Mechanical properties of Al/a-C nanocomposite thin films synthesized using a plasma focus device

The Al/a-C nanocomposite thin films are synthesized on Si substrates using a dense plasma focus device with alu- minum fitted anode and operating with CH4/Ar admixture. X-ray diffractometer results confirm the formation of metallic crystalline Al phases using different numbers of focus shots. Raman analyses show the formation of D and G peaks for all thin film samples, confirming the presence of a-C in the nanocomposite thin films. The formation of Al/a-C nanocomposite thin films is further confirmed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. The scanning electron microscope results show that the deposited thin films consist of nanoparticles and their agglomerates. The sizes of th agglomerates increase with increasing numbers of focus deposition shots. The nanoindentation results show the variations in hardness and elastic modulus values of nanocomposite thin film with increasing the number of focus shots. Maximum values of hardness and elastic modulus of the composite thin film prepared using 20 focus shots are found to be about 10.7 GPa and 189.2 GPa, respectively.     

Dynamic mechanical analysis of single walled carbon nanotubes/polymethyl methacrylate nanocomposite films

Dynamic mechanical properties of nanocomposite films with different ratios of single walled carbon nanotubes/polymethyl methacrylate(SWCNTs/PMMA) are studied. Nanocomposite films of different ratios(0, 0.5, 1.0, and2.0 weight percent(wt%)) of SWCNTs/PMMA are fabricated by using a casting technique. The morphological and structural properties of both SWCNT powder and SWCNTs/PMMA nanocomposite films are investigated by using a high resolution transmission electron microscope and x-ray diffractometer respectively. The mechanical properties including the storage modulus, loss modulus, loss factor(tan δ) and stiffness of the nanocomposite film as a function of temperature are recorded by using a dynamic mechanical analyzer at a frequency of 1 Hz. Compared with pure PMMA film, the nanocomposite films with different ratios of SWCNTs/PMMA are observed to have enhanced storage moduli, loss moduli and high stiffness, each of which is a function of temperature. The intensity of the tan δ peak for pure PMMA film is larger than those of the nanocomposite films. The glass transition temperature(T g) of SWCNTs/PMMA nanocomposite film shifts towards the higher temperature side with respect to pure PMMA film from 91.2?C to 99.5?C as the ratio of SWCNTs/PMMA increases from 0 to 2.0 wt%.     

The Influence of Au-Doping on Morphology and Visible-Light Reflectivity of TiN Thin Films Deposited by Direct-Current Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

Ti, TiN and Au-TiN （Au content： from 0.5%to 7.7%） thin films were deposited on stainless steel substrates by dc reactive magnetron sputtering with a metal Ti target. The crystal structure, surface morphology and visiblelight reflectivity of the films for different film compositions are studied in detail. Distinctly different surface morphologies appear for the Ti, TiN and Au-TiN thin films. It can be observed that the surface morphology of the TiN film is affected by the Au-doping, when the Au content increases from 0% to 7.7%, surface roughness enlarges from 62.4 to 82.8 nm. Moreover, visible-light reflectivity varies significantly with increasing A u contents in the TiN films. However, the rettectivity of the TiN thin film at 550-800 nm is higher than that of the Au-TiN thin film. The present work illustrates the dependence of metal elements on the surface morphology and on the reflectivity of Au-TiN thin films. It is speculated that the addition of Au can suppress the formation and growth of TiN grains so that it changes the surface morphology and the Au-TiN thin film has potential applications in spectral selective coating.     

Preparation and tribological properties of DLC/Ti filmby pulsed laser arc deposition

This paper reports that DLC (diamond like carbon)/Ti and DLC films were prepared by using pulsed laser arc deposition. R-ray diffraction, Auger electron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, nanoindenter, spectroscopic ellipsometer, surface profiler and micro-tribometer were employed to study the structure and tribological properties of DLC/Ti and DLC films. The results show that DLC/Ti film, with $I(D)/I(G)$ 0.28 and corresponding to 76{\%} sp$^{3}$ content calculated by Raman spectroscopy, uniform chemical composition along depth direction, 98 at{\%} content of carbon, hardness 8.2 GPa and Young's modulus 110.5 GPa, compressive stress 6.579 GPa, thickness 46~nm, coefficient of friction 0.08, and critical load 95mN, exhibits excellent mechanical and tribological properties.     

Magnetic and Microstructure of Triple C/Co73Cr22Tas/Ti for Perpendicular Media

The magnetic properties and microstructure of triple C/CoCrTa/Ti perpendicular recording films have been studied. Magnetic measurements show that the optimal thickness of Ti underlayer is 4Ohm and that of CoCrTa is 35 nm. The optimal value of substrate temperature is found to be 400℃. A suitable Ti underlayer causes a magnetic layer to have a near-perfect hcp texture, with Co grains in the （002） preferred orientation. The film with needle-like grains is more suitable for perpendicular recording films.     

Effect of microstructure on the thermoelectric properties of CSD-grown Bi2Sr2Co2Oy thin films

Three Bi2Sr2Co2Oy thin films with different microstructures have been prepared by chemical solution deposition on LaAlO 3(001) through varying the annealing temperature.With the decrease in the annealing temperature,both the size and c-axis alignment degree of grains in the film decrease as well,leading to an increase in the film resistivity.In addition,the decrease in the annealing temperature also results in a slight increase in the Seebeck coefficient due to the enhanced energy filtering effect of the small-grain film.The nanostructured Bi2Sr2Co2Oy film with an average grain size of about 100 nm shows a power factor comparable to that of films with larger grains.Since the thermal conductivity of the nanostructured films can be depressed due to the enhanced phonon scattering by grain boundary,a higher figure of merit is expected in Bi2Sr2Co2Oy thin film with grains in nanometer size.     

Study of colors of diamond-like carbon films

Reflective and transmissive film interference colors were calculated for DLC films on the Si and SiO 2 substrates.The calculated interference colors were compared with photographed colors of the prepared DLC samples.The observed film colors were found to match reasonably well with the corresponding calculated colors,indicating that DLC film colors come from interference instead of color center effects.Color charts for DLC films on the Si and SiO 2 substrates with various optical gaps were constructed,and the relationship between interference color and film properties such as optical gap,thickness and substrate were investigated.Usefulness of the calculated color charts in estimating optical gap or thickness of DLC films were demonstrated.     

An Enhanced Photoelectric Conversion Efficiency of n-Type Crystalline Silicon p-n Junctions Using a Ferroelectric Passivation Layer

A multilayered structure consisting of ferroelectric Pb（Zr, Ti）Oa （PZT） film is deposited by sputtering on the crystalline silicon p-n junction without any buffer layer. The photovoltaic output of the p-n junction is greatly enhanced due to the usage of In2Oa：Sn（ITO）/PZT as top surface passivation layers. The short circuit current and photoelectric conversion emciency of the p-n junction with ITO/PZT ferroelectric films increase about four and six times, respectively, compared with those without any passivation layers. Improvement in the passivated device is mainly attributed to the builtqn feld at the ITO/PZT interface.     

Linear and nonlinear optical properties of Au/SiO2 nanocomposite prepared by P123

Mesoporous silica thin films loaded with gold nanoparticles are synthesized in the presence of EO20PO70EO20（P123）.Transmission electron microscope images show that the matrix of the nanocomposite is an ordered porous structure with a two-dimensional hexagonal phase.The wide-angle X-ray diffraction pattern implies that the nanocomposite contains gold crystals.These metallic nanoparticleembedded solid thin films show some linear and nonlinear optical properties due to their special structure and composition.Gold nanoparticles bring about surface plasmon resonance,and an absorption peak stemming from this effect has been observed.The linear absorption property is analyzed by a quantum mechanism,and the results show that it is influenced by the size and volume fraction of gold nanoparticles. Furthermore,it shows an obviously clear nonlinear optical property measured by the z-scan technique.The magnitude of the nonlinear refractive index of the nanocomposite is estimated to be about 10？ 10 cm 2 /W.     

Studies of diamond-like carbon （DLC） films deposited on stainless steel substrate with Si/SiC intermediate layers

In this work, diamond-like carbon （DLC） films were deposited on stainless steel substrates with Si/SiC intermediate layers by combining plasma enhanced sputtering physical vapour deposition （PEUMS-PVD） and microwave electron cyclotron resonance plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition （MW-ECRPECVD） techniques. The influence of substrate negative self-bias voltage and Si target power on the structure and nano-mechanical behaviour of the DLC films were investigated by Raman spectroscopy, nano-indentation, and the film structural morphology by atomic force microscopy （AFM）. With the increase of deposition bias voltage, the G band shifted to higher wave-number and the integrated intensity ratio ID/IG increased. We considered these as evidences for the development of graphitization in the films. As the substrate negative self-bias voltage increased, particle bombardment function was enhanced and the sp^3-bond carbon density reducing, resulted in the peak values of hardness （H） and elastic modulus （E）. Silicon addition promoted the formation of sp^3 bonding and reduced the hardness. The incorporated Si atoms substituted sp^2- bond carbon atoms in ring structures, which promoted the formation of sp^3-bond. The structural transition from C-C to C-Si bonds resulted in relaxation of the residual stress which led to the decrease of internal stress and hardness. The results of AFM indicated that the films was dense and homogeneous, the roughness of the films was decreased due to the increase of substrate negative self-bias voltage and the Si target power.     

乙炔气体流量对纳米TiC类金刚石复合膜的化学结构及力学性能影响

采用离子注入与反应磁控溅射相结合的方法在钛合金及硅片基体表面上制备了纳米TiC类金刚石(DLC)复合膜.通过纳米压痕技术检测了薄膜的纳米硬度，显微划痕试验评估了薄膜的结合力.通过X射线光电子能谱及X射线衍射表征了薄膜的化学结构.结果表明，通过改变C₂H₂气体流量，可以达到控制薄膜中钛原子含量的目的，合适的C₂H₂气体流量可以在DLC膜中形成较多的纳米TiC晶粒，形成DLC包覆TiC晶粒的复合结构，使DLC膜力学性能得到明显提高.另外，划痕试验表明掺钛、先注入后沉积工艺都使薄膜的结合力得到了较大提高. 关键词： 纳米TiC类金刚石复合膜 类金刚石膜 力学性能     

Structure and phase composition of thin a-C:H films modified by Ag and Ti

The structure and phase composition of thin a-C:H and a-C:H〈M〉 films (M = Ag, Ti, or Ag + Ti) have been studied by Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The a-C:H〈M〉 films were prepared by ion-plasma magnetron sputtering of a combined target of graphite and metal in an Ar–CH₄ gas mixture. The Raman spectra of these films indicate that their structure is amorphous. The a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films have a more graphitized structure in comparison with pure a-C:H films and films containing only one metal. It is established that carbon in the a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films is in the sp ², sp ³, and C=O states, which are characteristic of the a-C:H, a-C:H〈Ag〉, and a-C:H〈Ti〉 films. In addition, there are also ether (–C–O–C–) or epoxy (?C?O–) carbon groups in the a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films. It has been revealed that silver atoms in the a-C:H〈Ag〉 and a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films form no chemical bonds with carbon, oxygen, and titanium. Titanium in the a-C:H〈Ti〉 and a-C:H〈Ag + Ti〉 films exists in the form of titanium IV oxide (TiO₂).     

Evaluation of phase,composition, microstructure and properties in TiC/a-C:H thin films deposited by magnetron sputtering

Titanium carbide/amorphous-carbon (TiC/a-C:H) nanocomposite coatings deposited by pulsed unbalanced reactive magnetron sputtering have been investigated in terms of structure, chemical and phase composition by AFM, TEM, XPS and XRD analyses. Subject to total carbon content, metallic titanium, titanium carbide and amorphous-carbon phases were found in the deposited coatings, which contributed to the observed microstructures and morphologies. The specific resistivity of nanocomposite coatings scales up with increasing amount of matrix-forming carbon. Hardness profiles of the different compositions revealed that nearly stoichiometric TiC films with average crystallite size of 70 nm exhibit the maximum hardness, whereas the lowest friction coefficient (μ<0.1) was found in films rich in amorphous-carbon and containing smaller TiC nanocrystallites (〈d〉 ∼ 10 nm).     

Effect of titanium incorporation on the structural, mechanical and biocompatible properties of DLC thin films prepared by reactive-biased target ion beam deposition method

Amorphous diamond like carbon (DLC) and titanium incorporated diamond like carbon (Ti-DLC) thin films were deposited by using reactive-biased target ion beam deposition method. The effects of Ti incorporation and target bias voltage on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the as-deposited films were investigated by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy and nano-indentation. It was found that the Ti content in Ti-DLC films gets increased with increasing target bias voltage. At about 4.2 at.% of Ti, uniform sized well dispersed nanocrystals were seen in the DLC matrix. Using FFT analysis, a facility available in the TEM, it was found that the nanocrystals are in cubic TiC phase. Though at the core, the incorporated Ti atoms react with carbon to form cubic TiC; most of the surface exposed Ti atoms were found to react with the atmospheric oxygen to form weakly bonded Ti-O. The presence of TiC nanocrystals greatly modified the sp³/sp² hybridized bonding ratio and is reflected in mechanical hardness of Ti-DLC films. These films were then tested for their biocompatibility by an invitro cell culturing test. Morphological observation and the cell proliferation test have demonstrated that the human osteoblast cells well attach and proliferate on the surface of Ti incorporated DLC films, suggesting possible applications in bone related implant coatings.     

Superhard nanocomposite nc-TiC/a-C:H film fabricated by filtered cathodic vacuum arc technique

Superhard nanocomposite nc-TiC/a-C:H films, with an excellent combination of high elastic recovery, low friction coefficient and good H/E ratio, were prepared by filtered cathodic vacuum arc technique using the C₂H₂ gas as the precursor. The effect of C₂H₂ flow rate on the microstructure, phase composition, mechanical and tribological properties of nanocomposite nc-TiC/a-C:H films have been investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), energy disperse spectroscopy (EDS), microindentation and tribotester measurements. It was observed that the C₂H₂ flow rate significantly affected the Ti content and hardness of films. Furthermore, by selecting the proper value for C₂H₂ flow rate, 20 sccm, one can deposit the nanocomposite film nc-TiC/a-C:H with excellent properties such as superhardness (66.4 GPa), high elastic recovery (83.3%) and high H/E ratio (0.13).     

Thermal Stability of Surface Plasmon Resonance Absorption in а-С:Н〈Ag + TiО2〉 Nanocomposite Films

Optics and Spectroscopy - The thermal stability of surface plasmon resonance in a-C:H〈Ag〉 and a-C:H〈Ag + TiО2〉 nanocomposite films is studied. The films were...     

Field emission, morphological and mechanical properties of variety of diamond-like carbon thin films

The effect of nitrogen incorporation and sandwich titanium and copper layers, on field emission, morphological and mechanical properties of diamond-like carbon (DLC) thin films is explored. The introduction of foreign element (N₂) and sandwich Cu and Ti layers changed the amorphous morphology to nanostructured, reduced the stress, enhanced the hardness (except N₂ incorporated DLC film) and improved the field emission (except Ti/DLC bilayer) of modified DLC films. The associated versatile electrical and mechanical properties of modified DLC film made it a material of great utility in the development of field emission display panels and also lead to its application as a hard and protective coating on cutting tools, automobile parts etc. It is important to mention that DLC-based electronic materials may replace currently used soft electronic materials (such as Si) due to their enhanced stability under high energy radiation.     

Hybrid ICP/sputter deposition of TiC/CaO nanocomposite films for biomedical application

TiC/a-C nanocomposite films doped with CaO have been deposited by means of a hybrid PVD/PACVD technique, which combines dc magnetron sputtering of a TiC_0.5+10% CaO target, with a subsequent high density inductively coupled plasma (ICP) in order to excite and ionize the sputtered species to a high degree. The films were characterized according to their morphology, structure and thickness by scanning electron microscopy, their composition and bonding structure by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and their crystalline properties by X-ray diffraction. The films consist of fcc titanium carbide nanocrystallites with grain sizes of 5–15 nm and an amorphous carbon phase. The average composition is Ti_0.43C_0.35Ca_0.02O_0.15N_0.05. The influence of the ICP plasma power and the bias voltage applied to the substrate on the major film properties has been investigated. A number of such TiC/a-C/CaO nanocomposite films on silicon substrates have been subjected to a 60 day cell test with human osteoblastic cells in order to investigate their suitability for the coating of prostetic implants. The results of these cell tests, some of which turned out to be rather promising, are discussed in terms of film properties such as surface roughness and biaxial stress. PACS 68.55.-a; 81.07.-b; 87.68.+z     

Ti/Ti-类金刚石多层膜的制备与表征

采用电子回旋共振-化学气相沉积结合中频磁控溅射的真空镀膜技术, 以99.99%Ti为靶材, 乙炔为碳源制备了Ti/Ti-类金刚石(DLC)多层膜. 利用X射线衍射仪、扫描电子显微镜、X射线光电子能谱仪 对Ti/Ti-DLC多层膜进行了相结构、组织、成分及形态分析. 采用显微硬度仪、摩擦磨损仪、表面粗糙度仪对Ti/Ti-DLC多层膜进行了力学性能考察. 结果表明: Ti/Ti-DLC多层膜中主要含有TiC晶相; Ti层和Ti-DLC层中未出现柱状晶体生长模式, 分层中均以岛状模式生长; 当调制周期Λ≤ 50 nm时, 分层结构变模糊; 调制周期Λ对Ti/Ti-DLC多层膜的复合硬度、摩擦系数、表面形貌、表面粗糙度都有影响, 当调制周期Λ较小时表现出纳米增硬效应, 表面出现大颗粒, 表面粗糙度和摩擦系数均变大.     

Rare earth Ce-modified (Ti,Ce)/a-C:H carbon-based film on WC cemented carbide substrate

WC cemented carbide suffers severe wear in water environments. A novel carbon-based film could be a feasible way to overcome this drawback. In this study, a rare earth Ce-modified(Ti,Ce)/a-C:H carbon-based film is successfully prepared on WC cemented carbide using a DC reactive magnetron sputtering process. The microstructure, mechanical properties,and tribological behavior of the as-prepared carbon-based film are systematically investigated. The results show that the doping Ti forms Ti C nanocrystallites that are uniformly dispersed in the amorphous carbon matrix, whereas the doping Ce forms CeO_2 that exists with the amorphous phase in the co-doped(Ti,Ce)/a-C:H carbon-based film. The mechanical properties of this(Ti,Ce)/a-C:H film exhibit remarkable improvements, which could suggest higher hardness and elastic modulus as well as better adhesive strength compared to solitary Ti-doped Ti/a-C:H film. In particular, the as-prepared(Ti,Ce)/a-C:H film presents a relatively low friction coefficient and wear rate in both ambient air and deionized water,indicating that(Ti,Ce)/a-C:H film could feasibly improve the tribological performance of WC cemented carbide in a water environment.