Sharif Digital Repository

We report experimental evidence of Cu surface segregation in Ni/Cu system, during deposition of Ni film onto Cu substrate at room temperature and during heat treatment in vacuum. Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) by Tougaard's analysis results show that surface segregation defeats in competition with increase in Ni thickness and terminates when thickness of Ni increase to more than 4 nm. Surface energy and concentration were calculated using contact angle measurements and the results confirm that segregation reduces the surface energy. Surface segregation during heat treatment at 150–220 °C range as a function of time initially shows linear mass... 

Graphene is usually synthesized through deoxygenation of graphene oxide (GO) by hydrazine as the most common and one of the strongest reducing agents. But, due to the high toxicity of hydrazine, it is not a promising reductant in large-scale production of graphene. Here, for the first time, we used melatonin (MLT), as a powerful antioxidant and a biocompatible competitor of hydrazine in reduction of GO suspension. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), current-voltage and optical characteristics of the sheets indicated that the deoxygenation efficiency of the GO suspensions by MLT and under heating in an alkaline condition for 3 h was comparable with the efficiency obtained by hydrazine in... 

Ce-doped ZnO nanocomposite thin films with Ce/Zn ratio fixed at optimum value (10 at.%) have been prepared via sol-gel method at different annealing temperatures varied from 180 to 500 °C. The synthesized samples were characterized employing atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. According to AFM analysis, the average grain size increased from about 70 nm to 150 nm by increasing the annealing temperature from 300 to 500 °C. Moreover, based on the XPS data analysis, it was found that three major metal ions namely Ce 3+, Ce4+, and Zn2+ coexist on the surface of the nanocomposite films. XPS data analysis also revealed that... 

Modified tungsten oxide films by vanadium oxide provide neutrally coloring electrochromic electrodes for smart windows technology. In this study W-V-O mixed oxide films were fabricated by Nd:YAG pulsed laser deposition (PLD), λ=1064 nm, from mixed pressed powders of (WO3)1-x(V2O5)x, x=0, 0.09, 0.17, 0.23, 0.29 and 0.33, at 13.3 Pa oxygen partial pressure and 200 °C temperature on glass substrates. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) revealed V5+, V4+, W6+ and W5+ surface oxide states, where the ratio of W5+/W6+ enhances by the amount of vanadium in the films. Surface morphology was studied by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and optical properties by transmission-reflection spectra.... 

A comparison of X-ray photoemission spectroscopy of Mg doped Cu0.5Tl0.5Ba2Ca1.5Mg 0.5Cu3O10-δ and Mg free Cu0.5Tl0.5Ba2Ca2Cu 3O10-δ superconductor samples have been made. The main objective of these studies is to see the effect of Mg doping in developing better inter-plane coupling among the CuO2 planes and its effects on the chemical shift of the bonding species. Through these studies it is observed that thallium is in Tl+1 oxidation state in the Cu0.5Tl0.5Ba2O4- δ charge reservoir layer in both Mg doped and Mg free samples, however, the XPS line related to Ba atoms are shifted to higher binding energy side by 0.32 eV in Mg doped sample. This chemical shift is most likely due to presence of... 

Porous silicon samples were obtained by the electrochemical method and were impregnated with Pd by the electroless process. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy illustrated that the surface of the samples is oxidized during the palladium deposition. Scanning electron microscopy showed how factors such as morphology and pre-oxidations of porous samples and the plating parameters including Pd-salt concentration, HCl concentration, temperature of the electroless solution and the time of process affect the growth and nucleation of Pd particles. Observations demonstrated that the illumination-assisted process on p-type samples has a drastic effect on the growth of palladium. Hydrogen sensing of these... 

In this work, formation of gold nanoparticles in radio frequency (RF) reactive magnetron co-sputtered Au-SiO 2 thin films post annealed at different temperatures in Ar + H 2 atmosphere has been investigated. Optical, surface topography, chemical state and crystalline properties of the prepared films were analyzed by using UV-visible spectrophotometry, atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) techniques, respectively. Optical absorption spectrum of the Au-SiO 2 thin films annealed at 800 °C showed one surface plasmon resonance (SPR) absorption peak located at 520 nm relating to gold nanoparticles. According to XPS analysis, it was... 

Titania was deposited on glass fibers with a partial epoxy layer coating from a solution containing TiO2 nanoparticles at T = 90°C, and the adsorption process was examined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, and photocatalytic activity measurements. XPS data demonstrated that about 25% of the surface was covered with TiO2 nanoparticles, with 10% on the epoxy layer and 15% on the glass body. It was found that TiO2 nanoparticles can be readily adsorbed on epoxy groups, whereas they have a low tendency to adsorb on carbon polymer chains. This difference can be... 

The Co nanowires were electrodeposited in polycarbonate membrane (PCT). SEM, TEM and XPS techniques were used to characterize the morphology, structure and size of nanowires as well as chemical composition. The influence of different mediums was studied on the optical absorption of dispersed cobalt nanowires. The absorption spectrum of cobalt nanowires in water showed a broad shoulder at 290 nm, but in ethanol solution it was not observed in the visible region of the spectra up to 200 nm. Cobalt nanowires dispersed in methanol presented a peak at 236 nm. We attribute the data to oxidation of cobalt in water and low dielectric constant of methanol relative to ethanol and water. We found... 

X-ray photo-emission spectroscopy (XPS) studies of Cu1-xTlxBa2Ca3Cu4 O12-y superconductor thin films have been carried out for understanding the mechanism of superconductivity and to find out the reasons for the increase of zero resistivity critical temperature Tc(R = 0) with post-annealing in a nitrogen atmosphere. It is observed from these studies that reduction of charge state of thallium is a source of doping of carriers to the CuO2 planes. The reduced charge state of thallium (i.e. Tl1+) promotes lower oxygen concentration in the charge reservoir layer, which possibly results in movement of electrons to the conducting CuO2 planes. The higher density of electrons in the CuO2 planes... 

In this research, the effect of Fe2O3 content on the electrochromic properties of WO3 in thermally evaporated (WO3)1-x-(Fe2O3)x thin films (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.4) has been studied. The atomic composition of the deposited metal oxides was determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. The surface morphology of the thin films has been examined by atomic force microscopy. The surface roughness of all the films was measured about 1.3 nm with an average lateral grain size of 30 nm showing a smooth and nanostructured surface. The electrochromic properties of (WO3)1-x-(Fe2O3)x thin films deposited on ITO/glass substrate were studied in a LiClO4 + PC electrolyte by using ultraviolet-visible... 

In this investigation, the effect of coloring voltage and thickness on optical and also electrochromical properties of W O3 thin films has been studied. The W O3 thin films were grown on glass and indium tin oxide coated conducting glass substrates by e-beam evaporation at different thicknesses of 200, 400, and 700 nm. Optical properties of the deposited samples were characterized in the ultraviolet-visible range (300-1100 nm). The optical bandgap energy of the W O3 was obtained in a range of 3.3-3.5 eV showing its increase by decreasing the film thickness. The refractive index of the W O3 films was measured around 2 in the visible range. Surface chemical states of the films were studied by... 

We have investigated segregation of copper at the surface of V 2 O 5 films deposited onto Cu substrate by employing surface analysis techniques. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) confirmed that the Cu is segregated at the surface and its chemical state is Cu 2 O. According to secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) and glow discharge spectroscopy (GDS), the Cu concentration inside the deposited V 2 O 5 layer is low. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) and scanning tunneling spectroscopy (STS) revealed the segregation alters the surface local density of states. Surface analysis of deposited samples in ultra high vacuum (UHV) condition... 

Micro Arc Oxidation (MAO) process was utilized to fabricate nano bioceramic TiO 2-hydroxyapatite coatings on titanium substrates. Samples were produced in electrolytes contained 1 g/l β-glycerophosphate and 5, 10 and 15 g/l calcium acetate for 3, 6 and 10 min at 350 V. The techniques including XRD, XPS, SEM, FESEM and EDX were employed to study the effect of processing parameters. Hydroxyapatite, anatase, α-tri calcium phosphate and calcium titanate phases as well as 30-60 nm-size crystals were detected in the coating layer. It was also observed that the pore volume would increase by increasing the electrolyte concentration. The growth time was also found to influence the total pore volume.... 

Two types of unfunctionalized and functionalized multi-wall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were prepared to be applied in fabrication of MWCNT-ZnO nanocomposite thin films with various MWCNT contents. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicated formation of functional groups on surface of the functionalized MWCNTs in the MWCNT-ZnO nanocomposite. Formation of the effective carbonaceous bonds between the ZnO and the MWCNTs was also investigated through photoinactivation of Escherichia coli bacteria on surface of the both unfunctionalized and functionalized MWCNT-ZnO nanocomposites. The functionalized MWCNT-ZnO nanocomposites showed significantly stronger photoinactivation of the bacteria than the... 

A new polymer with C 4H stoichiometry based on graphene is synthesized in situ using template-induced polymerization of self-organizing hydrogen adsorbates on graphene. The polymerization is observed "live" on the surface of graphene by photoemission spectroscopy. Photoemission spectroscopy allows for an accurate determination of the carbon/hydrogen stoichiometry, an aspect that is extremely important for understanding functionalized graphene  

Vertical copper oxide nanoflakes were synthesized on a Cu foil through oxidation in alkaline conditions. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed that after exposing the nanoflakes to an Escherichia coli bacterial suspension, the outermost surface of the nanoflakes was chemically reduced through the glycolysis process of the bacteria. Current-voltage (I-V) characteristics of the nanoflakes (measured perpendicular to surface of the Cu foil by using conductive atomic force microscopy) indicated that electrical resistivity of the nanoflakes increased about one order of magnitude after exposure to the bacterial suspension. The nanoflakes reduced by the bacterial suspension could also be... 

Surface treatments of TiO2 nanostructure in semiconductor quantum dot sensitized solar cells (QDSCs) aimed to increase the photovoltaic conversion efficiencies of the solar cells are analyzed. A fluorine treatment, with NH4F or HF, on the TiO2 electrodes leads to a general increase of QDSCs performance in a range of QDSCs using different light absorbing materials: CdS, CdSe, and PbS/CdS. In contrast, no significant effect on QDSC performance has been observed after a TiCl4 treatment conventionally used for high performance dye sensitized solar cells (DSCs). Surface and photoelectrochemical characterization of treated electrodes and full solar cells was carried out by means of X-ray... 

Various morphologies of CuO/Cu(OH)2 nanostructures with different adsorbed -OH contents were synthesized on an acid-treated Cu foil through variation of NaOH concentration from 0 to 50 mM with an in situ oxidation method. X-ray diffractometry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) indicated formation of CuO on the Cu(OH)2 crystalline phase at a growth temperature of 60°C for 20 h. Antibacterial activity of the nanostructures against Escherichia coli bacteria was studied in the dark and under light irradiation. The nanostructures grown at a NaOH concentration of 30 mM showed the highest surface area and the strongest antibacterial activity among the samples. After elimination of the...