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Aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy studies of epitaxial Fe/MgO/(001)Ge heterostructures

  • IIB 2010
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Abstract

Aberration correction in the scanning transmission electron microscope combined with electron energy loss spectroscopy allows simultaneous mapping of the structure, the chemistry and even the electronic properties of materials in one single experiment with spatial resolutions of the order of one Ångström. Here the authors will apply these techniques to the characterization of epitaxial Fe/MgO/(001)Ge and interfaces with possible applications for tunneling junctions, and the authors will show that epitaxial MgO films can be grown on a (001)Ge substrates by molecular beam epitaxy and how it is possible to map the chemistry of interfaces with atomic resolution.

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Acknowledgements

This study supported by the European Research Council Starting Investigator Award (JG), the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, Materials Sciences and Engineering Division (MV) and by the Fondazione Cariplo via project MANDIS (Project no. 2007.5095) (D.P., M. C, C. R., S. B., and R. B.). The authors are thankful to J.T. Luck for STEM specimen preparation and to M. Watanabe for the plug in for Principal Component Analysis into Digital Micrograph.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN, 37830, USA

    Jaume Gazquez & Maria Varela

  2. Department Física Aplicada III, University Complutense of Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Jaume Gazquez

  3. Dipartimento di Fisica—Politecnico di Milano, L-NESS, Via Anzani 42, 22100, Como, Italy

    Daniela Petti, Matteo Cantoni, Christian Rinaldi, Stefano Brivio & Riccardo Bertacco

Authors
  1. Jaume Gazquez
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  2. Maria Varela
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  3. Daniela Petti
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  4. Matteo Cantoni
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  5. Christian Rinaldi
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  6. Stefano Brivio
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  7. Riccardo Bertacco
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Correspondence to Maria Varela.

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Gazquez, J., Varela, M., Petti, D. et al. Aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron energy loss spectroscopy studies of epitaxial Fe/MgO/(001)Ge heterostructures. J Mater Sci 46, 4157–4161 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-011-5248-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-011-5248-7

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