A prospective submonolayer template structure for integration of functional oxides with silicon

: Averyanov DV, Karateeva CG, Karateev IA, Tokmachev AM, Kuzmin MV, Laukkanen P, Vasiliev AL, Storchak VG

Publisher: ELSEVIER SCI LTD

: 2017

: Materials and Design

: MATERIALS & DESIGN

: MATER DESIGN

: 116

: 616

: 621

: 6

: 0264-1275

: 1873-4197

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.matdes.2016.12.055(external)

Epitaxial integration of oxides with the ubiquitous silicon technological platform promises devices with dreamed-of functionality but is difficult to achieve due to chemical processes at the Si/oxide interface. The standard approach suggests a protective template - a surface superstructure of SrSi(2)stoichiometry; still, only a handful of oxides couple to Si with atomically abrupt interface. We advocate an alternative approach - the use of metal-rich submonolayer templates as a general recipe, in particular, robust 1 x 5 reconstructions of Sr and Eu on Si. Their fail-safe synthesis is reported, diffraction techniques and electron microscopy reveal the structure and thermal stability of the reconstructions. The surface protection is discussed in terms of oxidation kinetics. The advantages of the new templates are demonstrated recruiting the example of the paradigmatic spintronic system EuO/Si. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.