Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Imperfections in Crystal Structure: Stoichiometric Point Defects

Imperfections in Crystal Structure: Stoichiometric Point Defects

Schottky defects arise when some lattice points in a crystal, such as those in NaCl, remain unoccupied, creating lattice vacancies without disturbing the overall electrical neutrality of the crystal. This defect is common in ionic crystals where the positive and negative ions are similar in size, as seen in sodium chloride and cesium chloride. The presence of Schottky defects enables the crystal to conduct electricity to a small extent through an ionic mechanism. Electric fields cause nearby...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Photosynthesis of CO from CO<sub>2</sub> with an iron polypyridyl catalyst at a passivated silicon photoelectrode.

Chemical science·2025

Same author

Potential-Controlled Deposition of Multilayer CO<sub>2</sub> Reduction Catalyst Films onto Silicon Photoelectrodes Demonstrates Thickness-Dependent Catalytic Rates.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2025

Same author

CO Reduction to Ethylene and Cyclopropane via a Trappable Ruthenium Methylidene.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2025

Same author

Electron Inversion and Tunneling at Silicon Thermal Oxide Interfaces for Solar-Driven Molecular Catalysis to Syngas.

Journal of the American Chemical Society·2025

Same author

On-demand drug delivery bioelectronics through a water-processable low dimensional highly conductive MXene layer.

Lab on a chip·2024

Same author

Dye-Sensitized Nonstoichiometric Strontium Titanate Core-Shell Photocathodes for Photoelectrosynthesis Applications.

ACS applied materials & interfaces·2021

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 28, 2026

Plasma-assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy of N-polar InAlN-barrier High-electron-mobility Transistors

Plasma-assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy of N-polar InAlN-barrier High-electron-mobility Transistors

Published on: November 24, 2016

Characterizing Density and Spatial Distribution of Trap States in Ta₃N₅ Thin Films for Rational Defect Passivation.

Peter N Rudd¹, Stephen J Tereniak², Rene Lopez^1,3

¹Department of Applied Physical Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, United States.

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces

|February 3, 2023

Summary

Defect passivation in tantalum nitride (Ta3N5) photoanodes was investigated using drive-level capacitance profiling. A novel strategy using silatrane moieties significantly reduced surface defects and improved performance for advanced semiconductor devices.

Keywords:

defect passivation drive-level capacitance profiling hybrid photoelectrode oxynitride silatrane surface modification tantalum nitride

More Related Videos

Theoretical Calculation and Experimental Verification for Dislocation Reduction in Germanium Epitaxial Layers with Semicylindrical Voids on Silicon

Theoretical Calculation and Experimental Verification for Dislocation Reduction in Germanium Epitaxial Layers with Semicylindrical Voids on Silicon

Published on: July 17, 2020

Quantitative Atomic-Site Analysis of Functional Dopants/Point Defects in Crystalline Materials by Electron-Channeling-Enhanced Microanalysis

Quantitative Atomic-Site Analysis of Functional Dopants/Point Defects in Crystalline Materials by Electron-Channeling-Enhanced Microanalysis

Published on: May 10, 2021

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 28, 2026

Plasma-assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy of N-polar InAlN-barrier High-electron-mobility Transistors

Plasma-assisted Molecular Beam Epitaxy of N-polar InAlN-barrier High-electron-mobility Transistors

Published on: November 24, 2016

Theoretical Calculation and Experimental Verification for Dislocation Reduction in Germanium Epitaxial Layers with Semicylindrical Voids on Silicon

Theoretical Calculation and Experimental Verification for Dislocation Reduction in Germanium Epitaxial Layers with Semicylindrical Voids on Silicon

Published on: July 17, 2020

Quantitative Atomic-Site Analysis of Functional Dopants/Point Defects in Crystalline Materials by Electron-Channeling-Enhanced Microanalysis

Quantitative Atomic-Site Analysis of Functional Dopants/Point Defects in Crystalline Materials by Electron-Channeling-Enhanced Microanalysis

Published on: May 10, 2021

Area of Science:

Materials Science
Semiconductor Physics
Electrochemistry

Background:

Tantalum nitride (Ta3N5) shows promise as a photoanode material but suffers from defects that hinder performance and accelerate degradation.
Understanding the spatial and energetic distribution of trap states in Ta3N5 is crucial for effective defect passivation.
Current defect passivation strategies for Ta3N5 are underdeveloped due to a lack of experimental data.

Purpose of the Study:

To experimentally determine the spatial and energetic distribution of trap states in Ta3N5 thin films.
To develop and implement a targeted defect passivation strategy for Ta3N5 photoanodes.
To evaluate the impact of passivation on Ta3N5 film properties and performance.

Main Methods:

Drive-level capacitance profiling (DLCP) was used to characterize trap states in Ta3N5 thin films.
A passivation strategy involving catalyst immobilization via silatrane moieties was designed and applied.
Absorption, photoluminescence, and transient photovoltage measurements were used to assess passivation effects.

Main Results:

Deep energetic traps were found at Ta3N5 interfaces at densities of ~2.5-6 × 10^22 cm^-3, significantly higher than in the bulk.
Neat Ta3N5 films exhibited high n-type conductivity with a free carrier density of ~9.74 × 10^17 cm^-3.
Silatrane-based passivation reduced surface defect density by two orders of magnitude and dedoped films to ~2.40 × 10^16 cm^-3, suppressing carrier trapping and recombination.

Conclusions:

DLCP is effective in resolving trap state distributions in Ta3N5 thin films.
Targeted passivation using silatrane moieties significantly improves Ta3N5 film quality by reducing defects and carrier density.
Understanding defect behavior is key to advancing Ta3N5-based photoanode technology for electrochemical applications.