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Self-organized silicide nanowires are considered as main building blocks of future nanoelectronics and have been intensively investigated. In nanostructures, the lattice vibrational waves (phonons) deviate drastically from those in bulk crystals, which gives rise to anomalies in thermodynamic, elastic, electronic, and magnetic properties. Hence, a thorough understanding of the physical properties of these materials requires a comprehensive investigation of the lattice dynamics as a function of the nanowire size. We performed a systematic lattice dynamics study of endotaxial FeSi$_2$ nanowires, forming the metastable, surface-stabilized $\alpha$-phase, which are in-plane embedded into the Si(110) surface. The average widths of the nanowires ranged from 24 to 3 nm, their lengths ranged from several $\mu$m to about 100 nm. The Fe-partial phonon density of states, obtained by nuclear inelastic scattering, exhibits a broadening of the spectral features with decreasing nanowire width. The experimental data obtained along and across the nanowires unveiled a pronounced vibrational anisotropy that originates from the specific orientation of the tetragonal $\alpha$-FeSi$_2$ unit cell on the Si(110) surface. The results from first-principles calculations are fully consistent with the experimental data and allow for a comprehensive understanding of the lattice dynamics of endotaxial silicide nanowires., Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables

We determined the lattice dynamics of metastable, surface-stabilized $\alpha$-phase FeSi$_2$ nanoislands epitaxially grown on the Si(111) surface with average heights and widths ranging from 1.5 to 20 nm and 18 to 72 nm, respectively. The crystallographic orientation, surface morphology and local crystal structure of the nanoislands were investigated by reflection high-energy electron diffraction, atomic force microscopy and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The Fe-partial phonon density of states (PDOS), obtained by nuclear inelastic scattering, exhibits a pronounced damping and broadening of the spectral features with decreasing average island height. First-principles calculations of the polarization-projected Si- and Fe-partial phonon dispersions and PDOS enable the disentanglement of the contribution of the $xy$- and $z$-polarized phonons to the experimental PDOS. Modeling of the experimental data with the theoretical results unveils an enhanced damping of the $z$-polarized phonons for islands with average sizes below 10 nm. This phenomenon is attributed to the fact that the low-energy $z$-polarized phonons couple to the low-energy surface/interface vibrational modes. The thermodynamic and elastic properties obtained from the experimental data show a pronounced size-dependent behavior., Comment: 13 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables

The structure and dynamical properties of the Fe$_3$Si/GaAs(001) interface are investigated by density functional theory and nuclear inelastic scattering measurements. The stability of four different atomic configurations of the Fe$_3$Si/GaAs multilayers is analyzed by calculating the formation energies and phonon dispersion curves. The differences in charge density, magnetization, and electronic density of states between the configurations are examined. Our calculations unveil that magnetic moments of the Fe atoms tend to align in a plane parallel to the interface, along the [110] direction of the Fe$_3$Si crystallographic unit cell. In some configurations, the spin polarization of interface layers is larger than that of bulk Fe$_3$Si. The effect of the interface on element-specific and layer-resolved phonon density of states is discussed. The Fe-partial phonon density of states measured for the Fe$_3$Si layer thickness of three monolayers is compared with theoretical results obtained for each interface atomic configuration. The best agreement is found for one of the configurations with a mixed Fe-Si interface layer, which reproduces the anomalous enhancement of the phonon density of states below 10 meV, Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, 4 tables

We investigate the retrieval of spatially resolved atomic displacements via the phases of the direct(real)-space image reconstructed from the strained crystal's coherent x-ray diffraction pattern. We demonstrate that limiting the spatial variation of the first and second order spatial displacement derivatives improves convergence of the iterative phase retrieval algorithm for displacements reconstructions to the true solution. Our approach is exploited to retrieve the displacement in a periodic array of silicon lines isolated by silicon dioxide filled trenches., Comment: 30 pages, 7 figures

A portable synchrotron MBE system is designed and applied for in situ investigations. The growth chamber is equipped with all the standard MBE components such as effusion cells with shutters, main shutter, cooling shroud, manipulator, RHEED setup and pressure gauges. The characteristic feature of the system is the beryllium windows which are used for in situ x-ray measurements. An UHV sample transfer case allows in-vacuo transfer of samples prepared elsewhere. We describe the system design and demonstrate it's performance by investigating the annealing process of buried InGaAs self organized quantum dots.

Experimental data are given on the structure and properties of nanocrystalline hardening coatings of titanium nitride doped with copper, produced by plasma-assisted vacuum arc deposition by evaporating powder cathodes. A model of nanostructurization of this type of coatings is proposed. According to the model, the nanocrystallization in these materials is due to the dopant atoms, which form an amorphous sheath around a crystallite, thus defining its size.

Space-resolved X-ray diffraction measurements performed on gradient-etched CuInGaSe2 (CIGS) solar cells provide information about stress and texture depth profiles in the absorber layer. An important parameter for CIGS layer growth dynamics, the absorber thickness-dependent stress in the molybdenum back contact is analyzed. Texturing of grains and quality of the polycrystalline absorber layer are correlated with the intentional composition gradients (band gap grading). Band gap gradient is determined by space-resolved photoluminescence measurements and correlated with composition and strain profiles.

One of the still open issues for the development of superconducting insertion devices is the understanding of the beam heat load. With the aim of measuring the beam heat load to a cold bore and the hope to gain a deeper understanding in the beam heat load mechanisms, a cold vacuum chamber for diagnostics is under construction. The following diagnostics will be implemented: i) retarding field analyzers to measure the electron energy and flux, ii) temperature sensors to measure the total heat load, iii) pressure gauges, iv) and mass spectrometers to measure the gas content. The inner vacuum chamber will be removable in order to test different geometries and materials. This will allow the installation of the cryostat in different synchrotron light sources. COLDDIAG will be built to fit in a short straight section at ANKA. A first installation at the synchrotron light source Diamond is foreseen in June 2011. Here we describe the technical design report of this device and the planned measurements with beam., Comment: Presented at First International Particle Accelerator Conference, IPAC'10, Kyoto, Japan, from 23 to 28 May 2010

Coherent x-ray diffractive imaging is extended to high resolution strain analysis in crystalline nanostructured devices. The application potential is demonstrated by determining the strain distribution in (Ga,Mn)As/GaAs nanowires. By separating diffraction signals in reciprocal spaces, individual parts of the device could be reconstructed independently by our inversion procedure. We demonstrate the method to be effective for material specific reconstruction of strain distribution in highly integrated devices., Comment: 5 pages, 5 figures