| 1. |
- Fritze, Stefan, et al.
(author)
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Elemental distribution and fracture properties of magnetron sputtered carbon supersaturated tungsten films
- 2024
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In: Surface & Coatings Technology. - : Elsevier BV. - 0257-8972 .- 1879-3347. ; 477
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The combination of strength and toughness is a major driving force for alloy design of protective coatings, and nanocrystalline tungsten (W)-alloys have shown to be promising candidates for combining strength and toughness. Here we investigate the elemental distribution and the fracture toughness of carbon (C) alloyed W thin films prepared by non-reactive magnetron sputtering. W:C films with up to ~4 at.% C crystallize in a body-centered-cubic structure with a strong 〈hh0〉texture, and no additional carbide phases are observed in the diffraction pattern. Atom probe tomography and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirmed the formation of such a supersaturated solid solution. The pure W film has a hardness ~13 GPa and the W:C films exhibit a peak hardness of ~24 GPa. In-situ micromechanical cantilever bending tests show that the fracture toughness decreases from ~4.5 MPa·m1/2 for the W film to ~3.1 MPa·m1/2 for W:C films. The results show that C can significantly enhance the hardness of W thin films while retaining a high fracture toughness.
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| 2. |
- Osinger, Barbara, et al.
(author)
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Charge transfer effects in (HfNbTiVZr)C-Shown by ab initio calculations and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy
- 2024
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In: Journal of The American Ceramic Society. - : WILEY. - 0002-7820 .- 1551-2916.
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Considering charge transfer effects and the variability of the bonding between elements with different electronegativity opens up a deeper understanding of the electronic structure and as a result many of the properties in high entropy-related materials. This study investigates the importance of the diverse bonding and chemical environments when discussing multicomponent carbide materials. A combination of ab initio calculations and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) was used to investigate the electronic structure of multicomponent thin films based on the (HfNbTiVZr)C system. The charge transfer was quantified theoretically using relaxed and nonrelaxed multicomponent as well as binary carbide reference structures, employing a fixed sphere model. High-resolution XPS spectra from (HfNbTiVZr)C magnetron-sputtered thin films displayed core-level binding energy shifts and broadening effects as a result of the complex chemical environment. Charge transfer effects and a changed electronic structure in the multicomponent material, compared with the reference binary carbides, are observed both experimentally and in the density functional theory (DFT) simulations. The observed effects loosely follow electronegativity considerations, leading to a deviation from an ideal solid solution structure assuming nondistinguishable chemically equivalent environments.
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| 3. |
- Osinger, Barbara, 1995-
(author)
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Investigation of compositionally complex refractory metal based thin films
- 2024
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- The search for new and improved materials has led to the discovery and establishment of compositionally complex or high-entropy materials. The work in this thesis is focused on the investigation of new compositionally complex materials based on the refractory metals of groups 4-6. The materials in this work were synthesised using non-reactive dc magnetron sputtering and three material systems have been studied: HfNbTiVZr-C, CrTiTaWNb-C and Nb-Mo-C. In the context of compositionally complex materials, this thesis aims to contribute specifically to questions regarding (i) the prediction of phase formation and stability (ii) the chemical interaction between atoms (iii) the correlation between the material properties and compositional complexity. The prediction of phase formation and stability using calculated phase diagram (CALPHAD) methods was studied in the HfNbTiVZr-C system. The findings suggest that CALPHAD methods are promising predictive tools, although kinetic effects during synthesis need to be taken into consideration. Furthermore, theoretical, and experimental evidence of charge transfer effects was demonstrated within the HfNbTiVZr-C system. The results of ab initio materials simulations and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) measurements highlight the importance of understanding and considering the local chemical environment and chemical interactions in compositionally complex materials.The approach of metal alloying according to the valence electron concentration (VEC) to tune the mechanical properties was studied in the Nb-Mo-C system. The findings show the importance of microstructural effects on the mechanical properties in the studied thin film materials, which can overshadow the compositional or VEC variations. The response to Xe heavy-ion irradiation was studied in the CrTiTaWNb-C system using in situ irradiation experiments. This work presents a comparison between three different compositions: a TaW-rich alloy and carbide thin film as well as a near-equimolar carbide film. The findings indicate that both microstructure and chemical homogeneity play important roles when it comes to radiation damage tolerance in compositional complex materials.This thesis demonstrates the elaborate and multifaceted nature of compositionally complex materials. Whether it comes to the fundamental understanding or the effective implementation of a materials design tool, many factors need to be taken into consideration, including chemical interactions between the constituent elements and microstructural effects.
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| 4. |
- Osinger, Barbara, et al.
(author)
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Structural and mechanical properties of magnetron sputtered (NbxMo1-x)C thin films
- 2024
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In: Vacuum. - : Elsevier. - 0042-207X .- 1879-2715. ; 224
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- While transition metal carbides (TMCs) exhibit favourable mechanical properties, alloying according to the valence electron concentration (VEC) has the potential to further enhance the properties of these hard but inherently brittle materials. This study investigates the influence of alloying on the microstructure and mechanical properties of (NbxMo1-x)C carbide films, including binary references and ternary compositions with varying metal ratios (x between 0.35 and 0.53). Furthermore, the influence of various substrate materials is studied by comparing films deposited on Al2O3, MgO and SiO2. All films exhibit a NaCl-type carbide structure and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed the presence of small amounts of an additional amorphous carbon (a-C) phase. Hardness values around 20 ± 2 GPa were obtained for the films on Al2O3 and MgO, whereas a reduced hardness of 11 ± 1 GPa was observed for the films on SiO2 which is attributed to larger crystallite size and more polycrystalline structure. Overall no clear trend as a function of composition can be noted, indicating that microstructure effects dominate the mechanical properties in this study overshadowing the effect of varying the metal content.
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