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1.
  • Bakhit, Babak, 1983-, et al. (author)
  • Age hardening in superhard ZrB2-rich Zr1-xTaxBy thin films
  • 2021
  • In: Scripta Materialia. - : Elsevier. - 1359-6462 .- 1872-8456. ; 191, s. 120-125
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • We recently showed that sputter-deposited Zr1-xTaxBy thin films have hexagonal AlB2-type columnar nanostructure in which column boundaries are B-rich for x < 0.2, while Ta-rich for x ≥ 0.2. As-deposited layers with x ≥ 0.2 exhibit higher hardness and, simultaneously, enhanced toughness. Here, we study the mechanical properties of ZrB2.4, Zr0.8Ta0.2B1.8, and Zr0.7Ta0.3B1.5 films annealed in Ar atmosphere as a function of annealing temperature Ta up to 1200 °C. In-situ and ex-situ nanoindentation analyses reveal that all films undergo age hardening up to Ta = 800 °C, with the highest hardness achieved for Zr0.8Ta0.2B1.8 (45.5±1.0 GPa). The age hardening, which occurs without any phase separation or decomposition, can be explained by point-defect recovery that enhances chemical bond density. Although hardness decreases at Ta > 800 °C due mainly to recrystallization, column coarsening, and planar defect annihilation, all layers show hardness values above 34 GPa over the entire Ta range.
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2.
  • Bakhit, Babak, 1983-, et al. (author)
  • Dense Ti0.67Hf0.33B1.7 thin films grown by hybrid HfB2-HiPIMS/TiB2-DCMS co-sputtering without external heating
  • 2021
  • In: Vacuum. - : Elsevier. - 0042-207X .- 1879-2715. ; 186
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • There is a need for developing synthesis techniques that allow the growth of high-quality functional films at low substrate temperatures to minimize energy consumption and enable coating temperature-sensitive substrates. A typical shortcoming of conventional low-temperature growth strategies is insufficient atomic mobility, which leads to porous microstructures with impurity incorporation due to atmosphere exposure, and, in turn, poor mechanical properties. Here, we report the synthesis of dense Ti0.67Hf0.33B1.7 thin films with a hardness of ∼41.0 GPa grown without external heating (substrate temperature below ∼100 °C) by hybrid high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (HfB2-HiPIMS/TiB2-DCMS) in pure Ar on Al2O3(0001) substrates. A substrate bias potential of −300 V is synchronized to the target-ion-rich portion of each HiPIMS pulse. The limited atomic mobility inherent to such desired low-temperature deposition is compensated for by heavy-mass ion (Hf+) irradiation promoting the growth of dense Ti0.67Hf0.33B1.7.
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3.
  • Bakhit, Babak, 1983- (author)
  • Multifunctional Transition-metal Diboride Coatings Synthesized by Magnetron sputtering with Synchronized Metal-ion Irradiation
  • 2020
  • Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • Refractory transition-metal diborides (TMB2), classified as ultra-high temperature ceramics, are promising materials for extreme thermal and chemical environments. There is a growing demand for employing TMB2 in high-temperature electrodes, advanced nuclear fission reactors, molten metal containment, refractory crucibles, thermocouple protection tubes in steel baths and aluminum reduction cells, reinforcement fibers, solar power, aerospace, and armor applications. Magnetron-sputter-deposited TMB2 have recently received increasing attention as the next class of hard ceramic protective thin films. These layers usually crystallize in a hexagonal AlB2 crystal structure (P6/mmm, SG-191) in which B atoms form graphite-like honeycomb sheets between hexagonal-close-packed TM layers. The strong covalent bonding between TM and B atoms as well as within the honeycomb B sheets provides high melting temperature, hardness, and stiffness, while metallic bonding within TM layers results in good electrical and thermal conductivities. However, sputter-deposited TMB2 films suffer from several critical issues such as boron overstoichiometry, high brittleness, and low oxidation resistance. All of these aspects are addressed in the thesis.In Paper 1, the common issue with sputter-deposited diboride thin films, i.e. the presence of excess B, is resolved by using high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS). The B/Ti ratio in TiBx films, used as a model materials system, is controllably varied from 2.08 to 1.83 by adjusting the HiPIMS pulse length ton, while maintaining the average power and pulse frequency constant. As a result, the peak current density increases from 0.27 to 0.88 A/cm2, which leads to an increased gas rarefaction and, hence, higher metal-ion densities in the plasma. Film growth becomes then increasingly controlled by ionized target atoms, rather than neutral species. Since sputter-ejected Ti atoms have a higher probability of being ionized than B atoms, due to their lower first-ionization potential and larger ionization cross-section, the B/Ti ratio in the films decreases a function of target peak current.While TM diborides are inherently hard, that alone is not sufficient to prevent failure in applications involving high stresses, as hardness is typically accompanied by brittleness. In order to avoid brittle cracking, thin films must be both hard and relatively ductile, which is referred to as high toughness. In Paper 2, it is demonstrated that Zr1-xTaxBy thin films grown by hybrid high-power impulse and DC magnetron co-sputtering (Ta-HiPIMS/ZrB2-DCMS) with x ≥ 0.2 are not only hard, but also tough. The films with x ≥ 0.2 show a self-organized columnar core/shell nanostructure (see Paper 3), in which crystalline hexagonal Zr-rich stoichiometric Zr1-xTaxB2 cores are surrounded by narrow dense, disordered Ta-rich shells that are B-deficient.The disordered shells have the structural characteristics of metallic-glass thin films, which exhibit both high strength and toughness. Hence, such a nanostructure combines the benefits of crystalline diboride nanocolumns, providing the high hardness, with the dense metallic-glasslike shells, which give rise to enhanced toughness.The mechanical properties of Zr1-xTaxBy thin films annealed in Ar atmosphere are studied as a function of annealing temperature Ta up to 1200 °C in Paper 4. In-situ and ex-situ nanoindentation analyses reveal that all films undergo age hardening up to Ta = 800 °C, with the highest hardness achieved for Zr0.8Ta0.2B1.8 (45.5±1.0 GPa). The age hardening, which occurs without any phase separation or decomposition, can be explained by point-defect recovery that enhances chemical bond density. Although hardness decreases at Ta > 800 °C due mainly to recrystallization, column coarsening, and planar defect annihilation, all layers show hardness values above 34 GPa over the entire Ta range.The oxidation resistance of TiBx thin films is addressed in Paper 5. In general, TMB2 suffer from rapid high-temperature oxidation, which is a critical issue for many applications. In this study, it is demonstrated that alloying the films with Al significantly increases the oxidation resistance with only a slight decrease in hardness. Contrary to bulk TiB2 synthesized by powder metallurgy processes, the oxidation products of TiB2 thin films do not contain the B2O3 oxide scale, which is usually observed below 1000 °C in air, and merely consists of a TiO2 phase. The enhanced oxidation resistance is attributed to the formation of a dense, protective Al-containing oxide scale, which considerably decreases the oxygen diffusion rate by suppressing the oxidecrystallites coarsening.To realize the goal of fully multifunctional diborides, Zr1-xCrxBy thin films grown by hybrid Cr-HiPIMS/ZrB2-DCMS co-sputtering are studied in Paper 6. These layers exhibit a unique combination of high hardness, toughness, wear, oxidation, and corrosion resistance.The last paper (Paper 7) addresses the issue of efficient energy and resource consumption in industrial processes, which United Nations defines as one of the sustainable development goals. The idea here is to replace the conventionally used thermal-energy flux from resistive heaters with the irradiation by high mass metal ions (Hf+), which results in more efficient energy transfer to the deposited layer. We deposited Ti0.67Hf0.33B1.7 films using hybrid HfB2-HiPIMS/TiB2-DCMS co-sputtering at substrate temperature not exceeding 100 °C. Results reveal that dense layers can be achieved with high hardness values (> 40 GPa) even though no external substrate heating was used during the process.
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4.
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5.
  • Bakhit, Babak, 1983-, et al. (author)
  • Multifunctional ZrB2-rich Zr1-xCrxBy thin films with enhanced mechanical, oxidation, and corrosion properties
  • 2021
  • In: Vacuum. - : Elsevier BV. - 0042-207X .- 1879-2715. ; 185
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Refractory transition-metal (TM) diborides have high melting points, excellent hardness, and good  chemical  stability.  However, these properties are not sufficient for applications involving extreme  environments that require high mechanical strength as well as oxidation and corrosion resistance. Here, we study the effect of Cr addition on the properties of ZrB2-rich Zr1-xCrxBy thin films grown by hybrid high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (Cr-HiPIMS/ZrB2-DCMS) with a 100-V Cr-metal-ion synchronized potential. Cr metal fraction, x = Cr/(Zr+Cr), is increased from 0.23 to 0.44 by decreasing the power Pzrb2 applied to the DCMS ZrB2 target from 4000 to 2000 W, while the average power, pulse width, and frequency applied to the HiPIMS Cr target are maintained constant. In addition, y decreases from 2.18 to 1.11 as a function of Pzrb2, as a result of supplying Cr to the growing film and preferential B resputtering caused by the pulsed Cr-ion flux. ZrB2.18, Zr0.77Cr0.23B1.52, Zr0.71Cr0.29B1.42, and Zr0.68Cr0.32B1.38 2 films have hexagonal AlB2 crystal structure with a columnar nanostructure, while Zr0.64Cr0.36B1.30 and Zr0.56Cr0.44B1.11 are  amorphous. All films show hardness above 30 GPa. Zr0.56Cr0.44B1.11 alloys exhibit much better toughness, wear, oxidation, and corrosion resistance than ZrB2.18. This combination of properties   makes Zr0.56Cr0.44B1.11 ideal candidates for numerous strategic applications.
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6.
  • Bakhit, Babak, 1983-, et al. (author)
  • Self-organized columnar Zr0.7Ta0.3B1.5 core/shell-nanostructure thin films
  • 2020
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 401
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • We recently showed that Zr1−xTaxBy thin films have columnar nanostructure in which column boundaries are B-rich for x < 0.2, while Ta-rich for x ≥ 0.2. Layers with x ≥ 0.2 exhibit higher hardness and, simultaneously, enhanced toughness. Here, we determine the atomic-scale nanostructure of sputter-deposited columnar Zr0.7Ta0.3B1.5 thin films. The columns, 95 ± 17 Å, are core/shell nanostructures in which 80 ± 15-Å cores are crystalline hexagonal-AlB2-structure Zr-rich stoichiometric Zr1−xTaxB2. The shell structure is a narrow dense, disordered region that is Ta-rich and highly B-deficient. The cores are formed under intense ion mixing via preferential Ta segregation, due to the lower formation enthalpy of TaB2 than ZrB2, in response to the chemical driving force to form a stoichiometric compound. The films with unique combination of nanosized crystalline cores and dense metallic-glass-like shells provide excellent mechanical properties.
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7.
  • Bakhit, Babak, 1983-, et al. (author)
  • Systematic compositional analysis of sputter-deposited boron-containing thin films
  • 2021
  • In: Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. A. Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films. - : American Vacuum Society. - 0734-2101 .- 1520-8559. ; 39:6
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Boron-containing materials exhibit a unique combination of ceramic and metallic properties that are sensitively dependent on their given chemical bonding and elemental compositions. However, determining the composition, let alone bonding, with sufficient accuracy is cumbersome with respect to boron, being a light element that bonds in various coordinations. Here, we report on the comprehensive compositional analysis of transition-metal diboride (TMBx) thin films (TM = Ti, Zr, and Hf) by energy-dispersive x-ray spectroscopy (EDX), x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), time-of-flight elastic recoil detection analysis (ToF-ERDA), Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), and nuclear reaction analysis (NRA). The films are grown on Si and C substrates by dc magnetron sputtering from stoichiometric TMB2 targets and have hexagonal AlB2-type columnar structures. EDX considerably overestimates B/TM ratios, x, compared to the other techniques, particularly for ZrBx. The B concentrations obtained by XPS strongly depend on the energy of Ar+ ions used for removing surface oxides and contaminants prior to analyses and are more reliable for 0.5 keV Ar+. ToF-ERDA, RBS, and NRA yield consistent compositions in TiBx. They also prove TiBx and ZrBx films to be homogeneous with comparable B/TM ratios for each film. However, ToF-ERDA, employing a 36-MeV 127I8+ beam, exhibits challenges in depth resolution and quantification of HfBx due to plural and multiple scattering and associated energy loss straggling effects. Compared to ToF-ERDA, RBS (for the film grown on C substrates) and NRA provide more reliable B/Hf ratios. Overall, a combination of methods is recommended for accurately pinpointing the compositions of borides that contain heavy transition metals.
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8.
  • Chang, Jui-Che, 1996- (author)
  • Controlled growth of metastable Ta3N5 semiconducting films
  • 2024
  • Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • The semiconductor tritantalum pentanitride (Ta3N5) is a promising material for green energy applications, specifically in the photoelectrolysis of water to produce oxygen and hydrogen. With a bandgap of approximately 2 eV, Ta3N5 is well-suited for efficient solar light absorption across a broad spectrum, and its band positions align favorably with the redox potential of water. Theoretically, this material could achieve a solar-to-hydrogen efficiency of up to 15.9%. However, the intricate nature of the Ta-N compounds and its metastability have limited research into the development of high-quality Ta3N5.   In this thesis, the metastable Ta3N5 films were grown using two types of reactive magnetron sputtering techniques, direct current magnetron sputtering (DCMS) and high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS). Several key parameters were found to stabilize the formation of Ta3N5 phase, including the amount of oxygen in a gas mixture of Ar and N2, total working pressure, the Ta2O5 seed layer, and Ar/N2 partial pressure ratio.   First, sputter growth of Ta-N film using a gas mixture of Ar and N2 without oxygen gas, only metallic -TaN and ε-TaN phase were formed. After introducing a small amount of oxygen in the process gas (~2% of total working pressure), the oxygen atoms, with higher electronegativity, replace nitrogen atoms to trigger and stabilize the formation of crystalline Ta3N5-type structure. In addition, with a suitable Ar/N2 partial pressure ratio for Ta3N5 formation, a low-degree fiber-textural orthorhombic Ta3N5 film was formed at the total working pressure range from 5 to 30 mTorr. At 40 mTorr total working pressure, the deposited film transforms to O-rich amorphous Ta-O-N compound. Second, the effect of Ta2O5 seed layer on the control of Ta-N phase was studied. The Ta3N5 phase can be grown only with a Ta2O5 seed layer assistance. Without the seed layer, only metallic TaN phases were formed no matter if the film was grown with or without oxygen assistance. Furthermore, domain epitaxial growth of Ta3N5 film on sapphire substrate was achieved through the control of seed layer’s thickness and crystallinity. While the film was grown on an amorphous TaOx seed layer, the Ta3N5 structure becomes polycrystalline. Third, the formation mechanism and epitaxial growth were studied through microstructural analysis in combination of first-principle density-functional theory calculations. Time-dependent growth evolution of Ta3N5 films combined with HRTEM and EDX measurement revealed that the nitridation of Ta2O5 seed layer and Ta-N film deposition occurs simultaneously at the beginning of the Ta3N5 deposition. Further deposition, the Ta3N5 layer was dominated by {00k} domain mixed with (113) domain with a thin TaN layer between Ta3N5 layer and substrate. Last, various Ta-N compounds were grown via controlling the Ar/N2 partial pressure ratio and total working pressure. When the reactive gas was changed from pure Ar to pure nitrogen, the deposited films transformed from Ta metal (mixed with TaOx), TaN, TaN mixed with Ta3N5 to polycrystalline Ta3N5 phase. To summarize the work conducted in this thesis, I have established a reproducible and precise method for cultivating metastable Ta3N5 through the magnetron sputter deposition technique. The elucidated growth mechanism holds promise for synthesizing Ta3N5 on diverse substrates using alternative techniques, ensuring a controlled and adaptable approach. 
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9.
  • Chang, Jui-Che, et al. (author)
  • Domain epitaxial growth of Ta3N5 film on c-plane sapphire substrate
  • 2022
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 443
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Tritantalum pentanitride (Ta3N5) semiconductor is a promising material for photoelectrolysis of water with high efficiency. Ta3N5 is a metastable phase in the complex system of TaN binary compounds. Growing stabilized single-crystal Ta3N5 films is correspondingly challenging. Here, we demonstrate the growth of a nearly single-crystal Ta3N5 film with epitaxial domains on c-plane sapphire substrate, Al2O3(0001), by magnetron sputter epitaxy. Introduction of a small amount ~2% of O2 into the reactive sputtering gas mixed with N2 and Ar facilitates the formation of a Ta3N5 phase in the film dominated by metallic TaN. In addition, we indicate that a single-phase polycrystalline Ta3N5 film can be obtained with the assistance of a Ta2O5 seed layer. With controlling thickness of the seed layer smaller than 10 nm and annealing at 1000 °C, a crystalline β phase Ta2O5 was formed, which promotes the domain epitaxial growth of Ta3N5 films on Al2O3(0001). The mechanism behind the stabilization of the orthorhombic Ta3N5 structure resides in its stacking with the ultrathin seed layer of orthorhombic β-Ta2O5, which is energetically beneficial and reduces the lattice mismatch with the substrate.
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10.
  • Chang, Jui-Che (author)
  • Metastable orthorhombic Ta3N5 thin films grown by magnetron sputter epitaxy
  • 2022
  • Licentiate thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • The semiconductor tritantalum pentanitride (Ta3N5) is a promising green-energy material for photoelectrolyzing water to produce oxygen and hydrogen owing to its proper bandgap of 2.0 ± 0.2 eV and band positions to redox potential of water. Compare with the conventional setup of water splitting, such as TiO2, Fe2O3, Cu2O, and WO3, the Ta3N5 shows a proper band gap, which leads to a theoretical efficiency as high as 15.9%. However, the complexity of the Ta-N system and the metastability of the Ta3N5 result in the limited research of the growth of high quality stoichiometric Ta3N5.Conventionally, the two-step growth of oxidation and nitridation of a metal Ta using thermal annealing in oxygen and ammonia environment is used to produce the Ta3N5. However, the amount of incorporated oxygen in the Ta3N5 samples and film’s thickness and interface are hardly to be controlled, and the use of ammonia as the nitridation gas is harmful to the environment. Hence, in this thesis work, the reactive magnetron sputtering is used to synthesis the Ta3N5, which demonstrates some advantages, such as possibility to grow on a substrate with nanostructure on the surface, a simplification of growth process, usage of environmental-friendly reactive gas, and even scaling up to the industrial application.The thesis presents a successful growth of orthorhombic Ta3N5-type Ta-O-N compound thin films on Si and sapphire substrates, specifically Ta3-xN5-yOy, using reactive magnetron sputtering with a gas mixture of Ar, N2, and O2. In the deposition process, the total working pressure was increasing from 5 to 40 mTorr, while keeping same partial pressure ratio (Ar: N2: O2 = 3: 2: 0.1). When the total pressure in the region between 5-30 mTorr, a low-degree fiber-textural Ta3-xN5-yOy films were grown. In addition, with the characterization of elastic recoil detection analysis (ERDA), the atomic fraction of O, N, and Ta of as-grown Ta3-xN5-yOy films were found varying from 0.02 to 0.15, 0.66 to 0.54, and 0.33 to 0.31, respectively, which leads to a b-lattice constant decrease around 1.3 %, shown in X-ray diffraction (XRD) results. For a total working pressure up to 40 mTorr, an amorphous O-rich Ta-O-N compound film was formed mixed with non-stoichiometric TaON and Ta2O5, which further raised the oxygen atomic fraction to ~0.48. The increasing total working pressure results in an increasing band gap from 2.22 to 2.66 eV of Ta3-xN5-yOy films, and further increasing to around 2.96 eV of O-rich Ta-O-N compound films. The mechanism of increasing oxygen atomic fraction in the film is founded correlated with the forming oxide on the Ta target surface during the deposition process due to the strong reactivity of O to Ta by the characterization of optical emission spectroscopy (OES). Moreover, the sputter yield was reduced due to the target poisoning, and which is evidenced by both plasma analysis and depth profile from ERDA.A further studies with the deposition parameters for nearly pure Ta3N5 films (oxygen atomic fraction ~2%) was performed using c-axis oriented Al2O3 substrate. In this research, it is found that a Ta2O5 seed layer and a small amount of oxygen were necessary for the growth of Ta3N5. Without the help of seed layer and oxygen, only metallic TaN phases, either mixture of ε- and δ- TaN or δ-TaN were grown, evidenced by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Furthermore, the structure and phase purity of Ta3N5-phase dominated films was found highly correlated with the thickness of the Ta2O5 seed layer. With the increasing thickness of the seed layer from 5, 9, to 17 nm, the composition of grown films was changed from 111-oriented δ-TaN mixed with c-axis oriented Ta3N5, c-axis oriented Ta3N5, to polycrystalline Ta3N5. In addition, the azimuthal φ-scans in grazing incident geometry demonstrates that the c-axis oriented Ta3N5 contained epitaxially three-variant-orientation domains, in which the a and b planes parallel to the m and a planes of c-axis oriented Al2O3. With the simulation of density functional theory (DFT), the growth of thin seed layers of orthorhombic Ta2O5 (β-Ta2O5) was found promoting by introducing a small amount of oxygen, after calculating the interplay between the topological and energy selection criteria. By the co-action of the mentioned criteria, this already grown Ta2O5 seed layer favored the growth of the orthorhombic Ta3N5 phase. Hence, the mechanism of the domain epitaxial growth of c-axis oriented Ta3N5 on c-axis oriented Al2O3 is attributed to the similar atomic arrangement Ta3N5(001) and β-Ta2O5(201) with a small lattice mismatch around of 2.6% and 4.5%, for the interface of film/seed layer and seed layer/substrate, respectively, and a favorable energetic interaction between involved materials.
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11.
  • Chang, Jui-Che, et al. (author)
  • Orthorhombic Ta3-xN5-yOy thin films grown by unbalanced magnetron sputtering : The role of oxygen on structure, composition, and optical properties
  • 2021
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 406
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Direct growth of orthorhombic Ta3N5-type Ta-O-N compound thin films, specifically Ta3-xN5-yOy, on Si and sapphire substrates with various atomic fractions is realized by unbalanced magnetron sputtering. Low-degree fiber-textural Ta3-xN5-yOy films were grown through reactive sputtering of Ta in a gas mixture of N-2, Ar, and O-2 with keeping a partial pressure ratio of 3:2:0.1 in a total working pressure range of 5-30 mTorr. With increasing total pressure from 5 to 30 mTorr, the atomic fraction of O in the as-grown Ta3-xN5-yOy films was found to increase from 0.02 to 0.15 while that of N and Ta decrease from 0.66 to 0.54 and 0.33 to 0.31, respectively, leading to a decrease in b lattice constant up to around 1.3%. Metallic TaNx phases were formed without oxygen. For a working pressure of 40 mTorr, an amorphous, O-rich Ta-N-O compound film with a high O fraction of similar to 0.48, was formed, mixed with non-stoichiometric TaON and Ta2O5. By analyzing the plasma discharge, the increasing O incorporation is associated with oxide formation on top of the Ta target due to a higher reactivity of Ta with O than with N. The increase of O incorporation in the films also leads to a optical bandgap widening from similar to 2.22 to similar to 2.96 eV, which is in agreement with the compositional and structural changes from a crystalline Ta3-xN5-yOy to an amorphous O-rich Ta-O-N compound.
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12.
  • Chowdhury, Susmita, et al. (author)
  • Thermoelectric properties and electronic structure of Cr(Mo,V)Nx thin films studied by synchrotron and lab-based x-ray spectroscopy
  • 2023
  • In: Physical Review B. - : AMER PHYSICAL SOC. - 2469-9950 .- 2469-9969. ; 108:20
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Chromium-based nitrides are used in hard, resilient coatings and show promise for thermoelectric applications due to their combination of structural, thermal, and electronic properties. Here, we investigate the electronic structures and chemical bonding correlated to the thermoelectric properties of epitaxially grown chromium-based multicomponent nitride Cr(Mo,V)Nx thin films. The small amount of N vacancies causes Cr 3d and N 2p states to appear at the Fermi level and reduces the band gap in Cr0.51N0.49. Incorporating holes by alloying of V in N-deficient CrN results in an enhanced thermoelectric power factor with marginal change in the charge transfer of Cr to N compared with Cr0.51N0.49. Further alloying of Mo, isoelectronic to Cr, increases the density of states at the Fermi level due to hybridization of the (Cr, V) 3d and Mo 4d-N 2p states in Cr(Mo,V)Nx. This hybridization and N off-stoichiometry result in more metal-like electrical resistivity and reduction in Seebeck coefficient. The N deficiency in Cr(Mo,V)Nx also depicts a critical role in reduction of the charge transfer from metal to N site compared with Cr0.51N0.49 and Cr0.50V0.03N0.47. In this paper, we envisage ways for enhancing thermoelectric properties through electronic band engineering by alloying and competing effects of N vacancies.
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13.
  • Dorri, Samira, 1988-, et al. (author)
  • Oxidation kinetics of overstoichiometric TiB2 thin films grown by DC magnetron sputtering
  • 2022
  • In: Corrosion Science. - : Pergamon-Elsevier Science Ltd. - 0010-938X .- 1879-0496. ; 206
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • We systematically study the oxidation properties of sputter-deposited TiB2.5 coatings up to 700 °C. Oxide-scale thickness dox increases linearly with time ta for 300, 400, 500, and 700 °C, while an oxidation-protective behavior occurs with dox=250∙ta0.2 at 600 °C. Oxide-layer’s structure changes from amorphous to rutile/anatase-TiO2 at temperatures ≥ 500 °C. Abnormally low oxidation rate at 600 °C is attributed to a highly dense columnar TiO2-sublayer growing near oxide/film interface with a top-amorphous thin layer, suppressing oxygen diffusion. A model is proposed to explain the oxide-scale evolution at 600 °C. Decreasing heating rate to 1.0 °C/min plays a noticeable role in the TiB2.5 oxidation.
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14.
  • Eriksson, Fredrik, 1975-, et al. (author)
  • Morphology control in Ni/Ti multilayer neutron mirrors by ion-assisted interface engineering and B4C incorporation
  • 2023
  • In: Optical Materials Express. - : Optica Publishing Group. - 2159-3930 .- 2159-3930. ; 13:5, s. 1424-1439
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The optical contrast and minimum layer thickness of Ni/Ti broadband neutron multilayer supermirrors is usually hampered by an interface width, typically 0.7 nm, caused by nanocrystallites, interdiffusion, and/or intermixing. We explore the elimination of nanocrystallites in combination with interface smoothening by modulation of ion assistance during magnetron sputter deposition of 0.8 to 6.4 nm thick Ni and Ti layers. The amorphization is achieved through incorporation of natural B4C where B and C preferably bond to Ti. A two-stage substrate bias was applied to each layer; -30 V for the initial 1 nm followed by -100 V for the remaining part, generating multilayer mirrors with interface widths of 0.40-0.45 nm. The results predict that high performance supermirrors with m-values as high as 10 are feasible by using 11B isotope-enriched B4C combined with temporal control of the ion assistance.
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15.
  • Gangaprasad Rao, Smita, 1992-, et al. (author)
  • Phase formation and structural evolution of multicomponent (CrFeCo)Ny films
  • 2021
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 412
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The Cantor alloy (CoCrFeMnNi) and its variants, in bulk as well as thin films, have been extensively studied. They are known to exhibit cubic crystal structures and thermodynamic stability regardless of their complex chemical composition. Therefore, they may find use as hard, wear-resistant, corrosion and oxidation-resistant coatings. The addition of light elements, such as nitrogen, is known to help improve these properties further through processes such as amorphization and nitride compound formation. Here, we investigate the ternary CrFeCo system to study the effects of nitrogen addition. (CrFeCo)Ny multicomponent thin films are grown on silicon substrates by DC magnetron sputtering. Changes in crystal structure, morphology, mechanical and electrical properties with gradual increases of nitrogen in the film are described and discussed. Increased addition of nitrogen from 14 at.% to 28 at.% in the film leads to a transformation from an fcc to a bcc crystal structure, affects both the mechanical and electrical properties. XPS analysis shows the tendency of nitrogen to bond with Cr over other metals. The films display hardness values between 7 and 11 GPa with resistivities values ranging between 28 and 165 μΩ cm.
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16.
  • Ghafoor, Naureen, 1975-, et al. (author)
  • Impact of B4C co-sputtering on structure and optical performance of Cr/Sc multilayer X-ray mirrors
  • 2017
  • In: Optics Express. - : Optical Society of America. - 1094-4087. ; 25:15, s. 18274-18287
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The influence of B4C incorporation during magnetron sputter deposition of Cr/Sc multilayers intended for soft X-ray reflective optics is investigated. Chemical analysis suggests formation of metal: boride and carbide bonds which stabilize an amorphous layer structure, resulting in smoother interfaces and an increased reflectivity. A near-normal incidence reflectivity of 11.7%, corresponding to a 67% increase, is achieved at λ = 3.11 nm upon adding 23 at.% (B + C). The advantage is significant for the multilayer periods larger than 1.8 nm, where amorphization results in smaller interface widths, for example, giving 36% reflectance and 99.89% degree of polarization near Brewster angle for a multilayer polarizer. The modulated ion-energy-assistance during the growth is considered vital to avoid intermixing during the interface formation even when B + C are added.
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17.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • Al capping layers for non-destructive x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses of transition-metal nitride thin films
  • 2015
  • In: Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. A. Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films. - : American Vacuum Society. - 0734-2101 .- 1520-8559. ; 33, s. 05E101-1-05E101-9
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) compositional analyses of materials that have been air exposed typically require ion etching in order to remove contaminated surface layers. However, the etching step can lead to changes in sample surface and near-surface compositions due to preferential elemental sputter ejection and forward recoil implantation; this is a particular problem for metal/gas compounds and alloys such as nitrides and oxides. Here, we use TiN as a model system and compare XPS analysis results from three sets of polycrystalline TiN/Si(001) films deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering in a separate vacuum chamber. The films are either (a) air-exposed for ? 10 min prior to insertion into the ultra-high-vacuum (UHV) XPS system; (b) air-exposed and subject to ion etching, using different ion energies and beam incidence angles, in the XPS chamber prior to analysis; or (c) Al-capped in-situ in the deposition system prior to air-exposure and loading into the XPS instrument.We show that thin, 1.5-6.0 nm, Al capping layers provide effective barriers to oxidation and contamination of TiN surfaces, thus allowing non-destructive acquisition of high-resolution core-level spectra representative of clean samples, and, hence, correct bonding assignments. The Ti 2p and N 1s satellite features, which are sensitive to ion bombardment, exhibit high intensities comparable to those obtained from single-crystal TiN/MgO(001) films grown and analyzed in-situ in a UHV XPS system and there is no indication of Al/TiN interfacial reactions. XPS-determined N/Ti concentrations acquired from Al/TiN samples agree very well with Rutherford backscattering and elastic recoil analysis results while ion-etched air-exposed samples exhibit strong N loss due to preferential resputtering. The intensities and shapes of the Ti 2p and N 1s core level signals from Al/TiN/Si(001) samples do not change following long-term (up to 70 days) exposure to ambient conditions indicating that the thin Al capping layers provide stable surface passivation without spallation.
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18.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • Gas rarefaction effects during high power pulsed magnetron sputtering of groups IVb and VIb transition metals in Ar
  • 2017
  • In: Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. A. Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films. - : American Institute of Physics (AIP). - 0734-2101 .- 1520-8559. ; 35:6
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The authors use energy- and time-dependent mass spectrometry to analyze the evolution of metal- and gas-ion fluxes incident at the substrate during high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) of groups IVb and VIb transition-metal (TM) targets in Ar. For all TMs, the time-and energy-integrated metal/gas-ion ratio at the substrate plane NMe+/NAr+ increases with increasing peak target current density J(T,peak) due to rarefaction. In addition, NMe+/NAr+ exhibits a strong dependence on metal/gas-atom mass ratio m(Me)/m(g) and varies from similar to 1 for Ti (m(Ti)/m(Ar) = 1.20) to similar to 100 for W (m(W)/m(Ar) = 4.60), with J(T,peak) maintained constant at 1 A/cm(2). Time-resolved ion-energy distribution functions confirm that the degree of rarefaction scales with m(Me)/m(g): for heavier TMs, the original sputtered-atom Sigmund-Thompson energy distributions are preserved long after the HiPIMS pulse, which is in distinct contrast to lighter metals for which the energy distributions collapse into a narrow thermalized peak. Hence, precise timing of synchronous substrate-bias pulses, applied in order to reduce film stress while increasing densification, is critical for metal/gas combinations with m(Me)/m(g) near unity, while with m(Me)/m(g) amp;gt;amp;gt; 1, the width of the synchronous bias pulse is essentially controlled by the metal-ion time of flight. The good agreement between results obtained in an industrial system employing 440 cm(2) cathodes and a laboratory-scale system with a 20 cm(2) target is indicative of the fundamental nature of the phenomena. 
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19.
  •  
20.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973- (author)
  • Photoelectron spectroscopy studies of conjugated polymer surfaces and interfaces for organic-based light emitting devices
  • 2001
  • Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • Since the initial discovery of metallic conductivity in doped polyacetylene in 1977, which lead to the Nobel Prize in Chemistry year 2000, the field of conducting polymers has expanded tremendously. Today, research developments in this area cover transistors, photodiodes and light emitting diodes (LEDs). The latter one was initiated by the first report on electroluminescence in conjugated polymer that appeared in 1990 by the group of Prof. R. H. Friend in Cambridge. After a decade from this discovery the first polymer-based LEDs are approaching the stage of commercial manufacturing. The low-cost processing and attractive device characteristics make them strong competitors for the inorganic LED-industry.The focus of the work presented in the papers in this thesis is the characterization of the electronic structure of some conjugated polymers used in polymer-LED, as well as different types of interfaces often occurring in real structures (metal-polymer, polymer-metal, metal-insulator-polymer, etc.) and interface materials. The analysis technique that was used for these investigations was almost exclusively photoelectron spectroscopy with both X-ray photons (XPS) and ultraviolet light (UPS), occasionally some measurements were also done employing synchrotron radiation. These two methods XPS and UPS are the complementary techniques and enormous amount of information concerning the valence band electronic structure and electronic core levels can be obtained at the same time. This combination has proven to be especially powerful when applied to the investigations of interfaces formed between conjugated polymers and various metals where the undergoing changes can be mapped step by step in situ while building the metal contact under ultra high vacuum (UHV). The later issue is of great importance for applications in LEDs, where the device characteristic depends strongly on the character of interfaces between emissive polymer layer and injecting electrodes.
  •  
21.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • Reference binding energies of transition metal carbides by core-level x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy free from Ar+ etching artefacts
  • 2018
  • In: Applied Surface Science. - : ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV. - 0169-4332 .- 1873-5584. ; 436, s. 102-110
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • We report x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) core level binding energies (BE's) for the widely-applicable groups IVb-VIb transition metal carbides (TMCs) TiC, VC, CrC, ZrC, NbC, MoC, HfC, TaC, and WC. Thin film samples are grown in the same deposition system, by dc magnetron co-sputtering from graphite and respective elemental metal targets in Ar atmosphere. To remove surface contaminations resulting from exposure to air during sample transfer from the growth chamber into the XPS system, layers are either (i) Ar+ ion-etched or (ii) UHV-annealed in situ prior to XPS analyses. High resolution XPS spectra reveal that even gentle etching affects the shape of core level signals, as well as BE values, which are systematically offset by 0.2-0.5 eV towards lower BE. These destructive effects of Ar+ ion etch become more pronounced with increasing the metal atom mass due to an increasing carbon-to-metal sputter yield ratio. Systematic analysis reveals that for each row in the periodic table (3d, 4d, and 5d) C 1s BE increases from left to right indicative of a decreased charge transfer from TM to C atoms, hence bond weakening. Moreover, C 1s BE decreases linearly with increasing carbide/metal melting point ratio. Spectra reported here, acquired from a consistent set of samples in the same instrument, should serve as a reference for true deconvolution of complex XPS cases, including multinary carbides, nitrides, and carbonitrides.
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22.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • Sputter-cleaned Epitaxial VxMo(1-x)Ny/MgO(001) Thin Films Analyzed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy: 2. Single-crystal V0.47Mo0.53N0.92
  • 2013
  • In: Surface Science Spectra. - : American Vacuum Society. - 1055-5269 .- 1520-8575. ; 20, s. 74-79
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Epitaxial Vx Mo (1-x)Ny thin films grown by ultrahigh vacuum reactive magnetron sputter deposition on MgO(001) substrates are analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). This contribution presents analytical results for 300-nm-thick single-crystal V0.47 Mo 0.53N0.92/MgO(001) films deposited by reactive cosputtering from V (99.95% purity) and Mo (99.95% purity) targets. Film growth is carried out in a UHV chamber with base pressure 2 × 10−9 Torr at 700 °C in mixed Ar/N2 atmospheres at a total pressure of 5 mTorr, with a N2 partial pressure of 3.2 mTorr; a bias of −30 V is applied to the substrate. Films composition is determined by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS). XPS measurements employ monochromatic Al K α radiation (hν = 1486.6 eV) to analyze V0.47 Mo 0.53N0.92(001) surfaces sputter-cleaned in-situ with 4 keV Ar+ ions incident at an angle of 70° with respect to the surface normal. XPS results show that the ion-etched sample surfaces have no measurable oxygen or carbon contamination; film composition, obtained using XPS sensitivity factors, is V0.34 Mo 0.66N0.81. All core level peaks, including the nearby Mo 3p3/2 (binding energy of 394.1 eV) and N 1s (at 397.5 eV) peaks, are well-resolved. Comparison to the V0.48 Mo 0.52N0.64 single-crystal film, submitted separately to Surface Science Spectra, indicates that with decreasing growth temperature from 900 to 700 °C (and increasing nitrogen concentration in Vx Mo (1-x)Ny from y = 0.64 to 0.81) the N 1s core level peak shifts towards lower binding energy by 0.1 eV while all metal atom peaks move in the opposite direction by the same amount.
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23.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • Sputter-cleaned Epitaxial VxMo(1-x)Ny/MgO(001)Thin Films Analyzed by X-ray PhotoelectronSpectroscopy: 3. Polycrystalline V0.49Mo0.51N1.02
  • 2013
  • In: Surface Science Spectra. - : American Vacuum Society. - 1055-5269 .- 1520-8575. ; 20, s. 80-85
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Vx Mo (1-x)Ny thin films grown by ultrahigh vacuum reactive magnetron sputter deposition on MgO(001) substrates are analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). This contribution presents analytical results for 300-nm-thick 002-textured polycrystalline V0.49 Mo 0.51N1.02 films deposited by reactive cosputtering from V (99.95 % purity) and Mo (99.95 % purity) targets. Film growth is carried out at 500 °C in mixed Ar/N2 atmospheres at a total pressure of 5 mTorr, with a N2 partial pressure of 3.2 mTorr; a bias of −30 V is applied to the substrate. Films composition is determined by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS). XPS measurements employ monochromatic Al K α radiation (hν = 1486.6 eV) to analyze V0.49 Mo 0.51N1.02 surface sputter-cleaned in-situ with 4 keV Ar+ ions incident at an angle of 70° with respect to the surface normal. XPS results show that the ion-etched sample surfaces have no measurable oxygen or carbon contamination; film composition, obtained using XPS sensitivity factors, is V0.34 Mo 0.66N1.00. All core level peaks, including the nearby Mo 3p3/2 (binding energy of 394.3 eV) and N 1s (at 397.4 eV) peaks, are well-resolved. Comparison to V0.33 Mo 0.67N0.64 and V0.34 Mo 0.66N0.81 single-crystal film surfaces, submitted separately to Surface Science Spectra, indicates that with decreasing growth temperature from 900 to 700 and 500 °C (and increasing nitrogen concentration in Vx Mo (1-x)Ny from y = 0.64 to 0.81 and 1.00) the N 1s core level peak shifts from 397.6 eV to 397.5 eV to 397.4 eV while metal atom peaks move towards higher binding energy by 0.2-0.4 eV.
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24.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • Strategy for tuning the average charge state of metal ions incident at the growing film during HIPIMS deposition
  • 2015
  • In: Vacuum. - : Elsevier. - 0042-207X .- 1879-2715. ; 116, s. 36-41
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Energy and time-dependent mass spectrometry is used to determine the relative number density of singly- and multiply-charged metal-ion fluxes incident at the substrate during high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) as a function of the average noble-gas ionization potential. Ti is selected as the sputtering target since the microstructure, phase composition, properties, and stress-state of Ti-based ceramic thin films grown by HIPIMS are known to be strongly dependent on the charge state of Tin+ (n = 1, 2, …) ions incident at the film growth surface. We find that the flux of Tin+ with n > 2 is insignificant; thus, we measure the Ti2+/Ti+ integrated flux ratio JTi2+ =JTi+ at the substrate position as a function of the choice of noble gase Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, as well as Ne/Ar, Kr/Ar, and Xe/Ar mixtures – supporting the plasma. We demonstrate that by changing noble-gas mixtures, JTi2+ varies by more than two orders of magnitude with only a small change in JTi+ . This allows the ratio JTi2+ =JTi+ to be continuously tuned from less than 0.01 with Xe, which has a low first-ionization potential IP1, to 0.62 with Ne which has a high IP1. The value for Xe, IP1Xe= 12.16 eV, is larger than the first ionization potential of Ti, IP1Ti= 6.85 eV, but less than the second Ti ionization potential, IP2Ti= 13.62 eV. For Ne, however, IP1Ne= 21.63 eV is greater than both IP1Ti and IP2Ti. Therefore, the high-energy tail of the plasma-electron energy distribution can be systematically adjusted, allowing JTi2+/JTi+ to be controllably varied over a very wide range.
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25.
  • Greczynski, Grzegorz, 1973-, et al. (author)
  • X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analyses of the electronic structure of polycrystalline Ti1-xAlxN thin films with 0 < x < 0.96
  • 2014
  • In: Surface Science Spectra. - : American Vacuum Society. - 1055-5269 .- 1520-8575. ; 21, s. 35-49
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Metastable Ti1-xAlxN (0 <  x <  0.96) alloy thin films are grown by reactive magnetron sputter deposition using a combination of high-power pulsed magnetron (HIPIMS) and dc magnetron sputtering (DCMS). Layers are deposited from elemental Ti and Al targets onto Si(001) substrates at 500 °C. All Ti1 xAlxN film surfaces are analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) employing monochromatic Al Ka radiation (hn = 1486.6 eV). Prior to spectra acquisition, TiAlN surfaces are sputter-cleaned in-situ with 4 keV Ar+ ions incident at an angle of 70° with respect to the surface normal. XPS results reveal satellite structures on the high binding energy side of the Ti2p, Ti3s, and Ti3p core-level signals. The intensities of the primary Ti features (Ti2p, Ti3s, and Ti3p) decrease with increasing AlN concentration such that the satellite peaks dominate spectra from films with x < 0.67. The density-of-states at the Fermi level also decrease with increasing x indicating that the satellite peaks are due to screening of core holes created by the photoionization event. Film compositions, obtained using XPS sensitivity factors, agree to within ±3% with values determined by time-of-flight elastic recoil detection analyses.
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26.
  • Honnali, Sanath Kumar, 1996- (author)
  • Energy-efficient physical vapor deposition of transition metal nitride thin films
  • 2024
  • Licentiate thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • This thesis focuses on providing insights into energy-efficient ways of growing protective thin films using physical vapor deposition (PVD) by magnetron sputtering, specifically high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS). This technique involves ionizing the material to be deposited to a high degree. The properties of the film for applications such as protective coatings could thus be controlled by modulating the energy and guiding the ions using electric and magnetic fields, respectively.   The multiprincipal element TiZrNbTa nitride system is of interest for its corrosion-resistant coating applications. This material system consists of refractory metals that exhibit different ionic charge states with significant mass contrast. Thus, when sputtered with HiPIMS, the properties of the films strongly depend on the mass and energy of the bombarding metal ions. The transport of these ions to the substrate is influenced by the magnetic field distribution in the chamber.   To demonstrate the influence of the magnetron arrangement, the deposition is performed without external heating. Two magnetron arrangements were chosen: a tilted closed-field design with four magnetrons and a single magnetron. The films exhibited different properties depending on the magnetron design used. The single magnetron design induces changes in the preferred orientation of the films from 111 to 200 along with film composition and density. A reduction in residual stress was observed with only a ~6 % degradation in the hardness compared to the closed-field design.  I also demonstrate epitaxial growth of TiZrNbTaNx films without external heating. The films were grown with a single magnetron design on single crystal sapphire substrate. Applying a pulsed substrate bias with a long pulse width instead of a constant bias, resulted in low argon (~1 at. %) and oxygen (0.5 at. %) content in the films. In addition, the films exhibited a higher optical absorbance in the near-infrared region than the high-temperature grown films.  The total energy consumption for film deposition was reduced by approximately 50 % compared to dc magnetron sputtering (DCMS) at 400°C growth temperature. This reduction is without considering the substrate heating and stabilization phase, which is shorter compared to the industry standard where the entire chamber is heated up to ~500-600°C. These findings are beneficial in designing film growth conditions for energy-efficient processes without compromising film quality. This could also address the challenges of growing high-quality films on temperature-sensitive substrates. 
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27.
  • Hsu, Tun-Wei, 1991-, et al. (author)
  • Dense and hard TiWC protective coatings grown with tungsten ion irradiation using WC-HiPIMS/TiC-DCMS co-sputtering technique without external heating
  • 2023
  • In: Applied Surface Science. - : Elsevier. - 0169-4332 .- 1873-5584. ; 618
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Titanium tungsten carbide (TiWC) coatings are deposited by a combined high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (HiPIMS/DCMS) technique. No external heating is applied during deposition phase, instead, the thermally driven adatom mobility is substituted by heavy ion irradiation. DCMS sources equipped with titanium carbide targets provide constant neutral fluxes to establish the predominant coating structures, whereas tungsten carbide target in HiPIMS mode serves as the source of heavy metal-ions. Substrate bias of −60 V is synchronized to W+ ion-rich time domains of HiPIMS pulses to minimize the contribution from working gas ions. The influence of W+ ion flux intensity, controlled by varying peak target current density (JT), on film properties is investigated. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals the presence of over stoichiometric carbon forming an amorphous phase, the amount of which can be fine-tuned by varying JT. Changes in film composition as a function of JT are explained based on the in-situ ion mass spectroscopy analyses. Dense TiWC coatings by hybrid process exhibit hardness higher than 30 GPa, which are comparable to TiWC films deposited by DCMS with dc substrate bias and external heating. The relative energy consumption in the hybrid process is reduced by 77 % as compared to high-temperature DCMS processing.
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28.
  • Hsu, Tun-Wei, 1991- (author)
  • Effect of metal ion irradiation on hard coating synthesis by physical vapor deposition
  • 2023
  • Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • The aim of this thesis is to understand and control how the ions in the plasma influence the film growth during thin film deposition processes. Two physical vapor deposition (PVD) techniques are investigated, namely magnetron sputtering and cathodic arc evaporation. For magnetron sputtering, the unconventional hybrid high-power impulse and direct current magnetron cosputtering (HiPIMS/DCMS) configuration is used in this work. By synchronizing the substrate bias pulses with the HiPIMS pulses by a time offset and duration, the metal ions from the target material can be selected to impinge the growing film, whereas the contribution of the working gas ions can be effectively reduced. Two aspects are explored, low-mass ion subplantation and heavy-mass ion irradiation.The thesis begins with establishing the correlation between N2 pressure and plasma properties of the cathodic arc evaporation process using Ti0.5Al0.5 target. The results show Ti ions are the dominant species, followed by Al+. On the other hand, due to the shorter mean free path of the species with increasing N2 pressure, the ion energies and the effective electron temperature decrease while electron density increases. Consequently, comparing the TiAlN coatings grown at lower and higher N2 pressures, the crystallographic textures changes from cubic 220 to 111 along the growth direction, and the residual stress reduces from compressive (-3.4 GPa) to almost stress-free (0.6 GPa).The rest of the thesis addresses the influence of ionized species on microstructures, with a focus on tuning film properties by ions in the plasma. Ti1-x(AlySi1-y)xN coatings (0.38 < x < 0.76 and 0.68 ≤ y ≤ 1.00) were deposited with an AlSi-HiPIMS/Ti-DCMS with synchronized substrate bias setup. The results show that the coatings deposited by this method have higher Al and Si solubilities in NaCl-structured TiN than other PVD techniques due to low mass ion subplantations. Additionally, a range of films with different compositions display a combination of high hardness (~ 30 GPa) and low residual stress (s < 0.5 GPa), which highlights the benefits of minimizing the Ar+ incorporation by synchronizing substrate bias to the Al+/Si+-rich portion of the HiPIMS pulses. The selected TiAlSiN coatings were then studied for the crater wear resistance of high-speed cutting performance on ball bearing steel (100Cr6). The effects of phase contents and microstructures on cutting performance are evaluated.This is further extended by a study of the influence of neutral and ion fluxes overlap and the subplantation range of low-mass ions. This is accomplished by introducing the 1-fold substrate table rotation, different target-to-substrate distances, and substrate bias voltage in a AlSi-HiPIMS/Ti-DCMS hybrid deposition process. The microstructure and phase analysis show the necessity of overlap between HiPIMS and DCMS fluxes to deposit TiAlSiN solid solutions. The compositional variation of the multilayers can be controlled by the applied substrate bias and table rotational speed. Rotation during deposition may yield coatings comparable in hardness to the ones without rotation at the expense of higher compressive stress.The effectiveness of controlling heavy ion irradiation is investigated by replacing external heating with high-mass W+ irradiation to grow dense and hard titanium tungsten carbide (TiWC) coatings by WC-HiPIMS/TiC-DCMS with synchronized bias technique. The ionization degree of W+ are controlled by the peak current density (0.27 ≤ JT ≤ 1.36 A/cm2). The results show that W+ irradiation effectively densified TiWC coatings without external heating. The total energy consumption per hour is reduced by 77% using the HiPIMS/DCMS setup without external heating, yet this TiWC coating is 10 GPa harder than similar coating grown by self-bias DCMS with heating.
  •  
29.
  • Hsu, Tun-Wei, 1991-, et al. (author)
  • Effects of substrate rotation during AlSi-HiPIMS/Ti-DCMS co-sputtering growth of TiAlSiN coatings on phase content, microstructure, and mechanical properties
  • 2023
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 453
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • A combined high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (HiPIMS/DCMS) technique is used to deposit Ti0.6Al0.32Si0.08N films with 1-fold substrate table rotation. Layers are grown at two different substrate-target separations, two different rotational speeds, and with different values of substrate bias. The aim is to study the role of (1) overlap between ion and neutral fluxes generated from HiPIMS and DCMS sources, respectively, and (2) the subplantation range of low-mass ions. Results from X-ray diffractometry highlight the necessity of flux intermixing in the formation of the metastable B1-structured TiAlSiN solid solutions. All films grown at short target-to-substrate distance contain the hexagonal AlN phase, as there is essentially no overlap between HiPIMS and DCMS fluxes, thus the Al+ and Si+ subplantation is very limited. Under conditions of high flux intermixing corresponding to larger target-to-substrate distance, no w-AlN forms irrespective of rotational speed (1 or 3 rpm) and bias amplitude (120 or 480 V), indicating that the role of Al+/Si+ and Ti flux overlap is crucial for the phase formation during film growth by HiPIMS/DCMS with substrate rotation. This conclusion is further supported by the fact that the reduction of the bilayer thickness with increasing the target-to-substrate distance (hence increasing flux overlap) is larger for films grown with higher amplitude of the substrate bias, indicative of more efficient Al+/Si+ subplantation into the c-TiN phase. Single-phase films with the hardness close to that of layers grown with stationary substrate table can be achieved, however, at the expense of higher compressive stress.
  •  
30.
  • Hsu, Tun-Wei, 1991-, et al. (author)
  • Influence of Si content on phase stability and mechanical properties of TiAlSiN films grown by AlSi-HiPIMS/Ti-DCMS co-sputtering
  • 2021
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 427
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Ti1-x(AlySi1-y)xN coatings covering a wide compositional range, 0.38 < x < 0.76 and 0.68 ≤ y ≤ 1.00, are deposited to investigate the influence of Al+/Si+ ion irradiation on microstructural and mechanical properties. The samples are grown in Ar/N2 atmosphere by the hybrid high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (HiPIMS/DCMS) method with substrate bias synchronized to the Al+/Si+-rich portion of the HiPIMS pulses. Two Ti targets are operated in DCMS mode, while one AlSi target is operated in HiPIMS mode. Four different AlSi target compositions are used: Al1.0Si0.0, Al0.9Si0.1, Al0.8Si0.2, and Al0.6Si0.4. X-ray diffractometry reveals that films without Si (i.e., y = 1.0) have high Al solubility in NaCl-structure, c-TiAlN, up to x ≤ 0.67 no w-AlN is detected. Once Si (y < 1.0) is introduced the Al solubility limit decreases, but remains higher than other PVD techniques, along with grain refinement and the formation of a SiNz rich tissues phase, as shown by transmission electron microscopy. The nanoindentation hardness is high (~ 30 GPa) for all films that do not contain the w-AlN phase. All the coatings have compressive stresses lower than -3 GPa. Interestingly, a range of films with different compositions displayed both high hardness (~ 30 GPa) and low residual stress (σ < 0.5 GPa). Such an unique combination of properties highlights the benefits of using HiPIMS/DCMS configuration with metal-ion-synchronized substrate bias, which utilizes the Al+/Si+ supplantation effect and minimizes the Ar+ incorporation.
  •  
31.
  • Kashiwaya, Shun, et al. (author)
  • Synthesis of goldene comprising single-atom layer gold
  • 2024
  • In: Nature Synthesis. - : Nature Publishing Group. - 2731-0582.
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The synthesis of monolayer gold has so far been limited to free-standingseveral-atoms-thick layers, or monolayers confned on or inside templates.Here we report the exfoliation of single-atom-thick gold achieved throughwet-chemically etching away Ti3C2 from nanolaminated Ti3AuC2, initiallyformed by substituting Si in Ti3SiC2 with Au. Ti3SiC2 is a renown MAX phase,where M is a transition metal, A is a group A element, and X is C or N. Ourdeveloped synthetic route is by a facile, scalable and hydrofuoric acid-freemethod. The two-dimensional layers are termed goldene. Goldene layerswith roughly 9% lattice contraction compared to bulk gold are observedby electron microscopy. While ab initio molecular dynamics simulationsshow that two-dimensional goldene is inherently stable, experiments showsome curling and agglomeration, which can be mitigated by surfactants.X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals an Au 4f binding energy increaseof 0.88 eV. Prospects for preparing goldene from other non-van der WaalsAu-intercalated phases, including developing etching schemes,are presented.
  •  
32.
  • Landälv, Ludvig, 1982-, et al. (author)
  • Influence of Si doping and O-2 flow on arc-deposited (Al,Cr)(2)O-3 coatings
  • 2019
  • In: Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. A. Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films. - : A V S AMER INST PHYSICS. - 0734-2101 .- 1520-8559. ; 37:6
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • (Al,Cr)(2)O-3 coatings with Al/( Al + Cr) = 0.5 or Al = 70 at. %, doped with 0, 5, or 10 at. % Si, were deposited on hard metal and Si(100) substrates to elucidate the influence of Si on the resulting coatings. The chemical analysis of the coatings showed between 3.3 and 7.4 at. % metal fraction Si incorporated into all studied coatings depending on cathode Si composition. The incorporated Si content does not change significantly with different oxygen flows covering a wide range of deposition conditions from low to high O-2 flow during growth. The addition of Si promotes the metastable B1-like cubic structure over the thermodynamically stable corundum structure. The hardness determined by nanoindentation of the as-deposited coatings is slightly reduced upon Si incorporation as well as upon increased Al content. Si is found enriched in droplets but can also be found at a lower content, evenly spread, without visible segregation at the similar to 5 nm scale, in the actual oxide coating. The positive effect of improved cathode erosion upon Si incorporation has to be balanced against the promotion of the metastable B1-like structure, having lower room temperature hardness and inferior thermal stability compared to the corundum structure. Published by the AVS.
  •  
33.
  • Li, Xiao, 1995- (author)
  • Toward Energy-efficient Physical Vapor Deposition : Routes for Replacing Substrate Heating during Magnetron Sputtering by Employing Metal Ion Irradiation
  • 2023
  • Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
    • In this Thesis, magnetron sputtering is perfected as an environmental-friendly deposition technique. I performed systematic studies of a novel approach - hybrid high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (HiPIMS/DCMS) with metal-ion-synchronized substrate bias pulses. The technique relies on the use of high-mass metal ion irradiation from the HiPIMS source to densify material deposited by the primary metal targets that operate in the DCMS mode. Thermally-driven adatom mobility, conventionally used to obtain high-quality layers, is replaced by low-energy recoils that are effectively created upon heavy metal ion bombardment of the growing film surface. As a result, the need for external heating is effectively eliminated and the useful growth temperature can be as low as 130 °C.   Ti-Al-N is chosen as a model materials system for the studies in this thesis due to its relevance for industrial applications and well-known challenges for phase stability control. The role of the metal ion mass on densification, phase content, nanostructure, and mechanical properties of metastable cubic Ti0.50Al0.50N-based thin films is investigated. Three series of (Ti1-yAly)1-xMexN (Me = Cr, Mo, W) films are grown with x varied intentionally by adjusting the DCMS power. There is a strong dependence of film properties on the mass of the HiPIMS-generated metal ions. All layers deposited with Cr+ irradiation exhibit porous nanostructure, high oxygen content, and poor mechanical properties. In contrast, (Ti1-yAly)1-xWxN films are fully-dense even with the lowest W concentration, x = 0.09.  A strong coupling is found between W+ incident energy Ew+ and minimum W concentration x required to grow dense (Ti1-yAly)1-xWxN layers. With lower x, higher Ew+ is needed to obtain dense films. (Ti1-yAly)1-xWxN film growth is also studied as a function of the relative Al content on the metal lattice, y = Al / (Al + Ti), covering the entire range up to the achievable solubility limit of y ~ 0.67. High-Al content films that are desired in industrial applications (as the high temperature oxidation resistance increases with increasing y) are demonstrated, while precipitation of the softer hexagonal AlN phase is avoided. It is shown that the W+ irradiation from HiPIMS source can be used to grow high-Al content layers with high hardness and low residual stress, while avoiding wurtzite AlN precipitation.  The critical parameter that controls the growth is shown to be the average momentum transfer per deposited metal adatom. W+ ion irradiation is shown to have a determining role in the densification of TiAlWN films grown by hybrid W-HiPIMS/TiAl-DCMS co-sputtering. Films with the same composition were grown as a function of the number of W+ ions per deposited metal atom, η = W+/ (W + Al + Ti). The latter was varied in a wide range by altering the peak target current density on the W target, as confirmed by time-resolved ion mass spectrometry analyses performed at the substrate plane. I demonstrate that the degree of porosity and the nanoindentation hardness are strong functions of η.   Finally, high-temperature properties of TiAlWN films grown by hybrid W-HiPIMS/TiAl-DCMS co-sputtering with no external substrate heating is explored, as motivated by application requirements, where the temperature of cutting inserts during machining exceeds 900 °C. A new age hardening mechanism was discovered with Guinier-Preston (GP) zone formation in a ceramic material. Layers with low Al content maintain high hardness well above the annealing temperature characteristic of spinodal decomposition. The evidence from electron microscopy, ab initio calculations, and molecular dynamics simulations, shows that the GP effect originates from the formation of atomic-plane-thick W discs populating {111} planes of the cubic matrix. The results demonstrate for the model materials system of TiAlN that the process energy consumption can be reduced by as much as 64% with respect to conventional methods, with no compromise on coating quality. 
  •  
34.
  • Magnuson, Martin, 1965-, et al. (author)
  • ­Chemical Bonding in Epitaxial ZrB2 Studied by X-ray Spectroscopy
  • 2018
  • In: Thin Solid Films. - : Elsevier. - 0040-6090 .- 1879-2731. ; 649, s. 89-96
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The chemical bonding in an epitaxial ZrB2 film is investigated by Zr K-edge (1s) X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) and extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectroscopies and compared to the ZrB2 compound target from which the film was synthesized as well as a bulk α-Zr reference. Quantitative analysis of X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy spectra reveals at the surface: ~5% O in the epitaxial ZrB2 film, ~19% O in the ZrB2 compound target and ~22% O in the bulk α-Zr reference after completed sputter cleaning. For the ZrB2 compound target, X-ray diffraction (XRD) shows weak but visible   11, 111, and 220 peaks from monoclinic ZrO2 together with peaks from ZrB2 and where the intensity distribution for the ZrB2 peaks show a randomly oriented target material.  For the bulk α-Zr reference no peaks from any crystalline oxide were visible in the diffractogram recorded from the 0001-oriented metal. The Zr K-edge absorption from the two ZrB2 samples demonstrate more pronounced oscillations for the epitaxial ZrB2 film than in the bulk ZrB2 attributed to the high atomic ordering within the columns of the film. The XANES exhibits no pre-peak due to lack of p-d hybridization in ZrB2, but with a chemical shift towards higher energy of 4 eV in the film and 6 eV for the bulk compared to α-Zr (17.993 keV) from the charge-transfer from Zr to B. The 2 eV larger shift in bulk ZrB2 material suggests higher oxygen content than in the epitaxial film, which is supported by XPS. In EXAFS, the modelled cell-edge in ZrB2 is slightly smaller in the thin film (a=3.165 Å, c=3.520 Å) in comparison to the bulk target material (a=3.175 Å, c=3.540 Å) while in hexagonal closest-packed metal (α-phase, a=3.254 Å, c=5.147 Å). The modelled coordination numbers show that the EXAFS spectra of the epitaxial ZrB2 film is highly anisotropic with strong in-plane contribution, while the bulk target material is more isotropic. The Zr-B distance in the film of 2.539 Å is in agreement with the calculated value from XRD data of 2.542 Å. This is slightly shorter compared to that in the ZrB2 compound target 2.599 Å, supporting the XANES results of a higher atomic order within the columns of the film compared to bulk ZrB2.
  •  
35.
  • Magnuson, Martin, 1965-, et al. (author)
  • Compositional dependence of epitaxial Tin+1SiCn MAX-phase thin films grown from a Ti3SiC2 compound target
  • 2019
  • In: Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology. A. Vacuum, Surfaces, and Films. - : American Institute of Physics (AIP). - 0734-2101 .- 1520-8559. ; 37:2
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The authors investigate sputtering of a Ti3SiC2 compound target at temperatures ranging from RT (no applied external heating) to 970 °C as well as the influence of the sputtering power at 850 °C for the deposition of Ti3SiC2 films on Al2O3(0001) substrates. Elemental composition obtained from time-of-flight energy elastic recoil detection analysis shows an excess of carbon in all films, which is explained by differences in the angular distribution between C, Si, and Ti, where C scatters the least during sputtering. The oxygen content is 2.6 at. % in the film deposited at RT and decreases with increasing deposition temperature, showing that higher temperatures favor high purity films. Chemical bonding analysis by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy shows C–Ti and Si–C bonding in the Ti3SiC2 films and Si–Si bonding in the Ti3SiC2 compound target. X-ray diffraction reveals that the phases Ti3SiC2, Ti4SiC3, and Ti7Si2C5 can be deposited from a Ti3SiC2 compound target at substrate temperatures above 850 °C and with the growth of TiC and the Nowotny phase Ti5Si3Cx at lower temperatures. High-resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy shows epitaxial growth of Ti3SiC2, Ti4SiC3, and Ti7Si2C5 on TiC at 970 °C. Four-point probe resistivity measurements give values in the range ∼120 to ∼450 μΩ cm and with the lowest values obtained for films containing Ti3SiC2, Ti4SiC3, and Ti7Si2C5.
  •  
36.
  • Magnuson, Martin, 1965-, et al. (author)
  • Electronic Structure of ß-Ta Films from X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and First-principles Calculations
  • 2019
  • In: Applied Surface Science. - : Elsevier BV. - 0169-4332 .- 1873-5584. ; 470, s. 607-612
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • The electronic structure and chemical bonding of ß-Ta synthesized as a thin 001-oriented film (space group P 21m) is investigated by 4f core level and valence band X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and compared to α-Ta bulk. For the b-phase, the 4f7/2 peak is located at 21.91 eV and with the 4f5/2 at 23.81 eV which is 0.16 eV higher compared to the corresponding 4f peaks of the a-Ta reference. We suggest that this chemical shift originates from higher resistivity and tensile strain in the ß-Ta film. Furthermore, the 5d-5s states at the bottom of the valence band are shifted by 0.75 eV towards higher binding energy in ß-Ta compared to α-Ta. This is a consequence of the lower number of nearest neighbors with four in ß-Ta compared to eight in the α-Ta phase. The difference in the electronic structures, spectral line shapes of the valence band and the energy positions of the Ta 4f, 5p core-levels of b-Ta versus a-Ta are discussed in relation to calculated states of ß-Ta and α-Ta. In particular, the lower number of states at the Fermi level of ß-Ta (0.557 states/eV/atom) versus α-Ta (1.032 states/eV/atom) that according to Mott’s law should decrease the conductivity in metals and affect the stability by charge redistribution in the valence band. This is experimentally supported from resistivity measurements of the film yielding a value of ~170 µW cm in comparison to α-Ta bulk with a reported value of ~13.1 µW cm.
  •  
37.
  • Magnuson, Martin, 1965-, et al. (author)
  • Reactive magnetron sputtering of tungsten target in krypton/trimethylboron atmosphere
  • 2019
  • In: Thin Solid Films. - : Elsevier. - 0040-6090 .- 1879-2731. ; 688
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • W-B-C films were deposited on Si(100) substrates held at elevated temperature by reactive sputtering from a W target in Kr/trimethylboron (TMB) plasmas. Quantitative analysis by Xray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows that the films are W-rich between ~ 73 and ~ 93 at.% W. The highest metal content is detected in the film deposited with 1 sccm TMB. The C and B concentrations increase with increasing TMB flow to a maximum of ~18 and ~7 at.%, respectively, while the O content remains nearly constant at 2-3 at.%. Chemical bonding structure analysis performed after samples sputter-cleaning reveals C-W and B-W bonding and no detectable W-O bonds. During film growth with 5 sccm TMB and 500 o C or with 10 sccm TMB and 300-600 o C thin film X-ray diffraction shows the formation of cubic 100-oriented WC1-x with a possible solid solution of B. Lower flows and lower growth temperatures favor growth of W and W2C, respectively. Depositions at 700 and 800 o C result in the formation of WSi2 due to a reaction with the substrate. At 900 o C, XPS analysis shows ~96 at.% Si in the film due to Si interdiffusion. Scanning electron microscopy images reveal a fine-grained microstructure for the deposited WC1-x films. Nanoindentation gives hardness values in the range from ~23 to ~31 GPa and reduced elastic moduli between ~220 and 280 GPa in the films deposited at temperatures lower than 600 o C. At higher growth temperatures the hardness decreases by a factor of 3 to 4 following the formation of WSi2 at 700-800 o C and Si-rich surface at 900 o C.
  •  
38.
  • Magnusson, Roger, 1977-, et al. (author)
  • Preparation and tunable optical properties of amorphous AlSiO thin films
  • 2021
  • In: Vacuum. - : Elsevier. - 0042-207X .- 1879-2715. ; 187
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Thin films in the aluminosilicate (AlSiO) system containing up to 31 at. % Al and 23 at. % Si were prepared by reactive RF magnetron co-sputtering in order to investigate the dependence of film formation and optical properties on substrate temperature and Si and Al contents. The obtained films were amorphous with smooth microstructure. The growth rate at different substrate temperatures ranged from 1.2 to 3.3 nm/min and increase with increasing the Si target power. The roughness decreases and thickness increases with increasing Si content. The thickness of the films grown at a deposition temperature of 100 °C is found to be higher than the films deposited at 300 and 500 °C. The AlSiO-coated glasses have a higher transmission in the visible region than the uncoated glass. The spectroscopic ellipsometry analysis reveals that the refractive index value decreased with decreasing the Al content, having extinction coefficient values of zero in the measured spectral region and band gap values ≥ 3.4 eV. The obtained thin films have over 90% transmittance in the visible range and no systematic variation of transmittance was observed with substrate temperature. The results suggest that glass substrate coated with AlSiO thin films have improved optical properties. 
  •  
39.
  • Pshyk, Oleksandr V., 1990-, et al. (author)
  • Discovery of Guinier-Preston zone hardening in refractory nitride ceramics
  • 2023
  • In: Acta Materialia. - : Elsevier. - 1359-6454 .- 1873-2453. ; 255
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Traditional age hardening mechanisms in refractory ceramics consist of precipitation of fine particles. These processes are vital for widespread wear-resistant coating applications. Here, we report novel Guinier-Preston zone hardening, previously only known to operate in soft light-metal alloys, taking place in refractory ceramics like multicomponent nitrides. The added superhardening, discovered in thin films of Ti-Al-W-N upon high temperature annealing, comes from the formation of atomic-plane-thick W disks populating {111} planes of the cubic matrix, as observed by atomically resolved high resolution scanning transmission electron microscopy and corroborated by ab initio calculations and molecular dynamics simulations. Guinier-Preston zone hardening concurrent with spinodal decomposition is projected to exist in a range of other ceramic solid solutions and thus provides a new approach for the development of advanced materials with outstanding mechanical properties and higher operational temperature range for the future demanding applications.
  •  
40.
  • Shu, Rui, 1990-, et al. (author)
  • Effect of nitrogen content on microstructure and corrosion resistance of sputter-deposited multicomponent (TiNbZrTa)Nx films
  • 2020
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND : Elsevier BV. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 404
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Multicomponent (TiNbZrTa)Nx films were deposited on Si(100) substrates at room temperature using magnetron sputtering with a nitrogen flow ratio fN [fN = N2/(Ar + N2)], which was varied from 0 to 30.8%. The nitrogen content in the films varied between 0 and 45.2 at.%, i.e., x = 0 to 0.83. The microstructure was characterized by X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. The metallic TiNbZrTa film comprised a dominant bcc solid-solution phase, whereas a single NaCl-type face-centred cubic structure was observed in all nitrogen-containing films (TiNbZrTa)Nx. The mechanical, electrical, and electrochemical properties of these films varied with nitrogen content. The maximum hardness was achieved at 22.1 ± 0.3 GPa when N = 43.0 at.%. The resistivities increased from 95 to 424 μΩcm with increasing nitrogen content. A detailed study of the variation of morphology and chemical bonding with nitrogen content was performed and the corrosion resistance of the TiNbZrTa nitride films was explored in 0.1 M H2SO4. While all the films had excellent corrosion resistances at potentials up to 2.0 V vs. Ag/AgCl, the metallic film and the films with low nitrogen contents (x < 0.60) exhibited an almost stable current plateau up to 4.0 V vs. Ag/AgCl. For the films with higher nitrogen contents (x ≥ 0.68), the current plateau was retained up to 2.0 V vs. Ag/AgCl, above which a higher nitrogen content resulted in a higher current. The decrease in the corrosion resistance at these high potentials indicate the presence of a potential-dependent activation effect resulting in an increased oxidation rate of the nitrides (present under the passive oxide film) yielding a release of nitrogen from the films. TEM results indicate that the oxide layer formed after this corrosion measurement was thick and porous for the film with x = 0.76, in very good agreement with the increased corrosion rate for this film. The results demonstrate that an increased nitrogen content in (TiNbZrTa)Nx system improves their mechanical properties with retained high corrosion resistance at potentials up to 2.0 V vs. Ag/AgCl in 0.1 M H2SO4. At even higher potentials, however, the corrosion resistance decreases with increasing nitrogen concentration for films with sufficiently high nitrogen contents (i.e. x ≥ 0.68).
  •  
41.
  • Shu, Rui, 1990-, et al. (author)
  • Stoichiometry Effects on the Chemical Ordering and Superconducting Properties in TiZrTaNbNx Refractory High Entropy Nitrides
  • 2023
  • In: Annalen der Physik. - : Wiley-VCH Verlagsgesellschaft. - 0003-3804 .- 1521-3889.
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • High-entropy materials, an exciting new class of structural materials involvingfive or more elements, are emerging as unexplored ground forsuperconductors. Here, the effects of nitrogen stoichiometry are investigatedon local chemical structure of TiZrNbTa-based thin films by variousX-ray-based techniques. Lattice distortion and short-range order of a set ofTiZrNbTaNxsamples, including bond lengths of different atomic pairs andcoordination numbers of substituting atoms are quantitatively studied. Themaximum superconducting transition temperature Tcis found at 10 K for anear-stoichiometric (TiZrNbTa)N1.08film, which is>8 K measured for ametallic TiZrNbTa film. The underlying electronic structure and chemicalbonding in these high entropy nitrides thus influence the superconductingmacroscopic properties.
  •  
42.
  • Suszko, Tomasz, et al. (author)
  • Quasi-amorphous, nanostructural CoCrMoC/a-C:H coatings deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering
  • 2019
  • In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 378
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • CoCrMo-C coatings have been deposited on CoCrMo ISO 5832-12 alloy substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering from targets of the same alloy in the C2H2/Ar atmosphere. Their structure evolution with increasing carbon content as well as chemical and phase composition were investigated by X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy. Hardness, Young’s modulus, and tribological properties in ambient air were studied. Results show that microstructure of deposits evolves from biphasic, containing γ (fcc) and ε (hcp) metallic phases for low carbon content, through nanocrystalline and amorphous for carbon content between 10 and 20 at.%, to quasi-amorphous nanostructural for even higher content of carbon. Segregation of amorphous carbon leads to the formation of self-organized tubular nanostructure for coatings containing more than 30 at.% of carbon. Introduction of carbon into CoCrMo alloy results in a significant increase of hardness up to 14 GPa and improvement of load-bearing capacity which reached 120 MPa. Compared to uncoated CoCrMo substrate, deposited coatings with high carbon content exhibited superior tribological properties with low friction coefficient around 0.2 and wear rate about 2 × 10−15 m3/N/m.
  •  
43.
  • Wu, Zhixing, 1990-, et al. (author)
  • Bifunctional Mesoporous MO x (M = Cr, Fe, Co, Ni, Ce) Oxygen Electrocatalysts for Platinum Group Metal-Free Oxygen Pumps
  • 2022
  • In: Energy Technology. - : Wiley-V C H Verlag GMBH. - 2194-4288 .- 2194-4296. ; 10:12
  • Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
    • Bifunctional electrocatalysts with both accelerated oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) enable high-power density electricity storage and decentralized extraction of pure oxygen from air for usage in health care. Herein, a hydrothermal synthesis employing the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate as structure-directing agent is developed to fabricate a family of crystalline mesoporous metal oxides (meso-MO X , M = Cr, Fe, Co, Ni, Ce). The pore size and specific surface area depend on the metal used and they range from 3 to 6 nm and 60 to 200 m(2) g(-1), respectively. NiO and Co3O4 show a higher catalytic efficiency in alkaline media in comparison with the other oxides studied, and their activities are comparable with the values reported for platinum group metal (PGM)-based electrocatalysts. This stems from lower voltage losses and by the presence of specific hydroxide adsorbates on the surface. Both ORR and OER driven on Co3O4 show the unified rate-determining chemical step (|OO-|(center dot) (ads) + H2O <-> |OOH|(center dot) (ads) + OH-, where | X | ads are the species adsorbed on active sites). The bifunctional ORR/OER electrocatalysis obtained on mesoporous NiO is utilized for the first symmetrical PGM-free oxygen pump fed by air and water only.
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