Characterization of Plasma Immersion Deposited Multilayer Coatings by Ion Beam Techniques Combined with Energy Filtered
- PDF / 5,585,658 Bytes
- 6 Pages / 612 x 792 pts (letter) Page_size
- 115 Downloads / 211 Views
0908-OO14-01.1
Characterization of Plasma Immersion Deposited Multilayer Coatings by Ion Beam Techniques Combined with Energy Filtered Transmission Electron Microscopy F. Schwarza,b, J.K.N. Lindnera, M. Häberlena, G. Thorwartha,b, C. Hammerlb, W. Assmannc, M. Kuhnb , B. Stritzkera a Institut für Physik, Universität Augsburg, 86135 Augsburg, Germany b AxynTeC Dünnschichttechnik GmbH, 86167 Augsburg, Germany c Beschleunigerlaboratorium/MLL der LMU und TU München, 85748 Garching, Germany ABSTRACT Multilayered and nanostructured coatings of amorphous carbon (DLC), silicon composite multilayers and nanocluster containing films today have great potential for applications as hard coatings, wear reduction layers and as diffusion barriers in biomaterials. Plasma immersion ion implantation and deposition (PIII&D) is a powerful technique to synthesize such films. The quantitative nanoscale analysis of the elemental distribution in such multielemental films and thin film stacks however is demanding. In this paper it is shown how the high spatial resolution capabilities of energy filtered transmission electron microscopy (EFTEM) chemical analysis can be combined with accurate and standard-less concentration determination of ion beam analysis (IBA) techniques like Rutherford Backscattering Spectroscopy (RBS) and Elastic Recoil Detection Analysis (ERDA) to achieve absolute and accurate multielement concentration profiles in complicated nanomaterials. INTRODUCTION The analysis of thick layers incorporating short-scale composition gradients is a task of increasing importance due to the recent emergence of nanostructured materials such as layered nanocomposites. While the resolution of the respective features proves difficult for traditional IBA methods, which however deliver standard-free composition data, EFTEM is a convenient approach capable of spatial resolutions of typically 1 nm [1]. However, the quantitative assessment of EFTEM data is complicated by several factors, ranging from obtaining accurate scattering cross sections for the respective atomic species and the assumption of an appropriate background model to possible composition deviations due to the specimen thinning process. These uncertainties can be narrowed down by calibrating the EFTEM area densities using the results of IBA methods, as will be shown here. EFTEM/IBA analysis was performed on two representative layer systems grown by the PIII&D method. The first one, a Si(C,N) multilayer stack with thin interlaced amorphous carbon (a-C:H) spacers, is intended for use as a tribological coating, limiting mechanical stress and crack propagation [2, 3]; another possible application of this material is as corrosion and diffusion barriers [4]. The second layer type, an a-C:H layer incorporating nanocrystalline TiC, is being tested to facilitate a graded interface between a titanium-based medical implant and a DLC-based biocompatible protection layer. EXPERIMENTAL The two layer types Si(C,N) and a-C:H:TiC, denoted as A and B, respectively, were grown in two separate PIII&
Data Loading...
