Al distribution in particles and different acid sites type distribution were investigated in methane dehydroaromatization. From the results follows that Mo is associated with both BAS and LAS in the samples with almost homogenous Al distribution (MoZSM-5/AH). In the case of both samples with non-homogenous Al distribution (MoZSM-5/BH and MoZSM-5/BNH4) Mo preferably associates with BAS. Evidently lower activity and selectivity of Mo/ZSM-5/AH catalyst in methane transformation compared with Mo/ZSM-5/BH we attribute to the fact that from Mo species which interact with Lewis acid sites in sample ZSM-5/AH less active carburized species are formed as from the Mo associated with Brønsted sites in sample ZSM-5/BH.