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Fabrication of ultrathin (sub-2 nm) oxide semiconductor memristors poses the fundamental challenge of achieving oxide growth with atomic precision in terms of electronic structure and defect formation. Recently, ultrathin memristors consisting of bilayers of mixed and MgO atomic layers were fabricated using an in vacuo atomic layer deposition process. This approach offers a unique platform for precise atomic control of oxygen vacancies in the device in which the vacancies are introduced by placing MgO atomic layers between pristine layers. In this work, we present a systematic operando Hard X-ray PhotoElectron Spectroscopy (HAXPES) study of the switching of such memristors, combined with complementary current-voltage and capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements. We used a memristor stack of /MgO atomic layers, with the MgO-containing oxide deposited on the bottom Al metal electrode and a pure layer below the top Pd electrode. HAXPES analysis shows a substantial change in the chemical shift of the Aluminum oxide when switching between the ”OFF” and ”ON” states indicative of a redistribution of oxygen vacancies in the device active layer. Interestingly, subsequent switching to the OFF state shows hysteretic behavior indicating the retention of some oxygen vacancies in the top layer. This vacancy retention can be correlated with the stochastic behavior of the switching voltage observed in these devices. C–V measurements show a clear frequency-dependent response in the OFF state, consistent with enhanced polarization and vacancy trapping at low frequencies.

Intense femtosecond laser excitation can produce transient states of matter that would otherwise be inaccessible to laboratory investigation. At high excitation densities, the interatomic forces that bind solids and determine many of their properties can be substantially altered. Here, we present the detailed mapping of the carrier density-dependent interatomic potential of bismuth approaching a solid-solid phase transition. Our experiments combine stroboscopic techniques that use a high-brightness linear electron accelerator-based x-ray source with pulse-by-pulse timing reconstruction for femtosecond resolution, allowing quantitative characterization of the interatomic potential energy surface of the highly excited solid.

Maia is an advanced system designed specifically for scanning x-ray fluorescence microprobe applications. It consists of a large array of photodiode detectors and associated signal processing, closely coupled to an FPGA-based control and analysis system. In this paper we will describe the architecture and construction of the system.

Motivated by the challenge of capturing complex hierarchical chemical detail in natural material from a wide range of applications, the Maia detector array and integrated realtime processor have been developed to acquire X-ray fluorescence images using X-ray Fluorescence Microscopy (XFM). Maia has been deployed initially at the XFM beamline at the Australian Synchrotron and more recently, demonstrating improvements in energy resolution, at the P06 beamline at Petra III in Germany. Maia captures fine detail in element images beyond 100 M pixels. It combines a large solid-angle annular energy-dispersive 384 detector array, stage encoder and flux counter inputs and dedicated FPGA-based real-time event processor with embedded spectral deconvolution. This enables high definition imaging and enhanced trace element sensitivity to capture complex trace element textures and place them in a detailed spatial context. Maia hardware and software methods provide per pixel correction for dwell, beam flux variation, dead-time and pileup, as well as off-line parallel processing for enhanced throughput. Methods have been developed for real-time display of deconvoluted SXRF element images, depth mapping of rare particles and the acquisition of 3D datasets for fluorescence tomography and XANES imaging using a spectral deconvolution method that tracks beam energy variation.

High-energy transmission x-ray diffraction techniques have been applied to investigate the crystal quality of CdZnTe (CZT). CdZnTe has shown excellent performance in hard x-ray and gamma detection; unfortunately, bulk nonuniformities still limit spectroscopic properties of CZT detectors. Collimated high-energy x-rays, produced by a superconducting wiggler at the National Synchrotron Light Source's X17B1 beamline, allow for a nondestructive characterization of thick CZT samples (2-3 mm). In order to have complete information about the defect distribution and strains in the crystals, two series of experiments have been performed. First, a monochromatic 67 keV x-ray beam with the size of 300 × 300 μm^sup 2^ was used to measure the rocking curves of CZT crystals supplied by different material growers. A raster scan of a few square centimeter area allowed us to measure the full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) and shift in the peak position across the crystal. The rocking curve peak position and its FWHM can be correlated with local stoichiometry variations and other local defects. Typically, the FWHM values ranging from 8.3 arcsec to 14.7 arcsec were measured with the best crystal used in these measurements. Second, transmission white beam x-ray topography (WBXT) was performed by using a 22 mm × 200 μm beam in the energy range of 50 keV to 200 keV. These types of measurements allowed for large area, high-resolution (50 μm) scans of the samples. Usually, this technique is used to visualize growth and process-induced defects, such as dislocations, twins, domains, inclusions, etc. the difference in contrast shows different parts of the crystal that could not be shown otherwise. In topography, good contrast is indicative of a high quality of the sample, while blurred gray shows the presence of defects. Correlation with other techniques (e.g., infrared (IR) mapping and gamma mapping) was also attempted. Our characterization techniques, which use highly penetrating x-rays, are valid for in-situ measurements, even after electrical contacts have been formed on the crystal in a working device. Thus, these studies may lead to understanding the effects of the defects on the device performance and ultimately to improving the quality of CZT material required for device fabrication. It is important to study crystals from different ingot positions (bottom, center, and top); consequently, more systematic studies involving scans from center to border are planned. [PUBLICATION ABSTRACT]

We have built and tested a 10 cm × 10 cm single Gas Electron Multiplier (GEM) X-ray detector to probe dilute amounts of Fe in a prepared sample. The detector uses Argon/Carbon Dioxide (75/25) gas mixture flowing at a slow rate through a leak proof Plexi-glass enclosure held together by O-rings and screws. The Fluorescence X-ray emitted by the element under test is directed through a Mylar window into the drift region of the detector where abundant gas is flowing. The ionized electrons are separated, drifted into the high electric field of the GEM, and multiplied by impact ionization. The amplified negatively charged electrons are collected and further amplified by a Keithley amplifier to probe the absorption edge of the element under test using X-ray absorption spectroscopy technique. The results show that the GEM detector provided good results with less noise as compared with a Silicon drift detector (SDD).

A dual 32 strip sensor array is realized for use at the IXS (inelastic x-ray scattering) beamline of NSLS-II. By making use of established controls methods and sensor device recipes, our new geometry is realized quickly and at minimal cost. The detector geometry is chosen to match the output of a multi-element high-resolution energy analyzer, while the pulse thresholding is optimized for an ultra-low noise floor at a pass energy of 9.13 keV. Detector subsystems and integration are described, including sensor geometry and silicon device processing, cooling and thermal readback, bias and threshold optimizations, readout ASIC and controls, vacuum enclosure and x-ray window, mounting and positioning, and assembly procedure and testing.

A step improvement in X-ray fluorescence imaging performance is demonstrated through close integration of a large detector array, dedicated data acquisition, stage control and real-time parallel data processing, to achieve efficient elemental imaging with <1 ms per pixel, image sizes in excess of 4 megapixels, full-spectral data collection and spectral deconvolution, at detected photon rates up to 6 M/s, in prototype tests at the NSLS using a 96 detector array.

The motion of atoms on interatomic potential energy surfaces is fundamental to the dynamics of liquids and solids. An accelerator-based source of femtosecond x-ray pulses allowed us to follow directly atomic displacements on an optically modified energy landscape, leading eventually to the transition from crystalline solid to disordered liquid. We show that, to first order in time, the dynamics are inertial, and we place constraints on the shape and curvature of the transition-state potential energy surface. Our measurements point toward analogies between this nonequilibrium phase transition and the short-time dynamics intrinsic to equilibrium liquids.