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The growth and characterization of AlN and GaN on GaAs are presented. Trimethylgallium (TMG) and trimethylaluminum (TMA) were used as group III sources and hydrazine as a nitrogen source. It was found for both nitrides that mass-transport-limited growth took place at high temperature, and that at low temperature the surface catalyzed decomposition of respective metalorganics manifested itself. Deposition of AlN film was observed at as low as 220°C and that of GaN at 450°C both on GaAs substrates. A distinct proof of cubic-form GaN grown on GaAs is obtained from results of the X-ray precession measurement. The <100> direction of GaN on (100) GaAs, however, is slightly tilted from that of the substrate. It is speculated that this tilt results from the very large lattice-mismatch existing between GaN and GaAs.

We analyzed the local structure of the surface Ta-oxide phase of TaCN/Ta2O5 core-shell particles that have a high oxygen reduction activity by using surface-sensitive conversion-electron-yield x-ray absorption spectroscopy, suppressing the contribution from the TaCN cores. The radial structure analysis revealed that the catalytically-active Ta2O5 phase in the TaCN/Ta2O5 particle surface contains oxygen-vacancy defects with shorter Ta–O bonds leading to the slight expansion of the first Ta–O shell. Such oxygen defects are likely responsible for the oxygen reduction capability by creating electronically favorable oxygen adsorption sites and electron conduction pathways.

Interface defects generated by negative-bias temperature stress (NBTS) in an ultrathin plasma- nitrided SiON/Si(100) system were characterized by using D2 annealing, conductance-frequency measurements, and electron-spin resonance measurements. D2 annealing was shown to lower negative-bias temperature instability (NBTI) than H2 annealing. Interfacial Si dangling bonds (Pb1 and Pb0 centers), whose density is comparable to an increase in interface trap density, were detected in a NBTS-stressed sample. The NBTI of the plasma-nitrided SiON/Si system was thus shown to occur through Pb depassivation. Furthermore, the nitridation was shown to increase the Pb1/Pb0 density ratio and modify the Pb1 structure. Such a predominance and structural modification of Pb1 centers are presumed to increase NBTI by enhancing the Pb–H dissociation. Although we suggest that NBTS may also induce non-Pb defects, nitrogen dangling bonds do not seem to be included in them.

Employing hydrogen depth-profiling via 1H(15N,αγ)12C nuclear reaction analysis (NRA), the “native” H concentration in thin (19–41.5 nm) SiO2 films grown on Si(100) under “wet” oxidation conditions (H2+O2) was determined to be (1–2)×1019 cm−3. Upon ion-beam irradiation during NRA this hydrogen is redistributed within the oxide and accumulates in a ∼8-nm-wide region centered ∼4 nm in front of the SiO2/Si(100) interface. Annealing in H2 near 400 °C introduces hydrogen preferentially into the near-interfacial oxide region, where apparently large numbers of hydrogen trap sites are available. The amount of incorporated H exceeds the quantity necessary to H-passivate dangling Si bonds at the direct SiO2/Si(100) interface by more than one order of magnitude. The H uptake is strongly dependent on the H2-annealing temperature and is suppressed above 430 °C. This temperature marks the onset of hydrogen desorption from the near-interfacial oxide trap sites, contrasting the thermal stability of the native H, which prevails homogeneously distributed in the SiO2 films after oxidation at 900 °C. Hydrogen bound in the near-interface oxide region is not redistributed by the ion-beam irradiation, further emphasizing its different chemical interaction with the SiO2 network as opposed to the native oxide H. The mechanism of the irradiation-induced H redistribution and its possible relation to the degradation of electrically stressed electronic devices are discussed.