Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal
The physical and chemical properties of many oxide materials depend strongly on their defect concentration, which gives rise to unique electronic, optical, and dielectric properties. One such promising material for various applications, including energy storage, photocatalysis, and electronics, is S...
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MDPI AG
2023-08-01
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| author | Marcin Wojtyniak Christian Rodenbücher Benedykt R. Jany Grzegorz Cempura Adam Kruk Franciszek Krok Krzysztof Szot |
| author_facet | Marcin Wojtyniak Christian Rodenbücher Benedykt R. Jany Grzegorz Cempura Adam Kruk Franciszek Krok Krzysztof Szot |
| author_sort | Marcin Wojtyniak |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The physical and chemical properties of many oxide materials depend strongly on their defect concentration, which gives rise to unique electronic, optical, and dielectric properties. One such promising material for various applications, including energy storage, photocatalysis, and electronics, is SrTiO<sub>3</sub> (STO). It exhibits several interesting phenomena, including a metal-to-insulator transition that can be induced by reduction. By extension, 1-D defects, such as dislocations, play a significant role in its electronic properties. Thus, we investigate the process of dislocation movement, its creation, and annihilation under two stimuli: ion thinning and electron irradiation. First, we designed and produced a lamella from a mechanically modified sample with variable thickness in the form of a wedge using a focused ion beam (FIB/Ga<sup>+</sup>) to investigate thickness-dependent dislocation movement. The lamella was investigated by transmission electron microscopy, allowing for the measurements of dislocation concentration as a function of its thickness. We have noticed a sharp decrease in the defect concentration with respect to the starting sample, showing a process of annihilation of dislocations. Second, we used an electron beam to drive a relatively large current into the STO surface. This experiment produced an electrical breakdown-like pattern. Optical and atomic force microscopy revealed that this pattern evolved due to the removal of material from the surface and local metal-insulator-transition along the dislocations network. Thus, we observe the dislocations generation and movement. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:01:33Z |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4352 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:01:33Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
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| record_format | Article |
| series | Crystals |
| spelling | doaj.art-ad77e537f695477992385cdc3e45c27d2023-11-19T00:45:39ZengMDPI AGCrystals2073-43522023-08-01138125910.3390/cryst13081259Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single CrystalMarcin Wojtyniak0Christian Rodenbücher1Benedykt R. Jany2Grzegorz Cempura3Adam Kruk4Franciszek Krok5Krzysztof Szot6Institute of Physics—Center for Science and Education, Silesian University of Technology, Krasińskiego 8 Street, 40-019 Katowice, PolandInstitute of Energy and Climate Research (IEK-14), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, 52425 Jülich, GermanyMarian Smoluchowski Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Applied Computer Science, Jagiellonian University, Lojasiewicza 11, 30-348 Krakow, PolandInternational Centre of Electron Microscopy for Materials Science, Faculty of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Krakow, PolandInternational Centre of Electron Microscopy for Materials Science, Faculty of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, AGH University of Science and Technology, 30-059 Krakow, PolandMarian Smoluchowski Institute of Physics, Faculty of Physics, Astronomy and Applied Computer Science, Jagiellonian University, Lojasiewicza 11, 30-348 Krakow, PolandA. Chełkowski Institute of Physics, University of Silesia, 41-500 Chorzów, PolandThe physical and chemical properties of many oxide materials depend strongly on their defect concentration, which gives rise to unique electronic, optical, and dielectric properties. One such promising material for various applications, including energy storage, photocatalysis, and electronics, is SrTiO<sub>3</sub> (STO). It exhibits several interesting phenomena, including a metal-to-insulator transition that can be induced by reduction. By extension, 1-D defects, such as dislocations, play a significant role in its electronic properties. Thus, we investigate the process of dislocation movement, its creation, and annihilation under two stimuli: ion thinning and electron irradiation. First, we designed and produced a lamella from a mechanically modified sample with variable thickness in the form of a wedge using a focused ion beam (FIB/Ga<sup>+</sup>) to investigate thickness-dependent dislocation movement. The lamella was investigated by transmission electron microscopy, allowing for the measurements of dislocation concentration as a function of its thickness. We have noticed a sharp decrease in the defect concentration with respect to the starting sample, showing a process of annihilation of dislocations. Second, we used an electron beam to drive a relatively large current into the STO surface. This experiment produced an electrical breakdown-like pattern. Optical and atomic force microscopy revealed that this pattern evolved due to the removal of material from the surface and local metal-insulator-transition along the dislocations network. Thus, we observe the dislocations generation and movement.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/13/8/1259strontium titanateextended defectsdislocation concentration |
| spellingShingle | Marcin Wojtyniak Christian Rodenbücher Benedykt R. Jany Grzegorz Cempura Adam Kruk Franciszek Krok Krzysztof Szot Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal Crystals strontium titanate extended defects dislocation concentration |
| title | Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal |
| title_full | Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal |
| title_fullStr | Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal |
| title_full_unstemmed | Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal |
| title_short | Annihilation and Generation of Dislocations by Irradiation by Ions and Electrons in Strontium Titanate Single Crystal |
| title_sort | annihilation and generation of dislocations by irradiation by ions and electrons in strontium titanate single crystal |
| topic | strontium titanate extended defects dislocation concentration |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4352/13/8/1259 |
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