Ying Hoi Lai

Two-dimensional superconductivity at the interface of a Bi 2 Te 3 /FeTe heterostructure

The realization of superconductivity at the interface between a topological insulator and an iron-chalcogenide compound is highly attractive for exploring several recent theoretical predictions involving these two new classes of materials. Here we report transport measurements on a Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostructure fabricated via van der Waals epitaxy, which demonstrate superconductivity at the interface, which is induced by the Bi2Te3 epilayer with thickness even down to one quintuple layer, though there is no clear-cut evidence that the observed superconductivity is induced by the topological surface states. The two-dimensional nature of the observed superconductivity with the highest transition temperature around 12 K was verified by the existence of a Berezinsky-Kosterlitz-Thouless transition and the diverging ratio of in-plane to out-plane upper critical field on approaching the superconducting transition temperature. With the combination of interface superconductivity and Dirac surface states of Bi2Te3, the heterostructure studied in this work provides a novel platform for realizing Majorana fermions.

Rocksalt MgS solar blind ultra-violet detectors

Studies using in-situ Auger electron spectroscopy and reflection high energy electron diffraction, and ex-situ high resolution X-ray diffraction and electron backscatter diffraction reveal that a MgS thin film grown directly on a GaAs (100) substrate by molecular beam epitaxy adopts its most stable phase, the rocksalt structure, with a lattice constant of 5.20 A. A Au/MgS/n+-GaAs (100) Schottky-barrier photodiode was fabricated and its room temperature photoresponse was measured to have a sharp fall-off edge at 235 nm with rejection of more than three orders at 400 nm and higher than five orders at 500 nm, promising for various solar-blind UV detection applications.

Surface Reactivity Enhancement on a Pd/Bi2Te3 Heterostructure through Robust Topological Surface States

We present a study of the surface reactivity of a Pd/Bi2Te3 thin film heterostructure. The topological surface states from Bi2Te3, being delocalized and robust owing to their topological natures, were found to act as an effective electron bath that significantly enhances the surface reactivity of palladium in the presence of two oxidizing agents, oxygen and tellurium respectively, which is consistent with a theoretical calculation. The surface reactivity of the adsorbed tellurium on this heterostructure is also intensified possibly benefitted from the effective transfer of the bath electrons. A partially inserted iron ferromagnetic layer at the interface of this heterostructure was found to play two competing roles arising from the higher-lying d-band center of the Pd/Fe bilayer and the interaction between the ferromagnetism and the surface spin texture of Bi2Te3 on the surface reactivity and their characteristics also demonstrate that the electron bath effect is long-lasting against accumulated thickness of adsorbates.

Molecular beam epitaxy-grown wurtzite MgS thin films for solar-blind ultra-violet detection

Molecular beam epitaxy grown MgS on GaAs(111)B substrate was resulted in wurtzite phase, as demonstrated by detailed structural characterizations. Phenomenological arguments were used to account for why wurtzite phase is preferred over zincblende phase or its most stable rocksalt phase. Results of photoresponse and reflectance measurements performed on wurtzite MgS photodiodes suggest a direct bandgap at around 5.1 eV. Their response peaks at 245 nm with quantum efficiency of 9.9% and enjoys rejection of more than three orders at 320 nm and close to five orders at longer wavelengths, proving the photodiodes highly competitive in solar-blind ultraviolet detection.

Anisotropic magnetic responses of a 2D-superconducting Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostructure.

We have investigated the anisotropic magnetic responses of a 2D-superconducting Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostructure. Cross-sectional STEM imaging revealed that the excess Fe atoms in the FeTe layer occupy specific interstitial sites. They were found to show strong anisotropic magnetic responses under a magnetic field either perpendicular or parallel to the sample surface. Under perpendicular magnetic fields within 1000 Oe, conventional paramagnetic Meissner effect, superconducting diamagnetism, and anomalous enhancement of magnetization successively occur as the magnetic field increases. In contrast, under parallel magnetic fields, superconducting diamagnetism was not observed explicitly in the magnetization measurements and the anomalous enhancement of magnetization appears only for fields higher than 1000 Oe. The observed strong magnetic anisotropy provides further evidence that the induced superconductivity at the interface of the Bi2Te3/FeTe heterostucture has a 2D nature.

High performance CaS solar-blind ultraviolet photodiodes fabricated by seed-layer-assisted growth

CaS, with a direct bandgap of 5.38 eV, is expected to be a strong candidate as the active-layer of high performance solar-blind UV photodiodes that have important applications in both civilian and military sectors. Here, we report that a seed-layer-assisted growth approach via molecular beam epitaxy can result in high crystalline quality rocksalt CaS thin films on zincblende GaAs substrates. The Au/CaS/GaAs solar-blind photodiodes demonstrated , more than five orders in its visible rejection power, a photoresponse of 36.8 mA/w at zero bias and a corresponding quantum efficiency as high as 19% at 235 nm.

Factors affecting the shape of MBE-grown laterally aligned Fe nanowires.

Various microstructural and chemical analysis techniques were applied to study two types (type-A and B) of self-assembled laterally aligned Fe nanowires (NWs) fabricated by molecular beam epitaxy on a ZnS buffer layer. The formation of the three-dimensional shapes of these NWs was found to be driven by the principle of surface energy minimization. We have provided phenomenological models to address the factors affecting the observed topological shape of these NWs, including the role of the lattice relationship between the Fe NWs and the underlying buffer layer, growth temperature, Fe nominal coverage and substrate orientation. Magnetic hysteresis measurements were performed at different temperature, demonstrating the Fe NWs possess a coercivity about 30 times larger than that of a Fe thin film. The observed gradual magnetization reversal indicates the magnetization process is accomplished by the rotation of magnetic moments within a single domain.

Large-area epitaxial growth of MoSe2 via an incandescent molybdenum source

We have developed an incandescent Mo source to fabricate large-area single-crystalline MoSe2 thin films. The as-grown MoSe2 thin films were characterized using transmission electron microscopy, energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL), reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) and angular resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES). A new Raman characteristic peak at 1591 cm-1 was identified. Results from Raman spectroscopy, PL, RHEED and ARPES studies consistently reveal that large-area single crystalline mono-layer of MoSe2 could be achieved by this technique. This technique enjoys several advantages over conventional approaches and could be extended to the growth of other two-dimensional layered materials containing a low-vapor-pressure element.

Self-Assembled Formation of Well-Aligned Cu-Te Nano-Rods on Heavily Cu-Doped ZnTe Thin Films

Cu doping of ZnTe, which is an important semiconductor for various optoelectronic applications, has been successfully achieved previously by several techniques. However, besides its electrical transport characteristics, other physical and chemical properties of heavily Cu-doped ZnTe have not been reported. We found an interesting self-assembled formation of crystalline well-aligned Cu-Te nano-rods near the surface of heavily Cu-doped ZnTe thin films grown via the molecular beam epitaxy technique. A phenomenological growth model is presented based on the observed crystallographic morphology and measured chemical composition of the nano-rods using various imaging and chemical analysis techniques. When substitutional doping reaches its limit, the extra Cu atoms favor an up-migration toward the surface, leading to a one-dimensional surface modulation and formation of Cu-Te nano-rods, which explain unusual observations on the reflection high energy electron diffraction patterns and apparent resistivity of these thin films. This study provides an insight into some unexpected chemical reactions involved in the heavily Cu-doped ZnTe thin films, which may be applied to other material systems that contain a dopant having strong reactivity with the host matrix.