No abstract

The ESRF synchrotron beamline ID22, dedicated to hard X-ray microanalysis and consisting of the combination of X-ray fluorescence, X-ray absorption spectroscopy, diffraction and 2D/3D X-ray imaging techniques, is one of the most versatile instruments in hard X-ray microscopy science. This paper describes the present beamline characteristics, recent technical developments, as well as a few scientific examples from recent years of the beamline operation. The upgrade plans to adapt the beamline to the growing needs of the user community are briefly discussed.

We report on the local structure of single Co-implanted ZnO nanowires studied using a hard X-ray nanoprobe. X-ray fluorescence maps show uniform Zn and Co distributions along the wire within the length scale of the beam size. The X-ray fluorescence data allow the estimation of the Co content within the nanowire. Polarization dependent X-ray absorption near edge structure shows no structural disorder induced neither in the radial nor axial directions of the implanted nanowires after subsequent annealing. Co2+ ions occupy Zn sites into the wurtzite ZnO lattice. Extended X-ray absorption fine structure data reveal high structural order in the host lattice without distortion in their interatomic distances, confirming the recovery of the radiation damaged ZnO structure through thermal annealing.

In this work, we report on the composition, short- and long-range structural order of single molecular beam epitaxy grown In(x)Ga(1-x)N nanowires using a hard X-ray synchrotron nanoprobe. Nano-X-ray fluorescence mapping reveals an axial and radial heterogeneous elemental distribution in the single wires with Ga accumulation at their bottom and outer regions. Polarization-dependent nano-X-ray absorption near edge structure demonstrates that despite the elemental modulation, the tetrahedral order around the Ga atoms remains along the nanowires. Nano-X-ray diffraction mapping on single nanowires shows the existence of at least three different phases at their bottom: an In-poor shell and two In-rich phases. The alloy homogenizes toward the top of the wires, where a single In-rich phase is observed. No signatures of In-metallic precipitates are observed in the diffraction spectra. The In-content along the single nanowires estimated from X-ray fluorescence and diffraction data are in good agreement. A rough picture of these phenomena is briefly presented. We anticipate that this methodology will contribute to a greater understanding of the underlying growth concepts not only of nanowires but also of many nanostructures in materials science.