Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-gbm5v Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-27T01:48:45.003Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Novel Semiconducting Phase of Amorphous Carbon Nickel Composite Films

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 February 2011

Somnath Bhattacharyya
Affiliation:
[email protected], University of Surrey, Advanced Technology Institute, University of Surrey, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 7XH, India, +44 1483 682297, +44 1483 689404
S. J. Henley
Affiliation:
[email protected], Nano-electronics Centre, Advanced Technology Institute, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, United Kingdom
N. P. Blanchard
Affiliation:
[email protected], Nano-electronics Centre, Advanced Technology Institute, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, United Kingdom
S. R. P. Silva
Affiliation:
[email protected], Nano-electronics Centre, Advanced Technology Institute, University of Surrey, Guildford, GU2 7XH, United Kingdom
Get access

Abstract

A homogeneously mixed phase of carbon and 10% nickel yielding amorphous carbon-nickel composite (a-C-Ni) films is prepared by an excimer UV pulsed laser ablation. Conductivity study of these films shows a nearly activated conduction. Also a saturation of conductivity below a temperature of 25 K explains the presence of an additional density of states at the Fermi level in these samples. Our experiments demonstrate a very different behaviour of electronic properties of these novel materials compared to undoped diamond-like carbon (DLC) films, which was directly confirmed using valence band spectroscopy.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2006

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

1. Properties of Amorphous Carbon Edited by Silva, S.R.P., (INSPEC/IEE, London, 2003).Google Scholar
2. Silva, S. R. P., Rafferty, B., Amaratunga, G. A. J., Schwan, J., Franceschini, D. F., and Brown, L. M., Diamond Relat. Mater. 5, 401(1996).Google Scholar
3. Evans, B. L., Maaroof, A.I., and Xu, S., J. Appl. Phys. 76, 900 (1994).Google Scholar
4. Serra, A., Manno, D., Siciliano, T., Micocci, G., Tepore, A., Rossi, M., Terranova, M. L., Sessa, V., Piccirillo, S., and Orlanducci, S., J. App. Phys. 94, 416 (2003).Google Scholar
5. , Rulsi, Yoon, S. F., Huang, Q. F., Yang, H., Yu, M. B., Ahn, J., Zhang, Q., Teo, E. J., Osipowicz, T., and Watt, F., J. Appl. Phys. 88, 3699 (2000).Google Scholar
6. Shklovskii, B.I. and Efros, A.L. in Electronic properties of doped semiconductors, Springer-Verlag (1984).Google Scholar
7. Zhou, W., Vavro, J., Guthy, C., Winey, K. I., Fischer, J. E., Ericson, L. M., Ramesh, S., Saini, R., Davis, V.A., Kittrell, C., Pasquali, M., Hauge, R. H., and Smalley, R. E., J. Appl. Phys. 95, 649 (2004).Google Scholar
8. Kim, J., Lee, J.O., Oh, H., Yoo, K. H., and Kim, J. J., Phys. Rev. B 64, 161404 (2001).Google Scholar
9. Barborini, E., Lenardi, C., Piseri, P., Milani, P., Agostino, R.G., Caruso, T., Colavita, E., Rosa, S. La, Bertolo, M., and Ducati, C., Eur. Phys. J. D 24, 273 (2004).Google Scholar
10. Oliete, P. B., Rojas, T. C., Fernandez, A., Gedanken, A., Koltypin, Y., and Palacio, F., Acta Materialia, 52, 2165 (2004).Google Scholar
11. Schafer, J., Ristein, J., Graupner, R., Ley, L., Stephan, U., Frauhenheim, Th., Veeraswamy, V. S., Amratunga, G. A. J., Weiler, M., and Ehrhardt, H., Phys. Rev. B 53, 7762 (1996).Google Scholar
12. Bhattacharyya, S., Spaeth, C., and Richter, F., J. Appl. Phys. 89, 2414 (2001).Google Scholar
13. Ronning, C., Greismeier, U., Gross, M., and Hofsass, H.C., Diamond Relat. Mater. 4, 666 (1995).Google Scholar
14. Jiao, J., Seraphin, S., Wang, X., and Withers, J. C., J. Appl. Phys. 80, 103 (1996).Google Scholar
15. Yadasaka, M., Tasaka, K., Kikuchi, R., Ohki, Y., and Yushimura, S., J. Appl. Phys. 81, 7623, (1997).Google Scholar
16. Pauleau, Y., Thiery, F., Latrasse, L., and Dub, S. N., Surf. Coat. Technol. 188, 484 (2004).Google Scholar
17. Bhattacharyya, S., Henley, S.J., Mendoza, E., G-Rojas, L., Allam, J. and Silva, S.R.P., Nature Materials 5, 19 (2006).Google Scholar