Optical properties of p-type CuAlO2 thin film grown by rf magnetron sputtering

We report the structural and optical properties of copper aluminium oxide (CuAlO₂) thin films, which were prepared on c-plane sapphire substrates by the radio frequency magnetron sputtering method. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) along with X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirms that the films consist of delafossite CuAlO₂ phase only. The optical absorption studies show the indirect and direct bandgap is 1.8 eV and 3.45 eV, respectively. Room temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurements show three emission peaks at 360 nm (3.45 eV), 470 nm (2.63 eV) and 590 nm (2.1 eV). The first one is near band edge emission while the other two are originated from defects.     

(Ti,Al,Si,C)N nanocomposite coatings synthesized by plasma-enhanced magnetron sputtering

Materials’ surface service property could be enhanced by transition metal nitride hard coatings due to their high hardness, wear and high temperature oxidation resistance, but the higher friction coefficient (0.4-0.9) of which aroused terrible abrasion. In this work, quinternary (Ti,Al,Si,C)N hard coating 3-4 μm was synthesized at 300 °C using plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering system. It was found that the coating's columnar crystals structure was restrained obviously with the increase of C content and a non-columnar crystals growth mode was indicated at the C content of 33.5 at.%. Both the XRD and TEM showed that the (Ti,Al,Si,C)N hard coatings had unique nanocomposite structures composed of nanocrystalline and amorphous nc-(Ti,Al)(C,N)/nc-AlN/a-Si₃N₄/a-Si/a-C. However, the coatings were still super hard with the highest hardness of 41 GPa in spite of the carbon incorporation. That a-C could facilitate the graphitization process during the friction process which could improve the coating's tribological performance. Therefore, that nanocomposite (Ti,Al,Si,C)N coatings with higher hardness (>36 GPa) and a lower friction coefficient (<0.2) could be synthesized and enhance the tribological performance and surface properties profoundly.     

Coating of Cr-V ledeburitic steel with CrN containing a small addition of Ag

Samples made from Vanadis 6 PM ledeburitic tool steel were surface machined, ground, and mirror polished. They were heat treated and coated with CrN with and without Ag addition by reactive magnetron sputtering. The CrN film grew in a typically columnar manner. A small addition of 3% Ag did not lead to alterations in the growth mechanism. The hardness of the CrN coating was 16.79 ± 1.49 GPa compared to 15.97 ± 1.44 GPa for the coating with Ag addition. The Ag addition in the CrN improved adhesion of the coating, which can be attributed to the capability of CrAgN coating to accommodate higher deformation energy before failure. The CrAgN coating exhibited superior tribological properties at intermediate temperatures. Compared to pure CrN the friction coefficient is lowered to 70-75% when measured at 400 and 500 °C, respectively. This is reflected in a reduction in the volume wear, which was found to be three times lower for the coating containing Ag. Flexural strength decreased slightly for the CrN- or CrAgN-coated material compared to uncoated steel. However, as the decrease in flexural strength is very weak there is practically no risk of significant embrittlement of the investigated material due to the CrN coating with or without Ag addition.     

Characterization of coating probe with Ti-DLC for electrical scanning probe microscope

In electrical scanning probe microscope (ESPM) applications, the wear and conductivity of the probe are undoubtedly serious concerns since they affect the integrity of the measurements. This study investigates the characterization of Ti doped diamond-like-carbon (DLC) as coating material on a silicon cantilever for ESPM. We deposited a layer of Ti-DLC thin film on the surface of Si cantilever by magnetron sputtering. The morphology and composition of the Ti-DLC films were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy, respectively. We also compared the wear resistance, electric conductivity and scanning image quality of the Ti-DLC-coated probes with those of commercially available conductive probes. The results showed that the electric conductivity and the scanning image quality of the Ti-DLC-coated probes were the same as the commercial conductive probes, while the wear resistance and service life was significantly better.     

Molybdenum thin film deposited by in-line DC magnetron sputtering as a back contact for Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

In this paper, we reported the effect of the power and the working pressure on the molybdenum (Mo) films deposited using an in-line direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering system. The electrical and the structural properties of Mo film were improved by increasing DC power from 1 to 3 kW. On the other side, the resistivity of the Mo films became higher with the increasing working pressure. However, the adhesion property was improved when the working pressure was higher. In this work, in order to obtain an optimal Mo film as a back metal contact of Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGS) solar cells, a bilayer Mo film was formed through the different film structures depending on the working pressure. The first layer was formed at a high pressure of 12 mTorr for a better adhesion and the second layer was formed at a low pressure of 3 mTorr for a lower resistivity.     

Effect of environment and heat treatment on the optical properties of RF-sputtered SnO2 thin films

Thin films of SnO₂ were deposited by RF-magnetron sputtering on quartz substrates at room temperature in an environment of Ar and O₂. The XRD pattern shows amorphous nature of the as-deposited films. The optical properties were studied using the reflectance and transmittance spectra. The estimated optical band gap (E_g) values increase from 4.15 to 4.3 eV as the Ar gas content decreases in the process gas environment. The refractive index exhibits an oscillatory behavior that is strongly dependent on the sputtering gas environment. The Urbach energy is found to decrease with increase in band gap. The band gap is found to decrease on annealing the film. The role of oxygen defects is explored in explaining the variation of optical parameters.     

Preferential Reactivity of Pyridylmagnesiumchloride with N,N-Dialkyl Arylamides over Carbonitriles: Synthesis of 2-(Aroyl) Pyridines

Reaction of 2-pyridylmagnesium chlorides with N,N-dialkyl arylamides afford exclusively 2-(aroyl) pyridines in high yields and purity without the formation of any tertiary alcohol. This method employs easily available raw materials and avoids the use of hazardous lithium reagents and cryogenic conditions. Further, preferential reactivity of this Grignard reagent with N,N-dialkyl arylamides over its carbonitrile counterparts offers a variety of 2-(aroyl) pyridines including the ones containing carbonitrile groups on the aryl ring.     

ZAO透明导电薄膜微观结构和光电性能的研究

以ZnAl2O4陶瓷靶为靶材,采用射频磁控溅射法制备了掺铝氧化锌(ZAO)透明导电薄膜,通过XRD、SEM、四探针仪和分光光度计等测试,研究了沉积温度对薄膜结构、形貌、力学和光电性能的影响.结果表明:ZAO具有(002)择优取向的六角纤锌矿结构,沉积温度对薄膜性能具有明显影响,当温度位于370～ 400℃区间时,薄膜的结晶质量较好、电阻率较低、可见光波段的平均透射率较高,其品质因数大于1.20×10-2S,具有良好的光电综合性能.同时基于透射光谱计算了ZAO薄膜的光学常数,并用有效单振子理论解释了薄膜的折射率色散关系.     

Influence of the roughness on the exchange bias effect of NiFe/FeMn/NiFe trilayers

We have studied the effect of roughness on the exchanged biased NiFe/FeMn/NiFe trilayers system. The samples were prepared under three different argon working pressures (2, 5 and 10 mTorr) to obtain different roughness degrees. The root mean square roughness of the NiFe/FeMn interfaces enhances as the argon working pressure during the deposition increases from 2 to 10 mTorr. High-angle X-ray diffraction reveals that the samples have 1 1 1 texture and besides, possible changes in grain size could be an extra contribution to the interfacial roughness. Magnetometry measurements have shown that the coervive field enhances as the root mean square roughness of the NiFe/FeMn interfaces increases, while the dependence of the exchange bias field runs in the opposite way.     

The influence of annealing on the properties of ZnO:Al layers obtained by RF magnetron sputtering

Al doped ZnO has been explored as a viable alternative to indium thin oxide, which is usually used as transparent electrodes' coverage but is expensive. Homogenous and durable ZnO:Al layers on glass have been obtained in radio frequency magnetron sputtering system by adjusting optimized deposition parameters, using ZnO ceramic target with 2?wt% Al₂O₃. Then, after growth process, annealing treatment has been introduced in order to improve the quality of the layers. Structural, electrical and optical properties of the obtained ZnO:Al layers are presented and discussed. From the application point of view, the best results (sheet resistance of 24 Ω/sq and transparency well above 85%) were achieved after annealing in 300?°C.