The aggressive scaling of dynamic random-access memory capacitors has increased the need to maintain high capacitance despite the limited physical thickness of electrodes and dielectrics. This makes it essential to use high-k dielectric materials. TiO2 has a large dielectric constant, ranging from 30~75 in the anatase phase to 90~170 in rutile phase. However, it has significant leakage current due to low energy barriers for electron conduction, which is a critical drawback. Suppressing the leakage current while scaling to achieve an equivalent oxide thickness (EOT) below 0.5 nm is necessary to control the influence of interlayers on capacitor performance. For this, Pt and Ru, with their high work function, can be used instead of a conventional TiN substrate to increase the Schottky barrier height. Additionally, forming rutile-TiO2 on RuO2 with excellent lattice compatibility by epitaxial growth can minimize leakage current. Furthermore, plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) can be used to deposit a uniform thin film with high density and low defects at low temperatures, to reduce the impact of interfacial reactions on electrical properties at high temperatures. In this study, TiO2 was deposited using PEALD, using substrates of Pt and Ru treated with rapid thermal annealing at 500 and 600 °C, to compare structural, chemical, and electrical characteristics with reference to a TiN substrate. As a result, leakage current was suppressed to around 10-6 A/cm2 at 1 V, and an EOT at the 0.5 nm level was achieved.

In the present study, rutile phase titanium dioxide nanoparticles (R-TiO2 NPs) were prepared by hydrolysis of titanium tetrachloride in an aqueous solution followed by calcination at 900℃. The composition of R-TiO2 NPs was determined by the analysis of X-ray diffraction data, and the characteristic features of R-TiO2 NPs such as the surface functional group, particle size, shape, surface topography, and morphological behavior were analyzed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, and zeta potential measurements. The average size of the prepared R-TiO2 NPs was 76 nm, the surface area was 19 m2/g, zeta potential was −20.8 mV, and average hydrodynamic diameter in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)–H2O solution was 550 nm. The 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and morphological observations revealed that R-TiO2 NPs were cytocompatible with oral cancer cells, with no inhibition of cell growth and proliferation. This suggests the efficacy of R-TiO2 NPs for the aesthetic white pigmentation of teeth.

The coupling of two semiconducting materials is an efficient method to improve photocatalytic activity via the suppression of recombination of electron-hole pairs. In particular, the coupling between two different phases of TiO2, i.e., anatase and rutile, is particularly attractive for photocatalytic activity improvement of rutile TiO2 because these coupled TiO2 powders can retain the benefits of TiO2, one of the best photocatalysts. In this study, anatase TiO2 nanoparticles are synthesized and coupled on the surface of rutile TiO2 powders using a microemulsion method and heat treatment. Triton X-100, as a surfactant, is used to suppress the aggregation of anatase TiO2 nanoparticles and disperse anatase TiO2 nanoparticles uniformly on the surface of rutile TiO2 powders. Rutile TiO2 powders coupled with anatase TiO2 nanoparticles are successfully prepared. Additionally, we compare the photocatalytic activity of these rutile-anatase coupled TiO2 powders under ultraviolet (UV) light and demonstrate that the reason for the improvement of photocatalytic activity is microstructural.

The anatase particle was facetted at the free surface and a neck formation between the anatase particles prior to the phase transformation occured. This resulted in the severe lattice distortion at the region of the interface near the neck and this can act as the nucleation sites for the phase transformation. The grain growth of rutile particles after the phase transformation grew very fast by the sweeping phenomena of grain boundary. Therfore, It leaded to the microstructure without the rutile phase located in anatase particle.

순수한 Rutile에서 점결함의 형태와 전기적 특성을 연구하기 위해 1~10-23atm의 산소분압 범위 및 700~1300˚C의 온도 범위에서 전기전도도를 측정하였다. 전기전도도의 산소분압 의존성(logσ/logPo2)으로부터 산소분압 및 온도 변화에 따라 다음과 같은 지배적인 결함들을 제안한다. 1) TinO2n-1, 2)침입형 Ti 이온 3)2가로 하전된 산소빈자리 4)불순물에 의해 형성된 2가로 하전된 산소빈자리 5) n-p전이 및 p형 전도 또한, 고유범위의 실험결과로부터 계산한 Ti와 Vo의 결함형성 엔탈피는 각각, 10.2eV와 4.92eV였다.

산소분압과 온도변화에 따라 비양론성 rutile(TiO2-x)의 결함모델을 전기전도 측정법에 의해 연구하였다. 산소분압과 전기전도도의 상관관계에 의하면, rutile에서 주결함은 2가로 하전된 산소빈자리와 4가로 하전된 침입형 티타늄이온이다. 1170˚C이상의 온도에서는 침입형 Tii…이온이 지배적인 결함이었으나, 1170˚C이하의 낮은 산소분압대에서는 2가로 하전된 산소빈자리가 주된 결함이었다. rutile의 전기전도 실험에서 제안된 결함모델은 본 연구팀이 O18추적자 확산실험에 의해 제안하였던 결과치와 일치하였다.

운산 금 광상은 한반도의 3대(대유동 광상, 광양 광상) 금 광상중의 하나이었다. 이 광상 주변지질은 선캠브리아기의 변성퇴적암류와 중생대의 반상화강암으로 구성된다. 이 광상은 선캠브리아기의 변성퇴적암류와 중생대의 반상화강암내에 발달된 단층대를 따라 충진한 함 금 석영맥 광상으로 조산형 금 광상에 해당된다. 이 광상의 석영맥은 광물조합에 따라 1)방연석-석영맥형, 2)자류철석-석영맥형, 3)황철석-석영맥형, 4)페크 마틱 석영맥형, 5)백운모-석영맥형 및 6)단순석영맥형으로 분류된다. 연구된 석영맥은 황철석-석영맥형이며 견 운모화작용, 녹니석화작용 및 규화작용이 관찰된다. 이 석영맥은 백색 석영, 백색 운모, 녹니석, 황철석, 금홍석, 방해석, 모나자이트, 저어콘 및 인회석 등이 산출된다. 금홍석은 엽리상 석영맥내 유색대에서 자형내지 중립질 입단으로 어두운 금홍석과 밝은 금홍석으로 산출된다. 금홍석의 화학조성은 89.69∼98.71 wt.% (TiO2), 0.25∼7.04 wt.% (WO3), 0.30∼2.56 wt.% (FeO), 0.00∼1.71 wt.% (Nb2O5), 0.17∼0.35 wt.% (HfO2), 0.00 ∼0.30 wt.% (V2O3), 0.00∼0.35 wt.% (Cr2O3) 및 0.04∼0.25 wt.% (Al2O3)으로 밝은 금홍석이 어두운 금홍 석보다 WO3, Nb2O5 및 FeO 원소들의 함량이 높게 산출되며 서로 다른 시기에 형성된 것으로 생각된다. 어 두운 금홍석과 밝은 금홍석내 미량원소들은 어두운 금홍석 [(V3+, Cr3+) + (Nb5+, Sb5+) ←→ 2Ti4+, 4Cr3+ (or 2W6+) ←→ 3Ti4+ (W6+ ←→ 2 C r3+), V4+ ←→ Ti4+], 밝은 금홍석 [2Fe3+ + W6+ ←→ 3Ti4+, 3Fe2+ + W6+ ← → Ti4+ + (V3+, Al3+, Cr3+) +Nb5+]로써 치환관계가 있었다. 이들 자료를 근거로, 어두운 금홍석은 광역변성작 용 동안 모암광물들의 변질 시 광물내 존재했던 V3+, V4+, Cr3+, Nb5+, Sb5+, W6+과 같은 양이온들의 재 농집에 의해 형성되었으나 밝은 금홍석은 ductile shear 시 높은 함량의 Fe2+ 및 W6+ 양이온들을 함유한 열수용액의 유입에 따른 어두운 금홍석과 반응에 의해 어두운 금홍석에 존재하였던 V3+, V4+, Al3+, Cr3+ 및 Nb5+과 같 은 양이온들의 재 농집에 의해 형성된 것으로 생각된다.