In-situ mapping characterization of structure and electrical property of grain boundary in polycrystalline ZnO using nanorobot in SEM

Abstract

Different from the existing methods of individual characterization of structure or electrical property, a unique approach for in-situ mapping characterization of single grain boundary using nanorobot in SEM is proposed to simultaneously realize the characterization of structure and electrical property in micro-area polycrystalline ZnO. Z-direction height differences constructed by multiple adjacent grains relative to a single target grain can be individually probed by the nanorobot single end tip and correspondingly virtually reconstructed. Electrical impedances complex planes of grain boundaries in-situ detected by nanorobot dual probes can be fitted by equivalent circuits. Experimental results illustrate that in-situ mapping characterization of structure and electrical property of single grain boundary using nanorobot in SEM can be verified. A single grain boundary layer, composed of adjacent multi-grains, seems to be nonlinear and unequal height along the Z direction. Z-direction relative height differences probed by the nanorobot can actually be regarded as the Z-direction projected lengths of surrounding grain boundary interfaces of single target grain. A three dimensional stereogram of single target grain boundary can be virtually reconstructed based on 3D software. It is deduced that schottky barrier existing in grain boundary interface exhibits larger height difference, basically proportional to the thickness of grain boundary in plane X–Y. Furtherly, it can promote an advance in in-situ mapping characterization of structure-property of single/multi micro area in other bulk inorganic polycrystalline bulk materials.