• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.125-130
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• 2000

Two step growth of reduced pressure chemical vapor eposition has been successfully developed to achieve in-situ phosphorus-doped silicon epilayers, and the characteristic evolution on their microstructures has been investigated using scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and secondary ion mass spectroscopy. The two step growth, which employs heavily in-situ P doped silicon buffer layer grown at low temperature, proposes crucial advantages in manipulating crystal structures of in-situ phosphorus doped silicon. In particular, our experimental results showed that with annealing of the heavily P doped silicon buffer layers, high-quality epitaxial silicon layers grew on it. the heavily doped phosphorus in buffer layers introduces into native oxide and plays an important role in promoting the dispersion of native oxides. Furthermore, the phosphorus doping concentration remains uniform depth distribution in high quality single crystalline Si films obtained by the two step growth.

• Carbon letters
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.228-233
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• 2013

In this work, we report in-situ observations of changes in catalyst morphology, and of growth termination of individual carbon nanotubes (CNTs), by complete loss of the catalyst particle attached to it. The observations strongly support the growth-termination mechanism of CNT forests or carpets by dynamic morphological evolution of catalyst particles induced by Ostwald ripening, and sub-surface diffusion. We show that in the tip-growth mode, as well as in the base-growth mode, the growth termination of CNT by dissolution of catalyst particles is plausible. This may allow the growth termination mechanism by evolution of catalyst morphology to be applicable to not only CNT forest growth, but also to other growth methods (for example, floating-catalyst chemical vapor deposition), which do not use any supporting layer or substrate beneath a catalyst layer.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.49
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• pp.3.1-3.7
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• 2019

Graphene, which is one of the most promising materials for its state-of-the-art applications, has received extensive attention because of its superior mechanical properties. However, there is little experimental evidence related to the mechanical properties of graphene at the atomic level because of the challenges associated with transferring atomically-thin two-dimensional (2D) materials onto microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices. In this study, we show successful dry transfer with a gel material of a stable, clean, and free-standing exfoliated graphene film onto a push-to-pull (PTP) device, which is a MEMS device used for uniaxial tensile testing in in situ transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Through the results of optical microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and TEM, we demonstrate high quality exfoliated graphene on the PTP device. Finally, the stress-strain results corresponding to propagating cracks in folded graphene were simultaneously obtained during the tensile tests in TEM. The zigzag and armchair edges of graphene confirmed that the fracture occurred in association with the hexagonal lattice structure of graphene while the tensile testing. In the wake of the results, we envision the dedicated preparation and in situ TEM tensile experiments advance the understanding of the relationship between the mechanical properties and structural characteristics of 2D materials.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.206-216
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• 2016

This communication is to elucidate the state-of-the-art of techniques necessary to gather information on a new class of nanoelectronic devices known as memristors and related resistive switching devices, respectively. Unlike classical microelectronic devices such as transistors, the chemical and structural variations occurring upon switching of memristive devices require cutting-edge electron microscopy techniques. Depending on the switching mechanism, some memristors call for the acquisition of atomically resolved structural data, while others rely on atomistic chemical phenomena requiring the application of advanced X-ray and electron spectroscopy to correlate the real structure with properties. Additionally, understanding resistive switching phenomena also necessitates the application not only of pre- and post-operation analysis, but also during the process of switching. This highly challenging in situ characterization also requires the aforementioned techniques while simultaneously applying an electrical bias. Through this review we aim to give an overview of the possibilities and challenges as well as an outlook onto future developments in the field of nanoscopic characterization of memristive devices.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.208-213
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• 2017

The microstructural changes in Co nanoparticles and an Au-10at.%Pd thin film have been investigated using an in situ heating holder with a micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS). In Co nanoparticles, two phases (face-centered cubic and hexagonal close-packed crystal structures) were found to coexist at room temperature and microstructures at temperatures, higher than $1,000^{\circ}C$, were observed with a quick response time and significant stability. The actual temperature of each specimen was directly estimated from the changes in the lattice spacing (Bragg-peak separation). For the Au-10at.%Pd thin film, at a set temperature of $680^{\circ}C$, the actual temperature of the sample was estimated to be $1,020^{\circ}C{\pm}123^{\circ}C$. Note that the specimen temperature should be carefully evaluated because of the undesired effects, i.e., the temperature non-uniformity due to the sample design of the MEMS chip, and distortion due to thermal expansion.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.48 no.8
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• pp.780-789
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• 2010

The aim of this study is to evaluate the microstructure and tensile property of in-situ (TiB+TiC) particulate reinforced titanium matrix composites (TMCs) synthesized by the investment casting process. Boron carbide ($1,500{\mu}m$ and $150{\mu}m$) was added to the titanium matrix during vacuum induction melting, which can provide the in-situ reaction of $5Ti+B_4C{\rightarrow}4TiB+TiC$. 0.94, 1.88 and 3.76 wt% of $B_4C$ were added to the melt. The phases identification of the in-situ synthesized TMCs was examined using scanning electron microscopy, an X-ray diffractometer, an electron probe micro-analyzer and transmission electron microscopy. Tensile properties of TMCs were investigated in accordance with the reinforcement size and volume fraction. The improvement of tensile property of titanium matrix composites was caused by load transfer from the titanium matrix to the reinforcement and by grain refinement of titanium matrix and reinforcements.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.52
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• pp.7.1-7.6
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• 2022

The process of encapsulating cobalt nanoparticles using a graphene layer is mainly direct pyrolysis. The encapsulation structure of hybrids prepared in this way improves the catalyst stability, which greatly reduces the leaching of non-metals and prevents metal nanoparticles from growing beyond a certain size. In this study, cobalt particles surrounded by graphene layers were formed by increasing the temperature in a transmission electron microscope, and they were analyzed using scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). Synthesized cobalt hydroxide nanosheets were used to obtain cobalt particles using an in-situ heating holder inside a TEM column. The cobalt nanoparticles are surrounded by layers of graphene, and the number of layers increases as the temperature increases. The interlayer spacing of the graphene layers was also investigated using atomic imaging. The success achieved in the encapsulation of metallic nanoparticles in graphene layers paves the way for the design of highly active and reusable heterogeneous catalysts for more challenging molecules.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.36 no.spc1
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• pp.25-33
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• 2006

Nanofabrication with finely focused ion and electron beams is reviewed, and position and size controlled fabrication of nano-metals and -semiconductors is demonstrated. A focused ion beam (FIB) interface attached to a column of 200keV transmission electron microscope (TEM) was developed. Parallel lines and dots arrays were patterned on GaAs, Si and $SiO_2$ substrates with a 25keV $Ga^+-FIB$ of 200nm beam diameter at room temperature. FIB nanofabrication to semiconductor specimens caused amorphization and Ga injection. For the electron beam induced chemical vapor deposition (EBI-CVD), we have discovered that nano-metal dots are formed depending upon the beam diameter and the exposure time when decomposable gases such as $W(CO)_6$ were introduced at the beam irradiated areas. The diameter of the dots was reduced to less than 2.0nm with the UHV-FE-TEM, while those were limited to about 15nm in diameter with the FE-SEM. Self-standing 3D nanostructures were also successfully fabricated.

• Applied Microscopy
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.208-213
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• 2015

Nanomanipulators installed in focused ion beam (FIB), which is used in the lift-out of lamella when preparing transmission electron microscopy specimens, have recently been employed for electrical resistance measurements, tensile and compression tests, and in situ reactions. During the pick-up process of a single nanowire (NW), there are crucial problems such as Pt, C and Ga contaminations, damage by ion beam, and adhesion force by electrostatic attraction and residual solvent. On the other hand, many empirical techniques should be considered for successful pick-up process, because NWs have the diverse size, shape, and angle on the growth substrate. The most important one in the in-situ precedence, therefore, is to select the optimum pick-up process of a single NW. Here we provide the advanced methodologies when manipulating NWs for in-situ mechanical and electrical measurements in FIB.

• Bulletin of the Korean Chemical Society
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• v.35 no.9
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• pp.2625-2629
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• 2014

Platelets are anuclear discoid-shaped blood cells with key roles in human body. To understand the mechanisms of their activation process, it is required to have analytical imaging techniques capable of acquiring platelet images under fully hydrated conditions. Herein, for the first time, we demonstrate the capability of synchrotron-based transmission X-ray microscopy (TXM) to study platelets (resting and ADP activated) under hydrated and air-dried conditions. To confirm the biological imaging capability of TXM, fixed platelets were imaged and compared with whole mount electron microscopy (EM) images. TXM provided morphological information with sufficient spatial resolution with simple and quick sample preparation procedure. We also observed temporal changes during the platelet activation, which initially had a discoid shape (0 s), formed pseudopodia (30 s) and generated a network of fibrin (5 min). Our results clearly demonstrate the potential of TXM technique to study fully hydrated biological samples under in situ conditions.