Oxygen vacancy controlled tunable magnetic and electrical transport properties of (Li, Ni)-codoped ZnO thin films

Abstract: Abstract In the past 10 years, ZnO as a semiconductor has attracted considerable attention due to its unique properties, such as high electron mobility, wide and direct band gap and large exciton binding energy. ZnO has been considered a promising material for optoelectronic device applications, and the fabrications of high quality p-type ZnO and p–n junction are the key steps to realize these applications. However, the reliable p-type doping of the material remains a major challenge because of the self-compensation from native donor defects (V O and Zn i ) and/or hydrogen incorporation. Considerable efforts have been made to obtain p-type ZnO by doping different elements with various techniques. Remarkable progresses have been achieved, both theoretically and experimentally. In this paper, we discuss p-type ZnO materials: theory, growth, properties and devices, comprehensively. We first discuss the native defects in ZnO. Among the native defects in ZnO, V Zn and O i act as acceptors. We then present the theory of p-type doping in ZnO, and summarize the growth techniques for p-type ZnO and the properties of p-type ZnO materials. Theoretically, the principles of selection of p-type dopant, codoping method and X Zn –2V Zn acceptor model are introduced. Experimentally, besides the intrinsic p-type ZnO grown at O-rich ambient, p-type ZnO (MgZnO) materials have been prepared by various techniques using Group-I, IV and V elements. We pay a special attention to the band gap of p-type ZnO by band-gap engineering and room temperature ferromagnetism observed in p-type ZnO. Finally, we summarize the devices based on p-type ZnO materials.

Abstract: In the past 10 years, ZnO as a semiconductor has attracted considerable attention due to its unique properties, such as high electron mobility, wide and direct band gap and large exciton binding energy. ZnO has been considered a promising material for optoelectronic device applications, and the fabrications of high quality p-type ZnO and p–n junction are the key steps to realize these applications. However, the reliable p-type doping of the material remains a major challenge because of the self-compensation from native donor defects (V O and Zn i ) and/or hydrogen incorporation. Considerable efforts have been made to obtain p-type ZnO by doping different elements with various techniques. Remarkable progresses have been achieved, both theoretically and experimentally. In this paper, we discuss p-type ZnO materials: theory, growth, properties and devices, comprehensively. We first discuss the native defects in ZnO. Among the native defects in ZnO, V Zn and O i act as acceptors. We then present the theory of p-type doping in ZnO, and summarize the growth techniques for p-type ZnO and the properties of p-type ZnO materials. Theoretically, the principles of selection of p-type dopant, codoping method and X Zn –2V Zn acceptor model are introduced. Experimentally, besides the intrinsic p-type ZnO grown at O-rich ambient, p-type ZnO (MgZnO) materials have been prepared by various techniques using Group-I, IV and V elements. We pay a special attention to the band gap of p-type ZnO by band-gap engineering and room temperature ferromagnetism observed in p-type ZnO. Finally, we summarize the devices based on p-type ZnO materials.

Abstract: The production of H2O2 has been taken for a crucial reason for antimicrobial activity of ZnO without light irradiation. However, how the H2O2 generates in ZnO suspension is not clear. In the presen...

Abstract: To develop an ultraefficient and reusable heterogeneous Fenton-like catalyst at a wide working pH range is a great challenge for its application in practical water treatment We report an oxygen vacancy promoted heterogeneous Fenton-like reaction mechanism and an unprecedented ofloxacin (OFX) degradation efficiency of Cu doped Fe3O4@FeOOH magnetic nanocomposite Without the aid of external energy, OFX was always completely removed within 30 min at pH 32–90 Compared with Fe3O4@FeOOH, the pseudo-first-order reaction constant was enhanced by 10 times due to Cu substitution (904/h vs 094/h) Based on the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman analysis, and the investigation of H2O2 decomposition, •OH generation, pH effect on OFX removal and H2O2 utilization efficiency, the new formed oxygen vacancy from in situ Fe substitution by Cu rather than promoted Fe3+/Fe2+ cycle was responsible for the ultraefficiency of Cu doped Fe3O4@FeOOH at neutral and even alkaline pHs Moreover, the catalyst had an ex

Abstract: The recent study of oxides led to the discovery of several new fascinating physical phenomena. High-temperature superconductivity, colossal magnetoresistance, dilute magnetic doping, or multiferroicity were discovered and investigated in transition-metal oxides, representing a prototype class of strongly correlated electronic systems. This development was accompanied by enormous progress regarding thin film fabrication. Within the past two decades, epitaxial thin films with crystalline quality approaching semiconductor standards became available using laser-molecular beam epitaxy. This evolution is reviewed, particularly with emphasis on transition-metal oxide thin films, their versatile physical properties, and their impact on the field of spintronics. First, the physics of ferromagnetic half-metallic oxides, such as the doped manganites, the double perovskites and magnetite is presented together with possible applications based on magnetic tunnel junctions. Second, the wide bandgap semiconductor zinc oxide is discussed particularly with regard to the controversy of dilute magnetic doping with transition-metal ions and the possibility of realizing p-type conductivity. Third, the field of oxide multiferroics is presented with the recent developments in single-phase multiferroic thin film perovskites as well as in composite multiferroic hybrids.

Abstract: Ferromagnetism in manganese compound semiconductors not only opens prospects for tailoring magnetic and spin-related phenomena in semiconductors with a precision specific to III-V compounds but also addresses a question about the origin of the magnetic interactions that lead to a Curie temperature (T(C)) as high as 110 K for a manganese concentration of just 5%. Zener's model of ferromagnetism, originally proposed for transition metals in 1950, can explain T(C) of Ga(1-)(x)Mn(x)As and that of its II-VI counterpart Zn(1-)(x)Mn(x)Te and is used to predict materials with T(C) exceeding room temperature, an important step toward semiconductor electronics that use both charge and spin.

Abstract: Dilute ferromagnetic oxides having Curie temperatures far in excess of 300 K and exceptionally large ordered moments per transition-metal cation challenge our understanding of magnetism in solids. These materials are high-k dielectrics with degenerate or thermally activated n-type semiconductivity. Conventional super-exchange or double-exchange interactions cannot produce long-range magnetic order at concentrations of magnetic cations of a few percent. We propose that ferromagnetic exchange here, and in dilute ferromagnetic nitrides, is mediated by shallow donor electrons that form bound magnetic polarons, which overlap to create a spin-split impurity band. The Curie temperature in the mean-field approximation varies as (xdelta)(1/2) where x and delta are the concentrations of magnetic cations and donors, respectively. High Curie temperatures arise only when empty minority-spin or majority-spin d states lie at the Fermi level in the impurity band. The magnetic phase diagram includes regions of semiconducting and metallic ferromagnetism, cluster paramagnetism, spin glass and canted antiferromagnetism.

Abstract: Since the successful demonstration of a blue light-emitting diode (LED)1, potential materials for making short-wavelength LEDs and diode lasers have been attracting increasing interest as the demands for display, illumination and information storage grow2,3,4. Zinc oxide has substantial advantages including large exciton binding energy, as demonstrated by efficient excitonic lasing on optical excitation5,6. Several groups have postulated the use of p-type ZnO doped with nitrogen, arsenic or phosphorus7,8,9,10, and even p–n junctions11,12,13. However, the choice of dopant and growth technique remains controversial and the reliability of p-type ZnO is still under debate14. If ZnO is ever to produce long-lasting and robust devices, the quality of epitaxial layers has to be improved as has been the protocol in other compound semiconductors15. Here we report high-quality undoped films with electron mobility exceeding that in the bulk. We have used a new technique to fabricate p-type ZnO reproducibly. Violet electroluminescence from homostructural p–i–n junctions is demonstrated at room-temperature.

Abstract: It is generally accepted that magnetic order in an insulator requires the cation to have partially filled shells of d or f electrons. Here we show that thin films of hafnium dioxide (HfO2), an insulating oxide better known as a dielectric layer for nanoscale electronic devices, can be ferromagnetic even without doping. This discovery challenges our understanding of magnetism in insulators, because neither Hf4+ nor O2- are magnetic ions and the d and f shells of the Hf4+ ion are either empty or full.

Abstract: Room-temperature ferromagnetism is observed in (110) oriented ZnO films made from targets containing 5 at. % of Sc, Ti, V, Fe, Co, or Ni, but not Cr, Mn, or Cu ions. There are large moments, $2.6{\ensuremath{\mu}}_{B}$ and $0.5{\ensuremath{\mu}}_{B}/\mathrm{\text{dopant atom}}$ for Co- and Ti-containing oxides, respectively. There is also a moment of $0.3{\ensuremath{\mu}}_{B}/\mathrm{S}\mathrm{c}$. Magnetization is very anisotropic, with variations of up to a factor of 3 depending on the orientation of the applied field relative to the substrate. Results are interpreted in terms of a spin-split donor impurity-band model, which can account for ferromagnetism in insulating or conducting high-$k$ oxides with concentrations of magnetic ions that lie far below the percolation threshold. Magnetic moments are associated with two-electron defects in the films as well as unpaired electrons of the $3d$ ions.