An optical surface roughness model is presented, which allows a reliable determination of the dielectric function of thin films with high surface roughnesses of more than 10 nm peak to valley distance by means of spectroscopic ellipsometry. Starting from histogram evaluation of atomic force microscopy (AFM) topography measurements a specific roughness layer (RL) model was developed for an organic thin film grown in vacuum which is well suited as an example. Theoretical description based on counting statistics allows generalizing the RL model developed to be used for all non-conducting materials. Finally, a direct input of root mean square (RMS) values found by AFM measurements into the proposed model is presented, which is important for complex ellipsometric evaluation models where a reduction of the amount of unknown parameters can be crucial. Exemplarily, the evaluation of a N,N’-dimethoxyethyl-3,4,9,10-perylene-tetracarboxylic-diimide (DiMethoxyethyl-PTCDI) film is presented, which exhibits a very high surface roughness, i.e. showing no homogeneous film at all.

Im Rahmen dieser Arbeit werden Schichten und Schichtsyteme untersucht, die mittels D.C. gepulstem Magnetronzerstäuben abgeschieden wurden. Die Untersuchungen der Schichten erfolgen unter dem Gesichtspunkt der Eignung dieser Schichten als Kontaktschichten für photovoltaische Anwendungen. Eine detaillierte Studie der Schichteigenschaften wurde mit Hilfe von optischen Spektroskopiemethoden sowie elektrischen Messungen erstellt. Diese stellt die Zusammenhänge der Abscheideparameter, insbesondere der Substrattemperatur und der Wasserstoffflussrate bei der Abscheidung mit den Schichteigenschaften her. Des Weiteren werden die wechselseitigen Abhängigkeiten der Schichteigenschaften dargelegt. Hierbei wurde unter anderem gezeigt, dass der allgemein in der Literatur akzeptierte lineare Zusammenhang zwischen der Tauc-Lorentz Bandlücke und dem Wasserstoffgehalt nicht für alle Proben bestätigt werden konnte. Stattdessen wurde die Abhängigkeit der Bandlücke im Wesentlichen dem Anteil der polyhydrierten Siliziumatome innerhalb der Schicht zugeordnet. Für Teilmengen der Proben ergibt sich hieraus wieder eine nahezu lineare Abhängigkeit zwischen dem Wasserstoffgehalt und der Bandlücke. Im zweiten Teil der Arbeit werden Heterostruktur-Dioden untersucht, die sich an der Grenzfläche zwischen amorphem und kristallinem Silizium ausbilden. Dabei werden vordergründig die elektrischen Eigenschaften untersucht. Dies umfasst die Untersuchung der Abscheideparameter auf grenzflächennahe Defektzustände, die mittels Ladungstransientenspektroskopie (QTS) gefunden wurden. Zudem wird der begünstigende Einfluss des kristallinen Siliziumsubstrats auf die Ausbildung von mikrokristallinen Strukturen der aufwachsenden Schichten mittels ramanspektroskopischen Untersuchungen dargelegt.

Switching of surface composition and morphology of binary polymer brushes in response to changes in solvent selectivity, heating above glass transition temperatures, and contact with a rubbery stamp was studied. The binary brushes: polystyrene/poly(2-vinyl pyridine) (PS/P2VP), poly(styrene-co-2,3,4,5,6-pentafluorostyrene)/poly(methyl (meth)acrylate) (PSF/P(M)MA), and PS/PMMA were synthesized via two-step surface-initiated radical polymerization. Wetting experiments show that switching of brushes? surface composition upon exposure to solvents of various thermodynamic quality occurs faster than in 6 s. It takes longer time (5-10 min), if rate of solvent diffusion into the brush film is low. Discontinuous switching of surface composition of binary brushes is found upon exposure to binary solvents with gradually changed selectivity. X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) shows quantitatively that the top brush layer (1) is dominated by respective favourite polymers after exposure to solvents of opposite selectivity and (2) comprises both brush constituents in almost symmetric ratio after exposure to non-selective solvents. Morphologies of binary brushes obtained after exposure to the solvents were studied with Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Local top layer composition was sensed with X-ray Photoemission Electron Microscopy (XPEEM). The morphologies are relevant to the particular solvents, reproducible, and independent on previous solvents. Phase segregation beneath the brush top layers was visualized with plasma etching. Qualitative agreement of the experimentally observed morphologies and predicted with self-consistent field theory is found. Enrichment of a binary brush top layer with the polymer providing lower surface energy takes place after annealing. Perpendicular segregation of binary brush constituents was sensed with XPEEM on perpendicular walls of imprinted elevations after wet microcontact printing.

The research presented in this dissertation is focused on the construction of complex molecular structures on planar gold and silicon dioxide surfaces using a variety of surface modification techniques, along with thorough surface characterization at each modification step. The dissertation is structured into six separate chapters. In Chapter 1, an introduction to the importance and implications of molecular level surface modification, commonly employed surface modification methods, and available surface characterization techniques is presented. Chapter 2 shows applications of novel methodologies for the functionalization of gold surfaces using alkane dithiol self-assembled monolayers and thiol-ene click chemistry. The resulting functionalized gold substrates demonstrate higher chemical stability than alkanethiol self-assembled monolayers alone and allow spatially controlled functionalization of gold surfaces with light. In Chapter 3, work on tunable hydrophobic surfaces is presented. These surfaces are prepared using a combination of organosilane chemistry, layer-by-layer polyelectrolyte deposition, and thiol-ene chemistry. These hydrophobic surfaces demonstrate high mechanical and chemical stability, even at low pH (1.68). The pinning of water droplets could be tuned on them by the extent of their thermal treatment. Comprehensive surface characterization using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), spectroscopic ellipsometry, atomic force microscopy, and water contact angles was carried out on the molecular assemblies prepared on gold and silicon dioxide surfaces. Chapters 4 and 5 are focused on the application, data interpretation, and enhancement in sensitivity of different surface characterization methods. In Chapter 4, XPS, ToF-SIMS, and principal components analysis are used to probe a real world corrosion-type problem. This systemic study showed the destruction of a protective coating composed of a nitrilotris(methylene)triphosphonic acid by a low-intensity fluorine plasma. In Chapter 5, enhancement in ToF-SIMS signals is shown via bismuth metal deposition. These surfaces are also probed by spectroscopic ellipsometry using the interference enhancement method. Finally, Chapter 6 concludes this dissertation by describing possible future work.

Although amorphous dielectrics feature localized states in the conduction band, electrons excited by highly intense laser radiation are usually considered as nearly free. However, localized or nearly free electrons would result in significantly different optical properties of the material. Therefore, this thesis investigates the transient complex refractive index of amorphous fused silica during the interaction with ultrashort pulsed laser radiation by applying spectroscopic imaging pump-probe ellipsometry. A Drude model, describing the excited electrons as a nearly free electron gas, and a Lorentz model, which considers the excited electrons as bound in localized states, are then approximated to the measured transient complex refractive index. The Lorentz model replicates the experimental data very well in the considered temporal range up to 200 fs after irradiation, whereas the Drude model significantly differs. Hence, the electrons are excited into localized states first, and are not describable as nearly free upon irradiation. / Obwohl amorphe Dielektrika lokalisierte Zustände im Leitungsband aufweisen, werden Elektronen, die durch hoch intensive Laserstrahlung angeregt werden, üblicherweise als quasifrei betrachtet. Im Gegensatz zu quasifreien Elektronen würden lokalisierte Elektronen jedoch zu deutlich anderen transienten optischen Eigenschaften des Materials führen. Daher wird in dieser Arbeit der transiente komplexe Brechungsindex von amorphem Quarzglas während der Wechselwirkung mit ultrakurz gepulster Laserstrahlung mittels spektroskopischer, abbildender Pump-Probe Ellipsometrie untersucht. Jeweils ein Drude-Modell, das die angeregten Elektronen als ein quasifreies Elektronengas beschreibt, und ein Lorentz-Modell, welches die angeregten Elektronen als in lokalisierten Zuständen gebunden betrachtet, werden anschließend mit dem gemessenen transienten komplexen Brechungsindex verglichen. Das Lorentz-Modell repliziert die experimentellen Daten im betrachteten Zeitbereich bis zu 200 fs nach der Bestrahlung sehr gut, während das Drude-Modell deutlich abweicht. Demnach werden die Elektronen zunächst in lokalisierte Zustände angeregt und können während und kurz nach der Bestrahlung nicht als quasifrei beschrieben werden.

No description available.

With the increasing importance of hand-held devices with touch displays, the need for flat panel displays (FPDs) will likely increase in the future. Glass is the most important substrate for FPD manufacturing, where both its bulk and surface properties are critical for its performance. Many properties of the glass used in FPDs are controlled by its surface chemistry. Surface hydroxyls are the most important functional groups on a glass surface, which control processes that occurs on oxide surfaces, including wetting, adhesion, electrostatic charging and discharge, and the rate of contamination. In this dissertation, I present a new approach for determining surface silanol densities on planar surfaces. This methodology consists of tagging surface silanols using atomic layer deposition (ALD) followed by low energy ion scattering (LEIS) analysis of the tags. The LEIS signal is limited to the outermost atomic layer, i.e., LEIS is an extremely surface sensitive technique. Quantification in LEIS is straightforward in the presence of suitable reference materials. An essential part of any LEIS measurement is the preparation and characterization of the sample and appropriate reference materials that best represent the samples. My tag-and-count method was applied to chemically and thermally treated fused silica. In this work, I determined the silanol density of a fully hydroxylated fused silica surface to be 4.67 OH/nm2. This value agrees with the literature value for high surface area silica powder. My methodology should be important in future glass studies. Surface Science Spectra (SSS) is an important, peer-reviewed database of spectra from surfaces. Recently, SSS has been expanding to accept spectra from new surface techniques. I created the first SSS submission form for LEIS spectra (see appendix 5), and used it to create the first SSS LEIS paper (on CaF2 and Au reference materials, see chapter 3). I also show LEIS reference spectra for ZnO, and copper in the appendix 1. The rest of my dissertation focuses on my chemometrics/informatics and data analysis work. For example, I showed the performance and capabilities of a series of summary statistics as new tools for unsupervised exploratory data analysis (EDA) (see chapter 4). Unsupervised EDA is often the first step in understanding complex data sets because it can group, and even classify, samples according to their spectral similarities and differences. Pattern recognition entropy (PRE) and other summary statistics are direct methods for analyzing data - they are not factor-based approaches like principal component analysis (PCA) or multivariate curve resolution (MCR). I show that, in general, PRE outperforms the other summary statistics, especially in image analysis, although I recommend a suite of summary statistics be used in exploring complex data sets. In addition, I introduce the concept of divided spectrum-PRE (DS-PRE) as a new EDA method and use it to analyze multiple data sets. DS-PRE increases the discrimination power of PRE. I have also prepared a guide that discusses the vital aspects and considerations for chemometrics/informatics analyses of XPS data along with specific EDA tools that can be used to probe XPS data sets, including PRE, PCA, MCR, and cluster analysis (see chapter 5). I emphasize the importance of an initial evaluation/plotting of raw data, data preprocessing, returning to the original data after a chemometrics/informatics analysis, and determining the number of abstract factors to keep in an analysis, including reconstructing the data using PCA. In my thesis, I also show the analysis of commercial automotive lubricant oils (ALOs) with various chemometrics techniques (see chapter 6). Using these methods, the ALO samples were readily differentiated according to their American Petroleum Institute (API) classification and base oil types: mineral, semi-synthetic, and synthetic.

Auf dielektrische Substrate wurden Schichten aus Gold thermisch aufgedampft. Die Schichten wurden neben anderen Methoden wie AFM oder der Messung der Schichtleitfähigkeiten hauptsächlich mit Hilfe der spektroskopischen IR-Ellipsometrie (SIRE) in einem Schichtdickenbereich von 4 bis 60 nm systematisch untersucht. Aus den primär ermittelten ellipsometrischen Parametern tan(Psi) und Delta lassen sich der Brechungsindex n und der Absorptionsindex k bestimmen und auch weitere Größen wie z.B. der elektrische Widerstand bzw. die elektrische Leitfähigkeit errechnen. Die untersuchten Schichten lassen sich anhand der optischen, topographischen und elektrischen Eigenschaften in drei Gruppen einteilen: Dielektrische, aus isolierten Goldinseln bestehende Filme (4 bis 6 nm), Schichten in einem Übergangsbereich (8 bis ca. 16 nm), metallische Schichten (ab ca. 16 nm). Die dielektrischen Goldinselfilme zeigen optische Eigenschaften, die bislang für keine anderen Proben beschrieben worden sind. Der Brechungsindex n ist hoch (4 bis 9 bei 2400/cm) und der Absorptionsindex k klein (0 bis 4 bei 2400/cm). Beide Indizes sind spektral weitgehend konstant. Daß diese Filme dielektrische Eigenschaften besitzen, steht in direktem Widerspruch zur allgemeinen SEIRA-Literatur. Die Inselstruktur der dielektrischen Filme verursacht einen Verstärkungseffekt, der als Oberflächenverstärkte Infrarotabsorption (surface-enhanced infrared absorption - SEIRA) bekannt ist. Es zeigte sich, daß die optischen Konstanten der Filme einen erheblichen Einfluß auf die SEIRA-Verstärkung ausüben. Um Inselfilme mit reproduzierbaren optischen Eigenschaften herstellen zu können, wurde ein lithographisches Verfahren entwickelt. Auf einer geschlossenen, homogenen Goldschicht wurden monodisperse Nanopartikel aus Polystyrol (PS) in einer Monolage deponiert. Die PS-Nanopartikel dienten in einem trockenen Ätzprozeß im Ar-Plasma als lithographische Maske, um die darunterliegende Au-Schicht zu strukturieren. / Thin films were produced on dielectric substrates by thermal evaporation of gold in a high vacuum chamber. These films were investigated systematically in a range between 4 and 60 nm thickness. The method mainly applied was the spectroscopic IR-ellipsometry (SIRE), in addition to other methods like AFM or sheet resistance measurement. The primary results are the ellipsometric parameters tan(Psi) and Delta. They were used to determine the refractive index n and the absorption index k. Electrical parameters can also be calculated. Depending on the optical, topographical and electrical properties the population of different layers can be divided into three parts: dielectric films with isolated gold islands (4 to 6 nm), layers in a transient area (8 to ca. 16 nm), metal films (ca. 16 to 60 nm). The optical properties shown by dielectric gold island films were never before described for other samples. The refractive index n is high (4 to 9 at 2400/cm) and the absorption index small (0 to 4 at 2400/cm). Both indices are nearly constant in the spectral range. Directly in contrast to the SEIRA-literature the island films show dielectric properties. The island structure of the dielectric films gives rise to an enhancement effect called surface-enhanced infrared absorption (SEIRA). It could be shown that the optical constants of the island films have a considerable influence on the enhancement factors. A lithographic method was developed in order to find a way for manufacturing island films with reproducible optical properties. Monodispers polystyrene nanoparticles were deposited in a monolayer on a dense gold layer on a dielectric substrate. The layer of nanoparticles was used as a mask for a dry etch process in a reactive Ar-plasma.

The presented doctoral research was aimed at preparation and characterization of ultra thin polymer films on solid substrates using different physical techniques. Each of these physical techniques probes selectively different characteristics of the films. While some of the techniques are strong in the predetermination of some unique properties of the layers, they might be limited and give no specific/conclusive information about some other important characteristics. Therefore, only the combination of the techniques provides a profound picture of the thickness, architecture, composition and functionality of the films/layers. This combined characterization approach elucidates in details the physical characteristics and the mechanisms responsible for the unique behavior of different polymer films/layers in the application that they are intended for. In the thesis, of particular interest were films of high biomedical, biotechnological and tissue engineering importance, such as: 1. poly(lactide) films formed by grafting "from-" a silanized alacrite thin films (L605 Co-based super alloy), 2. polydopamine (PDA) films that could serve as substrate independent mod- ification platform for further surface modification steps, 3. poly(ethylene oxide)films formed by "grafting to-" PDA modified surfaces, 4....

Die vorliegende Arbeit behandelt die Herstellung und optische Untersuchung von Halbleiterheterostrukturen, genauer Mikrokavitäten, in denen ein Bose–Einstein Kondensat (BEK) von sogenannten Exziton-Polaritonen im Festkörper erzeugt und beobachtet werden soll. Diese Strukturen bestehen aus zwei hochreflektierenden Braggspiegeln (BS) und einer ZnO-Kavität als aktivem Material. Zunächst wurde die Abscheidung der BS hinsichtlich genauer Schichtdickenkontrolle und Reproduzierbarkeit verbessert. Um Kavitätsschichten hinreichender Qualität herzustellen, wurden mehrere Ansätze zur Optimierung dieser planaren Schichtabscheidung mittels gepulster Laserdeposition verfolgt. Dabei kamen Techniken, wie das Ausheizen der Proben oder deren Glättung durch Ionenstrahlbeschuß zum Einsatz, um die elektronischen Eigenschaften bzw. die Oberflächen der Kavitätsschichten erheblich zu verbessern. Desweiteren wurde erfolgreich ein Verfahren entwickelt, freistehende, nahezu einkristalline ZnO-Nanodrähte mit Braggspiegeln zu ummanteln. Alle hergestellten Strukturen wurden in ihren strukturellen Eigenschaften, speziell hinsichtlich ihrer Rauhigkeit und Kristallinität, verglichen und mittels orts- und/oder winkelaufgelöster Photolumineszenzspektroskopie sowie Reflexionsmessungen bezüglich ihrer optischen Eigenschaften untersucht. Dabei konnte in fast allen Proben die starke Kopplung, welche die Grundlage für ein BEK darstellt, gezeigt werden. Hinweise für eine höhere Kopplungsstärke in den Nanodraht-basierten Mikrokavitäten wurden gefunden. Der Nachweis von BEK bis nahe Raumtemperatur gelang an der vielversprechendsten planaren Probe, die einen Qualitätsfaktor von ca. 1000 aufweist. Die Eigenschaften des BEK wurden für verschiedene Temperaturen und Detunings untersucht. Es hat sich gezeigt, daß ein negatives Detuning unerläßlich für die Bildung eines BEK in ZnO-basierten Mikrokavitäten ist. Die Impulsraumverteilung der Kondensat-Polaritonen läßt auf ausgeprägte dynamische Eigenschaften dieser Teilchen bei tiefen Temperaturen schließen. / The present work covers the fabrication and optical investigation of semiconductor microcavities for Bose–Einstein condensation (BEC) of exciton-polaritons. These microcavities consist of highly reflective distributed Bragg reflectors (DBR) surrounding a ZnO-cavity as active medium. In the first step, the growth of DBRs was optimised with respect to exact thickness control and high reproducibility. For the active material, several growth strategies have been pursued, in order to optimise the conditions for the growth of planar thin films by pulsed laser deposition. Techniques like annealing or ion beam smoothing were successfuly applied in order to either improve the electronic properties or decrease the roughness of the ZnO-cavity layer. Furthermmore, a successful technology was developed in order to coat highly-crstalline free-standing ZnO nanowires with concentrical DBR shells. All samples have been investigated regarding their roughness and crystallinity as well as their optical properties. For the latter spatially and/or angular-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy and reflection measurements have been carried out. Thereby, the strong coupling regime – being prerequisite for BEC – could be demonstrated in almost all of the synthesized structures. For the nanowire-based microcavities hints for an enhanced coupling strength have been found. In one of the planar samples, showing the high quality factor of 1000, the formation of BEC almost up to room temperature was observed and was studied as a function of temperature and detuning. Negative detuning was found to be mandatory for the formation of a BEC in ZnO-based microcavities. The distinct momentum- respective in-plane wavevector distribution of the condensate polaritons revealed a strong dynamic character of these particles at low temperatures.