Inelastic electron irradiation damage in hexagonal boron nitride

Micron : the International Research and Review Journal for Microscopy
Ovidiu CretuKazutomo Suenaga

Abstract

We present a study of the inelastic effects caused by electron irradiation in monolayer hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN). The data was obtained through in situ experiments performed inside a low-voltage aberration-corrected transmission electron microscope (TEM). By using various specialized sample holders, we study defect formation and evolution with sub-nanometer resolution over a wide range of temperatures, between -196 and 1200 °C, highlighting significant differences in the geometry of the structures that form. The data is then quantified, allowing insight into the defect formation mechanism, which is discussed in comparison with the potential candidate damage processes. We show that the defect shapes are determined by an interplay between electron damage, which we assign to charging, and thermal effects. We additionally show that this damage can be avoided altogether by overlapping the samples with a monolayer of graphene, confirming this for h-BN and providing a way to overcome the well-known fragility of h-BN under the electron beam.

References

May 4, 2004·Micron : the International Research and Review Journal for Microscopy·R F EgertonM Malac
Oct 23, 2004·Science·K S NovoselovA A Firsov
Jul 20, 2005·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·K S NovoselovA K Geim
Jun 13, 2009·Physical Review Letters·Chuanhong JinSumio Iijima
Jun 29, 2010·Journal of Electron Microscopy·Takeo SasakiKazu Suenaga
Mar 1, 2011·ACS Nano·Yung-Chang LinPo-Wen Chiu
Apr 23, 2011·ACS Nano·Judy S KimAngus I Kirkland
Apr 27, 2012·ACS Nano·Quentin M RamasseKonstantin S Novoselov
Jul 20, 2012·Journal of Electron Microscopy·Kazu SuenagaSumio Iijima
Oct 15, 2013·ACS Nano·Recep ZanKonstantin S Novoselov
Mar 8, 2011·Journal of Chemical Theory and Computation·Rajdip Mukherjee, Somnath Bhowmick

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Citations

Dec 1, 2015·Small·Zheng LiuKazu Suenaga
Aug 1, 2015·Nature Communications·Ryosuke Senga, Kazu Suenaga
Nov 10, 2017·Scientific Reports·S Matt GilbertAlex Zettl
Sep 12, 2019·Scientific Reports·Alexandru Ionut Chirita MihailaJani Kotakoski

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