Στην παρούσα Εργασία λεπτά υμένια (5 -25 nm) ZrO2 έχουν εναποτεθεί με τη μέθοδο ALD σε μη αδρανοποιημένο (100) Ge τύπου-p, με ειδική αντίσταση 0.2-0.5 Ω-cm. Η εναπόθεση του ZrO2 πραγματοποιήθηκε στους 2500C, με τη χρήση διαδοχικών παλμών H2O και Tetrakis (Dimethylamido) Zirconium που ήταν και οι πρόδρομες ενώσεις. Ο δομικός χαρακτηρισμός των υμενίων (στοιχειομετρία, σύνθεση και τραχύτητα της διεπιφάνειας, κρυσταλλογραφική φάση του διηλεκτρικού κλπ) πραγματοποιήθηκε μέσω των μεθόδων XPS και ΤΕΜ. Ο λεπτομερής ηλεκτρικός χαρακτηρισμός των υμενίων έγινε με παράμετρο τη θερμοκρασία σε δομές (πυκνωτές) MOS που έφεραν λευκόχρυσο, Pt, ως μέταλλο πύλης. Πραγματοποιήθηκαν μετρήσεις C-V, C-f με παράμετρο τη θερμοκρασία και για θερμοκρασίες από 300Κ έως 80 Κ. Σύμφωνα με τα αποτελέσματα που προέκυψαν από την παρούσα μελέτη τα υμένια με πάχος μικρότερο των 15 nm εμφανίζουν πολύ φτωχή ηλεκτρική συμπεριφορά, η οποία βελτιώνεται με την αύξηση του πάχους. Σχετικά παχιά (25 nm) υμένια ZrO2 εμφανίζουν πυκνότητα διεπιφανειακών παγίδων της τάξης των 1011 eV-1cm-2, όπως προκύπτουν από μετρήσεις που πραγματοποιήθηκαν στους 80K. Από μετρήσεις I-V με παράμετρο τη θερμοκρασία προκύπτουν οι μηχανισμοί αγωγιμότητας που διέπουν τις μελετούμενες δομές. Η επίδραση της ανόπτησης σε περιβάλλον Forming Gas μετά την εναπόθεση του μετάλλου μελετάται επίσης. Τέλος, μελετώνται οι ηλεκτρικές ιδιότητες δομών Pt/ZrO2 (25 nm)/p-Ge, σε υποστρώματα που περιέχουν ταυτόχρονα περιοχές που έχουν υποστεί ανόπτηση με Laser και περιοχές που δεν έχουν υποστεί ανόπτηση. Η ανόπτηση με Laser φαίνεται να υποβαθμίζει την ηλεκτρική συμπεριφορά της δομής. Ωστόσο, σύμφωνα με τα αποτελέσματα της παρούσας εργασίας, υπάρχουν ενδείξεις ότι οι δομές σε περιοχές που γειτνιάζουν με αυτές που έχουν υποστεί ανόπτηση με Laser εμφανίζουν βελτιωμένες ηλεκτρικές ιδιότητες ακόμη και σε σχέση με τα δείγματα αναφοράς που περιλαμβάνουν δομές που αναπτύχθηκαν σε μη ακτινοβολημένο υπόστρωμα. / In the present Thesis, thin (5 -25 nm) films of ZrO2 have been deposited by Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) on non-passivated p-type (100) Germanium substrates with resistivity 0.2-0.5 Ω-cm. ZrO2 deposition has been performed at 2500C using a series of alternating pulses of H2O and Tetrakis(Dimethylamido) Zirconium, which were the deposition precursors. Structural characterization of the films in terms of stoichiometry, interface composition and roughness, crystallographic phase of the dielectric etc., has been performed using XPS and TEM analysis. Detailed electrical characterization [C-V, and C-f measurements] of the films as a function of temperature has been performed in MOS capacitors using Pt as gate metal. It has been observed that the electrical behaviour of the films is extremely poor in thickness range below 15 nm, while they show an improvement in higher thickness regime. Thick (25 nm) ZrO2 showed an interface trap density of the order of 1011 eV-1cm-2 extracted at 80K. The conductivity mechanisms of the structures are revealed by I-V measurement at various temperatures. Finally the effect of post-metallization annealing in Forming Gas ambient has been studied. In parallel the electrical properties of structures Pt/ZrO2 (25 nm)/p-Ge, on substrates containing simultaneously laser annealed and non-annealed areas has been studied. It has been obtained that laser annealing of the substrate deteriorates the electrical behaviour of the structure, while it seems that structures on the areas in proximity to the annealed ones revealed superior electrical properties as compared to the corresponding deposited on non-annealed (reference) samples.

Passivation of silicon surfaces remains a critical factor in achieving high conversion efficiency in solar cells, particularly in future generations of rear contact cells -the best performing cell geometry to date. In this thesis, passivation is characterised as either intrinsic or extrinsic, depending on the origin of the chemical and field effect passivation components in dielectric layers. Extrinsic passivation, obtained after film deposition or growth, has been shown to improve significantly the passivation quality of dielectric films. Record passivation has been achieved leading to surface recombination velocities below 1.5 cm/s for 1 Ωcm n-type silicon covered with thermal oxide, and 0.15 cm/s in the same material covered with a thermal SiO2/PECVD SiNx double layer. Extrinsic field effect passivation, achieved by means of corona charge and/or ionic species, has been shown to decrease by 3 to 10 times the amount of carrier recombination at a silicon surface. A new parametrisation of interface charge, and electron and hole recombination velocities in a Shockley-Read-Hall extended formalism has been used to model accurately silicon surface recombination without the need to incorporate a term relating to space-charge or surface damage recombination. Such a term is unrealistic in the case of an oxide/silicon interface. A new method to produce extrinsic field effect passivation has been developed in which charge is introduced into dielectric films at high temperature and then permanently quenched in place by cooling to room temperature. This approach was investigated using charge due to one or more of the following species: ions produced by corona discharge, Na⁺, K⁺, Cs⁺, Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺. It was implemented on both single SiO₂ and double SiO₂/SiN_x dielectric layers which were then measured for periods of up to two years. The decay of the passivation was very slow and time constants of the order of 10,000 days were inferred for two systems: 1) corona-charge-embedded into oxide grown on textured FZ-Si, and 2) potassium ions driven into an oxide on planar FZ-Si. The extrinsic field effect passivation methods developed in this work allow more flexibility in the combined optimisation of the optical properties and the chemical passivation properties of dielectric films on semiconductors. Increases in cell Voc, Jsc and η parameters have been observed in simulations and obtained experimentally when extrinsic field effect passivation is applied to the front surface of silicon solar cells. The extrinsic passivation reported here thus represents a major advancement in controlled and stable passivation of silicon surfaces, and shows great potential as a scalable and cost effective passivation technology for solar cells.

This dissertation describes the development of a processing route for fabricating conventional and doped multi-wall carbon nanotube (MWCNT)/polymer composite films for dielectric applications. Previous research has shown that such composites are promising dielectric materials, but their commercial development has been impeded by the nanotube agglomeration in the polymer matrix and the inefficiency in forming uniform films. Moreover, the harsh fabrication treatments often disrupt the structure of the nanotubes, hence damaging their inherent electrical properties. This work presents safer routes for forming non-aqueous, surfactant free dispersions of conventional and doped MWCNTs, which can be readily mixed with polymers and formed into films through aerosol spraying. Dispersibility behaviour of in-house synthesised conventional, nitrogen doped (N-MWCNTs), and boron doped (B-MWCNTs) MWCNTs was studied in 22 organic solvents. Based on thermodynamic theories it was suggested that doping, in particular nitrogen doping, significantly reduced the surface energy of the nanotubes. This aspect was crucial to understand the dispersibility of N-MWCNTs in low surface energy solvents and to achieve dispersions with high nanotube concentrations (0.82 mg/ml). Also, a "destruction reduced sonication protocol" involving mild sonication was suggested for forming MWCNT dispersions in organic solvents. Dispersions formed using this protocol were homogeneous and showed high stability of at least 2.5 years. Furthermore, the effect of ultrasonic probes on MWCNT lengths was studied and a decrease of 96–99% for MWCNTs and 85–95% for N-MWCNTs was observed. A numerical value for the nanotube length decrease during sonication has been reported for the first time. Preliminary studies to generate dielectric films of MWCNT/perfluoro alkoxy polymer were performed using aerosol spraying. An improvement in the dielectric constant (3.56) with a low dissipation factor (0.003) was observed in 0.3 wt.% B- MWCNT/PFA composite films. Consistency in the test results from various parts of the films confirmed the uniformity of the nanotube distribution within the composite. Future work should concentrate on the effects of B-MWCNTs and N-MWCNTs at the percolation threshold due to their inherent electric properties.

O processamento em alta pressão é um método alternativo para a produção de materiais cerâmicos. Neste trabalho, pressões na ordem de 7,7 GPa e 2,5 GPa foram aplicadas em amostras, em diferentes temperaturas, que foram colocadas em uma célula de reação específica, gerando diferentes efeitos na formação de fases. A composição de fases foi analisada por difração de raios X e a evolução microestrutural, associada ao processamento em alta pressão, foi investigada por microscopia eletrônica por varredura em associação com a espectroscopia por dispersão de energia. Um analisador de resposta de frequência foi utilizado para obter as curvas ferroelétricas por espectroscopia de impedância eletroquímica. A utilização de alta pressão (2,5 GPa) possibilitou a obtenção de amostras de SrBi2Ta2O9 monofásicas com elevada densidade relativa, acima de 93%, após sinterização a uma temperatura de 900 °C. Essa temperatura é inferior às usualmente necessárias para obter alta densificação utilizando métodos convencionais de sinterização. Além disso, as amostras processadas em alta pressão apresentaram uma resposta dielétrica similar às amostras de SrBi2Ta2O9 sinterizadas por processos convencionais em temperaturas acima de 1000 ºC. / High-pressure processing is a very attractive approach for the production of ceramic materials. In this work, pressures about 7.7 GPa and 2.5 GPa were applied in SrBi2Ta2O9 samples at different temperatures placed in a specific reaction cell. X-ray diffraction was used to identify the different phases produced as a function of the processing conditions. The microstructural evolution, associated to the high-pressure processing, was investigated by scanning electron microscopy in association with energy dispersive spectroscopy. Frequency response analysis was used to obtain the ferroelectric curves by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. A highly densified (> 93% of theoretical density) single-phase (SrBi2Ta2O9) sample was obtained after processing at 2.5 GPa and 900 ºC. This temperature is lower than those necessary to obtain high densification, when conventional sintering processes are employed. In addition, the samples produced by high pressure processing showed a dielectric response similar to SrBi2Ta2O9 samples sintered by conventional processes at temperatures above 1000 ºC.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-12-08T15:56:17Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Eduardo do Nascimento.pdf: 17308021 bytes, checksum: 2ed27e1acd450db70b3f3070fc023b66 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015-02-23 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / In this work were studied nanodielectric epoxy coatings DGEBA/OTBG reinforced with alumina anoparticles of 10nm and zinc oxide nanopaticles of 90nm. The nanocomposites were processed by twin-screw extrusion with filler fractions of 1%phr, 3%phr, 6%phr and 15%phr. The particle dispersion was investigated with the FIB/FESEM method. Then, the images collected were treated for quantitative analysis of the dispersion. Two methods were used to quantify the dispersion. First, the index for nearest neighbor distance NND showed that nanocomposites reinforced with alumina have a greater state of agglomeration NND=0.45 compared to ZnO-nanocomposites reinforced with NND=0.65. This occured due to the higher surface area of the nanoparticles alumina. Second, a multifractal analysis of the particles-agglomerated distribution was performed. In this ase, the thesis presented suggests that the interphase percolation threshold should occur when the fractal imension of the agglomerations is similar to fractal dimension of the individual particles distribution. From the critical percolation threshold estimated by the dielectric behavior was possible to calculate the interphase thickness, correlating the state of dispersion and the dielectric breakdown of the nanocomposites. Was found a nterphase with 61nm for nanocomposites reinforced with ZnO and 12nm for nanocomposites reinforced with alumina. The dielectric spectra showed a quasi-DC conductivity behavior in nanocomposites with lower filler fraction due to the trapping of additional water molecules in the electrical diffuse double-layer in interfaces. As the filler loading is increased, the interfacial polarization is less pronunciated because the larger overlapping of interphase. When the percolation threshold is reached in nanocomposites with higher fraction of particles, the material exhibits conductivity-DC. The dielectric behavior corroborates the measured value of the dielectric breakdown. The nanocomposites reinforced with 1%phr of ZnO and alumina are increased by 50% and 34% the dielectric breakdown as compared to DGEBA/OTBG pristine matrix. Whereas in nanocomposites reinforced with 15%phr at interphase percolation threshold, the variation in dielectric breakdown was deleterious. It is shown that the addition of nanoparticles does not cause change in free volume of the polymer matrix, thus the free volume changes did not corroborate the nanodielectrics performance. The calorimetric aspects of the curing reaction and mechanical properties were also investigated. It was observed that the zinc oxide catalyzes the crosslinking reaction by decreasing the activation energy of 65kJ/mol in the neat epoxy matrix to 53kJ/mol in the nanocomposite. Thus, its mechanical behavior is unlike modified due to variation in crosslink density of the matrix. While the use of nanoparticles of Al2O3 leads to mechanical toughness of nanocomposite, the addition of ZnO nanoparticles leads to embrittlement, as seen through cracks induced by scratch test. The glass transition temperature and hardness were increased to 95°C and 177MPa the neat epoxy matrix to 104°C and 198MPa in the ZnO-nanocomposite, showing a direct relationship with the effect of adding the nanoparticles in the crosslinking reaction. / Neste trabalho estudou-se revestimentos epoxídicos nanodielétricos DGEBA/OTBG reforçado com nanopartículas de alumina 10nm e oxido de zinco 90nm. Os nanocompósitos foram processados por extrusão dupla-rosca com frações de reforços de 1%phr, 3%phr, 6%phr e 15%phr. A dispersão das partículas foi investigada com o método FIB/FESEM. Então, as imagens coletadas foram tratadas para as analises quantitativas da dispersão. Dois métodos foram empregados na quantificação da dispersão. Primeiro, o índice para o vizinho mais próximo NND mostrou que os nanocompósitos reforçados com alumina apresentam um maior estado de aglomeração NND=0,45 em comparação aos nanocompósitos reforçados com ZnO NND=0,65. Isto ocorreu devido a superior área superficial das nanopartículas de alumina. Segundo, foi realizada uma analise multifractal da distribuição de partículas-aglomerados. Neste caso, a tese apresentada propõe que o limiar de percolação da interfase deve ocorrer quando a dimensão fractal das aglomerações for da mesma ordem da dimensão fractal da distribuição de partículas individuais. A partir do limiar critico de percolação estimado pelo comportamento dielétrico foi possível calcular a espessura da interfase correlacionando o estado de dispersão e a rigidez dielétrica dos nanocompósitos. Encontrou-se uma interfase com 61nm para os nanocompósitos reforçados com ZnO e com 12nm para os nanocompósitos reforçados com alumina. Os espectros dielétricos mostram um comportamento de condutividade quasi-DC nos nanocompósitos com pequena fração de reforços devido ao aprisionamento das adicionais moléculas de aguas nas duplascamadas elétricas nas interfaces. A medida que a fração e aumentada ocorrer uma polarização interfacial menos intensa dada a maior sobreposição das regiões de interfase. Quando o limiar de percolação e atingido nos nanocompósitos com grande fração de partículas, o material apresenta condutividade-DC. O comportamento dielétrico corrobora com o valor medido da rigidez dielétrica. Os nanocompósitos reforçados com 1%phr de alumina e ZnO aumentaram respectivamente em 50% e 34% o valor da rigidez dielétrica em comparação com a matriz DGEBA/OTBG não reforçada. Ao passo que, nos nanocompósitos com a interfase percolada reforçados com 15%phr a variação da rigidez dielétrica foi deletéria. Mostrou-se que a adição de nanopartículas não causa variação no volume livre da matriz polimérica, portanto, alterações do volume livre não corroboram para o desempenho de nanodielétricos. Os aspectos calorimétricos da reação de cura e as propriedades mecânicas também foram investigados. Observou-se que, o oxido de zinco catalisa a reação de reticulação diminuindo a energia de ativação de 65kJ/mol na matriz epoxídica não reforçada para 53kJ/mol no nanocompósito. Assim, o seu comportamento mecânico e diferentemente alterado devido a variação na densidade de reticulação da matriz. Enquanto, a utilização de nanopartículas de Al2O3 leva a tenacificação mecânica do nanocompósito, a adição de ZnO leva a fragilização, como verificado através de trincas induzidas com teste por risco realizado com um nanoindentador. A dureza e a temperatura de transição vítrea foram aumentadas de 177MPa e 95°C na matriz não reforçada para 198MPa e 104°C nos nanocompósitos, mostrando direta relação com o efeito da adição das nanopartículas na reação de reticulação.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-12-08T17:19:34Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Capa.pdf: 203956 bytes, checksum: 407d7f7b9ea4356c0eaa848e0eeb55d9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-02-25 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Multi-walled carbon nanotubos dispersed in epoxy matrix (DGEBA) were aligned by a sinusoidal electric field with amplitude of 300 V / cm and frequency 1 kHz, during curing of the nanocomposites. Nanocomposites were subjected to the electric field (aligned nanotubes) and samples cured without the presence of the field (with nanotubes dispersed randomly) and NC concentration equal to 0.05, 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5% (m / m). The morphologies of aligned carbon nanotubes networks, in samples submitted to the electric field were characterized by means transmitted light optical microscopy analysis. It was observed that the geometry of the networks is strongly influenced by the concentration of nanotubes. The monitoring of electrical conductivity during the curing of the samples, allowed us to identify the three main stages of formation of networks. The first is related to the alignment and clustering of NCPM, the second is related to the stability of the network and the third to the cure of epoxy matrix. The Classical Percolation Theory has been used to relate the electrical conductivity (dc) to the content of NCPM, and allowed to determine the exponent of the electrical conductivity and percolation threshold of aligned samples and samples without alignment. The trend of increase in the electrical conductivity exponent in the aligned samples indicates the formation of an anisotropic network, since the conductivity is favored in the direction of alignment. The percolation threshold showed a decrease in the sample aligned, which may relate to the facilitation of the electric conduction process through the material. As for the dielectric properties, nanocomposites analyzed showed a behavior similar to the dielectric described by the first order Debye dielectric dispersion model. Both samples type showed a relaxation time of electric dipoles in the order of milliseconds, typical of interfacial polarization. The permittivity of aligned samples exhibited a magnitude increase in frequency of 200 Hz. This behavior may be related to the increased ability to trap electrical charges due to the formation of the network carbon nanotubes. The DMA and DIL analysis showed that Tg of the aligned samples decrease, indicating that the alignment affect the restriction on the movement of polymer chains. The micro-hardness analysis was not sensitive enough to characterize the hardness anisotropy, depending on the alignment of NCPM dispersed in the matrix. In the other hand, it was revealed that the incorporation of nanotubes creates free volume within the material, which reduces the hardness of the nanocomposites compared with pure epoxy. / Nanotubos de paredes múltiplas (NCPM) dispersos em matriz epóxi (DGEBA) foram alinhados com o auxilio de um campo elétrico senoidal, de amplitude de 300 V/cm e freqüência de 1 kHz, durante a cura dos nanocompósitos. Foram fabricados nanocompósitos submetidos ao campo elétrico (nanotubos alinhados) e amostras curadas sem a presença do campo (com nanotubos dispersos de modo aleatório), com teores de NCPM iguais a 0,05; 0,1; 0,25 e 0,5 % (m/m). As morfologias das redes alinhadas, nas amostras submetidas ao campo, foram caracterizadas por meio das analises de microscopia óptica de luz transmitida. Foi possível notar que a geometria das redes e fortemente influenciada pela concentração de nanotubos. O monitoramento da condutividade elétrica, durante a cura das amostras linhadas, permitiu identificar as três principais etapas de formação das redes. A primeira esta relacionada com o processo de alinhamento e aglomeração lateral dos NCPM, a segunda esta relacionada com a estabilidade da rede e a terceira com a cura da matriz epóxi. A Teoria da Percolação Clássica foi utilizada para descrever a condutividade elétrica (cc) em função do teor de NCPM, e permitiu determinar o expoente de condutividade elétrica e o limiar de percolação das amostras alinhadas e das amostras sem alinhamento. A tendência de acréscimo do expoente de condutividade elétrica nas amostras alinhadas indica a formação de uma rede anisotrópica, uma vez que o fluxo elétrico e favorecido na direção do alinhamento. O limiar de percolação apresentou uma diminuição nas amostras alinhadas, que pode estar relacionado com a facilitação do processo de condução através do material. Como relação as propriedades dielétricas, os nanocompósitos analisados (0,5 % m/m, alinhados e sem alinhamento) apresentaram um comportamento similar aos dielétricos descritos pelo modelo de dispersão dielétrica de primeira ordem de Debye. Ambas as amostras apresentaram um tempo de relaxação dos dipolos elétricos na ordem de milissegundos, característico de polarização interfacial. Na freqüência de 200 Hz a permissividade elétrica exibiu um aumento na ordem de grandeza, nas amostras alinhadas. Este comportamento pode estar relacionado com o aumento da capacidade de aprisionar cargas elétricas, devido a formação da rede. As analises de DMA e DIL mostraram que a Tg das amostras alinhadas diminuem, indicando que o alinhamento prejudica a restrição dos movimentos das cadeias poliméricas. Já a analise de microdureza Vickers nao se mostrou sensível o bastante para caracterizar a anisotropia de tal propriedade, em função do alinhamento dos NCPM dispersos na matriz. Em contra partida, foi possível perceber que a incorporação de nanotubos gera volumes livres no interior do material, que diminui a dureza dos nanocompósitos, quando comparado com o epóxi puro.

O processamento em alta pressão é um método alternativo para a produção de materiais cerâmicos. Neste trabalho, pressões na ordem de 7,7 GPa e 2,5 GPa foram aplicadas em amostras, em diferentes temperaturas, que foram colocadas em uma célula de reação específica, gerando diferentes efeitos na formação de fases. A composição de fases foi analisada por difração de raios X e a evolução microestrutural, associada ao processamento em alta pressão, foi investigada por microscopia eletrônica por varredura em associação com a espectroscopia por dispersão de energia. Um analisador de resposta de frequência foi utilizado para obter as curvas ferroelétricas por espectroscopia de impedância eletroquímica. A utilização de alta pressão (2,5 GPa) possibilitou a obtenção de amostras de SrBi2Ta2O9 monofásicas com elevada densidade relativa, acima de 93%, após sinterização a uma temperatura de 900 °C. Essa temperatura é inferior às usualmente necessárias para obter alta densificação utilizando métodos convencionais de sinterização. Além disso, as amostras processadas em alta pressão apresentaram uma resposta dielétrica similar às amostras de SrBi2Ta2O9 sinterizadas por processos convencionais em temperaturas acima de 1000 ºC. / High-pressure processing is a very attractive approach for the production of ceramic materials. In this work, pressures about 7.7 GPa and 2.5 GPa were applied in SrBi2Ta2O9 samples at different temperatures placed in a specific reaction cell. X-ray diffraction was used to identify the different phases produced as a function of the processing conditions. The microstructural evolution, associated to the high-pressure processing, was investigated by scanning electron microscopy in association with energy dispersive spectroscopy. Frequency response analysis was used to obtain the ferroelectric curves by electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. A highly densified (> 93% of theoretical density) single-phase (SrBi2Ta2O9) sample was obtained after processing at 2.5 GPa and 900 ºC. This temperature is lower than those necessary to obtain high densification, when conventional sintering processes are employed. In addition, the samples produced by high pressure processing showed a dielectric response similar to SrBi2Ta2O9 samples sintered by conventional processes at temperatures above 1000 ºC.

Le développement des polymères conducteurs, surtout en termes de stabilité, a permis de les intégrer dans les dispositifs électroniques pour des applications à haute valeur ajoutée. C'est la raison pour laquelle les condensateurs tantale initialement basés sur la technologie MnO2, en tant que cathode, ont été améliorés avec le remplacement de cette dernière par un polymère organique conducteur. Ces nouveaux condensateurs tantale-polymère sont constitués d'une anode en tantale frittée, d'un film diélectrique en oxyde de tantale, et d'une cathode en polymère conducteur, typiquement le poly(3,4-éthylènedioxythiophène) (PEDOT). Le fonctionnement des condensateurs a d'abord été optimisé uniquement pour de faibles capacités par polymérisation in situ. L'étape suivante consiste à atteindre de plus grandes capacités par imprégnation du polymère conducteur pré-synthétisé. Notre travail a été axé sur la caractérisation fine et la fabrication de prototypes de condensateur. Pour mener à bien cette étude, chaque partie du condensateur tantale-polymère a été caractérisée par différentes techniques physico-chimiques. Nous avons, entre autres, étudié la microstructure du réseau de tantale et les propriétés de la solution commerciale de polymère conducteur pour déterminer les paramètres d'imprégnation des condensateurs. Les caractérisations effectuées au laboratoire sont complétées par une évaluation des performances électriques des prototypes fabriqués dans l'entreprise. Tout ce travail a contribué à la mise sur le marché d'une nouvelle gamme de condensateurs tantale-polymère par l'entreprise Exxelia Tantalum. En parallèle, une étude a été consacrée à la synthèse d'un nouveau couple de polymère plus performant dans le but de remplacer le polymère commercial. / The development of conducting polymers, especially in terms of environmental stability, has allowed them to be used in electronic devices for high value applications. That's why tantalum capacitors initially based on MnO2 cathode technology have been improved by the replacement of it with a conducting polymer. Tantalum-polymer capacitors consist of a sintered tantalum anode, an anodic tantalum oxide film as a dielectric, and a conductive polymer cathode made of poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT). Until recently, those capacitors have been optimized only for low capacities by in situ polymerization. The next step is to reach higher capacities using an impregnated conductive polymer. Our work focused on the characterization and fabrication of capacitors. The main study focused on the characterization of each part of the tantalum-polymer capacitor via physico-chemical investigations. We studied the microstructure of the tantalum network and the properties of the commercial polymer solution to determine parameters for the dip-coating of tantalum anodes. This laboratory characterization is complemented by an assessment of the electrical performances of samples within the company. All this work has contributed to a new range of tantalum-polymer capacitors by Exxelia Tantalum Company. At the same time, a study has been performed in the synthesis of a new pair of polymers in order to replace the commercial polymer.

A variety of high-permittivity (high-k) and low-loss ceramic-thermoplastic composite materials as fused deposition modeling (FDM) feedstock, based on cyclo-olefin polymer (COP) embedded with sintered ceramic fillers, have been developed and investigated for direct digital manufacturing (DDM) of microwave components. The composites presented in this dissertation use a high-temperature sintering process up to 1500°C to further enhance the dielectric properties of the ceramic fillers. The electromagnetic (EM) properties of these newly developed FDM composites were characterized up to the Ku-band by using the cavity perturbation technique. Several models for prediction of the effective relative dielectric permittivity of composites based on the filler loading volume fraction have been evaluated, among which Hanai-Bruggeman and Maxwell models have shown the best accuracy with less than 2% and 5% discrepancies, respectively. The 30 vol. % COP-TiO2 FDM-ready composites with fillers sintered at 1200°C have exhibited a relative permittivity (εr) of 4.78 and a dielectric loss tangent (tan δd) lower than 0.0012 at 17 GHz. Meanwhile, the 30 vol. % COP-MgCaTiO2 composites with fillers sintered at 1200°C have exhibited a εr of 4.82 and a tan δd lower than 0.0018. The DDM approach combines FDM of the engineered EM composites and micro-dispensing for deposition of conductive traces to fabricate by 3D-printing edge-fed patch antennas operating at 17.2 GHz and 16.5 GHz. These antennas were demonstrated by employing a 25 vol. % COP-MgCaTiO2 composite FDM filament with the fillers sintered at 1100°C and a pure COP filament, which were both prepared and extruded following the process described in this dissertation. The low dielectric loss of the 25 vol. % COP-MgCaTiO2 composite material (tan δd lower than 0.0018) has been leveraged to achieve a peak realized gain of 6 dBi. Also, the high-permittivity (εr of 4.74), which corresponds to an index of refraction of 2.17, results in a patch area miniaturization of 50% when compared with an antenna designed and DPAM-printed over a Rogers RT/duroid® 5870 laminate core through micro-dispensing of CB028 silver paste. This reference antenna exhibited a measured peak realized gain of 6.27 dBi that is comparable. Also, two low-loss FDM-ready composite materials for DDM technologies are presented and characterized at V-band mm-wave frequencies. Pure COP thermoplastic exhibits a relative permittivity εr of 2.1 and a dielectric loss tangent tan δd below 0.0011 at 69 GHz, whereas 30 vol. % COP-MgCaTiO2 composites with fillers sintered at 1200°C exhibit a εr of 4.88 and a tan δd below 0.0070 at 66 GHz. To the best of my knowledge, these EM properties (combination of high-k and low-loss) are superior to other 3D-printable microwave materials reported by the scientific microwave community and are on par with materials developed for high-performance microwave laminates by RF/microwave industry as shown in Chapter 5 and Chapter 7 and summarized in Table 5.4 and Table 7.1. Meanwhile, the linear coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) from -25°C to 100°C of the reinforced 30 vol. % COP-MgCaTiO2 composite with fillers sintered at 1200°C is 64.42 ppm/°C, which is about 20 ppm/°C lower when compared with pure ABS and 10 ppm/°C lower as compared to high-temperature polyetherimide (PEI) ULTEM™ 9085 resin from Stratasys, Ltd. The CTE at 20°C of the same composite material is 84.8 ppm/°C which is about 20 ppm/°C lower when compared with pure ABS that is widely used by the research community for 3D printed RF/microwave devices by FDM. The electromagnetic (EM) composites with tailored EM properties studied by this work have a great potential for enabling the next generation of high-performance 3D-printed RF/microwave devices and antennas operating at the Ku-band, K-band, and mm-wave frequencies.

In recent years, advanced high κ gate dielectrics are under serious consideration to replace SiO2 and SiON in semiconductor industry. Hafnium-based dielectrics such as hafnium oxides, oxynitrides and Hf-based silicates/nitrided silicates are emerging as some of the most promising alternatives to SiO2/SiON gate dielectrics in complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) devices. Extensive efforts have been taken to understand the effects of hydrogen impurities in semiconductors and its behavior such as incorporation, diffusion, trapping and release with the aim of controlling and using it to optimize the performance of electronic device structures. In this dissertation, a systematic study of hydrogen trapping and the role of carbon impurities in various alternate gate dielectric candidates, HfO2/Si, HfxSi1-xO2/Si, HfON/Si and HfON(C)/Si is presented. It has been shown that processing of high κ dielectrics may lead to some crystallization issues. Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS) for measuring oxygen deficiencies, elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA) for quantifying hydrogen and nuclear reaction analysis (NRA) for quantifying carbon, X-ray diffraction (XRD) for measuring degree of crystallinity and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize these thin dielectric materials. ERDA data are used to characterize the evolution of hydrogen during annealing in hydrogen ambient in combination with preprocessing in oxygen and nitrogen.