Point defects in hexagonal BN, BC{sub 3} and BC{sub x}N compounds studied by x-ray absorption near-edge structure
- Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid (ICMM-CSIC), Campus de Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid (Spain)
The generation of point defects in highly oriented pyrolytic boron nitride (HOPBN) after Ar{sup +} ion bombardment in ultrahigh vacuum and subsequent exposure to air was studied by angle-resolved x-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES). The pristine HOPBN showed well-oriented boron nitride (BN) basal planes parallel to the surface, with a negligible amount of defects. Amorphization of the BN structure took place after Ar{sup +} sputtering, as indicated by the broadening of the XANES spectra and significant decrease of the characteristic {pi}* states. Following air exposure, the XANES analysis revealed a spontaneous reorganization of the sample structure. The appearance of four new B1s {pi}* excitonic peaks indicates an oxygen decoration process of the nitrogen vacancies created by ion bombardment. A core-level shift model is presented to support this statement. This model is successfully extended to the case of oxygen substitutional defects in hexagonal BC{sub 3} and BC{sub x}N (0 < x < 4) materials, which can be applied to any B-based sp{sup 2}-bonded honeycomb structure.
- OSTI ID:
- 22038649
- Journal Information:
- Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 110, Issue 2; Other Information: (c) 2011 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0021-8979
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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