<p> Ni K extended X-ray absorption fine structure spectroscopy recorded with synchrotron radiation at 77 K and 300 K, has been used to investigate various annealed Pd40Ni40P20 metallic glass samples. The structural parameters (radial distance, coordination number, Debye Waller factor) for the Fourier filtered first coordination shell were obtained via curve analysis using MFIT (multifitting analysis) and plotted as a function of annealing temperature. Similar trends between 77 K and 300 K data were not observed in all cases. These results lead one to believe that the curve fitting procedure is not yet optimized and makes one sceptical of attributing any meaning to the results.</p> <p> X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy via electron yield detection has also been used to study the B K edge in boron doped silicon. It was found that a strong peak at 195 eV is directly related to trigonally coordinated boron. Non trigonally coordinated boron did not seem to produce this spike. Results show that B 1s spectroscopy is a very sensitive probe of the local structure of boron.</p> / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

abstract: Programmable Metallization Cell (PMC) is a resistance-switching device based on migration of nanoscale quantities of cations in a solid electrolyte and formation of a conducting electrodeposit by the reductions of these cations. This dissertation presents electrical characterization results on Cu-SiO2 based PMC devices, which due to the na- ture of materials can be easily integrated into the current Complimentary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process line. Device structures representing individual mem- ory cells based on W bottom electrode and n-type Si bottom electrode were fabricated for characterization. For the W bottom electrode based devices, switching was ob- served for voltages in the range of 500mV and current value as low as 100 nA showing the electrochemical nature and low power potential. The ON state showed a direct de- pendence on the programming current, showing the possibility of multi-bit storage in a single cell. Room temperature retention was demonstrated in excess of 105 seconds and endurance to approximately 107 cycles. Switching was observed for microsecond duration 3 V amplitude pulses. Material characterization results from Raman, X-ray diffraction, Rutherford backscattering and Secondary-ion mass spectroscopy analysis shows the influence of processing conditions on the Cu concentration within the film and also the presence of Cu as free atoms. The results seemed to indicate stress-induced void formation in the SiO2 matrix as the driving mechanism for Cu diffusion into the SiO2 film. Cu/SiO2/nSi based PMC devices were characterized and were shown to have inherent isolation characteristics, proving the feasibility of such a structure for a passive array. The inherent isolation property simplifies fabrication by avoiding the need for a separate diode element in an array. The isolation characteristics were studied mainly in terms of the leakage current. The nature of the diode interface was further studied by extracting a barrier potential which shows it can be approximated to a Cu-nSi metal semiconductor Schottky diode. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Electrical Engineering 2011

The manipulation of photons, especially the control of spontaneous emission, has become a core area of photonics research in the 21st century. One of the key challenges is the control of the broadband emission profile of thermal emitters. Recently, attention has focused on resonant nanophotonic structures to control the thermal emission with most of the work concentrating on the mid-infrared wavelength range and/or based on metallic nanostructures. However, the realisation of a high temperature, single wavelength, narrowband and efficient thermal source, remains a challenge. In this project, four individual nanophotonic resonant structures are presented for the control of thermal emission, all operating in the near-infrared (≈ 1.5 μm) wavelength range. The work is split over two different emission materials; gold and doped silicon. While I present two successful designs of narrowband thermal emitters from gold, the main backbone of the research is concentrated on doped silicon as the emission material. By combining the weak broadband absorption of doped silicon with a photonic crystal resonator, resonantly enhanced narrowband absorption is achieved. Using Kirchhoff's law of thermal radiation which equates the absorptivity and emissivity, narrowband absorption leads to narrowband emission, which is the underlying principle used throughout the work presented in this thesis to achieve narrowband thermal emission. One common oversight in many of the presented thermal emitter designs is the angular emission dependence, i.e. how the emission wavelength behaves away from surface normal. Typically, since the majority of the devices are based on periodic structures, the resonant emission wavelength changes with emission angle, which is not ideal. Here, the angular sensitivity is considered and addressed, by constructing a device that is based on localised confined resonances and not on propagating resonances, it is possible to achieve a truly monochromatic source i.e. one with the same emission wavelength in all directions, all the way up to an angle of 90°. Finally, the devices presented here demonstrate that weak absorption together with photonic resonances can be used as a wavelength-selection mechanism for thermal emitters, both for the enhancement and the suppression of emission away from the resonant wavelength.

This dissertation aims to advance the current state of use of silicon atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilevers with integrated heaters. To this end, the research consists of two primary thrusts - demonstrating new applications for the cantilevers, and advancing the current state of understanding of their thermal and mechanical behavior to enable further applications. Among new applications, two are described. In the first application, the cantilevers are used for nanoscale material deposition, using heat to modulate the delivery of material from the nanoscale tip. In the second application, the cantilever performs thermal analysis with nanoscale spatial resolution, enabling thermal characterization of near surface and composite interphase regions that cannot be measured with bulk analysis techniques. The second thrust of the research seeks to address fundamental questions concerning the precision use of heated cantilevers. Efforts to this end include characterizing the mechanical, electrical, and thermal behavior of the cantilevers, and optimizing calibration methodology. A technique is developed for calibrating the cantilever spring constant while operating at elevated temperature. Finally, an analytical model is developed for the heat flow in the cantilever tip and relevant dimensionless numbers that govern the relative importance of the various components of the thermal environment are identified. The dimensionless numbers permit exploration of the sensitivity of the tip-substrate interface temperature to the environmental conditions.

abstract: Estimation of complex permittivity of arsenic-doped silicon is the primary topic of discussion in this thesis presentation. The frequency that is of interest is 2.45 GHz, frequency typically used in conventional microwave ovens. The analysis is based on closed-form analytical expressions of cylindrical symmetry. A coaxial/radial line junction with the central conductor sheathed in dielectric material, which is As-doped silicon in this case, are analyzed. Electrical and magnetic field equations governing the wave propagation in this setup are formulated by applying the necessary boundary conditions. Input admittance is computed using the fields in the device and reflection coefficient is calculated at the input. This analytical solution is matched to the reflection coefficient acquired by experiments conducted, using VNA as the input source. The contemplation is backed by simulation using High Frequency Structural Simulator, HFSS. Susceptor-assisted microwave heating has been shown to be a faster and easier method of annealing arsenic-doped silicon samples. In that study, it was noticed that the microwave power absorbed by the sample can directly be linked to the heat power required for the annealing process. It probes the validity of the statement that for arsenic-doped silicon the heating curve depends only on its sheet properties and not on the bulk as such and the results presented here gives more insight to it as to why this assumption is true. The results obtained here can be accepted as accurate since it is known that this material is highly conductive and electromagnetic waves do not penetrate in to the material beyond a certain depth, which is given by the skin depth of the material. Hall measurements and four-point-probe measurements are performed on the material in support of the above contemplation. / Dissertation/Thesis / M.S. Electrical Engineering 2014

Silicon photonics (SiP) has evolved into a mature platform for cost-effective low power compact integrated photonic microsystems for many applications. There is a looming capacity crunch for telecommunications infrastructure to overcome the data-hungry future, driven by streaming and the exponential increase in data traffic from consumer-driven products. To increase data capacity, researchers are now looking at the wavelength window of the thulium-doped fiber amplifier (TDFA), centered near 2 µm as an attractive new transmission window for optical communications, motivated by the demonstrations of low loss, low nonlinearity, and high bandwidth transmission. Large-scale implementation of SiP telecommunication infrastructure will require light sources (lasers) and amplifiers to generate signals and boost transmitted and/or received signals, respectively. Silicon (Si) and silicon nitride (Si3N4) have become the leading photonic integrated circuit (PIC) material platforms, due to their low-cost and wafer-scale production of high-performance circuits. Silicon does however have a number of limitations as a photonic material, including that it is not an ideal light-emitting/amplifying material. This proposed research pertains to the fabrication of on-chip silicon and silicon nitride lasers and amplifiers to be used in a newly accessible optical communications window of the TDFA band, which is a significant step towards compact PICs for the telecommunication networks. Tellurium oxide (TeO2) is an interesting host material due to its large linear and non-linear refractive indices, low material losses and large rare-earth dopant solubility showing good performance for compact low-loss waveguides and on-chip light sources and amplifiers. Chapter 1 provides an overview of silicon photonics in the context of particularly rare earth lasers and amplifiers, operating at extended wavelengths enabled by the Thulium doped fiber amplifier. Chapter 2 presents a theoretical performance of waveguides and microresonators as the efficient structure for laser and amplifiers applications designed for optimized use in Erbium and Thulium doped fiber amplifier wavelength bands. Then spectroscopic study thulium (Tm3+) has been studied as the rare earth element for Thulium doped fiber amplifier wavelength bands. Chapter 3 presents an experimental study of TeO2:Tm3+ coated Si3N4 waveguide amplifiers with internal net gains of up to 15 dB total in a 5-cm long spiral waveguide. Chapter 4 provides a study of TeO2:Tm3+ -coated Si3N4 waveguide lasers with up to 16 mW double-sided on-chip output power. Chapter 5 presents an experimental study of low loss and high-quality factor silicon microring resonators coated with TeO2 for active, passive, and nonlinear applications. Chapter 6 represents the first demonstration of an integrated rare-earth silicon laser, with high performance, including single-mode emission, a lasing threshold of 4 mW, and bidirectional on-chip output powers of around 1 mW. Further results with a different design are presented showing lasers with more than 2 mW of double-sided on-chip output power, threshold pump powers of < 1 mW and lasing at wavelengths over a range of > 100 nm. Importantly, a simple, low-cost design was used which is compatible with silicon photonics foundry processes and enables wafer scale integration of such lasers in SiP PICs using robust materials. Chapter 7 summarizes the thesis and provides paths for future work. / Dissertation / Doctor of Engineering (DEng)

Ces travaux se sont consacrés à l’étude de l’intégration du silicium poreux au procédé de fabrication des TRIACs. Ce matériau a pour but d’optimiser les structures actuelles du point de vue de leur périphérie. Son utilisation en tant que terminaison de jonction pourrait ouvrir la voie à une diminution de la taille des puces et donc augmenter la quantité de puces par wafer. Le silicium poreux est intégré aux périphéries des TRIACs par gravure électrochimique dans du silicium faiblement dopé n (30−40 Ω.cm). Pour assurer le bon déroulement de la réaction et ce dans un cadre industriel, la technique d’injection de trous depuis une jonction p+/n est étudiée. L’influence des paramètres d’anodisation dans ces conditions est analysée. Une double couche composée de silicium macroporeux rempli de silicium mésoporeux et surmonté d’une couche de nucléation a été obtenue. Le silicium poreux est localisé dans la périphérie des TRIACs. Des mesures de tenue en tension d’une jonction p/n présentant cette terminaison à base de silicium poreux ont été évaluées et ont montrées des tenues en tension dix fois supérieures à la même structure sans silicium poreux. Toutefois, des perspectives d’amélioration sont proposées car ces résultats restent insuffisants. / The integration of porous silicon to TRIACs process is studied. The aim of this material is to optimize current structures dedicated to electrical insulation of those components namely the periphery. The use of porous silicon as junction termination could allow the increase of the number of die per wafer. Porous silicon is integrated to TRIAC peripheries by electrochemical etching in low doped n type silicon (30−40 Ω.cm). Hole injection from a p+/n junction is studied to determine the performance of the reaction as part of an industrial microelectronic process. The reaction parameters are studied in those conditions. A double layer consisting in a macroporous layer fully filled with mesoporous silicon and surmounted by a nucleation layer, is obtained. Porous silicon formation is limited to TRIAC peripheries. Voltage withstand of a p/n junction with porous silicon termination shows values ten times higher than the same structure without this insulator. Nevertheless, prospects of improvement are suggested because those results are insufficient.

Conventional computing faces a huge technical challenge as traditional transistors will soon reach their size limitations. This will halt progress in reaching faster processing speeds and to overcome this problem, require an entirely new approach. Quantum computing (QC) is a natural solution offering a route to miniaturisation by, for example, storing information in electron or nuclear spin states, whilst harnessing the power of quantum physics to perform certain calculations exponentially faster than its classical counterpart. However, QCs face many difficulties, such as, protecting the quantum-bit (qubit) from the environment and its irreversible loss through the process of decoherence. Hybrid systems provide a route to harnessing the benefits of multiple degrees of freedom through the coherent transfer of quantum information between them. In this thesis I show coherent qubit transfer between electron and nuclear spin states in a ¹⁵N@C₆₀ molecular system (comprising a nitrogen atom encapsulated in a carbon cage) and a solid state system, using phosphorous donors in silicon (Si:P). The propagation uses a series of resonant mi- crowave and radiofrequency pulses and is shown with a two-way fidelity of around 90% for an arbitrary qubit state. The transfer allows quantum information to be held in the nuclear spin for up to 3 orders of magnitude longer than in the electron spin, producing a ¹⁵N@C₆₀ and Si:P ‘quantum memory’ of up to 130 ms and 1.75 s, respectively. I show electron and nuclear spin relaxation (T₁), in both systems, is dominated by a two-phonon process resonant with an excited state, with a constant electron/nuclear T₁ ratio. The thesis further investigates the decoherence and relaxation properties of metal atoms encapsulated in a carbon cage, termed metallofullerenes, discovering that exceptionally long electron spin decoherence times are possible, such that these can be considered a viable QC candidate.