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We present a lattice location study of the n-type dopant arsenic after ion implantation into germanium. By means of electron emission channeling experiments, we have observed that the implanted As atoms substitute the Ge host atoms and that, in contrast to several implanted metal impurities in Ge, no significant fraction of As is found on interstitial sites. The substitutional As impurities are found to be thermally stable up to 600 °C. After 700 °C annealing a strong reduction of emission channeling effects was observed, in full accordance with the expected diffusion-induced broadening of the As profile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present an experimental lattice location study of Ga atoms in Ge after ion implantation at elevated temperature (250°C). Using extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) experiments and a dedicated sample preparation method, we have studied the lattice location of Ga atoms in Ge with a concentration ranging from 0.5 at. % down to 0.005 at. %. At Ga concentrations ≤0.05 at.%, all Ga dopants are substitutional directly after ion implantation, without the need for post-implantation thermal annealing. At higher Ga concentrations, a reduction in the EXAFS amplitude is observed, indicating that a fraction of the Ga atoms is located in a defective environment. The local strain induced by the Ga atoms in the Ge matrix is independent of the Ga concentration and extends only to the first nearest neighbor Ge shell, where a 1% contraction in bond length has been measured, in agreement with density functional theory calculations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The functional properties of Mn-doped Ge depend to large extent on the lattice location of the Mn impurities. Here, we present a lattice location study of implanted diluted Mn by means of electron emission channeling. Surprisingly, in addition to the expected substitutional lattice position, a large fraction of the Mn impurities occupies the bond-centered site. Corroborated by ab initio calculations, the bond-centered Mn is related to Mn-vacancy complexes. These unexpected results call for a reassessment of the theoretical studies on the electrical and magnetic behavior of Mn-doped Ge, hereby including the possible role of Mn-vacancy complexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epitaxially stabilized iron monosilicide films with the CsCl structure (B2-FeSi) have been investigated by conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction. A detailed investigation of the elastic strain in these metastable layers is presented. Using hyperfine interaction information the tetragonal distortion of the silicide lattice could be quantified for layers as thin as 14 Å. A general tendency for strain relaxation with increasing layer thickness is observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]