Pressure Dependence of Rate Coefficients of Unimolecular and Chemical Activation Reactions Connected to the Potential Energy Wells of Si2H2Cl4, Si2Cl6, and Si2Cl4 via Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus Calculations.

Rate coefficients for elementary reactions connected to the potential energy wells of Si2H2Cl4, Si2Cl6, and Si2Cl4, which are important Si2 species in chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes that use chlorosilanes as silicon source gases, were determined through the Rice-Ramsperger-Kassel-Marcus theory under various conditions of temperature and pressure. The optimized structures and vibrational frequencies of the reactants, products, and transition state were obtained using (U)B3LYP/6-31+G(d,p), and the single-point energies of the optimized structures were recalculated using the coupled cluster method with single and double excitations plus triple perturbation (U)CCSD(T) with complete basis set extrapolation. Many of the unimolecular decomposition channels and chemical activation reactions investigated in this work were found to be in the fall-off regime under subatmospheric to moderately high-pressure conditions so that it is expected that accurate modeling of the gas phase in the chlorosilane CVD reactor requires careful determination of the rate coefficients as functions of temperature and pressure for the conditions of interest, instead of using high-pressure limit rate coefficients. The rate coefficients determined here were expressed through Chebyshev coefficients and also modified Arrhenius parameters to be used in simulations of systems under a wide range of temperature and pressure conditions.

Weak ferromagnetic ordering in brownmillerite Ca2Fe2O5 and its effect on electric field gradients.

Brownmillerite Ca2Fe2O5 (CFO) exhibits a magnetic transition at TN ∼ 730 K. Many studies have reported the magnetic properties of CFO. However, the magnetic structure of CFO is still debated, i.e., whether the magnetic ordering is purely antiferromagnetic or weakly ferromagnetic, which originated from canted magnetic moments. In addition, the reason for the CFO showing large magnetoresistance is still unclear. This study attempts to address the unresolved issues stated above by multiple investigations on the crystal structure, magnetization, and Mössbauer parameters. Based on the results of the investigation, we conclude that the CFO is not purely antiferromagnetic but weakly ferromagnetic. That is the reason for the disappearance of the spontaneous magnetization at the magnetic critical temperature TN. The Mössbauer spectroscopy shows that the magnetic moments slightly cant against the a-direction, resulting in the presence of a net magnetic moment along the c-direction under the space group of Pnma. A reason for the canted magnetic moments is due to the presence of the Dzyalosinskii-Moriya (DM) interaction. The electric field gradient (EFG) refined from the Mössbauer spectroscopy investigated at 287 K is larger than that at 750 K, which is higher than TN. This suggests that the EFG changes below TN. A local electric polarization induced by the DM interaction is a possible reason for the change in the EFG. As a result, strong correlations between the magnetic ordering and the electrical properties appear in the CFO. The Arrhenius plot of the total electrical conductivity showed a kink at TN, which is one of these strong correlations.

Preparation of a well-defined amino-terminated self-assembled monolayer and copper microlines on a polyimide substrate covered with an oxide nanoskin.

A well-ordered, uniform amino (NH(2))-terminated organosilane self-assembled monolayer (SAM) was prepared on a polyimide (PI) substrate, the surface of which had silica-like reactivity. First, through chemical vapor deposition of 1,3,5,7-tetramethylcyclotetrasiloxane and subsequent photooxidation using 172 nm vacuum ultraviolet light, an extremely thin silicon dioxide (SiO(2)) layer about 1 nm thick, which we call an "oxide nanoskin" (ONS), was prepared on a PI substrate. Due to the presence of this ONS layer, the PI surface's properties became almost identical with those of Si covered with native oxide (SiO(2)/Si) without any marked change in surface morphology, as evidenced by zeta-potential measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Next, this ONS-covered PI (ONS/PI) surface was exposed to vapor of a 12.5 vol % solution of N-(6-aminohexyl)(3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane (AHAPS) molecules diluted with absolute toluene. On the basis of contact angle analysis, the surface energy of this AHAPS/ONS/PI sample was mostly consistent with that of a SiO(2)/Si substrate covered with an AHAPS-SAM (AHAPS/SiO(2)/Si). On the other hand, the surface energy of an AHAPS-treated PI (AHAPS/PI) substrate was much smaller than that of the AHAPS/ONS/PI substrate due to insufficient surface coverage by the AHAPS molecules. This was also confirmed by lateral force microscopy using photolithographically micropatterned samples. Fabricated micropatterns composed of AHAPS- and SiO(2)-covered regions were clearly imaged on the AHAPS/ONS/PI substrate through their difference in friction, while the friction contrast of the micropatterned AHAPS/PI substrate was unclear. This marked difference in packing density of the AHAPS molecules had a direct influence on the adsorption behavior of palladium colloids and subsequent electroless plating of copper (Cu). As confirmed by AFM and XPS, metallization proceeded only on the AHAPS-covered regions, while the SiO(2)-covered regions remained free of deposits, resulting in the formation of 10-mum-wide Cu microlines on both samples. However, the plating rate achieved on the AHAPS/ONS/PI substrate was about 4.5 times faster than that on the AHAPS/PI substrate and the pattern resolution was considerably fine.

Photochemical fabrication of a well-defined diblock copolymer nanotemplate using 172-nm vacuum ultraviolet light.

Well-ordered nanopore arrays were successfully prepared from polystyrene (PS) and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) diblock copolymer (DBC) film based on a photochemical approach using 172-nm vacuum ultraviolet (VUV) light. Since the etching selectivity between the PS and PMMA domains against activated oxygen species generated by the VUV irradiation of atmospheric oxygen molecules was markedly different, PMMA was preferentially decomposed, resulting in the formation of PS nanopore arrays. Both the photoetching rate and final morphology depended greatly on the atmospheric pressure during VUV irradiation. Since at 10 Pa the PS domains degraded less due to the shortage of oxygen molecules in the atmosphere, the residual matrix kept its fine nanostructures up to 40 min of irradiation. The matrix could be eliminated completely when irradiation was extended to 60 min at this pressure. On the other hand, at 10(3) Pa the DBC film was removed completely from the substrate within 10 min of irradiation. However, at 10(3) Pa, not only the decomposition of the PMMA domains, but also the photoetching rate of the PS domains accelerated significantly resulting in marked distortion of the generated nanostructures. By selecting an appropriate atmospheric pressure and time for VUV irradiation, we were able to control both nanoarray formation and elimination without the use of any physical and/or chemical treatment.

Elementary reaction path on polychlorinated biphenyls formation from polychlorinated benzenes in heterogeneous phase using ab initio molecular orbital calculation.

We have investigated the elementary reaction path on the 3,3',4,4',5,5'-hexachlorinated biphenyl (HxCB) formation from two 1,2,3,5-tetrachlorobenzenes (TCBz) and the catalytic role of copper on this formation using ab initio molecular orbital calculation. The elementary reaction path on the 3,3',4,4',5,5'-HxCB formation from two 1,2,3,5-TCBzs has been shown to occur as follows: Step 1--the dissociation of Cl atom substituted at 5-position in 1,2,3,5-TCBz, Step 2--the association between Cl atom substituted at 5-position in another 1,2,3,5-TCBz and the Cl radical formed in Step 1, Step 3-the elimination of Cl2 molecule from the intermediate species formed in Step 2, and Step 4--the 3,3',4,4',5,5'-HxCB formation from the direct condensation of two 1,2,3-trichlorophenyl radicals formed in Step 1 and Step 3. The geometric factor, which decides the reactivity of this formation, is the C-Cl bond strength of 1,2,3,5-TCBz. The catalytic roles of copper are to stabilize the total energy in the adsorption of 1,2,3,5-TCBz onto the copper surface and to weaken the C-Cl bond strength due to the charge transfer from the 1,2,3,5-TCBz to the copper surface. Moreover, we have achieved the prediction of the minimum energy path on the formation of non- and mono-ortho polychlorinated biphenyls congeners for which TEFs have been determined.