Electronic Structure and Chemical Bonding of AmorphousChromium Carbide Thin Films

• The microstructure, electronic structure, and chemical bonding of chromium carbidethin films with different carbon contents have been investigated with high-resolutiontransmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy and soft x-rayabsorption-emission spectroscopies. Most of the films can be described as amorphousnanocomposites with non-crystalline CrCx in an amorphous carbon matrix. At highcarbon contents, graphene-like structures are formed in the amorphous carbon matrix.At 47 at% carbon content, randomly oriented nanocrystallites are formed creating acomplex microstructure of three components. The soft x-ray absorption-emissionstudy shows additional peak structures exhibiting non-octahedral coordination andbonding.

Keyword

metallic glasses

amorphous materials

x-ray absorption

emission spectoscopy

Publication and Content Type

ref (subject category)

art (subject category)