This research monograph discusses the close correlation between the magnetic and structural properties of thin films in the context of numerous examples of epitaxial metal films, while emphasis is laid on the stabilization of novel structures compared to the bulk material. Further options, possibilities, and limits for applications are given. Techniques for the characterization of thin films are addressed as well.
Transparent electrodes (TEs) are a class of materials that make it possible to bring electrical current or potentials in close proximity to optically active regions without significant loss of optical energy. However, it is a challenge to decouple the electrical and optical properties of a material, as the property of conductivity is strongly coupled to the imaginary part of the refractive index. An ideal TE has high transparency in combination with very low electrical resistivity. The main objective of the thesis was to develop TEs which can replace expensive, scarce and fragile Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), the most widely used TE material in the industry today. The thesis contains original work on ultrathin metal film (UTMF)-based TEs, which are essential elements in a wide range of optoelectronics, consumer electronics and energy devices. It presents new designs and fabrication methods and demonstrates the efficient use of UTMF-TEs in organic light emitting diodes and solar cells, achieving similar levels of efficiency to that of state-of-the-art ITO.
This book reports the establishment of a single-atomic layer metal of In and a novel (In, Mg) ultrathin film on Si(111) surfaces. A double-layer phase of In called “rect” has been extensively investigated as a two-dimensional metal. Another crystalline phase called “hex” was also suggested, but it had not been established due to difficulty in preparing the sample. The author succeeded in growing the large and high-quality sample of the hex phase and revealed that it is a single-layer metal. The author also established a new triple-atomic layer (In, Mg) film with a nearly freestanding character by Mg deposition onto the In double layer. This work proposes a novel method to decouple ultrathin metal films from Si dangling bonds. The present study demonstrates interesting properties of indium itself, which is a p-block metal both with metallicity and covalency. In this book, readers also see principles of various surface analysis techniques and learn how to use them and analyze the results in the real systems. This book is useful to researchers and students interested in surface science, particularly ultrathin metal films on semiconductor surfaces.
Handbook of Magnetic Materials, Volume 29, highlights new advances in the field, with this new volume presenting interesting chapters written by an international board of authors on topics such as spin-orbit torque. Provides the authority and expertise of leading contributors from an international board of authors Presents the latest release in the Handbook of Magnetic Materials series
