The optical constants of ion-beam-sputtered SiC films have been measured by ellipsometry in the 190 to $950\mathrm{nm}$ range. The set of data has been extended both toward shorter and longer wavelengths with data in the literature, along with inter- and extrapolations, in order to obtain a self-consistent set of data by means of Kramers–Krönig analysis. All data correspond to films that were deposited by sputtering on nonheated substrates, and hence they are expected to be amorphous. A bandgap of $1.9\mathrm{eV}$ for the films was fitted from the obtained optical constants. A good global accuracy of the data was estimated through the use of various sum rules. The consistent dataset includes the visible to the extreme ultraviolet (EUV); this large spectrum of characterization will enable the design of multilayer coatings that combine a high reflectance in parts of the EUV with desired performance at a secondary range, such as the visible. To our knowledge, this paper provides the first compilation of the optical constants of amorphous SiC films.

The optical constants of ion-beam-sputtered ${\mathrm{B}}_4\mathrm{C}$ films have been measured by ellipsometry in the $190–950\mathrm{nm}$ range. The set of data has been extended toward both shorter and longer wavelengths with data in the literature, along with interpolations and extrapolations, in order to obtain a self-consistent set of data by means of Kramers–Krönig analysis. All data correspond to films that were deposited by sputtering on nonheated substrates, and hence they are expected to be amorphous. The ${\mathrm{B}}_4\mathrm{C}$ bandgap was calculated as a fitting parameter of Tauc equations for indirect transitions using the present optical constants. Good global accuracy of the data was estimated through the use of various sum rules. The consistent data set includes the visible to the extreme UV (EUV); this large spectrum of characterization will enable the design of multilayer coatings that combine a relatively high reflectance in parts of the EUV with a desired performance at a secondary range, such as the visible.

Thermoelectricity (TE) is proving to be a promising way to harvest energy for small applications and to produce a new range of thermal sensors. Recently, several thermoelectric generators (TEGs) based on nanomaterials have been developed, outperforming the efficiencies of many previous bulk generators. Here, we presented the thermoelectric characterization at different temperatures (from 50 to 350 K) of the Si thin-film based on Phosphorous (n) and Boron (p) doped thermocouples that conform to a planar micro TEG. The thermocouples were defined through selective doping by ion implantation, using boron and phosphorous, on a 100 nm thin Si film. The thermal conductivity, the Seebeck coefficient, and the electrical resistivity of each Si thermocouple was experimentally determined using the in-built heater/sensor probes and the resulting values were refined with the aid of finite element modeling (FEM). The results showed a thermoelectric figure of merit for the Si thin films of $zT$ = 0.0093, at room temperature, which was about 12% higher than the bulk Si. In addition, we tested the thermoelectric performance of the TEG by measuring its own figure of merit, yielding a result of ZT = 0.0046 at room temperature.

There is evidence of the presence of intercalated water between graphene and the substrate in electronic devices. However, a proper understanding of the impact of this phenomenon, which causes important limitations for the optimization of graphene-based devices operating in aqueous electrolytes, is missing. We used graphene-based electrodes on insulating and conducting substrates to evaluate the impact of intercalated water by combining experimental techniques with numerical simulations. Results show that the capacitance of the conductive substrate/graphene electrodes is significantly higher than that of the insulating substrate/graphene ones. Meanwhile, Raman spectroscopy demonstrates that graphene charge modulation with the applied potential is independent of the substrate conductivity. We found that this intriguing behavior is influenced by the water intercalation phenomena and governed by the substrate conductive nature. This work contributes to the understanding of the electric response of graphene-based devices in an aqueous environment and of the methods to measure and model it.

Little development on coatings has been available in the 50-120-nm spectral range until recently. One main reason for this is the large absorption of most materials in nature in this range. Our group has followed a research towards the development of novel coatings for this spectral range. This research has been based on the search and characterization of new materials mainly with low absorption. For many materials we have performed their optical characterizations in a large spectral range to reduce common inconsistencies that arise when combinations of data from different sources are used. We summarize our research on the characterization of many lanthanides, among other materials. Lanthanides are particularly interesting because they have a relatively low absorption in the spectral range of interest. Self-consistent characterization of other materials, such as SiC and B₄C, has been performed for their interest as candidate materials for coatings involving the EUV to the visible. The discovery in lanthanides of a wealth of materials with relatively low absorption has enabled the development of multilayers based on the low absorption of Yb and Eu lanthanides. This resulted in the first narrowband multilayers with a peak wavelength in the 70 to 100 nm. We also report recent research on the development of multilayers with a peak reflectance above 100 nm; these multilayers address two targets: a) narrowband performance; b) zero reflectance at a wavelength slightly longer (such as 121.6 nm) than the peak wavelength. As for a), a promising preliminary result is obtained with a narrowband multilayer peaked at 101 nm. Regarding b), multilayers with a high reflectance at 102.6 nm and a low reflectance at 121.6 nm were prepared and they displayed a successful performance when measured in situ (not exposed to the atmosphere); however, the minimum at 121.6 nm was lost after a short exposure to air. The latter research is still underway and we plan to experiment with new designs. Our group has also prepared efficient narrowband transmittance coatings peaked at wavelengths longer than 120 nm. They are based on the classical combination of Al and MgF₂.