Semiconductor lasers based on gallium arsenide and relatedmaterials are widely used in applications such as opticalcommunication systems, sensing, compact disc players, distancemeasurement, etc. The performance of these lasers can beimproved using a buried heterostructure offering lateralcarrier and optical confinement. In particular, if theconfinement (burying) layer is implemented by epitaxialregrowth of an appropriate aluminium-free semi-insulating (SI)material, passivation of etched surfaces, reduced tendency tooxidation, low capacitance and integration feasibility areadditional advantages. The major impediment in the fabrication of GaAs/AlGaAsburied-heterostructure lasers is the spontaneous oxidation ofaluminium on the etched walls of the structure. Al-oxide actsas a mask and makes the regrowth process extremely challenging.In this work, a HCl gas-basedin-situcleaning technique is employed successfully toremove Al-oxide prior to regrowth of SI-GaInP:Fe and SI-GaAs:Fearound Al-containing laser mesas by Hydride Vapour PhaseEpitaxy. Excellent regrowth interfaces, without voids, areobtained, even around AlAs layers. Consequences of usinginadequate cleaning treatments are also presented. Regrowthmorphology aspects are discussed in terms of different growthmechanisms. Time-resolved photoluminescence characterisation indicates auniform Fe trap distribution throughout the regrown GaInP:Fe.Scanning capacitance microscopy measurements demonstrate thesemi-insulating nature of the regrown GaInP:Fe layer. Thepresence of EL2 defects in regrown GaAs:Fe makes more difficultthe interpretation of the characterisation results in the nearvicinity of the laser mesa. GaAs/AlGaAs buried-heterostructure lasers, both in-planelasers and vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, withGaInP:Fe as burying layer are demonstrated for the first time.The lasers exhibit good performance demonstrating thatSI-GaInP:Fe is an appropriate material to be used for thispurpose and the suitability of our cleaning and regrowth methodfor the fabrication of this type of semiconductor lasers.Device characterisation indicates negligible leakage currentalong the etched mesa sidewalls confirming a smooth regrowthinterface. Nevertheless, experimental and simulation resultsreveal that a significant part of the injected current is lostas leakage through the burying material. This is attributed todouble carrier injection into the SI-GaInP:Fe layer.Simulations also predict that the function of GaInP:Fe ascurrent blocking layer should be markedly improved in the caseof GaAs-based longer wavelength lasers. <b>Keywords:</b>semiconductor lasers, in-plane lasers, VCSELs,GaAs, GaInP, semi-insulating materials, hydride vapour phaseepitaxy, regrowth, buried heterostructure, leakage current,simulation.

In this paper, we mainly discuss the transport properties of the two-dimensional gas of a high-mobility GaAs/AlGaAs semiconductor heterostructure in high magnetic fields and low temperatures. We analyzed the measured longitudinal resistivity and Hall resistivity at the five different temperatures. We observed that the classical Hall effect is valid when the magnetic field is less than 0.25 Tesla; and the quantum Hall plateaux appeared obviously when the magnetic field is larger than 1.6 Tesla. We proceeded to analyze the longitudinal resistivity oscillation occurred in the magnetic fields between 0.477 Tesla and 1.483 Tesla. According to the Lifshitz-Kosevich (LK) formula, we can get the two-dimensional electron concentration, effective mass, and quantum scattering time from the quantum magnetoresistivity oscillation measurement. Our results suggested that the applicable range of the LK formula could be broader than the generally-assumed one. In quantum Hall effect regime at high magnetic field, we can calculate the h/e2 value from the quantum Hall plateaux value. In classical Hall effect regime, the three-dimensional electron concentration and classical mobility (classical scattering time) can be obtained. However, we find out that the zero-field Hall resistivity experimental value is not equal to zero, and this is not conformed to the standard theory. We tried to use the magnetic field shift and Hall resistivity shift to solve the problem, and compared both advantages of them. Finally, we observed the plateau-plateau phase transitions of the two-dimensional electron system

<p>Semiconductor lasers based on gallium arsenide and relatedmaterials are widely used in applications such as opticalcommunication systems, sensing, compact disc players, distancemeasurement, etc. The performance of these lasers can beimproved using a buried heterostructure offering lateralcarrier and optical confinement. In particular, if theconfinement (burying) layer is implemented by epitaxialregrowth of an appropriate aluminium-free semi-insulating (SI)material, passivation of etched surfaces, reduced tendency tooxidation, low capacitance and integration feasibility areadditional advantages.</p><p>The major impediment in the fabrication of GaAs/AlGaAsburied-heterostructure lasers is the spontaneous oxidation ofaluminium on the etched walls of the structure. Al-oxide actsas a mask and makes the regrowth process extremely challenging.In this work, a HCl gas-based<i>in-situ</i>cleaning technique is employed successfully toremove Al-oxide prior to regrowth of SI-GaInP:Fe and SI-GaAs:Fearound Al-containing laser mesas by Hydride Vapour PhaseEpitaxy. Excellent regrowth interfaces, without voids, areobtained, even around AlAs layers. Consequences of usinginadequate cleaning treatments are also presented. Regrowthmorphology aspects are discussed in terms of different growthmechanisms.</p><p>Time-resolved photoluminescence characterisation indicates auniform Fe trap distribution throughout the regrown GaInP:Fe.Scanning capacitance microscopy measurements demonstrate thesemi-insulating nature of the regrown GaInP:Fe layer. Thepresence of EL2 defects in regrown GaAs:Fe makes more difficultthe interpretation of the characterisation results in the nearvicinity of the laser mesa.</p><p>GaAs/AlGaAs buried-heterostructure lasers, both in-planelasers and vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers, withGaInP:Fe as burying layer are demonstrated for the first time.The lasers exhibit good performance demonstrating thatSI-GaInP:Fe is an appropriate material to be used for thispurpose and the suitability of our cleaning and regrowth methodfor the fabrication of this type of semiconductor lasers.Device characterisation indicates negligible leakage currentalong the etched mesa sidewalls confirming a smooth regrowthinterface. Nevertheless, experimental and simulation resultsreveal that a significant part of the injected current is lostas leakage through the burying material. This is attributed todouble carrier injection into the SI-GaInP:Fe layer.Simulations also predict that the function of GaInP:Fe ascurrent blocking layer should be markedly improved in the caseof GaAs-based longer wavelength lasers.</p><p><b>Keywords:</b>semiconductor lasers, in-plane lasers, VCSELs,GaAs, GaInP, semi-insulating materials, hydride vapour phaseepitaxy, regrowth, buried heterostructure, leakage current,simulation.</p>

The concept of Berry phase, since its proposition in 1984, has found numerous applications and appears in almost every branch of physics today. In this work, we study several physical effects in ferromagnetic metal materials which are manifestations of the Berry phase. We first show that when a domain wall in a ferromagnetic nanowire is undergoing precessional motion, it pumps an electromotive force which follows a universal Josephson-type relation. We discover that the integral of the electromotive force over one pumping cycle is a quantized topological invariant equal to integer multiples of h/e, which does not depend on the domain wall geometry nor its detailed dynamic evolution. In particular, when a domain wall in a nanowire is driven by a constant magnetic field, we predict that the generated electromotive force is proportional to the applied field with a simple coefficient consisting of only fundamental constants. Our theoretical prediction has been successfully confirmed by experiments. Similar effect known as spin pumping occurs in magnetic multilayer heterostructures, where a precessing free magnetic layer pumps a spin current into its adjacent normal metal layers. Based on this effect, we propose two magnetic nanodevices that can be useful in future spintronics applications: the magnetic Josephson junction and the magneto-dynamic battery. The magnetic Josephson junction has a drastic increase in resistance when the applied current exceeds a critical value determined by the magnetic anisotropy. The magneto-dynamic battery acts as a conventional charge battery in a circuit with well-defined electromotive force and internal resistance. We investigate the condition under which the power output and efficiency of the battery can be optimized. Finally we study the side jump contribution in the anomalous Hall effect of a uniformly magnetized ferromagnetic metal. The side jump contribution, although arises from disorder scattering, was believed to be independent of both the scattering strength and the disorder density. Nevertheless, we find that it has a sensitive dependence on the spin structure of the disorder potential. We therefore propose a classification scheme of disorder scattering according to their spin structures. When two or more classes of disorders are present, the value of side jump is no longer fixed but depends on the relative disorder strength between classes. Due to this competition, the side jump contribution could flow from one class dominated limit to another class dominated limit when certain system control parameter changes. Our result indicates that the magnon scattering plays a role distinct from the normal impurity scattering and the phonon scattering in the anomalous Hall effect, because they belong to different scattering classes. / text

La dépollution de l'eau est un des enjeux majeurs du XXIème siècle. Si différentes techniques de retraitement existent déjà, nous investiguons une nouvelle méthode associant les propriétés des membranes filtrantes à celles des matériaux photocatalytiques. Ainsi, nous avons étudié la croissance et l'activité photocatalytique de structures de type noyau/coquille de ZnO/SnO2 intégrées dans des membranes méso-poreuses (alumine poreuse) et macro-poreuses (fibres de verre). L'activité photocatalytique de ces matériaux a été évaluée sur des polluants modèles tels que le bleu de méthylène ou l'acide salicylique, mais aussi sur des polluants organiques identifiés dans les eaux de la rivière luxembourgeoise Alzette. L'impact environnemental des matériaux développés a été déterminé grâce a des analyses de cytotoxicité sur des cellules colorectales de type Caco-2, ainsi que sur des bactéries marines de type Vibrio Fischeri. / Water treatment is one of the main challenge to overcome on the XXIst century. If many different techniques already exist, we investigate a new process associating the properties of porous membranes and photocatalytic materials. Thus, we studied the growth and photoactivity of core/shell structures of ZnO/SnO2 integrated into mesoporous (AAO) and macro-porous (glass fiber) membranes . The photocatalytic activity of these materials has been evaluated on organic pollutants like methylene blue or salicylic acid, but also on molecules found in the Luxembourgish Alzette river. The environmental impact of the synthesized structures has been determined with cytotoxic analyses on Caco-2 cells and Vibrio Fischeri bacteria.

Le but de cette thèse est de réaliser et d’étudier les propriétés électroniques d’un transistor à canal nanofil monocristallin à base de Si/SiGe (voir figure), élaboré par croissance CVD-VLS, à grille enrobante ou semi-enrobante en exploitant une filière technologique compatible CMOS. Ces transistors vont nous permettre d’augmenter la densité d’intégration et de réaliser de nouvelles fonctionnalités (par exemple : des interconnections reconfigurables) dans les zones froides d’un circuit intégré. La thèse proposée se déroulera dans le cadre d'une collaboration entre le laboratoire LTM-CNRS et le laboratoire SiNaPS du CEA/INAC/SP2M et utilisera la Plateforme Technologique Amont (PTA) au sein du pôle MINATEC. / The goal of this thesis is to build and characterize nanowire based field-effect-transistors. These FET will have either back or wrapping gate using standard CMOS process. Theses transistors will allow us to increase the integration density in back end stages of IC's fabrication and add new functionnalities suc as reconfigurable interconnections. The thesis will be done in collaboration between LTM/CNRS and CEA/INAC/SP2M/SiNaPS laboratories using the PTA facilities located in MINATEC.

Spintronics is a dynamically developing branch of electronics which for transfer, processing and storing of information use not only electron charge but also its spin. Materials appropriate for a construction of spintronic devices should sustain the spin order for a sufficiently long time enabling a manipulation of spins. Simultaneously, in these materials the spin of electrons should be possible to transport fast and long enough across the device. In this work, heterostructure of GaAs/AlGaAs fulfilling these requirements is investigated by a pump-probe technique. In particular, long spin lifetimes of electrons in the heterostructure are studied using the resonant spin amplification method and with a use of the pulse picker. The nuclear spin polarization and the effect of an applied electric current on the studied heterostructure are also investigated in this work. Spectral filters are used to improve the existing experimental setup for the pump-probe technique and to measure a magnetooptical spectrum of the investigated heterostructure.

L'objectif de ce travail est d'améliorer les performances photocatalytiques de deux oxydes mixtes de bismuth, Bi2WO6 et BiOBr, présentant une activité sous lumière visible. Leurs activités photocatalytiques sont en effet majoritairement limitées par un taux de recombinaison des charges photoinduites élevé. Deux stratégies différentes ont été respectivement appliquées pour chaque matériau. La première consiste à former une hétérostructure entre Bi2WO6 et un métal noble, le platine, pour assurer une séparation efficace des charges. La seconde consiste à réduire la taille des particules de BiOBr afin d'augmenter la surface spécifique et de diminuer le parcours moyen des charges jusqu'à la surface du photocatalyseur. Les synthèses ont été réalisées par chimie douce. La répartition et la quantité de platine déposé sur Bi2WO6 a ainsi pu être modulée et des particules de BiOBr sous forme de microfleurs ou de plaquettes de différentes tailles ont été obtenues. La dégradation de la rhodamine B en solution sous irradiation bleue a permis d'évaluer les propriétés photocatalytiques des matériaux. La dégradation de molécules non photosensibles a également été réalisée afin de confirmer l'activité photocatalytique observée. Dans le but d'évaluer la potentialité de Bi2WO6 et BiOBr pour la purification de l'air intérieur, des tests de dégradation photocatalytique de polluants modèles gazeux ont été effectués. L'ensemble de ces tests ont mis en évidence les relations entre les paramètres physico-chimiques des matériaux et leurs performances photocatalytiques et ont souligné les potentialités et les limitations de Bi2WO6 et BiOBr pour la dépollution de l'air et de l'eau. / The aim of this work is to improve photocatalytic performance of two mixed bismuth oxides, Bi2WO6 and BiOBr, which have an activity within visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum. Two different strategies have been developed for each material. First one consists in designing a heterostructure between Bi2WO6 and a noble metal, platinum, which ensures an efficient charge separation at the interface. Second one aims at lowering BiOBr particle’s size in order to boost specific surface and shrink mean free path of charges to the surface of the photocatalyst. Syntheses of the materials were carried out using soft chemistry method. Platinum particle distribution and quantity on Bi2WO6 were thus successfully tuned and BiOBr microspheres or plates with different size were obtained. Photocatalytic properties of our materials were characterized by rhodamine B degradation in solution under blue light (λ = 445 nm). Degradation test of non-photosensitive compounds were also performed to show their photocatalytic activity. In order to evaluate Bi2WO6 and BiOBr potential in purifying indoor air photocatalytic degradation tests of model gaseous pollutant were performed. All these photocatalytic tests highlight the relationship between physicochemical and photocatalytic properties of the materials. They also enable us to determine the potentials and limitations of Bi2WO6 and BiOBr as photocatalysts for water and air depollution.

L’expression "Nanoparticules Janus" est utilisée pour se référer aux nanoparticules colloïdales faites de deux moitiés qui présent deux propriétés physiques et/ou chimiques différentes. Au cours des dernières années, plusieurs études théoriques ont été publiées sur les possibilités d’auto-assemblage offertes par ces particules (en particulier par Sciortino, F. et al.), mais peu de travail expérimental a été fait sur ce sujet. Les études théoriques suggèrent que beaucoup de comportements intéressants apparaissent quand la taille des particules s’approche de la portée d’interaction des forces en jeu (des dizaines de nanomètres dans le cas des forces de Van der Waals et des forces hydrophobes). Dans ce manuscrit, nous montrons la formation d’agrégats des hétérodimères de Au–SiO₂ d’une taille inférieure à 100nm. L’auto-assemblage a été déclenché par un échange du ligand hydrophile sur la surface de l’or par un ligand hydrophobe induisant une interaction attractive. L’assemblage a été suivi par spectroscopie d’absorption résolue dans le temps et diffusion des rayons X aux petits angles. Nous avons constaté que les thiols les plus courts ont une période d’induction plus longue et forcent les particules à se rapprocher davantage, comparé à des thiols avec des chaînes plus longues. Nous étudions également un second système : des nanoplaquettes de CdSe. Celles-ci sont des objets quasi-2D en matériau semiconducteur avec des propriétés optiques uniques. Ces propriétés résultant de leur taille réduite dans une dimension. Du fait de leur nouveauté et de leur particularité, leur nucléation et le remarquable mécanisme de croissance de ces particules sont toujours étudiés. Ainsi nous avons suivi leur synthèse par SAXS et WAXS in situ, afin d’obtenir des informations en ce qui concerne ces deux étapes, et notamment d’étudier la déformation de certains de ces systèmes sous forme de feuillets enroulés de CdSe. Les nanoplaquettes de CdSe ont été aussi utilisés pour créer des structures hybrides CdSe–Au. La combinaison de ces deux matériaux a déjà montré des effets uniques, comme une meilleure efficacité catalytique et, combiné avec la dimension réduite et le contrôle des plaquettes, pourrait aboutir à des caractéristiques encore plus intéressantes. Nous proposons une méthode de synthèse qui aboutit à la formation de petites sphères d’or sur les coins des plaquettes. Nous montrons que la taille des sphères dépend de la quantité de précurseur utilisée, et des images de microscopie électronique à haute résolution mettent en évidence la structure cristalline des deux matériaux. / "Janus nanoparticles" is the term used to refer to colloidal nanoparticles made of two halves with different physical and chemical properties. Over the last years, several theoretical studies have been published on the self-assembly possibilities offered by these particles (in particular by Sciortino, F. et al.), but little experimental work has been done on them. The theoretical studies suggest that many interesting behaviors appear when the size of the particles approaches the interaction range of the forces at play (tens of nanometers in the case of van der Waals and hydrophobic forces). In this manuscript, we show the formation of clusters of Au–SiO₂ heterodimers with sizes of less than 100nm. The self-assembly was induced by exchanging the hydrophilic ligand on the Au surface with a hydrophobic one, which provided the attractive interaction. The assembly was followed by time-resolved absorption spectroscopy and small-angle X-ray scattering. We found that shorter thiols have a longer induction period, and cause the particles to come closer together, compared to thiols with longer tails. We also study a second system: CdSe nanoplatelets. These are semiconducting quasi-2D structures with unique optical properties. These properties result from their reduced size in one of the dimensions. Because of their novelty and particularity, the nucleation and growth mechanism of these particles is still being studied. We followed the synthesis using in-situ SAXS and WAXS, to obtain information with regards to this mechanism and to study the deformation which occurs in some of these systems which leads to rolled up sheets of CdSe. The CdSe nanoplatelets were also used to create hybrid CdSe–Au structures. The combination of these two materials has already proven to produce unique effects such as enhanced catalysis and, combined with the reduced dimensionality and control of the platelets, could result in even more interesting characteristics. We propose a synthesis method which results in the formation of small gold spheres on the corners of the platelets. We show that the size of the spheres depends on the amount of precursor used, and show high resolution electron microscopy images which highlight the crystalline structure of both materials.

As the family of two−dimensional(2D) materials has grown, two−dimensional heterostructure devices have emerged as great alternatives to replace conventional electronic materials and enable new functionality such as flexible and bendable electronics. The fabrication and performance of these devices depend critically on the understanding and ability to manipulate the mechanical interplay between the stacked materials. In this dissertation, we investigate adhesive interactions and determine the shear modulus of heterostructure devices made from Molybdenum Disulfide (MoS2). MoS2 has been attracting attention recently due to its semiconductor nature (having a direct band gap of 1.9 eV) along with its exceptional mechanical strength and flexibility. As the first step of our research, we suspended MoS2 flakes grown through chemical vapor deposition (CVD) over substrates made of metal (gold, titanium, chromium), semiconductor (germanium, silicon), insulator (silicon oxide), and semi-metal (graphite). Then, by creating pressure differences across the membrane, we forced MoS2 to bulge upward until we observe separation from the surface of the substrates. We demonstrated that MoS2 on graphite has the highest work of separation within the tested surface materials. Furthermore, we measured considerable adhesion hysteresis between the work of separation and the work of adhesion. We proposed that surface roughness and chemical interactions play a role in surface adhesion and separation of 2D materials. These experiments are critical to guiding the future design of electrical and mechanical devices based on 2D materials. Next, we measured the effective shear modulus of MoS2/few−layer graphene (FLG) heterostructures by employing a blister test. Again, by introducing a pressure differential across the suspended MoS2 membrane over the FLG substrate, the MoS2/FLG heterostructure peeled off from the silicon oxide surface once the critical pressure is exceeded. Incorporating a modified free energy model and Hencky’s axisymmetric membrane solution, we determine the average effective shear modulus of the heterostructure. This is the first experimental measurement of the shear modulus of heterostructure devices using a blister test and this platform can be extended to determine the shear modulus of other 2D heterostructures as well. / 2024-05-24T00:00:00Z