Heat-induced transformation of nickel-coated polycrystalline diamond film studied in situ by XPS and NEXAFS

• Olga V. Sedelnikova,
• Yuliya V. Fedoseeva,
• Dmitriy V. Gorodetskiy,
• Yuri N. Palyanov,
• Elena V. Shlyakhova,
• Eugene A. Maksimovskiy,
• Anna A. Makarova,
• Lyubov G. Bulusheva and
• Aleksandr V. Okotrub

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 887–898, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.67

• temperature of about 500 °C [23]. Such a significant decrease in the temperature at which graphitization starts compared to that of the Ni-coated SCD is due to the presence of multiple grain boundaries, along which the diffusion of Ni atoms takes place, facilitating the graphitization process [34]. The

Ar⁺ implantation-induced tailoring of RF-sputtered ZnO films: structural, morphological, and optical properties

• Manu Bura,
• Divya Gupta,
• Arun Kumar and
• Sanjeev Aggarwal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 872–886, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.66

• at higher fluences. Moreover, AFM studies reveal grain size reduction leading to the enhancement in the density of grain boundaries. This generates an intrinsic electric field, which in turn evolves Raman optical modes [49]. Further, the fall in intensity of the E2 (high) mode is corroborated with

Morphology and properties of pyrite nanoparticles obtained by pulsed laser ablation in liquid and thin films for photodetection

• Akshana Parameswaran Sreekala,
• Bindu Krishnan,
• Rene Fabian Cienfuegos Pelaes,
• David Avellaneda Avellaneda,
• Josué Amílcar Aguilar-Martínez and
• Sadasivan Shaji

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 785–805, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.60

• optoelectronic applications. The morphological variations between the two sets of spin-coated films are primarily responsible for the variance in photocurrents between them. In the case of FIPA spin-coated films, charge recombination at the grain boundaries, due to the spherical and rod-shaped surface, may be

Thickness dependent oxidation in CrCl₃: a scanning X-ray photoemission and Kelvin probe microscopies study

• Shafaq Kazim,
• Rahul Parmar,
• Maryam Azizinia,
• Matteo Amati,
• Muhammad Rauf,
• Andrea Di Cicco,
• Seyed Javid Rezvani,
• Dario Mastrippolito,
• Luca Ottaviano,
• Tomasz Klimczuk,
• Luca Gregoratti and
• Roberto Gunnella

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 749–761, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.58

• content of defects such as adatoms, the length of grain boundaries, vacancies, and substitution impurities influence the electrical, magnetic, and electronic properties of the final device [14][15][4]. To name one, the formation of chalcogenide vacancies is often related to the enhanced dissociation of

The impact of tris(pentafluorophenyl)borane hole transport layer doping on interfacial charge extraction and recombination

• Konstantinos Bidinakis and
• Stefan A. L. Weber

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 678–689, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.52

• as grain boundaries and interfacial defect states that hinder performance. Specifically, since the interaction of adjacent layers at the interfaces of a solar cell is an important limiting factor for its operation, there is a need for dedicated studies regarding interfacial behavior. Kelvin probe

N₂⁺-implantation-induced tailoring of structural, morphological, optical, and electrical characteristics of sputtered molybdenum thin films

• Usha Rani,
• Kafi Devi,
• Divya Gupta and
• Sanjeev Aggarwal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 495–509, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.38

• . The simultaneous impact of strain and defects leads to peak broadening and increase of the FWHM. The disruption of the crystal lattice and an increasing number of defects substantially influenced the grain boundaries, resulting in a notable alteration of the structural parameters of Mo thin films

• . Such structural changes can influence the movement of electrons through the material, particularly at grain boundaries, resulting in nonlinear I–V behavior. Resistivity and conductivity The resistivity of thin films is defined by the relation [51][52]: where ρ is the resistivity, R is the resistance, A

• , optically distinct material. Similarly, the electrical conductivity of the as-deposited Mo films increased with increasing thickness, as thicker films often provide better pathways for electron conduction because of less scattering effects. However, after implantation, several grain boundaries are

Tailoring of physical properties of RF-sputtered ZnTe films: role of substrate temperature

• Kafi Devi,
• Usha Rani,
• Arun Kumar,
• Divya Gupta and
• Sanjeev Aggarwal

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 333–348, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.25

• using Equation 3. The microstrain decreases with increasing substrate temperature. This implies that imperfections along grain boundaries decrease with temperature. The dislocation density, which is defined as the average number of dislocations present per unit volume in a crystal was calculated using

• with energy lower than the excitation photon energy are emitted. The recombination can occur either from band to band or through impurities and defects present within an energy level inside the forbidden gap. Grain boundaries are responsible for non-radiative recombination processes. For the present

• of films with substrate temperature [42]. Grain boundaries have a significant effect on the electric transport properties in polycrystalline films. Grain boundaries are growth process-dependent phenomena and have a large number of charge-trapping centres. Thus, grain boundaries reduce the mobility of

Comparison of organic and inorganic hole transport layers in double perovskite material-based solar cell

• Deepika K and
• Arjun Singh

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2025, 16, 119–127, doi:10.3762/bjnano.16.11

• transported to ETL and HTL, respectively, without recombining [7]. Ozturk et al. [8] addressed the role of a passivation agent at grain boundaries and the surface of perovskite films, namely, quinary kesterite nanocrystals Cu2NiSn(S,Se)4 (CNTSSe) obtained through a facile hot-casting method. Through

Effect of radiation-induced vacancy saturation on the first-order phase transformation in nanoparticles: insights from a model

• Aram Shirinyan and
• Yuriy Bilogorodskyy

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1453–1472, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.117

• (dpa) (equivalent to 40 years of service). Under irradiation, the main point defects are vacancies and interstitials. Point defects can develop into clusters of dislocations, stacking faults, or voids. They can also relax onto existing sinks such as dislocation loops, grain boundaries, phase interfaces

• based on the fact that the movement of dislocations is impeded by particle surfaces (grain boundaries) quite rapidly. For example, a transmission electron microscopy study (irradiation with Kr ions at 1 MeV at room temperature and an average defect generation rate of about 2 × 10−3 dpa·s−1) showed that

• literature review reveals that the stability of materials under irradiation is influenced by numerous factors. Some of these characteristic factors include the elemental composition and chemical structure, the microstructure of the material (including grain boundaries, defects, dislocations, and interfaces

Atomistic insights into the morphological dynamics of gold and platinum nanoparticles: MD simulations in vacuum and aqueous media

• Evangelos Voyiatzis,
• Eugenia Valsami-Jones and
• Antreas Afantitis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 995–1009, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.81

• equal to 100%. The reason is that a small proportion of the atoms are classified as atoms belonging to alternative structures, that is, BCC, HCP, or icosahedral structures. These structures should be considered as intermediate unstable states or as grain boundaries of the thermodynamically stable FCC

• lower density than FCC, becomes less energetically prohibitive. When focusing on the morphology of the NPs, the coexistence of several small crystal domains interconnected via amorphous grain boundaries is favoured at higher temperatures, while the crystallization process at lower temperatures leads to

Effects of cutting tool geometry on material removal of a gradient nanograined CoCrNi medium entropy alloy

• Yu-Sheng Lu,
• Yu-Xuan Hung,
• Thi-Xuyen Bui and
• Te-Hua Fang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 925–940, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.76

• behavior shows that grain boundaries are crucial in inhibiting the propagation of strain and stress. As the average grain size of the GNG sample increases, the range of shear strain distribution and average von Mises stress decreases. Moreover, the cutting chips become thinner and longer. The subsurface

• transform into a mixed structure of face-centered cubic and hexagonally close-packed phases. The sliding and twisting of grain boundaries and the merging of grains are essential mechanisms for polycrystalline deformation. Regarding the cutting parameters, the average resultant force, the material

• the material becomes softer in the presence of grain boundaries, which is consistent with previous literature [21][23]. The effects of different sliding systems on different grain sizes will affect the number of wear atoms in the GNG samples. Figure 3 shows the relationship between the various GNG

Effect of repeating hydrothermal growth processes and rapid thermal annealing on CuO thin film properties

• Monika Ozga,
• Eunika Zielony,
• Aleksandra Wierzbicka,
• Anna Wolska,
• Marcin Klepka,
• Marek Godlewski,
• Bogdan J. Kowalski and
• Bartłomiej S. Witkowski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 743–754, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.62

• in the VCPD values (varying by several millivolts) between the grain boundaries and their surface can be observed. Analyzing the ϕ distributions, it can be inferred that the 2× layer, exhibiting the lowest FWHM, demonstrates the highest homogeneity in potential distribution. This finding further

• air. Nevertheless, additional investigation is required to validate this hypothesis. Considering the variations in the contact potential at grain boundaries observed during KPFM measurements, the samples additionally underwent SCM investigations to evaluate the distribution of charge carriers on the

• a lower signal, which means that the electrical properties of some grains had changed. These inhomogeneities may be caused by various factors. One is the effects occurring at grain boundaries or structural defects in the boundaries. The defects disrupt the crystalline order and affect the electronic

Unveiling the nature of atomic defects in graphene on a metal surface

• Karl Rothe,
• Nicolas Néel and
• Jörg Kröger

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 416–425, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.37

• , during its epitaxial growth in surface science experiments or its fabrication for applications, defects, that is, deviations from the ideal 2D lattice, inevitably occur. Examples for defects are vacancies, interstitial atoms, grain boundaries, stacking faults or wrinkles [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13

On the mechanism of piezoresistance in nanocrystalline graphite

• Sandeep Kumar,
• Simone Dehm and
• Ralph Krupke

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 376–384, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.34

• , and graphene is already in use as a transparent and flexible conductor. However, graphene intrinsically lacks a strong response, and only by engineering defects, such as grain boundaries, one can induce piezoresistivity. Nanocrystalline graphene (NCG), a derivative form of graphene, exhibits a high

• density of defects in the form of grain boundaries. It holds an advantage over graphene in easily achieving wafer-scale growth with controlled thickness. In this study, we explore the piezoresistivity in thin films of nanocrystalline graphite. Simultaneous measurements of sheet resistance and externally

• applied strain on NCG placed on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates provide intriguing insights into the underlying mechanism. Raman measurements, in conjunction with strain applied to NCG grown on flexible glass, indicate that the strain is concentrated at the grain boundaries for smaller strain

Control of morphology and crystallinity of CNTs in flame synthesis with one-dimensional reaction zone

• Muhammad Hilmi Ibrahim,
• Norikhwan Hamzah,
• Mohd Zamri Mohd Yusop,
• Ni Luh Wulan Septiani and
• Mohd Fairus Mohd Yasin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 741–750, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.61

• -temperature environment, which forms a rough surface covered with nanoparticles. The carbide layer formed on the wire will induce localized stress on the surface due to lattice mismatch and, consequently, a breakup along grain boundaries to yield particles of different sizes and shapes [13]. According to the

Plasmonic nanotechnology for photothermal applications – an evaluation

• A. R. Indhu,
• L. Keerthana and
• Gnanaprakash Dharmalingam

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 380–419, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.33

• electrons being in proximity to the surface) result in an increased Coulombic force of restoration and hence a shift in the dielectric function [47]. Similarly, with a decrease in grain size, due to the fact that there is an increase in the volume fraction of grain boundaries compared to the grains, and

Combining physical vapor deposition structuration with dealloying for the creation of a highly efficient SERS platform

• Adrien Chauvin,
• Walter Puglisi,
• Damien Thiry,
• Cristina Satriano,
• Rony Snyders and
• Carla Bittencourt

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 83–94, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.10

• ). These small pores highlight the early dealloying stage and the propagating front at the grain boundaries [38]. After 30 min in HCl, bigger pores are formed (Figure 2b) and the cross-section image shows structures made of a porous and full layers (Figure 2f). After 60 min of dealloying, the initial

Electrical and optical enhancement of ITO/Mo bilayer thin films via laser annealing

• Abdelbaki Hacini,
• Ahmad Hadi Ali,
• Nurul Nadia Adnan and
• Nafarizal Nayan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1589–1595, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.133

• increase is due to the effect of the laser on the surface reducing defects and eliminating grain boundaries. Above 120 mJ, the grain size decreased with the increase of the laser energy to 16.6 nm for 240 mJ. This decrease is due to the diffusion of gas atoms from the chamber into the upper layer

• crystalline improvement leads to less light scattering in the metal layer [29][30]. Moreover, laser annealing reduces the defects, including grain boundaries and impurities, reducing light scattering and photon–electron interactions [29][30][31]. The optical bandgap energy Eg of ITO/Mo thin film was studied

• resistivity follows for higher annealing energies. The resistivity variation can be explained by the behavior of the metal–semiconductor contact and the effect of laser annealing on the structural defects of the surface. The inclusion of a thin metal film with low resistivity and the reduction of grain

Structural studies and selected physical investigations of LiCoO₂ obtained by combustion synthesis

• Monika Michalska,
• Paweł Ławniczak,
• Tomasz Strachowski,
• Adam Ostrowski and
• Waldemar Bednarski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1473–1482, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.121

• of the crystalline part, and R2 denotes the sum of resistance of both crystalline part and grain boundaries. C1 and C2 denote the electric capacities of the two circuits, α1 and α2 are fit parameters, ω = 2πf is the angular frequency of the measuring field E-field. The value α describes the

• contributions to total conductivity, that is, the conductivity of the bulk material (high-frequency contribution, see insert in Figure 10) and the conductivity of the grain boundaries (low-frequency contribution. The calculated value of R was used to determine the DC conductivity of the bulk material σ using

• the grain boundaries, and the green line shows fit data for the grain interior (crystalline part of the sample). Lattice parameter, cell volume, average crystallite size (XRD), and specific surface area of LiCoO2 powders. DC conductivity of the LiCoO2 samples measured at 293 K. The values present only

A cantilever-based, ultrahigh-vacuum, low-temperature scanning probe instrument for multidimensional scanning force microscopy

• Hao Liu,
• Zuned Ahmed,
• Sasa Vranjkovic,
• Manfred Parschau,
• Andrada-Oana Mandru and
• Hans J. Hug

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1120–1140, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.95

• grain boundaries [69] of the rather thick metallic coating applied to the tip side of the cantilever. Note that a nominally 20 nm thick Pt coating is required to permit tunneling, but the coating thickness along the cantilever could presumably be minimized using masking procedures similar to those used

• for the coating of high-quality factor cantilevers for magnetic force microscopy [29]. In future work, much thinner coating thicknesses could be used, or the coating could be applied to the cantilever side to reduce energy dissipation processes arising from the grain boundaries of the polycrystalline

Self-assembly of C₆₀ on a ZnTPP/Fe(001)–p(1 × 1)O substrate: observation of a quasi-freestanding C₆₀ monolayer

• Guglielmo Albani,
• Michele Capra,
• Alessandro Lodesani,
• Alberto Calloni,
• Gianlorenzo Bussetti,
• Marco Finazzi,
• Franco Ciccacci,
• Alberto Brambilla,
• Lamberto Duò and
• Andrea Picone

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 857–864, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.76

• compact molecular film is crucial to obtain high-performance devices, since an efficient charge carrier transport is hindered by morphological defects, such as grain boundaries or pinholes [10][11]. Moreover, crystalline and well-ordered layers are particularly suitable for spatially averaging

Revealing local structural properties of an atomically thin MoSe₂ surface using optical microscopy

• Lin Pan,
• Peng Miao,
• Anke Horneber,
• Alfred J. Meixner,
• Pierre-Michel Adam and
• Dai Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 572–581, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.49

• addition, point defect-induced trions in monolayer WS2 on a nonconducting substrate can be visualized via photoluminescence in order to precisely explore the exciton binding energy [15]. The optical properties of edges and grain boundaries in 2D-TMDC materials have also been characterized by

Tubular glassy carbon microneedles with fullerene-like tips for biomedical applications

• Sharali Malik and
• George E. Kostakis

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 455–461, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.38

• different allotropes depending on the hybridizations of the C–C bond, that is, sp, sp2, or sp3. Furthermore, a variety of short-range ordering effects can interact with each other and this, along with the effects of microporosity, grain boundaries, and defects, render this a fascinating material. Following

Electrostatic pull-in application in flexible devices: A review

• Teng Cai,
• Yuming Fang,
• Yingli Fang,
• Ruozhou Li,
• Ying Yu and
• Mingyang Huang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 390–403, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.32

• to the removal of grain boundaries, the single-crystal GR devices are four times more capable of handling current than polycrystalline GR devices. Shen et al. [71] prepared GR ESD switches and analyzed their electrical characteristics and reliability. The switch did work only once. Therefore, ESD

Measurement of polarization effects in dual-phase ceria-based oxygen permeation membranes using Kelvin probe force microscopy

• Kerstin Neuhaus,
• Christina Schmidt,
• Liudmila Fischer,
• Wilhelm Albert Meulenberg,
• Ke Ran,
• Joachim Mayer and
• Stefan Baumann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1380–1391, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.102

• -conductive phase and 40 vol % FeCo2O4 as electron-conductive phase was synthesized. TEM measurements showed a relatively pure dual-phase material with only minor amounts of a tertiary (Sm,Ce)(Fe,Co)O3 perovskite phase and isolated residues of a rock salt phase at the grain boundaries. The obtained material

• elevated concentrations of electron-conducting elements have accumulated on the grain boundaries between CSO and FC2O, which could possibly influence the effect of charge distribution during or after polarization with the AFM tip in direct vicinity of CSO-FC2O grain boundaries. However, independent from

• where the AFM tip was placed during polarization. The rough sketches illustrate the grain boundaries at the interface between the polarized ceria grain and the surrounding electron-conductive grains. Comparison of the average relaxation curves of the surface potential after polarization. For