Atomic configuration and connectivity of Sb_2Te_3 thin film are investigated using high-energy X-ray diffraction and reverse Monte Carlo simulation. Atomic model details of Sb_2Te_3 thin film are compared with liquid and amorphous Sb_2Te_3 reported in other article. Simulations show that both Sb–Sb and Te–Te homopolar bonds are present in the models. In phase transition process,atomic configuration of the sample rearranges gradually through the forming of Sb–Te bonds and the breaking of Sb–Sb and Te–Te bonds.
Ling ZhangSan-Nian SongHe LinYan ChengWei XiLe LiYan HeZhi-Tang Song
The atomic pair distribution function（PDF） reveals the interatomic distance in a material directly in real-space. It is a very powerful method to characterize the local structure of materials. With the help of the third generation synchrotron facility and spallation neutron source worldwide, the PDF method has developed quickly both experimentally and theoretically in recent years. Recently this method was successfully implemented at the Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility（SSRF）. The data quality is very high and this ensures the applicability of the method to study the subtle structural changes in complex materials. In this article, we introduce in detail this new method and show some experimental data we collected.
