Homoepitaxial growth of alumina films on NiAl(110) using NO2

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Natuurkunde (BSc)

Vermeer, Joost (2019)

Homoepitaxial growth of alumina films on NiAl(110) using NO2

Bachelor thesis | Natuurkunde (BSc)

In the search for substrates used in the investigation of catalytic nanoparticles we have grown alumina films on NiAl(110) past 5.35 Å, the maximum thickness that can be obtained with molecular oxygen. A NiAl(110) sample was first oxidized to that thickness with molecular oxygen, after which it was stepwise oxidized with NO2. The film thickness, crystal structure and chemical composition were measured using Low Energy Electron Diffraction (LEED), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Scanning Tunneling Microscopy (STM). We have confirmed that film grown with NO2 follows the theoretical model of Cabrera and Mott up to 6.9 Å. STM images show an increase in the number of islands and vacancies in the metal, indicating that this growth happened at the film-metal interface and not the film surface.