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Suspended micro-structures based on complex oxides relies on surface micro-machining processes such as those based on sacrificial layers. These processes prevent to physically access the microstructures from both sides, as substantial part of the substrate is not removed. In this work, we develop a bulk micromachining protocol of a commonly used substrate employed in oxide thin film deposition. We realize suspended oxide thin film devices by fabricating pass-through holes across SrTiO3(100) or SrTiO3(110) substrates. Careful calibration of anisotropic etching rates allows controlling the final geometry of the aperture in the substrate in a predictable way. As demonstrators of possible device geometries, we present clamped membranes and trampolines of (La,Sr)MnO3, a conductive magnetic oxide, and a suspended trampoline resonator carved from the SrTiO3 substrate itself. Reported protocols can be readily extended to a broad variety of other complex oxides so to extend the application of membranes technology beyond those of commercially-available silicon compounds.

Solution-processed few-layers graphene flakes, dispensed to rotating and sliding contacts via liquid dispersions, are gaining increasing attention as friction modifiers to achieve low friction and wear at technologically-relevant interfaces. Vanishing friction states, i.e. superlubricity, have been documented for nearly-ideal nanoscale contacts lubricated by individual graphene flakes; there is however no clear understanding if superlubricity might persist for larger and morphologically-disordered contacts, as those typically obtained by graphene wet transfer from a liquid dispersion. In this study we address the friction performance of solution-processed graphene flakes by means of colloidal probe Atomic Force Microscopy. We use an additive-free aqueous dispersion to coat micrometric silica beads, which are then sled under ambient conditions against prototypical material substrates, namely graphite and the transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) MoS2 and WS2. High resolution microscopy proves that the random assembly of the wet-transferred flakes over the silica probes results into an inhomogeneous coating, formed by graphene patches that control contact mechanics through tens-of-nanometers tall protrusions. Atomic-scale friction force spectroscopy reveals that dissipation proceeds via stick-slip instabilities. Load-controlled transitions from dissipative stick-slip to superlubric continuous sliding may occur for the graphene-graphite homojunctions, whereas single- and multiple-slips dissipative dynamics characterizes the graphene-TMD heterojunctions. Systematic numerical simulations demonstrate that the thermally-activated single-asperity Prandtl-Tomlinson model comprehensively describes friction experiments involving different graphene-coated colloidal probes, material substrates and sliding regimes., Comment: 25 pages, 6 figures

Colloidal probe Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) allows to explore sliding friction phenomena in graphite contacts of nominal lateral size up to hundreds of nanometers. It is known that contact formation involves tribo-induced material transfer of graphite flakes from the graphitic substrate to the colloidal probe. In this context, sliding states with nearly-vanishing friction, i.e. superlubricity, may set in. A comprehensive investigation of the transfer layer properties is mandatory to ascertain the origin of superlubricity. Here we explore the friction response of micrometric beads, of different size and pristine surface roughness, sliding on graphite under ambient conditions. We show that such tribosystems undergo a robust transition towards a low-adhesion, low-friction state dominated by mechanical interactions at one dominant tribo-induced nanocontact. Friction force spectroscopy reveals that the nanocontact can be superlubric or dissipative, in fact undergoing a load-driven transition from dissipative stick-slip to continuous superlubric sliding. This behavior is excellently described by the thermally-activated, single-asperity Prandtl-Tomlinson model. Our results indicate that upon formation of the transfer layer, friction depends on the energy landscape experienced by the topographically-highest tribo-induced nanoasperity. Consistently we find larger dissipation when the tribo-induced nanoasperity is sled against surfaces with higher atomic corrugation than graphite, like MoS2 and WS2, in prototypical Van der Waals layered hetero-junctions., Comment: 31 pages, 6 figures, published in Langmuir

Colloidal probe Atomic Force Microscopy allows to explore sliding states of vanishing friction, i.e. superlubricity, in mesoscopic graphite contacts. Superlubricity is known to appear upon formation of a triboinduced transfer layer, originated by material transfer of graphene flakes from the graphitic substrate to the colloidal probe. Previous studies suggest that friction vanishes due to crystalline incommensurability at the newly formed interface. However this picture still lacks several details, such as the roles of the tribolayer roughness and of loading conditions. Hereafter we gain deeper insight into the tribological response of micrometric silica beads sliding on graphite under ambient conditions. We show that the tribotransferred flakes behave as lubricious nanoasperities with a twofold role. First, they decrease the silica-graphite true contact area, in fact causing a breakdown of adhesion and friction by one order of magnitude. Second, they govern mechanical dissipation through the specific energy landscape experienced by the topographically-highest triboinduced nanoasperity. Remarkably, such contact junctions can undergo a load-driven atomic-scale transition from continuous superlubric sliding to dissipative stick-slip, that agrees with the single-asperity Prandtl-Tomlinson model. Superlubricity in mesoscopic silica-graphite junctions may therefore arise from the load-controlled competition between interfacial crystalline incommensurability and contact pinning effects at one dominant nanoasperity., Comment: 55 pages, published in Carbon, this is the Accepted Manuscript version, it includes the revised Supplementary Data version

The release process for the fabrication of freestanding oxide microstructures relies on appropriate, controllable and repeatable wet etching procedures. SrTiO3 is among the most employed substrates for oxide thin films growth and can be decomposed in HF:water solution. Such process is strongly anisotropic and is affected by local defects and substrate cut-plane. We analyze the etching behavior of SrTiO3 substrates having (100), (110), and (111) cut-planes during immersion in a 5% HF:water solution. The etching process over the three substrates is compared in terms of pitting, anisotropy, macroscopic etch rate and underetching effects around HF-resistant (La,Sr)MnO3 thin film micropatterns. The release of targeted structures, such as the reported (La,Sr)MnO3 freestanding microbridges, depends on the substrate crystallographic symmetry and on the in-plane orientation of the structures themselves along the planar directions. By comparing the etching evolution at two different length scales, we distinguish two regimes for the propagation of the etching front: an intrinsic one, owning to a specific lattice direction, and a macroscopic one, resulting from the mixing of different etching fronts. We report the morphologies of the etched SrTiO3 surfaces and the geometries of the underetched regions as well as of the microbridge clamping zones. The reported analysis will enable the design of complex MEMS devices by allowing to model the evolution of the etching process required for the release of arbitrary structures made of oxide thin films deposited on top of STO., Comment: 6 pages, 3 figures, 1 table, 4 supporting sections

The present article reports a method for the average grain size evaluation of superconducting nano-particles through their magnetic properties. The use of SQUID magnetometry to determine the average MgB2 particle size was investigated and the results compared with those achieved through other techniques. In particular the data obtained from zero field cooled magnetization measurement as function of the temperature were compared with the results obtained by scanning electron microscopy and Brunauer-Emmett-Teller techniques. The particle magnetization was measured by a commercial SQUID magnetometer in magnetic field (1 mT) and temperatures ranging from 5 to 50 K dispersing the powders in a grease medium. The grain size is obtained by fitting the data taking into account the Ginzburg-Landau temperature dependence of the London penetration depth. Variations on typical modeling parameters were explored in order to gain a better picture of the average grain size and the effectiveness of various measurement techniques. We find that it is possible to use the magnetization measurements to determine the average grain size even if the SEM image analysis allows extracting more information about the grain size distribution. Furthermore a Matlab routine has been developed in order to get automatic analysis of SEM images., Comment: 12 pages, 10 figures, 5 tables

In the present paper we report an in-situ high-energy X-ray diffraction analysis of MgB2 tapes during the preparation process. The experiment was performed in a specifically designed furnace working in reducing atmosphere, compatible with the Laue diffraction condition. The MgB2 synthesis was realized starting from MgH2 and amorphous B in powder form as precursors, varying reaction temperature and testing different cooling processes. We analyzed both the MgB2 synthesis and the sintering process of tapes prepared with these powders. Phase evolution, micro and crystallographic structure were monitored during the different thermal treatments. Among the main results we observed the formation of MgB2 at an extraordinary low temperature (300C), probably as a result of a solid-state reaction between MgH2 and B. Furthermore, we studied the dependence of the micro-structure upon the thermal treatment and its effect on the critical current performance of the superconducting tapes., Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures

In this paper we report a new synthesis route to produce boron powders characterized as being amorphous and having very fine particle size. This route has been developed to improve the performances of superconducting MgB2 powders, which can be directly synthesized from this nano-structured boron precursor by following the ex-situ or the in-situ P.I.T. method during the manufacturing of tapes, wires and cables. All the procedure steps are explained and the chemical-physical characterization of the boron powder, using x-ray diffraction (Xrd), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) techniques, is reported. Furthermore, a comparison with commercial boron is given. Preliminary results of the magnetic and electrical characterization, such as the critical temperature (TC) and the transport critical current density (JC t), for the MgB2 tape are reported and compared with the tape prepared with commercial boron., Comment: 16 pages, 11 figures

Promising results reported in our previous works led us to think that production of B powder plays a crucial role in MgB2 synthesis. A new method for boron preparation has been developed in our laboratory. This particular process is based on magnesiothermic reaction (Moissan process) with the addition of an initial step that gives boron powder with nano-metric grain size. In this paper we report our efforts regarding optimization of PIT method for these nanometric powders and the resolution of problems previously highlighted such as the difficulty in powder packaging and the high friction phenomena occurring during cold working. This increases cracking during the tape and wire manufacturing leading to its failure. Packaging problems are related to the amorphous nature of boron synthesized in our laboratory, so a crystallization treatment was applied to improve crystallinity of B powder. To prevent excessive friction phenomena we synthesized non-stoichiometric MgB2 and using magnesium as lubricant. Our goal is the Jc improvement, but a global physical-chemical characterization was also made to analyze the improvement given by our treatments: this characterization includes X-ray diffraction, resistivity vs. temperature measurement, SEM image, besides magnetic and transport Jc measurements., Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures

Recently the interest about Bi-2212 round wire superconductor for high magnetic field use has been enhancing despite the fact that an increase of the critical current is still needed to boost its successful use in such applications. Recent studies have demonstrated that the main obstacle to current flow, especially in long wires, is the residual porosity inside these Powder-In-Tube processed conductors which develops in bubbles-agglomeration when the Bi-2212 melts. Through this work we tried to overcome this issue acting on the wire densification by changing the deformation process. Here we show the effects of groove-rolling versus drawing process on the critical current density JC and on the microstructure. In particular, groove-rolled multifilamentary wires show a JC increased by a factor of about 3 with respect to drawn wires prepared with the same Bi-2212 powder and architecture. We think that this approach in the deformation process is able to produce the required improvements both because the superconducting properties are enhanced and because it makes the fabrication process faster and cheaper.

MgB2 monofilamentary nickel-sheated tapes and wires were fabricated by means of the ex-situ powder-in-tube method using either high-energy ball milled and low temperature synthesized powders. All sample were sintered at 920 C in Ar flow. The milling time and the revolution speed were tuned in order to maximize the critical current density in field (Jc): the maximum Jc value of 6 x 10e4 A/cm2 at 5 K and 4 T was obtained corresponding to the tape prepared with powders milled for 144h at 180rpm. Vorious synthesis temperature were also investigated (730-900 C) finding a best Jc value for the wire prepared with powders synthesized at 745 C. We speculate that this optimal temperature is due to the fluidifying effect of unreacted magnesium content before the sintering process which could better connect the grains.