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Atomic-Resolution Spectrum Imaging of Semiconductor Nanowires

Zamani, Reza R. LU ; Hage, Fredrik S. ; Lehmann, Sebastian LU ; Ramasse, Quentin M. and Dick, Kimberly A. LU (2018) In Nano Letters 18(3). p.1557-1563
Abstract

Over the past decade, III-V heterostructure nanowires have attracted a surge of attention for their application in novel semiconductor devices such as tunneling field-effect transistors (TFETs). The functionality of such devices critically depends on the specific atomic arrangement at the semiconductor heterointerfaces. However, most of the currently available characterization techniques lack sufficient spatial resolution to provide local information on the atomic structure and composition of these interfaces. Atomic-resolution spectrum imaging by means of electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is a powerful technique with the potential to resolve structure and chemical... (More)

Over the past decade, III-V heterostructure nanowires have attracted a surge of attention for their application in novel semiconductor devices such as tunneling field-effect transistors (TFETs). The functionality of such devices critically depends on the specific atomic arrangement at the semiconductor heterointerfaces. However, most of the currently available characterization techniques lack sufficient spatial resolution to provide local information on the atomic structure and composition of these interfaces. Atomic-resolution spectrum imaging by means of electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is a powerful technique with the potential to resolve structure and chemical composition with sub-angstrom spatial resolution and to provide localized information about the physical properties of the material at the atomic scale. Here, we demonstrate the use of atomic-resolution EELS to understand the interface atomic arrangement in three-dimensional heterostructures in semiconductor nanowires. We observed that the radial interfaces of GaSb-InAs heterostructure nanowires are atomically abrupt, while the axial interface in contrast consists of an interfacial region where intermixing of the two compounds occurs over an extended spatial region. The local atomic configuration affects the band alignment at the interface and, hence, the charge transport properties of devices such as GaSb-InAs nanowire TFETs. STEM-EELS thus represents a very promising technique for understanding nanowire physical properties, such as differing electrical behavior across the radial and axial heterointerfaces of GaSb-InAs nanowires for TFET applications.

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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
aberration-corrected STEM, atomic-resolution EELS, GaSb-InAs, heterointerface, III-V nanowire, spectrum imaging
in
Nano Letters
volume
18
issue
3
pages
7 pages
publisher
The American Chemical Society (ACS)
external identifiers
  • pmid:29116807
  • scopus:85043755086
ISSN
1530-6984
DOI
10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b03929
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
2b5ef494-9017-4e22-b010-816545299a36
date added to LUP
2018-03-27 09:38:59
date last changed
2024-10-14 23:57:01
@article{2b5ef494-9017-4e22-b010-816545299a36,
  abstract     = {{<p>Over the past decade, III-V heterostructure nanowires have attracted a surge of attention for their application in novel semiconductor devices such as tunneling field-effect transistors (TFETs). The functionality of such devices critically depends on the specific atomic arrangement at the semiconductor heterointerfaces. However, most of the currently available characterization techniques lack sufficient spatial resolution to provide local information on the atomic structure and composition of these interfaces. Atomic-resolution spectrum imaging by means of electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in the scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM) is a powerful technique with the potential to resolve structure and chemical composition with sub-angstrom spatial resolution and to provide localized information about the physical properties of the material at the atomic scale. Here, we demonstrate the use of atomic-resolution EELS to understand the interface atomic arrangement in three-dimensional heterostructures in semiconductor nanowires. We observed that the radial interfaces of GaSb-InAs heterostructure nanowires are atomically abrupt, while the axial interface in contrast consists of an interfacial region where intermixing of the two compounds occurs over an extended spatial region. The local atomic configuration affects the band alignment at the interface and, hence, the charge transport properties of devices such as GaSb-InAs nanowire TFETs. STEM-EELS thus represents a very promising technique for understanding nanowire physical properties, such as differing electrical behavior across the radial and axial heterointerfaces of GaSb-InAs nanowires for TFET applications.</p>}},
  author       = {{Zamani, Reza R. and Hage, Fredrik S. and Lehmann, Sebastian and Ramasse, Quentin M. and Dick, Kimberly A.}},
  issn         = {{1530-6984}},
  keywords     = {{aberration-corrected STEM; atomic-resolution EELS; GaSb-InAs; heterointerface; III-V nanowire; spectrum imaging}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  month        = {{03}},
  number       = {{3}},
  pages        = {{1557--1563}},
  publisher    = {{The American Chemical Society (ACS)}},
  series       = {{Nano Letters}},
  title        = {{Atomic-Resolution Spectrum Imaging of Semiconductor Nanowires}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b03929}},
  doi          = {{10.1021/acs.nanolett.7b03929}},
  volume       = {{18}},
  year         = {{2018}},
}