Minjae Son, Karishma Sualiheen, Sangjin Choi, Seung Gyo Jeong, Jong-Seong Bae, Seungyong Eom, Do Hyung Kim, Joonghoe Dho, Bharat Jalan, Dooyong Lee, Kyeong Tae Kang
{"title":"Optimizing surface treatment for Nb-doped SrTiO3 substrates: effects on structural and chemical properties","authors":"Minjae Son, Karishma Sualiheen, Sangjin Choi, Seung Gyo Jeong, Jong-Seong Bae, Seungyong Eom, Do Hyung Kim, Joonghoe Dho, Bharat Jalan, Dooyong Lee, Kyeong Tae Kang","doi":"10.1007/s40042-024-01104-9","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The use of SrTiO<sub>3</sub> substrates with either TiO<sub>2</sub>- or SrO-terminated surfaces is essential for growing high-quality epitaxial perovskite oxide thin films. Adding niobium to SrTiO<sub>3</sub> introduces novel functionalities and imparts alterations to the metallic and structural characteristics. This study thoroughly investigates the physical and chemical processes involved in the chemical etching and annealing processes. This is to achieve an atomically flat, single-terminated surface of (001)-oriented Nb-doped SrTiO<sub>3</sub> (Nb:STO) surfaces and to optimize their performance. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) identified the most optimal treatment regimen, pinpointing annealing at 950 °C for a duration of 6 h, coupled with a 90-s etching procedure, which achieves a well-defined step terrace structure of the substrate. Additionally, angle-resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AR-XPS) has revealed pronounced shifts in the predominant chemical component within the near-surface region due to changes in thermal parameters, even under consistent temperatures and durations. Reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) further confirms the creation of a single-terminated surface with the specified annealing conditions. This research provides valuable insights into the surface treatment processes for Nb:STO substrates and their influence on substrates’ structural and chemical properties.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":677,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Korean Physical Society","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.8000,"publicationDate":"2024-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of the Korean Physical Society","FirstCategoryId":"101","ListUrlMain":"https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40042-024-01104-9","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"PHYSICS, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The use of SrTiO3 substrates with either TiO2- or SrO-terminated surfaces is essential for growing high-quality epitaxial perovskite oxide thin films. Adding niobium to SrTiO3 introduces novel functionalities and imparts alterations to the metallic and structural characteristics. This study thoroughly investigates the physical and chemical processes involved in the chemical etching and annealing processes. This is to achieve an atomically flat, single-terminated surface of (001)-oriented Nb-doped SrTiO3 (Nb:STO) surfaces and to optimize their performance. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) identified the most optimal treatment regimen, pinpointing annealing at 950 °C for a duration of 6 h, coupled with a 90-s etching procedure, which achieves a well-defined step terrace structure of the substrate. Additionally, angle-resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (AR-XPS) has revealed pronounced shifts in the predominant chemical component within the near-surface region due to changes in thermal parameters, even under consistent temperatures and durations. Reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) further confirms the creation of a single-terminated surface with the specified annealing conditions. This research provides valuable insights into the surface treatment processes for Nb:STO substrates and their influence on substrates’ structural and chemical properties.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of the Korean Physical Society (JKPS) covers all fields of physics spanning from statistical physics and condensed matter physics to particle physics. The manuscript to be published in JKPS is required to hold the originality, significance, and recent completeness. The journal is composed of Full paper, Letters, and Brief sections. In addition, featured articles with outstanding results are selected by the Editorial board and introduced in the online version. For emphasis on aspect of international journal, several world-distinguished researchers join the Editorial board. High quality of papers may be express-published when it is recommended or requested.