Yes / The properties of nitrogen centres acting either as hydrogen-bond or Brønsted acceptors in solid molecular acid–base complexes have been probed by N 1s X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) as well as 15N solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance (ssNMR) spectroscopy and are interpreted with reference to local crystallographic structure information provided by X-ray diffraction (XRD). We have previously shown that the strong chemical shift of the N 1s binding energy associated with the protonation of nitrogen centres unequivocally distinguishes protonated (salt) from hydrogen-bonded (co-crystal) nitrogen species. This result is further supported by significant ssNMR shifts to low frequency, which occur with proton transfer from the acid to the base component. Generally, only minor chemical shifts occur upon co-crystal formation, unless a strong hydrogen bond is formed. CASTEP density functional theory (DFT) calculations of 15N ssNMR isotropic chemical shifts correlate well with the experimental data, confirming that computational predictions of H-bond strengths and associated ssNMR chemical shifts allow the identification of salt and co-crystal structures (NMR crystallography). The excellent agreement between the conclusions drawn by XPS and the combined CASTEP/ssNMR investigations opens up a reliable avenue for local structure characterization in molecular systems even in the absence of crystal structure information, for example for non-crystalline or amorphous matter. The range of 17 different systems investigated in this study demonstrates the generic nature of this approach, which will be applicable to many other molecular materials in organic, physical, and materials chemistry. / EPSRC, Sanofi-Aventis

SiGe 25% substrates were treated with aqueous solutions of ammonium sulfide with and without added acid to understand the adsorption of sulfur on the surface. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy showed no sulfide layer was deposited from aqueous (NH4)(2)S alone and instead both Si and Ge oxides formed during immersion in the sulfur solution. The addition of hydrofluoric and hydrochloric acids dropped the pH from 10 to 8 and deposited sulfides, yet increased the oxide coverage on the surface and preferentially formed Ge oxides. The sulfur coverage grew with increasing concentrations of acid in the aqueous (NH4)(2)S. The simultaneous deposition of O and S is suspected to be the result of oxidized sulfur species in solution. Metal-insulator-semiconductor capacitor (MISCAP) devices were fabricated to test the electrical consequences of aqueous ammonium sulfide wet chemistries on SiGe. MISCAPs treated with acidic ammonium sulfide solutions contained fewer interface defects in the valence band region. The defect density (D-it) was on the order of 10(+12) cm(-2) eV(-1). The flat band voltage shift was lower after the acidic ammonium sulfide treatment, despite the presence of surface oxides. Adsorption of S and potentially O improved the stability of the surface and made it less electrically active. (C) 2017 American Vacuum Society.

The purpose of this thesis is to probe microscopic compositions and electronic structures at the high-£edielectric-semiconductor interfaces. The samples are prepared by electron beam evaporation, including Y2O3/Si, (Ga2O3-Gd2O3)/GaAs, Gd2O3/GaAs, Gd2O3/GaN and (Ga2O3-Gd2O3)/GaN. The thermal annealing effects on the interfacial properties have been investigated by depth-profiling X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) with synchrotron radiation beam. The depth-profiling XPS data show the O-H bonding in all the measured oxide layers. For Y2O3/Si, the hydroxide can be removed by surface desorption at 300¢J, while a Y-Si-O-H state maintained at the interface. The data suggests that the Y-Si-O-H state is possibly formed in the deposition process. For (Ga2O3-Gd2O3)/GaAs, the hydroxide can be removed by surface desorption at 100¢J, and GaOx and GaOy intermediary states have been observed. For Gd2O3/GaAs, the hydroxide can be removed by surface desorption at 250¢J, and a GaOx intermediary state has been observed, and no arsenic oxides have been detected. For Gd2O3/GaN and (Ga2O3-Gd2O3)/GaN, a GaOx intermediary state and little N-O bonding have been observed. Comparing the XPS relative intensity of the N 1s states, (Ga2O3-Gd2O3)/GaN shows a more stable interface than Gd2O3/GaN.

No description available.

One form of surface modification was primarily investigated in this work on glassy carbon electrodes. The form of modification is comprised of a series of steps in which electrografting is first applied to the glassy carbon surface, which is then followed up with click chemistry to ultimately immobilise a phthalocyanine onto the surface. The modified glassy carbon electrodes and surfaces were characterised with a combination of scanning electrochemical microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and various electrochemical methods. In this work, three alkyne substituted phthalocyanines were used. Two novel phthalocyanines, with nickel and cobalt metal centres, were studied alongside a manganese phthalocyanine reported in literature. Each of the three phthalocyanines was modified at the peripheral position with a 1-hexyne group, via a glycosidic bond, yielding the terminal alkyne groups that were used for subsequent click reactions. In situ diazotisation was used to graft 4-azidoaniline groups to the surface of the glassy carbon electrode. The azide bearing 4- azidoaniline groups were thus used to anchor the tetra substituted phthalocyanines to the surface of the electrodes. This method yielded successful modification of the electrodes and lead to their application in sensing studies. The modified electrodes were primarily used to catalyse the common agricultural oxidising agent hydrazine.

A detailed, fundamental understanding of the surface properties of molecular crystals and their interaction with adsorbing molecules (e.g. excipients) is important for tailoring the stability of formulations and the bioavailability of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (APIs). Few fundamental experimental studies with surface sensitive probes have been carried out for organic molecular crystals. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) is an established surface analysis method in the fields of adsorption, catalysis and surface chemistry of inorganic crystals. It has high surface sensitivity, probing approximately the top 1-3 nm of a crystal, and allows surface elemental analysis combined with the determination of the chemical state of the elements. To explore the possibilities and limitations of XPS for the surface characterisation of molecular crystal systems, investigation has been made on a range of paracetamol systems, three different poloxamers and blends of paracetamol with poloxamer 188. It was found by investigations of a range of polycrystalline paracetamol forms that the C1s, N1s and O1s core level emissions from the amide group of paracetamol allow to quantify, for the first time, the influence of surface contamination and adsorbed species on the paracetamol XPS data. Results of quantitative XPS analyses must be critically evaluated taking the material and energy-specific escape depth of the photoelectron signals into account. Analysis of the polycrystalline powder samples, including two different polymorphs and various partially amorphous forms of paracetamol, indicated that the core-level shifts associated with varying intermolecular interactions do not perturb the local electronic structure variations in paracetamol enough to become detectable through chemical shifts in the core level photoemission spectra. Subsequently, large, high quality single crystals of the monoclinic form I (with facet diameters between ~5 and ~10 mm) were obtained from different solvents (methanol, ethanol, acetone) to examine the influence of the crystallisation medium on the surface properties. Small spot XPS analysis was performed in several areas across facets to examine the possible influence of roughness and other lateral inhomogeneities. Careful curve-fitting of all results reveals only minor variations in the XPS data as a function of facet orientation, crystallisation medium or degree of crystallinity. Moreover, results indicate that any variations seen in XPS data very likely stem from low-level surface contamination, which is very difficult to avoid, even in a clean-room laboratory environment. In fact, the results indicate that the level of surface contamination depends significantly on the crystallisation apparatus cleanliness. Even minute concentrations of surface active components in the solutions, i.e. below the detection level of techniques for routine analytical methods, are likely to cause significant surface concentrations on crystal facets emersed from the solutions. The study thus highlights the paramount importance of microscopic surface cleanliness when assessing macroscopic facet-specific phenomena such as contact angles. Finally, XPS was employed to analyse milled and physical mixtures of paracetamol with poloxamer 188 at different percent. At minimum mass percentages poloxamer 188 adsorbs on the paracetamol surfaces; in the presence of poloxamer 188 excess the conformation of adsorbed poloxamer on the paracetamol surface changes. Studies of radiation damage on the poloxamer samples were performed both for several pure polxamers as well as for milled mixtures with paracetamol. They allowed the proposal of radiation-induced degradation mechanisms.

The ageing of polymer insulation occurs under long-term exposure to high electric fields and has attracted research due its relevance to high voltage insulation. In this work, polymers that have been electrically aged via a number of methods have been investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Despite some use in the investigation of outdoor insulation surfaces, XPS has not been used for investigations of polymer bulk electrical ageing before now. The first XPS measurements, using both small spot analysis and XPS imaging, are presented from the exposed inner surfaces of electrically aged artificial voids and electrical breakdown channels, as well as corona discharge aged surfaces and spark discharge by-products. XPS is shown to be a valuable technique for the investigation of polymer electrical ageing. Investigations into breakdown channels are supported by data acquired using X-ray photoemission electron microscopy (XPEEM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).Results show that the chemistry present at these surfaces takes the form of significant oxidation over a wide area with localised production of graphitic carbon. C-O-, C=O, and O-C=O species are detected in all cases. It is found that similar ageing products are present regardless of the ageing process or material investigated. However, the level of oxidation and relative ratio of the species seen with XPS is shown to be highly dependant on oxygen availability. Greater intensity of carbon oxides, and a shift towards highly oxidised species, is observed when there is more oxygen in the system. XPS imaging of breakdown channels reveals that high concentrations of oxidised components form on the outer edges of the channel, with graphitic carbon forming in the central regions. In addition, evidence for degradation is seen to extend at least 300 μm from channels in XPS imaging and at least ~650 μm in XPS line scans. Variation with the applied discharge energy was investigated for breakdown channels and spark discharge ageing. Evidence is seen for an energy dependence on the breakdown products, with higher energies producing relatively higher graphitic carbon and reduced oxidation products. Further, the relationship between the applied voltage and graphitic carbon concentration suggests an activated process with an energy barrier before graphitic carbon formation starts. XPS observations are supported by confocal Raman microprobe spectroscopy (CRMS) results from artificial voids and electrical breakdown channels, which identify graphitic carbon on a fluorescent background as the main features. XPS data indicate oxidised species are the origin of the fluorescence seen and provides quantitative information on the levels, chemical states and spatial distribution of these species and of graphitic carbon.

No description available.

Darbo tikslas yra ištirti neatkaitintų ir atkaitintų prie aukštų temperatūrų vakuume LaNiO3 sluoksnių Rentgeno fotoelektronų spektrus. Darbe aprašyti Rentgeno fotoelektronų spektroskopijos (RFS) (XPS- X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy) metodo, naudojamo įvairių medžiagų paviršių cheminei sudėčiai nustatyti, pagrindai. Pirmame skyriuje aprašyti: La- Ni oksidiniai junginiai ir jų tyrimų metodika, plonų nanostruktūrizuotų medžiagų sluoksnių nusodinimo iš dujų fazės (plazmos) metodas- magnetroninis dulkinimas (magnetron sputtering), aparatūra, XPSPeak programos pritaikymas Rentgeno fotoelektronų spektrų tyrimui bei jos naudojimo galimybės. Antrasis skyrius yra skirtas Rentgeno fotoelektroninių spektrų matavimų, naudojant spektrometrą XSAM 800 (Kratos Analytical, Didžioji Britanija) ypatumams ir bandinių gamybos metodikai aptarti. Trečiajame skyriuje pateikiami eksperimentiniai rezultatai gauti, matuojant LaNiO3-x Rentgeno fotoelektronų spektrus. Darbo pabaigoje yra pateikiamos išvados, kurios galėtų būti naudingos, tobulinant LaNiO3-x bandinių gamybos technologiją. / The aim of presented work was to investigate the X-ray photoelectron spectra (XPS) of LaNiO3-x thin films. The films were produced by DC magnetron sputtering. It is known that the temperature dependence of resistivity of as grown films has the metallic character. After the temperature annealing in the high vacuum condition this dependence changes to the semiconductor like character. XPS spectra of the oxygen region of as grown samples indicate that oxygen ions are in three states – O2-, hydroxyl groups (OH)-, and water. After the temperature annealing in the high vacuum condition oxygen ions are only in the two states - O2- and hydroxyl groups (OH)-. Thus the changes of the resistivity temperature dependence are caused by the changes of the oxygen ions system after the temperature annealing in the high vacuum. After temperatures processing in vacuum the samples some time have been sustained in atmospheric conditions, the temperature dependence of resistance again came back to an initial metal condition. This fact means that for the synthesis of qualitative thin layers it is necessary to change technological conditions of production.

The shift to the Cu/low-k interconnect scheme requires the development of diffusion barrier/adhesion promoter materials that provide excellent performance in preventing the diffusion and intermixing of Cu into the adjacent dielectrics. The integration of Cu with low-k materials may decrease RC delays in signal propagation but pose additional problems because such materials are often porous and contain significant amounts of carbon. Therefore barrier metal diffusion into the dielectric and the formation of interfacial carbides and oxides are of significant concern. The objective of the present research is to investigate the fundamental surface interactions between diffusion barriers and various low-k dielectric materials. Two major diffusion barriers¾ tatalum (Ta) and titanium nitride (TiN) are prepared by DC magnetron sputtering and metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD), respectively. Surface analytical techniques, such as X-ray photoelectronic spectroscopy (XPS), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) are employed. Ta sputter-deposited onto a Si-O-C low dielectric constant substrate forms a reaction layer composed of Ta oxide and TaC. The composition of the reaction layer varies with deposition rate (1 Å-min-1 vs. 2 Å-sec-1), but in both cases, the thickness of the TaC layer is found to be at least 30 Å on the basis of XPS spectra, which is corroborated with cross-sectional TEM data. Sputter-deposited Cu will not wet the TaC layer and displays facile agglomeration, even at 400 K. Deposition for longer time at 2 Å-sec-1 results in formation of a metallic Ta layer. Sputter deposited Cu wets (grows conformally) on the metallic Ta surface at 300 K, and resists significant agglomeration at up to ~ 600 K. Cu diffusion into the substrate is not observed up to 800 K in the UHV environment. Tetrakis(diethylamido) titanium (TDEAT) interactions with SiO2, Cu and a variety of low-k samples in the presence (~ 10-7 Torr or co-adsorbed) and absence of NH3 result in different products. TDEAT interactions with SiO2 are dominated by Ti interactions with substrate oxygen sites, and that Ti oxide/sub-oxide bond formation can proceed with relatively low activation energy. No Ti carbide or Si carbide formation is observed. Co-adsorption of TDEAT and NH3 on SiO2 at 120K followed by annealing to higher temperature results in enhanced Ti-N bond formation, which is stable against oxidation up to 900K in UHV. Similarly, continuous exposures of TDEAT on SiO2 at 500K in the presence of NH3 exhibit a relatively enhanced Ti-N spectral component. Co-adsorption of NH3 and TDEAT on Cu (poly) surface at 120K, followed by annealing to 500K, results in complete desorption of Ti, N or C-containing species from the Cu substrate. Reaction of TDEAT with a Cu surface at 500K yields a Ti-alkyl species via a b-hydride elimination pathway. TDEAT/Cu interactions are not observably affected by overpressures of NH3 of 10-7 Torr. TDEAT interaction with a porous carbon doped oxide low-k substrate at 700K demonstrates undissociated or partly dissociated Ti-NR species trapped in the dielectrics matrix due to its high porosity. In addition, carbide formation is observed from C(1s) XPS spectra. For a hydrocarbon low-k film, the majority sites (carbon) are highly unreactive towards TDEAT even at higher temperature due to a lack of functional groups to initiate the TDEAT/low-k surface chemistry.