Hybrid Organic/Inorganic Materials Depth Profiling Using Low Energy Cesium Ions

Abstract

Abstract. The structures developed in organic electronics, such as organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) or organic photovoltaics (OPVs) devices always involve hybrid interfaces, joining metal or oxide layers with organic layers. No satisfactory method to probe these hybrid interfaces physical chemistry currently exists. One promising way to analyze such interfaces is to use in situ ion beam etching, but this requires ion beams able to depth profile both inorganic and organic layers. Mono-or diatomic ion beams commonly used to depth profile inorganic materials usually perform badly on organics, while cluster ion beams perform excellently on organics but yield poor results when organics and inorganics are mixed. Conversely, low energy Cs + beams (<500 eV) allow organic and inorganic materials depth profiling with comparable erosion rates. This paper shows a successful depth profiling of a model hybrid system made of metallic (Au, Cr) and organic (tyrosine) layers, sputtered with 500 eV Cs + ions. Tyrosine layers capped with metallic overlayers are depth profiled easily, with high intensities for the characteristic molecular ions and other specific fragments. Metallic Au or Cr atoms are recoiled into the organic layer where they cause some damage near the hybrid interface as well as changes in the erosion rate. However, these recoil implanted metallic atoms do not appear to severely degrade the depth profile overall quality. This first successful hybrid depth profiling report opens new possibilities for the study of OLEDs, organic solar cells, or other hybrid devices.

Correlation of annealing time with crystal structure, composition, and electronic properties of CH3NH3PbI3−xClxmixed-halide perovskite films

“…A low-energy Cs + beam has been demonstrated to allow for convenient sputtering rates both on organic and inorganic materials while preserving a high yield for characteristic high-mass molecular fragments. 36,37 Fig. 2 shows the ToF-SIMS profiles obtained for selected masses on S-10 and S-100.…”

“…This excludes that the chlorine signal measured in the PEDOT:PSS layer of S-100 is due to contamination. For S-10, the ToF-SIMS profile of 37 Cl À follows that of PbCl 3 À suggesting that both ions represent the same species (ESI, † Fig. S4).…”

A quantitative evaluation of inorganic boundary films formed in engine oils by TOF‐SIMS depth profiling with low energy Cs sputtering

“…This difference in distributions is attributed to variations in the interactions between the substrate and the oil additives and would be expected to also lead to differences in lubrication properties. At the interface between the film and the metal, it is possible that the negative ionization probability may vary based on the matrix effect of the metal . However, examining the profiles at the interfaces between the boundary films and metals, there is no indication of a matrix effect in the present work.…”

“…Boundary films generated in engine oil lubrication systems are thought to be complex mixtures of organic and inorganic compounds, including metals, having heterogeneous structures and rough surfaces. By evaluating the structures of these complex films by TOF‐SIMS depth profiling, the authors have investigated sputtering with low energy Cs + ions, because this process is expected to be advantageous compared with low‐damage sputtering agents such as C 60 + or Ar n + when working with hybrid organic/inorganic materials . The present paper describes the results of a quantitative evaluation of inorganic boundary films, using pellets composed of mixtures of calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, and calcium sulfate as models for the boundary films formed in typical engine oil lubrication systems.…”

Printed Nonvolatile Resistive Memories Based on a Hybrid Organic/Inorganic Functional Ink

“…In this work, ToF‐SIMS was performed on electrically cycled memory devices by using a low energy (500 eV) Cs + sputtering beam and Bi 3 + analysis beam over a variable analysis area defined over the crossing region between Ag (top) and ITO (bottom) electrode bars. Low‐energy Cs was chosen because of its ability to effectively profile soft/hard interfaced materials while keeping signals from high mass molecular fragments . Since Au NPs are clearly affecting the switching behavior, the signal from gold was accurately followed.…”