The phrase "oxide layer" refers to a thin coating of oxygen and metal atoms that forms on the surface of certain materials. It acts as a protective barrier, preventing further corrosion or damage to the material. Full definition
The acid strips away the thin silicon oxide layer that forms in air, and completely covers the bare silicon surface with hydrogen. (newscientist.com)
Bozovic's team found that when they tainted the second lanthanum copper oxide layer in the stack, the critical temperature at which superconductivity could occur dropped from 32 kelvin to 18 kelvin — no such temperature drop was seen if any other layer was doped with zinc. (newscientist.com)
For that, they decided to disturb the copper oxide layers in a high Tc superconductor called BSCCO, which also contains layers of bismuth oxide, strontium oxide and calcium. (scientificamerican.com)