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Photoelectron Spectroscopy Characterization and Computational Modeling of Gadolinium Nitride Thin Films Synthesized by Chemical Vapor Deposition

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 February 2015

Zane C. Gernhart ,
Juan A. Colón Santana ,
Lu Wang ,
Wai-Ning Mei  and
Chin Li Cheung
Zane C. Gernhart
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, 68588, U.S.A.
Juan A. Colón Santana
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115, U.S.A.
Lu Wang
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, 68182, U.S.A.
Wai-Ning Mei
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, 68182, U.S.A.
Chin Li Cheung
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, 68588, U.S.A.
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Abstract

Here we report our study of the electronic properties of [100]-textured gadolinium nitride (GdN) thin films synthesized using a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. The electronic properties of the films were investigated using photoemission and inverse photoemission spectroscopy coupled with computational modeling. Our density functional theory (DFT) calculations suggest that the theoretically predicted half-metallic electronic structure of GdN is likely due to its low density of states (DOS) at the Fermi level. These calculations are supported by our photoemission and inverse photoemission spectroscopic measurements which show a band gap for the prepared films of a few milli-electron volts, seemingly consistent with the predicted electronic structure. Additionally, the use of a CVD gallium nitride capping layer was found to decelerate the surface oxidation of our GdN samples.

Keywords

Gdchemical vapor deposition (CVD) (chemical reaction)photoemission
Type
Articles
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1729: Symposium M – Materials and Technology for Nonvolatile Memories , 2015 , pp. 131 - 136
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2015 

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References

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