Tungsten oxide thin films probed by depth-resolved positron annihilation spectroscopy

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

  • Vassily Vadimovitch Burwitz - , Technical University of Munich (Author)
  • Annemarie Kärcher - , Technical University of Munich, Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (Author)
  • Lucian Mathes - , Technical University of Munich (Author)
  • Alexander Book - , Technical University of Munich (Author)
  • Neelima Paul - , Technical University of Munich (Author)
  • Thomas Schwarz-Selinger - , Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (Author)
  • Maik Butterling - , Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) (Author)
  • Eric Hirschmann - , Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) (Author)
  • Maciej Oskar Liedke - , Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) (Author)
  • Andreas Wagner - , Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR) (Author)
  • Elif Unsal - , Chair of Materials Science and Nanotechnology, Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials Dresden (Author)
  • Gianaurelio Cuniberti - , Dresden Center for Computational Materials Science (DCMS), Chair of Materials Science and Nanotechnology, Max Bergmann Center of Biomaterials Dresden (Author)
  • Christoph Hugenschmidt - , Technical University of Munich (Author)

Abstract

Tungsten oxide (WOx) films grown on tungsten (W) are characterized by depth-resolved Doppler-broadening spectroscopy (DBS) and positron-annihilation lifetime spectroscopy (PALS) as primary analytical methods. The WOx films are prepared on W(111) monocrystals using either exposure to air, electrochemical, or thermal oxidation procedures, chosen according to the desired thickness. We calculate the lifetime of positrons in the bulk of WOx and in different types of vacancies using the atomic superposition (AtSup) method. These give the size required for a multivacancy in WOx needed for it to be identifiable by PALS. In our experiments, we identified a distinct positron lifetime of 325ps in the thin oxide layer on W exposed to air. This value overlaps with that of multivacancy sites in W and, hence, should be taken into account in future PALS studies of radiation-induced defects in W.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number054114
JournalPhysical Review B
Volume111
Issue number5
Publication statusPublished - 1 Feb 2025
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

ORCID /0000-0001-6419-384X/work/202350043
ORCID /0000-0002-6574-7848/work/211720610