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   ANM 2010
    3rd International Conference on Advanced Nano Materials
    12-15 September 2010 - Agadir, Morocco

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   Abstract


ANMM312
STRAIN-INDUCED NANOSTRUCTURES AND NANOCHEMISTRY AT ADVANCED SEMICONDUCTOR SURFACES AND INTERFACES
Patrick G. Soukiassian
Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique, Saclay and Université de Paris-Sud, Orsay, France 
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Silicon carbide (SiC) and graphene are advanced semiconductors having figures of merit scaling well above those of well-established semiconductors. SiC main characteristics include i) a wide band gap (2.4 to 3.3 eV depending on the polytype), ii) biocompatibility, iii) excellent mechanical properties, and iv) high resistance to radiation damages. Strain/stress is the driving force in SiC surface/interface organization leading to complex structures and massively parallel passive/active nano-lines/nano-wires self-organizing at SiC surfaces. Another interesting feature is to have SiC as a very suitable substrate for epitaxial graphene growth. Graphene, a single atomic layer of graphite, exhibits outstanding transport properties, with carriers moving at zero mass and constant velocity just like photons, leading to linear valence band dispersion forming Dirac cones and unprecedented mobility up-to 250.000 cm2/V-1 at RT. Graphene also has the highest mechanical resistance ever measured. Nano-objects and nanochemistry at SiC and graphene surfaces and interfaces are investigated by advanced experimental techniques. It includes scanning tunneling microscopy/spectroscopy, synchrotron radiation-based photoelectron spectroscopies, infrared absorption spectroscopies, and state-of-the-art theoretical calculations. Among some important issues, the following will be presented and discussed:
• The 1st example of H-induced semiconductor surface metallization on a SiC surface, also taking place on a pre-oxidized surface, with an amazing isotopic effect using D.
• Monitoring the graphene band-gap by selective oxidation or hydrogenation
• Atomic crack defects developing at SiC surfaces
• Nano-objects forming mesas with steep sides suggestive of C nanotubes at graphene/SiC interface, triggering interface states possibly detrimental to carrier mobility.
• Graphene layer going deep into nano-cracks at SiC surface with no disruption or resulting electronic interface states.
Strain appears to play a central role in these properties. These results directly impact engineering the properties of semiconductor surface/interface. It also allows to achieve on the same surface two opposite functions, metallization and passivation, which is especially interesting for interfacing with biology.
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