Tungsten thick coatings for plasma facing components

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riccardi, B.; Pizzuto, A.; Orsini, A.; Libera, S.; Visca, E.; Bertamini, L.; Casadei, F.; Severini, E.; Montanari, R.; Litunovsky, N.

1998-01-01

The aim of the R and D activity was to realize thick W coatings on CuCrZr hollow bars and to test the mock ups with respect to thermal fatigue. Eight mock ups provided of 4 mm thick W coating were finally manufactured. The bonding integrity between coating and substrate was checked by means of an Ultrasonic apparatus. Characterisation of coatings was performed in order to assess microstructure, impurity content, density, tensile strength, adhesion strength, thermal conductivity and thermal expansion coefficient. Macroscopic residual strain measurements were performed by means of 'hole drilling' technique. The activities performed demonstrated the feasibility of thick Tungsten coatings on geometries with more complex residual strain distribution. These coatings are reliable armour of medium heat flux plasma facing component. (author)

The effect of PVD coatings on the corrosion behaviour of AZ91 magnesium alloy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Altun, Hikmet; Sen, Sadri

2006-01-01

In this study, multilayered AlN (AlN + AlN + AlN) and AlN + TiN were coated on AZ91 magnesium alloy using physical vapour deposition (PVD) technique of DC magnetron sputtering, and the influence of the coatings on the corrosion behaviour of the AZ91 alloy was examined. A PVD system for coating processes, a potentiostat for electrochemical corrosion tests, X-ray difractometer for compositional analysis of the coatings, and scanning electron microscopy for surface examinations were used. It was determined that PVD coatings deposited on AZ91 magnesium alloy increased the corrosion resistance of the alloy, and AlN + AlN + AlN coating increased the corrosion resistance much more than AlN + TiN coating. However, it was observed that, in the coating layers, small structural defects e.g., pores, pinholes, cracks that could arise from the coating process or substrate and get the ability of protection from corrosion worsened were present

C-axis orientated AlN films deposited using deep oscillation magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Jianliang; Chistyakov, Roman

2017-01-01

Highlights: • Highly orientated AlN films were deposited by DOMS technique. • Controlled ion flux bombardment improved the texture and crystalline quality. • Excessive ion bombardment showed a detrimental effect on the c-axis orientation growth. • Improved c-axis alignment accompanied with stress relaxation with increasing film thickness. - Abstract: Highly c-axis orientated aluminum nitride (AlN) films were deposited on silicon (100) substrates by reactive deep oscillation magnetron sputtering (DOMS). No epitaxial favored bond layer and substrate heating were applied for assisting texture growth. The effects of the peak target current density (varied from 0.39 to 0.8 Acm"−"2) and film thickness (varied from 0.25 to 3.3 μm) on the c-axis orientation, microstructure, residual stress and mechanical properties of the AlN films were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction rocking curve methodology, transmission electron microscopy, optical profilometry, and nanoindentation. All AlN films exhibited a preferred orientation and compressive residual stresses. At similar film thicknesses, an increase in the peak target current density to 0.53 Acm"−"2 improved the orientation. Further increasing the peak target current density to above 0.53 Acm"−"2 showed limited contribution to the texture development. The study also showed that an increase in the thickness of the AlN films deposited by DOMS improved the c-axis alignment accompanied with a reduction in the residual stress.

C-axis orientated AlN films deposited using deep oscillation magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, Jianliang, E-mail: Jianliang.lin@swri.org [Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, TX 78238 (United States); Chistyakov, Roman [Zpulser LLC, Mansfield, MA 02048 (United States)

2017-02-28

Highlights: • Highly <0001> orientated AlN films were deposited by DOMS technique. • Controlled ion flux bombardment improved the <0001> texture and crystalline quality. • Excessive ion bombardment showed a detrimental effect on the c-axis orientation growth. • Improved c-axis alignment accompanied with stress relaxation with increasing film thickness. - Abstract: Highly <0001> c-axis orientated aluminum nitride (AlN) films were deposited on silicon (100) substrates by reactive deep oscillation magnetron sputtering (DOMS). No epitaxial favored bond layer and substrate heating were applied for assisting texture growth. The effects of the peak target current density (varied from 0.39 to 0.8 Acm{sup −2}) and film thickness (varied from 0.25 to 3.3 μm) on the c-axis orientation, microstructure, residual stress and mechanical properties of the AlN films were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction rocking curve methodology, transmission electron microscopy, optical profilometry, and nanoindentation. All AlN films exhibited a <0001> preferred orientation and compressive residual stresses. At similar film thicknesses, an increase in the peak target current density to 0.53 Acm{sup −2} improved the <0001> orientation. Further increasing the peak target current density to above 0.53 Acm{sup −2} showed limited contribution to the texture development. The study also showed that an increase in the thickness of the AlN films deposited by DOMS improved the c-axis alignment accompanied with a reduction in the residual stress.

Potential of AlN nanostructures as hydrogen storage materials.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Qian; Sun, Qiang; Jena, Puru; Kawazoe, Yoshiyuki

2009-03-24

The capability of AlN nanostructures (nanocages, nanocones, nanotubes, and nanowires) to store hydrogen has been studied using gradient-corrected density functional theory. In contrast to bulk AlN, which has the wurtzite structure and four-fold coordination, the Al sites in AlN nanostructures are unsaturated and have two- and three-fold coordination. Each Al atom is capable of binding one H(2) molecule in quasi-molecular form, leading to 4.7 wt % hydrogen, irrespective of the topology of the nanostructures. With the exception of AlN nanotubes, energetics does not support the adsorption of additional hydrogen. The binding energies of hydrogen to these unsaturated metal sites lie in the range of 0.1-0.2 eV/H(2) and are ideal for applications under ambient thermodynamic conditions. Furthermore, these materials do not suffer from the clustering problem that often plagues metal-coated carbon nanostructures.

Error Analysis of Ceramographic Sample Preparation for Coating Thickness Measurement of Coated Fuel Particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Xiaoxue; Li Ziqiang; Zhao Hongsheng; Zhang Kaihong; Tang Chunhe

2014-01-01

The thicknesses of four coatings of HTR coated fuel particle are very important parameters. It is indispensable to control the thickness of four coatings of coated fuel particles for the safety of HTR. A measurement method, ceramographic sample-microanalysis method, to analyze the thickness of coatings was developed. During the process of ceramographic sample-microanalysis, there are two main errors, including ceramographic sample preparation error and thickness measurement error. With the development of microscopic techniques, thickness measurement error can be easily controlled to meet the design requirements. While, due to the coated particles are spherical particles of different diameters ranged from 850 to 1000μm, the sample preparation process will introduce an error. And this error is different from one sample to another. It’s also different from one particle to another in the same sample. In this article, the error of the ceramographic sample preparation was calculated and analyzed. Results show that the error introduced by sample preparation is minor. The minor error of sample preparation guarantees the high accuracy of the mentioned method, which indicates this method is a proper method to measure the thickness of four coatings of coated particles. (author)

A dual response surface optimization methodology for achieving uniform coating thickness in powder coating process

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boby John

2015-09-01

Full Text Available The powder coating is an economic, technologically superior and environment friendly painting technique compared with other conventional painting methods. However large variation in coating thickness can reduce the attractiveness of powder coated products. The coating thickness variation can also adversely affect the surface appearance and corrosion resistivity of the product. This can eventually lead to customer dissatisfaction and loss of market share. In this paper, the author discusses a dual response surface optimization methodology to minimize the thickness variation around the target value of powder coated industrial enclosures. The industrial enclosures are cabinets used for mounting the electrical and electronic equipment. The proposed methodology consists of establishing the relationship between the coating thickness & the powder coating process parameters and developing models for the mean and variance of coating thickness. Then the powder coating process is optimized by minimizing the standard deviation of coating thickness subject to the constraint that the thickness mean would be very close to the target. The study resulted in achieving a coating thickness mean of 80.0199 microns for industrial enclosures, which is very close to the target value of 80 microns. A comparison of the results of the proposed approach with that of existing methodologies showed that the suggested method is equally good or even better than the existing methodologies. The result of the study is also validated with a new batch of industrial enclosures.

Thermal stability of double-ceramic-layer thermal barrier coatings with various coating thickness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dai Hui; Zhong Xinghua; Li Jiayan; Zhang Yanfei; Meng Jian; Cao Xueqiang

2006-01-01

Double-ceramic-layer (DCL) coatings with various thickness ratios composed of YSZ (6-8 wt.% Y 2 O 3 + ZrO 2 ) and lanthanum zirconate (LZ, La 2 Zr 2 O 7 ) were produced by the atmospheric plasma spraying. Chemical stability of LZ in contact with YSZ in DCL coatings was investigated by calcining powder blends at different temperatures. No obvious reaction was observed when the calcination temperature was lower than 1250 deg. C, implying that LZ and YSZ had good chemical applicability for producing DCL coating. The thermal cycling test indicate that the cycling lives of the DCL coatings are strongly dependent on the thickness ratio of LZ and YSZ, and the coatings with YSZ thickness between 150 and 200 μm have even longer lives than the single-layer YSZ coating. When the YSZ layer is thinner than 100 μm, the DCL coatings failed in the LZ layer close to the interface of YSZ layer and LZ layer. For the coatings with the YSZ thickness above 150 μm, the failure mainly occurs at the interface of the YSZ layer and the bond coat

Lattice stability of metastable AlN and wurtzite-to-rock-salt structural transformation by CALPHAD modeling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Yanhui, E-mail: yanhui.z@hotmail.com [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Applied Materials-Applied Materials Physics (IAM-AWP), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany); High-performance Ceramics Division, Shenyang National Laboratory for Materials Science, Institute of Metal Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 110016, Shenyang (China); Franke, Peter; Li, Dajian; Seifert, Hans Jürgen [Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Institute for Applied Materials-Applied Materials Physics (IAM-AWP), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany)

2016-12-01

Reliable lattice stability of cubic AlN with rock-salt structure (rs-AlN) is the prerequisite of accurate thermodynamic modeling of cubic (M, Al)N solid solutions (M = Ti, Zr, Cr etc.). In order to derive the Gibbs energy of metastable rs-AlN, and then its lattice stability, we did the pressure-temperature (P-T) assessment of AlN phases by equations-of-state modeling. Meanwhile, the molar volumes and the heat capacities of wurtzite and rock-salt AlN, as well as the wurtzite-to-rock-salt structural transition at high P&T were successfully incorporated in CALPHAD-type database by integrating thermodynamic data from experiments and ab-initio calculations. These results promise subsequent investigations on phase stabilities and transitions of solid solutions with AlN component and the development of novel multicomponent coatings. - Highlights: • Phase stability investigation for novel multi-component metastable coatings. • Structural transition at high temperature and high pressure. • Integrating thermodynamic data from ab-initio calculations and experiments. • Thermal expansion, isothermal compressibility and heat capacity of w-AlN and rs-AlN.

Effects of AlN nucleation layers on the growth of AlN films using high temperature hydride vapor phase epitaxy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balaji, M.; Claudel, A.; Fellmann, V.; Gélard, I.; Blanquet, E.; Boichot, R.; Pierret, A.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► Growth of AlN Nucleation layers and its effect on high temperature AlN films quality were investigated. ► AlN nucleation layers stabilizes the epitaxial growth of AlN and improves the surface morphology of AlN films. ► Increasing growth temperature of AlN NLs as well as AlN films improves the structural quality and limits the formation of cracks. - Abstract: AlN layers were grown on c-plane sapphire substrates with AlN nucleation layers (NLs) using high temperature hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HT-HVPE). Insertion of low temperature NLs, as those typically used in MOVPE process, prior to the high temperature AlN (HT-AlN) layers has been investigated. The NLs surface morphology was studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM) and NLs thickness was measured by X-ray reflectivity. Increasing nucleation layer deposition temperature from 650 to 850 °C has been found to promote the growth of c-oriented epitaxial HT-AlN layers instead of polycrystalline layers. The growth of polycrystalline layers has been related to the formation of dis-oriented crystallites. The density of such disoriented crystallites has been found to decrease while increasing NLs deposition temperature. The HT-AlN layers have been characterized by X-ray diffraction θ − 2θ scan and (0 0 0 2) rocking curve measurement, Raman and photoluminescence spectroscopies, AFM and field emission scanning electron microscopy. Increasing the growth temperature of HT-AlN layers from 1200 to 1400 °C using a NL grown at 850 °C improves the structural quality as well as the surface morphology. As a matter of fact, full-width at half-maximum (FWHM) of 0 0 0 2 reflections was improved from 1900 to 864 arcsec for 1200 °C and 1400 °C, respectively. Related RMS roughness also found to decrease from 10 to 5.6 nm.

Determination of gold coating thickness measurement by using EDXRF

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meor Yusoff Meor Sulaian; Masliana Muslimin; Fadlullah Jili Fursani

2005-01-01

The paper relates a study on the development of an analysis procedure for measuring the gold coating thickness using EDXRF technique. Gold coating thickness was measured by relating the counts under the Au L? peak its thickness value. In order to get a reasonably accurate result, a calibration graph was plotted using five gold-coated reference standards of different thickness. The calibration graph shows a straight line for thin coating measurement until 0.9 μm. Beyond this the relationship was not linear and this may be resulted from the self-absorption effect. Quantitative analysis was also performed on two different samples of gold coated jewelry and a phone connector. Result from the phone connector analysis seems to agree with the manufacturer gold coating value. From the analysis of gold-coated jewelry it had been able to differentiate the two articles as gold wash and gold electroplated. (Author)

Microstructural analysis in the depth direction of a heteroepitaxial AlN thick film grown on a trench-patterned template by nanobeam X-ray diffraction

Science.gov (United States)

Shida, K.; Takeuchi, S.; Tohei, T.; Miyake, H.; Hiramatsu, K.; Sumitani, K.; Imai, Y.; Kimura, S.; Sakai, A.

2018-04-01

This work quantitatively assessed the three-dimensional distribution of crystal lattice distortions in an epitaxial AlN thick film grown on a trench-patterned template, using nanobeam X-ray diffraction. Position-dependent ω-2θ-φ mapping clearly demonstrated local tilting, spacing and twisting of lattice planes as well as fluctuations in these phenomena on a sub-micrometer scale comparable to the pitch of the trench-and-terrace patterning. Analysis of the crystal lattice distortion in the depth direction was performed using a newly developed method in which the X-ray nanobeam diffracted from the sample surface to specific depths can be selectively detected by employing a Pt wire profiler. This technique generated depth-resolved ω-2θ-φ maps confirming that fluctuations in lattice plane tilting and spacing greatly depend on the dislocation distribution and the history of the AlN epitaxial growth on the trench-patterned structure. It was also found that both fluctuations were reduced on approaching the AlN surface and, in particular, were sharply reduced at specific depths in the terrace regions. These sharp reductions are attributed to the formation of sacrificial zones with degraded crystal quality around the trenches and possibly lead to raising the crystal quality near the surface of the AlN film.

Multispectral UV imaging for determination of the tablet coating thickness

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Novikova, Anna; Carstensen, Jens Michael; Zeitler, J. Axel

2017-01-01

The applicability of off-line multispectral ultraviolet (UV) imaging in combination with multivariate data analysis was investigated to determine the coating thickness and its distribution on the tablet surface during lab scale coating. The UV imaging results were compared with the weight gain...... measured for each individual tablet and the corresponding coating thickness and its distribution measured by terahertz pulsed imaging (TPI). Three different tablet formulations were investigated, two of which contained UV active tablet cores. Three coating formulations were applied: Aquacoat® ECD (a mainly...... translucent coating) and Eudragit® NE (a turbid coating containing solid particles). It was shown that UV imaging is a fast and non-destructive method to predict individual tablet weight gain as well as coating thickness. The coating thickness distribution profiles determined by UV imaging correlated...

Polarity inversion of AlN film grown on nitrided a-plane sapphire substrate with pulsed DC reactive sputtering

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marsetio Noorprajuda

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The effect of oxygen partial pressure (PO2 on polarity and crystalline quality of AlN films grown on nitrided a-plane sapphire substrates by pulsed direct current (DC reactive sputtering was investigated as a fundamental study. The polarity inversion of AlN from nitrogen (−c-polarity to aluminum (+c-polarity occurred during growth at a high PO2 of 9.4×103 Pa owing to Al-O octahedral formation at the interface of nitrided layer and AlN sputtered film which reset the polarity of AlN. The top part of the 1300 nm-thick AlN film sputtered at the high PO2 was polycrystallized. The crystalline quality was improved owing to the high kinetic energy of Al sputtered atom in the sputtering phenomena. Thinner AlN films were also fabricated at the high PO2 to eliminate the polycrystallization. For the 200 nm-thick AlN film sputtered at the high PO2, the full width at half-maximum values of the AlN (0002 and (10−12 X-ray diffraction rocking curves were 47 and 637 arcsec, respectively.

Lattice damage induced by Tb-implanted AlN crystalline films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu Fei; Hu Hui; Rizzi, A.

2002-01-01

AlN films with thickness from 100 to 1000 nm were grown on SiC substrate by MBE. AlN crystalline films were doped by implantation with 160 keV Tb ions to fluences of 5x10 14 , 1.5x10 15 , 3x10 15 and 6x10 15 ions/cm 2 , respectively. The damage profiles in AlN films induced by Tb implantation were investigated using RBS/channeling technique. A procedure developed by Feldman and Rodgers was used to extract damage profile by considering the dechanneling mechanism of multiple. The comparison of the extracted profile with TRIM prediction shows a significant difference in the shape and in the position of damage profile. The damage profile in AlN film is similar as Tb distribution. The RBS/channeling of Tb-implanted AlN film before and after 950 deg. C annealing treatments show a good consistency, which indicate that high temperature annealing cannot result in a significant change in both crystal damage and in Tb distribution

Multispectral UV Imaging for Determination of the Tablet Coating Thickness.

Science.gov (United States)

Novikova, Anna; Carstensen, Jens M; Zeitler, J Axel; Rades, Thomas; Leopold, Claudia S

2017-06-01

The applicability of off-line multispectral UV imaging in combination with multivariate data analysis was investigated to determine the coating thickness and its distribution on the tablet surface during lab-scale coating. The UV imaging results were compared with the weight gain measured for each individual tablet and the corresponding coating thickness and its distribution measured by terahertz pulsed imaging (TPI). Three different tablet formulations were investigated, 2 of which contained UV-active tablet cores. Three coating formulations were applied: Aquacoat® ECD (a mainly translucent coating) and Eudragit® NE (a turbid coating containing solid particles). It was shown that UV imaging is a fast and nondestructive method to predict individual tablet weight gain as well as coating thickness. The coating thickness distribution profiles determined by UV imaging correlated to the results of the TPI measurements. UV imaging appears to hold a significant potential as a process analytical technology tool for determination of the tablet coating thickness and its distribution resulting from its high measurement speed, high molar absorptivity, and a high scattering coefficient, in addition to relatively low costs. Copyright © 2017 American Pharmacists Association®. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Magnetic tunnel junctions with AlN and AlNxOy barriers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwickert, M. M.; Childress, J. R.; Fontana, R. E.; Kellock, A. J.; Rice, P. M.; Ho, M. K.; Thompson, T. J.; Gurney, B. A.

2001-01-01

Nonoxide tunnel barriers such as AlN are of interest for magnetic tunnel junctions to avoid the oxidation of the magnetic electrodes. We have investigated the fabrication and properties of thin AlN-based barriers for use in low resistance magnetic tunnel junctions. Electronic, magnetic and structural data of tunnel valves of the form Ta (100 Aa)/PtMn (300 Aa)/CoFe 20 (20 Aa - 25 Aa)/barrier/CoFe 20 (10 - 20 Aa)/NiFe 16 (35 - 40 Aa)/Ta (100 Aa) are presented, where the barrier consists of AlN, AlN x O y or AlN/AlO x with total thicknesses between 8 and 15 Aa. The tunnel junctions were sputter deposited and then lithographically patterned down to 2 x 2μm 2 devices. AlN was deposited by reactive sputtering from an Al target with 20% - 35% N 2 in the Ar sputter gas at room temperature, resulting in stoichiometric growth of AlN x (x=0.50±0.05), as determined by RBS. TEM analysis shows that the as-deposited AlN barrier is crystalline. For AlN barriers and AlN followed by natural O 2 oxidation, we obtain tunnel magnetoresistance >10% with specific junction resistance R j down to 60Ωμm 2 . [copyright] 2001 American Institute of Physics

Hydride vapor phase epitaxy of high structural perfection thick AlN layers on off-axis 6H-SiC

Science.gov (United States)

Volkova, Anna; Ivantsov, Vladimir; Leung, Larry

2011-01-01

The employment of more than 10 μm thick AlN epilayers on SiC substrates for AlGaN/GaN high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs) substantially raises their performance in high-power energy-efficient amplifiers for 4G wireless mobile stations. In this paper, structural properties and surface morphology of thick AlN epilayers deposited by hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) on off-axis conductive 6H-SiC substrates are reported. The epilayers were examined in detail by high-resolution X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), Nomarski differential interference contrast (DIC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and selective wet chemical etching. At optimal substrate preparation and growth conditions, a full width at half-maximum (FWHM) of the XRD rocking curve (RC) for the symmetric (00.2) reflex was very close to that of the substrate (less than 40 arcsec) suggesting low screw dislocation density in the epilayer (˜10 6 cm -2) and small in-plane tilt misorientation. Reciprocal space mapping around asymmetric reflexes and measured lattice parameters indicated a fully relaxed state of the epilayers. The unit-cell-high stepped areas of the epilayers with 0.5 nm root mean square (RMS) roughness over 1×1 μm 2 scan were alternated with step-bunching instabilities up to 350 nm in height. Low warp of the substrates makes them suitable for precise epitaxy of HEMT structures.

Mechanical and tribological properties of crystalline aluminum nitride coatings deposited on stainless steel by magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choudhary, R.K., E-mail: crupeshbarc@gmail.com [Materials Processing Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Mishra, S.C.; Mishra, P. [Materials Processing Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Limaye, P.K. [Refuelling Technology Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India); Singh, K. [Fusion Reactor Materials Section, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, Mumbai 400085 (India)

2015-11-15

Aluminum nitride (AlN) coating is a potential candidate for addressing the problems of MHD pressure drop, tritium permeation and liquid metal corrosion of the test blanket module of fusion reactor. In this work, AlN coatings were grown on stainless steel by magnetron sputtering. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction measurement revealed that formation of mixed phase (wurtzite and rock salt) AlN was favored at low discharge power and substrate negative biasing. However, at sufficiently high discharge power and substrate bias, (100) oriented wurtzite AlN was obtained. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy showed presence of oxygen in the coatings. The highest value of hardness and Young's modulus were 14.1 GPa and 215 GPa, respectively. Scratch test showed adhesive failure at a load of about 20 N. Wear test showed improved wear resistance of the coatings obtained at higher substrate bias. - Highlights: • Crystalline AlN coatings obtained on stainless steel by reactive sputtering. • Wurtzite AlN formed at higher discharge power and higher substrate biasing. • Mixture of wurtzite and rock salt AlN formed at low power and low biasing. • Substrate negative biasing improved adhesion of AlN coatings. • Substrate negative biasing improved wear resistance and hardness of AlN coatings.

Mechanical and tribological properties of crystalline aluminum nitride coatings deposited on stainless steel by magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choudhary, R.K.; Mishra, S.C.; Mishra, P.; Limaye, P.K.; Singh, K.

2015-01-01

Aluminum nitride (AlN) coating is a potential candidate for addressing the problems of MHD pressure drop, tritium permeation and liquid metal corrosion of the test blanket module of fusion reactor. In this work, AlN coatings were grown on stainless steel by magnetron sputtering. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction measurement revealed that formation of mixed phase (wurtzite and rock salt) AlN was favored at low discharge power and substrate negative biasing. However, at sufficiently high discharge power and substrate bias, (100) oriented wurtzite AlN was obtained. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy showed presence of oxygen in the coatings. The highest value of hardness and Young's modulus were 14.1 GPa and 215 GPa, respectively. Scratch test showed adhesive failure at a load of about 20 N. Wear test showed improved wear resistance of the coatings obtained at higher substrate bias. - Highlights: • Crystalline AlN coatings obtained on stainless steel by reactive sputtering. • Wurtzite AlN formed at higher discharge power and higher substrate biasing. • Mixture of wurtzite and rock salt AlN formed at low power and low biasing. • Substrate negative biasing improved adhesion of AlN coatings. • Substrate negative biasing improved wear resistance and hardness of AlN coatings.

A new measurement method of coatings thickness based on lock-in thermography

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Jin-Yu; Meng, Xiang-bin; Ma, Yong-chao

2016-05-01

Coatings have been widely used in modern industry and it plays an important role. Coatings thickness is directly related to the performance of the functional coatings, therefore, rapid and accurate coatings thickness inspection has great significance. Existing coatings thickness measurement method is difficult to achieve fast and accurate on-site non-destructive coatings inspection due to cost, accuracy, destruction during inspection and other reasons. This paper starts from the introduction of the principle of lock-in thermography, and then performs an in-depth study on the application of lock-in thermography in coatings inspection through numerical modeling and analysis. The numerical analysis helps explore the relationship between coatings thickness and phase, and the relationship lays the foundation for accurate calculation of coatings thickness. The author sets up a lock-in thermography inspection system and uses thermal barrier coatings specimens to conduct an experiment. The specimen coatings thickness is measured and calibrated to verify the quantitative inspection. Experiment results show that the lock-in thermography method can perform fast coatings inspection and the inspection accuracy is about 95%. Therefore, the method can meet the field testing requirements for engineering projects.

Thermal behavior variations in coating thickness using pulse phase thermography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ranjit, Shrestha; Chung, Yoonjae; Kim, Won Tae [Kongju National University, Cheonan (Korea, Republic of)

2016-08-15

This paper presents a study on the use of pulsed phase thermography in the measurement of thermal barrier coating thickness with a numerical simulation. A multilayer heat transfer model was used to analyze the surface temperature response acquired from one-sided pulsed thermal imaging. The test sample comprised four layers: the metal substrate, bond coat, thermally grown oxide and the top coat. The finite element software, ANSYS, was used to model and predict the temperature distribution in the test sample under an imposed heat flux on the exterior of the TBC. The phase image was computed with the use of the software MATLAB and Thermofit Pro using a Fourier transform. The relationship between the coating thickness and the corresponding phase angle was then established with the coating thickness being expressed as a function of the phase angle. The method is successfully applied to measure the coating thickness that varied from 0.25 mm to 1.5 mm.

Growth of AlN films and their characterization

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jain, Rakesh B.; Gao, Ying; Zhang, Jianping; Qhaleed Fareed, R.S.; Gaska, Remis [Sensor Electronic Technology, Inc., 1195 Atlas Rd., Columbia, SC 29209 (United States); Li, Jiawei; Arjunan, Arulchakkravarthi; Yang, Jinwei; Asif Khan, M. [Department of Electrical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208 (United States); Kuokstis, Edmundas [MTMI, Vilnius University, Vilnius (Lithuania)

2006-06-15

Single crystal AlN layers have been produced by migration enhanced metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MEMOCVD), hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) and their combination. The growth was carried out on 2'' basal plane sapphire substrates. In MEMOCVD, the duration and waveforms of precursors were varied to achieve better surface mobility and thus better atomic incorporation. It resulted in superior layer quality templates with the narrowest (002) X-ray rocking curve full width half maximum (FWHM). Such high quality AlN templates were used as seeds for subsequent HVPE growth. Thick films with thickness ranging from 1-25 {mu}m have been grown by HVPE with growth rates as high as 200 {mu}m/min, highest ever reported. Films grown by the two methods have been extensively characterized by Nomarski microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), high-resolution X-ray diffractometry (HRXRD), and photoluminescence (PL). (copyright 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Determination of the coating base thickness with beta backscattering gauges

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krejndlin, I.I.; Novikov, V.S.; Pravikov, A.A.

1976-01-01

In using beta thickness meters for coating examination, it is necessary that the substrate thickness be greater or equal to the saturation thickness for which one can neglect a systematic error caused by substrate thickness variation. A formula is derived and nomograms are presented for the determination of the substrate saturation thickness with the account of factors affecting the results of coating thickness measurement. The results of saturation thickness calculation are tabulated for a number of substrate materials with using different β-sources ( 147 Pm, 85 Kr, 90 Sr+ 90 Y)

Quantitative analysis and metallic coating thickness measurements by X-ray fluorescence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Negrea, Denis; Ducu, Catalin; Malinovschi, Viorel; Moga, Sorin; Boicea, Niculae

2009-01-01

This work deals with the use of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) for determining the concentration and the coating thickness on metallic samples. The analysis method presented here may also be applicable to other coatings, providing that the elemental nature of the coating and substrate are compatible with the technical aspects of XRF, such as the absorption coefficient of the system, primary radiation, fluorescent radiation and type of detection. For the coating thickness measurement it was used the substrate-line attenuation method and an algorithm was developed. Its advantage relies in the fact that no special calibration with standard samples having different layer thickness is needed. The samples used for evaluation were metallic pieces of iron with zinc-nickel coatings of different thickness obtained by electrochemical deposition. (authors)

Nondestructive testing technology for measurement coatings thickness on material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Mingtai; Wu Lunqiang; Zhang Lianping

2008-01-01

The principle, applicability range, advantage and disadvantage of electromagnetic, eddy current method, β backscatter method and XRF methods for nondestructive testing coating thickness of material have been reviewed. The relevant apparatus and manufacturers have been summarized. And the application and developmental direction of manufacturers for nondestructive testing coatings thickness has been foreshowed. (authors)

Quantitative analysis and metallic coating thickness measurements by X-ray fluorescence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Negrea, Denis; Ducu, Catalin; Malinovschi, Viorel; Moga, Sorin; Boicea, Niculae

2009-01-01

Full text: This paperwork covers the use of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) for determining the concentration and the coating thickness on metallic samples. The analysis method presented here may also be applicable to other coatings, providing that the elemental nature of the coating and substrate are compatible with the technical aspects of XRF, such as the absorption coefficient of the system, primary radiation, fluorescent radiation and type of detection. For the coating thickness measurement it was used the substrate-line attenuation method and a computing algorithm was developed. Its advantage relies in the fact that no special calibration with standard samples having different layer thickness is needed. The samples used for evaluation were metallic pieces of iron with zinc-nickel coatings of different thickness obtained by electrochemical deposition. (authors)

Radioisotope albedo method for measuring thickness of polymers coatings on metal basis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kapranov, B.I.; Myakin'kova, L.V.; Shaverin, V.A.

1986-01-01

Theoretical analysis of albedo thickness measuring of polymer coating-metal composite has been made and experimental studies of the range of tested thicknesses of polymer coating when different metal bases and radiation sources are used have been conducted. It is shown that the thickness of polymer coating on metal can be measured using backscattered γ-radiation in the energy range of 20-120 keV at the error 0.15-0.8 mm, at that, for thickness up to 23 mm the use of 147 Pm isotope can be defined as the optimum one; for thicknesses up to 40 mm 241 Am should be used; at thicknesses up to 60 mm - 57 Co. The AGAT-1 albedo gamma thickness gage, designed for measuring thickness of fiber glass coating up to 20 mm on metal base, is described

Use of buffy coat thick films in detecting malaria parasites in patients with negative conventional thick films.

Science.gov (United States)

Duangdee, Chatnapa; Tangpukdee, Noppadon; Krudsood, Srivicha; Wilairatana, Polrat

2012-04-01

To determine the frequency of malaria parasite detection from the buffy coat blood films by using capillary tube in falciparum malaria patients with negative conventional thick films. Thirty six uncomplicated falciparum malaria patients confirmed by conventional thick and thin films were included in the study. The patients were treated with artemisinin combination therapy at Hospital for Tropical Diseases, Bangkok, Thailand for 28 day. Fingerpricks for conventional blood films were conducted every 6 hours until negative parasitemia, then daily fingerpricks for parasite checks were conducted until the patients were discharged from hospital. Blood samples were also concurrently collected in 3 heparinized capillary tubes at the same time of fingerpricks for conventional blood films when the prior parasitemia was negative on thin films and parasitemia was lower than 50 parasites/200 white blood cells by thick film. The first negative conventional thick films were compared with buffy coat thick films for parasite identification. Out of 36 patients with thick films showing negative for asexual forms of parasites, buffy coat films could detect remaining 10 patients (27.8%) with asexual forms of Plasmodium falciparum. The study shows that buffy coat thick films are useful and can detect malarial parasites in 27.8% of patients whose conventional thick films show negative parasitemia.

Atomic layer deposition of AlN for thin membranes using trimethylaluminum and H2/N2 plasma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Goerke, Sebastian; Ziegler, Mario; Ihring, Andreas; Dellith, Jan; Undisz, Andreas; Diegel, Marco; Anders, Solveig; Huebner, Uwe; Rettenmayr, Markus; Meyer, Hans-Georg

2015-01-01

Highlights: • AlN films grown at 150 °C by ALD using trimethylaluminum and H 2 /N 2 -plasma. • Nearly stoichiometric AlN films (ratio Al:N = 0.938), polycrystalline by XRD/TEM. • Refractive index of n = 1.908 and low thermal conductivity of κ = 1.66 W/(m K). • Free-standing AlN membranes mechanically stable and buckling free (tensile strain). • Membrane patterning by focused ion beam etching possible. - Abstract: Aluminum nitride (AlN) thin films with thicknesses from 20 to 100 nm were deposited on silicon, amorphous silica, silicon nitride, and vitreous carbon by plasma enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD). Trimethylaluminum (TMA) and a H 2 /N 2 plasma mixture were used as precursors. We investigated the influence of deposition temperature and plasma parameters on the growth characteristics and the film properties of AlN. Stable PE-ALD growth conditions were obtained from 150 °C to the highest tested temperature of 300 °C. The growth rate, refractive index, and thickness homogeneity on 4″ wafers were determined by spectroscopic ellipsometry. X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) were carried out to analyze crystallinity and composition of the films. Furthermore, the thermal conductivity and the film stress were determined. The stress was sufficiently low to fabricate mechanically stable free-standing AlN membranes with lateral dimensions of up to 2.2 × 2.2 mm 2 . The membranes were patterned with focused ion beam etching. Thus, these AlN membranes qualify as dielectric support material for a variety of potential applications

Effects of GaN/AlGaN/Sputtered AlN nucleation layers on performance of GaN-based ultraviolet light-emitting diodes

Science.gov (United States)

Hu, Hongpo; Zhou, Shengjun; Liu, Xingtong; Gao, Yilin; Gui, Chengqun; Liu, Sheng

2017-03-01

We report on the demonstration of GaN-based ultraviolet light-emitting diodes (UV LEDs) emitting at 375 nm grown on patterned sapphire substrate (PSS) with in-situ low temperature GaN/AlGaN nucleation layers (NLs) and ex-situ sputtered AlN NL. The threading dislocation (TD) densities in GaN-based UV LEDs with GaN/AlGaN/sputtered AlN NLs were determined by high-resolution X-ray diffraction (XRD) and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (TEM), which revealed that the TD density in UV LED with AlGaN NL was the highest, whereas that in UV LED with sputtered AlN NL was the lowest. The light output power (LOP) of UV LED with AlGaN NL was 18.2% higher than that of UV LED with GaN NL owing to a decrease in the absorption of 375 nm UV light in the AlGaN NL with a larger bandgap. Using a sputtered AlN NL instead of the AlGaN NL, the LOP of UV LED was further enhanced by 11.3%, which is attributed to reduced TD density in InGaN/AlInGaN active region. In the sputtered AlN thickness range of 10-25 nm, the LOP of UV LED with 15-nm-thick sputtered AlN NL was the highest, revealing that optimum thickness of the sputtered AlN NL is around 15 nm.

A comparison between destructive and non-destructive techniques in determining coating thickness

Science.gov (United States)

Haider, F. I.; Suryanto; Ani, M. H.; Mahmood, M. H.

2018-01-01

Measuring coating thickness is an important part in research works related to coating applications. In general, techniques for measuring coating thickness may be divided into destructive and non-destructive methods which are commonly used depending on the applications. The objective of this study is to compare two methods measuring the coating thickness of electroplating copper coating on the austenitic stainless-steel substrate. The electroplating was carried out in a solution containing 200 g/L CuSO4, 100 g/L H2SO4 at room temperature and current of 40mA/cm2 during 20, 40, 60, 80 and 100 mins as coating periods. And the coating thickness was measured by two methods, cross sectional analysis as a destructive technique and weight gain as a non-destructive technique. The results show that at 20 mins coating time interval, the thickness measured by cross sectional method was 16.67 μm and by weight gain method was 17.37 μm, with difference of 0.7 μm and percentage error of 4.11%. This error increased to 5.27% at 100mins time interval, where the values of the thickness measured by cross sectional and weight gain were 86.33 μm and 81.9 μm respectively, and the difference was 4.43 μm. Moreover, though the weight gain method is fast and gives the indication for the termination of a coating process, information regarding the uniformity, porosity and the presence of cracks cannot be obtained. On the other hand, determining the coating thickness using destructive method will damage the sample.

Biocompatible wear-resistant thick ceramic coating

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vogt Nicola

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Sensitisation to immunologically active elements like chromium, cobalt or nickel and debris particle due to wear are serious problems for patients with metallic implants. We tested the approach of using a hard and thick ceramic coating as a wear-resistant protection of titanium implants, avoiding those sensitisation and foreign body problems. We showed that the process parameters strongly influence the coating porosity and, as a consequence, also its hardness.

Using AlN-Coated Heat Sink to Improve the Heat Dissipation of LED Packages

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jean Ming-Der

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This study optimizes aluminum nitride (AlN ceramics, in order to enhance the thermal performance of light-emitting diode (LED packages. AlN coatings are grown on copper/ aluminum substrates as a heat interface material, using an electrostatic spraying process. The effect of the deposition parameters on the coatings is determined. The thermal performance of AlN coated Cu/Al substrates is evaluated in terms of the heat dissipated and compared by measuring the LED case temperature. The structure and properties of the coating are also examined a scanning electron microscopy (SEM. In sum, the thermal performance of the LED is increased and good heat resistance characteristics are obtained. The results show that using AlN ceramic coating on a copper/aluminum substrate increases the thermal performance.

Coloration of metallic and/or ceramic surfaces obtained by atomic layer deposited nano-coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guzman, L., E-mail: luisg47@gmail.com [Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK), Centro Materiali e Microsistemi, Functional Materials & Photonic Structures Unit, via Sommarive 18, 38123 Trento (Italy); Vettoruzzo, F. [Ronda High Tech, via Vegri 83, 36010 Zane’, Vicenza (Italy); Laidani, N. [Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK), Centro Materiali e Microsistemi, Functional Materials & Photonic Structures Unit, via Sommarive 18, 38123 Trento (Italy)

2016-02-29

By depositing single layer coatings by means of physical vapor techniques, tailoring of their coloration is generally complex because a given color can be obtained only by very high composition control. Physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes are expensive and cannot be easily used for obtaining conformal coating on three-dimensional objects. Moreover PVD coatings exhibit intrinsic defects (columnar structures, pores) that affect their functional properties and applications such as barrier layers. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology delivers conformal coatings on different materials with very low defectiveness. A straightforward coloration can be obtained by a combination of two types of layers with different refraction index, deposited to high thickness precision. Computer simulation studies were performed to design the thickness and architecture of multilayer structures, to a total thickness of approximately 100 nm, suitable to modify the typical coloration of some materials, without altering their other physical and chemical properties. The most promising nano-layered structures were then deposited by ALD and tested with regard to their optical properties. Their total thicknesses were specified in such a way to be technically feasible and compatible with future industrial production. The materials employed in this study to build the optical coatings, are two oxides (Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, TiO{sub 2}) deposited at 120 °C and two nitrides (AlN, TiN), which need a deposition temperature of 400 °C. The possibility of using such modern deposition technology for esthetic and decorative purposes, while maintaining the functional properties, opens perspectives of industrial applications. - Highlights: • Computer simulation is done to design multilayers made of Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, TiO{sub 2}, AlN, and TiN. • Total thickness (< 120 nm) is specified to be compatible with industrial production. • The most promising nano-layered structures are then produced and

Coloration of metallic and/or ceramic surfaces obtained by atomic layer deposited nano-coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guzman, L.; Vettoruzzo, F.; Laidani, N.

2016-01-01

By depositing single layer coatings by means of physical vapor techniques, tailoring of their coloration is generally complex because a given color can be obtained only by very high composition control. Physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes are expensive and cannot be easily used for obtaining conformal coating on three-dimensional objects. Moreover PVD coatings exhibit intrinsic defects (columnar structures, pores) that affect their functional properties and applications such as barrier layers. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) technology delivers conformal coatings on different materials with very low defectiveness. A straightforward coloration can be obtained by a combination of two types of layers with different refraction index, deposited to high thickness precision. Computer simulation studies were performed to design the thickness and architecture of multilayer structures, to a total thickness of approximately 100 nm, suitable to modify the typical coloration of some materials, without altering their other physical and chemical properties. The most promising nano-layered structures were then deposited by ALD and tested with regard to their optical properties. Their total thicknesses were specified in such a way to be technically feasible and compatible with future industrial production. The materials employed in this study to build the optical coatings, are two oxides (Al_2O_3, TiO_2) deposited at 120 °C and two nitrides (AlN, TiN), which need a deposition temperature of 400 °C. The possibility of using such modern deposition technology for esthetic and decorative purposes, while maintaining the functional properties, opens perspectives of industrial applications. - Highlights: • Computer simulation is done to design multilayers made of Al_2O_3, TiO_2, AlN, and TiN. • Total thickness (< 120 nm) is specified to be compatible with industrial production. • The most promising nano-layered structures are then produced and optically tested. • An

Metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy of AlN on sapphire with low etch pit density

Science.gov (United States)

Koleske, D. D.; Figiel, J. J.; Alliman, D. L.; Gunning, B. P.; Kempisty, J. M.; Creighton, J. R.; Mishima, A.; Ikenaga, K.

2017-06-01

Using metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy, methods were developed to achieve AlN films on sapphire with low etch pit density (EPD). Key to this achievement was using the same AlN growth recipe and only varying the pre-growth conditioning of the quartz-ware. After AlN growth, the quartz-ware was removed from the growth chamber and either exposed to room air or moved into the N2 purged glove box and exposed to H2O vapor. After the quartz-ware was exposed to room air or H2O, the AlN film growth was found to be more reproducible, resulting in films with (0002) and (10-12) x-ray diffraction (XRD) rocking curve linewidths of 200 and 500 arc sec, respectively, and EPDs < 100 cm-2. The EPD was found to correlate with (0002) linewidths, suggesting that the etch pits are associated with open core screw dislocations similar to GaN films. Once reproducible AlN conditions were established using the H2O pre-treatment, it was found that even small doses of trimethylaluminum (TMAl)/NH3 on the quartz-ware surfaces generated AlN films with higher EPDs. The presence of these residual TMAl/NH3-derived coatings in metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy (MOVPE) systems and their impact on the sapphire surface during heating might explain why reproducible growth of AlN on sapphire is difficult.

Synthesis and Performance Evaluation of Pulse Electrodeposited Ni-AlN Nanocomposite Coatings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamran Ali

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This research work presents the microscopic analysis of pulse electrodeposited Ni-AlN nanocomposite coatings using SEM and AFM techniques and their performance evaluation (mechanical and electrochemical by employing nanoindentation and electrochemical methods. The Ni-AlN nanocomposite coatings were developed by pulse electrodeposition. The nickel matrix was reinforced with various amounts of AlN nanoparticles (3, 6, and 9 g/L to develop Ni-AlN nanocomposite coatings. The effect of reinforcement concentration on structure, surface morphology, and mechanical and anticorrosion properties was studied. SEM and AFM analyses indicate that Ni-AlN nanocomposite coatings have dense, homogenous, and well-defined pyramid structure containing uniformly distributed AlN particles. A decent improvement in the corrosion protection performance is also observed by the addition of AlN particles to the nickel matrix. Corrosion current was reduced from 2.15 to 1.29 μA cm−2 by increasing the AlN particles concentration from 3 to 9 g/L. It has been observed that the properties of Ni-AlN nanocomposite coating are sensitive to the concentration of AlN nanoparticles used as reinforcement.

Electrochemical formation of AlN in molten LiCl-KCl-Li{sub 3}N systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Goto, Takuya [Department of Fundamental Energy Science, Graduate School of Energy Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan)]. E-mail: goto@energy.kyoto-u.ac.jp; Iwaki, Takayuki [Department of Fundamental Energy Science, Graduate School of Energy Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan); Ito, Yasuhiko [Department of Fundamental Energy Science, Graduate School of Energy Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo, Kyoto 606-8501 (Japan)

2005-01-30

Electrochemical formation of aluminum nitride was investigated in molten LiCl-KCl-Li{sub 3}N systems at 723 K. When Al was anodically polarized at 1.0 V (versus Li{sup +}/Li), oxidation of nitride ions proceeded to form adsorbed nitrogen atoms, which reacted with the surface to form AlN film. The obtained nitrided film had a thickness of sub-micron order. The obtained nitrided layer consisted of two regions; the outer layer involving AlN and aluminum oxynitride and the inner layer involving metallic Al and AlN. When Al electrode was anodically polarized at 2.0 V, anodic dissolution of Al electrode occurred to give aluminum ions, which reacted with nitride ions in the melt to produce AlN particles (1-5 {mu}m of diameter) of wurtzite structure.

A digital instrument for nondestructive measurements of coating thicknesses by beta backscattering

Science.gov (United States)

Farcasiu, D. M.; Apostolescu, T.; Bozdog, H.; Badescu, E.; Bohm, V.; Stanescu, S. P.; Jianu, A.; Bordeanu, C.; Cracium, M. V.

1992-02-01

The elements of nondestructive gauging of coatings applied on various metal bases are presented. The intensity of the backscattered beta radiations is related to the thickness of the coating. With a fixed measuring geometry and radioactive sources (147Pm, 204Tl, 90Sr+90Y) the intensity of the backscattered beta particles is dependent on the following parameters: coating thickness, atomic number of the coating material and of the base, the beta particle energy and the surface finish. It can be used for the measurement of a wide range of coating thicknesses provided that the difference between the coating and the support atomic numbers is at least 20%. Fields of application include electronics, electrotechnique and so on.

A digital instrument for nondestructive measurements of coating thicknesses by beta backscattering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Farcasiu, D.M.; Apostolescu, T.; Bozdog, H.; Badescu, E.; Bohm, V.; Stanescu, S.P.; Jianu, A.; Bordeanu, C.; Craciun, M.V.

1992-01-01

The elements of nondestructive gauging of coatings applied on various metal bases are presented. The intensity of the backscattered beta radiations is related to the thickness of the coating. With a fixed measuring geometry and radioactive sources ( 147 Pm, 204 Tl, 90 Sr+ 90 Y) the intensity of the backscattered beta particles is dependent on the following parameters: Coating thickness, atomic number of the coating material and of the base, the beta particle energy and the surface finish. It can be used for the measurement of a wide range of coating thicknesses provided that the difference between the coating and the support atomic numbers is at least 20%. Fields of application include electronics, electrotechnique and so on. (orig.)

Absolute Thickness Measurements on Coatings Without Prior Knowledge of Material Properties Using Terahertz Energy

Science.gov (United States)

Roth, Don J.; Cosgriff, Laura M.; Harder, Bryan; Zhu, Dongming; Martin, Richard E.

2013-01-01

This study investigates the applicability of a novel noncontact single-sided terahertz electromagnetic measurement method for measuring thickness in dielectric coating systems having either dielectric or conductive substrate materials. The method does not require knowledge of the velocity of terahertz waves in the coating material. The dielectric coatings ranged from approximately 300 to 1400 m in thickness. First, the terahertz method was validated on a bulk dielectric sample to determine its ability to precisely measure thickness and density variation. Then, the method was studied on simulated coating systems. One simulated coating consisted of layered thin paper samples of varying thicknesses on a ceramic substrate. Another simulated coating system consisted of adhesive-backed Teflon adhered to conducting and dielectric substrates. Alumina samples that were coated with a ceramic adhesive layer were also investigated. Finally, the method was studied for thickness measurement of actual thermal barrier coatings (TBC) on ceramic substrates. The unique aspects and limitations of this method for thickness measurements are discussed.

Investigation of different mechanisms of GaN growth induced on AlN and GaN nucleation layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tasco, V.; Campa, A.; Tarantini, I.; Passaseo, A.; Gonzalez-Posada, F.; Munoz, E.; Redondo-Cubero, A.; Lorenz, K.; Franco, N.

2009-01-01

The evolution of GaN growth on AlN and GaN nucleation layers is compared through morphological and structural analyses, including ion beam analysis. By using AlN nucleation layer grown at high temperature, improved crystalline quality is exhibited by 300 nm thin GaN epilayers. GaN (002) x-ray rocking curve as narrow as 168 arc sec and atomic-step surface morphology characterize such a thin GaN film on AlN. Defects are strongly confined into the first 50 nm of growth, whereas a fast laterally coherent growth is observed when increasing thickness, as an effect of high temperature AlN surface morphology and Ga adatom dynamics over this template

Coating Thickness Measurement of the Simulated TRISO-Coated Fuel Particles using an Image Plate and a High Resolution Scanner

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Woong Ki; Kim, Yeon Ku; Jeong, Kyung Chai; Lee, Young Woo; Kim, Bong Goo; Eom, Sung Ho; Kim, Young Min; Yeo, Sung Hwan; Cho, Moon Sung

2014-01-01

In this study, the thickness of the coating layers of 196 coated particles was measured using an Image Plate detector, high resolution scanner and digital image processing techniques. The experimental results are as follows. - An X-ray image was acquired for 196 simulated TRISO-coated fuel particles with ZrO 2 kernel using an Image Plate with high resolution in a reduced amount of time. - We could observe clear boundaries between coating layers for 196 particles. - The geometric distortion error was compensated for the calculation. - The coating thickness of the TRISO-coated fuel particles can be nondestructively measured using X-ray radiography and digital image processing technology. - We can increase the number of TRISO-coated particles to be inspected by increasing the number of Image Plate detectors. A TRISO-coated fuel particle for an HTGR (high temperature gas-cooled reactor) is composed of a nuclear fuel kernel and outer coating layers. The coating layers consist of buffer PyC (pyrolytic carbon), inner PyC (I-PyC), SiC, and outer PyC (O-PyC) layer. The coating thickness is measured to evaluate the soundness of the coating layers. X-ray radiography is one of the nondestructive alternatives for measuring the coating thickness without generating a radioactive waste. Several billion particles are subject to be loaded in a reactor. A lot of sample particles should be tested as much as possible. The acquired X-ray images for the measurement of coating thickness have included a small number of particles because of the restricted resolution and size of the X-ray detector. We tried to test many particles for an X-ray exposure to reduce the measurement time. In this experiment, an X-ray image was acquired for 196 simulated TRISO-coated fuel particles using an image plate and high resolution scanner with a pixel size of 25Χ25 μm 2 . The coating thickness for the particles could be measured on the image

Growth of high quality AlN films on CVD diamond by RF reactive magnetron sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Liang-xian; Liu, Hao; Liu, Sheng; Li, Cheng-ming; Wang, Yi-chao; An, Kang; Hua, Chen-yi; Liu, Jin-long; Wei, Jun-jun; Hei, Li-fu; Lv, Fan-xiu

2018-02-01

A highly oriented AlN layer has been successfully grown along the c-axis on a polycrystalline chemical vapor deposited (CVD) diamond by RF reactive magnetron sputtering. Structural, morphological and mechanical properties of the heterostructure were investigated by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Nano-indentation and Four-probe meter. A compact AlN film was demonstrated on the diamond layer, showing columnar grains and a low surface roughness of 1.4 nm. TEM results revealed a sharp AlN/diamond interface, which was characterized by the presence of a distinct 10 nm thick buffer layer resulting from the initial AlN growth stage. The FWHM of AlN (002) diffraction peak and its rocking curve are as low as 0.41° and 3.35° respectively, indicating a highly preferred orientation along the c-axis. AlN sputtered films deposited on glass substrates show a higher bulk resistivity (up to 3 × 1012 Ω cm), compared to AlN films deposited on diamond (∼1010 Ω cm). Finally, the film hardness and Young's modulus of AlN films on diamond are 25.8 GPa and 489.5 GPa, respectively.

Microstructure and Wear Resistance of TIG Remelted NiCrBSi Thick Coatings

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guo-lu Li

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The self-fluxing NiCrBSi coatings with 800 μm thickness were prepared on the surface of AISI1045 steel substrate by plasma spraying. And the remelted coating was obtained using by the tungsten inert gas (TIG arc process. The microstructure, surface roughness, hardness, phase composition, and wear resistance of the sprayed coating and remelted coating were systematically investigated. The results demonstrate that TIG remelted treatment can significantly eliminate the microscopic defects in thick coating and improve its density. The surface roughness (Ra of the remelted coating is only 18.9% of the sprayed coating. The hardness of the remelted coating is 26.8% higher than that of the sprayed coating. The main phases in the sprayed coating are changed from γ-Ni, Cr7C3, and Cr2B to γ-Ni, Cr23C6, CrB, Ni3B, and Fe3C. The wear mass loss of the remelted coating is only 17.1% of the sprayed coating. Therefore, a Ni-based thick coating with good wear resistance can be obtained by plasma spraying and remelted technique.

The extraordinary role of the AlN interlayer in growth of AlN sputtered on Ti electrodes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tran, Tuan; Pandraud, G.; Tichelaar, F.D.; Nguyen, Duc Minh; Schellevis, H.; Sarro, P.M.

2013-01-01

The structure of AlN layers grown on Ti with and without an AlN interlayer between the Si substrate and the Ti layer is investigated. The AlN grains take over the orientation of the Ti columnar grains in both cases. Surprisingly, the Ti grains do not take over completely the orientations of the AlN

Vapor deposition on doublet airfoil substrates: Control of coating thickness and microstructure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rodgers, Theron M.; Zhao, Hengbei; Wadley, Haydn N. G., E-mail: haydn@virginia.edu [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Virginia, 395 McCormick Rd., P.O. Box 400745, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904 (United States)

2015-11-15

Gas jet assisted vapor deposition processes for depositing coatings are conducted at higher pressures than conventional physical vapor deposition methods, and have shown promise for coating complex shaped substrates including those with non-line-of-sight (NLS) regions on their surface. These regions typically receive vapor atoms at a lower rate and with a wider incident angular distribution than substrate regions in line-of-sight (LS) of the vapor source. To investigate the coating of such substrates, the thickness and microstructure variation along the inner (curved) surfaces of a model doublet airfoil containing both LS and NLS regions has been investigated. Results from atomistic simulations and experiments confirm that the coating's thickness is thinner in flux-shadowed regions than in other regions for all the coating processes investigated. They also indicated that the coatings columnar microstructure and pore volume fraction vary with surface location through the LS to NLS transition zone. A substrate rotation strategy for optimizing the thickness over the entire doublet airfoil surface was investigated, and led to the identification of a process that resulted in only small variation of coating thickness, columnar growth angle, and pore volume fraction on all doublet airfoil surfaces.

Barrier effect of AlN film in flexible Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} solar cells on stainless steel foil and solar cell

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Boyan; Li, Jianjun [Institute of Photo-electronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Key Laboratory of Photo-electronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071 (China); Wu, Li [The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, School of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071 (China); Liu, Wei; Sun, Yun [Institute of Photo-electronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Key Laboratory of Photo-electronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071 (China); Zhang, Yi, E-mail: yizhang@nankai.edu.cn [Institute of Photo-electronic Thin Film Devices and Technology, Key Laboratory of Photo-electronic Thin Film Devices and Technology of Tianjin, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071 (China)

2015-04-05

Highlights: • The adhension between AlN film and Mo are verygood. • AlN film can be effectively used as the barrier of flexible CIGS solar cell on SS substrate. • AlN film is suitable as the insulation barrier of flexible CIGS solar cell on SS substrate. - Abstract: The AlN film deposited by DC magnetron sputtering on stainless steel (SS) foils was used as the barrier in flexible Cu(In,Ga)Se{sub 2} (CIGS) solar cells on stainless steel foil and characterized comprehensively by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), I–V, and QE measurements study. The study of AlN as insulation barrier in the flexible CIGS solar cell showed that the adhesion strength between the SS foil and the deposited AlN film was very strong even after annealing at high temperature at 530 °C. More importantly, a high resistance of over 10 MΩ was remained with the film with thickness of around 200 nm after annealing. This indicates that the AlN film is suitable as an effective insulation barrier in flexible CIGS solar cells based on SS foil. In addition, the XRD and SEM results showed that the AlN film did not influence the crystal structure of the Mo film which was deposited upon the AlN layer and used as the electrical contact in CIGS solar cells. It was found that the AlN film contributed to an improved crystallinity of the Mo contact layer compared to the bare SS foil. The combined results of secondary ion mass spectrometry, I–V and EQE measurements of the corresponding flexible CIGS solar cells confirmed that 1 μm-thick AlN film could be used as an efficient barrier layer in CIGS solar cells on SS foil.

Dynamic-speckle profilometer for online measurements of coating thickness

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kamshilin, A A [Laboratory of Optical Sensor Technology, Department of Physics, University of Kuopio, PO Box 1627, FIN-70211 Kuopio (Finland); Semenov, D V [Laboratory of Optical Sensor Technology, Department of Physics, University of Kuopio, PO Box 1627, FIN-70211 Kuopio (Finland); Nippolainen, E [Laboratory of Optical Sensor Technology, Department of Physics, University of Kuopio, PO Box 1627, FIN-70211 Kuopio (Finland); Miridonov, S [Optics Department, CICESE, Carr. Tijuana-Ensenada km 107, C.P. 22860, A.P. 360, Ensenada, B.C. (Mexico)

2007-10-15

Online control of thickness of as-deposited coatings is of great importance because it directly affects the quality of protective coatings. We present a novel approach that enables online, real-time and non-contact measurements thickness of thermally sprayed coatings. The proposed technique uses dynamic speckles generated by rapidly deflecting laser beam. Within 10 ms the system can scan 500 times a small area of the deposited layer thus resulting in measurement accuracy of 5 microns irrespectively of the layer roughness. In comparison with traditional optical triangulation technique of distance measurements, our system has following advantages: (i) much simpler optical scheme that includes conventional photodiode to measure the scattered light, (ii) much simpler electronics for real-time data processing, (iii) much higher speed of measurements.

Dynamic-speckle profilometer for online measurements of coating thickness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kamshilin, A A; Semenov, D V; Nippolainen, E; Miridonov, S

2007-01-01

Online control of thickness of as-deposited coatings is of great importance because it directly affects the quality of protective coatings. We present a novel approach that enables online, real-time and non-contact measurements thickness of thermally sprayed coatings. The proposed technique uses dynamic speckles generated by rapidly deflecting laser beam. Within 10 ms the system can scan 500 times a small area of the deposited layer thus resulting in measurement accuracy of 5 microns irrespectively of the layer roughness. In comparison with traditional optical triangulation technique of distance measurements, our system has following advantages: (i) much simpler optical scheme that includes conventional photodiode to measure the scattered light, (ii) much simpler electronics for real-time data processing, (iii) much higher speed of measurements

Enhanced electron emission from coated metal targets: Effect of surface thickness on performance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Saibabu Madas

2018-03-01

Full Text Available In this work, we establish an analytical formalism to address the temperature dependent electron emission from a metallic target with thin coating, operating at a finite temperature. Taking into account three dimensional parabolic energy dispersion for the target (base material and suitable thickness dependent energy dispersion for the coating layer, Fermi Dirac statistics of electron energy distribution and Fowler’s mechanism of the electron emission, we discuss the dependence of the emission flux on the physical properties such as the Fermi level, work function, thickness of the coating material, and operating temperature. Our systematic estimation of how the thickness of coating affects the emission current demonstrates superior emission characteristics for thin coating layer at high temperature (above 1000 K, whereas in low temperature regime, a better response is expected from thicker coating layer. This underlying fundamental behavior appears to be essentially identical for all configurations when work function of the coating layer is lower than that of the bulk target work function. The analysis and predictions could be useful in designing new coated materials with suitable thickness for applications in the field of thin film devices and field emitters.

Enhanced electron emission from coated metal targets: Effect of surface thickness on performance

Science.gov (United States)

Madas, Saibabu; Mishra, S. K.; Upadhyay Kahaly, Mousumi

2018-03-01

In this work, we establish an analytical formalism to address the temperature dependent electron emission from a metallic target with thin coating, operating at a finite temperature. Taking into account three dimensional parabolic energy dispersion for the target (base) material and suitable thickness dependent energy dispersion for the coating layer, Fermi Dirac statistics of electron energy distribution and Fowler's mechanism of the electron emission, we discuss the dependence of the emission flux on the physical properties such as the Fermi level, work function, thickness of the coating material, and operating temperature. Our systematic estimation of how the thickness of coating affects the emission current demonstrates superior emission characteristics for thin coating layer at high temperature (above 1000 K), whereas in low temperature regime, a better response is expected from thicker coating layer. This underlying fundamental behavior appears to be essentially identical for all configurations when work function of the coating layer is lower than that of the bulk target work function. The analysis and predictions could be useful in designing new coated materials with suitable thickness for applications in the field of thin film devices and field emitters.

Growth and characterization of thick cBN coatings on silicon and tool substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bewilogua, K.; Keunecke, M.; Weigel, K.; Wiemann, E.

2004-01-01

Recently some research groups have achieved progress in the deposition of cubic boron nitride (cBN) coatings with a thickness of 2 μm and more, which is necessary for cutting tool applications. In our laboratory, thick cBN coatings were sputter deposited on silicon substrates using a boron carbide target. Following a boron carbide interlayer (few 100 nm thick), a gradient layer with continuously increasing nitrogen content was prepared. After the cBN nucleation, the process parameters were modified for the cBN film growth to a thickness of more than 2 μm. However, the transfer of this technology to technically relevant substrates, like cemented carbide cutting inserts, required some further process modifications. At first, a titanium interlayer had to be deposited followed by a more than 1-μm-thick boron carbide layer. The next steps were identical to those on silicon substrates. The total coating thickness was in the range of 3 μm with a 0.5- to nearly 1-μm-thick cBN top layer. In spite of the enormous intrinsic stress, both the coatings on silicon and on cemented carbide exhibited a good adhesion and a prolonged stability in humid air. Oxidation experiments revealed a stability of the coating system on cemented carbide up to 700 deg. C and higher. Coated cutting inserts were tested in turning operations with different metallic workpiece materials. The test results will be compared to those of well-established cutting materials, like polycrystalline cubic boron nitride (PCBN) and oxide ceramics, considering the wear of coated tools

Mechanical and tribological properties of crystalline aluminum nitride coatings deposited on stainless steel by magnetron sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

Choudhary, R. K.; Mishra, S. C.; Mishra, P.; Limaye, P. K.; Singh, K.

2015-11-01

Aluminum nitride (AlN) coating is a potential candidate for addressing the problems of MHD pressure drop, tritium permeation and liquid metal corrosion of the test blanket module of fusion reactor. In this work, AlN coatings were grown on stainless steel by magnetron sputtering. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction measurement revealed that formation of mixed phase (wurtzite and rock salt) AlN was favored at low discharge power and substrate negative biasing. However, at sufficiently high discharge power and substrate bias, (100) oriented wurtzite AlN was obtained. Secondary ion mass spectroscopy showed presence of oxygen in the coatings. The highest value of hardness and Young's modulus were 14.1 GPa and 215 GPa, respectively. Scratch test showed adhesive failure at a load of about 20 N. Wear test showed improved wear resistance of the coatings obtained at higher substrate bias.

The optical properties and applications of AlN thin films prepared by a helicon sputtering system

CERN Document Server

Chiu, W Y; Kao, H L; Jeng, E S; Chen, J S; Jaing, C C

2002-01-01

AlN thin films were grown on SiO sub 2 /Si and quartz substrates using a helicon sputtering system. The dependence of film quality on growth parameters, such as total sputtering pressure, substrate temperature, and nitrogen concentration has been studied. There is a good correlation of thin film crystallinity addressed by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and spectroscopic ellipsometer. The optimized films exhibit highly oriented, with only (002) peak shown in a theta-2 theta scan XRD pattern, and extremely smooth surface with rms roughness of 2 Aa. The extinction coefficient of the film was 4x10 sup - sup 4 , which is lower than that of AlN films grown by conventional sputtering. Double-layer antireflection (DLAR) coating using AlN and Al sub 3 O sub 3 grown on quartz has been demonstrated. The transmittance of DLAR was high as 96% compared to 93% of bare substrates with the measurement error less than 0.2%. AlN films prepared by Helicon sputtering thus are potential for optical application.

Modeling of Thickness and Profile Uniformity of Thermally Sprayed Coatings Deposited on Cylinders

Science.gov (United States)

Yanjun, Zhang; Wenbo, Li; Dayu, Li; Jinkun, Xiao; Chao, Zhang

2018-02-01

In thermal spraying processes, kinematic parameters of the robot play a decisive role in the coating thickness and profile. In this regard, some achievements have been made to optimize the spray trajectory on flat surfaces. However, few reports have focused on nonholonomic or variable-curvature cylindrical surfaces. The aim of this study is to investigate the correlation between the coating profile, coating thickness, and scanning step, which is determined by the radius of curvature and scanning angle. A mathematical simulation model was developed to predict the thickness of thermally sprayed coatings. Experiments were performed on cylinders with different radiuses of curvature to evaluate the predictive ability of the model.

Electrical and materials properties of AlN/ HfO{sub 2} high-k stack with a metal gate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reid, Kimberly G. [Tokyo Electron U.S., 14338 FM 1826, Austin, TX 78737 (United States)], E-mail: kim@ireid.com; Dip, Anthony [Tokyo Electron U.S., 2400 Grove Blvd., Austin, TX 78747 (United States)], E-mail: anthony.dip@us.tel.com; Sasaki, Sadao [Tokyo Electron U.S. (United States)], E-mail: Sadao.sasaki@us.tel.com; Triyoso, Dina [Freescale Semiconductor Inc., 3501 Ed Bluestein Blvd, Austin, TX 78721 (United States)], E-mail: Dina.Triyoso@freescale.com; Samavedam, Sri [Freescale Semiconductor Inc., 3501 Ed Bluestein Blvd, Austin, TX 78721 (United States)], E-mail: Sri.Samavedam@freescale.com; Gilmer, David [SEMATECH 2706 Montopolis Drive, Austin, TX 78741 (United States)], E-mail: David.Gilmer@sematech.org; Gondran, Carolyn F.H. [Process Characterization Laboratory, ATDF/SEMATECH, 2706 Montopolis Drive, Austin, Texas 78741 (United States)], E-mail: Carolyn.Gondran@atdf.com

2009-02-27

In this study, aluminum nitride (AlN) was grown by molecular layer deposition on HfO{sub 2} that had been deposited on 200 mm Si (100) substrates. The AlN was grown on HfO{sub 2} using sequential exposures of trimethyl-aluminum and ammonia (NH{sub 3}) in a batch vertical furnace. Excellent thickness uniformity on test wafers from the top of the furnace to the bottom of the furnace (across the furnace load) was obtained. The equivalent oxide thickness was 16.5-18.8 A for the AlN/HfO{sub 2} stack on patterned device wafers with a molybdenum oxynitride metal gate with leakage current densities from low 10{sup -5} to mid 10{sup -6} A/cm{sup 2} at threshold voltage minus one volt. There was no change in the work function with the AlN cap on HfO{sub 2} with the MoN metal gate, even with a 1000 deg. C anneal.

DLC and AlN thin films influence the thermal conduction of HPLED light

Science.gov (United States)

Hsu, Ming Seng; Hsu, Ching Yao; Huang, Jen Wei; Shyu, Feng Lin

2015-08-01

Thermal dissipation had an important influence in the effect and life of light emitting diodes (LED) because it enables transfer the heat away from electric device to the aluminum plate that can be used for heat removal. In the industrial processing, the quality of the thermal dissipation decides by the gumming technique between the PCB and aluminum plate. In this study, we fabricated double layer ceramic thin films of diamond like carbon (DLC) and alumina nitride (AlN) by vacuum sputtering soldered the substrate of high power light emitting diodes (HPLED) light to check the heat conduction. The ceramic dielectric coatings were characterized by several subsequent analyses, especially the measurement of real work temperature. The X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) patterns reveal those ceramic phases were successfully grown onto the substrate. The work temperatures show DLC and AlN films coating had limited the heat transfer by the lower thermal conductivity of these ceramic films. Obviously, it hadn't transferred heat and limited work temperature of HPLED better than DLC thin film only.

Corrosion performance of some titanium-based hard coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthes, B.; Broszeit, E.; Aromaa, J.; Ronkainen, H.; Hannula, S.P.; Leyland, A.; Matthews, A.

1991-01-01

Tools and machine parts which could benefit from wear-resistant titanium-based hard films are often subject to corrosive environments. Physically vapour-deposited coatings frequently exhibit porosity and even small defects, which can cause rapid local corrosion of the substrate material; there is therefore a requirement for dense and chemically inert coatings. This paper presents corrosion data for titanium-based hard coatings such as TiN, (Ti, Al)N, Ti(B, N) and TiB 2 and also for multilayered structures where additional aluminium-based insulating surface layers (AlN and Al 2 O 3 ) were deposited. The corrosion resistance and porosity of the films were analysed by electrochemical techniques. The degree of metallic bonding can play a significant role in influencing the corrosion resistance of refractory transition-metal-based ceramic coatings. Here we demonstrate that, under potentiodynamic corrosion test conditions, resistance to corrosive attack was relatively poor for TiB 2 , better for (Ti, Al)N and Ti(B, N) and best for TiN. It is also shown that applying the additional protective aluminium-based insulating surface layers on the coating can further improve corrosion resistance. (orig.)

Method of accurate thickness measurement of boron carbide coating on copper foil

Science.gov (United States)

Lacy, Jeffrey L.; Regmi, Murari

2017-11-07

A method is disclosed of measuring the thickness of a thin coating on a substrate comprising dissolving the coating and substrate in a reagent and using the post-dissolution concentration of the coating in the reagent to calculate an effective thickness of the coating. The preferred method includes measuring non-conducting films on flexible and rough substrates, but other kinds of thin films can be measure by matching a reliable film-substrate dissolution technique. One preferred method includes determining the thickness of Boron Carbide films deposited on copper foil. The preferred method uses a standard technique known as inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICPOES) to measure boron concentration in a liquid sample prepared by dissolving boron carbide films and the Copper substrates, preferably using a chemical etch known as ceric ammonium nitrate (CAN). Measured boron concentration values can then be calculated.

Effect of coating thickness on interfacial shear behavior of zirconia-coated sapphire fibers in a polycrystalline alumina matrix

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hellmann, J.R.; Chou, Y.S.

1995-01-01

The effect of zirconia (ZrO 2 ) interfacial coatings on the interfacial shear behavior in sapphire reinforced alumina was examined in this study. Zirconia coatings of thicknesses ranging from 0.15 to 1.45 μm were applied to single crystal sapphire (Saphikon) fibers using a particulate loaded sol dipping technique. After calcining at 1,100 C in air, the coated fibers were incorporated into a polycrystalline alumina matrix via hot pressing. Interfacial shear strength and sliding behavior of the coated fibers was examined using thin-slice indentation fiber pushout and pushback techniques. In all cases, debonding and sliding occurred at the interface between the fibers and the coating. The coatings exhibited a dense microstructure and led to a higher interfacial shear strength (> 240 MPa) and interfacial sliding stress (> 75 MPa) relative to previous studies on the effect of a porous interphase on interfacial properties. The interfacial shear strength decreased with increasing fiber coating thickness (from 389 ± 59 to 241 ± 43 MPa for 0.15 to 1.45 microm thick coatings, respectively). Sliding behavior exhibited load modulation with increasing displacement during fiber sliding which is characteristic of fiber roughness-induced stick-slip. The high interfacial shear strengths and sliding stresses measured in this study, as well as the potentially strength degrading surface reconstruction observed on the coated fibers after hot pressing and heat treatment, indicate that dense zirconia coatings are not suitable candidates for optimizing composite toughness and strength in the sapphire fiber reinforced alumina system

Studies on Preparation and Characterization of Aluminum Nitride-Coated Carbon Fibers and Thermal Conductivity of Epoxy Matrix Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hyeon-Hye Kim

2017-08-01

Full Text Available In this work; the effects of an aluminum nitride (AlN ceramic coating on the thermal conductivity of carbon fiber-reinforced composites were studied. AlN were synthesized by a wet-thermal treatment (WTT method in the presence of copper catalysts. The WTT method was carried out in a horizontal tube furnace at above 1500 °C under an ammonia (NH3 gas atmosphere balanced by a nitrogen using aluminum chloride as a precursor. Copper catalysts pre-doped enhance the interfacial bonding of the AlN with the carbon fiber surfaces. They also help to introduce AlN bonds by interrupting aluminum oxide (Al2O3 formation in combination with oxygen. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM; Transmission electron microscopy (TEM; and X-ray diffraction (XRD were used to analyze the carbon fiber surfaces and structures at each step (copper-coating step and AlN formation step. In conclusion; we have demonstrated a synthesis route for preparing an AlN coating on the carbon fiber surfaces in the presence of a metallic catalyst.

Ion Diffusion-Directed Assembly Approach to Ultrafast Coating of Graphene Oxide Thick Multilayers.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Xiaoli; Gao, Weiwei; Yao, Weiquan; Jiang, Yanqiu; Xu, Zhen; Gao, Chao

2017-10-24

The layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly approach has been widely used to fabricate multilayer coatings on substrates with multiple cycles, whereas it is hard to access thick films efficiently. Here, we developed an ion diffusion-directed assembly (IDDA) strategy to rapidly make multilayer thick coatings in one step on arbitrary substrates. To achieve multifunctional coatings, graphene oxide (GO) and metallic ions were selected as the typical building blocks and diffusion director in IDDA, respectively. With diffusion of metallic ions from substrate to negatively charged GO dispersion spontaneously (i.e., from high-concentration region to low-concentration region), GO was assembled onto the substrate sheet-by-sheet via sol-gel transformation. Because metallic ions with size of subnanometers can diffuse directionally and freely in the aqueous dispersion, GO was coated on the substrate efficiently, giving rise to films with desired thickness up to 10 μm per cycle. The IDDA approach shows three main merits: (1) high efficiency with a μm-scale coating rate; (2) controllability over thickness and evenness; and (3) generality for substrates of plastics, metals and ceramics with any shapes and morphologies. With these merits, IDDA strategy was utilized in the efficient fabrication of functional graphene coatings that exhibit outstanding performance as supercapacitors, electromagnetic interference shielding textiles, and anticorrosion coatings. This IDDA approach can be extended to other building blocks including polymers and colloidal nanoparticles, promising for the scalable production and application of multifunctional coatings.

Surface state of GaN after rapid-thermal-annealing using AlN cap-layer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

El-Zammar, G., E-mail: georgio.elzammar@univ-tours.fr [Université François Rabelais, Tours, GREMAN, CNRS UMR 7347, 10 rue Thalès de Milet CS 97155, 37071 Tours Cedex 2 (France); Khalfaoui, W. [Université François Rabelais, Tours, GREMAN, CNRS UMR 7347, 10 rue Thalès de Milet CS 97155, 37071 Tours Cedex 2 (France); Oheix, T. [Université François Rabelais, Tours, GREMAN, CNRS UMR 7347, 10 rue Thalès de Milet CS 97155, 37071 Tours Cedex 2 (France); STMicroelectronics, 10 rue Thalès de Milet CS 97155, 37071 Tours Cedex 2 (France); Yvon, A.; Collard, E. [STMicroelectronics, 10 rue Thalès de Milet CS 97155, 37071 Tours Cedex 2 (France); Cayrel, F.; Alquier, D. [Université François Rabelais, Tours, GREMAN, CNRS UMR 7347, 10 rue Thalès de Milet CS 97155, 37071 Tours Cedex 2 (France)

2015-11-15

Graphical abstract: Surface state of a crack-free AlN cap-layer reactive sputtered on GaN and annealed at high temperature showing a smooth, pit-free surface. - Highlights: • We deposit a crystalline AlN layer by reactive magnetron sputtering on GaN. • We show the effect of deposition parameters of AlN by reactive magnetron sputtering on the quality of the grown layer. • We demonstrate the efficiency of double cap-layer for GaN protection during high temperature thermal treatments. • We show an efficient selective etch of AlN without damaging GaN surface. - Abstract: Critical issues need to be overcome to produce high performance Schottky diodes on gallium nitride (GaN). To activate dopant, high temperature thermal treatments are required but damage GaN surface where hexagonal pits appear and prevent any device processing. In this paper, we investigated the efficiency of cap-layers on GaN during thermal treatments to avoid degradation. Aluminum nitride (AlN) and silicon oxide (SiO{sub x}) were grown on GaN by direct current reactive magnetron sputtering and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition, respectively. AlN growth parameters were studied to understand their effect on the grown layers and their protection efficiency. Focused ion beam was used to measure AlN layer thickness. Crystalline quality and exact composition were verified using X-ray diffraction and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Two types of rapid thermal annealing at high temperatures were investigated. Surface roughness and pits density were evaluated using atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Cap-layers wet etching was processed in H{sub 3}PO{sub 4} at 120 °C for AlN and in HF (10%) for SiO{sub x}. This work reveals effective protection of GaN during thermal treatments at temperatures as high as 1150 °C. Low surface roughness was obtained. Furthermore, no hexagonal pit was observed on the surface.

Thick sputtered tantalum coatings for high-temperature energy conversion applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Stelmakh, Veronika, E-mail: stelmakh@mit.edu; Peykov, Daniel; Chan, Walker R.; Senkevich, Jay J.; Joannopoulos, John D.; Soljačić, Marin; Celanovic, Ivan [Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139 (United States); Castillo, Robert; Coulter, Kent; Wei, Ronghua [Materials Engineering Department, Southwest Research Institute, San Antonio, Texas 78238 (United States)

2015-11-15

Thick sputtered tantalum (Ta) coatings on polished Inconel were investigated as a potential replacement for bulk refractory metal substrates used for high-temperature emitters and absorbers in thermophotovoltaic energy conversion applications. In these applications, high-temperature stability and high reflectance of the surface in the infrared wavelength range are critical in order to sustain operational temperatures and reduce losses due to waste heat. The reflectance of the coatings (8 and 30 μm) was characterized with a conformal protective hafnia layer as-deposited and after one hour anneals at 700, 900, and 1100 °C. To further understand the high-temperature performance of the coatings, the microstructural evolution was investigated as a function of annealing temperature. X-ray diffraction was used to analyze the texture and residual stress in the coatings at four reflections (220, 310, 222, and 321), as-deposited and after anneal. No significant changes in roughness, reflectance, or stress were observed. No delamination or cracking occurred, even after annealing the coatings at 1100 °C. Overall, the results of this study suggest that the thick Ta coatings are a promising alternative to bulk substrates and pave the way for a relatively low-cost and easily integrated platform for nanostructured devices in high-temperature energy conversion applications.

Design of Thermal Barrier Coatings Thickness for Gas Turbine Blade Based on Finite Element Analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Biao Li

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs are deposited on the turbine blade to reduce the temperature of underlying substrate, as well as providing protection against the oxidation and hot corrosion from high temperature gas. Optimal ceramic top-coat thickness distribution on the blade can improve the performance and efficiency of the coatings. Design of the coatings thickness is a multiobjective optimization problem due to the conflicts among objectives of high thermal insulation performance, long operation durability, and low fabrication cost. This work developed a procedure for designing the TBCs thickness distribution for the gas turbine blade. Three-dimensional finite element models were built and analyzed, and weighted-sum approach was employed to solve the multiobjective optimization problem herein. Suitable multiregion top-coat thickness distribution scheme was designed with the considerations of manufacturing accuracy, productivity, and fabrication cost.

Influence of ceramic dental crown coating substrate thickness ratio on strain energy release rate

Science.gov (United States)

Khasnulhadi, K.; Daud, R.; Mat, F.; Noor, S. N. F. M.; Basaruddin, K. S.; Sulaiman, M. H.

2017-10-01

This paper presents the analysis of coating substrate thickness ratio effect on the crown coating fracture behaviour. The bi-layer material is examined under four point bending with pre-crack at the bottom of the core material by using finite element. Three different coating thickness of core/substrate was tested which is 1:1, 1:2 and 2:1. The fracture parameters are analysed based on bilayer and homogenous elastic interaction. The result shows that the ratio thickness of core/veneer provided a significant effect on energy release rate.

Microstructure and mechanical properties of stress-tailored piezoelectric AlN thin films for electro-acoustic devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Reusch, Markus, E-mail: markus.reusch@iaf.fraunhofer.de [Laboratory for Compound Semiconductor Microsystems, IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg (Germany); Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany); Cherneva, Sabina [Institute of Mechanics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., Bl. 4, 1113 Sofia (Bulgaria); Lu, Yuan; Žukauskaitė, Agnė; Kirste, Lutz; Holc, Katarzyna [Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany); Datcheva, Maria [Institute of Mechanics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., Bl. 4, 1113 Sofia (Bulgaria); Stoychev, Dimitar [Institute of Physical Chemistry, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., Bl. 11, 1113 Sofia (Bulgaria); Lebedev, Vadim [Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany); Ambacher, Oliver [Laboratory for Compound Semiconductor Microsystems, IMTEK - Department of Microsystems Engineering, University of Freiburg, Georges-Koehler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg (Germany); Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics, Tullastrasse 72, 79108 Freiburg (Germany)

2017-06-15

Highlights: • Sputtered AlN thin films with minimized intrinsic stress gradient. • Gradual increase of N{sub 2} concentration during film growth. • No degradation of AlN film properties by changing process conditions. • 2D Raman mapping of nanoindentation area. - Abstract: Nanoindentation measurements along with atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and residual stress analyses on the basis of Raman measurements have been performed to characterize stress-tailored AlN thin films grown using reactive RF magnetron sputtering. The intrinsic stress gradient caused by the growing in-plane grain size along film thickness was minimized by increasing the N{sub 2} concentration in the Ar/N{sub 2} gas mixture during the growth process. The increase of N{sub 2} concentration did not degrade the device-relevant material properties such as crystallographic orientation, surface morphology, piezoelectric response, or indentation modulus. Due to comparable crystallographic film properties for all investigated samples it was concluded that mainly the AlN crystallites contribute to the mechanical film properties such as indentation modulus and hardness, while the film stress or grain boundaries had only a minor influence. Therefore, by tailoring the stress gradient in the AlN films, device performance, fabrication yield, and the design flexibility of electro-acoustic devices can be greatly improved.

Effect of Coating Thickness on the Properties of TiN Coatings Deposited on Tool Steels Using Cathodic Arc Pvd Technique

Science.gov (United States)

Mubarak, A.; Akhter, Parvez; Hamzah, Esah; Mohd Toff, Mohd Radzi Hj.; Qazi, Ishtiaq A.

Titanium nitride (TiN) widely used as hard coating material, was coated on tool steels, namely on high-speed steel (HSS) and D2 tool steel by physical vapor deposition method. The study concentrated on cathodic arc physical vapor deposition (CAPVD), a technique used for the deposition of hard coatings for tooling applications, and which has many advantages. The main drawback of this technique, however, is the formation of macrodroplets (MDs) during deposition, resulting in films with rougher morphology. Various standard characterization techniques and equipment, such as electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, hardness testing machine, scratch tester, and pin-on-disc machine, were used to analyze and quantify the following properties and parameters: surface morphology, thickness, hardness, adhesion, and coefficient of friction (COF) of the deposited coatings. Surface morphology revealed that the MDs produced during the etching stage, protruded through the TiN film, resulting in film with deteriorated surface features. Both coating thickness and indentation loads influenced the hardness of the deposited coatings. The coatings deposited on HSS exhibit better adhesion compared to those on D2 tool steel. Standard deviation indicates that the coating deposited with thickness around 6.7 μm showed the most stable trend of COF versus sliding distance.

Radiographic detection of 100 A thickness variations in 1-μm-thick coatings applied to submillimeter-diameter laser fusion targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stupin, D.M.

1986-01-01

We have developed x-ray radiography to measure thickness variations of coatings on laser fusion targets. Our technique is based on measuring the variation in x-ray transmission through the targets. The simplest targets are hollow glass microshells or microballoons 100 to 500 μm in diameter, that have several layers of metals or plastics, 1 to 100 μm thick. Our goal is to examine these opaque coatings for thickness variations as small as 1% or 0.1%, depending on the type of defect. Using contact radiography we have obtained the desired sensitivity for concentric and elliptical defects of 1%. This percentage corresponds to thickness variations as small as 100 A in a 1-μm-thick coating. For warts and dimples, the desired sensitivity is a function of the area of the defect, and we are developing a system to detect 0.1% thickness variations that cover an area 10 μm by 10 μm. We must use computer analysis of contact radiographs to measure 1% thickness variations in either concentricity or ellipticity. Because this analysis takes so long on our minicomputer, we preselect the radiographs by looking for defects at the 10% level on a video image analysis system

In situ measurement of low-Z material coating thickness on high Z substrate for tokamaks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mueller, D., E-mail: dmueller@pppl.gov; Roquemore, A. L.; Jaworski, M.; Skinner, C. H.; Miller, J.; Creely, A. [Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton, New Jersey 08543 (United States); Raman, P.; Ruzic, D. [Department of Nuclear, Plasma, and Radiological Engineering, Center for Plasma Material Interaction, University of Illinois, Urbana, Illinois 61801 (United States)

2014-11-15

Rutherford backscattering of energetic particles can be used to determine the thickness of a coating of a low-Z material over a heavier substrate. Simulations indicate that 5 MeV alpha particles from an {sup 241}Am source can be used to measure the thickness of a Li coating on Mo tiles between 0.5 and 15 μm thick. Using a 0.1 mCi source, a thickness measurement can be accomplished in 2 h of counting. This technique could be used to measure any thin, low-Z material coating (up to 1 mg/cm{sup 2} thick) on a high-Z substrate, such as Be on W, B on Mo, or Li on Mo. By inserting a source and detector on a moveable probe, this technique could be used to provide an in situ measurement of the thickness of Li coating on NSTX-U Mo tiles. A test stand with an alpha source and an annular solid-state detector was used to investigate the measurable range of low-Z material thicknesses on Mo tiles.

First-principles molecular dynamics investigation of thermal and mechanical stability of the TiN(001)/AlN and ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ivashchenko, V.I.; Veprek, S.; Turchi, P.E.A.; Shevchenko, V.I.; Leszczynski, J.; Gorb, L.; Hill, F.

2014-01-01

First-principles quantum molecular dynamics investigations of TiN(001)/AlN and ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures with one and two monolayers (1 ML and 2 ML) of AlN interfacial layers were carried out in the temperature range of 0–1400 K with subsequent static relaxation. It is shown that the epitaxially stabilized cubic B1-AlN interfacial layers are preserved in all TiN(001)/AlN heterostructures over the whole temperature range. In the ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures, the B1-AlN(001) interfacial layer exists at 0 K, but it transforms into a distorted one at 10 K consisting of tetrahedral AlN 4 , octahedral AlN 6 , and AlN 5 units. The thermal stability of the interfaces was investigated by studying the phonon dynamic stability of the B1-AlN phase with different lattice parameters. The calculations showed that the B1-AlN interface should be unstable in ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures and nanocomposites, and in those based on transition metal nitrides with lattice parameters larger than 4.4 Å. Electronic band structure calculations showed that energy gap forms around the Fermi energy for all interfaces. The formation of the interfacial AlN layer in TiN and ZrN crystals reduces their ideal tensile and shear strengths. Upon tensile load, decohesion occurs between Ti (Zr) and N atoms adjacent to the 1 ML AlN interfacial layer, whereas in the case of 2 ML AlN it occurs inside the TiN and ZrN slabs. The experimentally reported strength enhancement in the TiN/AlN and ZrN/AlN heterostructures is attributed to impeding effect of the interfacial layer on the plastic flow. - Highlights: • First-principles quantum molecular dynamics studies were conducted. • TiN- and ZrN-based heterostructures with one and two AlN interfacial layers. • Stability and structural transformation between 0 and 1400 K have been calculated. • Stress–strain relationships and ideal strengths determined. • Systems which may form stable superhard heterostructures are identified

Optimisation and characterisation of tungsten thick coatings on copper based alloy substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Riccardi, B.; Montanari, R.; Casadei, M.; Costanza, G.; Filacchioni, G.; Moriani, A.

2006-06-01

Tungsten is a promising armour material for plasma facing components of nuclear fusion reactors because of its low sputter rate and favourable thermo-mechanical properties. Among all the techniques able to realise W armours, plasma spray looks particularly attractive owing to its simplicity and low cost. The present work concerns the optimisation of spraying parameters aimed at 4-5 mm thick W coating on copper-chromium-zirconium (Cu,Cr,Zr) alloy substrates. Characterisation of coatings was performed in order to assess microstructure, impurity content, density, tensile strength, adhesion strength, thermal conductivity and thermal expansion coefficient. The work performed has demonstrated the feasibility of thick W coatings on flat and curved geometries. These coatings appear as a reliable armour for medium heat flux plasma facing component.

Optimisation and characterisation of tungsten thick coatings on copper based alloy substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riccardi, B.; Montanari, R.; Casadei, M.; Costanza, G.; Filacchioni, G.; Moriani, A.

2006-01-01

Tungsten is a promising armour material for plasma facing components of nuclear fusion reactors because of its low sputter rate and favourable thermo-mechanical properties. Among all the techniques able to realise W armours, plasma spray looks particularly attractive owing to its simplicity and low cost. The present work concerns the optimisation of spraying parameters aimed at 4-5 mm thick W coating on copper-chromium-zirconium (Cu,Cr,Zr) alloy substrates. Characterisation of coatings was performed in order to assess microstructure, impurity content, density, tensile strength, adhesion strength, thermal conductivity and thermal expansion coefficient. The work performed has demonstrated the feasibility of thick W coatings on flat and curved geometries. These coatings appear as a reliable armour for medium heat flux plasma facing component

Optimisation and characterisation of tungsten thick coatings on copper based alloy substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Riccardi, B. [Associazione Euratom-ENEA sulla Fusione, CR Frascati, P.B. 65 00044 Frascati, Roma (Italy)]. E-mail: riccardi@frascati.enea.it; Montanari, R. [Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica, Universita di Roma, Tor Vergata, 00133 Roma (Italy); Casadei, M. [Centro Sviluppo Materiali, 00100 Roma (Italy); Costanza, G. [Dipartimento di Ingegneria Meccanica, Universita di Roma, Tor Vergata, 00133 Roma (Italy); Filacchioni, G. [ENEA CR Casaccia, I-00060 S. M. di Galeria, Roma (Italy); Moriani, A. [Associazione Euratom-ENEA sulla Fusione, CR Frascati, P.B. 65 00044 Frascati, Roma (Italy)

2006-06-30

Tungsten is a promising armour material for plasma facing components of nuclear fusion reactors because of its low sputter rate and favourable thermo-mechanical properties. Among all the techniques able to realise W armours, plasma spray looks particularly attractive owing to its simplicity and low cost. The present work concerns the optimisation of spraying parameters aimed at 4-5 mm thick W coating on copper-chromium-zirconium (Cu,Cr,Zr) alloy substrates. Characterisation of coatings was performed in order to assess microstructure, impurity content, density, tensile strength, adhesion strength, thermal conductivity and thermal expansion coefficient. The work performed has demonstrated the feasibility of thick W coatings on flat and curved geometries. These coatings appear as a reliable armour for medium heat flux plasma facing component.

Superconducting NbN single-photon detectors on GaAs with an AlN buffer layer

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schmidt, Ekkehart; Merker, Michael; Ilin, Konstantin; Siegel, Michael [Institut fuer Mikro- und Nanoelektronische Systeme (IMS), Karlsruher Institut fuer Technologie, Hertzstrasse 16, 76187 Karlsruhe (Germany)

2015-07-01

GaAs is the material of choice for photonic integrated circuits. It allows the monolithic integration of single-photon sources like quantum dots, waveguide based optical circuits and detectors like superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) onto one chip. The growth of high quality NbN films on GaAs is challenging, due to natural occurring surface oxides and the large lattice mismatch of about 27%. In this work, we try to overcome these problems by the introduction of a 10 nm AlN buffer layer. Due to the buffer layer, the critical temperature of 6 nm thick NbN films was increased by about 1.5 K. Furthermore, the critical current density at 4.2 K of NbN flim deposited onto GaAs with AlN buffer is 50% higher than of NbN film deposited directly onto GaAs substrate. We successfully fabricated NbN SNSPDs on GaAs with a AlN buffer layer. SNSPDs were patterned using electron-beam lithography and reactive-ion etching techniques. Results on the study of detection efficiency and jitter of a NbN SNSPD on GaAs, with and without AlN buffer layer will be presented and discussed.

Optimum thickness evaluation of ZrO2 coating on type 304L stainless steel for corrosion protection

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Garg, Nidhi; Bera, Santanu; Velmurugan, S.; Tripathi, V.S.; Karki, Vijay

2015-01-01

Nano-crystalline ZrO 2 coatings of different thickness have been grown on pre-oxidized stainless steel (SS) surface by hydrothermal method in an autoclave. Thickness of the coating has been enhanced by repeating the deposition process several times using same precursor concentration. Several cycles of the deposition process lead to the increase of the coating thickness from 200 nm to ∼1 μm after the fourth round of deposition. The samples after different rounds of the coating have been extensively characterized by SEM-EDS technique to find the surface topography, coating thickness and composition. Corrosion resistance properties of the plain SS, pre-oxidized SS and all the ZrO 2 coated samples were studied by potentiodynamic polarization technique and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Corrosion current densities (I corr /cm 2 ) of the coated samples are found to reduce significantly with the increase in thickness. After a certain critical thickness, the corrosion resistance properties found to deteriorate due to the formation of coating defects caused by lattice strain. The coating was found to be continuous but porous after the first cycle but porosity of zirconia coating have been reduced drastically after the second cycle itself. EIS analysis confirms that the zirconia coated samples show insulating, barrier like characteristics in terms of high charge transfer resistance after the second cycle of zirconia deposition. The role of pre-oxidized surface composition and the interface between the pre-oxidized surface and the coating has been discussed in details by showing the depth distribution of Zr in the coating. (author)

Study on de-coating used beverage cans with thick sulfuric acid for recycle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Minghua; Woo, Kee-Do; Kim, Dong-Keon; Ma, Lirong

2007-01-01

More than 1800 hundreds of millions of beverage cans are manufactured yearly over the world, which will pollute the globe environment without recycle. The recycle and regeneration estates of used beverage cans are highly profitable enterprises. Vacuum technologies are mature on a large scale today, and therefore, the re-melting process of used beverage cans (UBCs) does not have to use flux. Furthermore, the coating on UBCs becomes the key factor causing poor product quality. The present paper concerns removing the coating of UBCs and compares two different kinds of methods to remove the coating: a thermal method and a chemical reagent method. A new kind of reagent, thick sulfuric acid, was employed in the chemical reagent de-coating process. The de-coating ratio in the thermal method reached 93% at most, but the de-coating ratio reached 100% within 30 min in the chemical reagent method by using thick sulfuric acid. Recycling the used thick sulfuric acid was also supplied. A titanium yellow product can be simultaneously obtained. The experiments show that the chemical reagent method is more available than the thermal method, which will enhance the purity of the regeneration product enormously

Design of Thermal Barrier Coatings Thickness for Gas Turbine Blade Based on Finite Element Analysis

OpenAIRE

Li, Biao; Fan, Xueling; Li, Dingjun; Jiang, Peng

2017-01-01

Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are deposited on the turbine blade to reduce the temperature of underlying substrate, as well as providing protection against the oxidation and hot corrosion from high temperature gas. Optimal ceramic top-coat thickness distribution on the blade can improve the performance and efficiency of the coatings. Design of the coatings thickness is a multiobjective optimization problem due to the conflicts among objectives of high thermal insulation performance, long op...

Effect of thermophysical property and coating thickness on microstructure and characteristics of a casting

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ai-chao Cheng

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A new improved investment casting technology (IC has been presented and compared with the existing IC technology such as lost foam casting (LFC. The effect of thermophysical property and coating thickness on casting solidification temperature field, microstructure and hardness has been investigated. The results show that the solidification rate decreases inversely with the coating thickness when the coating contains silica sol, zircon powder, mullite powder and defoaming agent. In contrast, the solid cooling rate increases as the coating thickness increases. However, the solidification rate and solid cooling rate of the casting produced by the existing IC and the improved IC are very similar when the coating thickness is 5 mm, so the microstructure and hardness of a container corner fitting produced by the improved IC and the existing IC are similar. The linear regression equation for the grain size (d and cooling rate (v of the castings is d= –0.41v+206.1. The linear regression equation for the content of pearlite (w and solid cooling rate (t is w=1.79t + 6.71. The new improved IC can greatly simplify the process and decrease the cost of production compared with the existing IC. Contrasting with LFC, container corner fittings produced by the new improved IC have fewer defects and better properties. It was also found that the desired microstructure and properties can be obtained by changing the thermophysical property and thickness of the coating.

Respiration and Heartbeat Measurement for Sleep Monitoring Using a Flexible AlN Piezoelectric Film Sensor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nan BU

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Respiratory and heartbeat monitoring during sleep provides basic physiological information for diagnosis of sleep disorders. This paper proposes a new method for non-invasive and unconstrained measurement of respiration and heartbeat during sleep. A flexible piezoelectric film sensor made of aluminum nitride (AlN material is used for signal acquisition. The total thickness of this sensor is less than 40 μm; the thin thickness makes it imperceptible when integrated into a bed. In addition, the AlN film sensor has good sensitivity, so that pressure fluctuation due to respiration and heartbeat can be measured when a subject is lying on this sensor. The pressure fluctuation measured can be further separated into signals corresponding to respiration and heartbeat, respectively. In the proposed method, the signal separation is achieved using an algorithm based on empirical mode decomposition (EMD. From the experimental results, it was found that respiration and heartbeat signals can be successfully obtained with the proposed method.

Controlling of Nitriding Process on Reactive Plasma Spraying of Al Particles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shahien, Mohammed; Yamada, Motohiro; Yasui, Toshiaki; Fukumoto, Masahiro

2011-01-01

Reactive plasma spraying (RPS) has been considered as a promising technology for in-situ formation of aluminum nitride (AlN) thermally sprayed coatings. To fabricate thick A lN coatings in RPS process, controlling and improving the in-flight nitriding reaction of Al particles is required. In this study, it was possible to control the nitriding reaction by using ammonium chloride (NH 4 Cl) powders. Thick and dense AlN coating (more than 300 μm thickness) was successfully fabricated with small addition of NH 4 Cl powders. Thus, addition of NH 4 Cl prevented the Al aggregation by changing the reaction pathway to a mild way with no explosive mode (relatively low heating rates) and it acts as a catalyst, nitrogen source and diluent agent.

Influence of SiC coating thickness on mechanical properties of SiCf/SiC composite

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Haijiao; Zhou, Xingui; Zhang, Wei; Peng, Huaxin; Zhang, Changrui

2013-11-01

Silicon carbide (SiC) coatings with varying thickness (ranging from 0.14 μm to 2.67 μm) were deposited onto the surfaces of Type KD-I SiC fibres with native carbonaceous surface using chemical vapour deposition (CVD) process. Then, two dimensional SiC fibre reinforced SiC matrix (2D SiCf/SiC) composites were fabricated using polymer infiltration and pyrolysis (PIP) process. Influences of the fibre coating thickness on mechanical properties of SiC fibre and SiCf/SiC composite were investigated using single-filament test and three-point bending test. The results indicated that flexural strength of the composites initially increased with the increasing CVD SiC coating thickness and reached a peak value of 363 MPa at the coating thickness of 0.34 μm. Further increase in the coating thickness led to a rapid decrease in the flexural strength of the composites. The bending modulus of composites showed a monotonic increase with increasing coating thickness. A chemical attack of hydrogen or other ions (e.g. a C-H group) on the surface of SiC fibres during the coating process, owing to the formation of volatile hydrogen, lead to an increment of the surface defects of the fibres. This was confirmed by Wang et al. [35] in their work on the SiC coating of the carbon fibre. In the present study, the existing ˜30 nm carbon on the surface of KD-I fibre [36] made the fibre easy to be attacked. Deposition of non-stoichiometric SiC, causing a decrease in strength. During the CVD process, a small amount of free silicon or carbon always existed [35]. The existence of free silicon, either disordered the structure of SiC and formed a new source of cracks or attacked the carbon on fibre surface resulting in properties degeneration of the KD-I fibre. The effect of residual stress. The different thermal expansion coefficient between KD-I SiC fibre and CVD SiC coating, which are 3 × 10-6 K-1 (RT ˜ 1000 °C) and 4.6 × 10-6 K-1 (RT ˜ 1000 °C), respectively, could cause residual stress

Influence of hydroxyapatite coating thickness and powder particle size on corrosion performance of MA8M magnesium alloy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sonmez, S. [Hakkari University, Dept. of Biomedical Eng., 30000 Hakkari (Turkey); Aksakal, B., E-mail: baksakal@yildiz.edu.tr [Yildiz Technical University, Chemical Metallurgy Faculty, Dept. of Metall and Mater Eng., Istanbul (Turkey); Dikici, B. [Yuzuncu Yil University, Dept. of Mechanical Eng., 65080 Van (Turkey)

2014-05-01

Graphical abstract: The corrosion resistance of magnesium alloys is the primary concern in biomedical applications. Micron and nano-scale hydroxyapatite (HA) was coated successfully on MA8M magnesium alloy substrates by using a sol–gel deposition. In this study, the effects of coating thicknesses and HA powder particle sizes on the adhesion strength and corrosion behavior were investigated. Potentiodynamic polarization tests were performed in a Ringer solution. The coatings before and after corrosion tests were characterized by adhesion tests, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The micro-scale-HA coated Mg substrates were more corrosion resistant than the nano-scale-HA coatings. The anodic activity of the micro-scale-HA coatings increased with increased coating thickness and the corrosion resistance of Mg substrates decreased. Corrosion susceptibilities of the nano-scale-HA coated samples were affected inversely. The coated film provided good barrier characteristics and achieved good corrosion protection for Mg substrates when compared to substrates without coatings. For micro-scale-HA coatings, anodic and cathodic activities were more intense for thicker films. When HA coatings are compared to nano-scale HA coatings, the micro-scale-HA coatings produced better current density values. Overall, as shown in Fig. 1, the best corrosion behavior of the Mg alloys was achieved using micro-scale HA powders at 30 μm coating thickness. - Highlights: • Nano and micro-scale-HA coatings provided good anti-corrosion performance compared to the uncoated ones. • The micro-scale-HA coated Mg substrates were more corrosion resistant than the nano-scale-HA coatings. • The best corrosion behavior was achieved for the micro-scale HA powders at 30 μm coating thickness. • Anodic activity decrease and cathodic activity increase with increasing film thickness. - Abstract: To improve the corrosion resistance of MA8M magnesium alloy, sol�

Development and Implementation of Methods and Means for Achieving a Uniform Functional Coating Thickness

Science.gov (United States)

Shishlov, A. V.; Sagatelyan, G. R.; Shashurin, V. D.

2017-12-01

A mathematical model is proposed to calculate the growth rate of the thin-film coating thickness at various points in a flat substrate surface during planetary motion of the substrate, which makes it possible to calculate an expected coating thickness distribution. Proper software package is developed. The coefficients used for computer simulation are experimentally determined.

Study on coated layer material performance of coated particle fuel FBR (2). High temperature property and capability of coating to thick layer of TiN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naganuma, Masayuki; Mizuno, Tomoyasu

2002-08-01

'Helium Gas Cooled Coated Particle Fuel FBR' is one of attractive core concepts in the Feasibility Study on Commercialized Fast Reactor Cycle System in Japan, and the design study is presently proceeded. As one of key technologies of this concept, the coated layer material is important, and ceramics is considered to be a candidate material because of the superior refractory. Based on existing knowledge, TiN is regarded to be a possible candidate material, to which some property tests and evaluations have been conducted. In this study, preliminary tests about the high temperature property and the capability of thick layer coating of TiN have been conducted. Results of these tests come to the following conclusions. Heating tests of two kinds of TiN layer specimens coated by PVD (Physical Vapor Deposition) and CVD (Chemical Vapor Deposition) were conducted. As a result, as for CVD coating specimens, remarkable charge was not observed on the layer up to 2,000degC, therefore we concluded that the layer by CVD had applicability up to high temperature of actual operation level. On the other hand, as for PVD coating specimens, an unstable behavior that the layer changed to a mesh like texture was observed on a 2,000degC heated specimen, therefore the applied PVD method is not considered to be promising as the coating technique. The surface conditions of some parts inside CVD device were investigated in order to evaluate possibility of TiN thick coating (∼100 μm). As a result, around 500 μm of TiN coating layer was observed on the condition of multilayer. Therefore, we conclude that CVD has capability of coating up to thick layer in actual coated particle fuel fabrication. (author)

First-principles molecular dynamics investigation of thermal and mechanical stability of the TiN(001)/AlN and ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ivashchenko, V.I., E-mail: ivash@ipms.kiev.ua [Institute of Problems of Material Science, National Academy of Science of Ukraine, Krzhyzhanosky str. 3, 03142 Kyiv (Ukraine); Veprek, S., E-mail: stan.veprek@lrz.tum.de [Department of Chemistry, Technical University Munich, Lichtenbergstrasse 4, D-85747 Garching (Germany); Turchi, P.E.A. [Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (L-352), P.O. Box 808, Livermore, CA 94551 (United States); Shevchenko, V.I. [Institute of Problems of Material Science, National Academy of Science of Ukraine, Krzhyzhanosky str. 3, 03142 Kyiv (Ukraine); Leszczynski, J. [Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Interdisciplinary Center for Nanotoxicity, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217 (United States); Gorb, L. [Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Interdisciplinary Center for Nanotoxicity, Jackson State University, Jackson, MS 39217 (United States); U.S. Army ERDC, Vicksburg, MS 39180 (United States); Hill, F. [U.S. Army ERDC, Vicksburg, MS 39180 (United States)

2014-08-01

First-principles quantum molecular dynamics investigations of TiN(001)/AlN and ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures with one and two monolayers (1 ML and 2 ML) of AlN interfacial layers were carried out in the temperature range of 0–1400 K with subsequent static relaxation. It is shown that the epitaxially stabilized cubic B1-AlN interfacial layers are preserved in all TiN(001)/AlN heterostructures over the whole temperature range. In the ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures, the B1-AlN(001) interfacial layer exists at 0 K, but it transforms into a distorted one at 10 K consisting of tetrahedral AlN{sub 4}, octahedral AlN{sub 6}, and AlN{sub 5} units. The thermal stability of the interfaces was investigated by studying the phonon dynamic stability of the B1-AlN phase with different lattice parameters. The calculations showed that the B1-AlN interface should be unstable in ZrN(001)/AlN heterostructures and nanocomposites, and in those based on transition metal nitrides with lattice parameters larger than 4.4 Å. Electronic band structure calculations showed that energy gap forms around the Fermi energy for all interfaces. The formation of the interfacial AlN layer in TiN and ZrN crystals reduces their ideal tensile and shear strengths. Upon tensile load, decohesion occurs between Ti (Zr) and N atoms adjacent to the 1 ML AlN interfacial layer, whereas in the case of 2 ML AlN it occurs inside the TiN and ZrN slabs. The experimentally reported strength enhancement in the TiN/AlN and ZrN/AlN heterostructures is attributed to impeding effect of the interfacial layer on the plastic flow. - Highlights: • First-principles quantum molecular dynamics studies were conducted. • TiN- and ZrN-based heterostructures with one and two AlN interfacial layers. • Stability and structural transformation between 0 and 1400 K have been calculated. • Stress–strain relationships and ideal strengths determined. • Systems which may form stable superhard heterostructures are identified.

Morphological and microstructural characterization of nanostructured pure α-phase W coatings on a wide thickness range

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gordillo, N., E-mail: nuri.gordillo@gmail.com [Instituto de Fusión Nuclear, ETSI de Industriales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, C/José Gutierrez Abascal, 2, E-28006 Madrid (Spain); CEI Campus Moncloa, UCM-UPM, Madrid (Spain); Panizo-Laiz, M. [Instituto de Fusión Nuclear, ETSI de Industriales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, C/José Gutierrez Abascal, 2, E-28006 Madrid (Spain); Tejado, E. [Department of Materials Science, Research Centre on Safety and Durability of Structures and Materials (CISDEM), UPM-CSIC, C/Profesor Aranguren s/n, E-28040 Madrid (Spain); Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Metalúrgicas, CENIM-CSIC, Madrid (Spain); Fernandez-Martinez, I. [Instituto de Energía Solar (IES), Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Avenida Complutense s/n, E-28040 Madrid (Spain); Instituto de Microelectrónica de Madrid, IMM-CNM-CSIC, Isaac Newton 8 PTM, Tres Cantos, E-28760 Madrid (Spain); Rivera, A. [Instituto de Fusión Nuclear, ETSI de Industriales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, C/José Gutierrez Abascal, 2, E-28006 Madrid (Spain); Pastor, J.Y. [Department of Materials Science, Research Centre on Safety and Durability of Structures and Materials (CISDEM), UPM-CSIC, C/Profesor Aranguren s/n, E-28040 Madrid (Spain); Castro, C. Gómez de [Departamento de Física de Materiales, Facultad de CC. Químicas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Ciudad Universitaria s/n, E-28040 Madrid (Spain); and others

2014-10-15

Highlights: • Pure α-phase tungsten nanostructures were deposited by DC-magnetron sputtering. • Non-delaminated coatings were achieved at powers ≤50 W. • The coating thicknesses vary from 30 nm up to ∼4.0 μm. • The influence of the substrate on the coating properties was investigated. • We report on the morphological, microstructural and mechanical properties. - Abstract: Nanostructured tungsten (nanoW) coatings have been deposited by DC magnetron sputtering. First, the influence of the sputtering power on the adhesion of the coatings to the substrate was investigated by depositing coatings at powers varying from 30 up to 220 W. Non-delaminated coatings were achieved at powers ≤50 W. Second, the influence of coating thickness on the morphological, microstructural and mechanical properties was investigated for films deposited at 50 W with thicknesses varying from 30 nm up to ∼4.0 μm. SEM images reveal that all the films are highly compact, consisting of nanometer sized columns that grow perpendicular to the substrate. XRD data evidence that films are monophasic, being made of pure α-phase. All coatings show compressive stress and low micro-strain. Nanoindentation tests show that coatings have a hardness higher than that reported for coarse grained W. No significant dependence of the previous properties on coating thickness was observed. Finally, the influence of the substrate on coatings properties was studied, by depositing a W coating at a power of 50 W on a commercial steel substrate: no significant dependence was found.

Epitaxial growth of AlN on single crystal Mo substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Okamoto, Koichiro; Inoue, Shigeru; Nakano, Takayuki; Kim, Tae-Won; Oshima, Masaharu; Fujioka, Hiroshi

2008-01-01

We have grown AlN films on single-crystalline Mo(110), (100), and (111) substrates using a low temperature pulsed laser deposition (PLD) growth technique and investigated their structural properties. Although c-axis oriented AlN films grow on Mo(100), the films contain 30 o rotated domains due to the difference in the rotational symmetry between AlN(0001) and Mo(100). AlN films with only poor crystalline quality grow on Mo(111) substrates, probably due to the poor surface morphology and high reactivity of the substrates. On the other hand, single crystal AlN films grow epitaxially on Mo(110) substrates with an in-plane relationship of AlN[11-20] // Mo[001]. Reflection high-energy electron diffraction or electron backscattered diffraction analysis has revealed that neither in-plane 30 deg. rotated domains nor cubic phase domains exist in the AlN films. X-ray reflectivity measurements have revealed that the heterointerface between AlN and Mo prepared by PLD at 450 deg. C is quite abrupt. These results indicate that PLD epitaxial growth of AlN on single crystal Mo substrates is quite promising for the fabrication of future high frequency filter devices

Epitaxial growth of AlN on single crystal Mo substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Okamoto, Koichiro; Inoue, Shigeru [Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, 153-8505 (Japan); Nakano, Takayuki; Kim, Tae-Won [Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST) KSP east 301, 3-2-1 Sakado, Takatsu-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 213-0012 (Japan); Oshima, Masaharu [Department of Applied Chemistry, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8656 (Japan); Fujioka, Hiroshi [Institute of Industrial Science, University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, 153-8505 (Japan); Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST) KSP east 301, 3-2-1 Sakado, Takatsu-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa, 213-0012 (Japan)], E-mail: hfujioka@iis.u-tokyo.ac.jp

2008-06-02

We have grown AlN films on single-crystalline Mo(110), (100), and (111) substrates using a low temperature pulsed laser deposition (PLD) growth technique and investigated their structural properties. Although c-axis oriented AlN films grow on Mo(100), the films contain 30{sup o} rotated domains due to the difference in the rotational symmetry between AlN(0001) and Mo(100). AlN films with only poor crystalline quality grow on Mo(111) substrates, probably due to the poor surface morphology and high reactivity of the substrates. On the other hand, single crystal AlN films grow epitaxially on Mo(110) substrates with an in-plane relationship of AlN[11-20] // Mo[001]. Reflection high-energy electron diffraction or electron backscattered diffraction analysis has revealed that neither in-plane 30 deg. rotated domains nor cubic phase domains exist in the AlN films. X-ray reflectivity measurements have revealed that the heterointerface between AlN and Mo prepared by PLD at 450 deg. C is quite abrupt. These results indicate that PLD epitaxial growth of AlN on single crystal Mo substrates is quite promising for the fabrication of future high frequency filter devices.

Fabrication and structural properties of AlN submicron periodic lateral polar structures and waveguides for UV-C applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Alden, D. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695 (United States); Institut für Festkörperphysik, Technische Universität Berlin, Hardenbergstr. 36, 10623 Berlin (Germany); Guo, W.; Kaess, F.; Bryan, I.; Reddy, P.; Hernandez-Balderrama, Luis H.; Franke, A.; Collazo, R.; Sitar, Z. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695 (United States); Kirste, R.; Mita, S. [Adroit Materials, Inc., 2054 Kildaire Farm Rd., Suite 205, Cary, North Carolina 27518 (United States); Troha, T.; Zgonik, M. [Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana, Jadranska 19, 1000 Ljubljana (Slovenia); Bagal, A.; Chang, C.-H. [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695 (United States); Hoffmann, A. [Institut für Festkörperphysik, Technische Universität Berlin, Hardenbergstr. 36, 10623 Berlin (Germany)

2016-06-27

Periodically poled AlN thin films with submicron domain widths were fabricated for nonlinear applications in the UV-VIS region. A procedure utilizing metalorganic chemical vapor deposition growth of AlN in combination with laser interference lithography was developed for making a nanoscale lateral polarity structure (LPS) with domain size down to 600 nm. The Al-polar and N-polar domains were identified by wet etching the periodic LPS in a potassium hydroxide solution and subsequent scanning electron microscopy (SEM) characterization. Fully coalesced and well-defined vertical interfaces between the adjacent domains were established by cross-sectional SEM. AlN LPSs were mechanically polished and surface roughness with a root mean square value of ∼10 nm over a 90 μm × 90 μm area was achieved. 3.8 μm wide and 650 nm thick AlN LPS waveguides were fabricated. The achieved domain sizes, surface roughness, and waveguides are suitable for second harmonic generation in the UVC spectrum.

Thick CrN/NbN multilayer coating deposited by cathodic arc technique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Araujo, Juliano Avelar; Tschiptschin, Andre Paulo; Souza, Roberto Martins, E-mail: antschip@usp.br [Universidade de Sao Paulo (USP), SP (Brazil); Lima, Nelson Batista de [Instituto de Pesquisas Energeticas e Nucleares (IPEN/CNEN-SP), Sao Paulo, SP (Brazil)

2017-01-15

The production of tribological nanoscale multilayer CrN/NbN coatings up to 6 μm thick by Sputtering/HIPIMS has been reported in literature. However, high demanding applications, such as internal combustion engine parts, need thicker coatings (>30 μm). The production of such parts by sputtering would be economically restrictive due to low deposition rates. In this work, nanoscale multilayer CrN/NbN coatings were produced in a high-deposition rate, industrial-size, Cathodic Arc Physical Vapor Deposition (ARC-PVD) chamber, containing three cathodes in alternate positions (Cr/ Nb/Cr). Four 30 μm thick NbN/CrN multilayer coatings with different periodicities (20, 10, 7.5 and 4 nm) were produced. The coatings were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM). The multilayer coating system was composed of alternate cubic rock salt CrN and NbN layers, coherently strained due to lattice mismatch. The film grew with columnar morphology through the entire stratified structure. The periodicities adopted were maintained throughout the entire coating. The 20 nm periodicity coating showed separate NbN and CrN peaks in the XRD patterns, while for the lower periodicity (≤10nm) coatings, just one intermediate lattice (d-spacing) was detected. An almost linear increase of hardness with decreasing bilayer period indicates that interfacial effects can dominate the hardening mechanisms. (author)

Indium hexagonal island as seed-layer to boost a-axis orientation of AlN thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Redjdal, N.; Salah, H.; Azzaz, M.; Menari, H.; Manseri, A.; Guedouar, B.; Garcia-Sanchez, A.; Chérif, S. M.

2018-06-01

Highly a-axis oriented aluminum nitride films have been grown on Indium coated (100) Si substrate by DC reactive magnetron sputtering. It is shown that In incorporated layer improve the extent of preferential growth along (100) axis and form dense AlN films with uniform surface and large grains, devoid of micro-cracks. As revealed by SEM cross section images, AlN structure consists of oriented columnar grains perpendicular to the Si surface, while AlN/In structure results in uniformely tilted column. SEM images also revealed the presence of In hexagonal islands persistent throughout the entire growth. Micro -Raman spectroscopy of the surface and the cross section of the AlN/In grown films evidenced their high degree of homogeneity and cristallinity.

Adhesive Strength of dry Adhesive Structures Depending on the Thickness of Metal Coating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Gyu Hye; Kwon, Da Som; Kim, Mi Jung; Kim, Su Hee; Yoon, Ji Won; An, Tea Chang; Hwang, Hui Yun

2016-01-01

Recently, engineering applications have started to adopt solutions inspired by nature. The peculiar adhesive properties of gecko skin are an example, as they allow the animal to move freely on vertical walls and even on ceilings. The high adhesive forces between gecko feet and walls are due to the hierarchical microscopical structure of the skin. In this study, the effect of metal coatings on the adhesive strength of synthetic, hierarchically structured, dry adhesives was investigated. Synthetic dry adhesives were fabricated using PDMS micro-molds prepared by photolithography. Metal coatings on synthetic dry adhesives were formed by plasma sputtering. Adhesive strength was measured by pure shear tests. The highest adhesion strengths were found with coatings composed of 4 nm thick layers of Indium, 8 nm thick layers of Zinc and 6 nm thick layers of Gold, respectively

Adhesive Strength of dry Adhesive Structures Depending on the Thickness of Metal Coating

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Gyu Hye; Kwon, Da Som; Kim, Mi Jung; Kim, Su Hee; Yoon, Ji Won; An, Tea Chang; Hwang, Hui Yun [Andong National Univ., Andong (Korea, Republic of)

2016-07-15

Recently, engineering applications have started to adopt solutions inspired by nature. The peculiar adhesive properties of gecko skin are an example, as they allow the animal to move freely on vertical walls and even on ceilings. The high adhesive forces between gecko feet and walls are due to the hierarchical microscopical structure of the skin. In this study, the effect of metal coatings on the adhesive strength of synthetic, hierarchically structured, dry adhesives was investigated. Synthetic dry adhesives were fabricated using PDMS micro-molds prepared by photolithography. Metal coatings on synthetic dry adhesives were formed by plasma sputtering. Adhesive strength was measured by pure shear tests. The highest adhesion strengths were found with coatings composed of 4 nm thick layers of Indium, 8 nm thick layers of Zinc and 6 nm thick layers of Gold, respectively.

SiC fiber and yttria-stabilized zirconia composite thick thermal barrier coatings fabricated by plasma spray

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Rongbin; Cheng, Xudong; Ye, Weiping

2015-12-01

Approximately 4 mm-thick SiC fiber/yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) composite thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were prepared by atmospheric plasma spray (APS). The composite coatings have a 'reinforced concrete frame structure', which can protect the coating from failure caused by increasing thickness of coating. The SiC fiber plays an important role in reducing the residual stress level of the composite coatings. The thermal conductivity (TC) value of the composite coatings is 0.632 W/m K, which is about 50% reduction compared to that of typical APS YSZ TBCs. And the composite coatings have higher fracture toughness and better thermal shock resistance than the YSZ TBCs.

Non-destructive prediction of enteric coating layer thickness and drug dissolution rate by near-infrared spectroscopy and X-ray computed tomography.

Science.gov (United States)

Ariyasu, Aoi; Hattori, Yusuke; Otsuka, Makoto

2017-06-15

The coating layer thickness of enteric-coated tablets is a key factor that determines the drug dissolution rate from the tablet. Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) enables non-destructive and quick measurement of the coating layer thickness, and thus allows the investigation of the relation between enteric coating layer thickness and drug dissolution rate. Two marketed products of aspirin enteric-coated tablets were used in this study, and the correlation between the predicted coating layer thickness and the obtained drug dissolution rate was investigated. Our results showed correlation for one product; the drug dissolution rate decreased with the increase in enteric coating layer thickness, whereas, there was no correlation for the other product. Additional examination of the distribution of coating layer thickness by X-ray computed tomography (CT) showed homogenous distribution of coating layer thickness for the former product, whereas the latter product exhibited heterogeneous distribution within the tablet, as well as inconsistent trend in the thickness distribution between the tablets. It was suggested that this heterogeneity and inconsistent trend in layer thickness distribution contributed to the absence of correlation between the layer thickness of the face and side regions of the tablets, which resulted in the loss of correlation between the coating layer thickness and drug dissolution rate. Therefore, the predictability of drug dissolution rate from enteric-coated tablets depended on the homogeneity of the coating layer thickness. In addition, the importance of micro analysis, X-ray CT in this study, was suggested even if the macro analysis, NIRS in this study, are finally applied for the measurement. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Performance of a fiber optic sensor for online measurement of coating thickness

Science.gov (United States)

D'Emilia, Giulio

1999-01-01

Some aspects concerning a methodology for the measurement of thickness of dry and wet coatings which is based on a fiber optic probe are discussed in order to verify the feasibility of this approach and the capability of such a probe of on- line measuring. In this preliminary step of the research some problems discussed mainly concerning the methodology which has been proposed and which is based on the measuring of the reflectance of the coating plated on thin steel sheets for use in the food industry. Furthermore the effect of the main interfering and modifying quantities is discussed both theoretically and experimentally when the measurement has to be carried out in order to allow on-line coating thickness measurements with satisfactory accuracy.

Tunable field emission characteristics of ZnO nanowires coated with varied thickness of lanthanum boride thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao, C.X.; Li, Y.F.; Chen, Jun; Deng, S.Z.; Xu, N.S.

2013-01-01

Lanthanum boride (LaB x ) thin films with various thicknesses were deposited on ZnO nanowire arrays by electron beam evaporation. Field emission characteristics of ZnO nanowires show close dependence on LaB x coating thickness. The turn-on field increases with increasing LaB x coating thickness from 10 nm to 50 nm. The observed phenomena were explained by a model that the tunneling at ZnO/LaB x interface dominates the emission process. - Highlights: ► Coating thickness dependence of field emission characteristics of ZnO nanowires was observed from LaB x coated ZnO nanowires. ► More stable field emission was observed from ZnO nanowires with LaB x coating. ► A model was proposed that the tunneling at ZnO/LaB x interface dominates the emission process

Structure and corrosion behavior of sputter deposited cerium oxide based coatings with various thickness on Al 2024-T3 alloy substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Yuanyuan [College of Materials Science and Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045 (China); Materials Research Center, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO 65409 (United States); Huang, Jiamu, E-mail: huangjiamu@cqu.edu.cn [College of Materials Science and Engineering, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045 (China); Claypool, James B.; Castano, Carlos E. [Materials Research Center, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO 65409 (United States); O’Keefe, Matthew J., E-mail: mjokeefe@mst.edu [Materials Research Center, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, MO 65409 (United States)

2015-11-15

Highlights: • Crystalline CeO{sub 2} coatings are deposited on Al 2024-T3 alloys by magnetron sputtering. • The crystal size and internal stress both increased with the thickness of CeO{sub 2} coating. • The ∼210 nm thick coating has the highest adhesion strength to the Al alloy substrate. • The ∼900 nm thick coating increased the corrosion resistance two orders of magnitude. • CeO{sub 2} coatings provide good cathodic inhibition for Al alloys by acting as physical barriers. - Abstract: Cerium oxide based coatings from ∼100 to ∼1400 nm in thickness were deposited onto Al 2024-T3 alloy substrates by magnetron sputtering of a 99.99% pure CeO{sub 2} target. The crystallite size of CeO{sub 2} coatings increased from 15 nm to 46 nm as the coating thickness increased from ∼100 nm to ∼1400 nm. The inhomogeneous lattice strain increased from 0.36% to 0.91% for the ∼100 nm to ∼900 nm thick coatings and slightly decreased to 0.89% for the ∼1400 nm thick coating. The highest adhesion strength to Al alloy substrates was for the ∼210 nm thick coating, due to a continuous film coverage and low internal stress. Electrochemical measurements indicated that sputter deposited crystalline CeO{sub 2} coatings acted as physical barriers that provide good cathodic inhibition for Al alloys in saline solution. The ∼900 nm thick CeO{sub 2} coated sample had the best corrosion performance that increased the corrosion resistance by two orders magnitude and lowered the cathodic current density 30 times compared to bare Al 2024-T3 substrates. The reduced defects and exposed surface, along with suppressed charge mobility, likely accounts for the improved corrosion performance as coating thickness increased from ∼100 nm to ∼900 nm. The corrosion performance decreased for ∼1400 nm thick coatings due in part to an increase in coating defects and porosity along with a decrease in adhesion strength.

Influence of thickness and coatings morphology in the antimicrobial performance of zinc oxide coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carvalho, P. [Department of Physics, University of Minho, Campus de Azurém, 4800-058 Guimaraes (Portugal); Sampaio, P. [CBMA, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4700 Braga (Portugal); Azevedo, S. [Department of Physics, University of Minho, Campus de Azurém, 4800-058 Guimaraes (Portugal); Vaz, C. [CBMA, University of Minho, Campus de Gualtar, 4700 Braga (Portugal); Espinós, J.P. [Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Sevilla, CSIC-University of Sevilla, Avda. Américo Vespucio 49, 41092 Sevilla (Spain); Teixeira, V., E-mail: vasco@fisica.uminho.pt [Department of Physics, University of Minho, Campus de Azurém, 4800-058 Guimaraes (Portugal); Carneiro, J.O., E-mail: carneiro@fisica.uminho.pt [Department of Physics, University of Minho, Campus de Azurém, 4800-058 Guimaraes (Portugal)

2014-07-01

In this research work, the production of undoped and silver (Ag) doped zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films for food-packaging applications were developed. The main goal was to determine the influence of coatings morphology and thickness on the antimicrobial performance of the produced samples. The ZnO based thin films were deposited on PET (Polyethylene terephthalate) substrates by means of DC reactive magnetron sputtering. The thin films were characterized by optical spectroscopy, X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). The antimicrobial performance of the undoped and Ag-doped ZnO thin films was also evaluated. The results attained have shown that all the deposited zinc oxide and Ag-doped ZnO coatings present columnar morphology with V-shaped columns. The increase of ZnO coatings thickness until 200 nm increases the active surface area of the columns. The thinner samples (50 and 100 nm) present a less pronounced antibacterial activity than the thickest ones (200–600 nm). Regarding Ag-doped ZnO thin films, it was verified that increasing the silver content decreases the growth rate of Escherichia coli and decreases the amount of bacteria cells present at the end of the experiment.

Controlling of Nitriding Process on Reactive Plasma Spraying of Al Particles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shahien, Mohammed [Graduate Student, Toyohashi University of Technology (Japan); Yamada, Motohiro; Yasui, Toshiaki; Fukumoto, Masahiro, E-mail: mo.shahien@yahoo.com [Toyohashi University of Technology (Japan)

2011-10-29

Reactive plasma spraying (RPS) has been considered as a promising technology for in-situ formation of aluminum nitride (AlN) thermally sprayed coatings. To fabricate thick A lN coatings in RPS process, controlling and improving the in-flight nitriding reaction of Al particles is required. In this study, it was possible to control the nitriding reaction by using ammonium chloride (NH{sub 4}Cl) powders. Thick and dense AlN coating (more than 300 {mu}m thickness) was successfully fabricated with small addition of NH{sub 4}Cl powders. Thus, addition of NH{sub 4}Cl prevented the Al aggregation by changing the reaction pathway to a mild way with no explosive mode (relatively low heating rates) and it acts as a catalyst, nitrogen source and diluent agent.

Ferromagnetic properties of Mn-doped AlN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, H.; Bao, H.Q.; Song, B.; Wang, W.J.; Chen, X.L.; He, L.J.; Yuan, W.X.

2008-01-01

Mn-doped AlN polycrystalline powders with a wurtzite structure were synthesized by solid-state reactions. A red-orange band at 600 nm, due to Mn 3+ incorporated into the AlN lattice, is observed in the photoluminescence (PL) spectrum at room temperature (RT). Magnetic measurements show the samples possess hysteresis loops up to 300 K, indicating that the obtained powders are ferromagnetic at around RT. The Mn concentration-induced RT ferromagnetism is less than 1 at%. Our results confirm that the RT ferromagnetism can be realized in Mn-doped AlN

Nondestructive method to coat thickness measurements through X-ray fluorescence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sanchez, F.

1986-01-01

It's described a system that permits thickness measurement and composition of Sn-Pb alloys to simultaneous measurement of Au over Ni over any base, beyond convestionals measurements, including flash coats or touch. (C.M.) [pt

Automated computer analysis of x-ray radiographs greatly facilitates measurement of coating-thickness variations in laser-fusion targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stupin, D.M.; Moore, K.R.; Thomas, G.D.; Whitman, R.L.

1981-01-01

An automated system was built to analyze x-ray radiographs of laser fusion targets which greatly facilitates the detection of coating thickness variations. Many laser fusion targets reqire opaque coatings 1 to 20 μm thick which have been deposited on small glass balloons 100 to 500 μm in diameter. These coatings must be uniformly thick to 1% for the targets to perform optimally. Our system is designed to detect variations as small as 100 A in 1-μm-thick coatings by converting the optical density variations of contact x-ray radiographs into coating thickness variations. Radiographic images are recorded in HRP emulsions and magnified by an optical microscope, imaged onto television camera, digitized and processed on a Data General S/230 computer with a code by Whitman. After an initial set-up by the operator, as many as 200 targets will be automatically characterized

Comparative study of initial growth stage in PVT growth of AlN on SiC and on native AlN substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Epelbaum, B.M.; Heimann, P.; Bickermann, M.; Winnacker, A. [Department of Materials Science 6, University of Erlangen-Nuernberg, Martensstr. 7, 91058 Erlangen (Germany)

2005-05-01

The main issue in homoepitaxial growth of aluminum nitride (AlN) on native seed substrates appears to be aluminum oxynitride poisoning of seed surface leading to polycrystalline growth at 1750-1850 C. This is well below the lowest growth temperature appropriate for physical vapor transport (PVT) of bulk AlN, which is about 2150 C. Contrary, heteroepitaxial growth of AlN on SiC is relatively easy to achieve because of natural formation of a thin molten layer on the seed surface and VLS growth of AlN via the molten buffer layer. The most critical issue of AlN growth on SiC is cracking of the grown layer upon cooling as a result of different thermal expansion. Optimization of seeded growth process can be achieved by proper choice of SiC seed orientation and by use of ultra-pure starting material. (copyright 2005 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Electronic structures of the F-terminated AlN nanoribbons

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Using the first-principles calculations, electronic properties for the F-terminated AlN nanoribbons with both zigzag and armchair edges are studied. The results show that both the zigzag and armchair AlN nanoribbons are semiconducting and nonmagnetic, and the indirect band gap of the zigzag AlN nanoribbons and the ...

Analysis of different coating thickness on new type of planar interdigital sensors for endotoxin detection

KAUST Repository

Syaifudin, A. R Mohd

2013-05-01

New types of planar interdigital sensors have been fabricated on Silicon/Silicon Dioxide (Si/SiO2) wafers. The sensors were coated with pre-cursor silica functionalized with APTES (3-aminopropyltrietoxysilane) at different thicknesses. All sensors were then immobilized with Polymyxin, B (PmB). PmB is an antimicrobial peptide produced by the Gram-positive bacterium-Bacillus, has been immobilized on the coated sensors because of its specific binding properties to endotoxin. Studies were conducted to analyze the effect of different thicknesses of coatings on the sensitivity and selectivity of the sensors. It was observed sensors coated with 3 layers of coating has better sensitivity and selectivity to the target molecules (endotoxin) compared to sensors with 5 layers of coating. The repeatability and stability of the coated sensors were tested by multiple standard endotoxin measurement and it was observed that the sensors give a good reproducibility and stability up to six continuous measurements before the coating degrades. © 2013 IEEE.

ALnS2:RE (A=K, Rb; Ln=La, Gd, Lu, Y): New optical materials family

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jarý, V.; Havlák, L.; Bárta, J.; Mihóková, E.; Buryi, M.; Nikl, M.

2016-01-01

In the presented review paper, new potentially interesting material family, RE-doped ternary sulfides ALnS 2 (RE=Ce, Pr, Sm, Eu, Tb, Tm; A=Rb, K; Ln=La, Gd, Lu, Y) is discussed. Their synthesis is described and the structural and optical properties, characterized by methods of X-ray diffraction, time-resolved luminescence spectroscopy and electron paramagnetic resonance, are summarized and reviewed especially with respect to the influence of their composition. All samples discussed were synthesized in the form of transparent crystalline hexagonal platelets by chemical reaction under the flow of hydrogen sulfide. Their luminescence characteristics, including absorption, radioluminescence, photoluminescence excitation and emission spectra and decay kinetics, were measured and evaluated in a broad temperature (8–800 K) and concentration (0.002–20% of dopants) range. The application potential of mentioned compounds in the field of white LED solid state lightings or X-ray phosphors is thoroughly discussed. - Highlights: • RE-doped ALnS 2 (A=K, Rb; Ln=La, Gd, Lu, Y) were synthesized. • Their optical characteristics are summarized. • Concentration and temperature dependences of luminescence features investigated. • EPR technique is employed to explain Eu 2+ incorporation into KLuS 2 host. • The application potential in white LED and X-ray phosphors is discussed.

Compatibility of AlN ceramics with molten lithium

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoneoka, Toshiaki; Sakurai, Toshiharu; Sato, Toshihiko; Tanaka, Satoru [Tokyo Univ., Department of Quantum Engineering and Systems Science, Tokyo (Japan)

2002-04-01

AlN ceramics were a candidate for electrically insulating materials and facing materials against molten breeder in a nuclear fusion reactor. In the nuclear fusion reactor, interactions of various structural materials with solid and liquid breeder materials as well as coolant materials are important. Therefore, corrosion tests of AlN ceramics with molten lithium were performed. AlN specimens of six kinds, different in sintering additives and manufacturing method, were used. AlN specimens were immersed into molten lithium at 823 K. Duration for the compatibility tests was about 2.8 Ms (32 days). Specimens with sintering additive of Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} by about 5 mass% formed the network structure of oxide in the crystals of AlN. It was considered that the corrosion proceeded by reduction of the oxide network and the penetration of molten lithium through the reduced pass of this network. For specimens without sintering additive, Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} containing by about 1.3% in raw material was converted to fine oxynitride particles on grain boundary or dissolved in AlN crystals. After immersion into lithium, these specimens were found to be sound in shape but reduced in electrical resistivity. These degradation of the two types specimens were considered to be caused by the reduction of oxygen components. On the other hand, a specimen sintered using CaO as sintering additive was finally became appreciably high purity. This specimen showed good compatibility for molten lithium at least up to 823 K. It was concluded that the reduction of oxygen concentration in AlN materials was essential in order to improve the compatibility for molten lithium. (author)

The role of surface preparation in corrosion protection of copper with nanometer-thick ALD alumina coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mirhashemihaghighi, Shadi; Światowska, Jolanta [PSL Research University, CNRS – Chimie ParisTech, Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris (IRCP), 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris (France); Maurice, Vincent, E-mail: vincent.maurice@chimie-paristech.fr [PSL Research University, CNRS – Chimie ParisTech, Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris (IRCP), 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris (France); Seyeux, Antoine; Klein, Lorena H. [PSL Research University, CNRS – Chimie ParisTech, Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris (IRCP), 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris (France); Salmi, Emma; Ritala, Mikko [Laboratory of Inorganic Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 55, FIN-00014 Helsinki (Finland); Marcus, Philippe [PSL Research University, CNRS – Chimie ParisTech, Institut de Recherche de Chimie Paris (IRCP), 11 rue Pierre et Marie Curie, 75005 Paris (France)

2016-11-30

Highlights: • 10–50 nm thick alumina coatings were grown on copper by atomic layer deposition. • Surface smoothening by substrate annealing was studied as pre-deposition treatment. • Corrosion protection is promoted by pre-treatment for 10 nm but not for thicker films. • Local adhesion failure is assigned to the stresses accumulated in the thicker films. • Surface smoothening decreases the interfacial strength bearing the film stresses. - Abstract: Surface smoothening by substrate annealing was studied as a pre-treatment for improving the corrosion protection provided to copper by 10, 20 and 50 nm thick alumina coatings deposited by atomic layer deposition. The interplay between substrate surface state and deposited film thickness for controlling the corrosion protection provided by ultrathin barrier films is demonstrated. Pre-annealing at 750 °C heals out the dispersed surface heterogeneities left by electropolishing and reduces the surface roughness to less than 2 nm independently of the deposited film thickness. For 10 nm coatings, substrate surface smoothening promotes the corrosion resistance. However, for 20 and 50 nm coatings, it is detrimental to the corrosion protection due to local detachment of the deposited films. The weaker adherence of the thicker coatings is assigned to the stresses accumulated in the films with increasing deposited thickness. Healing out the local heterogeneities on the substrate surface diminishes the interfacial strength that is bearing the stresses of the deposited films, thereby increasing adhesion failure for the thicker films. Pitting corrosion occurs at the local sites of adhesion failure. Intergranular corrosion occurs at the initially well coated substrate grain boundaries because of the growth of a more defective and permeable coating at grain boundaries.

INFLUENCE OF THE THICKNESS OF Ni-P COATING APPLIED ON 7075 ALUMINUM ALLOY ON ITS HARDNESS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kazimierz Czapczyk

2016-12-01

Full Text Available The paper presents the results of hardness tests of aluminum alloy AW-7075 (for plastic processing and Ni-P chemical coatings (nickel-phosphorus which had been applied by the no-current method. Coatings of various thickness have been made and their influence on the increase of the top layer hardness has been determined, as well as the increase of the hardness of the coating and substrate system after puncturing the coating with an indenter. The purpose of the investigation was to determine the possibility of applying the Ni-P coating for selected technical applications, among others, by the selection of its optimum thickness on the hard aluminum alloy and by the determination of the deformation resistance of the top layer if the given coating.

Low-temperature atomic layer epitaxy of AlN ultrathin films by layer-by-layer, in-situ atomic layer annealing.

Science.gov (United States)

Shih, Huan-Yu; Lee, Wei-Hao; Kao, Wei-Chung; Chuang, Yung-Chuan; Lin, Ray-Ming; Lin, Hsin-Chih; Shiojiri, Makoto; Chen, Miin-Jang

2017-01-03

Low-temperature epitaxial growth of AlN ultrathin films was realized by atomic layer deposition (ALD) together with the layer-by-layer, in-situ atomic layer annealing (ALA), instead of a high growth temperature which is needed in conventional epitaxial growth techniques. By applying the ALA with the Ar plasma treatment in each ALD cycle, the AlN thin film was converted dramatically from the amorphous phase to a single-crystalline epitaxial layer, at a low deposition temperature of 300 °C. The energy transferred from plasma not only provides the crystallization energy but also enhances the migration of adatoms and the removal of ligands, which significantly improve the crystallinity of the epitaxial layer. The X-ray diffraction reveals that the full width at half-maximum of the AlN (0002) rocking curve is only 144 arcsec in the AlN ultrathin epilayer with a thickness of only a few tens of nm. The high-resolution transmission electron microscopy also indicates the high-quality single-crystal hexagonal phase of the AlN epitaxial layer on the sapphire substrate. The result opens a window for further extension of the ALD applications from amorphous thin films to the high-quality low-temperature atomic layer epitaxy, which can be exploited in a variety of fields and applications in the near future.

Aluminum hydroxide coating thickness measurements and brushing tests on K West Basin fuel elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pitner, A.L.

1998-01-01

Aluminum hydroxide coating thicknesses were measured on fuel elements stored in aluminum canisters in K West Basin using specially developed eddy current probes . The results were used to estimate coating inventories for MCO fuel,loading. Brushing tests successfully demonstrated the ability to remove the coating if deemed necessary prior to MCO loading

Wear and Friction Characteristics of AlN/Diamond-Like Carbon Hybrid Coatings on Aluminum Alloy

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamura, Masashi; Kubota, Sadayuki; Suzuki, Hideto; Haraguchi, Tadao

2015-10-01

The use of diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings has the potential to greatly improve the wear resistance and friction of aluminum alloys, but practical application has so far been limited by poor adhesion due to large difference in hardness and elasticity between the two materials. This study investigates the deposition of DLC onto an Al-alloy using an intermediate AlN layer with a graded hardness to create a hybrid coating. By controlling the hardness of the AlN film, it was found that the wear life of the DLC film could be improved 80-fold compared to a DLC film deposited directly onto Al-alloy. Furthermore, it was demonstrated through finite element simulation that creating a hardness gradient in the AlN intermediate layer reduces the distribution of stress in the DLC film, while also increasing the force of adhesion between the DLC and AlN layers. Given that both the DLC and AlN films were deposited using the same unbalanced magnetron sputtering method, this process is considered to represent a simple and effective means of improving the wear resistance of Al-alloy components commonly used within the aerospace and automotive industries.

Mechanical Properties And Microstructure Of AlN/SiCN Nanocomposite Coatings Prepared By R.F.-Reactive Sputtering Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nakafushi Y.

2015-06-01

Full Text Available FIn this work, AlN/SiCN composite coatings were deposited by r.f.-reactive sputtering method using a facing target-type sputtering (FTS apparatus with composite targets consisting of Al plate and SiC chips in a gaseous mixture of Ar and N2, and investigated their mechanical properties and microstructure. The indentation hardness (HIT of AlN/SiCN coatings prepared from composite targets consisting of 8 ~32 chips of SiC and Al plate showed the maximum value of about 29~32 GPa at a proper nitrogen gas flow rate. X-ray diffraction (XRD patterns for the AlN/SiCN composite coatings indicated the presence of the only peeks of hexagonal (B4 structured AlN phase. AlN coatings clarified the columnar structure of the cross sectional view TEM observation. On the other hand, microstructure of AlN/SiCN composite coatings changed from columnar to equiaxed structure with increasing SiCN content. HR-TEM observation clarified that the composite coatings consisted of very fine equiaxial grains of B4 structured AlN phase and amorphous phase.

Effect of Coating-thickness on the formability of hot dip aluminized steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Awan, G.H.; Ahmed, F.; Hasan, F.

2008-01-01

The influence of coating thickness on the formability and ductility of hot-dip-aluminized steel has been determined using a 3-point bend test and optical metallography. The ductility / formability was estimated from the 3-point bend test wherein the angle of bend at which the cracks start to appear on the surface of the aluminized sheet during bending, was taken as an index of the formability / ductility. It was observed that as the amount of silicon in the aluminising melt was gradually increased the measured ductility of the sheet sample also increased. Metallographic examination has shown that as the amount of silicon in the aluminising melt was increased the thickness of the intermediate compound layer, between the outer aluminum coat and the substrate steel, decreased. It was thus indicated from these experiments that the formability / ductility of the sheet was inversely related to the thickness of the interlayer. (author)

Design and Optimization of AlN based RF MEMS Switches

Science.gov (United States)

Hasan Ziko, Mehadi; Koel, Ants

2018-05-01

Radio frequency microelectromechanical system (RF MEMS) switch technology might have potential to replace the semiconductor technology in future communication systems as well as communication satellites, wireless and mobile phones. This study is to explore the possibilities of RF MEMS switch design and optimization with aluminium nitride (AlN) thin film as the piezoelectric actuation material. Achieving low actuation voltage and high contact force with optimal geometry using the principle of piezoelectric effect is the main motivation for this research. Analytical and numerical modelling of single beam type RF MEMS switch used to analyse the design parameters and optimize them for the minimum actuation voltage and high contact force. An analytical model using isotropic AlN material properties used to obtain the optimal parameters. The optimized geometry of the device length, width and thickness are 2000 µm, 500 µm and 0.6 µm respectively obtained for the single beam RF MEMS switch. Low actuation voltage and high contact force with optimal geometry are less than 2 Vand 100 µN obtained by analytical analysis. Additionally, the single beam RF MEMS switch are optimized and validated by comparing the analytical and finite element modelling (FEM) analysis.

Technique for thick polymer coating of inertial-confinement-fusion targets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, M.C.; Feng, I.; Wang, T.G.; Kim, H.

1983-01-01

A novel technique has been developed to coat a thick layer (15--50 μm) of polymer materials on inertial-confinement-fusion (ICF) targets. In this technique, the target and the coating material are independently positioned and manipulated. The coating material is first dissolved in an appropriate solvent to form a polymer solution. The solution is then atomized, transported, and allowed to coalesce into a droplet in a stable acoustic levitating field. The ICF target mounted on a stalk is moved into the acoustic field by manipulating a three-dimensional (3-D) positioner to penetrate the surface membrane of the droplet and thus the target is immersed in the levitated coating solution. The 3-D coordinates of the target inside the droplet are obtained using two orthogonally placed television cameras. The target is positioned at the geometric center of the droplet and maintained at that location by continuously manipulating the 3-D device until the coating layer is dried. Tests of this technique using a polymer solution have been highly successful

Ferromagnetism in Cr-doped passivated AlN nanowires

KAUST Repository

Kanoun, Mohammed; Goumri-Said, Souraya; Schwingenschlö gl, Udo

2014-01-01

We apply first principles calculations to predict the effect of Cr doping on the electronic and magnetic properties of passivated AlN nanowires. We compare the energetics of the possible dopant sites and demonstrate the favorable configuration ferromagnetic ordering. The charge density of the pristine passivated AlN nanowires is used to elucidate the bonding character. Spin density maps demonstrate an induced spin polarization for N atoms next to dopant atoms, though most of the magnetism is carried by the Cr atoms. Cr-doped AlN nanowires turn out to be interesting for spintronic devices. © 2014 the Partner Organisations.

AlN piezoelectric films for sensing and actuation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tran, A.T.

2014-01-01

Aluminum Nitride (AlN) is explored as a thin film material for piezoelectric MEMS applications. A pulse DC reactive sputtering technique is used to deposit the AlN thin films and process parameters are optimized to obtain good crystallinity and high c-axis orientation films. A CMOS compatible

Effect of substrate preheating temperature and coating thickness on residual stress in plasma sprayed hydroxyapatite coating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, Dapei

2015-01-01

A thermal-mechanical coupling model was developed based on thermal-elastic- plastic theory according the special process of plasma spraying Hydroxyapatite (HA) coating upon Ti-6Al-4V substrate. On the one hand, the classical Fourier transient heat conduction equation was modified by introducing the effect item of deformation on temperature, on the other hand, the Johnson-Cook model, suitable for high temperature and high strain rate conditions, was used as constitutive equation after considering temperature softening effect, strain hardening effect and strain rate reinforcement effect. Based on the above coupling model, the residual stress field within the HA coating was simulated by using finite element method (FEM). Meanwhile, the substrate preheating temperature and coating thickness on the influence of residual stress components were calculated, respectively. The failure modes of coating were also preliminary analyzed. In addition, in order to verify the reliability of calculation, the material removal measurement technique was applied to determine the residual stress of HA coating near the interface. Some important conclusions are obtained. (paper)

Thickness and morphology of polyelectrolyte coatings on silica surfaces before and after protein exposure studied by atomic force microscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Haselberg, Rob, E-mail: r.haselberg@vu.nl [Biomolecular Analysis, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht (Netherlands); AIMMS Division of BioMolecular Analysis, VU University Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1083, 1081 HV Amsterdam (Netherlands); Flesch, Frits M. [Biomolecular Analysis, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht (Netherlands); Boerke, Arjan [Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 2, 3508 TD Utrecht (Netherlands); Somsen, Govert W. [Biomolecular Analysis, Utrecht University, Universiteitsweg 99, 3584 CG Utrecht (Netherlands); AIMMS Division of BioMolecular Analysis, VU University Amsterdam, de Boelelaan 1083, 1081 HV Amsterdam (Netherlands)

2013-05-24

Graphical abstract: -- Highlights: •Atomic force microscopy is used to characterize polyelectrolyte coatings. •Coating procedure leads to nm-thick layers on a silica surface. •Polyelectrolyte coatings effectively prevent protein adsorption. •AFM provides the high resolution to investigate these thin films. •AFM results support earlier findings obtained with capillary electrophoresis. -- Abstract: Analyte–wall interaction is a significant problem in capillary electrophoresis (CE) as it may compromise separation efficiencies and migration time repeatability. In CE, self-assembled polyelectrolyte multilayer films of Polybrene (PB) and dextran sulfate (DS) or poly(vinylsulfonic acid) (PVS) have been used to coat the capillary inner wall and thereby prevent analyte adsorption. In this study, atomic force microscopy (AFM) was employed to investigate the layer thickness and surface morphology of monolayer (PB), bilayer, (PB-DS and PB-PVS), and trilayer (PB-DS-PB and PB-PVS-PB) coatings on glass surfaces. AFM nanoshaving experiments providing height distributions demonstrated that the coating procedures led to average layer thicknesses between 1 nm (PB) and 5 nm (PB-DS-PB), suggesting the individual polyelectrolytes adhere flat on the silica surface. Investigation of the surface morphology of the different coatings by AFM revealed that the PB coating does not completely cover the silica surface, whereas full coverage was observed for the trilayer coatings. The DS-containing coatings appeared on average 1 nm thicker than the corresponding PVS-containing coatings, which could be attributed to the molecular structure of the anionic polymers applied. Upon exposure to the basic protein cytochrome c, AFM measurements showed an increase of the layer thickness for bare (3.1 nm) and PB-DS-coated (4.6 nm) silica, indicating substantial protein adsorption. In contrast, a very small or no increase of the layer thickness was observed for the PB and PB-DS-PB coatings

Thick boron carbide coatings for protection of tokamak first wall and divertor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buzhinskij, O.I.; Semenets, Yu.M.

1999-01-01

A review of characteristics of various types of boron carbide coatings considered as candidate materials for protection of tokamak inner surfaces against high energy heat fluxes is presented. Such coatings are produced by various methods: chemical vapor deposition by means of chloride and fluoride techniques, gas conversion, plasma spray and reaction-sintering. Contrary to pure carbon materials, B 4 C has much lower chemical and high-temperature sputtering, is capable to oxygen gettering and lower hydrogen recycling. In contrast to thin boronization films, the thick coatings can resist high heat fluxes such as in tokamak divertors. Comparative analysis shows that coatings produced by the diffusion methods, such as fluoride CVD and gas conversion, are more resistent to heat loads, and one of the most promising candidates are the fluoride CVD coatings. (orig.)

Thin coating thickness determination using radioisotope-excited x-ray fluorescence spectrometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Del Castillo, Lorena A.; Calix, Virginia S.

2001-01-01

Three different approaches on thin coating thickness determination using a radioisotope-excited x-ray fluorescence spectrometry were demonstrated and results were compared. A standard of thin layer of gold (Au) on a nickel (Ni) substrate from the US National Bureau of Standards (with a nominal thickness of 0.300505 microns of at least 99.9% Au electrodeposited over 2 nils of Ni) on low carbon steel (1010) was analyzed using a Cd 109-excited XRF system. Au thickness computations were done using the (a) thin standard approach, (b) thick standard approach, and (c) x-ray absorption method (ASTM A754-79 1982). These three methods yielded results within the limit set by the American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM), which is +/-3%. Of the three methods, the thick standard yielded the best result with 0.124% error. (Author)

A suggestion of a new method for the calculation of the coating thickness in continuous hot-dip galvanizing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jo, C. M.; Kwon, Y. D.; Kwon, S. B. [Kyungpook National University, Daegu (Korea, Republic of); Kim, G. Y. [POSCO Technical Research laboratories, Gumgo-dong (Korea, Republic of)

2011-11-15

It is known that the distributions of the impinging pressure gradient and the shear stress at the strip surface play a decisive key role in the decision of the coating thickness in hot-dip galvanizing. So, to predict the exact coating thickness, it is essential that the distributions of the impinging wall jet pressure and the shear stress acting between the liquid film and jet stream are measured (or calculated) exactly for each specific coating condition. So far, to obtain the impinging wall jet pressure, it was assumed that the jet issuing from an air-knife is similar to the Hiemenz plane stagnation flow, and the wall shear stress could be predicted by an equation using the assumption of a non-negative Gaussian profile in impinging wall jet pressure in general, so that it cannot be reliable for some impinging wall jet regions and nozzle systems intrinsically. Nevertheless, one cannot find a suitable method to cope with the difficulties in measuring/calculating of the shear stress and the impinging wall jet pressure. Such a difficulty which will cause an inaccuracy in the coating thickness prediction. With these connections, in the present study, we suggest a new method named as a two-step calculation method to calculate the final coating thickness, which consists of the air jet analysis and coating thickness calculation. And, from the comparison of the results one may confirm the validation of the new suggested method.

Enhancement of c-axis texture of AlN films by substrate implantation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, C.H.; Yeh, J.M.; Hwang, J.

2005-01-01

Highly oriented AlN films are successfully deposited on B + implanted Si(1 1 1) substrates in a radio frequency inductively coupled plasma (RF/ICP) system. The implanted energy and dose used for the B + implanted Si(1 1 1) substrates are 200 keV and 10 15 cm -2 , respectively. The c-axis texture of AlN films can be affected by RF gun power and ion implantation. Experimental results show that the full width at half-maximum (FWHM) of AlN(0 0 2) in the X-ray rocking curve measurements decreases with increasing RF gun power. The optimum condition is at 500 W, where the FWHM of the AlN films deposited on Si(1 1 1) with and without B + implantation are 2.77 and 3.17, respectively. In average, the FWHM of the AlN films on B + implanted Si(1 1 1) are less than those on Si(1 1 1) by a factor of ∼10%. The enhancement of c-axis of AlN films due to B + implantation is attributed to the reduction of AlN grains. Raman spectra also suggest that ion implantation plays a role in reducing the tensile stress in AlN films deposited on B + implanted Si(1 1 1)

Cutting Performance of Low Stress Thick TiAlN PVD Coatings during Machining of Compacted Graphite Cast Iron (CGI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kenji Yamamoto

2018-01-01

Full Text Available A new family of physical vapor deposited (PVD coatings is presented in this paper. These coatings are deposited by a superfine cathode (SFC using the arc method. They combine a smooth surface, high hardness, and low residual stresses. This allows the production of PVD coatings as thick as 15 µm. In some applications, in particular for machining of such hard to cut material as compacted graphite iron (CGI, such coatings have shown better tool life compared to the conventional PVD coatings that have a lower thickness in the range of up to 5 μm. Finite element modeling of the temperature/stress profiles was done for the SFC coatings to present the temperature/stress profiles during cutting. Comprehensive characterization of the coatings was performed using XRD, TEM, SEM/EDS studies, nano-hardness, nano-impact measurements, and residual stress measurements. Application of the coating with this set of characteristics reduces the intensity of buildup edge formation during turning of CGI, leading to longer tool life. Optimization of the TiAlN-based coatings composition (Ti/Al ratio, architecture (mono vs. multilayer, and thickness were performed. Application of the optimized coating resulted in a 40–60% improvement in the cutting tool life under finishing turning of CGI.

Electrical properties of GaAs metal–oxide–semiconductor structure comprising Al2O3 gate oxide and AlN passivation layer fabricated in situ using a metal–organic vapor deposition/atomic layer deposition hybrid system

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Takeshi Aoki

2015-08-01

Full Text Available This paper presents a compressive study on the fabrication and optimization of GaAs metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS structures comprising a Al2O3 gate oxide, deposited via atomic layer deposition (ALD, with an AlN interfacial passivation layer prepared in situ via metal–organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD. The established protocol afforded self-limiting growth of Al2O3 in the atmospheric MOCVD reactor. Consequently, this enabled successive growth of MOCVD-formed AlN and ALD-formed Al2O3 layers on the GaAs substrate. The effects of AlN thickness, post-deposition anneal (PDA conditions, and crystal orientation of the GaAs substrate on the electrical properties of the resulting MOS capacitors were investigated. Thin AlN passivation layers afforded incorporation of optimum amounts of nitrogen, leading to good capacitance–voltage (C–V characteristics with reduced frequency dispersion. In contrast, excessively thick AlN passivation layers degraded the interface, thereby increasing the interfacial density of states (Dit near the midgap and reducing the conduction band offset. To further improve the interface with the thin AlN passivation layers, the PDA conditions were optimized. Using wet nitrogen at 600 °C was effective to reduce Dit to below 2 × 1012 cm−2 eV−1. Using a (111A substrate was also effective in reducing the frequency dispersion of accumulation capacitance, thus suggesting the suppression of traps in GaAs located near the dielectric/GaAs interface. The current findings suggest that using an atmosphere ALD process with in situ AlN passivation using the current MOCVD system could be an efficient solution to improving GaAs MOS interfaces.

Influence of thickness of zinc coating on CMT welding-brazing with AlSi5 alloy wire

Science.gov (United States)

Jin, Pengli; Wang, Zhiping; Yang, Sinan; Jia, Peng

2018-03-01

Effect of thickness of zinc coating on Cold Mattel Transfer (CMT) brazing of aluminum and galvanized steel is investigated. The thickness of zinc coating is 10 μm, 30 μm, and 60 μm, respectively. A high-speed camera was used to capture images of welding process of different specimens; the microstructure and composition analyses of the welding seam were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS); the mechanical properties were measured in the form of Nano-indentation experiments. The results showed that arc characteristics and metal transfer behavior were unsteady at the beginning of welding process and that became stable after two cycles of CMT. With the thickness of zinc coating thickening, arc characteristics and metal transfer behaviors were more deteriorated. Compared with 10 μm and 30 μm, clad appearance of 60 μm was straight seam edges and a smooth surface which wetting angle was 60°. Zinc-rich zone at the seam edges was formed by zinc dissolution and motel pool oscillating, and zinc content of 10 μm and 30 μm were 5.8% and 7.75%. Zinc content of 60 μm was 14.61%, and it was a belt between galvanized steel and welding seam. The thickness of intermetallic compounds layer was in the range of 1-8 μm, and it changed with the thickness of zinc coating. The average hardness of the reaction layer of 60 μm is 9.197 GPa.

AlN metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors using Si-ion implantation

Science.gov (United States)

Okumura, Hironori; Suihkonen, Sami; Lemettinen, Jori; Uedono, Akira; Zhang, Yuhao; Piedra, Daniel; Palacios, Tomás

2018-04-01

We report on the electrical characterization of Si-ion implanted AlN layers and the first demonstration of metal-semiconductor field-effect transistors (MESFETs) with an ion-implanted AlN channel. The ion-implanted AlN layers with Si dose of 5 × 1014 cm-2 exhibit n-type characteristics after thermal annealing at 1230 °C. The ion-implanted AlN MESFETs provide good drain current saturation and stable pinch-off operation even at 250 °C. The off-state breakdown voltage is 2370 V for drain-to-gate spacing of 25 µm. These results show the great potential of AlN-channel transistors for high-temperature and high-power applications.

Investigation of DC magnetron-sputtered TiO2 coatings: Effect of coating thickness, structure, and morphology on photocatalytic activity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Daviðsdóttir, Svava; Shabadi, Rajashekhara; Galca, Aurelian Catalin

2014-01-01

The photocatalytic performance of magnetron-sputtered titanium dioxide (TiO2) coatings of different thickness in anatase crystalline structure deposited on aluminium 1050 alloy substrates was investigated using a combination of photo-electrochemistry, methylene blue decomposition, and microscopic...

Flexible-CMOS and biocompatible piezoelectric AlN material for MEMS applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jackson, Nathan; Keeney, Lynette; Mathewson, Alan

2013-01-01

The development of a CMOS compatible flexible piezoelectric material is desired for numerous applications and in particular for biomedical MEMS devices. Aluminum nitride (AlN) is the most commonly used CMOS compatible piezoelectric material, which is typically deposited on Si in order to enhance the c-axis (002) crystal orientation which gives AlN its high piezoelectric properties. This paper reports on the successful deposition of AlN on polyimide (PI-2611) material. The AlN deposited has a FWHM (002) value of 5.1° and a piezoelectric d 33 value of 1.12 pm V −1 , and SEM images show high quality columnar grains. The highly crystalline AlN material is due to the semi-crystalline properties of the polyimide film used. Cytotoxicity testing showed the AlN/polyimide material to be non-toxic to 3T3 cells and primary neurons. Surface properties of the AlN/polyimide film were evaluated as they have a significant effect on the adhesion of cells to the film. The results show neurons adhering to the AlN surface. The results of this paper show the characterization of a new flexible-CMOS and biocompatible AlN/polyimide material for MEMS devices with improved crystallinity and piezoelectric properties. (paper)

Surface modification of aluminum nitride by polysilazane and its polymer-derived amorphous silicon oxycarbide ceramic for the enhancement of thermal conductivity in silicone rubber composite

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Hsien Tang; Sukachonmakul, Tanapon; Kuo, Ming Tai; Wang, Yu Hsiang; Wattanakul, Karnthidaporn

2014-02-01

Polysilazane (PSZ) and its polymer-derived amorphous silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) ceramic were coated on aluminum nitride (AlN) by using a dip-coating method to allow moisture-crosslinking of PSZ on AlN, followed by heat treatment at 700 °C in air to convert PSZ into SiOC on AlN. The results from FTIR, XPS and SEM indicated that the surface of AlN was successfully coated by PSZ and SiOC film. It was found that the introduction of PSZ and SiOC film help improve in the interfacial adhesion between the modified AlN (PSZ/AlN and SiOC/AlN) and silicone rubber lead to the increase in the thermal conductivity of the composites since the thermal boundary resistance at the filler-matrix interface was decreased. However, the introduction of SiOC as an intermediate layer between AlN and silicone rubber could help increase the thermal energy transport at the filler-matrix interface rather than using PSZ. This result was due to the decrease in the surface roughness and thickness of SiOC film after heat treatment at 700 °C in air. Thus, in the present work, a SiOC ceramic coating could provide a new surface modification for the improvement of the interfacial adhesion between the thermally conductive filler and the matrix in which can enhance the thermal conductivity of the composites.

Investigation on feasibility and detection limits for determination of coating film thickness by neutron activation analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yao Maoying; Xu Jiayun; Zhang Dida; Yang Zunyong; Yao Zhenqiang; Wang Mingqiu; Gao Dangzhong

2010-01-01

A method for the determination of coating film thickness by neutron activation was proposed in this paper. After Au, Al and Cu et al.films were activated with a Am-Be neutron source, the characteristic γ-rays emitted by the activated nuclides in the films were counted with a HPGe γ spectrometer. The detection limits of film thickness by using a nuclear reactor neutron source were deduced on the basis of the γ-ray counts and the Monte-Carlo simulated detection efficiencies. The possible detection limits are typically 4-5 orders of magnitude better than those by fluorescent X-ray method, which is currently widely used to determine coating film thickness. (authors)

Broadband Acoustic Resonance Dissolution Spectroscopy (BARDS): A rapid test for enteric coating thickness and integrity of controlled release pellet formulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Alfarsi, Anas; Dillon, Amy; McSweeney, Seán; Krüse, Jacob; Griffin, Brendan; Devine, Ken; Sherry, Patricia; Henken, Stephan; Fitzpatrick, Stephen; Fitzpatrick, Dara

2018-04-12

There are no rapid dissolution based tests for determining coating thickness, integrity and drug concentration in controlled release pellets either during production or post-production. The manufacture of pellets requires several coating steps depending on the formulation. The sub-coating and enteric coating steps typically take up to six hours each followed by additional drying steps. Post production regulatory dissolution testing also takes up to six hours to determine if the batch can be released for commercial sale. The thickness of the enteric coating is a key factor that determines the release rate of the drug in the gastro-intestinal tract. Also, the amount of drug per unit mass decreases with increasing thickness of the enteric coating. In this study, the coating process is tracked from start to finish on an hourly basis by taking samples of pellets during production and testing those using BARDS (Broadband Acoustic Resonance Dissolution Spectroscopy). BARDS offers a rapid approach to characterising enteric coatings with measurements based on reproducible changes in the compressibility of a solvent due to the evolution of air during dissolution. This is monitored acoustically via associated changes in the frequency of induced acoustic resonances. A steady state acoustic lag time is associated with the disintegration of the enteric coatings in basic solution. This lag time is pH dependent and is indicative of the rate at which the coating layer dissolves. BARDS represents a possible future surrogate test for conventional USP dissolution testing as its data correlates directly with the thickness of the enteric coating, its integrity and also with the drug loading as validated by HPLC. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Formation and investigation of multilayer nanostructured coatings TiN/MoN for different layers thicknesses with c-pvd

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pogrebnyak, A.D.; Bondar, O.V.; Postol'nyj, B.A.; Andreev, A.A.; Abadias, G.; Beresnev, V.M.; Sobol', O.B.

2013-01-01

Multilayer coatings based on TiN/MoN were obtained using the vacuum arc evaporation cathode method (C-PVD). Multilayers thickness was in the range 6,7 ÷ 8,7 μm and monolayers thickness was 2, 10, 20 and 40 nm. Vacuum-arc unit Bulat 6 was used for depositions. For the analysis of multilayer structures and properties of nanostructured coatings XRD analysis method was used (D8 ADVANCE, Bruker). For elemental composition and morphology investigation of the surface layers and multilayered coatings SEM (JEOL-7001F) with EDX attachment was used. Also HRTEM method was used to analyze the phase composition. In addition, this article provides investigation of hardness by Micro-Hardness Tester CSM (Switzerland). AFM was used for additional analysis of the topography and surface roughness of these coatings. This investigation have revealed the relationship between the layers thicknesses, substrate potential, the annealing process, physical and mechanical properties of samples. (authors)

Electronic structures, elastic properties, and minimum thermal conductivities of cermet M{sub 3}AlN

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Jin [Faculty of Materials and Energy, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715 (China); Key Laboratory of Liquid–Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061 (China); Chen, ZhiQian, E-mail: chen_zq@swu.edu.cn [Faculty of Materials and Energy, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715 (China); Li, ChunMei; Li, Feng; Nie, ChaoYin [Faculty of Materials and Energy, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715 (China)

2014-08-15

The electronic structures and elastic anisotropies of cubic Ti{sub 3}AlN, Zr{sub 3}AlN, and Hf{sub 3}AlN are investigated by pseudopotential plane-wave method based on density functional theory. At the Fermi level, the electronic structures of these compounds are successive with no energy gap between conduct and valence bands, and exhibit metallicity in ground states. In valence band of each partial density of states, the different orbital electrons indicate interaction of corresponding atoms. In addition, the anisotropy of Hf{sub 3}AlN is found to be significantly different from that of Ti{sub 3}AlN and Zr{sub 3}AlN, which involve the differences in the bonding strength. It is notable that Hf{sub 3}AlN is a desired thermal barrier material with the lowest thermal conductivity at high temperature among the three compounds. - Graphical abstract: 1.Young's moduli of anti-perovskite Ti{sub 3}AlN, Zr{sub 3}AlN, and Hf{sub 3}AlN in full space. 2.Electron density differences on crystal planes (1 0 0), (2 0 0), and (1 1 0) of anti-perovskite Zr{sub 3}AlN. - Highlights: • We calculated three anti-perovskite cermets with first-principles theory. • We illustrated 3D Young modulus and found the anomalous anisotropy. • We explained the anomaly and calculated the minimum thermal conductivities.

Thickness-Dependent Bioelectrochemical and Energy Applications of Thickness-Controlled Meso-Macroporous Antimony-Doped Tin Oxide

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel Mieritz

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Coatings of hierarchically meso-macroporous antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO enable interfacing adsorbed species, such as biomacromolecules, with an electronic circuit. The coating thickness is a limiting factor for the surface coverage of adsorbates, that are electrochemically addressable. To overcome this challenge, a carbon black-based templating method was developed by studying the composition of the template system, and finding the right conditions for self-standing templates, preventing the reaction mixture from flowing out of the mask. The thicknesses of as-fabricated coatings were measured using stylus profilometry to establish a relationship between the mask thickness and the coating thickness. Cyclic voltammetry was performed on coatings with adsorbed cytochrome c to check whether the entire coating thickness was electrochemically addressable. Further, bacterial photosynthetic reaction centers were incorporated into the coatings, and photocurrent with respect to coating thickness was studied. The template mixture required enough of both carbon black and polymer, roughly 7% carbon black and 6% poly(ethylene glycol. Coatings were fabricated with thicknesses approaching 30 µm, and thickness was shown to be controllable up to at least 15 µm. Under the experimental conditions, photocurrent was found to increase linearly with the coating thickness, up to around 12 µm, above which were diminished gains.

A novel multivariate approach using science-based calibration for direct coating thickness determination in real-time NIR process monitoring.

Science.gov (United States)

Möltgen, C-V; Herdling, T; Reich, G

2013-11-01

This study demonstrates an approach, using science-based calibration (SBC), for direct coating thickness determination on heart-shaped tablets in real-time. Near-Infrared (NIR) spectra were collected during four full industrial pan coating operations. The tablets were coated with a thin hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC) film up to a film thickness of 28 μm. The application of SBC permits the calibration of the NIR spectral data without using costly determined reference values. This is due to the fact that SBC combines classical methods to estimate the coating signal and statistical methods for the noise estimation. The approach enabled the use of NIR for the measurement of the film thickness increase from around 8 to 28 μm of four independent batches in real-time. The developed model provided a spectroscopic limit of detection for the coating thickness of 0.64 ± 0.03 μm root-mean square (RMS). In the commonly used statistical methods for calibration, such as Partial Least Squares (PLS), sufficiently varying reference values are needed for calibration. For thin non-functional coatings this is a challenge because the quality of the model depends on the accuracy of the selected calibration standards. The obvious and simple approach of SBC eliminates many of the problems associated with the conventional statistical methods and offers an alternative for multivariate calibration. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Sol-gel/drop-coated micro-thick TiO{sub 2} memristors for γ-ray sensing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abunahla, Heba [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates); Jaoude, Maguy Abi, E-mail: maguy.abijaoude@kustar.ac.ae [Department of Applied Mathematics and Sciences, Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates); O' Kelly, Curtis J.; Mohammad, Baker [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates)

2016-12-01

Sol-gel/drop-coated micro-thick TiO{sub 2} memristors were investigated and developed for low-power radiation sensing. Devices constructed with coated aluminum (Al) electrodes exhibited unipolar I-V characteristics with dynamic turn-on voltage, and progressive R{sub OFF}/R{sub ON} ratio loss under applied bias. Endurance failure of micro-thick Al/Al stacks is ascribed to gradual passivation of Al surface resulting from an electrically-enhanced oxygen-ion diffusion. By exchanging a single Al contact with higher work function copper (Cu) metal, two distinct superimposed TiO{sub 2} phases were formed. The TiO{sub 2} coating on Al surface was carbon-contaminated and amorphous, while that on Cu was found to be additionally doped with Cu{sup (I/II)} ions resulting from the corrosion of the surface of the electrode by the amine-based gelation agent. After initial forming, the hybrid stack could achieve a bipolar memristance, with high R{sub OFF}/R{sub ON} (up to 10{sup 6}), and over 10 switching cycles at low-operating voltages (±1 V). The enhanced memristive switching properties of Al/Cu devices are explained via cooperative valence-change/electrochemical-metallization processes, involving migration of oxygen and copper species. The advanced micro-thick TiO{sub 2} memristors were exposed to Cs-137 γ-rays, providing for the first time initial insights into their radiation detection capabilities. The sensing mechanism through these devices could be actuated by synergistic radiation-induced and field-driven photo-electric effects. - Highlights: • Micro-thick TiO{sub 2} memristors with Al or Cu electrodes are advanced via sol-gel drop-coating. • Memristive switching in Al/TiO{sub 2}/Al structure is not viable due to resistance build-up. • Drop-coated Cu electrode gets corroded by ethanolamine additive, introducing Cu{sup (I/II)} cations into bulk TiO{sub 2}. • Bipolar memristance in Al/TiO{sub 2}/Cu{sup (I/II)} doped-TiO{sub 2}/Cu structure is depicted for the

Fabrication of tubed functionally graded material by slurry dipping process. Thickness control of dip-coated layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Watanabe, Ryuzo

1997-03-01

In order to obtain long life fuel cladding tubes for the fast breeder reactor, the concept of functionally graded material was applied for the material combination of Molybdenum/stainless steel/Titanium, in which Titanium and Molybdenum were placed at the inner and outer sides, respectively. Slurry dipping method was employed because of its capability of shape forming and microstructural control. We have hitherto reported the design criteria for the graded layers, preparation of the slurry, and microstructural control of the dip-coated layers. In the present report, the thickness control of the dip-coated layer is described in detail. The thickness of the dip-coated layer depends primarily on the viscosity of the slurry. Nevertheless, for the stable dispersion of the powder in the slurry, which dominates the microstructural homogeneity, an optimum viscosity value is present for the individual slurries. With stable slurries of Ti, Mo, stainless steel powders and their mixtures, the thicknesses of dip-coated layers were controlled in dependence of their viscosities and yield values. For Ti and stainless steel powders and their mixture a PAANa was used as a dispersing agent. A NaHMP was found to be effective for the dispersion of Mo powder and Mo/stainless steel powder mixture. For all slurries tested in the present investigation PVA addition was helpful for the viscosity control. Dip-coating maps have been drawn for the stabilization of the slurries and for the formation of films with a sufficient strength for further manipulation for the slurries with low viscosity (∼10 mPa s). The final film thickness for the low-viscosity slurry with the optimum condition was about 200 μm. The slurries with high viscosities of several hundreds mPa s had a good stability and the yield value was easy to be controlled. The film thickness was able to be adjusted in the size range between several tens and several hundreds μm. The final thickness of the graded layer was determined

Thermal analysis of the effect of thick thermal barrier coatings on diesel engine performance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hoag, K.L.; Frisch, S.R.; Yonushonis, T.M.

1986-01-01

The reduction of heat rejection from the diesel engine combustion chamber has been the subject of a great deal of focus in recent years. In the pursuit of this goal, Cummins Engine Company has received a contract from the Department of Energy for the development of thick thermal barrier coatings for combustion chamber surfaces. This contract involves the analysis of the impact of coatings on diesel engine performance, bench test evaluation of various coating designs, and single cylinder engine tests. The efforts reported in this paper center on the analysis of the effects of coatings on engine performance and heat rejection. For this analysis the conventional water cooled engine was compared with an engine having limited oil cooling, and utilizing zirocnia coated cylinder had firedecks and piston crowns. The analysis showed little or no benefits of similarly coating the valves or cylinder liner

R\\&D results on a CsI-coated triple thick GEM-based photodetector

CERN Document Server

Martinengo, P; Paic, G; Paras, D M; Di Mauro, A; van Hoorne, J; Molnar, L; Peskov, V; Breskin, A

2011-01-01

The very high momentum particle identification detector proposed for the ALICE upgrade is a focusing RICH using a C(4)F(10) gaseous radiator. For the detection of Cherenkov photons, one of the options currently under investigation is to use a CsI-coated triple thick GEM with metallic or resistive electrodes. We will present results from the laboratory studies as well as preliminary results of beam tests of a RICH detector prototype consisting of a CaF(2) radiator coupled to a 10 x 10 cm(2) CsI-coated triple thick GEM equipped with a pad readout and GASSIPLEX-based front-end electronics. With such a prototype the detection of Cherenkov photons simultaneously with minimum ionizing particles has been achieved for the first time in a stable operation mode. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Adsorption properties of AlN on Si(111) surface: A density functional study

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Yinmei; Zuo, Ran; Mao, Keke; Tang, Binlong; Zhang, Zhou; Liu, Jun; Zhong, Tingting

2018-04-01

In the process of preparing GaN on Si substrate by MOCVD, an AlN buffer layer is very important. In this study, we conducted density functional theory calculations on the adsorption of AlN molecule on Si(111)-(2 × 2) surface, with the AlN molecule located horizontally or vertically above Si(111) surface at different adsorption sites. The calculations revealed that the lowest adsorption energy was at the N-top-Al-bridge site in the horizontal configuration, with the narrowest band gap, indicating that it was the most preferential adsorption growth status of AlN. In the vertical configurations, N adatom was more reactive and convenient to form bonds with the topmost Si atoms than Al adatom. When the N-end of the AlN molecule was located downward, the hollow site was the preferred adsorption site; when the Al-end was located downward, the bridge site was the most energetically favorable. Moreover, we investigated some electronic properties such as partial density of states, electron density difference, Mulliken populations, etc., revealing the microscale mechanism for AlN adsorption on Si(111) surface and providing theoretical support for adjusting the processing parameters during AlN or GaN production.

First-principles study on stability, and growth strategies of small AlnZr (n=1-9) clusters

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Zhi; Zhou, Zhonghao; Wang, Hongbin; Li, Shengli; Zhao, Zhen

2016-09-01

The geometries, relative stability as well as growth strategies of the AlnZr (n=1-9) clusters are investigated with spin polarized density functional theory: BLYP. The results reveal that the AlnZr clusters are more likely to form the dense accumulation structures than the AlN (N=1-10) clusters. The average binding energies of AlnZr are higher than those of AlN clusters. The AlnZr (n=3, 5, and 7) clusters are more stable than others by the differences of the total binding energies. Mülliken population analysis for the AlnZr clusters shows that the electron's adsorption ability of Zr is slightly lower than that of Al except for AlZr cluster. Local peaks of the HOMO-LUMO gap curve are found at n=3, 5, and 7. The reaction energies of AlnZr are higher, which means that AlnZr clusters are easier to react with Al clusters. Zr atom preferential reacts with Al2 cluster. Local peaks of the magnetic dipole moments are found at n=2, 5, and 8.

Effect of pyrolysis atmospheres on the morphology of polymer-derived silicon oxynitrocarbide ceramic films coated aluminum nitride surface and the thermal conductivity of silicone rubber composites

Science.gov (United States)

Chiu, Hsien T.; Sukachonmakul, Tanapon; Wang, Chen H.; Wattanakul, Karnthidaporn; Kuo, Ming T.; Wang, Yu H.

2014-02-01

Amorphous silicon oxycarbide (SiOC) and silicon oxynitrocarbide (SiONC) ceramic films coated aluminum nitride (AlN) were prepared by using preceramic-polysilazane (PSZ) with dip-coating method, followed by pyrolysis at 700 °C in different (air, Ar, N2 and NH3) atmospheres to converted PSZ into SiOCair and SiONC(Ar,N2andNH3) ceramic. The existence of amorphous SiOCair and SiONC(Ar,N2andNH3) ceramic films on AlN surface was characterized by FTIR, XRD and XPS. The interfacial adhesion between silicone rubber and AlN was significantly improved after the introduction of amorphous SiOCair and SiONC(Ar,N2andNH3) ceramic films on AlN surface. It can be observed from AFM that the pyrolysis of PSZ at different atmosphere strongly affected to films morphology on AlN surface as SiOCair and SiONCNH3 ceramic films were more flat and smooth than SiONCN2 and SiONCAr ceramic films. Besides, the enhancement of the thermal conductivity of silicone rubber composites was found to be related to the decrease in the surface roughness of SiOCair and SiONC(Ar,N2andNH3) ceramic films on AlN surface. This present work provided an alternative surface modification of thermally conductive fillers to improve the thermal conductivity of silicon rubber composites by coating with amorphous SiOCair and SiONC(Ar,N2andNH3) ceramic films.

Effect of coating thickness of iron oxide nanoparticles on their relaxivity in the MRI

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Farzaneh Hajesmaeelzadeh

2016-02-01

Full Text Available Objective(s:Iron oxide nanoparticles have found prevalent applications in various fields including drug delivery, cell separation and as contrast agents. Super paramagnetic iron oxide (SPIO nanoparticles allow researchers and clinicians to enhance the tissue contrast of an area of interest by increasing the relaxation rate of water. In this study, we evaluate the dependency of hydrodynamic size of iron oxide nanoparticles coated with Polyethylene  glycol (PEG on their relativities with 3 Tesla clinical MRI. Materials and Methods: We used three groups of nanoparticles with nominal sizes 20, 50 and 100 nm with a core size of 8.86 nm, 8.69 nm and 10.4 nm that they were covered with PEG 300 and 600 Da. A clinical magnetic resonance scanner determines the T1 and T2 relaxation times for various concentrations of PEG-coated nanoparticles. Results: The size measurement by photon correlation spectroscopy showed the hydrodynamic sizes of MNPs with nominal 20, 50 and 100 nm with 70, 82 and 116 nm for particles with PEG 600 coating and 74, 93 and 100 nm for  particles with PEG 300 coating, respectively. We foud that the relaxivity decreased with increasing overall particle size (via coating thickness. Magnetic resonance imaging showed that by increasing the size of the nanoparticles, r2/r1 increases linearly. Conclusion: According to the data obtained from this study it can be concluded that increments in coating thickness have more influence on relaxivities compared to the changes in core size of magnetic nanoparticles.

AlN nanoparticle-reinforced nanocrystalline Al matrix composites: Fabrication and mechanical properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Y.Q.; Cong, H.T.; Wang, W.; Sun, C.H.; Cheng, H.M.

2009-01-01

To improve the specific strength and stiffness of Al-based composites, AlN/Al nanoparticles were in-situ synthesized by arc plasma evaporation of Al in nitrogen atmosphere and consolidated by hot-pressing to fabricate AlN nanoparticle-reinforced nanocrystalline Al composites (0-39 vol.% AlN). Microstructure characterization shows that AlN nanoparticles homogeneously distribute in the matrix of Al nanocrystalline, which forms atomically bonded interfaces of AlN/Al. The hardness and the elastic modulus of the nanocomposite have been improved dramatically, up to 3.48 GPa and 142 GPa, respectively. Such improvement is believed to result from the grain refinement strengthening and the interface strengthening (load transfer) between the Al matrix and AlN nanoparticles

Optical Properties Dependence with Gas Pressure in AlN Films Deposited by Pulsed Laser Ablation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perez, J A; Riascos, H; Caicedo, J C; Cabrera, G; Yate, L

2011-01-01

AlN films were deposited by pulsed laser deposition technique (PLD) using an Nd: YAG laser (λ = 1064 nm). The films were deposited in a nitrogen atmosphere as working gas; the target was an aluminum high purity (99.99%). The films were deposited with a laser fluence of 7 J/cm2 for 10 minutes on silicon (100) substrates. The substrate temperature was 300 deg. C and the working pressure was varied from 3 mtorr to 11 mtorr. The thickness measured by profilometer was 150 nm for all films. The crystallinity was observed via XRD pattern, the morphology and composition of the films were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), respectively. The optical reflectance spectra and color coordinates of the films were obtained by optical spectral reflectometry technique in the range of 400 cm-1- 900 cm-1 by an Ocean Optics 2000 spectrophotometer. In this work, a clear dependence of the reflectance, dominant wavelength and color purity was found in terms of the applied pressure to the AlN films. A reduction in reflectance of about 55% when the pressure was increased from 3 mtorr to 11 mtorr was observed. This paper deals with the formation of AlN thin films as promising materials for the integration of SAW devices on Si substrates due to their good piezoelectric properties and the possibility of deposition at low temperature compatible with the manufacturing of Si integrated circuits.

Optical Properties Dependence with Gas Pressure in AlN Films Deposited by Pulsed Laser Ablation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Perez, J A; Riascos, H [Departamento de Fisica, Universidad Tecnologica de Pereira, Grupo plasma Laser y Aplicaciones A.A 097 (Colombia); Caicedo, J C [Grupo pelIculas delgadas, Universidad del Valle, Cali (Colombia); Cabrera, G; Yate, L, E-mail: jcaicedoangulo@gmail.com [Department de Fisica Aplicada i Optica, Universitat de Barcelona, Catalunya (Spain)

2011-01-01

AlN films were deposited by pulsed laser deposition technique (PLD) using an Nd: YAG laser ({lambda} = 1064 nm). The films were deposited in a nitrogen atmosphere as working gas; the target was an aluminum high purity (99.99%). The films were deposited with a laser fluence of 7 J/cm2 for 10 minutes on silicon (100) substrates. The substrate temperature was 300 deg. C and the working pressure was varied from 3 mtorr to 11 mtorr. The thickness measured by profilometer was 150 nm for all films. The crystallinity was observed via XRD pattern, the morphology and composition of the films were studied using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX), respectively. The optical reflectance spectra and color coordinates of the films were obtained by optical spectral reflectometry technique in the range of 400 cm-1- 900 cm-1 by an Ocean Optics 2000 spectrophotometer. In this work, a clear dependence of the reflectance, dominant wavelength and color purity was found in terms of the applied pressure to the AlN films. A reduction in reflectance of about 55% when the pressure was increased from 3 mtorr to 11 mtorr was observed. This paper deals with the formation of AlN thin films as promising materials for the integration of SAW devices on Si substrates due to their good piezoelectric properties and the possibility of deposition at low temperature compatible with the manufacturing of Si integrated circuits.

Understanding AlN Obtaining Through Computational Thermodynamics Combined with Experimental Investigation

Science.gov (United States)

Florea, R. M.

2017-06-01

Basic material concept, technology and some results of studies on aluminum matrix composite with dispersive aluminum nitride reinforcement was shown. Studied composites were manufactured by „in situ” technique. Aluminum nitride (AlN) has attracted large interest recently, because of its high thermal conductivity, good dielectric properties, high flexural strength, thermal expansion coefficient matches that of Si and its non-toxic nature, as a suitable material for hybrid integrated circuit substrates. AlMg alloys are the best matrix for AlN obtaining. Al2O3-AlMg, AlN-Al2O3, and AlN-AlMg binary diagrams were thermodynamically modelled. The obtained Gibbs free energies of components, solution parameters and stoichiometric phases were used to build a thermodynamic database of AlN- Al2O3-AlMg system. Obtaining of AlN with Liquid-phase of AlMg as matrix has been studied and compared with the thermodynamic results. The secondary phase microstructure has a significant effect on the final thermal conductivity of the obtained AlN. Thermodynamic modelling of AlN-Al2O3-AlMg system provided an important basis for understanding the obtaining behavior and interpreting the experimental results.

Understanding the growth of micro and nano-crystalline AlN by thermal plasma process

Science.gov (United States)

Kanhe, Nilesh S.; Nawale, Ashok B.; Gawade, Rupesh L.; Puranik, Vedavati G.; Bhoraskar, Sudha V.; Das, Asoka K.; Mathe, Vikas L.

2012-01-01

We report the studies related to the growth of crystalline AlN in a DC thermal plasma reactor, operated by a transferred arc plasma torch. The reactor is capable of producing the nanoparticles of Al and AlN depending on the composition of the reacting gas. Al and AlN micro crystals are formed at the anode placed on the graphite and nano crystalline Al and AlN gets deposited on the inner surface of the plasma reactor. X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy analysis, single crystal X-ray diffraction and TGA-DTA techniques are used to infer the purity of post process crystals as a hexagonal AlN. The average particle size using SEM was found to be around 30 μm. The morphology of nanoparticles of Al and AlN, nucleated by gas phase condensation in a homogeneous medium were studied by transmission electron microscopy analysis. The particle ranged in size between 15 and 80 nm in diameter. The possible growth mechanism of crystalline AlN at the anode has been explained on the basis of non-equilibrium processes in the core of the plasma and steep temperature gradient near its periphery. The gas phase species of AlN and various constituent were computed using Murphy code based on minimization of free energy. The process provides 50% yield of microcrystalline AlN and remaining of Al at anode and that of nanocrystalline h-AlN and c-Al collected from the walls of the chamber is about 33% and 67%, respectively.

Numerical simulation of the internal stresses of thick tungsten coating deposited by vacuum plasma spraying on copper substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salito, A.; Tului, M.; Casadei, F.

1998-01-01

Several Divertor components in the new generation of nuclear fusion reactors need to be protected against ion sputtering. Particularly copper based (Cu) material is very sensitive to this sputtering process. A solution to overcome such component wear and plasma contamination is to protect the copper substrate with a thick tungsten (W) functional coating. The main difficulty to produce such components is the significant difference in the coating thermomechanical properties between W and Cu. The Vacuum Plasma Spraying coating process (VPS) is a very flexible new economical way to find a solution to the above problem. To optimise the adhesion and stress release properties between the Cu-alloy substrate and the W coating, it is possible to deposit an interlayer as a bond coat between both materials. The aim of this study is to determine the maximum of the residual stresses located between the Cu substrate and the W coating using finite element analysis. The results have been used to select different types of bond coat for the experimental development of thick W coating (>3 mm) on to mock-ups for the Divertor Channel of the ITER project. (author)

Obtaining Thickness-Limited Electrospray Deposition for 3D Coating.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, Lin; Kovacevich, Dylan A; Nitzsche, Michael P; Ryu, Jihyun; Al-Marzoki, Kutaiba; Rodriguez, Gabriela; Klein, Lisa C; Jitianu, Andrei; Singer, Jonathan P

2018-04-04

Electrospray processing utilizes the balance of electrostatic forces and surface tension within a charged spray to produce charged microdroplets with a narrow dispersion in size. In electrospray deposition, each droplet carries a small quantity of suspended material to a target substrate. Past electrospray deposition results fall into two major categories: (1) continuous spray of films onto conducting substrates and (2) spray of isolated droplets onto insulating substrates. A crossover regime, or a self-limited spray, has only been limitedly observed in the spray of insulating materials onto conductive substrates. In such sprays, a limiting thickness emerges, where the accumulation of charge repels further spray. In this study, we examined the parametric spray of several glassy polymers to both categorize past electrospray deposition results and uncover the critical parameters for thickness-limited sprays. The key parameters for determining the limiting thickness were (1) field strength and (2) spray temperature, related to (i) the necessary repulsive field and (ii) the ability for the deposited materials to swell in the carrier solvent vapor and redistribute charge. These control mechanisms can be applied to the uniform or controllably-varied microscale coating of complex three-dimensional objects.

Effect of nano-silver hydrogel coating film on deep partial thickness scald model of rabbit

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Peng Xi

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Objective: Observing the effect of nano-silver hydrogel coating film on deep partial thickness scald model of rabbit. Method: We prepared boiling water scalded rabbits with deep II degree scald models and applied high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film for different time and area. Then we compared the difference of burned paper weight before administration and after administration model burns, burn local skin irritation points infection, skin crusting and scabs from the time, and the impact of local skin tissue morphology. Result: Rabbits deep II degree burn model successful modeling; on day 12, 18, high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film significantly reduced skin irritation of rabbits infected with the integral value (P < 0.01, P < 0.05; high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film group significantly decreased skin irritation, infection integral value (P < 0.01, P < 0.05; high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film significantly reduced film rabbits’ scalded skin crusting time (P < 0.01, significantly shortened the rabbit skin burns from the scab time (P < 0.01, and significantly improved the treatment of skin diseases in rabbits scald model change (P < 0.01, P < 0.05. Conclusion: The nano-silver hydrogel coating film on the deep partial thickness burns has a significant therapeutic effect; external use has a significant role in wound healing. Keywords: Nano-silver hydrogel coating film, Deep degree burns, Topical, Rabbits

Synthesis of c-axis oriented AlN thin films on different substrates: A review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Iriarte, G.F.; Rodriguez, J.G.; Calle, F.

2010-01-01

Highly c-axis oriented AlN thin films have been deposited by reactive sputtering on different substrates. The crystallographic properties of layered film structures consisting of a piezoelectric layer, aluminum nitride (AlN), synthesized on a variety of substrates, have been examined. Aluminum nitride thin films have been deposited by reactive pulsed-DC magnetron sputtering using an aluminum target in an Ar/N 2 gas mixture. The influence of the most critical deposition parameters on the AlN thin film crystallography has been investigated by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis of the rocking curve Full-Width at Half Maximum (FWHM) of the AlN-(0 0 0 2) peak. The relationship between the substrate, the synthesis parameters and the crystallographic orientation of the AlN thin films is discussed. A guide is provided showing how to optimize these conditions to obtain highly c-axis oriented AlN thin films on substrates of different nature.

Hall effect thruster with an AlN chamber

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Barral, S.; Jayet, Y.; Mazouffre, S.; Veron, E.; Echegut, P.; Dudeck, M.

2005-01-01

The plasma discharge of a Hall-effect thruster (SPT) is strongly depending of the plasma-insulated wall interactions. These interactions are mainly related to the energy deposition, potential sheath effect and electron secondary emission rate (e.s.e.). In usual SPT, the annular channel is made of BN-SiO 2 . The SPT100-ML (laboratory model will be tested with an AlN chamber in the French test facility Pivoine in the laboratoire d'Aerothermique (Orleans-France). The different parameters such as discharge current, thrust, plasma oscillations and wall temperature will studied for several operating conditions. The results will be compared with a fluid model developed in IPPT (Warsaw-Poland) taking into account electron emission from the internal and external walls and using previous experimental measurements of e.s.e. for AlN from ONERA (Toulouse-France). The surface state of AlN will be analysed before and after experiments by an Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope and by a Strength Electron Microscope. (author)

Effect of nano-silver hydrogel coating film on deep partial thickness scald model of rabbit.

Science.gov (United States)

Xi, Peng; Li, Yan; Ge, Xiaojin; Liu, Dandan; Miao, Mingsan

2018-05-01

Observing the effect of nano-silver hydrogel coating film on deep partial thickness scald model of rabbit. We prepared boiling water scalded rabbits with deep II degree scald models and applied high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film for different time and area. Then we compared the difference of burned paper weight before administration and after administration model burns, burn local skin irritation points infection, skin crusting and scabs from the time, and the impact of local skin tissue morphology. Rabbits deep II degree burn model successful modeling; on day 12, 18, high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film significantly reduced skin irritation of rabbits infected with the integral value ( P  film group significantly decreased skin irritation, infection integral value ( P  film significantly reduced film rabbits' scalded skin crusting time ( P  film on the deep partial thickness burns has a significant therapeutic effect; external use has a significant role in wound healing.

Using Mosaicity to Tune Thermal Transport in Polycrystalline AlN Thin Films

KAUST Repository

Singh, Shivkant

2018-05-17

The effect of controlling the c-axis alignment (mosaicity) to the cross-plane thermal transport in textured polycrystalline aluminum nitride (AlN) thin films is experimentally and theoretically investigated. We show that by controlling the sputtering conditions we are able to deposit AlN thin films with varying c-axis grain tilt (mosaicity) from 10° to 0°. Microstructural characterization shows that the films are nearly identical in thickness and grain size, and the difference in mosaicity alters the grain interface quality. This has a significant effect to thermal transport where a thermal conductivity of 4.22 W/mK vs. 8.09 W/mK are measured for samples with tilt angles of 10° vs. 0° respectively. The modified Callaway model was used to fit the theoretical curves to the experimental results using various phonon scattering mechanisms at the grain interface. It was found that using a non-gray model gives an overview of the phonon scattering at the grain boundaries, whereas treating the grain boundary as an array of dislocation lines with varying angle relative to the heat flow, best describes the mechanism of the thermal transport. Lastly, our results show that controlling the quality of the grain interface provides a tuning knob to control thermal transport in polycrystalline materials.

Using Mosaicity to Tune Thermal Transport in Polycrystalline AlN Thin Films

KAUST Repository

Singh, Shivkant; Shervin, Shahab; Sun, Haiding; Yarali, Milad; Chen, Jie; Lin, Ronghui; Li, Kuang-Hui; Li, Xiaohang; Ryou, Jae-Hyun; Mavrokefalos, Anastassios

2018-01-01

The effect of controlling the c-axis alignment (mosaicity) to the cross-plane thermal transport in textured polycrystalline aluminum nitride (AlN) thin films is experimentally and theoretically investigated. We show that by controlling the sputtering conditions we are able to deposit AlN thin films with varying c-axis grain tilt (mosaicity) from 10° to 0°. Microstructural characterization shows that the films are nearly identical in thickness and grain size, and the difference in mosaicity alters the grain interface quality. This has a significant effect to thermal transport where a thermal conductivity of 4.22 W/mK vs. 8.09 W/mK are measured for samples with tilt angles of 10° vs. 0° respectively. The modified Callaway model was used to fit the theoretical curves to the experimental results using various phonon scattering mechanisms at the grain interface. It was found that using a non-gray model gives an overview of the phonon scattering at the grain boundaries, whereas treating the grain boundary as an array of dislocation lines with varying angle relative to the heat flow, best describes the mechanism of the thermal transport. Lastly, our results show that controlling the quality of the grain interface provides a tuning knob to control thermal transport in polycrystalline materials.

Effect of AlN doping on the growth morphology of SiC

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Singh, N.B.; Jones, E.; Berghmans, A.; Wagner, B.P.; Jelen, E.; McLaughlin, S.; Knuteson, D.J.; Fitelson, M.; King, M.; Kahler, D. [Northrop Grumman Corporation, ES-ATL, Linthicum, MD (United States)

2009-09-15

AlN doped SiC films were deposited on on-axis Si-face 4H-SiC(0001) substrates by the physical vapor transport (PVT) method. Thick film in the range of 20 {mu}m range was grown and morphology was characterized. Films were grown by physical vapor deposition (PVD) in a vertical geometry in the nitrogen atmosphere. We observed that nucleation occurred in the form of discs and growth occurred in hexagonal geometry. The X-ray studies showed (001)orientation and full width of half maxima (FWHM) was less than 0.1 indicating good crystallinity. We also observed that film deposited on the carbon crucible had long needles with anisotropic growth very similar to that of pure AlN. Some of the needles grew up to sizes of 200{mu}m in length and 40 to 50 {mu}m in width. It is clear that annealing of SiC-AlN powder or high temperature physical vapor deposition produces similar crystal structure for producing AlN-SiC solid solution. SEM studies indicated that facetted hexagons grew on the top of each other and coarsened and merged to form cm size grains on the substrate. (copyright 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Investigation of blue luminescence in Mg doped AlN films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sun, Xiliang; Xiong, Juan, E-mail: xiongjuana@163.com; Zhang, Weihai; Liu, Lei; Gu, Haoshuang, E-mail: guhsh@hubu.edu.cn

2015-02-05

Highlights: • AlN films doped with 0.8–4.4 at.% Mg were deposited by magnetron sputtering. • Structural and photoluminescence properties of Mg-doped AlN films were synthesized in detailed. • A broad blue band centered at 420 nm and 440 nm was observed in Mg-doped AlN films. • An enhancement of A1 (TO) mod and a slightly blue-shift of E2 (high) mode were observed. - Abstract: The Al{sub 1−x}Mg{sub x}N thin films were deposited on (1 0 0) silicon substrates by magnetron sputtering. The structural and photoluminescence properties of the films with varying Mg concentrations were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectra and photoluminescence (PL), respectively. The results clearly showed that the Mg atoms successfully incorporated into AlN, while the crystal structure of the films was maintained. The Raman spectra of Al{sub 1−x}Mg{sub x}N films reveals the enhancement of A{sub 1} (TO) mode, a slightly blue-shift and an augment in FWHM for E{sub 2} (high) phonon mode with increasing Mg content, which can be associated with the deterioration of (0 0 2) orientation and the appearance of (1 0 0) orientation. A broad blue band centered at 420 nm and 440 nm was observed in Mg-doped AlN films. It was suggested that the transitions from the shallow donor level not only to the ground state but also to the excited states of the deep level was responsible for the broad blue emission band. This work indicates the AlN film for the application in lighting emission devices.

High-quality AlN films grown on chemical vapor-deposited graphene films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chen Bin-Hao

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We report the growth of high-quality AlN films on graphene. The graphene films were synthesized by CVD and then transferred onto silicon substrates. Epitaxial aluminum nitride films were deposited by DC magnetron sputtering on both graphene as an intermediate layer and silicon as a substrate. The structural characteristics of the AlN films and graphene were investigated. Highly c-axis-oriented AlN crystal structures are investigated based on the XRDpatterns observations.

Cobalt nanoparticles deposited and embedded in AlN: Magnetic, magneto-optical, and morphological properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huttel, Y.; Gomez, H.; Clavero, C.; Cebollada, A.; Armelles, G.; Navarro, E.; Ciria, M.; Benito, L.; Arnaudas, J.I.; Kellock, A.J.

2004-01-01

We present a structural, morphological, magnetic, and magneto-optical study of cobalt nanoparticles deposited on 50 A ring AlN/c-sapphire substrates and embedded in an AlN matrix. The dependence of the properties of Co nanoclusters deposited on AlN with growth temperature and amount of deposited Co are studied and discussed. Also we directly compare the properties of as grown and AlN embedded Co nanoclusters and show that the AlN matrix has a strong impact on their magnetic and magneto-optical properties

Enhancing the piezoelectric properties of flexible hybrid AlN materials using semi-crystalline parylene

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson, Nathan; Mathewson, Alan

2017-04-01

Flexible piezoelectric materials are desired for numerous applications including biomedical, wearable, and flexible electronics. However, most flexible piezoelectric materials are not compatible with CMOS fabrication technology, which is desired for most MEMS applications. This paper reports on the development of a hybrid flexible piezoelectric material consisting of aluminium nitride (AlN) and a semi-crystalline polymer substrate. Various types of semi-crystalline parylene and polyimide materials were investigated as the polymer substrate. The crystallinity and surfaces of the polymer substrates were modified by micro-roughening and annealing in order to determine the effects on the AlN quality. The AlN crystallinity and piezoelectric properties decreased when the polymer surfaces were treated with O2 plasma. However, increasing the crystallinity of the parylene substrate prior to deposition of AlN caused enhanced c-axis (002) AlN crystallinity and piezoelectric response of the AlN. Piezoelectric properties of 200 °C annealed parylene-N substrate resulted in an AlN d 33 value of 4.87 pm V-1 compared to 2.17 pm V-1 for AlN on polyimide and 4.0 pm V-1 for unannealed AlN/parylene-N. The electrical response measurements to an applied force demonstrated that the parylene/AlN hybrid material had higher V pp (0.918 V) than commercial flexible piezoelectric material (PVDF) (V pp 0.36 V). The results in this paper demonstrate that the piezoelectric properties of a flexible AlN hybrid material can be enhanced by increasing the crystallinity of the polymer substrate, and the enhanced properties can function better than previous flexible piezoelectrics.

Structure of AlN films deposited by magnetron sputtering method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nowakowska-Langier K.

2015-09-01

Full Text Available AlN films on a Si substrate were synthesized by magnetron sputtering method. A dual magnetron system operating in AC mode was used in the experiment. Processes of synthesis were carried out in the atmosphere of a mixture of Ar/N2. Morphology and phase structure of the AlN films were investigated at different pressures. Structural characterizations were performed by means of SEM and X-ray diffraction methods. Our results show that the use of magnetron sputtering method in a dual magnetron sputtering system is an effective way to produce AlN layers which are characterized by a good adhesion to the silicon substrate. The morphology of the films is strongly dependent on the Ar/N2 gas mixture pressure. An increase of the mixture pressure is accompanied by a columnar growth of the layers. The films obtained at the pressure below 1 Pa are characterized by finer and compacter structure. The AlN films are characterized by a polycrystalline hexagonal (wurtzite structure in which the crystallographic orientation depends on the gas mixture pressure.

Optical instrument for measurement of vaginal coating thickness by drug delivery formulations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Henderson, Marcus H.; Peters, Jennifer J.; Walmer, David K.; Couchman, Grace M.; Katz, David F.

2005-01-01

An optical device has been developed for imaging the human vaginal epithelial surfaces, and quantitatively measuring distributions of coating thickness of drug delivery formulations - such as gels - applied for prophylaxis, contraception or therapy. The device consists of a rigid endoscope contained within a 27-mm-diam hollow, polished-transparent polycarbonate tube (150 mm long) with a hemispherical cap. Illumination is from a xenon arc. The device is inserted into, and remains stationary within the vagina. A custom gearing mechanism moves the endoscope relative to the tube, so that it views epithelial surfaces immediately apposing its outer surface (i.e., 150 mm long by 360 deg. azimuthal angle). Thus, with the tube fixed relative to the vagina, the endoscope sites local regions at distinct and measurable locations that span the vaginal epithelium. The returning light path is split between a video camera and photomultiplier. Excitation and emission filters in the light path enable measurement of fluorescence of the sited region. Thus, the instrument captures video images simultaneously with photometric measurement of fluorescence of each video field [∼10 mm diameter; formulations are labeled with 0.1% w/w United States Pharmacoepia (USP) injectable sodium fluorescein]. Position, time and fluorescence measurements are continuously displayed (on video) and recorded (to a computer database). The photomultiplier output is digitized to quantify fluorescence of the endoscope field of view. Quantification of the thickness of formulation coating of a surface sited by the device is achieved due to the linear relationship between thickness and fluorescence intensity for biologically relevant thin layers (of the order of 0.5 mm). Summary measures of coating have been developed, focusing upon extent, location and uniformity. The device has begun to be applied in human studies of model formulations for prophylaxis against infection with HIV and other sexually transmitted

Structure and chemistry of the Si(111)/AlN interface

Science.gov (United States)

Radtke, G.; Couillard, M.; Botton, G. A.; Zhu, D.; Humphreys, C. J.

2012-01-01

We investigate the atomic structure and the chemistry of the Si(111)/AlN interface for an AlN film grown at low-temperature (735 °C) by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy. A heterogeneous interface is formed from the alternation of crystallographically abrupt and partly amorphous regions. The polarity of the AlN film, along with the projected atomic structure of the crystalline interface, is retrieved using high-angle annular dark field imaging, and a model, based on these experimental observations, is proposed for the bonding at the interface. Electron energy-loss spectrum-imaging, however, also reveals a chemical intermixing, placing our growth conditions at the onset of SiNx interlayer formation.

Roles of kinetics and energetics in the growth of AlN by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Im, I. H.; Minegishi, T.; Hanada, T.; Lee, S. W.; Cho, M. W.; Yao, T.; Oh, D. C.; Chang, J. H.

2006-01-01

The roles of kinetics and energetics in the growth processes of AlN on c-sapphire by plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy are investigated by varying the growth rate from 1 to 31 A/min and the substrate temperature from 800 to 1000 .deg. C. The energetics is found to govern the growth of AlN in the low-growth rate region even at a low substrate temperature of 800 .deg. C owing to the enhanced residence time of adatoms, thereby increasing the surface migration length. As the growth rate increases, the growth tends to be governed by kinetics because of a reduction in the residence time of adatoms. Consequently, the surface roughness and crystal quality are greatly improved for the low-growth-rate case. In addition, the lattice strain relaxation is completed from the beginning of epitaxy for energetics-limiting growth while lattice strain relaxation is retarded for kinetics-limiting growth because of pre-existing partial strain relaxation. Energetics becomes more favorable as the substrate temperature is raised because of an increase in the surface diffusion length owing to an enhanced diffusion coefficient. Consequently high-crystal-quality AlN layers are grown under the energetics-limiting growth condition with a screw dislocation density of 7.4 x 10 8 cm -2 even for a thin 42-nm thick film.

On compensation in Si-doped AlN

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Joshua S.; Baker, Jonathon N.; Gaddy, Benjamin E.; Bryan, Isaac; Bryan, Zachary; Mirrielees, Kelsey J.; Reddy, Pramod; Collazo, Ramón; Sitar, Zlatko; Irving, Douglas L.

2018-04-01

Controllable n-type doping over wide ranges of carrier concentrations in AlN, or Al-rich AlGaN, is critical to realizing next-generation applications in high-power electronics and deep UV light sources. Silicon is not a hydrogenic donor in AlN as it is in GaN; despite this, the carrier concentration should be controllable, albeit less efficiently, by increasing the donor concentration during growth. At low doping levels, an increase in the Si content leads to a commensurate increase in free electrons. Problematically, this trend does not persist to higher doping levels. In fact, a further increase in the Si concentration leads to a decrease in free electron concentration; this is commonly referred to as the compensation knee. While the nature of this decrease has been attributed to a variety of compensating defects, the mechanism and identity of the predominant defects associated with the knee have not been conclusively determined. Density functional theory calculations using hybrid exchange-correlation functionals have identified VAl+n SiAl complexes as central to mechanistically understanding compensation in the high Si limit in AlN, while secondary impurities and vacancies tend to dominate compensation in the low Si limit. The formation energies and optical signatures of these defects in AlN are calculated and utilized in a grand canonical charge balance solver to identify carrier concentrations as a function of Si content. The results were found to qualitatively reproduce the experimentally observed compensation knee. Furthermore, these calculations predict a shift in the optical emissions present in the high and low doping limits, which is confirmed with detailed photoluminescence measurements.

Synthesis and characterization of straight and stacked-sheet AlN nanowires with high purity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lei, M.; Yang, H.; Li, P.G.; Tang, W.H.

2008-01-01

Large-scale AlN nanowires with hexagonal crystal structure were synthesized by the direct nitridation method at high temperatures. The experimental results indicate that these single-crystalline AlN nanowires have high purity and consist of straight and stacked-sheet nanowires. It is found that straight AlN nanowire grows along [1, 1, -2, 0] direction, whereas the stacked-sheet nanowire with hexagonal cross section is along [0 0 0 1] direction. It is thought that vapor-solid (VS) mechanism should be responsible for the growth of AlN nanowires

Evidence for graphite-like hexagonal AlN nanosheets epitaxially grown on single crystal Ag(111)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tsipas, P.; Kassavetis, S.; Tsoutsou, D.; Xenogiannopoulou, E.; Golias, E.; Giamini, S. A.; Dimoulas, A. [National Center for Scientific Research “Demokritos,” 15310 Athens (Greece); Grazianetti, C.; Fanciulli, M. [Laboratorio MDM, IMM-CNR, I-20864, Agrate Brianza (MB) (Italy); Dipartimento di Scienza dei Materiali, Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca, I-20126, Milano (Italy); Chiappe, D.; Molle, A. [Laboratorio MDM, IMM-CNR, I-20864, Agrate Brianza (MB) (Italy)

2013-12-16

Ultrathin (sub-monolayer to 12 monolayers) AlN nanosheets are grown epitaxially by plasma assisted molecular beam epitaxy on Ag(111) single crystals. Electron diffraction and scanning tunneling microscopy provide evidence that AlN on Ag adopts a graphite-like hexagonal structure with a larger lattice constant compared to bulk-like wurtzite AlN. This claim is further supported by ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy indicating a reduced energy bandgap as expected for hexagonal AlN.

Influence of the nitriding and TiAlN/TiN coating thickness in the mechanical properties of a duplex treated H13 steel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torres, Ricardo D.; Soares, Paulo; Suzuki, Luciane Y.; Lepienski, Carlos M.

2010-01-01

AISI H13 die steel substrates were low pressure gas nitrided in three different nitriding cases. In the nitriding case A, the surface hardness was around 12 GPa and the nitriding thickness was around 40 μm. In the nitriding case B, the hardness was the same as in case A, but the nitriding thickness was around 70 μm. Finally, in the nitriding case C, the nitriding thickness was the same as in case B, but hardness profile showed a different behavior. In case C, the surface hardness was the same as case A and B. But the hardness increases as one move away from the surface showing the highest hardness at 15 "m from the sample surface. The XRD results showed that the nitriding cases microstructure is composed mainly by the diffusion layer with small amount of Cr_2N precipitates. These nitrided samples were subsequently coated with TiAlN using cathodic arc evaporation in two thicknesses of 3 and 7 μm. These samples were characterized with respect to phase chemistry, adhesion, hardness, elastic modulus and scratch tests. The phase chemistry determined through XRD revealed that coating was mostly Ti_0_._7Al_0_._3N with some peaks of TiN which comes from the adhesion layer that was deposited prior to the deposition of TiAlN. The instrumented hardness performed in the coated samples showed that the coating system hardness changes with the nitriding cases when the coating thickness is 3 μm. On the other hand, the nitriding characteristics do not influence the coating hardness with thickness of 7 μm. In addition, the 7 μm thick coating is harder than the 3 μm thick coating. In the last part of this work, TiAlN was deposited in the AISI H13 substrate without nitriding; it was found that the hardness in this condition is higher than the nitrided/coated samples. The worn area, probed by the scratch test, was smaller for the TiAlN deposited over AISI H13 without the nitriding layer. (author)

Thick metallic coatings produced by coaxial and side laser cladding : Processing and properties

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ocelík, V.; De Hosson, J.T.M.

2010-01-01

Cobalt and iron-based, defect-free coatings with thicknesses from 1 to 3.3. mm were created by a laser cladding process on different steel substrates. Extensive laser cladding experiments with a gradual change of laser power were used to study relations between main processing parameters and

The Analysis of Distribution of Thickness of ThinFilm Coating During the Magnetron Sputtering on Systems with Planetary Movement of Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

H. R. Sagatelyan

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The article subject is a thin-film coating process using ion-plasma sputter deposition systems with magnetron sputtering targets. To improve coating thickness evenness of parts various manufacturers equip their systems with mechanisms for moving the coating parts, and sometimes the magnetrons. More specifically, the article concerns the ion-plasma sputtering process using a system equipped with a mechanism for providing a planetary movement of the coating parts in the plane perpendicular to the planes of two sputtering targets.The purpose of this work was to improve a distribution of the coating thickness evenness on the sputtering surface of the part. It is achieved through selection of the best combinations of kinematic and geometric factors that characterize a particular sputtering operation, depending on the size and position of the surface to be coated. These factors include a ratio between directions and frequencies of the self-rotation of satellite planetary gear, which holds a work piecesubstrate, and the translational motion i.e. planetary carrier rotation to carry the satellite; the angles of planes of the right and left magnetrons with respect to the system frontal plane. Since there is, essentially, a lack of mathematical models to perform the appropriate calculations for the considered type of system designs, a more specific aim of the article is to develop a technique to evaluate the uneven thickness of coatings provided by the systems of this type.To achieve this more specific purpose the analytical technique had been used, applying the postulates of analytical geometry and theoretical mechanics. The main results of the research described in the article are as follows:- mathematical models of dependencies of geometric and kinematic parameters, changing during the sputtering process and characterizing each considered point on the surface of the work piece, on the current position of the work piece in the structure of the planetary

Tensile test of a silicon microstructure fully coated with submicrometer-thick diamond like carbon film using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition method

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Wenlei; Uesugi, Akio; Hirai, Yoshikazu; Tsuchiya, Toshiyuki; Tabata, Osamu

2017-06-01

This paper reports the tensile properties of single-crystal silicon (SCS) microstructures fully coated with sub-micrometer thick diamond like carbon (DLC) film using plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). To minimize the deformations or damages caused by non-uniform coating of DLC, which has high compression residual stress, released SCS specimens with the dimensions of 120 µm long, 4 µm wide, and 5 µm thick were coated from the top and bottom side simultaneously. The thickness of DLC coating is around 150 nm and three different bias voltages were used for deposition. The tensile strength improved from 13.4 to 53.5% with the increasing of negative bias voltage. In addition, the deviation in strength also reduced significantly compared to bare SCS sample.

Influence of stabilizer thickness on over-current test of YBCO-coated conductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwon, N Y; Kim, H S; Kim, K L; Lee, H G; Yim, S W; Kim, H-R; Hyun, O-B; Kim, H M

2009-01-01

The increased use of distributed power generation has led to increasingly high fault current levels. A superconducting fault current limiter (SFCL) is a potential solution to prevent the problem of short-circuit currents. YBCO-coated conductors (CCs) are one of the most promising superconducting materials for SFCLs. Most YBCO CCs have stabilizers, which play a significant role in limiting the fault current in the SFCL. Therefore, the selection of the appropriate material and the thickness of the stabilizer of the CC used for the SFCL may affect its quench/recovery characteristics. In this paper, the quench/recovery characteristics of YBCO CC tapes having stabilizers with various thicknesses were investigated. The quench/recovery test results showed that, as the thickness of the stabilizer decreased, both the final approach temperature and the recovery time decreased.

Effect of Interlayer Coating Thickness on the Hardness and Adhesion for the Tungsten Carbide Cutting Tool

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kamil Jawad Kadhim

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The thin film of the (Al,TiN coating is studied with the aid of two parameters: hardness and adhesion.  These parameters are very close to each other; however, in deposition field they could be interpreted differently.  Several coatings of (Al,TiN layers are developed on tungsten carbide insert using the standard commercial Al0.67Ti0.33 cathodes in cathodic arc plating system(PVD. The influence of coating layer thickness on the mechanical properties of the coatings was investigated via two parameters: hardness and adhesion are characterized by the Rockwell tester Vickers tester.  The measurements reveal that the highest hardness appears for the (Al,TiN thickness of 5.815 µm while the highest adhesion appears at a thickness of 3.089 µm.  At the opposite extreme, the lowest hardness appears at 2.717 µm and the lowest hardness at 5.815 µm. Overall, the (Al/Ti N coating of the thickness of 5.815 µm is controversial as it exhibits the highest hardness and the lowest adhesion. This result could be related to the effect of the formation of the micro-particle (MPs which has a direct effect on the hardness because these MPs appear mainly on the surface and their presence at the interface is very limited.  In addition, the creation of Ti buffering layer to reduce the delamination has its major effect on the adhesion but has no effect on the morphology of the surface.  For these two reasons and the effect of the bias voltage, the results presented in this paper might show slight differences with other published papers.  The composition of the (Al,TiN layer is characterized and, seemingly, it shows one important result which is showing that the ultimate composition of the (Al,TiN layer (Ti0.62Al0.38 is very close to the original target used in this study (Al0.67Ti0.33.

Thickness measurement of Sn-Ag hot dip coatings on Large Hadron Collider Superconducting strands by coulometry

CERN Document Server

Arnau-Izquierdo, G; Oberli, L R; Scheuerlein, C; Taborelli, M; 10.1149/1.1715094

2004-01-01

Amperostatic coulometry is applied for the thickness measurement of Sn-Ag hot dip coatings, which comprise an extended Sn-Cu interdiffusion layer. Complementary measurements, notably weight loss, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and dynamic secondary ion mass spectroscopy (DSIMS) have been performed in order to obtain a better interpretation of the coulometry results. Based on the experimental results presented in this article the three potential changes that are observed during coulometry measurements are ascribed to (1) the entire dissolution of pure Sn, (2) the formation of a CuCl salt layer and (3) the surface passivation. The measurement of the pure Sn mass is well reproducible despite of strong coating thickness variations that are detected by XRF. Several experimental problems, in particular a coating undercutting, hamper the determination of the Sn mass in the intermetallic Sn-Cu layer.

A three-dimensional finite element study on the effect of hydroxyapatite coating thickness on the stress distribution of the surrounding dental implant-bone interface

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hadi Asgharzadeh Shirazi

2014-06-01

Full Text Available   Background and Aims: Hydroxyapatite coating has allocated a special place in dentistry due to its biocompatibility and bioactivity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relation between the hydroxyapatite thickness and stress distribution by using finite element method.   Materials and Methods: In this paper, the effect of hydroxyapatite coating thickness on dental implants was studied using finite element method in the range between 0 to 200 microns. A 3D model including one section of mandible bone was modeled by a thick layer of cortical surrounding dense cancellous and a Nobel Biocare commercial brand dental implant was simulated and analyzed under static load in the Abaqus software.   Results The diagram of maximum von Mises stress versus coating thickness was plotted for the cancellous and cortical bones in the range between 0 to 200 microns. The obtained results showed that the magnitude of maximum von Mises stress of bone decreased as the hydroxyapatite coating thickness increased. Also, the thickness of coating exhibited smoother stress distribution and milder variations of maximum von Mises stress in a range between 60 to 120 microns.   Conclusion: In present study, the stress was decreased in the mandible bone where hydroxyapatite coating was used. This stress reduction leads to a faster stabilization and fixation of implant in the mandible bone. Using hydroxyapatite coating as a biocompatible and bioactive material could play an important role in bone formation of implant- bone interface.

Photolithography of thick photoresist coating in anisotropically etched V-grooves for electrically controlled liquid crystal photonic bandgap fiber devices

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wei, Lei; Khomtchenko, Elena; Alkeskjold, Thomas Tanggaard

2009-01-01

Thick photoresist coating for electrode patterning in anisotropically etched v-grooves is investigated. The photoresist coverage is compared with and without soft baking. Two-step exposure is applied for a complete exposure and minimizing the resolution loss.......Thick photoresist coating for electrode patterning in anisotropically etched v-grooves is investigated. The photoresist coverage is compared with and without soft baking. Two-step exposure is applied for a complete exposure and minimizing the resolution loss....

Modeling FBG sensors sensitivity from cryogenic temperatures to room temperature as a function of metal coating thickness

Science.gov (United States)

Vendittozzi, Cristian; Felli, Ferdinando; Lupi, Carla

2018-05-01

Fiber optics with photo-imprinted Bragg grating have been studied in order to be used as temperature sensors in cryogenic applications. The main disadvantage presented by Fiber Bragg Grating (FBG) sensors is the significant drop in sensitivity as temperature decreases, mainly due to the critical lowering of the thermo-optic coefficient of the fiber and the very low thermal expansion coefficient (CTE) of fused silica at cryogenic temperatures. Thus, especially for the latter, it is important to enhance sensitivity to temperature by depositing a metal coating presenting higher CTE. In this work the thermal sensitivity of metal-coated FBG sensors has been evaluated by considering their elongation within temperature variations in the cryogenic range, as compared to bare fiber sensors. To this purpose, a theoretical model simulating elongation of metal-coated sensors has been developed. The model has been used to evaluate the behaviour of different metals which can be used as coating (Ni, Cu, Al, Zn, Pb and In). The optimal coating thickness has been calculated at different fixed temperature (from 5 K to 100 K) for each metal. It has been found that the metal coating effectiveness depends on thickness and operating temperature in accordance to our previous experimental work and theory suggest.

Photolithography of thick photoresist coating for electrically controlled liquid crystal photonic bandgap fibre devices

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wei, Lei; Khomtchenko, Elena; Alkeskjold, Thomas Tanggaard

2009-01-01

Thick photoresist coating for electrode patterning in an anisotropically etched V-groove is investigated for electrically controlled liquid crystal photonic bandgap fibre devices. The photoresist step coverage at the convex corners is compared with and without soft baking after photoresist spin...

Berkovich Nanoindentation on AlN Thin Films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jian Sheng-Rui

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Berkovich nanoindentation-induced mechanical deformation mechanisms of AlN thin films have been investigated by using atomic force microscopy (AFM and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (XTEM techniques. AlN thin films are deposited on the metal-organic chemical-vapor deposition (MOCVD derived Si-doped (2 × 1017 cm−3 GaN template by using the helicon sputtering system. The XTEM samples were prepared by means of focused ion beam (FIB milling to accurately position the cross-section of the nanoindented area. The hardness and Young’s modulus of AlN thin films were measured by a Berkovich nanoindenter operated with the continuous contact stiffness measurements (CSM option. The obtained values of the hardness and Young’s modulus are 22 and 332 GPa, respectively. The XTEM images taken in the vicinity regions just underneath the indenter tip revealed that the multiple “pop-ins” observed in the load–displacement curve during loading are due primarily to the activities of dislocation nucleation and propagation. The absence of discontinuities in the unloading segments of load–displacement curve suggests that no pressure-induced phase transition was involved. Results obtained in this study may also have technological implications for estimating possible mechanical damages induced by the fabrication processes of making the AlN-based devices.

A Novel Fully Depleted Air AlN Silicon-on-Insulator Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field Effect Transistor

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yuan, Yang; Yong, Gao; Peng-Liang, Gong

2008-01-01

A novel fully depleted air AlN silicon-on-insulator (SOI) metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOS-FET) is presented, which can eliminate the self-heating effect and solve the problem that the off-state current of SOI MOSFETs increases and the threshold voltage characteristics become worse when employing a high thermal conductivity material as a buried layer. The simulation results reveal that the lattice temperature in normal SOI devices is 75 K higher than the atmosphere temperature, while the lattice temperature is just 4K higher than the atmosphere temperature resulting in less severe self-heating effect in air AlN SOI MOSFETs and AlN SOI MOSFETs. The on-state current of air AlN SOI MOSFETs is similar to the AlN SOI structure, and improves 12.3% more than that of normal SOI MOSFETs. The off-state current of AlN SOI is 6.7 times of normal SOI MOSFETs, while the counterpart of air AlN SOI MOSFETs is lower than that of SOI MOSFETs by two orders of magnitude. The threshold voltage change of air AlN SOI MOSFETs with different drain voltage is much less than that of AlN SOI devices, when the drain voltage is biased at 0.8 V, this difference is 28mV, so the threshold voltage change induced by employing high thermal conductivity material is cured. (condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties)

Band alignment of HfO{sub 2}/AlN heterojunction investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ye, Gang [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); Wang, Hong, E-mail: ewanghong@ntu.edu.sg [School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore 639798 (Singapore); CNRS-International-NTU-THALES Research Alliances/UMI 3288, 50 Nanyang Drive, Singapore 637553 (Singapore); Ji, Rong [Data Storage Institute, Agency for Science Technology and Research (A-STAR), Singapore 117608 (Singapore)

2016-04-18

The band alignment between AlN and Atomic-Layer-Deposited (ALD) HfO{sub 2} was determined by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The shift of Al 2p core-levels to lower binding energies with the decrease of take-off angles θ indicated upward band bending occurred at the AlN surface. Based on the angle-resolved XPS measurements combined with numerical calculations, valence band discontinuity ΔE{sub V} of 0.4 ± 0.2 eV at HfO{sub 2}/AlN interface was determined by taking AlN surface band bending into account. By taking the band gap of HfO{sub 2} and AlN as 5.8 eV and 6.2 eV, respectively, a type-II band line-up was found between HfO{sub 2} and AlN.

Measuring coating thicknesses on continuously moving material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holler, J.H.; Stanton, W.B.; Spongr, J.J.; Joffe, B.B.; Raffelsberger, P.W.; Tiebor, J.E.

1982-01-01

A method and apparatus using radiation techniques for measuring coating thicknesses on continuously moving strip material without altering a predetermined path along which it travels. A shuttle carrying a measuring probe having a radioactive isotope source and a detection device is provided for reciprocation along a preselected segment of the path of the strip. The shuttle and the probe are releasably engaged with the strip and carried thereby for synchronous movement therewith in the forward direction during a measurement cycle, and are disengaged from the strip when no measurement is being made, the movement of the shuttle then being controlled by an independent drive mechanism, shown as a belt drive, which reciprocates the shuttle along the rails. A belt drives it forward more slowly than the strip, which then engages the shuttle to pull it at strip speed, allowed by a pulley clutch. (author)

Optical properties of Pyromark 2500 coatings of variable thicknesses on a range of materials for concentrating solar thermal applications

Science.gov (United States)

Coventry, Joe; Burge, Patrick

2017-06-01

In this paper we present the results of solar absorptance measurements of four metallic substrate materials, either coated with Pyromark 2500 at various thicknesses, or uncoated and oxidised. Absorptance is measured prior to aging, and during and after aging at three elevated temperatures. In many cases, thin coatings perform as well, or better than thick coatings and do not appear to have a higher rate of failure. However, a thicker coating did show an advantage after aging at the highest temperature tested (850°C), and it is expected that with longer exposure, similar trends may emerge for the 600°C and 750°C aging cases. Another finding is that the two nickel-based alloys tested, Haynes 230 and Inconel 625, both formed an oxide with very good absorptance, although durability requires further testing.

Effect of interfacial oxide thickness on the photocatalytic activity of magnetron-sputtered TiO2coatings on aluminum substrate

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Daviðsdóttir, Svava; Petit, Jean-Pierre; Shabadi, Rajashekhara

2015-01-01

The influence of the coating/substrate interface on the photocatalytic behavior of Al-TiO2 coatings was investigated. The TiO2 coatings were prepared by magnetron sputtering. The nanoscale structure of the coating was analyzed using X-ray diffraction; atomic force microscopy; scanning electron...... transport between the coating and the metallic substrate. The highest photocurrents were indeed obtained when the thickness of interfacial aluminum oxide could be reduced by sputtering a thin Ti layer prior to TiO2 coating. Photocurrent plotted for different photon energy for a TiO2 coating on a Ti...

Effect of nano-silver hydrogel coating film on deep partial thickness scald model of rabbit

OpenAIRE

Peng Xi; Yan Li; Xiaojin Ge; Dandan Liu; Mingsan Miao

2018-01-01

Objective: Observing the effect of nano-silver hydrogel coating film on deep partial thickness scald model of rabbit. Method: We prepared boiling water scalded rabbits with deep II degree scald models and applied high, medium and low doses of nano-silver hydrogel coating film for different time and area. Then we compared the difference of burned paper weight before administration and after administration model burns, burn local skin irritation points infection, skin crusting and scabs from th...

Effect of porous titanium coating thickness on in vitro osteoblast phenotype expression

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonio Canabarro

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Aim: This study aimed at determining the effect of different thickness of porous titanium (Ti coating, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 mm thick (PC-0.5, PC-1.0 and PC-1.5, on osteoblast phenotype expression. Materials and methods: Dense Ti discs coated with 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5 mm of porous Ti (PC-0.5, PC-1.0 and PC-1.5, respectively were fabricated by powder metallurgy process with pore size typically between 50 and 400 μm and porosity of 60%. Osteoblastic cells obtained from human alveolar bone were cultured on dense Ti (D-Ti and PC-Ti discs for periods of up to 17 days. Results: Cultures grown on PC-Ti exhibited higher cell proliferation rate than on D-Ti. By comparing PC-Ti groups, it was observed statistical differences on culture grown only at day 10 (PC-0.5coating (PC-1.5. Therefore, further in vivo evaluations should be done in order to investigate whether this structure should be considered for clinical implant applications.

Simultaneous determination of the residual stress, elastic modulus, density and thickness of ultrathin film utilizing vibrating doubly clamped micro-/nanobeams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stachiv, Ivo; Kuo, Chih-Yun; Fang, Te-Hua; Mortet, Vincent

2016-01-01

Measurement of ultrathin film thickness and its basic properties can be highly challenging and time consuming due to necessity of using several very sophisticated devices. Here, we report an easy accessible resonant based method capable to simultaneously determinate the residual stress, elastic modulus, density and thickness of ultrathin film coated on doubly clamped micro-/nanobeam. We show that a general dependency of the resonant frequencies on the axial load is also valid for in-plane vibrations, and the one depends only on the considered vibrational mode. As a result, we found that the film elastic modulus, density and thickness can be evaluated from two measured in-plane and out-plane fundamental resonant frequencies of micro-/nanobeam with and without film under different prestress forces. Whereas, the residual stress can be determined from two out-plane (in-plane) measured consecutive resonant frequencies of beam with film under different prestress forces without necessity of knowing film and substrate properties and dimensions. Moreover, we also reveal that the common uncertainties in force (and thickness) determination have a negligible (and minor) impact on the determined film properties. The application potential of the present method is illustrated on the beam made of silicon and SiO_2 with deposited 20 nm thick AlN and 40 nm thick Au thin films, respectively.

Thickness and microstructure characterization of TGO in thermal barrier coatings by 3D reconstruction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Song, Xuemei; Meng, Fangli [The State Key Lab of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, , Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050 (China); Kong, Mingguang [Key Laboratory of Materials Physics, Institute of Solid State Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei 230031 (China); Wang, Yongzhe [The State Key Lab of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, , Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050 (China); Huang, Liping; Zheng, Xuebin [Key Laboratory of Inorganic Coating Materials, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050 (China); Zeng, Yi, E-mail: zengyi@mail.sic.ac.cn [The State Key Lab of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, , Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050 (China); CAS Center for Excellence in Superconducting Electronics (CENSE), Shanghai 200050 (China)

2016-10-15

Yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) are prepared by plasma spraying. Thermally grown oxide (TGO) would be formed between YSZ topcoat and bond coat after 50 h thermal service for YSZ TBCs. The electron back scattered diffraction (EBSD) results reveal that the TGO layer is composed of α-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} and cubic Al{sub 2}NiO{sub 4} layers. Measured values of TGO thickness from the 2D-SEM image are greater than or equal to its real thickness due to the fact that the TGO layer is much rolling so that up and down surfaces of the TGO can't be completely perpendicular to the cross-section direction confirmed by 3D-SEM. Furthermore, 3D-SEM results reveal that the real thickness of TGO layer is 3.10 μm instead of 7.1 μm. In addition, 3D-EBSD confirmed that α-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} layer in TGO is composed of single layer of grains and Al{sub 2}NiO{sub 4} layer consist of multilayer of grains while α-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} layer is mixed with single layer and multilayer of α-Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} grains from observation of the 2D-EBSD image. It provides a new method to characterize real thickness and microstructure of TGO, which is also applied to other film materials. - Highlights: •This work provides a new method to measure the real thickness of TGO. •YSZ TBCs were prepared by plasma spraying. •TGO is formed in TBCs by simulating thermal service at 1100 °C for 50 h. •Real thickness and microstructure of TGO were investigated by 3D reconstruction.

Surface acoustic wave devices on AlN/3C–SiC/Si multilayer structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Chih-Ming; Lien, Wei-Cheng; Riekkinen, Tommi; Senesky, Debbie G; Pisano, Albert P; Chen, Yung-Yu; Felmetsger, Valery V

2013-01-01

Surface acoustic wave (SAW) propagation characteristics in a multilayer structure including a piezoelectric aluminum nitride (AlN) thin film and an epitaxial cubic silicon carbide (3C–SiC) layer on a silicon (Si) substrate are investigated by theoretical calculation in this work. Alternating current (ac) reactive magnetron sputtering was used to deposit highly c-axis-oriented AlN thin films, showing the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of the rocking curve of 1.36° on epitaxial 3C–SiC layers on Si substrates. In addition, conventional two-port SAW devices were fabricated on the AlN/3C–SiC/Si multilayer structure and SAW propagation properties in the multilayer structure were experimentally investigated. The surface wave in the AlN/3C–SiC/Si multilayer structure exhibits a phase velocity of 5528 m s −1 and an electromechanical coupling coefficient of 0.42%. The results demonstrate the potential of AlN thin films grown on epitaxial 3C–SiC layers to create layered SAW devices with higher phase velocities and larger electromechanical coupling coefficients than SAW devices on an AlN/Si multilayer structure. Moreover, the FWHM values of rocking curves of the AlN thin film and 3C–SiC layer remained constant after annealing for 500 h at 540 °C in air atmosphere. Accordingly, the layered SAW devices based on AlN thin films and 3C–SiC layers are applicable to timing and sensing applications in harsh environments. (paper)

Impact of barrier thickness on transistor performance in AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistors grown on free-standing GaN substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deen, David A.; Storm, David F.; Meyer, David J.; Bass, Robert; Binari, Steven C.; Gougousi, Theodosia; Evans, Keith R.

2014-01-01

A series of six ultrathin AlN/GaN heterostructures with varied AlN thicknesses from 1.5–6 nm have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy on free-standing hydride vapor phase epitaxy GaN substrates. High electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) were fabricated from the set in order to assess the impact of barrier thickness and homo-epitaxial growth on transistor performance. Room temperature Hall characteristics revealed mobility of 1700 cm 2 /V s and sheet resistance of 130 Ω/□ for a 3 nm thick barrier, ranking amongst the lowest room-temperature sheet resistance values reported for a polarization-doped single heterostructure in the III-Nitride family. DC and small signal HEMT electrical characteristics from submicron gate length HEMTs further elucidated the effect of the AlN barrier thickness on device performance.

Impact of barrier thickness on transistor performance in AlN/GaN high electron mobility transistors grown on free-standing GaN substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Deen, David A., E-mail: david.deen@alumni.nd.edu; Storm, David F.; Meyer, David J.; Bass, Robert; Binari, Steven C. [Electronics Science and Technology Division, Naval Research Laboratory, Washington, DC 20375-5347 (United States); Gougousi, Theodosia [Physics Department, University of Maryland Baltimore County, Baltimore, Maryland 21250 (United States); Evans, Keith R. [Kyma Technologies, Raleigh, North Carolina 27617 (United States)

2014-09-01

A series of six ultrathin AlN/GaN heterostructures with varied AlN thicknesses from 1.5–6 nm have been grown by molecular beam epitaxy on free-standing hydride vapor phase epitaxy GaN substrates. High electron mobility transistors (HEMTs) were fabricated from the set in order to assess the impact of barrier thickness and homo-epitaxial growth on transistor performance. Room temperature Hall characteristics revealed mobility of 1700 cm{sup 2}/V s and sheet resistance of 130 Ω/□ for a 3 nm thick barrier, ranking amongst the lowest room-temperature sheet resistance values reported for a polarization-doped single heterostructure in the III-Nitride family. DC and small signal HEMT electrical characteristics from submicron gate length HEMTs further elucidated the effect of the AlN barrier thickness on device performance.

Electro-acoustic sensors based on AlN thin film: possibilities and limitations

Science.gov (United States)

Wingqvist, Gunilla

2011-06-01

The non-ferroelectric polar wurtzite aluminium nitride (AlN) material has been shown to have potential for various sensor applications both utilizing the piezoelectric effect directly for pressure sensors or indirectly for acoustic sensing of various physical, chemical and biochemical sensor applications. Especially, sputter deposited AlN thin films have played a central role for successful development of the thin film electro-acoustic technology. The development has been primarily driven by one device - the thin film bulk acoustic resonator (FBAR or TFBAR), with its primary use for high frequency filter applications for the telecom industry. AlN has been the dominating choice for commercial application due to compatibility with the integrated circuit technology, low acoustic and dielectric losses, high acoustic velocity in combination with comparably high (but still for some applications limited) electromechanical coupling. Recently, increased piezoelectric properties (and also electromechanical coupling) in the AlN through the alloying with scandium nitride (ScN) have been identified both experimentally and theoretically. Inhere, the utilization of piezoelectricity in electro-acoustic sensing will be discussed together with expectation on acoustic FBAR sensor performance with variation in piezoelectric material properties in the parameter space around AlN due to alloying, in view of the ScxAl1-xN (0

Aluminum nitride coatings using response surface methodology to optimize the thermal dissipated performance of light-emitting diode modules

Science.gov (United States)

Jean, Ming-Der; Lei, Peng-Da; Kong, Ling-Hua; Liu, Cheng-Wu

2018-05-01

This study optimizes the thermal dissipation ability of aluminum nitride (AlN) ceramics to increase the thermal performance of light-emitting diode (LED) modulus. AlN powders are deposited on heat sink as a heat interface material, using an electrostatic spraying process. The junction temperature of the heat sink is developed by response surface methodology based on Taguchi methods. In addition, the structure and properties of the AlN coating are examined using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In the XPS analysis, the AlN sub-peaks are observed at 72.79 eV for Al2p and 398.88 eV for N1s, and an N1s sub-peak is assigned to N-O at 398.60eV and Al-N bonding at 395.95eV, which allows good thermal properties. The results have shown that the use of AlN ceramic material on a heat sink can enhance the thermal performance of LED modules. In addition, the percentage error between the predicted and experimental results compared the quadric model with between the linear and he interaction models was found to be within 7.89%, indicating that it was a good predictor. Accordingly, RSM can effectively enhance the thermal performance of an LED, and the beneficial heat dissipation effects for AlN are improved by electrostatic spraying.

Effects of AlN on the densification and mechanical properties of pressureless-sintered SiC ceramics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qisong Li

2016-02-01

Full Text Available In the present work, SiC ceramics was fabricated with AlN using B4C and C as sintering aids by a solid-state pressureless-sintered method. The effects of AlN contents on the densification, mechanical properties, phase compositions, and microstructure evolutions of as-obtained SiC ceramics were thoroughly investigated. AlN was found to promote further densification of the SiC ceramics due to its evaporation over 1800 °C, transportation, and solidification in the pores resulted from SiC grain coarsening. The highest relative density of 99.65% was achieved for SiC sample with 15.0 wt% AlN by the pressureless-sintered method at 2130 °C for 1 h in Ar atmosphere. Furthermore, the fracture mechanism for SiC ceramics containing AlN tended to transfer from single transgranular fracture mode to both transgranular fracture and intergranular fracture modes when the sample with 30.0 wt% AlN sintered at 1900 °C for 1 h in Ar. Also, SiC ceramics with 30.0 wt% AlN exhibited the highest fracture toughness of 5.23 MPa m1/2 when sintered at 1900 °C.

An AlN cantilever for a wake-up switch triggered by air pressure change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kaiho, Y; Itoh, T; Maeda, R; Takahashi, H; Matsumoto, K; Shimoyama, I; Tomimatsu, Y; Kobayashi, T

2013-01-01

This research reports an AlN cantilever with an air chamber for a wake-up switch triggered by air pressure change. The proposed sensor is designed to fulfil both high sensitivity and low power consumption. By combining an air chamber to the one side of the AlN cantilever surface, the barometric pressure change generates a piezoelectric voltage. Thus, a wake-up switch triggered by air pressure change can be achieved using an AlN cantilever. The size of the fabricated AlN cantilever was 2000 μm × 1000 μm × 2 μm. The sensitivity to static differential pressure was 11.5 mV/Pa at the range of −20 Pa to 20 Pa. We evaluated the response of the sensor, which was composed of the AlN cantilever and the chamber of 60 ml in volume, when air pressure change was applied. The output voltage increased with increasing the applied air pressure change. It was observed that the maximum output voltage of 50 mV was generated when the air pressure change was 13 Pa

Occurrence and elimination of in-plane misoriented crystals in AlN epilayers on sapphire via pre-treatment control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang Hu; Xiong Hui; Wu Zhi-Hao; Yu Chen-Hui; Tian Yu; Dai Jiang-Nan; Fang Yan-Yan; Zhang Jian-Bao; Chen Chang-Qing

2014-01-01

AlN epilayers are grown directly on sapphire (0001) substrates each of which has a low temperature AlN nucleation layer. The effects of pretreatments of sapphire substrates, including exposures to NH 3 /H 2 and to H 2 only ambients at different temperatures, before the growth of AlN epilayers is investigated. In-plane misoriented crystals occur in N-polar AlN epilayers each with pretreatment in a H 2 only ambient, and are characterized by six 60°-apart peaks with splits in each peak in (101-bar 2) phi scan and two sets of hexagonal diffraction patterns taken along the [0001] zone axis in electron diffraction. These misoriented crystals can be eliminated in AlN epilayers by the pretreatment of sapphire substrates in the NH 3 /H 2 ambient. AlN epilayers by the pretreatment of sapphire substrates in the NH 3 /H 2 ambient are Al-polar. Our results show the pretreatments and the nucleation layers are responsible for the polarities of the AlN epilayers. We ascribe these results to the different strain relaxation mechanisms induced by the lattice mismatch of AlN and sapphire. (interdisciplinary physics and related areas of science and technology)

Effect of Thickness on the Morphology and Corrosion Behavior of Cerium-Based Conversion Coatings on AZ31B Magnesium Alloy

Science.gov (United States)

Castano, Carlos E.; Maddela, Surender; O'Keefe, Matthew J.; Wang, Yar-Ming

Cerium-based conversion coatings (CeCCs) were deposited onto AZ31B magnesium alloy substrates using a spontaneous reaction of CeCl3, H2O2 and gelatin in a water-based solution. The coating thickness was adjusted by controlling the immersion time in the deposition solution. Prior to deposition, the AZ31B substrates were treated using an acid pickling in nitric acid and then an alkaline cleaning in sodium metasilicate pentahydrate. After deposition, the coated samples were immersed in a phosphate bath that converted cerium oxide/hydroxide into cerium phosphate. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, potentiodynamic polarization and neutral salt spray testing studies indicated that 100 nm thick CeCC had better corrosion performance than 400 nm coatings. Characterization of the CeCCs by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) revealed a three layer structure with different compositions.

Valence and conduction band offsets of β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Haiding; Torres Castanedo, C. G.; Liu, Kaikai; Li, Kuang-Hui; Guo, Wenzhe; Lin, Ronghui; Liu, Xinwei; Li, Jingtao; Li, Xiaohang

2017-10-01

Both β-Ga2O3 and wurtzite AlN have wide bandgaps of 4.5-4.9 and 6.1 eV, respectively. We calculated the in-plane lattice mismatch between the (-201) plane of β-Ga2O3 and the (0002) plane of AlN, which was found to be 2.4%. This is the smallest mismatch between β-Ga2O3 and binary III-nitrides which is beneficial for the formation of a high quality β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction. However, the valence and conduction band offsets (VBO and CBO) at the β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction have not yet been identified. In this study, a very thin (less than 2 nm) β-Ga2O3 layer was deposited on an AlN/sapphire template to form the heterojunction by pulsed laser deposition. High-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed the core-level (CL) binding energies of Ga 3d and Al 2p with respect to the valence band maximum in individual β-Ga2O3 and AlN layers, respectively. The separation between Ga 3d and Al 2p CLs at the β-Ga2O3/AlN interface was also measured. Eventually, the VBO was found to be -0.55 ± 0.05 eV. Consequently, a staggered-gap (type II) heterojunction with a CBO of -1.75 ± 0.05 eV was determined. The identification of the band alignment of the β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction could facilitate the design of optical and electronic devices based on these and related alloys.

SAP-like ultrafine-grained Al composites dispersion strengthened with nanometric AlN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Balog, M.; Krizik, P.; Yan, M.; Simancik, F.; Schaffer, G.B.; Qian, M.

2013-01-01

This paper reports the development of novel Sinter-Aluminum-Pulver (SAP)-like Al–AlN nanocomposites via replacing the native Al 2 O 3 thin films on fine Al powder with a large volume fraction of in situ formed nanometric AlN dispersoids. Fine gas-atomized Al powder (d 50 =1.3 µm) compacts were first partially nitrided at 590 °C in flowing nitrogen, controlled by a small addition of Sn (0.3–0.4 wt%), and subsequently consolidated by hot direct extrusion. The resulting Al–AlN composites consisted of submicrometric Al grains reinforced with nanometric AlN dispersoids together with some nanometric Al 2 O 3 dispersoids. An Al–13 vol% AlN nanocomposite fabricated this way achieved exceptional ultimate tensile strength of 227 MPa, yield strength of 195 MPa and Young's modulus of 66 GPa at 300 °C, superior to typical SAP materials and coarse grained Al–AlN composites. In addition, the Al–13 vol% AlN nanocomposite exhibited good thermal stability up to 500 °C. The strengthening mechanism is discussed

Advanced Coating Technology for Enhanced Performance of Microchannel Plates for UV Detectors, Phase I

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — In this NASA SBIR Phase I proposal we propose to apply a highly conformal coating of ZnO and AlN or a double layer of GaN to the surface and internal pore walls of...

Enhanced field emission from Si doped nanocrystalline AlN thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thapa, R.; Saha, B.; Chattopadhyay, K.K.

2009-01-01

Si doped and undoped nanocrystalline aluminum nitride thin films were deposited on various substrates by direct current sputtering technique. X-ray diffraction analysis confirmed the formation of phase pure hexagonal aluminum nitride with a single peak corresponding to (1 0 0) reflection of AlN with lattice constants, a = 0.3114 nm and c = 0.4986 nm. Energy dispersive analysis of X-rays confirmed the presence of Si in the doped AlN films. Atomic force microscopic studies showed that the average particle size of the film prepared at substrate temperature 200 deg. C was 9.5 nm, but when 5 at.% Si was incorporated the average particle size increased to ∼21 nm. Field emission study indicated that, with increasing Si doping concentration, the emission characteristics have been improved. The turn-on field (E to ) was 15.0 (±0.7) V/μm, 8.0 (±0.4) V/μm and 7.8 (±0.5) V/μm for undoped, 3 at.% and 5 at.% Si doped AlN films respectively and the maximum current density of 0.27 μA/cm 2 has been observed for 5 at.% Si doped nanocrystalline AlN film. It was also found that the dielectric properties were highly dependent on Si doping.

Valence and conduction band offsets of β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction

KAUST Repository

Sun, Haiding

2017-10-16

Both β-Ga2O3 and wurtzite AlN have wide bandgaps of 4.5–4.9 and 6.1 eV, respectively. We calculated the in-plane lattice mismatch between the (−201) plane of β-Ga2O3 and the (0002) plane of AlN, which was found to be 2.4%. This is the smallest mismatch between β-Ga2O3 and binary III-nitrides which is beneficial for the formation of a high quality β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction. However, the valence and conduction band offsets (VBO and CBO) at the β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction have not yet been identified. In this study, a very thin (less than 2 nm) β-Ga2O3 layer was deposited on an AlN/sapphire template to form the heterojunction by pulsed laser deposition. High-resolution X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed the core-level (CL) binding energies of Ga 3d and Al 2p with respect to the valence band maximum in individual β-Ga2O3 and AlN layers, respectively. The separation between Ga 3d and Al 2p CLs at the β-Ga2O3/AlN interface was also measured. Eventually, the VBO was found to be −0.55 ± 0.05 eV. Consequently, a staggered-gap (type II) heterojunction with a CBO of −1.75 ± 0.05 eV was determined. The identification of the band alignment of the β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction could facilitate the design of optical and electronic devices based on these and related alloys.

The effects of carbon distribution and thickness on the lithium storage properties of carbon-coated SnO_2 hollow nanofibers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhou, Huimin; Li, Zhiyong; Qiu, Yiping; Xia, Xin

2016-01-01

To alleviate the enormous volume change problem of tin-based anodes for lithium ion batteries (LIBs), carbon-coated tin dioxide (SnO_2) hollow nanofibers were prepared by means of single-spinneret electrospinning followed by calcination and hydrothermal treatment. By varying the concentration of glucose and the reaction time during the hydrothermal coating process, the final product with different carbon distribution and thickness could be obtained. Galvanostatic charge/discharge was carried out to evaluate them as potential anode materials for LIBs. It was shown that the main effect of carbon distribution was to control the capacity retention rate, and the carbon thickness played the important role in lithium insertion/extraction properties. The optimum composite nanofibers could be prepared with glucose concentration of 10 mg/ml and hydrothermal time of 20 h, the carbon content and the specific surface area of which were 26.15% and 29.4 m"2/g, respectively. And this anode with both the carbon core and deposited thin carbon skin was able to deliver a high reversible capacity of 704.6 mAhg"−"1 and the capacity retention could retain 68.2% after 80 cycles. - Graphical abstract: Based on the electrochemical properties of carbon-coated hollow SnO2 anodes, how the carbon distribution and carbon thickness affect their performance are disscussed in groups. - Highlights: • The hollow SnO_2 nanofibers were carbon-coated by hydrothermal process. • The controlled distribution and thickness of carbon layer can be obtained. • The main effect of carbon distribution was to control the capacity retention rate. • The carbon thickness played the important role in lithium insertion/extraction properties.

DFT study on the adsorption behavior and electronic response of AlN nanotube and nanocage toward toxic halothane gas

Science.gov (United States)

Mohammadi, R.; Hosseinian, A.; Khosroshahi, E. Saedi; Edjlali, L.; Vessally, E.

2018-04-01

We have investigated the adsorption of a halothane molecule on the AlN nanotube, and nanocage using density functional theory calculations. We predicted that the halothane molecule tends to be physically adsorbed on the surface of AlN nanotube with adsorption energy (Ead) of -4.2 kcal/mol. The electronic properties of AlN nanotube are not affected by the halothane, and it is not a sensor. But the AlN nanocage is more reactive than the AlN nanotube because of its higher curvature. The halothane tends to be adsorbed on a hexagonal ring, an Alsbnd N bond, and a tetragonal ring of the AlN nanocage. The adsorption ability order is as follows: tetragonal ring (Ead = -14.7 kcal/mol) > Alsbnd N bond (Ead = -12.3 kcal/mol) > hexagonal ring (Ead = -10.1 kcal/mol). When a halothane molecule is adsorbed on the AlN nanocage, its electrical conductivity is increased, demonstrating that it can yield an electronic signal at the presence of this molecule, and can be employed in chemical sensors. The AlN nanocage benefits from a short recovery time of about 58 ms at room temperature.

Towards an elastic model of wurtzite AlN nanowires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mitrushchenkov, A; Chambaud, G; Yvonnet, J; He, Q-C

2010-01-01

Starting with ab initio calculations of AlN wurtzite [0001] nanowires with diameters up to 4 nm, a finite element method is developed to deal with larger nanostructures/nanoparticles. The ab initio calculations show that the structure of the nanowires can be well represented by an internal part with AlN bulk elastic properties, and one atomic surface layer with its own elastic behavior. The proposed finite element method includes surface elements with their own elastic properties using surface elastic coefficients deduced from the ab initio calculations. The elastic properties obtained with the finite element model compare very well with those obtained with the full ab initio calculations.

Memory and Electrical Properties of (100-Oriented AlN Thin Films Prepared by Radio Frequency Magnetron Sputtering

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maw-Shung Lee

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The (100-oriented aluminum nitride (AlN thin films were well deposited onto p-type Si substrate by radio frequency (RF magnetron sputtering method. The optimal deposition parameters were the RF power of 350 W, chamber pressure of 9 mTorr, and nitrogen concentration of 50%. Regarding the physical properties, the microstructure of as-deposited (002- and (100-oriented AlN thin films were obtained and compared by XRD patterns and TEM images. For electrical properties analysis, we found that the memory windows of (100-oriented AlN thin films are better than those of (002-oriented thin films. Besides, the interface and interaction between the silicon and (100-oriented AlN thin films was serious important problem. Finally, the current transport models of the as-deposited and annealed (100-oriented AlN thin films were also discussed. From the results, we suggested and investigated that large memory window of the annealed (100-oriented AlN thin films was induced by many dipoles and large electric field applied.

Characterization of aluminum/aluminum nitride coatings sputter deposited using the pulsed-gas process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Springer, R.W.; Hosford, C.D.

1981-01-01

A dc triode magnetron has been used to produce freestanding Al/Al + AlN lamellar foils by sputter deposition. The 5-μm-thick foils produced on both flat substrates as well as curved substrates exhibited good specularity as well as excellent mechanical properties. The pulse spacing was varied from none to 100-nm spacing. The yield strength of the material was found to obey the Hall-Petch relation sigma/sub ys/ = 230 + .07/d/sup 1/2/, where sigma/sub ys/ is in MPa. Auger electron Spectroscopy and Secondary Ion Mass Spectroscopy indicate that the large flow stress of 230 MPa must be due to grain refinement of the extended source and not an impurity effect. The result is that limitations of masking found in uniaxial flux sources for curved surfaces can be removed allowing the high quality coating of more general shapes

Quantitative Evaluation of Strain in Epitaxial 2H AlN Layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nader, N.; Pezoldt, J.

2011-01-01

To improve the quality of AlN layer deposit on SiC/Si, different Ge amounts (0.25, 0.5, 1, 2ML) were deposited before the carbonization process at the silicon substrate in order to reduce the lattice parameters mismatch between Si and SiC grown layers. The residual stress of the hexagonal AlN layers derives from the phonon frequency shifts of the E1(TO) phonon mode. The crystalline quality of the AlN layer is correlated to and investigated by the full width of the half maximum (FWHM) and the intensity of E1(TO) mode of the 2H-AlN. Best crystalline quality and lower stress value are found in the case where 1ML of Ge amount is predeposited. The E1(TO) mode phonon frequency shifts-down by 3 cm-1/GPa with respect to an unstrained layer. (author)

AlN/Al dual protective coatings on NdFeB by DC magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li Jinlong; Mao Shoudong; Sun Kefei [Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Application Technology, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China); Li Xiaomin [Shanghai Institute of Ceramics Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200050 (China); Song Zhenlun [Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Magnetic Materials and Application Technology, Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo 315201 (China)], E-mail: songzhenlun@nimte.ac.cn

2009-11-15

AlN/Al dual protective coatings were prepared on NdFeB by DC magnetron sputtering in a home-made industrial apparatus. Comparing with Al coating, AlN/Al coatings have a denser structure of an outmost AlN amorphous layer following an inner Al columnar crystal layer. The coatings and NdFeB substrate combine well, and moreover, there is occurrence of metallurgy bonding in the interface layer. Both Al and AlN/Al coatings have a good protective ability to NdFeB. Especially, the corrosion resistance of AlN/Al coated NdFeB is improved largely. AlN/Al and Al protective coatings not only do not deteriorate the magnetic properties of NdFeB, but contribute to their slight increase.

AlN/Al dual protective coatings on NdFeB by DC magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Jinlong; Mao Shoudong; Sun Kefei; Li Xiaomin; Song Zhenlun

2009-01-01

AlN/Al dual protective coatings were prepared on NdFeB by DC magnetron sputtering in a home-made industrial apparatus. Comparing with Al coating, AlN/Al coatings have a denser structure of an outmost AlN amorphous layer following an inner Al columnar crystal layer. The coatings and NdFeB substrate combine well, and moreover, there is occurrence of metallurgy bonding in the interface layer. Both Al and AlN/Al coatings have a good protective ability to NdFeB. Especially, the corrosion resistance of AlN/Al coated NdFeB is improved largely. AlN/Al and Al protective coatings not only do not deteriorate the magnetic properties of NdFeB, but contribute to their slight increase.

Ab initio study of M2AlN (M = Ti,V,Cr)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun, Zhimei; Music, Denis; Ahuja, Rajeev; Schneider, Jochen M

2005-01-01

We have studied M 2 AlN phases, where M = Ti, V, and Cr, by means of ab initio total energy calculations. The bulk modulus of M 2 AlN increases as Ti is replaced with V and Cr by 19.0% and 26.5%, respectively, which can be understood on the basis of the increased number of valence electrons filling the p-d hybridized bonding states. The bulk modulus of M 2 AlN is generally higher than that of the corresponding M 2 AlC phase, which may be explained by an extra electron in the former phases contributing to stronger chemical bonding. This work is important for fundamental understanding of elastic properties of these ternary nitrides and may inspire future experimental research. (letter to the editor)

Cd doping of AlN via ion implantation studied with perturbed angular correlation

CERN Document Server

Kessler, Patrick; Miranda, Sérgio MC; Simon, R; Correia, João Guilherme; Johnston, Karl; Vianden, Reiner

2012-01-01

AlN with a wide bandgap of 6.2 eV is a promising candidate for ultraviolet light-emitting diodes and laser diodes. However, the production of the required p-type AlN is still challenging. As a possible dopant Cd was suggested among other Group II atoms (Be, Mg, and Zn). In this study the annealing condition of implanted Cd in AlN was investigated with the method of the perturbed angular correlation (PAC). Therefore radioactive $^{117}$Cd or $^{111m}$Cd ions were implanted into thin AlN films on sapphire substrate with an energy of 30 keV and fluences in the range of 10$^{11}$ ions/cm$^{2}$. After thorough annealing with a proximity cap of the same material most of the Cd-probes occupy substitutional lattice sites and almost all implantation damage can be annealed. This results in a distinct frequency in the PAC spectra which increases with temperature. In contrast to the formation of an indium nitrogen-vacancy complex observed with the probe $^{111}$In on substitutional Al-sites no defects are bound to substi...

Residual stress in thick low-pressure chemical-vapor deposited polycrystalline SiC coatings on Si substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, D.; Shinavski, R. J.; Steffier, W. S.; Spearing, S. M.

2005-04-01

Residual stress in thick coatings of polycrystalline chemical-vapor deposited SiC on Si substrates is a key variable that must be controlled if SiC is to be used in microelectromechanical systems. Studies have been conducted to characterize the residual stress level as a function of deposition temperature, Si wafer and SiC coating thickness, and the ratios of methyltrichlorosilane to hydrogen and hydrogen chloride. Wafer curvature was used to monitor residual stress in combination with a laminated plate analysis. Compressive intrinsic (growth) stresses were measured with magnitudes in the range of 200-300MPa; however, these can be balanced with the tensile stress due to the thermal-expansion mismatch to leave near-zero stress at room temperature. The magnitude of the compressive intrinsic stress is consistent with previously reported values of surface stress in combination with the competition between grain-boundary energy and elastic strain energy.

Optimizing analysis of W-AlN cermet solar absorbing coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Qichu

2001-01-01

The layer thickness and tungsten metal volume fraction of W-AlN cermet solar selective absorbing coatings on a W, Cu or Al infrared reflector with a surface aluminium oxynitride (AlON) or Al 2 O 3 ceramic anti-reflector layer were optimized using physical modelling calculations. Due to limited published data for the refractive index of AlN, and likely oxygen contamination during reactive sputtering of AlN ceramic materials, AlON was used as the ceramic component and the published value of its refractive index was employed. The dielectric function and then the complex refractive index of W-AlON cermet materials were calculated using the Ping Sheng approximation. The downhill simplex method in multi-dimensions was used in the numerical calculation to achieve maximum photo-thermal conversion efficiency at 350 0 C under a concentration factor of 30 for a solar collector tube. Optimization calculation results show that the initial graded (ten-step layers) cermet films all converge to something close to a three-layer film structure, which consists of a low metal volume fraction cermet layer on a high metal volume fraction cermet layer on a metallic infrared reflector with a surface ceramic anti-reflection layer. The optimized three-layer solar coatings have a high solar absorptance of 0.95 for AlON and 0.96 for the Al 2 O 3 anti-reflection layer, and a low hemispherical emittance of 0.073 at 350 deg. C. For the optimized three-layer films the solar radiation is efficiently absorbed internally and by phase interference. Thermal loss is very low for optimized three-layer films due to high reflectance values in the thermal infrared wavelength range and a very sharp edge between low solar reflectance and high thermal infrared reflectance. The high metal volume fraction cermet layer has a metal-like optical behaviour in the thermal infrared wavelength range and makes the largest contribution to the increase of emittance compared with that of the metal infrared reflector

Optimizing analysis of W-AlN cermet solar absorbing coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang Qichu [School of Physics, University of Sydney, NSW (Australia)

2001-11-07

The layer thickness and tungsten metal volume fraction of W-AlN cermet solar selective absorbing coatings on a W, Cu or Al infrared reflector with a surface aluminium oxynitride (AlON) or Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} ceramic anti-reflector layer were optimized using physical modelling calculations. Due to limited published data for the refractive index of AlN, and likely oxygen contamination during reactive sputtering of AlN ceramic materials, AlON was used as the ceramic component and the published value of its refractive index was employed. The dielectric function and then the complex refractive index of W-AlON cermet materials were calculated using the Ping Sheng approximation. The downhill simplex method in multi-dimensions was used in the numerical calculation to achieve maximum photo-thermal conversion efficiency at 350{sup 0}C under a concentration factor of 30 for a solar collector tube. Optimization calculation results show that the initial graded (ten-step layers) cermet films all converge to something close to a three-layer film structure, which consists of a low metal volume fraction cermet layer on a high metal volume fraction cermet layer on a metallic infrared reflector with a surface ceramic anti-reflection layer. The optimized three-layer solar coatings have a high solar absorptance of 0.95 for AlON and 0.96 for the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} anti-reflection layer, and a low hemispherical emittance of 0.073 at 350 deg. C. For the optimized three-layer films the solar radiation is efficiently absorbed internally and by phase interference. Thermal loss is very low for optimized three-layer films due to high reflectance values in the thermal infrared wavelength range and a very sharp edge between low solar reflectance and high thermal infrared reflectance. The high metal volume fraction cermet layer has a metal-like optical behaviour in the thermal infrared wavelength range and makes the largest contribution to the increase of emittance compared with that of the metal

Optimizing analysis of W-AlN cermet solar absorbing coatings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qi-Chu Zhang [University of Sydney, NSW (Australia). School of Physics

2001-11-07

The layer thickness and tungsten metal volume fraction of W-AlN cermet solar selective absorbing coatings on a W, Cu or Al infrared reflector with a surface aluminium oxynitride (AlON) or Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} ceramic anti-reflector layer were optimized using physical modelling calculations. Due to limited published data for the refractive index of AlN, and likely oxygen contamination during reactive sputtering of AlN ceramic materials, AlON was used as the ceramic component and the published value of its refractive index was employed. The dielectric function and then the complex refractive index of W-AlON cermet materials were calculated using the Ping Sheng approximation. The downhill simplex method in multi-dimensions was used in the numerical calculation to achieve maximum photo-thermal conversion efficiency at 350{sup o}C under a concentration factor of 30 for a solar collector tube. Optimization calculation results show that the initial graded (ten-step layers) cermet films all converge to something close to a three-layer film structure, which consists of a low metal volume fraction cermet layer on a high metal volume fraction cermet layer on a metallic infrared reflector with a surface ceramic anti-reflection layer. The optimized three-layer solar coatings have a high solar absorptance of 0.95 for AlON and 0.96 for the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} anti-reflection layer, and a low hemispherical emittance of 0.073 at 350{sup o}C. For the optimized three-layer films the solar radiation is efficiently absorbed internally and by phase interference. Thermal loss is very low for optimized three-layer films due to high reflectance values in the thermal infrared wavelength range and a very sharp edge between low solar reflectance and high thermal infrared reflectance. The high metal volume fraction cermet layer has a metal-like optical behaviour in the thermal infrared wavelength range and makes the largest contribution to the increase of emittance compared with that of the metal

Card controlled beta backscatter thickness measuring instrument

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schlesinger, J.

1978-01-01

An improved beta backscatter instrument for the nondestructive measurement of the thickness of thin coatings on a substrate is described. Included therein is the utilization of a bank of memory stored data representative of isotope, substrate, coating material and thickness range characteristics in association with a control card having predetermined indicia thereon selectively representative of a particular isotope, substrate material, coating material and thickness range for conditioning electronic circuit means by memory stored data selected in accord with the predetermined indicia on a control card for converting backscattered beta particle counts into indicia of coating thickness

Effect of the polymeric coating thickness on the photocurrent performance of titanium dioxide nanorod arrays-polyaniline composite-based UV photosensor

Science.gov (United States)

Yusoff, M. M.; Mamat, M. H.; Malek, M. F.; Othman, , N.; Ismail, A. S.; Saidi, S. A.; Mohamed, R.; Suriani, A. B.; Khusaimi, Z.; Rusop, M.

2018-05-01

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanorod arrays (TNAs) were synthesized and deposited on fluorine tin oxide (FTO)-coated glass substrate using a one-step immersion method in a glass container. The effect of the polymeric coating thickness of p-type polyaniline (PANI) on the n-type TNAs was investigated in the p-n heterojunction photodiode (PD) for the application of ultraviolet (UV) photosensor. The fabricated photosensor demonstrated an increased photocurrent under UV irradiation in correlation with the thickness layer of PANI. The measured UV response showed the highest photocurrent of 0.014 µA at 1.0 V of reverse bias with low dark current under the UV radiation (365 nm, 750 µW/cm2). The thickness of the PANI film improved the photocurrent of the fabricated TNAs/PANI composite-based UV photosensor.

A computational study on the electronic and field emission properties of Mg and Si doped AlN nanocones

Science.gov (United States)

Saedi, Leila; Soleymanabadi, Hamed; Panahyab, Ataollah

2018-05-01

Following an experimental work, we explored the effect of replacing an Al atom of an AlN nanocone by Si or Mg atom on its electronic and field emission properties using density functional theory calculations. We found that both Si-doping and Mg-doping increase the electrical conductivity of AlN nanocone, but their influences on the filed emission properties are significantly different. The Si-doping increases the electron concentration of AlN nanocone and results in a large electron mobility and a low work function, whereas Mg-doping leads to a high hole concentration below the conduction level and increases the work function in agreement with the experimental results. It is predicted that Si-doped AlN nanocones show excellent filed emission performance with higher emitted electron current density compared to the pristine AlN nanocone. But the Mg-doping meaningfully decreases the emitted electron current density from the surface of AlN nanocone. The Mg-doping can increase the work function about 41.9% and the Si-doping can decrease it about 6.3%. The Mg-doping and Si-doping convert the AlN nanocone to a p-type and n-type semiconductors, respectively. Our results explain in a molecular level what observed in the experiment.

Interface and thickness tuning for blade coated small-molecule organic light-emitting diodes with high power efficiency

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Yu-Fan; Chiu, Yu-Chian; Chang, Hao-Wen; Wang, Yi-Siang; Shih, Yi-Lun; Wu, Chih-Hao; Liu, Yi-Lun; Lin, Yu-Sheng; Meng, Hsin-Fei; Chi, Yun; Huang, Heh-Lung; Tseng, Mei-Rurng; Lin, Hao-Wu; Zan, Hsiao-Wen; Horng, Sheng-Fu; Juang, Jenh-Yih

2013-09-01

We developed a general method based on fluorescence microscopy to characterize the interface dissolution in multi-layer organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) by blade coating. A sharp bi-layer edge was created before blade coating, with the bottom layer being insoluble and top layer soluble. After blade coating, fluorescence images showed that the edge of the top layer shifted when the layer dissolved completely, whereas the bottom layer's edge remained in place as a positioning mark. The dissolution depth was determined to be 15-20 nm when the emissive-layer host of 2,6-bis (3-(9H-carbazol-9-yl)phenyl) pyridine (26DCzPPy) was coated on the hole-transport layer of N,N'-bis(naphthalen-1-yl)-N,N'-bis(phenyl)-benzidine(NPB), which was consistent with a sudden drop in efficiency of orange OLEDs with layer thickness below 20 nm. Thus, the layer thickness of OLEDs was optimized to stay more than 20 nm for blade coating. For a two-color white OLED with the structure TCTA/26DCzPPy:PO-01-TB:FIrpic/TPBI, efficiency was 24 cd/A and 8.5 lm/W at 1000 cd/m2. For a three-color white OLED with Os(fptz)2(dhpm) added as the emitter, the efficiency was 12.3 cd/A and 3.7 lm/W at 1000 cd/m2. For a green device with the structure TCTA/26DCzPPy:Ir(mppy)3/TPBI, the efficiency was 41.9 cd/A and 23.4 lm/W at 1000 cd/m2.

FEM Modeling of In-Plane Stress Distribution in Thick Brittle Coatings/Films on Ductile Substrates Subjected to Tensile Stress to Determine Interfacial Strength

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kaishi Wang

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The ceramic-metal interface is present in various material structures and devices that are vulnerable to failures, like cracking, which are typically due to their incompatible properties, e.g., thermal expansion mismatch. In failure of these multilayer systems, interfacial shear strength is a good measure of the robustness of interfaces, especially for planar films. There is a widely-used shear lag model and method by Agrawal and Raj to analyse and measure the interfacial shear strength of thin brittle film on ductile substrates. The use of this classical model for a type of polymer derived ceramic coatings (thickness ~18 μm on steel substrate leads to high values of interfacial shear strength. Here, we present finite element simulations for such a coating system when it is subjected to in-plane tension. Results show that the in-plane stresses in the coating are non-uniform, i.e., varying across the thickness of the film. Therefore, they do not meet one of the basic assumptions of the classical model: uniform in-plane stress. Furthermore, effects of three significant parameters, film thickness, crack spacing, and Young’s modulus, on the in-plane stress distribution have also been investigated. ‘Thickness-averaged In-plane Stress’ (TIS, a new failure criterion, is proposed for estimating the interfacial shear strength, which leads to a more realistic estimation of the tensile strength and interfacial shear strength of thick brittle films/coatings on ductile substrates.

FEM Modeling of In-Plane Stress Distribution in Thick Brittle Coatings/Films on Ductile Substrates Subjected to Tensile Stress to Determine Interfacial Strength.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Kaishi; Zhang, Fangzhou; Bordia, Rajendra K

2018-03-27

The ceramic-metal interface is present in various material structures and devices that are vulnerable to failures, like cracking, which are typically due to their incompatible properties, e.g., thermal expansion mismatch. In failure of these multilayer systems, interfacial shear strength is a good measure of the robustness of interfaces, especially for planar films. There is a widely-used shear lag model and method by Agrawal and Raj to analyse and measure the interfacial shear strength of thin brittle film on ductile substrates. The use of this classical model for a type of polymer derived ceramic coatings (thickness ~18 μm) on steel substrate leads to high values of interfacial shear strength. Here, we present finite element simulations for such a coating system when it is subjected to in-plane tension. Results show that the in-plane stresses in the coating are non-uniform, i.e., varying across the thickness of the film. Therefore, they do not meet one of the basic assumptions of the classical model: uniform in-plane stress. Furthermore, effects of three significant parameters, film thickness, crack spacing, and Young's modulus, on the in-plane stress distribution have also been investigated. 'Thickness-averaged In-plane Stress' (TIS), a new failure criterion, is proposed for estimating the interfacial shear strength, which leads to a more realistic estimation of the tensile strength and interfacial shear strength of thick brittle films/coatings on ductile substrates.

Nonpolar a-plane GaN grown on r-plane sapphire using multilayer AlN buffer by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chiang, C.H.; Chen, K.M.; Wu, Y.H.; Yeh, Y.S.; Lee, W.I.; Chen, J.F.; Lin, K.L.; Hsiao, Y.L.; Huang, W.C.; Chang, E.Y.

2011-01-01

Mirror-like and pit-free non-polar a-plane (1 1 -2 0) GaN films are grown on r-plane (1 -1 0 2) sapphire substrates using metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) with multilayer high-low-high temperature AlN buffer layers. The buffer layer structure and film quality are essential to the growth of a flat, crack-free and pit-free a-plane GaN film. The multilayer AlN buffer structure includes a thin low-temperature-deposited AlN (LT-AlN) layer inserted into the high-temperature-deposited AlN (HT-AlN) layer. The results demonstrate that the multilayer AlN buffer structure can improve the surface morphology of the upper a-plane GaN film. The grown multilayer AlN buffer structure reduced the tensile stress on the AlN buffer layers and increased the compressive stress on the a-plane GaN film. The multilayer AlN buffer structure markedly improves the surface morphology of the a-plane GaN film, as revealed by scanning electron microscopy. The effects of various growth V/III ratios was investigated to obtain a-plane GaN films with better surface morphology. The mean roughness of the surface was 1.02 nm, as revealed by atomic force microscopy. Accordingly, the multilayer AlN buffer structure improves the surface morphology and facilitates the complete coalescence of the a-plane GaN layer.

The role of Si as surfactant and donor in molecular-beam epitaxy of AlN

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lebedev, V.; Morales, F.M.; Romanus, H.; Krischok, S.; Ecke, G.; Cimalla, V.; Himmerlich, M.; Stauden, T.; Cengher, D.; Ambacher, O.

2005-01-01

The growth of Si-doped AlN(0001) thin films on Al 2 O 3 (0001) substrates by plasma-induced molecular-beam epitaxy is reported. We have found that Si positively affects the epitaxy being an effective surfactant for AlN growth with a remarkable impact on the crystal quality. It was proven that the characteristic surface reconstruction sequences frequently related to the Al adatoms are obviously Si induced on AlN(0001) surfaces. It was also observed that heavy doping conditions result in volume segregation of Si on the threading dislocation network and in the formation of an amorphous (AlO)(SiO)N cap layer caused by surface oxidation of the accumulated Al and segregated Si. The electron affinity was measured to be smaller than 0.5 eV on the clean AlN surface after removing of the cap layer using Ar + sputtering

Structural properties, crystal quality and growth modes of MOCVD-grown AlN with TMAl pretreatment of sapphire substrate

KAUST Repository

Sun, Haiding; Wu, Feng; Altahtamouni, Talal Mohammed Ahmad; Alfaraj, Nasir; Li, Kun; Detchprohm, Theeradetch; Dupuis, Russell; Li, Xiaohang

2017-01-01

The growth of high quality AlN epitaxial films relies on precise control of the initial growth stages. In this work, we examined the influence of the trimethylaluminum (TMAl) pretreatment of sapphire substrates on the structural properties, crystal quality and growth modes of heteroepitaxial AlN films on (0001) sapphire substrates. Without the pretreatment, the AlN films nucleated on the smooth surface but exhibited mixed crystallographic Al- (N-) polarity, resulting in rough AlN film surfaces. With increasing the pretreatment time from 1 to 5 s, the N-polarity started to be impeded. However, small islands were formed on sapphire surface due to the decompostion of TMAl. As a result, small voids became noticeable at the nucleation layer (NL) because the growth started as quasi three-dimensional (3D) but transformed to 2D mode as the film grew thicker and got coalesced, leading to smoother and Al-polar films. On the other hand, longer pretreatment time of 40 s formed large 3D islands on sapphire, and thus initiated a 3D-growth mode of the AlN film, generating Al-polar AlN nanocolumns with different facets, which resulted into rougher film surfaces. The epitaxial growth modes and their correlation with the AlN film crystal quality under different TMAl pretreatments are also discussed.

Structural properties, crystal quality and growth modes of MOCVD-grown AlN with TMAl pretreatment of sapphire substrate

KAUST Repository

Sun, Haiding

2017-08-08

The growth of high quality AlN epitaxial films relies on precise control of the initial growth stages. In this work, we examined the influence of the trimethylaluminum (TMAl) pretreatment of sapphire substrates on the structural properties, crystal quality and growth modes of heteroepitaxial AlN films on (0001) sapphire substrates. Without the pretreatment, the AlN films nucleated on the smooth surface but exhibited mixed crystallographic Al- (N-) polarity, resulting in rough AlN film surfaces. With increasing the pretreatment time from 1 to 5 s, the N-polarity started to be impeded. However, small islands were formed on sapphire surface due to the decompostion of TMAl. As a result, small voids became noticeable at the nucleation layer (NL) because the growth started as quasi three-dimensional (3D) but transformed to 2D mode as the film grew thicker and got coalesced, leading to smoother and Al-polar films. On the other hand, longer pretreatment time of 40 s formed large 3D islands on sapphire, and thus initiated a 3D-growth mode of the AlN film, generating Al-polar AlN nanocolumns with different facets, which resulted into rougher film surfaces. The epitaxial growth modes and their correlation with the AlN film crystal quality under different TMAl pretreatments are also discussed.

Influence of TMAl preflow on AlN epitaxy on sapphire

KAUST Repository

Sun, Haiding; Wu, Feng; Park, Young Jae; Al tahtamouni, T. M.; Li, Kuang-Hui; Alfaraj, Nasir; Detchprohm, Theeradetch; Dupuis, Russell D.; Li, Xiaohang

2017-01-01

The trimethylaluminum (TMAl) preflow process has been widely applied on sapphire substrates prior to growing Al-polar AlN films by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. However, it has been unclear how the TMAl preflow process really works. In this letter, we reported on carbon's significance in the polarity and growth mode of AlN films due to the TMAl preflow. Without the preflow, no trace of carbon was found at the AlN/sapphire interface and the films possessed mixed Al- and N-polarity. With the 5 s preflow, carbon started to precipitate due to the decomposition of TMAl, forming scattered carbon-rich clusters which were graphitic carbon. It was discovered that the carbon attracted surrounding oxygen impurity atoms and consequently suppressed the formation of AlxOyNz and thus N-polarity. With the 40 s preflow, the significant presence of carbon clusters at the AlN/sapphire interface was observed. While still attracting oxygen and preventing the N-polarity, the carbon clusters served as randomly distributed masks to further induce a 3D growth mode for the AlN growth. The corresponding epitaxial growth mode change is discussed.

Influence of TMAl preflow on AlN epitaxy on sapphire

KAUST Repository

Sun, Haiding

2017-05-12

The trimethylaluminum (TMAl) preflow process has been widely applied on sapphire substrates prior to growing Al-polar AlN films by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition. However, it has been unclear how the TMAl preflow process really works. In this letter, we reported on carbon\\'s significance in the polarity and growth mode of AlN films due to the TMAl preflow. Without the preflow, no trace of carbon was found at the AlN/sapphire interface and the films possessed mixed Al- and N-polarity. With the 5 s preflow, carbon started to precipitate due to the decomposition of TMAl, forming scattered carbon-rich clusters which were graphitic carbon. It was discovered that the carbon attracted surrounding oxygen impurity atoms and consequently suppressed the formation of AlxOyNz and thus N-polarity. With the 40 s preflow, the significant presence of carbon clusters at the AlN/sapphire interface was observed. While still attracting oxygen and preventing the N-polarity, the carbon clusters served as randomly distributed masks to further induce a 3D growth mode for the AlN growth. The corresponding epitaxial growth mode change is discussed.

High Rate Deposition of Thick CrN and Cr2N Coatings Using Modulated Pulse Power (MPP) Magnetron Sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

2010-12-01

AISI 440C steel using a microtribometer (Center for Tribology , Inc) in an ambient air atmosphere without a lubricant (a relative humidity of 251...that the CTE for the 440 C stainless steel substrate is 10.2x10 -6 o C -1 [37],while the CTE values for the CrN and Cr2N coatings are 2.3x10 -6...increased scratch critical load (Fig. 12) as the coating thickness was increased. Since the coating is much harder than the stainless steel substrate

Novel sensing approach for LPG leakage detection: Part II: Effects of particle size, composition and coating layer thickness

KAUST Repository

Mukhopadhyay, Subhas; Nag, Anindya; Zia, Asif; Li, Xie; Kosel, Jü rgen

2015-01-01

exhibits the optimization of the response time of the sensor by inhabiting characteristic changes like variation in the concentration of the dispersion medium, thickness of the coating and the size of the dispersed medium. Different concentrations

Versailles Project on Advanced Materials and Standards Interlaboratory Study on Measuring the Thickness and Chemistry of Nanoparticle Coatings Using XPS and LEIS

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Belsey, N.A.; Cant, D.J.H.; Minelli, C.; Araujo, J.R.; Bock, B.; Brüner, P.; Castner, D.G.; Ceccone, C.; Counsell, J.D.P.; Dietrich, P.M.; Engelhard, M.H.; Fearn, S.; Galhardo, C.E.; Kalbe, H.; Kim, J.W.; Lartundo-Rojas, L.; Luftman, H.S.; Nunney, T.S.; Pseiner, J.; Smith, E.F.; Spampinato, V.; Sturm, Jacobus Marinus; Thomas, A.G.; Treacy, J.P.W.; Veith, L.; Wagstaffe, M.; Wang, H.; Wang, M..; Wang, Y.C.; Werner, W.; Yang, L.; Shard, A.G.

2016-01-01

We report the results of a Versailles Project on Advanced Materials and Standards (VAMAS) interlaboratory study on the measurement of the shell thickness and chemistry of nanoparticle coatings. Peptide-coated gold particles were supplied to laboratories in two forms: a colloidal suspension in pure

Impact of AlN seeding layer growth rate in MOVPE growth of semi-polar gallium nitride structures on high index silicon

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ravash, Roghaiyeh; Blaesing, Juergen; Hempel, Thomas; Noltemeyer, Martin; Dadgar, Armin; Christen, Juergen; Krost, Alois [Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, FNW/IEP/AHE, Postfach 4120, 39016 Magdeburg (Germany)

2011-03-15

We present metal organic vapor phase epitaxy growth of semi-polar GaN structures on high index silicon surfaces. The crystallographic structure of GaN grown on Si(112), (115), and (117) substrates is investigated by X-ray analysis and scanning electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction was performed in Bragg Brentano geometry as well as pole figure measurements. The results demonstrate that the orientation of GaN crystallites on Si is significantly dependent on thickness of the AlN seeding layer and TMAl-flow rate. We observe that the crystallographic structures of GaN by applying thin AlN seeding layers grown with high TMAl-flow rate depend on Si surface direction while they are independent for thicker layers. By applying such seeding layer we obtain single crystalline semi-polar GaN on Si(112), while GaN structures grown with the same growth parameters on Si(117) show four components of GaN(0002). (Copyright copyright 2011 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Valence and conduction band offsets of β-Ga2O3/AlN heterojunction

KAUST Repository

Sun, Haiding; Torres Castanedo, C. G.; Liu, Kaikai; Li, Kuang-Hui; Guo, Wenzhe; Lin, Ronghui; Liu, Xinwei; Li, Jingtao; Li, Xiaohang

2017-01-01

Both β-Ga2O3 and wurtzite AlN have wide bandgaps of 4.5–4.9 and 6.1 eV, respectively. We calculated the in-plane lattice mismatch between the (−201) plane of β-Ga2O3 and the (0002) plane of AlN, which was found to be 2.4%. This is the smallest

Brazing of AlN to SiC by a Pr silicide: Physicochemical aspects

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koltsov, A. [SIMAP - UMR CNRS 5266, INP Grenoble-UJF, Domaine Universitaire, BP 75, 1130 rue de la Piscine, 38402 Saint Martin d' Heres, Cedex (France)], E-mail: alexey.koltsov@arcelor.com; Hodaj, F.; Eustathopoulos, N. [SIMAP - UMR CNRS 5266, INP Grenoble-UJF, Domaine Universitaire, BP 75, 1130 rue de la Piscine, 38402 Saint Martin d' Heres, Cedex (France)

2008-11-15

In view of their very different thermomechanical properties, joining of metals to ceramics by brazing is usually performed by means of one or more interlayers. In a recent investigation AlN was chosen as interlayer material for brazing SiC to a superalloy. The aim of the present study is to determine an alloy with a high melting point (close to 1200 deg. C) enabling brazing of AlN to SiC. Two types of experiments are performed with a Si-17 at.% Pr eutectic alloy (T{sub m} = 1212 deg. C): sessile drop experiments to determine wetting and brazing of AlN and SiC plates to determine gap filling. Experiments are carried out in high vacuum to promote deoxidation. Interfacial reactivity, joint microstructure and type of failure occurring during cooling are examined by optical and scanning electron microscopy.

Brazing of AlN to SiC by a Pr silicide: Physicochemical aspects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koltsov, A.; Hodaj, F.; Eustathopoulos, N.

2008-01-01

In view of their very different thermomechanical properties, joining of metals to ceramics by brazing is usually performed by means of one or more interlayers. In a recent investigation AlN was chosen as interlayer material for brazing SiC to a superalloy. The aim of the present study is to determine an alloy with a high melting point (close to 1200 deg. C) enabling brazing of AlN to SiC. Two types of experiments are performed with a Si-17 at.% Pr eutectic alloy (T m = 1212 deg. C): sessile drop experiments to determine wetting and brazing of AlN and SiC plates to determine gap filling. Experiments are carried out in high vacuum to promote deoxidation. Interfacial reactivity, joint microstructure and type of failure occurring during cooling are examined by optical and scanning electron microscopy

A comparative study on magnetism in Zn-doped AlN and GaN from first-principles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Liang; Wang, Lingling; Huang, Weiqing; Xiao, Wenzhi; Xiao, Gang

2014-01-01

First-principles calculations have been used to comparatively investigate electronic and magnetic properties of Zn-doped AlN and GaN. A total magnetic moment of 1.0 μ B induced by Zn is found in AlN, but not in GaN. Analyses show that the origin of spontaneous polarization not only depend on the localized atomic orbitals of N and sufficient hole concentration, but also the relative intensity of the covalency of matrix. The relatively stronger covalent character of GaN with respect to AlN impedes forming local magnetic moment in GaN matrix. Our study offers a fresh sight of spontaneous spin polarization in d 0 magnetism. The much stronger ferromagnetic coupling in c-plane of AlN means that it is feasible to realize long-range ferromagnetic order via monolayer delta-doping. This can apply to other wide band-gap semiconductors in wurtzite structure.

Crystallinity and superconductivity of as-grown MgB2 thin films with AlN buffer layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tsujimoto, K.; Shimakage, H.; Wang, Z.; Kaya, N.

2005-01-01

The effects of aluminum nitride (AlN) buffer layers on the superconducting properties of MgB 2 thin film were investigated. The AlN buffer layers and as-grown MgB 2 thin films were deposited in situ using the multiple-target sputtering system. The best depositing condition for the AlN/MgB 2 bi-layer occurred when the AlN was deposited on c-cut sapphire substrates at 290 deg. C. The crystallinity of the AlN/MgB 2 bi-layer was studied using the XRD φ-scan and it showed that AlN and MgB 2 had the same in-plane alignment rotated at an angle of 30 deg. as compared to c-cut sapphire. The critical temperature of the MgB 2 film was 29.8 K and the resistivity was 50.0 μΩ cm at 40 K

Cathodic protection beneath thick external coating on flexible pipeline

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Festy, Dominique; Choqueuse, Dominique; Leflour, Denise; Lepage, Vincent [Ifremer - Centre de Brest, BP 70 29280 Plouzane (France); Condat, Carol Taravel; Desamais, Nicolas [Technip- FLEXIFRANCE - PED/PEC - Rue Jean Hure, 76580 Le Trait (France); Tribollet, Bernard [UPR 15 du CNRS, Laboratoire LISE, 4 Place Jussieu, 75252 Paris Cedex (France)

2004-07-01

Flexible offshore pipelines possess an external polymer sheath to protect the structure against seawater. In case of an accidental damage of the outer sheath, the annulus of the flexible pipe is flooded with seawater. Far from the damage, corrosion and/or corrosion fatigue of armour steel wires in the annulus occur in a strictly deaerated environment; this has been studied for a few years. At the damage location, the steel wires are in direct contact with renewed seawater. In order to protect them against corrosion, a cathodic protection is applied using sacrificial anodes located at the end fittings. The goal of this work is to evaluate the extent of the cathodic protection as well as the electrolyte oxygen concentration beneath the coating around the damage, to know whether or not there is a non protected area with enough oxygen where corrosion and corrosion fatigue can occur. The experimental work was performed with a model cell (2000 x 200 mm{sup 2}), composed of a mild steel plate and a PMMA coat (transparent poly-methyl-methacrylate). The thickness of the gap between the steel plate and the PMMA coat was 0.5 mm. The potential and current density were monitored all along the cell (70 sensors). The oxygen concentration was also recorded. The experiments were performed with natural sea water, and cathodic protection was applied in a reservoir at one extremity of the cell. Another reservoir at the other cell extremity enabled carbon dioxide bubbling to simulate pipeline annular conditions. PROCOR software was used to simulate potential and current density within the gap and a mathematical model was developed to model oxygen concentration evolution. Both model and experimental results show that the extent of the cathodic protection is much greater than that of oxygen. Oxygen depletion is very quick within the gap when seawater fills it and the oxygen concentration is close to zero a few milli-metres from the gap opening. On the other hand, the cathodic protection

Reduction of the Mg acceptor activation energy in GaN, AlN, Al0.83Ga0.17N and MgGa δ-doping (AlN)5/(GaN)1: the strain effect

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, Xin-He; Shi, Jun-Jie; Zhang, Min; Zhong, Hong-Xia; Huang, Pu; Ding, Yi-Min; He, Ying-Ping; Cao, Xiong

2015-12-01

To resolve the p-type doping problem of Al-rich AlGaN alloys, we investigate the influence of biaxial and hydrostatic strains on the activation energy, formation energy and band gap of Mg-doped GaN, AlN, Al0.83Ga0.17N disorder alloy and (AlN)5/(GaN)1 superlattice based on first-principles calculations by combining the standard DFT and hybrid functional. We find that the Mg acceptor activation energy {{E}\\text{A}} , the formation energy {{E}\\text{f}} and the band gap {{E}\\text{g}} decrease with increasing the strain ɛ. The hydrostatic strain has a more remarkable impact on {{E}\\text{g}} and {{E}\\text{A}} than the biaxial strain. Both {{E}\\text{A}} and {{E}\\text{g}} have a linear dependence on the hydrostatic strain. For the biaxial strain, {{E}\\text{g}} shows a parabolic dependence on ɛ if \\varepsilon ≤slant 0 while it becomes linear if \\varepsilon ≥slant 0 . In GaN and (AlN)5/(GaN)1, {{E}\\text{A}} parabolically depends on the biaxial compressive strain and linearly depends on the biaxial tensible strain. However, the dependence is approximately linear over the whole biaxial strain range in AlN and Al0.83Ga0.17N. The Mg acceptor activation energy in (AlN)5/(GaN)1 can be reduced from 0.26 eV without strain to 0.16 (0.22) eV with the hydrostatic (biaxial) tensible strain 3%.

AlGaN/GaN MISHEMTs with AlN gate dielectric grown by thermal ALD technique.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Xiao-Yong; Zhao, Sheng-Xun; Zhang, Lin-Qing; Huang, Hong-Fan; Shi, Jin-Shan; Zhang, Chun-Min; Lu, Hong-Liang; Wang, Peng-Fei; Zhang, David Wei

2015-01-01

Recently, AlN plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (ALD) passivation technique had been proposed and investigated for suppressing the dynamic on-resistance degradation behavior of high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMTs). In this paper, a novel gate dielectric and passivation technique for GaN-on-Si AlGaN/GaN metal-insulator-semiconductor high-electron-mobility transistors (MISHEMTs) is presented. This technique features the AlN thin film grown by thermal ALD at 400°C without plasma enhancement. A 10.6-nm AlN thin film was grown upon the surface of the HEMT serving as the gate dielectric under the gate electrode and as the passivation layer in the access region at the same time. The MISHEMTs with thermal ALD AlN exhibit enhanced on/off ratio, reduced channel sheet resistance, reduction of gate leakage by three orders of magnitude at a bias of 4 V, reduced threshold voltage hysteresis of 60 mV, and suppressed current collapse degradation.

Influences of carbon content and coating carbon thickness on properties of amorphous CoSnO3@C composites as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fan, Fuqiang; Fang, Guoqing; Zhang, Ruixue; Xu, Yanhui; Zheng, Junwei; Li, Decheng

2014-01-01

Highlights: • The thickness of carbon coating layers can be successfully controlled through varying molar concentration of aqueous glucose solution. • Coating carbon thickness and carbon content are two important factors on the electrochemical performances of CoSnO3@C. • CoSnO 3 @C under optimized conditions exhibits the optimal balance between the volume buffering effect and reversible capacity. • As-prepared CoSnO 3 @C under optimized conditions shows excellent electrochemical performances, whose reversible capacity could reach 491 mA h g −1 after 100 cycles. - Abstract: A series of core–shell carbon coated amorphous CoSnO 3 (CoSnO 3 @C) with different carbon content are synthesized. Effects of carbon content and coating carbon thickness on the physical and electrochemical performances of the samples were studied in detail. The samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), galvanostatic charge–discharge and AC impedance spectroscopy, respectively. The results indicate that controlling the concentration of aqueous glucose solution influences the generation of in-situ carbon layer thickness. The optimal concentration of aqueous glucose solution, carbon content and carbon layer thickness are suggested as 0.25 M, 35.1% and 20 nm, respectively. CoSnO 3 @C composite prepared under the optimal conditions exhibits excellent cycling performance, whose reversible capacity could reach 491 mA h g −1 after 100 cycles

Improved performance of GaN based light emitting diodes with ex-situ sputtered AlN nucleation layers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shuo-Wei Chen

2016-04-01

Full Text Available The crystal quality, electrical and optical properties of GaN based light emitting diodes (LEDs with ex-situ sputtered physical vapor deposition (PVD aluminum nitride (AlN nucleation layers were investigated. It was found that the crystal quality in terms of defect density and x-ray diffraction linewidth was greatly improved in comparison to LEDs with in-situ low temperature GaN nucleation layer. The light output power was 3.7% increased and the reverse bias voltage of leakage current was twice on LEDs with ex-situ PVD AlN nucleation layers. However, larger compressive strain was discovered in LEDs with ex-situ PVD AlN nucleation layers. The study shows the potential and constrain in applying ex-situ PVD AlN nucleation layers to fabricate high quality GaN crystals in various optoelectronics.

CVD of SiC and AlN using cyclic organometallic precursors

Science.gov (United States)

Interrante, L. V.; Larkin, D. J.; Amato, C.

1992-01-01

The use of cyclic organometallic molecules as single-source MOCVD precursors is illustrated by means of examples taken from our recent work on AlN and SiC deposition, with particular focus on SiC. Molecules containing (AlN)3 and (SiC)2 rings as the 'core structure' were employed as the source materials for these studies. The organoaluminum amide, (Me2AlNH2)3, was used as the AlN source and has been studied in a molecular beam sampling apparatus in order to determine the gas phase species present in a hot-wall CVD reactor environment. In the case of SiC CVD, a series of disilacyclobutanes (Si(XX')CH2)2 (with X and X' = H, CH3, and CH2SiH2CH3), were examined in a cold-wall, hot-stage CVD reactor in order to compare their relative reactivities and prospective utility as single-source CVD precursors. The parent compound, disilacyclobutane, (SiH2CH2)2, was found to exhibit the lowest deposition temperature (ca. 670 C) and to yield the highest purity SiC films. This precursor gave a highly textured, polycrystalline film on the Si(100) substrates.

Dependence of the optical constants and the performance in the SPREE gas measurement on the thickness of doped tin oxide over coatings

Science.gov (United States)

Fischer, D.; Hertwig, A.; Beck, U.; Negendank, D.; Lohse, V.; Kormunda, M.; Esser, N.

2017-11-01

In this study, thickness related changes of the optical properties of doped tin oxide were studied. Two different sets of samples were prepared. The first set was doped with iron or nickel on silicon substrate with thicknesses of 29-56 nm, the second was iron doped on gold/glass substrate with 1.6-6.3 nm. The optical constants were determined by using spectral ellipsometry (SE) followed by modelling of the dielectric function with an oscillator model using Gaussian peaks. The analysis of the optical constants shows a dependence of the refraction and the absorption on the thickness of the doped tin oxide coating. In addition to the tin oxide absorption in the UV, one additional absorption peak was found in the near-IR/red which is related to plasmonic effects due to the doping. This peak shifts from the near-IR to the red part of the visible spectrum and becomes stronger by reducing the thickness, probably due to the formation of metal nanoparticles in this layer. These results were found for two different sets of samples by using the same optical model. Afterwards the second sample set was tested in the Surface Plasmon Resonance Enhanced Ellipsometric (SPREE) gas measurement with CO gas. It was found that the thickness has significant influence on the sensitivity and thus the adsorption of the CO gas. By increasing the thickness from 1.6 nm to 5.1 nm, the sensing ability is enhanced due to a higher coverage of the surface with the over coating. This is explained by the high affinity of CO molecules to the incorporated Fe-nanoparticles in the tin oxide coating. By increasing the thickness further to 6.3 nm, the sensing ability drops because the layer disturbs the SPR sensing effect too much.

Microprocessor isotope gauges for measurement of coating thickness and of air dust pollution

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Machaj, B.; Zrudelny, F.; Sikora, A.; Jaszczuk, J.

1986-01-01

The article describes a coating thickness gauge based on measurement of backscattered beta particles, and an air dust pollution gauge based on measurement of dust deposited from known volume of ambient air passed through a filter, by attenuation of beta radiation. In both cases to control the gauges and to process head signals microcomputer system based on Intel 8080 microprocessor is employed. Algorithms for processing and control of the gauges and corresponding flow charts are presented. Block diagram of microcomputer system used is presented, as well as the manner of operation of the gauges. (author)

Single-crystalline AlN growth on sapphire using physical vapor deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cardenas-Valencia, Andres M., E-mail: andres.cardenas@sri.co [SRI International (United States); Onishi, Shinzo; Rossie, Benjamin [SRI International (United States)

2011-02-07

A novel technique for growing single crystalline aluminum nitride (AlN) films is presented. The novelty of the technique, specifically, comes from the use of an innovative physical vapor deposition magnetron sputtering tool, which embeds magnets into the target material. A relatively high deposition rates is achieved ({approx}0.2 {mu}m/min), at temperatures between 860 and 940 {sup o}C. The AlN, grown onto sapphire, is single-crystalline as evidenced by observation using transmission electron microscopy. Tool configuration and growth conditions are discussed, as well as a first set of other analytical results, namely, x-ray diffraction and ultraviolet-visible transmission spectrophotometry.

Influence of SrF_2-doping in AlN ceramics on scintillation and dosimeter properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kojima, Kaori; Okada, Go; Fukuda, Kentaro; Yanagida, Takayuki

2016-01-01

In this study, we synthesized undoped AlN and SrF_2-doped AlN (AlN-SrF_2) ceramics by Spark Plasma Sintering (SPS), and we characterized their optical, scintillation and dosimeter properties. The prepared undoped AlN ceramic had gray color and visually non-transparent whereas, with an addition of SrF_2, the transparency improved and became translucent. The measured in-line transmittance was approximately 0.2% at wavelengths longer than 500 nm. While the addition of SrF_2 decreased the scintillation intensity, the decay time was significantly fastened, which is a great advantage for fast photon counting-based measurements. Both the thermally-stimulated luminescence (TSL) and optically-stimulated luminescence (OSL) showed good linear response from the milli-gray range to over 10 Gy. The sensitivity seems to decrease by an addition of SrF_2 as it suppresses structural defect centers which are responsible for dosimeter properties. However, the main TSL glow peak position shifts to higher temperature with the addition of SrF_2, which indicates that inclusion of SrF_2 improves the TSL signal stability. - Highlights: • We synthesized undoped and SrF_2-doped AlN ceramics by Spark Plasma Sintering. • We evaluated scintillator and dosimeter properties of undoped and SrF_2-doped AlN. • By doping with SrF_2, the decay time is shortened. • By doping with SrF_2, the stability of TSL and OSL is improved.

Properties of planar structures based on Policluster films of diamond and AlN

Science.gov (United States)

Belyanin, A. F.; Luchnikov, A. P.; Nalimov, S. A.; Bagdasarian, A. S.

2018-01-01

AlN films doped with zinc were grown on Si substrates by RF magnetron reactive sputtering of a compound target. Policluster films of diamond doped with boron were formed on layered Si/AlN substrates from the gas phase hydrogen and methane, activated arc discharge. By electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy the composition and structure of synthetic policluster films of diamond and AlN films were studied. Photovoltaic devices based on the AlN/PFD layered structure are presented.

AlGaN-based deep-ultraviolet light-emitting diodes grown on high-quality AlN template using MOVPE

KAUST Repository

Yan, Jianchang; Wang, Junxi; Zhang, Yun; Cong, Peipei; Sun, Lili; Tian, Yingdong; Zhao, Chao; Li, Jinmin

2015-01-01

In this article, we report the growth of high-quality AlN film using metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy. Three layers of middle-temperature (MT) AlN were introduced during the high-temperature (HT) AlN growth. During the MT-AlN layer growth, aluminum and nitrogen sources were closed for 6 seconds after every 5-nm MT-AlN, while H2 carrier gas was always on. The threading dislocation density in an AlN epi-layer on a sapphire substrate was reduced by almost half. AlGaN-based deep-ultraviolet light-emitting diodes were further fabricated based on the AlN/sapphire template. At 20 mA driving current, the emitted peak wavelength is 284.5 nm and the light output power exceeds 3 mW.

AlGaN-based deep-ultraviolet light-emitting diodes grown on high-quality AlN template using MOVPE

KAUST Repository

Yan, Jianchang

2015-03-01

In this article, we report the growth of high-quality AlN film using metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy. Three layers of middle-temperature (MT) AlN were introduced during the high-temperature (HT) AlN growth. During the MT-AlN layer growth, aluminum and nitrogen sources were closed for 6 seconds after every 5-nm MT-AlN, while H2 carrier gas was always on. The threading dislocation density in an AlN epi-layer on a sapphire substrate was reduced by almost half. AlGaN-based deep-ultraviolet light-emitting diodes were further fabricated based on the AlN/sapphire template. At 20 mA driving current, the emitted peak wavelength is 284.5 nm and the light output power exceeds 3 mW.

Mechanical and Thermophysical Properties of Cubic Rock-Salt AlN Under High Pressure

Science.gov (United States)

Lebga, Noudjoud; Daoud, Salah; Sun, Xiao-Wei; Bioud, Nadhira; Latreche, Abdelhakim

2018-03-01

Density functional theory, density functional perturbation theory, and the Debye model have been used to investigate the structural, elastic, sound velocity, and thermodynamic properties of AlN with cubic rock-salt structure under high pressure, yielding the equilibrium structural parameters, equation of state, and elastic constants of this interesting material. The isotropic shear modulus, Pugh ratio, and Poisson's ratio were also investigated carefully. In addition, the longitudinal, transverse, and average elastic wave velocities, phonon contribution to the thermal conductivity, and interesting thermodynamic properties were predicted and analyzed in detail. The results demonstrate that the behavior of the elastic wave velocities under increasing hydrostatic pressure explains the hardening of the corresponding phonons. Based on the elastic stability criteria under pressure, it is found that AlN with cubic rock-salt structure is mechanically stable, even at pressures up to 100 GPa. Analysis of the Pugh ratio and Poisson's ratio revealed that AlN with cubic rock-salt structure behaves in brittle manner.

Preliminary comparison of three processes of AlN oxidation: dry, wet and mixed ones

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Korbutowicz R.

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Three methods of AlN layers oxidation: dry, wet and mixed (wet with oxygen were compared. Some physical parameters of oxidized thin films of aluminum nitride (AlN layers grown on silicon Si(1 1 1 were investigated by means Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS and Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (SE. Three series of the thermal oxidations processes were carried out at 1012 °C in pure nitrogen as carrying gas and various gas ambients: (a dry oxidation with oxygen, (b wet oxidation with water steam and (c mixed atmosphere with various process times. All the research methods have shown that along with the rising of the oxidation time, AlN layer across the aluminum oxide nitride transforms to aluminum oxide. The mixed oxidation was a faster method than the dry or wet ones.

Influence of substrate bias on the structure and properties of (Ti, Al)N films deposited by filtered cathodic vacuum arc

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, Y.H.; Tay, B.K.; Lau, S.P.; Shi, X.

2001-01-01

(Ti, Al)N films were deposited by an off-plane, double-bend, filtered cathodic vacuum arc technique in N 2 atmosphere at room temperature. The (Ti, Al)N films deposited are atomically smooth. The influence of substrate negative bias at the wide range (0-1000 V) on the deposition rate, surface morphology, crystal structure, internal stress, and mechanical properties of (Ti, Al)N films were systematically studied. Increasing substrate bias results in the decrease of deposition rate and the increase of surface roughness monotonically. At the bias of 0 V, (Ti, Al)N films are amorphous, and the internal stress, hardness, and Young's modulus for the deposited films are fairly low. With increasing substrate bias to 200 V, single-phase face-centered cubic-type nanocrystalline (Ti, Al)N films can be obtained, and the internal stress, hardness, and Young's modulus increase to the maximum of 7 GPa, 28 GPa, and 240 GPa, respectively. Further increase of substrate bias results in the decrease of intensity and the broadening of x-ray diffraction lines, and the gradual decrease of internal stress, hardness, and Young's modulus in (Ti, Al)N films

Fabrication of AlN thin films on different substrates at ambient temperature

CERN Document Server

Cai, W X; Wu, P H; Yang, S Z; Ji, Z M

2002-01-01

Aluminium nitride (AlN) is very useful as a barrier in superconductor-insulator-superconductor (SIS) device or as an insulating layer in many other applications. At ambient temperature, we deposit AlN thin films onto different substrates (such as MgO, LaAlO sub 3 and Si) by using radio-frequency magnetron sputtering and pure Al target. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and PHI-scan patterns show that the films grown on MgO substrates are excellent epitaxial films with (101) orientation of a hexagonal lattice. A possible structure of the interface between the film and the substrate is suggested and discussed.

Influences of carbon content and coating carbon thickness on properties of amorphous CoSnO{sub 3}@C composites as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fan, Fuqiang [Key Laboratory of Lithium Battery Materials of Jiangsu Province, Institute of chemical power sources, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China); Fang, Guoqing [Key Laboratory of Lithium Battery Materials of Jiangsu Province, Institute of chemical power sources, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China); Changzhou Institute of Energy Storage Materials and Devices, Changzhou 213000 (China); Zhang, Ruixue [Key Laboratory of Lithium Battery Materials of Jiangsu Province, Institute of chemical power sources, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China); Xu, Yanhui; Zheng, Junwei [Key Laboratory of Lithium Battery Materials of Jiangsu Province, Institute of chemical power sources, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China); College of Physics, Optoelectronics and Energy, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China); Li, Decheng, E-mail: lidecheng@suda.edu.cn [Key Laboratory of Lithium Battery Materials of Jiangsu Province, Institute of chemical power sources, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China); College of Physics, Optoelectronics and Energy, Soochow University, Suzhou 215006 (China)

2014-08-30

Highlights: • The thickness of carbon coating layers can be successfully controlled through varying molar concentration of aqueous glucose solution. • Coating carbon thickness and carbon content are two important factors on the electrochemical performances of CoSnO3@C. • CoSnO{sub 3}@C under optimized conditions exhibits the optimal balance between the volume buffering effect and reversible capacity. • As-prepared CoSnO{sub 3}@C under optimized conditions shows excellent electrochemical performances, whose reversible capacity could reach 491 mA h g{sup −1} after 100 cycles. - Abstract: A series of core–shell carbon coated amorphous CoSnO{sub 3} (CoSnO{sub 3}@C) with different carbon content are synthesized. Effects of carbon content and coating carbon thickness on the physical and electrochemical performances of the samples were studied in detail. The samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), galvanostatic charge–discharge and AC impedance spectroscopy, respectively. The results indicate that controlling the concentration of aqueous glucose solution influences the generation of in-situ carbon layer thickness. The optimal concentration of aqueous glucose solution, carbon content and carbon layer thickness are suggested as 0.25 M, 35.1% and 20 nm, respectively. CoSnO{sub 3}@C composite prepared under the optimal conditions exhibits excellent cycling performance, whose reversible capacity could reach 491 mA h g{sup −1} after 100 cycles.

Improved crystalline quality of AlN epitaxial layer on sapphire by introducing TMGa pulse flow into the nucleation stage

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Hualong; Wang, Hailong; Chen, Yingda; Zhang, Lingxia; Chen, Zimin; Wu, Zhisheng; Wang, Gang; Jiang, Hao

2018-05-01

The crystalline quality of AlN epitaxial layers on sapphire substrates was improved by introducing trimethylgallium (TMGa) pulse flow into the growth of AlN nucleation layers. It was found that the density of both screw- and edge-type threading dislocations could be significantly reduced by introducing the TMGa pulse flow. With increasing TMGa pulse flow times, the lateral correlation length (i.e. the grain size) increases and the strain in the AlN epilayers changes from tensile state to compressive state. Unstrained AlN with the least dislocations and a smooth surface was obtained by introducing 2-times TMGa pulse flow. The crystalline improvement is attributed to enhanced lateral growth and improved crystalline orientation by the TMGa pulse flow.

Low-temperature growth of high quality AlN films on carbon face 6H-SiC

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Myunghee [Department of General Systems Studies, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-8902 (Japan); Ohta, Jitsuo; Fujioka, Hiroshi [Institute of Industrial Science (IIS), The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Tokyo 153-8505 (Japan); Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), 3-2-1 Sakado, Kawasaki 213-0012 (Japan); Kobayashi, Atsushi [Institute of Industrial Science (IIS), The University of Tokyo, 4-6-1 Komaba, Tokyo 153-8505 (Japan); Oshima, Masaharu [Department of General Systems Studies, The University of Tokyo, 3-8-1 Komaba, Meguro-ku, Tokyo 153-8902 (Japan); Department of Applied Chemistry, The University of Tokyo, 4-3-1 Hongo, Tokyo 113-8656 (Japan); Core Research for Evolutional Science and Technology (CREST), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0075 (Japan)

2008-01-15

AlN films have been grown on atomically flat carbon face 6H-SiC (000 anti 1) substrates by pulsed laser deposition and their structural properties have been investigated. In-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction observations have revealed that growth of AlN at 710 C proceeds in a Stranski-Krastanov mode, while typical layer-by-layer growth occurs at room temperature (RT) with atomically flat surfaces. It has been revealed that the crystalline quality of the AlN film is dramatically improved by the reduction in growth temperature down to RT and the full width at half maximum values in the X-ray rocking curves for 0004 and 10 anti 12 diffractions of the RT-grown AlN film are 0.05 and 0.07 , respectively. X-ray reciprocal space mapping has revealed that the introduction of misfit dislocations is suppressed in the case of RT growth, which is probably responsible for the improvement in crystalline quality. (copyright 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Thermal analysis of silicon carbide coating on a nickel based superalloy substrate and thickness measurement of top layers by lock-in infrared thermography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ranjit, Shrestha; Kim, Won Tae [Kongju National University, Cheonan (Korea, Republic of)

2017-04-15

In this paper, we investigate the capacity of the lock-in infrared thermography technique for the evaluation of non-uniform top layers of a silicon carbide coating with a nickel based superalloy sample. The method utilized a multilayer heat transfer model to analyze the surface temperature response. The modelling of the sample was done in ANSYS. The sample consists of three layers, namely, the metal substrate, bond coat and top coat. A sinusoidal heating at different excitation frequencies was imposed upon the top layer of the sample according to the experimental procedures. The thermal response of the excited surface was recorded, and the phase angle image was computed by Fourier transform using the image processing software, MATLAB and Thermofit Pro. The correlation between the coating thickness and phase angle was established for each excitation frequency. The most appropriate excitation frequency was found to be 0.05 Hz. The method demonstrated potential in the evaluation of coating thickness and it was successfully applied to measure the non-uniform top layers ranging from 0.05 mm to 1 mm with an accuracy of 0.000002 mm to 0.045 mm.

A novel surface micromachining process to fabricate AlN unimorph suspensions and its application for RF resonators

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Saravanan, S.; Saravanan, S.; Berenschot, Johan W.; Krijnen, Gijsbertus J.M.; Elwenspoek, Michael Curt

2006-01-01

A novel surface micromachining process is reported for aluminum nitride (AlN) thin films to fabricate piezoelectric unimorph suspension devices for micro actuator applications. Wet anisotropic etching of AlN thin film is used with a Cr metal mask layer in the microfabrication process. Tetra methyl

Novel sensing approach for LPG leakage detection: Part II: Effects of particle size, composition and coating layer thickness

KAUST Repository

Mukhopadhyay, Subhas

2015-10-30

Prominent research has been going on to develop a low-cost, efficient gas sensing system. The paper presents a continuation of our earlier research work done to develop a new sensing approach for gas detection at ambient conditions. The work exhibits the optimization of the response time of the sensor by inhabiting characteristic changes like variation in the concentration of the dispersion medium, thickness of the coating and the size of the dispersed medium. Different concentrations of the dispersion medium in the coated suspension were tested to determine the optimal composition required to achieve the highest sensitivity of the tin oxide (SnO2) layer towards the tested gas. The control over adsorption and desorption of the gas molecules in the coated layer was achieved by investigating the particle size of the dispersed medium. The response time of the coated sensor was encouraging and owns a promising potential to the development of a more efficient gas sensing system.

Ti, Al and N adatom adsorption and diffusion on rocksalt cubic AlN (001) and (011) surfaces: Ab initio calculations

Science.gov (United States)

Mastail, C.; David, M.; Nita, F.; Michel, A.; Abadias, G.

2017-11-01

We use ab initio calculations to determine the preferred nucleation sites and migration pathways of Ti, Al and N adatoms on cubic NaCl-structure (B1) AlN surfaces, primary inputs towards a further thin film growth modelling of the TiAlN alloy system. The potential energy landscape is mapped out for both metallic species and nitrogen adatoms for two different AlN surface orientations, (001) and (110), using density functional theory. For all species, the adsorption energies on AlN(011) surface are larger than on AlN(001) surface. Ti and Al adatom adsorption energy landscapes determined at 0 K by ab initio show similar features, with stable binding sites being located in, or near, epitaxial surface positions, with Ti showing a stronger binding compared to Al. In direct contrast, N adatoms (Nad) adsorb preferentially close to N surface atoms (Nsurf), thus forming strong N2-molecule-like bonds on both AlN(001) and (011). Similar to N2 desorption mechanisms reported for other cubic transition metal nitride surfaces, in the present work we investigate Nad/Nsurf desorption on AlN(011) using a drag calculation method. We show that this process leaves a Nsurf vacancy accompanied with a spontaneous surface reconstruction, highlighting faceting formation during growth.

Preparation of aluminide coatings on the inner surface of tubes by heat treatment of Al coatings electrodeposited from an ionic liquid

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xue, Dongpeng; Chen, Yimin; Ling, Guoping; Liu, Kezhao; Chen, Chang’an; Zhang, Guikai

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Al coating is prepared on the inner surface of one-meter tube. • Al coating shows good adherence to the substrate. • The thickness of Al coating is uniform along the tube. • Aluminide coating is obtained by heat treating Al coating. • Structure of aluminide coating is regulated by different thickness of Al coating. - Abstract: Aluminide coatings were prepared on the inner surface of 316L stainless steel tubes with size of Ø 12 mm × 1000 mm by heat-treating Al coatings electrodeposited from AlCl 3 -1-ethyl-3-methyl-imidazolium chloride (AlCl 3 –EMIC) ionic liquid at room temperature. Studies on the electrolytic etching pretreatment of stainless tubes before Al coating electrodeposition were carried out. The Al coating showed good adherence to the substrate after electrolytic etching at 10 mA/cm 2 for 10 min. The thickness of Al coatings was uniform along the tube. The structure of prepared aluminide coatings can be regulated by different thickness of Al coating. The outer layer of aluminide coatings was FeAl, Fe 2 Al 5 and FeAl 3 for the samples of 1-μm, 5-μm and 10-μm thick Al coatings, respectively.

Laser melting treatment of Ni-P surface alloys on mild steel. Influence of initial coating thickness and laser scanning rate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

García-Alonso, M. C.

1997-08-01

Full Text Available Different thickness Ni-P coatings deposited on mild steel are submitted to laser surface melting at different scanning rates. The microstructure of the alloys is characterized by optical and scanning electron microscopy and microprobe analysis. It is shown that both the initial coating thickness and the laser scanning rate have an influence on the shape, extent and size of the different structures resulting from the solidification process. Thus, when the laser scanning rate increases a progressive refinement of the structure takes place that could even totally block the dendritic growth produced during solidification for a high initial coating thickness.

Recubrimientos de Ni-P, con distinto espesor, depositados sobre un acero microaleado fueron tratados con láser a diferentes velocidades de barrido. La microestructura, tanto del recubrimiento como del acero base, ha sido caracterizada por microscopía óptica y electrónica y por microanálisis. En el proceso de solidificación se han obtenido distintas estructuras que varían en cuanto a la forma, extensión y tamaño dependiendo del espesor inicial de recubrimiento y de la velocidad de barrido del haz láser. A medida que la velocidad del haz aumenta, se produce un refinamiento progresivo de la microestructura dendrítica y, en casos extremos de alto espesor de recubrimiento y velocidades grandes, este crecimiento dendrítico se bloquea.

Tuning the shell thickness-dependent plasmonic absorption of Ag coated Au nanocubes: The effect of synthesis temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhu, Jian, E-mail: jianzhusummer@163.com; Zhang, Fan; Chen, Bei-Bei; Li, Jian-Jun; Zhao, Jun-Wu, E-mail: nanoptzhao@163.com

2015-09-15

Graphical abstract: Ag coating leads to great enhancement of SPR absorbance of Au nanocubes, and the Ag coating-dependent non-monotonous SPR shift is greater at lower temperature. - Highlights: • Au nanocubes with more uniform shape can be obtained at lower growth temperature. • Ag coating leads to great enhancement of SPR absorption intensity. • The Ag coating dependent non-monotonous SPR shift is greater at lower temperature. - Abstract: The temperature dependent synthesis and plasmonic optical properties of Ag coated Au nanocubes have been investigated experimentally. It has been found that the Au nanocubes with more uniform morphology and higher yield could be obtained by decreasing the growth temperature. Because of the non-spherical symmetry of the particles shape and the plasmon coupling between Au–Ag interface and outer Ag surface, four absorption peaks at most have been observed. As the Ag coating thickness is increased, the absorbance intensity of these plasmon peaks gets intense greatly, and the absorption peak at longest wavelength blue shifts firstly and then red shifts. The non-monotonous plasmonic shift has been attributed to the competition between the increase of Ag composition and the enlargement of the particle size. What's more, the wavelength region of both blue shift and red shift could also be enhanced by decreasing the temperature.

Tuning the shell thickness-dependent plasmonic absorption of Ag coated Au nanocubes: The effect of synthesis temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhu, Jian; Zhang, Fan; Chen, Bei-Bei; Li, Jian-Jun; Zhao, Jun-Wu

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: Ag coating leads to great enhancement of SPR absorbance of Au nanocubes, and the Ag coating-dependent non-monotonous SPR shift is greater at lower temperature. - Highlights: • Au nanocubes with more uniform shape can be obtained at lower growth temperature. • Ag coating leads to great enhancement of SPR absorption intensity. • The Ag coating dependent non-monotonous SPR shift is greater at lower temperature. - Abstract: The temperature dependent synthesis and plasmonic optical properties of Ag coated Au nanocubes have been investigated experimentally. It has been found that the Au nanocubes with more uniform morphology and higher yield could be obtained by decreasing the growth temperature. Because of the non-spherical symmetry of the particles shape and the plasmon coupling between Au–Ag interface and outer Ag surface, four absorption peaks at most have been observed. As the Ag coating thickness is increased, the absorbance intensity of these plasmon peaks gets intense greatly, and the absorption peak at longest wavelength blue shifts firstly and then red shifts. The non-monotonous plasmonic shift has been attributed to the competition between the increase of Ag composition and the enlargement of the particle size. What's more, the wavelength region of both blue shift and red shift could also be enhanced by decreasing the temperature

Analysis of pellet coating uniformity using a computer scanner.

Science.gov (United States)

Šibanc, Rok; Luštrik, Matevž; Dreu, Rok

2017-11-30

A fast method for pellet coating uniformity analysis, using a commercial computer scanner was developed. The analysis of the individual particle coating thicknesses was based on using a transparent orange colored coating layer deposited on white pellet cores. Besides the analysis of the coating thickness the information of pellet size and shape was obtained as well. Particle size dependent coating thickness and particle size independent coating variability was calculated by combining the information of coating thickness and pellet size. Decoupling coating thickness variation sources is unique to presented method. For each coating experiment around 10000 pellets were analyzed, giving results with a high statistical confidence. Proposed method was employed for the performance evaluation of classical Wurster and swirl enhanced Wurster coater operated at different gap settings and air flow rates. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Effect of layer thickness on the properties of nickel thermal sprayed steel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nurisna, Zuhri, E-mail: zuhri-nurisna@yahoo.co.id; Triyono,, E-mail: triyonomesin@uns.ac.id; Muhayat, Nurul, E-mail: nurulmuhayat@staff.uns.ac.id; Wijayanta, Agung Tri, E-mail: agungtw@uns.ac.id [Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sebelas Maret University, Jl. Jr. Sutami 36 A, Surakarta (Indonesia)

2016-03-29

Thermal arc spray nickel coating is widely used for decorative and functional applications, by improving corrosion resistance, wear resistance, heat resistence or by modifying other properties of the coated materials. There are several properties have been studied. Layer thickness of nickel thermal sprayed steel may be make harder the substrate surface. In this study, the effect of layer thickness of nickel thermal sprayed steel has been investigated. The rectangular substrate specimens were coated by Ni–5 wt.% Al using wire arc spray method. The thickness of coating layers were in range from 0.4 to 1.0 mm. Different thickness of coating layers were conducted to investigate their effect on hardness and morphology. The coating layer was examined by using microvickers and scanning electron microscope with EDX attachment. Generally, the hardness at the interface increased with increasing thickness of coating layers for all specimens due to higher heat input during spraying process. Morphology analysis result that during spraying process aluminum would react with surrounding oxygen and form aluminum oxide at outer surface of splat. Moreover, porosity was formed in coating layers. However, presence porosity is not related to thickness of coating material. The thicker coating layer resulted highesr of hardness and bond strength.

Microstructure and high temperature oxidation resistance of in-situ synthesized TiN/Ti_3Al intermetallic composite coatings on Ti6Al4V alloy by laser cladding process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Hongxi; Zhang, Xiaowei; Jiang, Yehua; Zhou, Rong

2016-01-01

High temperature anti-oxidation TiN/Ti_3Al intermetallic composite coatings were fabricated with the powder and AlN powder on Ti6Al4V titanium alloy surface by 6 kW transverse-flow CO_2 laser apparatus. The chemical composition, morphology and microstructure of the TiN/Ti_3Al composite coatings were characterized by optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). In order to evaluate the high temperature oxidation resistance of TiN/Ti_3Al coating, the isothermal oxidation test was performed in a high temperature resistance furnace at 600 °C and 800 °C, respectively. The result shows that the composite coating has a rapidly solidified fine microstructure consisting of TiN primary phase (granular-like, flake-like or dendrites), with an even distribution in Ti_3Al matrix. It indicates that a physical and chemical reaction between Ti powder and AlN powder has completely occurred under the laser irradiation condition. In addition, the microhardness of the TiN/Ti3Al intermetallic composite coating is 3.4 times higher than that of the Ti6Al4V alloy substrate and reaches 844 HV_0_._2. The high temperature oxidation behavior test reveals that the high temperature oxidation resistance of TiN/Ti_3Al composite coating is much better than that of titanium alloy substrate. The excellent high temperature oxidation resistance of TiN/Ti_3Al intermetallic composite coating is attributed to the formation of reinforced phases TiN, Al_2O_3 and TiO_2. The laser cladding TiN/Ti_3Al intermetallic composite coating is anticipated to be a promising high temperature oxidation resistance coating for Ti6Al4V alloy. - Highlights: • In-situ TiN/Ti_3Al composite coating was synthesized on Ti6Al4V alloy by laser cladding. • The influence of Ti and AlN molar ratio on the microstructure of the coating was studied. • The TiN/Ti_3Al intermetallic coating is mainly composed of α-Ti, TiN and Ti_3Al phases. • The

AlN and Al oxy-nitride gate dielectrics for reliable gate stacks on Ge and InGaAs channels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guo, Y.; Li, H.; Robertson, J. [Engineering Department, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 1PZ (United Kingdom)

2016-05-28

AlN and Al oxy-nitride dielectric layers are proposed instead of Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} as a component of the gate dielectric stacks on higher mobility channels in metal oxide field effect transistors to improve their positive bias stress instability reliability. It is calculated that the gap states of nitrogen vacancies in AlN lie further away in energy from the semiconductor band gap than those of oxygen vacancies in Al{sub 2}O{sub 3}, and thus AlN might be less susceptible to charge trapping and have a better reliability performance. The unfavourable defect energy level distribution in amorphous Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} is attributed to its larger coordination disorder compared to the more symmetrically bonded AlN. Al oxy-nitride is also predicted to have less tendency for charge trapping.

Effect of Thickness on Oxidation Behavior of Cr coated Zircaloy-4 using Arc Ion Plating

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Eui Jung; Kim, Sun Jin [Hanyang University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Park, Jung Hwan; Kim, Hyun Gil; Jung, Yang Il; Park, Dong Jun [KAERI, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2016-05-15

Ever since the Fukushima accident, accident tolerant fuel (ATF) has been widely studied. To increase the life time and safety of nuclear claddings, there are increasing demands for protective coatings exhibiting excellent oxidation resistance. Many metal and oxide films are produced by using this method because of the high kinetic energy of the ions, ionization efficiency and deposition rate. Candidate materials for a protective layer have higher thermal neutron absorption cross sections than Zr. However, there is no systematic study of thickness effect on oxidation resistance of protective layer. In this study, Cr films with different thickness (from 1 μm to 50 μm) were deposited on the cladding surfaces by AIP. The high temperature oxidation resistance of Cr films with different thicknesses has been investigated. Uniform oxide layer with nanoporous structures have been fabricated on the surface of Zr-Nb-Sn alloy. Oxidation behavior of the pristine Zr-Nb-Sn alloy and the Zr-Nb-Sn alloy with nanostructured oxide layer evaluated by measuring weight gain (TGA).

Measurement of the thickness of the sprayed nickel coatings on large-sized cast iron products

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

В. А. Сясько

2016-11-01

Full Text Available Modern industries increasingly use automatic spraying of heat-resistant Nickel  coating with a thickness  of      T = 1-3 mm for large-size parts made of cast iron with nodular graphite. The process of coating application is characterized by time-dependent behavior of its relative magnetic permeability, μс , that is a function of relaxation time, which can be as long as 24 hours, and by μс deviation from point to point on the surface. Aspects of eddy-current phase method for measuring the T value are considered. The structure of four- winding eddy current transformer transducers is described and results of calculation and optimization of their parameters are presented. The influence of controlled and interfering parameters is considered. Based  on the above results, a two-channel combined transducer is developed  providing measurement  error  of ΔТ ≤ ±(0.03T + 0.02 mm  in the shop environment in the process of coating application and in the final product check. Results of tests on reference specimens and of application in production processes are presented.

Influence of Thickness of Multilayered Nano-Structured Coatings Ti-TiN-(TiCrAlN and Zr-ZrN-(ZrCrNbAlN on Tool Life of Metal Cutting Tools at Various Cutting Speeds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexey Vereschaka

2018-01-01

Full Text Available This paper considers the influence of thickness of multilayered nano-structured coatings Ti-TiN-(TiCrAlN and Zr-ZrN-(ZrCrNbAlN on tool life of metal cutting tools at various cutting speeds (vc = 250, 300, 350 and 400 m·min−1. The paper investigates the basic mechanical parameters of coatings and the mechanism of coating failure in scratch testing depending on thickness of coating. Cutting tests were conducted in longitudinal turning of steel C45 with tools with the coatings under study of various thicknesses (3, 5, and 7 µm, with an uncoated tool and with a tool with a “reference” coating of TiAlN. The relationship of “cutting speed vc—tool life T” was built and investigated; and the mechanisms were found to determine the selection of the optimum coating thickness at various cutting speeds. Advantages of cutting tools with these coatings are especially obvious at high cutting speeds (in particular, vc = 400 m·min−1. If at lower cutting speeds, the longest tool life is shown by tools with thicker coatings (of about 7 μm, then with an increase in cutting speed (especially at vc = 400 m·min−1 the longest tool life is shown by tools with thinner coating (of about 3 μm.

High performance W-AIN cermet solar coatings designed by modelling calculations and deposited by DC magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Qi-Chu Zhang [The University of Sydney (Australia). School of Physics; Shen, Y.G. [City University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong). Department of Manufacturing Engineering and Engineering Management

2004-01-25

High solar performance W-AIN cermet solar coatings were designed using a numerical computer model and deposited experimentally. In the numerical calculations aluminium oxynitride (AlON) was used as ceramic component. The dielectric functions and then complex refractive index of W-AlON cermet materials were calculated using the Sheng's approximation. The layer thickness and W metal volume fraction were optimised to achieve maximum photo-thermal conversion efficiency for W-AlON cermet solar coatings on an Al reflector with a surface AlON ceramic anti-reflection layer. Optimisation calculations show that the W-AlON cermet solar coatings with two and three cermet layers have nearly identical solar absorptance, emittance and photo-thermal conversion efficiency that are much better than those for films with one cermet layer. The optimised calculated AlON/W-AlON/Al solar coating film with two cermet layers has a high solar absorptance of 0.953 and a low hemispherical emittance of 0.051 at 80{sup o}C for a concentration factor of 2. The AlN/W-AlN/Al solar selective coatings with two cermet layers were deposited using two metal target direct current magnetron sputtering technology. During the deposition of W-AlN cermet layer, both Al and W targets were run simultaneously in a gas mixture of argon and nitrogen. By substrate rotation a multi-sub-layer system consisting of alternating AlN ceramic and W metallic sub-layers was deposited that can be considered as a macro-homogeneous W-AlN cermet layer. A solar absorptance of 0.955 and nearly normal emittance of 0.056 at 80{sup o}C have been achieved for deposited W-AlN cermet solar coatings. (author)

Evaluation of the gold leaf thickness in the coating of the imperial horse-drawn carriage emperor D. Pedro II

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nardes, R.C.; Sanches, F.A.C.R.A.; Gama Filho, H.S.; Santos, R.S.; Oliveira, D.F.; Anjos, M.J.; Assis, J.T. [Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (UERJ), RJ (Brazil); Lopes, R.T. [Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ (Brazil). Laboratório de Instrumentação Nuclear; Carvalho, M.L. [Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Lisboa (Portugal); Zanatta, E.M. [Museu Imperial, Petropolis, RJ (Brazil). Laboratório de Conservação e Restauração; Cesareo, R., E-mail: rc.nardes@gmail.com [Instituto de Matemática e Física, Universidade de Sassari (Italy)

2017-07-01

In this study, the presence of gold in the coatings of the emperor D. Pedro’s II Berlin device, part of the Imperial Museum of Petropolis, Brazil, was verified. Then perform was evaluation of the thickness of the gold leaf, using the technique of X-Ray Fluorescence, measuring peak intensities (Kα / Kβ or Lα / Lβ) of the elements of interest in the layer. It was possible to verify in the XRF spectra the presence of four elements: Ti, Fe, Au and Pb. The Pb was present at all sampling points, which indicates the presence of lead carbonate (lead-white) as preparation layer. The presence of Au at some sampling points indicates that several parts of the Berlin devices were covered with gold leaf. The presence of Ti and Fe is due to the application of golden mica over the entire length of the berlin device during the process of last restoration. The presence of the mica layer on the gold covering was relevant for gold thickness determination. The average value of the gold thickness obtained was 0.62 ± 0.51 μm, with a coefficient of variation of 83% and a confidence interval of 0.49-0.75 μm (α = 0.05). The values are compatible with the thickness of gold foil normally found in the coating of pieces of wood from the same period that the Berlin device was built. (author)

Evaluation of the gold leaf thickness in the coating of the imperial horse-drawn carriage emperor D. Pedro II

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nardes, R.C.; Sanches, F.A.C.R.A.; Gama Filho, H.S.; Santos, R.S.; Oliveira, D.F.; Anjos, M.J.; Assis, J.T.; Lopes, R.T.; Zanatta, E.M.

2017-01-01

In this study, the presence of gold in the coatings of the emperor D. Pedro’s II Berlin device, part of the Imperial Museum of Petropolis, Brazil, was verified. Then perform was evaluation of the thickness of the gold leaf, using the technique of X-Ray Fluorescence, measuring peak intensities (Kα / Kβ or Lα / Lβ) of the elements of interest in the layer. It was possible to verify in the XRF spectra the presence of four elements: Ti, Fe, Au and Pb. The Pb was present at all sampling points, which indicates the presence of lead carbonate (lead-white) as preparation layer. The presence of Au at some sampling points indicates that several parts of the Berlin devices were covered with gold leaf. The presence of Ti and Fe is due to the application of golden mica over the entire length of the berlin device during the process of last restoration. The presence of the mica layer on the gold covering was relevant for gold thickness determination. The average value of the gold thickness obtained was 0.62 ± 0.51 μm, with a coefficient of variation of 83% and a confidence interval of 0.49-0.75 μm (α = 0.05). The values are compatible with the thickness of gold foil normally found in the coating of pieces of wood from the same period that the Berlin device was built. (author)

Wear resistance of thick diamond like carbon coatings against polymeric materials used in single screw plasticizing technology

Science.gov (United States)

Zitzenbacher, G.; Liu, K.; Forsich, C.; Heim, D.

2015-05-01

Wear on the screw and barrel surface accompany polymer single screw plasticizing technology from the beginning. In general, wear on screws can be reduced by using nitrided steel surfaces, fused armour alloys on the screw flights and coatings. However, DLC-coatings (Diamond Like Carbon) comprise a number of interesting properties such as a high hardness, a low coefficient of friction and an excellent corrosion resistance due to their amorphous structure. The wear resistance of about 50 µm thick DLC-coatings against polyamide 6.6, polybutylene terephthalate and polypropylene is investigated in this paper. The tribology in the solids conveying zone of a single screw extruder until the beginning of melting is evaluated using a pin on disc tribometer and a so called screw tribometer. The polymeric pins are pressed against coated metal samples using the pin on disc tribometer and the tests are carried out at a defined normal force and sliding velocity. The screw tribometer is used to perform tribological experiments between polymer pellets and rotating coated metal shafts simulating the extruder screw. Long term experiments were performed to evaluate the wear resistance of the DLC-coating. A reduction of the coefficient of friction can be observed after a frictional distance of about 20 kilometers using glass fibre reinforced polymeric materials. This reduction is independent on the polymer and accompanied by a black layer on the wear surface of the polymeric pins. The DLC-coated metal samples show an up to 16 µm deep wear track after the 100 kilometer test period against the glass fiber filled materials only.

Prototype of a fiber optic sensor for online measurement of coating thickness

Science.gov (United States)

D'Emilia, Giulio

1999-09-01

In this paper the experimental characterization of a transducer for on line measurement of coating thickness in food industry applications is described, which is composed by a fiber optic probe and by an eddy-current proximity one. The method is based on measuring reflectance by a fiber optic probe of the coating plated on thin steel sheets. The eddy current proximity probe should be used to measure the substrate position. In order to evaluate the feasibility of this approach, a particular attention has been paid to the accuracy of the method, since an accuracy in the order of plus or minus 1 micrometer should be achieved for practical interest. With this aim, the effect of the main interfering and modifying quantities of geometrical (sensor size, probe head angle of incidence, working distance, ...) and optical (light source and photo-detector behavior stability, ...) type has been evaluated both theoretically and experimentally by using a calibration test bench in stationary working conditions. Furthermore, a calibration test bench has been built, where a translating and vibrating steel plate is realized, in order to evaluate the effect of translation velocity of the plate and also of cross vibrations. Results of dynamic calibration are also described and discussed, in order to get information about the final sensor configuration.

Enhanced Piezoelectric Response of AlN via CrN Alloying

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Manna, Sukriti; Talley, Kevin R.; Gorai, Prashun; Mangum, John; Zakutayev, Andriy; Brennecka, Geoff L.; Stevanović, Vladan; Ciobanu, Cristian V.

2018-03-01

Since AlN has emerged as an important piezoelectric material for a wide variety of applications, efforts have been made to increase its piezoelectric response via alloying with transition metals that can substitute for Al in the wurtzite lattice. We report on density functional theory calculations of structure and properties of the CrxAl1-xN system for Cr concentrations ranging from zero to beyond the wurtzite-rocksalt transition point. By studying the different contributions to the longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient, we propose that the physical origin of the enhanced piezoelectricity in CrxAl1-xN alloys is the increase of the internal parameter u of the wurtzite structure upon substitution of Al with the larger Cr ions. Among a set of wurtzite-structured materials, we find that CrxAl1-xN has the most sensitive piezoelectric coefficient with respect to alloying concentration. Based on these results, we propose that CrxAl1-xN is a viable piezoelectric material whose properties can be tuned via Cr composition. We support this proposal by combinatorial synthesis experiments, which show that Cr can be incorporated in the AlN lattice up to 30% before a detectable transition to rocksalt occurs. At this Cr content, the piezoelectric modulus d33 is approximately 4 times larger than that of pure AlN. This finding, combined with the relative ease of synthesis under nonequilibrium conditions, may position CrxAl1-xN as a prime piezoelectric material for applications such as resonators and acoustic wave generators.

Enhanced Piezoelectric Response of AlN via CrN Alloying

Science.gov (United States)

Manna, Sukriti; Talley, Kevin R.; Gorai, Prashun; Mangum, John; Zakutayev, Andriy; Brennecka, Geoff L.; Stevanović, Vladan; Ciobanu, Cristian V.

2018-03-01

Since AlN has emerged as an important piezoelectric material for a wide variety of applications, efforts have been made to increase its piezoelectric response via alloying with transition metals that can substitute for Al in the wurtzite lattice. We report on density functional theory calculations of structure and properties of the Crx Al1 -x N system for Cr concentrations ranging from zero to beyond the wurtzite-rocksalt transition point. By studying the different contributions to the longitudinal piezoelectric coefficient, we propose that the physical origin of the enhanced piezoelectricity in Crx Al1 -x N alloys is the increase of the internal parameter u of the wurtzite structure upon substitution of Al with the larger Cr ions. Among a set of wurtzite-structured materials, we find that Crx Al1 -x N has the most sensitive piezoelectric coefficient with respect to alloying concentration. Based on these results, we propose that Crx Al1 -x N is a viable piezoelectric material whose properties can be tuned via Cr composition. We support this proposal by combinatorial synthesis experiments, which show that Cr can be incorporated in the AlN lattice up to 30% before a detectable transition to rocksalt occurs. At this Cr content, the piezoelectric modulus d33 is approximately 4 times larger than that of pure AlN. This finding, combined with the relative ease of synthesis under nonequilibrium conditions, may position Crx Al1 -x N as a prime piezoelectric material for applications such as resonators and acoustic wave generators.

FEM Analysis of Sezawa Mode SAW Sensor for VOC Based on CMOS Compatible AlN/SiO2/Si Multilayer Structure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Muhammad Zubair Aslam

2018-05-01

Full Text Available A Finite Element Method (FEM simulation study is conducted, aiming to scrutinize the sensitivity of Sezawa wave mode in a multilayer AlN/SiO2/Si Surface Acoustic Wave (SAW sensor to low concentrations of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs, that is, trichloromethane, trichloroethylene, carbon tetrachloride and tetrachloroethene. A Complimentary Metal-Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS compatible AlN/SiO2/Si based multilayer SAW resonator structure is taken into account for this purpose. In this study, first, the influence of AlN and SiO2 layers’ thicknesses over phase velocities and electromechanical coupling coefficients (k2 of two SAW modes (i.e., Rayleigh and Sezawa is analyzed and the optimal thicknesses of AlN and SiO2 layers are opted for best propagation characteristics. Next, the study is further extended to analyze the mass loading effect on resonance frequencies of SAW modes by coating a thin Polyisobutylene (PIB polymer film over the AlN surface. Finally, the sensitivity of the two SAW modes is examined for VOCs. This study concluded that the sensitivity of Sezawa wave mode for 1 ppm of selected volatile organic gases is twice that of the Rayleigh wave mode.

Ultrasonic tests on materials with protective coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Whaley, H.L.

1977-01-01

Protective coatings are applied to some nuclear components such as reactor vessels to inhibit surface corrosion. Since in-service ultrasonic inspection is required for such components, a study was performed to determine whether the use of protective coatings can affect ultrasonic tests. Two 2 in. thick steel plates were uniformly machined, sandblasted, and used as bases for two types of protective coatings. The type and thickness of the coating and the presence of contamination, such as fingerprints or mild oxidation under the paint, were the independent variables associated with the coating. Tests were run to determine the effects of the protective coatings on ultrasonic tests conducted on the steel plates. Significant variations in ultrasonic test sensitivity occurred as a function of the type and thickness of protective coating, couplant (material that conducts the ultrasound from the transducer into the test part, normally water or some type of oil), transducer wear plate, and ultrasonic test frequency. Ultrasonic tests can be strongly affected by a protective coating on the component to be inspected. As compared to the test sensitivity for an uncoated reference sample, the sensitivity may be dramatically shifted up or down on the coated surface. In certain coating thickness ranges, the sensitivity can fluctuate widely with small changes in coating thickness. If a coating is chosen properly, however, components with protective coatings can be tested ultrasonically with valid results. These results are for the case of ultrasonic input on the coated surface. It is not expected that an ultrasonic test conducted from the front surface would be appreciably affected by a coating on the rear surface

High performance W-AlN cermet solar coatings designed by modelling calculations and deposited by DC magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Qi-Chu [School of Physics, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006 (Australia); Shen, Y.G. [Department of Manufacturing Engineering and Engineering Management, City University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong)

2004-01-25

High solar performance W-AlN cermet solar coatings were designed using a numerical computer model and deposited experimentally. In the numerical calculations aluminium oxynitride (AlON) was used as ceramic component. The dielectric function and then complex refractive index of W-AlON cermet materials were calculated using the Sheng's approximation. The layer thickness and W metal volume fraction were optimised to achieve maximum photo-thermal conversion efficiency for W-AlON cermet solar coatings on an Al reflector with a surface AlON ceramic anti-reflection layer. Optimisation calculations show that the W-AlON cermet solar coatings with two and three cermet layers have nearly identical solar absorptance, emittance and photo-thermal conversion efficiency that are much better than those for films with one cermet layer. The optimised calculated AlON/W-AlON/Al solar coating film with two cermet layers has a high solar absorptance of 0.953 and a low hemispherical emittance of 0.051 at 80C for a concentration factor of 2. The AlN/W-AlN/Al solar selective coatings with two cermet layers were deposited using two metal target direct current magnetron sputtering technology. During the deposition of W-AlN cermet layer, both Al and W targets were run simultaneously in a gas mixture of argon and nitrogen. By substrate rotation a multi-sub-layer system consisting of alternating AlN ceramic and W metallic sub-layers was deposited that can be considered as a macro-homogeneous W-AlN cermet layer. A solar absorptance of 0.955 and nearly normal emittance of 0.056 at 80C have been achieved for deposited W-AlN cermet solar coatings.

Indentation-Induced Mechanical Deformation Behaviors of AlN Thin Films Deposited on c-Plane Sapphire

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jian, Sh.R.; Juang, J.Y.

2012-01-01

The mechanical properties and deformation behaviors of AlN thin films deposited on c-plane sapphire substrates by helicon sputtering method were determined using the Berkovich nano indentation and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy (XTEM). The load-displacement curves show the 'pop-ins' phenomena during nano indentation loading, indicative of the formation of slip bands caused by the propagation of dislocations. No evidence of nano indentation-induced phase transformation or cracking patterns was observed up to the maximum load of 80 mN, from either XTEM or atomic force microscopy (AFM) of the mechanically deformed regions. Instead, XTEM revealed that the primary deformation mechanism in AlN thin films is via propagation of dislocations on both basal and pyramidal planes. Furthermore, the hardness and Young's modulus of AlN thin films estimated using the continuous contact stiffness measurements (CSMs) mode provided with the nanoindenter are 16.2 GPa and 243.5 GPa, respectively.

Application of process analytical technology in tablet process development using NIR spectroscopy : Blend uniformity, content uniformity and coating thickness measurements

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Moes, Johannes J; Ruijken, Marco M; Gout, Erik; Frijlink, Henderik W; Ugwoke, Michael I

2008-01-01

Near-infrared (NIR)spectroscopy was employed as a process analytical technique in three steps of tabletting process: to monitor the blend homogeneity, evaluate the content uniformity of tablets and determine the tablets coating thickness. A diode-array spectrometer mounted on a lab blender (SP15 NIR

GaN growth on silane exposed AlN seed layers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ruiz-Zepeda, F. [Posgrado en Fisica de Materiales, Centro de Investigacion Cientifica y de Educacion Superior de Ensenada, Km. 107 Carret, Tijuana-Ensenada, C.P. 22860, Ensenada, B.C. (Mexico); Contreras, O. [Centro de Ciencias de la Materia Condesada, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Apdo. Postal 356, C.P. 22800, Ensenada, B.C. (Mexico); Dadgar, A.; Krost, A. [Otto-von-Guericke-Universitaet Magdeburg, FNW-IEP, Universitaetsplatz 2, 39106 Magdeburg (Germany)

2008-07-01

The microstructure and surface morphology of GaN films grown on AlN seed layers exposed to silane flow has been studied by TEM and AFM. The epilayers were grown on silicon(111) substrates by MOCVD. The AlN seed layer surface was treated at different SiH{sub 4} exposure times prior to the growth of the GaN film. A reduction in the density of threading dislocations is observed in the GaN films and their surface roughness is minimized for an optimal SiH{sub 4} exposure time between 75-90 sec. At this optimal condition a step-flow growth mode of GaN film is predominant. The improvement of the surface and structure quality of the epilayers is observed to be related to an annihilation process of threading dislocations done by SiN{sub x} masking. (copyright 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Structural characterization of AlN films synthesized by pulsed laser deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Szekeres, A.; Fogarassy, Zs.; Petrik, P.; Vlaikova, E.; Cziraki, A.; Socol, G.; Ristoscu, C.; Grigorescu, S.; Mihailescu, I.N.

2011-01-01

We obtained AlN thin films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) from a polycrystalline AlN target using a pulsed KrF* excimer laser source (248 nm, 25 ns, intensity of ∼4 x 10 8 W/cm 2 , repetition rate 3 Hz, 10 J/cm 2 laser fluence). The target-Si substrate distance was 5 cm. Films were grown either in vacuum (10 -4 Pa residual pressure) or in nitrogen at a dynamic pressure of 0.1 and 10 Pa, using a total of 20,000 subsequent pulses. The films structure was characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and spectral ellipsometry (SE). Our TEM and XRD studies showed a strong dependence of the film structure on the nitrogen content in the ambient gas. The films deposited in vacuum exhibited a high quality polycrystalline structure with a hexagonal phase. The crystallite growth proceeds along the c-axis, perpendicular to the substrate surface, resulting in a columnar and strongly textured structure. The films grown at low nitrogen pressure (0.1 Pa) were amorphous as seen by TEM and XRD, but SE data analysis revealed ∼1.7 vol.% crystallites embedded in the amorphous AlN matrix. Increasing the nitrogen pressure to 10 Pa promotes the formation of cubic (≤10 nm) crystallites as seen by TEM but their density was still low to be detected by XRD. SE data analysis confirmed the results obtained from the TEM and XRD observations.

Microstructure and properties of thick nanocomposite TiN/Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} coatings on Vanadis 23 HS steel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Moskalewicz, Tomasz; Czyrska-Filemonowicz, Aleksandra [AGH Univ. of Science and Technology, Faculty of Metals Engineering and Industrial Computer Science, Krakow (Poland); Zimowski, Slawomir [AGH Univ. of Science and Technology, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Robotics, Krakow (Poland); Wendler, Bogdan; Progalskiy, Ivan [Lodz Univ. of Technology (Poland). Inst. of Materials Science and Engineering

2015-07-15

The microstructure and selected micro-mechanical properties of a 13.4 μm thick nanocomposite TiN/Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} coating deposited onto Vanadis 23 HS steel by a new gas pulsed magnetron sputtering technique were investigated. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy were employed to investigate the detailed microstructure of the coating. It was found that the coating exhibited a fully nanocrystalline structure and was composed of two zones: the outer zone with columnar structure and the inner one with equiaxed, fine columnar structure. Both zones consisted mainly of the δ-TiN nanocrystallites with a small amount of α-Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} and β-Si{sub 3}N{sub 4}. In order to increase coating adhesion to the substrate, a graded intermediate layer consisting of three different phases (pure Cr, CrN and Cr2N) was applied. The hardness of the as-deposited TiN/Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} coating was equal to 48 GPa, whereas it was equal to 40 GPa after annealing. The coatings exhibited very good adhesion to the underlying steel substrate.

A study of the influence of air-knife tilting on coating thickness in hot-dip galvanizing

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Tae-Seok; Kwon, Young-Doo; Kwon, Soon-Bum

2009-09-01

Gas wiping is a decisive operation in hot-dip galvanizing process. In special, it has a crucial influence on the thickness and uniformity in coating film, but may be subsequently responsible for the problem of splashing. The progress of industry demands continuously the reduction of production costs which may relate directly with the increase of coating speed, and the speed up of coating results in the increase of stagnation pressure in gas wiping system in final. It is known that the increase of stagnation pressure may accompany a harmful problem of splashing in general. Together with these, also, from the view point of energy consumption, it is necessary to design a nozzle optimally. And there is known that the downward tilting of nozzle using in air knife system is effective to prevent in somewhat the harmful problem of splashing. In these connections, first, we design a nozzle with constant expansion rate. Next, for the case of actual coating conditions in field, the effects of tilting of the constant expansion rate nozzle are investigated by numerical analysis. Under the present numerical conditions, it was turned out that the nozzle of constant expansion rate of p = having a downward jet angle of 5° is the most effective to diminish the onset of splashing, while the influence of small tilting of the nozzle on impinging wall pressure itself is not so large.

Influences of carbon content and coating carbon thickness on properties of amorphous CoSnO3@C composites as anode materials for lithium-ion batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, Fuqiang; Fang, Guoqing; Zhang, Ruixue; Xu, Yanhui; Zheng, Junwei; Li, Decheng

2014-08-01

A series of core-shell carbon coated amorphous CoSnO3 (CoSnO3@C) with different carbon content are synthesized. Effects of carbon content and coating carbon thickness on the physical and electrochemical performances of the samples were studied in detail. The samples were analyzed by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), galvanostatic charge-discharge and AC impedance spectroscopy, respectively. The results indicate that controlling the concentration of aqueous glucose solution influences the generation of in-situ carbon layer thickness. The optimal concentration of aqueous glucose solution, carbon content and carbon layer thickness are suggested as 0.25 M, 35.1% and 20 nm, respectively. CoSnO3@C composite prepared under the optimal conditions exhibits excellent cycling performance, whose reversible capacity could reach 491 mA h g-1 after 100 cycles.

Real-time measurement system for tracking birefringence, weight, thickness, and surface temperature during drying of solution cast coatings and films

Science.gov (United States)

Unsal, E.; Drum, J.; Yucel, O.; Nugay, I. I.; Yalcin, B.; Cakmak, M.

2012-02-01

This paper describes the design and performance of a new instrument to track temporal changes in physical parameters during the drying behavior of solutions, as well as curing of monomers. This real-time instrument follows in-plane and out-of-plane birefringence, weight, thickness, and surface temperature during the course of solidification of coatings and films through solvent evaporation and thermal or photocuring in a controlled atmosphere. It is specifically designed to simulate behavior of polymer solutions inside an industrial size, continuous roll-to-roll solution casting line and other coating operations where resins are subjected to ultraviolet (UV) curing from monomer precursors. Controlled processing parameters include air speed, temperature, initial cast thickness, and solute concentration, while measured parameters are thickness, weight, film temperature, in-plane and out-of-plane birefringence. In this paper, we illustrate the utility of this instrument with solution cast and dried poly (amide-imide)/DMAc (Dimethylacetamide) solution, water based black paint, and organo-modified clay/NMP (N-Methylpyrrolidone) solution. In addition, the physical changes that take place during UV photo polymerization of a monomer are tracked. This instrument is designed to be generic and it can be used for tracking any drying/swelling/solidification systems including paper, foodstuffs such as; grains, milk as well as pharmaceutical thin paste and slurries.

GaN-on-silicon high-electron-mobility transistor technology with ultra-low leakage up to 3000 V using local substrate removal and AlN ultra-wide bandgap

Science.gov (United States)

Dogmus, Ezgi; Zegaoui, Malek; Medjdoub, Farid

2018-03-01

We report on extremely low off-state leakage current in AlGaN/GaN-on-silicon metal–insulator–semiconductor high-electron-mobility transistors (MISHEMTs) up to a high blocking voltage. Remarkably low off-state gate and drain leakage currents below 1 µA/mm up to 3 kV have been achieved owing to the use of a thick in situ SiN gate dielectric under the gate, and a local Si substrate removal technique combined with a cost effective 15-µm-thick AlN dielectric layer followed by a Cu deposition. This result establishes a manufacturable state-of-the-art high-voltage GaN-on-silicon power transistors while maintaining a low specific on-resistance of approximately 10 mΩ·cm2.

Characterization of N-polar AlN in GaN/AlN/(Al,Ga)N heterostructures grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Haoran; Mazumder, Baishakhi; Bonef, Bastien; Keller, Stacia; Wienecke, Steven; Speck, James S.; Denbaars, Steven P.; Mishra, Umesh K.

2017-11-01

In GaN/(Al,Ga)N high-electron-mobility transistors (HEMT), AlN interlayer between GaN channel and AlGaN barrier suppresses alloy scattering and significantly improves the electron mobility of the two-dimensional electron gas. While high concentrations of gallium were previously observed in Al-polar AlN interlayers grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition, the N-polar AlN (Al x Ga1-x N) films examined by atom probe tomography in this study exhibited aluminum compositions (x) equal to or higher than 95% over a wide range of growth conditions. The also investigated AlN interlayer in a N-polar GaN/AlN/AlGaN/ S.I. GaN HEMT structure possessed a similarly high x content.

Selective paint coatings for coloured solar absorbers: Polyurethane thickness insensitive spectrally selective (TISS) paints (Part II)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Orel, B.; Spreizer, H.; Surca Vuk, A.; Fir, M. [National Institute of Chemistry, Hajdrihova 19, SI-1000 Ljubljana (Slovenia); Merlini, D.; Vodlan, M. [Color d.d., Cesta komandanta Staneta 4, SI-1230 Medvode (Slovenia); Koehl, M. [Fraunhofer-Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE, Heidenhofstr. 2, D-79110 Freiburg (Germany)

2007-01-23

Red, green and blue paints were prepared for use as thickness insensitive spectrally selective (TISS) paint coatings for solar facade absorbers. The paints were composed of a polyurethane resin binder in which various pigments were incorporated in such a way that they formed stable paint dispersions, satisfying stability criteria for facade coatings. A low emittance of the paints was achieved by using low-emittance aluminium flake pigments combined with iron oxide (red coloured paints). Black pigment was added to adjust solar absorptance. Blue and green paints were made by the addition of coloured aluminium flake pigment and the solar absorptance was also adjusted by the addition of black pigment. Efficiency for photo-thermal conversion of solar radiation was assessed by evaluation of the corresponding performance criteria, which enabled the selection of paints whose performance criteria values were higher than 0 (spectrally non-selective black coating). The results confirmed that blue and green paints and to minor extent red ones, combined selectivity with colour. The morphology of the paints was assessed, revealing that the colours originated from the deposition of finely dispersed colour and/or black pigment on the surface of the aluminium flakes during paint preparation. (author)

Method for coating substrates and mask holder

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bijkerk, Frederik; Yakshin, Andrey; Louis, Eric; Kessels, M.J.H.; Maas, Edward Lambertus Gerardus; Bruineman, Caspar

2004-01-01

When coating substrates it is frequently desired that the layer thickness should be a certain function of the position on the substrate to be coated. To control the layer thickness a mask is conventionally arranged between the coating particle source and the substrate. This leads to undesirable

Growth of GaN on SiC/Si substrates using AlN buffer layer by hot-mesh CVD

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamura, Kazuyuki; Kuroki, Yuichiro; Yasui, Kanji; Suemitsu, Maki; Ito, Takashi; Endou, Tetsuro; Nakazawa, Hideki; Narita, Yuzuru; Takata, Masasuke; Akahane, Tadashi

2008-01-01

GaN films were grown on SiC/Si (111) substrates by hot-mesh chemical vapor deposition (CVD) using ammonia (NH 3 ) and trimetylgallium (TMG) under low V/III source gas ratio (NH 3 /TMG = 80). The SiC layer was grown by a carbonization process on the Si substrates using propane (C 3 H 8 ). The AlN layer was deposited as a buffer layer using NH 3 and trimetylaluminum (TMA). GaN films were formed and grown by the reaction between NH x radicals, generated on a tungsten hot mesh, and the TMG molecules. The GaN films with the AlN buffer layer showed better crystallinity and stronger near-band-edge emission compared to those without the AlN layer

Early and Late Retrieval of the ALN Removable Vena Cava Filter: Results from a Multicenter Study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pellerin, O.; Barral, F. G.; Lions, C.; Novelli, L.; Beregi, J. P.; Sapoval, M.

2008-01-01

Retrieval of removable inferior vena cava (IVC) filters in selected patients is widely practiced. The purpose of this multicenter study was to evaluate the feasibility and results of percutaneous removal of the ALN removable filter in a large patient cohort. Between November 2003 and June 2006, 123 consecutive patients were referred for percutaneous extraction of the ALN filter at three centers. The ALN filter is a removable filter that can be implanted through a femoral/jugular vein approach and extracted by the jugular vein approach. Filter removal was attempted after an implantation period of 93 ± 15 days (range, 6-722 days) through the right internal jugular vein approach using the dedicated extraction kit after control inferior vena cavography. Following filter removal, vena cavograms were obtained in all patients. Successful extraction was achieved in all but one case. Among these successful retrievals, additional manipulation using a femoral approach was needed when the apex of the filter was close to the IVC wall in two patients. No immediate IVC complications were observed according to the postimplantation cavography. Neither technical nor clinical differences between early and late filter retrieval were noticed. Our data confirm the safety of ALN filter retrieval up to 722 days after implantation. In infrequent cases, additional endovenous filter manipulation is needed to facilitate extraction.

Pixelated coatings and advanced IR coatings

Science.gov (United States)

Pradal, Fabien; Portier, Benjamin; Oussalah, Meihdi; Leplan, Hervé

2017-09-01

Reosc developed pixelated infrared coatings on detector. Reosc manufactured thick pixelated multilayer stacks on IR-focal plane arrays for bi-spectral imaging systems, demonstrating high filter performance, low crosstalk, and no deterioration of the device sensitivities. More recently, a 5-pixel filter matrix was designed and fabricated. Recent developments in pixelated coatings, shows that high performance infrared filters can be coated directly on detector for multispectral imaging. Next generation space instrument can benefit from this technology to reduce their weight and consumptions.

Microstructure and high temperature oxidation resistance of in-situ synthesized TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al intermetallic composite coatings on Ti6Al4V alloy by laser cladding process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Liu, Hongxi, E-mail: piiiliuhx@sina.com; Zhang, Xiaowei; Jiang, Yehua; Zhou, Rong

2016-06-15

High temperature anti-oxidation TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al intermetallic composite coatings were fabricated with the powder and AlN powder on Ti6Al4V titanium alloy surface by 6 kW transverse-flow CO{sub 2} laser apparatus. The chemical composition, morphology and microstructure of the TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al composite coatings were characterized by optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS). In order to evaluate the high temperature oxidation resistance of TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al coating, the isothermal oxidation test was performed in a high temperature resistance furnace at 600 °C and 800 °C, respectively. The result shows that the composite coating has a rapidly solidified fine microstructure consisting of TiN primary phase (granular-like, flake-like or dendrites), with an even distribution in Ti{sub 3}Al matrix. It indicates that a physical and chemical reaction between Ti powder and AlN powder has completely occurred under the laser irradiation condition. In addition, the microhardness of the TiN/Ti3Al intermetallic composite coating is 3.4 times higher than that of the Ti6Al4V alloy substrate and reaches 844 HV{sub 0.2}. The high temperature oxidation behavior test reveals that the high temperature oxidation resistance of TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al composite coating is much better than that of titanium alloy substrate. The excellent high temperature oxidation resistance of TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al intermetallic composite coating is attributed to the formation of reinforced phases TiN, Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} and TiO{sub 2}. The laser cladding TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al intermetallic composite coating is anticipated to be a promising high temperature oxidation resistance coating for Ti6Al4V alloy. - Highlights: • In-situ TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al composite coating was synthesized on Ti6Al4V alloy by laser cladding. • The influence of Ti and AlN molar ratio on the microstructure of the coating was studied. • The TiN/Ti{sub 3}Al intermetallic

Thick resist for MEMS processing

Science.gov (United States)

Brown, Joe; Hamel, Clifford

2001-11-01

The need for technical innovation is always present in today's economy. Microfabrication methods have evolved in support of the demand for smaller and faster integrated circuits with price performance improvements always in the scope of the manufacturing design engineer. The dispersion of processing technology spans well beyond IC fabrication today with batch fabrication and wafer scale processing lending advantages to MEMES applications from biotechnology to consumer electronics from oil exploration to aerospace. Today the demand for innovative processing techniques that enable technology is apparent where only a few years ago appeared too costly or not reliable. In high volume applications where yield and cost improvements are measured in fractions of a percent it is imperative to have process technologies that produce consistent results. Only a few years ago thick resist coatings were limited to thickness less than 20 microns. Factors such as uniformity, edge bead and multiple coatings made high volume production impossible. New developments in photoresist formulation combined with advanced coating equipment techniques that closely controls process parameters have enable thick photoresist coatings of 70 microns with acceptable uniformity and edge bead in one pass. Packaging of microelectronic and micromechanical devices is often a significant cost factor and a reliability issue for high volume low cost production. Technologies such as flip- chip assembly provide a solution for cost and reliability improvements over wire bond techniques. The processing for such technology demands dimensional control and presents a significant cost savings if it were compatible with mainstream technologies. Thick photoresist layers, with good sidewall control would allow wafer-bumping technologies to penetrate the barriers to yield and production where costs for technology are the overriding issue. Single pass processing is paramount to the manufacturability of packaging

Pd nanoparticles immobilized on carbon nanotubes with a polyaniline coaxial coating for the Heck reaction: coating thickness as the key factor influencing the efficiency and stability of the catalyst

KAUST Repository

Yu, Rui

2018-02-12

Pd nanoparticles (NPs) supported on polyaniline (PANI)-coated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were synthesized using a low-cost and simple method for application in the Heck reaction. The effects of the PANI/CNT coating weight ratio on the catalytic stability and recyclability of the composite were determined by using a combination of experimental and computational methods. The results show that through coordination of the N-species in PANI with the Pd NPs, the nitrogen-rich PANI@CNT provides a strong support for the Pd NPs. The thickness of the PANI layer is the key in determining the stability of the catalyst. PANI becomes protonated in the presence of CNTs, as electron transfer from the former to the latter creates strong interactions between the two. Thus, PANI becomes more stable in nanocomposites with a higher CNT content, e.g., PANI/CNT = 0.5 : 1. The catalyst with a PANI/CNT ratio of 0.5 : 1 exhibited the best recycling performance, and only a small loss of activity was observed after 10 cycles. However, upon increasing the PANI content (e.g., PANI/CNT = 4 : 1), the PANI units tend to form bulk structures that are less stable than those that wrap around the CNTs. Such a structure is unstable; therefore, the PANI layers can easily deform or break away from the CNT backbones. Hence, these catalysts deactivate during recycling. Thus, our study demonstrates that the assembly of noble-metal NPs on CNTs bearing a thin coaxial PANI coating is a powerful technique to prepare reusable catalysts for the Heck reaction. Coating thickness is also a key factor affecting the efficiency and stability of the catalyst.

Pd nanoparticles immobilized on carbon nanotubes with a polyaniline coaxial coating for the Heck reaction: coating thickness as the key factor influencing the efficiency and stability of the catalyst

KAUST Repository

Yu, Rui; Liu, Rui; Deng, Jie; Ran, Maofei; Wang, Ning; Chu, Wei; He, Zhiwei; Du, Zheng; Jiang, Chengfa; Sun, Wenjing

2018-01-01

Pd nanoparticles (NPs) supported on polyaniline (PANI)-coated carbon nanotubes (CNTs) were synthesized using a low-cost and simple method for application in the Heck reaction. The effects of the PANI/CNT coating weight ratio on the catalytic stability and recyclability of the composite were determined by using a combination of experimental and computational methods. The results show that through coordination of the N-species in PANI with the Pd NPs, the nitrogen-rich PANI@CNT provides a strong support for the Pd NPs. The thickness of the PANI layer is the key in determining the stability of the catalyst. PANI becomes protonated in the presence of CNTs, as electron transfer from the former to the latter creates strong interactions between the two. Thus, PANI becomes more stable in nanocomposites with a higher CNT content, e.g., PANI/CNT = 0.5 : 1. The catalyst with a PANI/CNT ratio of 0.5 : 1 exhibited the best recycling performance, and only a small loss of activity was observed after 10 cycles. However, upon increasing the PANI content (e.g., PANI/CNT = 4 : 1), the PANI units tend to form bulk structures that are less stable than those that wrap around the CNTs. Such a structure is unstable; therefore, the PANI layers can easily deform or break away from the CNT backbones. Hence, these catalysts deactivate during recycling. Thus, our study demonstrates that the assembly of noble-metal NPs on CNTs bearing a thin coaxial PANI coating is a powerful technique to prepare reusable catalysts for the Heck reaction. Coating thickness is also a key factor affecting the efficiency and stability of the catalyst.

Effect of plasma nitriding on electrodeposited Ni–Al composite coating

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Daemi, N.; Mahboubi, F.; Alimadadi, Hossein

2011-01-01

In this study plasma nitriding is applied on nickel–aluminum composite coating, deposited on steel substrate. Ni–Al composite layers were fabricated by electro-deposition process in Watt’s bath containing Al particles. Electrodeposited specimens were subjected to plasma atmosphere comprising of N2......–20% H2, at 500°C, for 5h. The surface morphology investigated, using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and the surface roughness was measured by use of contact method. Chemical composition was analyzed by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and formation of AlN phase was confirmed by X-ray diffraction....... The corrosion resistance of composite coatings was measured by potentiodynamic polarization in 3.5% NaCl solution. The obtained results show that plasma nitriding process leads to an increase in microhardness and corrosion resistance, simultaneously....

Quantitative Image Analysis for Evaluating the Coating Thickness and Pore Distribution in Coated Small Particles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Laksmana, F.L.; Van Vliet, L.J.; Hartman Kok, P.J.A.; Vromans, H.; Frijlink, H.W.; Van der Voort Maarschalk, K.

2008-01-01

Purpose This study aims to develop a characterization method for coating structure based on image analysis, which is particularly promising for the rational design of coated particles in the pharmaceutical industry. Methods The method applies the MATLAB image processing toolbox to images of coated

Quantitative Image Analysis for Evaluating the Coating Thickness and Pore Distribution in Coated Small Particles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Laksmana, F L; Van Vliet, L J; Hartman Kok, P J A; Vromans, H; Frijlink, H W; Van der Voort Maarschalk, K

This study aims to develop a characterization method for coating structure based on image analysis, which is particularly promising for the rational design of coated particles in the pharmaceutical industry. The method applies the MATLAB image processing toolbox to images of coated particles taken

Thickness measurement instrument with memory storage of multiple calibrations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lieber, S.; Schlesinger, J.; Lieber, D.; Baker, A.

1979-01-01

An improved backscatter instrument for the nondestructive measurement of coatings on a substrate is described. A memory having selectable memory areas, each area having stored intelligence available which is determinative of the shape of a functional plot of coating thickness versus backscatter counts per minute unique for each particular combination of emitting isotope, substrate material, coating material and physical characteristics of the measuring instrument. A memory selector switch connects a selected area of memory to a microprocessor operating under program control whereby the microprocessor reads the intelligence stored at the selected area and converts the backscattered count of the coating being measured into indicia of coating thickness

Oblique-angle sputtered AlN nanocolumnar layer as a buffer layer in GaN-based LED

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Lung-Chien; Tien, Ching-Ho; Liao, Wei-Chian; Luo, Yi-Min

2011-01-01

This work presents an aluminum nitride (AlN) nanocolumnar layer sputtered at various oblique angles and its application as a buffer layer for GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that are fabricated on sapphire substrates. The OA-AlN nanocolumnar layer has a diameter of about 30-60 nm. The GaN-based LED structure is perpendicularly extended from the OA-AlN nanocolumnar layer. Then, the nanocolumnar structure is merged into p-GaN layer to form a mesa structure with a diameter of about 200-600 nm on the surface of the GaN-based LED. Moreover, optical characteristics of the LED were studied using photoluminescence, along with the blue-shifts observed as well. - Research highlights: → An AlN nanocolumnar buffer layer prepared by oblique-angle (OA) deposition. → GaN-based LED structures were grown on a sapphire substrate with an AlN nanocolumnar buffer layer. → The OA-AlN nanocolumnar layer has a diameter of about 30-60 nm.

Emerging methanol-tolerant AlN nanowire oxygen reduction electrocatalyst for alkaline direct methanol fuel cell.

Science.gov (United States)

Lei, M; Wang, J; Li, J R; Wang, Y G; Tang, H L; Wang, W J

2014-08-11

Replacing precious and nondurable Pt catalysts with cheap materials is a key issue for commercialization of fuel cells. In the case of oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) catalysts for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), the methanol tolerance is also an important concern. Here, we develop AlN nanowires with diameters of about 100-150 nm and the length up to 1 mm through crystal growth method. We find it is electrochemically stable in methanol-contained alkaline electrolyte. This novel material exhibits pronounced electrocatalytic activity with exchange current density of about 6.52 × 10(-8) A/cm(2). The single cell assembled with AlN nanowire cathodic electrode achieves a power density of 18.9 mW cm(-2). After being maintained at 100 mA cm(-2) for 48 h, the AlN nanowire-based single cell keeps 92.1% of the initial performance, which is in comparison with 54.5% for that assembled with Pt/C cathode. This discovery reveals a new type of metal nitride ORR catalyst that can be cheaply produced from crystal growth method.

CrN/AlN nanolaminate coatings deposited via high power pulsed and middle frequency pulsed magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bagcivan, N.; Bobzin, K.; Ludwig, A.; Grochla, D.; Brugnara, R.H.

2014-01-01

Nanolaminate coatings based on transition metal nitrides such as CrN, AlN and TiN deposited via physical vapor deposition (PVD) have shown great advantage as protective coatings on tools and components subject to high loads in tribological applications. By varying the individual layer materials and their thicknesses it is possible to optimize the coating properties, e.g. hardness, Young's modulus and thermal stability. One way for further improvement of coating properties is the use of advanced PVD technologies. High power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HPPMS) is an advancement of pulsed magnetron sputtering (MS). The use of HPPMS allows a better control of the energetic bombardment of the substrate due to the higher ionization degree of metallic species. It provides an opportunity to influence chemical and mechanical properties by varying the process parameters. The present work deals with the development of CrN/AlN nanolaminate coatings in an industrial scale unit by using two different PVD technologies. Therefore, HPPMS and mfMS (middle frequency magnetron sputtering) technologies were used. The bilayer period Λ, i.e. the thickness of a CrN/AlN double layer, was varied between 6.2 nm and 47.8 nm by varying the rotational speed of the substrate holders. In a second step the highest rotational speed was chosen and further HPPMS CrN/AlN coatings were deposited applying different HPPMS pulse lengths (40, 80, 200 μs) at the same mean cathode power and frequency. Thickness, morphology, roughness and phase composition of the coatings were analyzed by means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), confocal laser microscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD), respectively. The chemical composition was determined using glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GDOES). Detailed characterization of the nanolaminate was conducted by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The hardness and the Young's modulus were analyzed by nanoindentation measurements. The residual

Molecular-beam epitaxial growth of insulating AlN on surface-controlled 6H-SiC substrate by HCl gas etching

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onojima, Norio; Suda, Jun; Matsunami, Hiroyuki

2002-01-01

Insulating AlN layers were grown on surface-controlled 6H-SiC subtrates by molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE) using elemental Al and rf plasma-excited nitrogen (N*). HCl gas etching was introduced as an effective pretreatment method of substrate for MBE growth of AlN. 6H-SiC substrates pretreated by HCl gas etching had no surface polishing scratches and an atomically flat surface. In addition, evident ( 3 √x 3 √)R30 deg. surface reconstruction was observed even before thermal cleaning. AlN layers grown on this substrate had no defects related to surface polishing scratches and excellent insulating characteristics

Reflection/suppression coatings for 900 - 1200 A radiation

Science.gov (United States)

Edelstein, Jerry

1989-01-01

The design and performance of multiple-layer, selective-reflection, selective-suppression coatings for the 900 - 1200 A band are described. These coatings are designed to optimize both high reflectivity at a desirable wavelength and low reflectivity at an undesirable wavelength. The minimum structure for a selective coating consists of a thin metal or metal oxide layer (50 - 150 A thickness) over an aluminum substrate protected with a semi-transparent dielectric (100 - 1000 A thickness). Predicted coating performance is strongly effected by varying the layer combination and thickness. A graphical method of optimizing the coating layer structure is developed. Aluminum, silicon, their oxides, and gold have been investigated as coating layer materials. A very simple coating with a 1026 to 1216 A reflectivity ratio greater than 100 was fabricated. Such reflection/suppression coatings may be of great utility to spaceborne EUV spectrographs.

Growth of GaN on SiC/Si substrates using AlN buffer layer by hot-mesh CVD

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tamura, Kazuyuki [Nagaoka University of Technology, Nagaoka 940-2188 (Japan)], E-mail: kazuyuki@stn.nagaokaut.ac.jp; Kuroki, Yuichiro; Yasui, Kanji [Nagaoka University of Technology, Nagaoka 940-2188 (Japan); Suemitsu, Maki; Ito, Takashi [Center of Interdisciplinary Research, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8578 (Japan); Endou, Tetsuro [Research Institute of Electrical Communication, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8577 (Japan); Nakazawa, Hideki [Faculty of Science and Technology, Hirosaki University, Hirosaki 036-8561 (Japan); Narita, Yuzuru [Center of Interdisciplinary Research, Tohoku University, Sendai 980-8578 (Japan); Takata, Masasuke; Akahane, Tadashi [Nagaoka University of Technology, Nagaoka 940-2188 (Japan)

2008-01-15

GaN films were grown on SiC/Si (111) substrates by hot-mesh chemical vapor deposition (CVD) using ammonia (NH{sub 3}) and trimetylgallium (TMG) under low V/III source gas ratio (NH{sub 3}/TMG = 80). The SiC layer was grown by a carbonization process on the Si substrates using propane (C{sub 3}H{sub 8}). The AlN layer was deposited as a buffer layer using NH{sub 3} and trimetylaluminum (TMA). GaN films were formed and grown by the reaction between NH{sub x} radicals, generated on a tungsten hot mesh, and the TMG molecules. The GaN films with the AlN buffer layer showed better crystallinity and stronger near-band-edge emission compared to those without the AlN layer.

Optical, Structural and Paramagnetic Properties of Eu-Doped Ternary Sulfides ALnS2 (A = Na, K, Rb; Ln = La, Gd, Lu, Y

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vítězslav Jarý

2015-10-01

Full Text Available Eu-doped ternary sulfides of general formula ALnS2 (A = Na, K, Rb; Ln = La, Gd, Lu, Y are presented as a novel interesting material family which may find usage as X-ray phosphors or solid state white light emitting diode (LED lighting. Samples were synthesized in the form of transparent crystalline hexagonal platelets by chemical reaction under the flow of hydrogen sulfide. Their physical properties were investigated by means of X-ray diffraction, time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance, and X-ray excited fluorescence. Corresponding characteristics, including absorption, radioluminescence, photoluminescence excitation and emission spectra, and decay kinetics curves, were measured and evaluated in a broad temperature range (8–800 K. Calculations including quantum local crystal field potential and spin-Hamiltonian for a paramagnetic particle in D3d local symmetry and phenomenological model dealing with excited state dynamics were performed to explain the experimentally observed features. Based on the results, an energy diagram of lanthanide energy levels in KLuS2 is proposed. Color model xy-coordinates are used to compare effects of dopants on the resulting spectrum. The application potential of the mentioned compounds in the field of white LED solid state lighting or X-ray phosphors is thoroughly discussed.

Impacts of Thermal Atomic Layer-Deposited AlN Passivation Layer on GaN-on-Si High Electron Mobility Transistors.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhao, Sheng-Xun; Liu, Xiao-Yong; Zhang, Lin-Qing; Huang, Hong-Fan; Shi, Jin-Shan; Wang, Peng-Fei

2016-12-01

Thermal atomic layer deposition (ALD)-grown AlN passivation layer is applied on AlGaN/GaN-on-Si HEMT, and the impacts on drive current and leakage current are investigated. The thermal ALD-grown 30-nm amorphous AlN results in a suppressed off-state leakage; however, its drive current is unchanged. It was also observed by nano-beam diffraction method that thermal ALD-amorphous AlN layer barely enhanced the polarization. On the other hand, the plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD)-deposited SiN layer enhanced the polarization and resulted in an improved drive current. The capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurement also indicates that thermal ALD passivation results in a better interface quality compared with the SiN passivation.

Comparative metallurgical study of thick hard coatings without cobalt

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clemendot, F.; Van Duysen, J.C.; Champredonde, J.

1992-07-01

Wear and corrosion of stellite type hard coatings for valves of the PWR primary system raise important problems of contamination. Substitution of these alloys by cobalt-free hard coatings (Colmonoy 4 and 4.26, Cenium 36) should allow to reduce this contamination. A comparative study (chemical, mechanical, thermal, metallurgical), as well as a corrosion study of these coatings were carried out. The results of this characterization show that none of the studied products has globally characteristics as good as those of grade 6 Stellite currently in service

Automated pharmaceutical tablet coating layer evaluation of optical coherence tomography images

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Markl, Daniel; Sacher, Stephan; Khinast, Johannes G; Hannesschläger, Günther; Leitner, Michael; Buchsbaum, Andreas

2015-01-01

Film coating of pharmaceutical tablets is often applied to influence the drug release behaviour. The coating characteristics such as thickness and uniformity are critical quality parameters, which need to be precisely controlled. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) shows not only high potential for off-line quality control of film-coated tablets but also for in-line monitoring of coating processes. However, an in-line quality control tool must be able to determine coating thickness measurements automatically and in real-time. This study proposes an automatic thickness evaluation algorithm for bi-convex tables, which provides about 1000 thickness measurements within 1 s. Beside the segmentation of the coating layer, optical distortions due to refraction of the beam by the air/coating interface are corrected. Moreover, during in-line monitoring the tablets might be in oblique orientation, which needs to be considered in the algorithm design. Experiments were conducted where the tablet was rotated to specified angles. Manual and automatic thickness measurements were compared for varying coating thicknesses, angles of rotations, and beam displacements (i.e. lateral displacement between successive depth scans). The automatic thickness determination algorithm provides highly accurate results up to an angle of rotation of 30°. The computation time was reduced to 0.53 s for 700 thickness measurements by introducing feasibility constraints in the algorithm. (paper)

High energy ion irradiated III-N semiconductors (AlN, GaN, InN): study of point defect and extended defect creation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sall, Mamour

2013-01-01

Nitride semiconductors III N (AlN, GaN, InN) have interesting properties for micro-and opto-electronic applications. In use, they may be subjected to different types of radiation in a wide range of energy. In AlN, initially considered insensitive to electronic excitations (Se), we have demonstrated a novel type of synergy between Se and nuclear collisions (Sn) for the creation of defects absorbing at 4.7 eV. In addition, another effect of Se is highlighted in AlN: climb of screw dislocations under the influence of Se, at high fluence. In GaN, two mechanisms can explain the creation of defects absorbing at 2.8 eV: a synergy between Se and Sn, or a creation only due to Sn but with a strong effect of the size of displacement cascades. The study, by TEM, of the effects of Se in the three materials, exhibits behaviors highly dependent on the material while they all belong to the same family with the same atomic structure. Under monoatomic ion irradiations (velocity between 0.4 and 5 MeV/u), while discontinuous tracks are observed in GaN and InN, no track is observed in AlN with the highest electronic stopping power (33 keV/nm). Only fullerene clusters produce tracks in AlN. The inelastic thermal spike model was used to calculate the energies required to produce track in AlN, GaN and InN, they are 4.2 eV/atom, 1.5 eV/atom and 0.8 eV/atom, respectively. This sensitivity difference according to Se, also occurs at high fluence. (author)

Tunable thick porous silica coating fabricated by multilayer-by-multilayer bonding of silica nanoparticles for open-tubular capillary chromatographic separation.

Science.gov (United States)

Qu, Qishu; Liu, Yuanyuan; Shi, Wenjun; Yan, Chao; Tang, Xiaoqing

2015-06-19

A simple coating procedure employing a multilayer-by-multilayer process to modify the inner surface of bare fused-silica capillaries with silica nanoparticles was established. The silica nanoparticles were adsorbed onto the capillary wall via a strong electrostatic interaction between amino functional groups and silica particles. The thickness of the coating could be tuned from 130 to 600 nm by increasing the coating cycles from one to three. Both the retention factor and the resolution were greatly increased with increasing coating cycles. The loading capacity determined by naphthalene in the column with three coating cycles is 152.1 pmol. The effects of buffer concentration and pH value on the stability of the coating were evaluated. The retention reproducibility of the separation of toluene was 0.8, 1.2, 2.3, and 4.5%, respectively, for run-to-run, day-to-day, column-to-column, and batch-to-batch, respectively. The chromatographic performance of these columns was evaluated by both capillary liquid chromatography and open-tubular capillary electrochromatography (OT-CEC). Separation of aromatic hydrocarbons in the column with three coating cycles provided high theoretical plate numbers (up to 269,280 plates m(-1) for toluene) and short separation time (<15 min) by using OT-CEC mode. The method was also used to separate egg white proteins. Both acidic and basic proteins as well as four glycoisoforms were separated in a single run. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An Experimental Study on Heat Conduction and Thermal Contact Resistance for the AlN Flake

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Huann-Ming Chou

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The electrical technology has been a fast development over the past decades. Moreover, the tendency of microelements and dense division multiplex is significantly for the electrical industries. Therefore, the high thermal conductible and electrical insulating device will be popular and important. It is well known that AlN still maintains stablility in the high temperature. This is quite attractive for the research and development department. Moreover, the thermal conduct coefficient of AlN is several times larger than the others. Therefore, it has been thought to play an important role for the radiator of heat source in the future. Therefore, this paper is focused on the studies of heat conduction and thermal contact resistance between the AlN flake and the copper specimens. The heating temperatures and the contact pressures were selected as the experimental parameters. According to the experimental results, the materials are soft and the real contact areas between the interfaces significantly increase under higher temperatures. As a result, the thermal contact resistance significantly decreases and the heat transfer rate increases with increasing the heating temperature or the contact pressures.

Structural stabilities and electronic properties of Mg28-nAln clusters: A first-principles study

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Bao-Juan Lu

2017-09-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we have constructed the alloy configurations of Mg28-nAln by replacing atoms at various possible positions, starting from the stable structures of Mg28 and Al28 clusters. According to the symmetry of the cluster structure, the isomers of these initial structures have been screened with the congruence check, which would reduce computational hours and improve efficiency. Using the first-principles method, the structural evolution, mixing behavior and electronic properties of Mg28-nAln clusters are investigated for all compositions. We conclude that Al atoms prefer to reside in the central positions of Mg−Al clusters and Mg atoms tend to occupy the peripheral location. The negative mixing enthalpies imply the stabilities of these Mg-Al clusters and thus possible applications in catalysis and hydrogen storage materials. Among Mg28-nAln clusters, Mg24Al4, Mg21Al7, Mg14Al14, Mg26Al2 and Mg27Al1 present relatively high thermodynamic stabilities, and the electronic properties of these stable structures are discussed with the charge distributions around the Fermi level.

AFM imaging and fractal analysis of surface roughness of AlN epilayers on sapphire substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dallaeva, Dinara, E-mail: dinara.dallaeva@yandex.ru [Brno University of Technology, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, Physics Department, Technická 8, 616 00 Brno (Czech Republic); Ţălu, Ştefan [Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Department of AET, Discipline of Descriptive Geometry and Engineering Graphics, 103-105 B-dul Muncii Street, Cluj-Napoca 400641, Cluj (Romania); Stach, Sebastian [University of Silesia, Faculty of Computer Science and Materials Science, Institute of Informatics, Department of Biomedical Computer Systems, ul. Będzińska 39, 41-205 Sosnowiec (Poland); Škarvada, Pavel; Tománek, Pavel; Grmela, Lubomír [Brno University of Technology, Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Communication, Physics Department, Technická 8, 616 00 Brno (Czech Republic)

2014-09-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • We determined the complexity of 3D surface roughness of aluminum nitride layers. • We used atomic force microscopy and analyzed their fractal geometry. • We determined the fractal dimension of surface roughness of aluminum nitride layers. • We determined the dependence of layer morphology on substrate temperature. - Abstract: The paper deals with AFM imaging and characterization of 3D surface morphology of aluminum nitride (AlN) epilayers on sapphire substrates prepared by magnetron sputtering. Due to the effect of temperature changes on epilayer's surface during the fabrication, a surface morphology is studied by combination of atomic force microscopy (AFM) and fractal analysis methods. Both methods are useful tools that may assist manufacturers in developing and fabricating AlN thin films with optimal surface characteristics. Furthermore, they provide different yet complementary information to that offered by traditional surface statistical parameters. This combination is used for the first time for measurement on AlN epilayers on sapphire substrates, and provides the overall 3D morphology of the sample surfaces (by AFM imaging), and reveals fractal characteristics in the surface morphology (fractal analysis)

Residual stress analysis in thick uranium films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hodge, A.M.; Foreman, R.J.; Gallegos, G.F.

2005-01-01

Residual stress analysis was performed on thick, 1-25 μm, depleted uranium (DU) films deposited on an Al substrate by magnetron sputtering. Two distinct characterization techniques were used to measure substrate curvature before and after deposition. Stress evaluation was performed using the Benabdi/Roche equation, which is based on beam theory of a bi-layer material. The residual stress evolution was studied as a function of coating thickness and applied negative bias voltage (0, -200, -300 V). The stresses developed were always compressive; however, increasing the coating thickness and applying a bias voltage presented a trend towards more tensile stresses and thus an overall reduction of residual stresses

Electroless silver coating of rod-like glass particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Moon, Jee Hyun; Kim, Kyung Hwan; Choi, Hyung Wook; Lee, Sang Wha; Park, Sang Joon

2008-09-01

An electroless silver coating of rod-like glass particles was performed and silver glass composite powders were prepared to impart electrical conductivity to these non-conducting glass particles. The low density Ag-coated glass particles may be utilized for manufacturing conducting inorganic materials for electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding applications and the techniques for controlling the uniform thickness of silver coating can be employed in preparation of biosensor materials. For the surface pretreatment, Sn sensitization was performed and the coating powders were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), focused ion beam microscopy (FIB), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) along with the surface resistant measurements. In particular, the use of FIB technique for determining directly the Ag-coating thickness was very effective on obtaining the optimum conditions for coating. The surface sensitization and initial silver loading for electroless silver coating could be found and the uniform and smooth silver-coated layer with thickness of 46 nm was prepared at 2 mol/l of Sn and 20% silver loading.

Growth dynamics of reactive-sputtering-deposited AlN films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Auger, M.A.; Vazquez, L.; Sanchez, O.; Jergel, M.; Cuerno, R.; Castro, M.

2005-01-01

We have studied the surface kinetic roughening of AlN films grown on Si(100) substrates by dc reactive sputtering within the framework of the dynamic scaling theory. Films deposited under the same experimental conditions for different growth times were analyzed by atomic force microscopy and x-ray diffraction. The AlN films display a (002) preferred orientation. We have found two growth regimes with a crossover time of 36 min. In the first regime, the growth dynamics is unstable and the films present two types of textured domains, well textured and randomly oriented, respectively. In contrast, in the second regime the films are homogeneous and well textured, leading to a relative stabilization of the surface roughness characterized by a growth exponent β=0.37±0.03. In this regime a superrough scaling behavior is found with the following exponents: (i) Global exponents: roughness exponent α=1.2±0.2 and β=0.37±0.03 and coarsening exponent 1/z=0.32±0.05; (ii) local exponents: α loc =1, β loc =0.32±0.01. The differences between the growth modes are found to be related to the different main growth mechanisms dominating their growth dynamics: sticking anisotropy and shadowing, respectively

Luminescence dynamics in AlGaN with AlN content of 20%

KAUST Repository

Soltani, Sonia; Bouzidi, Mouhamed; Touré , Alhousseynou; Gerhard, Marina; Halidou, Ibrahim; Chine, Zied; El Jani, Belgacem; Shakfa, Mohammad Khaled

2016-01-01

Optical properties and carrier dynamics of an AlGaN layer with an AlN content of 20% have been studied using time-resolved photoluminescence (TR-PL). Despite the high density of defects due to the relatively high AlN content, an intense PL emission from the sample has been detected. Low-temperature PL spectra exhibit several features, accompanied by a strong emission-wavelength dependence of the PL decay time. A significant red-shift of more than 200 meV from the band edge is recorded for the PL emission from localized states. Temperature-dependent PL spectra of the sample are dominated by the emission from localized states and, furthermore, show a relatively slight decrease by almost an order of magnitude with increasing temperature from 45 to 300 K. Our observations indicate strong, spatial localization effects of carriers, resulting in an increase in the radiative recombination rate.

Luminescence dynamics in AlGaN with AlN content of 20%

KAUST Repository

Soltani, Sonia

2016-12-15

Optical properties and carrier dynamics of an AlGaN layer with an AlN content of 20% have been studied using time-resolved photoluminescence (TR-PL). Despite the high density of defects due to the relatively high AlN content, an intense PL emission from the sample has been detected. Low-temperature PL spectra exhibit several features, accompanied by a strong emission-wavelength dependence of the PL decay time. A significant red-shift of more than 200 meV from the band edge is recorded for the PL emission from localized states. Temperature-dependent PL spectra of the sample are dominated by the emission from localized states and, furthermore, show a relatively slight decrease by almost an order of magnitude with increasing temperature from 45 to 300 K. Our observations indicate strong, spatial localization effects of carriers, resulting in an increase in the radiative recombination rate.

Magnetron deposition of metal-ceramic protective coatings on glasses of windows of space vehicles

OpenAIRE

Sergeev, Viktor Petrovich; Panin, Viktor Evgenyevich; Psakhie, Sergey Grigorievich; Chernyavskii, Alexandr; Svechkin, Valerii; Khristenko, Yurii; Kalashnikov, Mark Petrovich; Voronov, Andrei

2014-01-01

Transparent refractory metal-ceramic nanocomposite coatings with a high coefficient of elasticrecovery and microhardness on the basis of Ni/Si-Al-N are formed on a glass substrate by the pulse magnetron deposition method. The structure-phase states were investigated by TEM, SEM. It was established that the first layer consists of Ni nanograins with a fcc crystalline lattice, the second layer is two-phase: 5-10 nm nanocrystallites of the AlN phase with the hcp crystalline lattice in amorphous ...

Fabrication of CIS Absorber Layers with Different Thicknesses Using A Non-Vacuum Spray Coating Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chien-Chen Diao

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In this study, a new thin-film deposition process, spray coating method (SPM, was investigated to deposit the high-densified CuInSe2 absorber layers. The spray coating method developed in this study was a non-vacuum process, based on dispersed nano-scale CuInSe2 precursor and could offer a simple, inexpensive, and alternative formation technology for CuInSe2 absorber layers. After spraying on Mo/glass substrates, the CuInSe2 thin films were annealed at 550 °C by changing the annealing time from 5 min to 30 min in a selenization furnace, using N2 as atmosphere. When the CuInSe2 thin films were annealed, without extra Se or H2Se gas used as the compensation source during the annealing process. The aim of this project was to investigate the influence of annealing time on the densification and crystallization of the CuInSe2 absorber layers to optimize the quality for cost effective solar cell production. The thickness of the CuInSe2 absorber layers could be controlled as the volume of used dispersed CuInSe2-isopropyl alcohol solution was controlled. In this work, X-ray diffraction patterns, field emission scanning electron microscopy, and Hall parameter measurements were performed in order to verify the quality of the CuInSe2 absorber layers obtained by the Spray Coating Method.

The Effects of Perlite Concentration and Coating Thickness of the Polyester Nonwoven Structures on Thermal and Acoustic Insulation and Also Electromagnetic Radiation Properties

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Seyda EYUPOGLU

2018-02-01

Full Text Available In this study, the improvement of the thermal and acoustic insulation and also electromagnetic radiation properties of polyester (PET nonwoven fabric (NWF with 180 g/m2 weight was investigated. For this purpose, PET NWF was coated with perlite stone powder having 210 – 590 µm particle size using polyurethane (PU based coating. Five different concentrations from 1 to 5 % of perlite stone powder were applied to the surface of PET NWF having five different thicknesses. And then the effect of perlite concentration and its thickness to thermal, acoustic and electromagnetic radiation properties were studied. It was found that the addition of perlite stone powder increased the thermal and acoustic insulation properties of PET NWF. Furthermore, the addition of perlite stone powder does not affect the electromagnetic radiation properties of samples.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5755/j01.ms.24.1.17562

Extended analysis of the frequency dependence of the admittance of MIS structures with pulsed-laser-deposited AlN films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Simeonov, S; Bakalova, S; Szekeres, A; Kafedjiijska, E [Georgi Nadjakov Institute of Solid State Physics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 72 Tzarigradsko Chaussee, 1784 Sofia (Bulgaria); Grigorescu, S; Socol, G; Mihailescu, I N [Lasers Department, National Institute for Lasers, Plasma and Radiation Physics, PO Box MG-54, RO-77125, Bucharest-Magurele (Romania)], E-mail: sbakalova@issp.bas.bg

2008-05-01

MIS structures with AlN films deposited on p-Si by pulsed laser deposition were prepared and admittance measurements were carried out in the frequency range of 100 Hz - 10 MHz. The density of traps in the AlN film and at the AlN/Si interface was evaluated using the electrical characteristics obtained, and the hopping mechanism of charge transport was determined from the dispersion of the a.c. conductance.

Structural characteristics of single crystalline GaN films grown on (111) diamond with AlN buffer

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pécz, Béla; Tóth, Lajos; Barna, Árpád

2013-01-01

Hexagonal GaN films with the [0001] direction parallel to the surface normal were grown on (111) oriented single crystalline diamond substrates by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy. Pre-treatments of the diamond surface with the nitrogen plasma beam, prior the nucleation of a thin AlN layer......, eliminated the inversion domains and reduced the density of threading dislocations in the GaN epilayers. The films have an in-plane epitaxial relationship [1010]GaN//[110]diamond. Thus GaN (0001) thin films of single epitaxial relationship and of single polarity were realised on diamond with AlN buffer....

Online Coupling of Flow-Field Flow Fractionation and Single Particle Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry: Characterization of Nanoparticle Surface Coating Thickness and Aggregation State

Science.gov (United States)

Surface coating thickness and aggregation state have strong influence on the environmental fate, transport, and toxicity of engineered nanomaterials. In this study, flow-field flow fractionation coupled on-line with single particle inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry i...

Compositional and structural studies of ion-beam modified AlN/TiN multilayers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Amati, M., E-mail: matteo.amati@elettra.eu [Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste SCpA,Area Science Park, 34149, Trieste (Italy); Gregoratti, L.; Sezen, H. [Elettra – Sincrotrone Trieste SCpA,Area Science Park, 34149, Trieste (Italy); Grce, A.; Milosavljević, M. [VINČA Institute of Nuclear Sciences, Belgrade University, P.O. Box 522, 11001, Belgrade (Serbia); Homewood, K.P. [Materials Research Institute and School of Physics and Astronomy, Queen Mary University of London, Mile End Road, E1 4NS, London (United Kingdom)

2017-07-31

Highlights: • Inter-layer mixing, atomic redistribution, structural change, and phase transformation on AlN/TiN multilayers via argon ion irradiation. • Severe modifications are observed with TEM studies on highly immiscible alternating layers without any side effects such as beam heating. • The original TiN layers appear to grow in thickness by consuming the adjacent AlN layers, while obtaining a better TiAlN fcc crystalline structure. • Photoemission spectroscopy/microscopy indicates a transformation into Al deficient ternary and highly homogeneous compounds on both layers. • These results can be interesting towards further development of radiation tolerant materials based on immiscible ceramic nanocomposites. - Abstract: This paper reports on compositional and structural modifications induced in coated AlN/TiN multilayers by argon ion irradiation. The initial structure consisting of totally 30 alternate AlN (8 nm thick) and TiN (9.3 nm thick) layers was deposited on Si (100) wafers, by reactive sputtering. Irradiation was done with 180 keV Ar{sup +} to a high dose of 8 × 10{sup 16} ions/cm{sup 2}, which introduces up to ∼10 at.% of argon species, and generates a maximum displacement per atom of 92 for AlN and 127 for TiN, around the projected ion range (109 ± 34 nm). Characterizations were performed by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, spatially resolved x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The obtained results reveal that this highly immiscible and thermally stable system suffered a severe modification upon the applied ion irradiation, although it was performed at room temperature. They illustrate a thorough inter-layer mixing, atomic redistribution, structural change and phase transformation within the affected depth. The original TiN layers appear to grow in thickness, consuming the adjacent AlN layers, while retaining the fcc crystalline structure. In the mostly affected region, the interaction proceeds

Structural ceramic coatings in composite microtruss cellular materials

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bele, E.; Bouwhuis, B.A.; Codd, C.; Hibbard, G.D.

2011-01-01

Graphical abstract: The compressive strength increase per unit sleeve thickness of Al cores reinforced with Al 2 O 3 sleeves is lower than the corresponding strength increase when the same cores are reinforced with nanocrystalline Ni (n-Ni) sleeves (left). However, because anodizing is a transformative surface treatment, the Al 2 O 3 coating was able to achieve this performance increase with little overall weight penalty (right). Display Omitted Highlights: → A new type of metal/ceramic microtruss cellular composite has been created. → Reinforcing sleeves of Al 2 O 3 were deposited on low density Al microtruss cores. → Significant compressive strength increases were seen at virtually no weight penalty. → Failure mechanisms were studied by electron microscopy and finite element analysis. → Buckling, sleeve wrinkling, and coating fracture dictated the compressive strength. - Abstract: In the present study, anodizing was used to produce Al 2 O 3 coatings in a conventional 3003 aluminum alloy microtruss core; a 38.5 μm thick anodic coating provided a 143% increase in compressive strength. Finite-element analyses were used to illustrate the dependence of the compressive strength and failure mechanism on the thickness of the anodic coating. At low thicknesses the microtruss strength is dictated by global bucking of the internal struts. However, at higher thicknesses the compressive strength is controlled by coating fracture and local deformation in the hinge region of the struts. Regardless of the failure mechanism, the compressive strength of the composite microtruss increased with increasing anodic coating thickness, with very little corresponding weight penalty.

A first-principles study of the SCN− chemisorption on the surface of AlN, AlP, and BP nanotubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Soltani, Alireza; Taghartapeh, Mohammad Ramezani; Mighani, Hossein; Pahlevani, Amin Allah; Mashkoor, Reza

2012-01-01

Graphical abstract: Adsorption properties of SCN − on AlN, AlP, and BP nanotubes based on density functional theory. ▶ We demonstrate the most stable configurations (N-side) of SCN − on AlN, AlP, and BP nanotubes models. Highlights: ► The SCN − Adsorption on surface of AlN, AlP, and BP nanotubes were studied via density functional theory (DFT). ► The interaction of SCN − on the electronic properties and the NBO charge distribution of mentioned configurations are investigated. ► The studies suggest that the adsorption energies of SCN − on AlPNT is most notable in comparison with AlNNT and BPNT. - Abstract: We have performed first-principles calculations to explore the adsorption behavior of the SCN − on electronic properties of AlN, AlP, and BP nanotubes. The adsorption value of SCN − for the most stable formation on the AlPNT is about −318.16 kJ mol −1 , which is reason via the chemisorptions of SCN anion. The computed density of states (DOS) indicates that a notable orbital hybridization take place between SCN − and AlP nanotube in adsorption process. Finally, the AlP nanotube can be used to design as useful sensor for nanodevice applications.

Flexural testing of weld site and HVOF coating characteristics

CERN Document Server

Yilbas, Bekir Sami; Sahin, Ahmet

2014-01-01

This book provides fundamental understanding and practical application of characteristics of flexural motion in the assessment of the weld size and coating thickness. Some formulations of heat transfer and flexural motion are introduced while displacement and load correlation are used to estimate elastic modules and the size of the heat affected zone as well as the coating thickness. The case studies presented give a practical understanding of weld size and coating thickness characterizations.

Effect of Annealing Temperature on the Water Contact Angle of PVD Hard Coatings.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yu-Sen; Cho, Ting-Pin

2013-08-07

Various PVD (physical vapor deposition) hard coatings including nitrides and metal-doped diamond-like carbons (Me-DLC) were applied in plastic injection and die-casting molds to improve wear resistance and reduce sticking. In this study, nitrides hcp-AlN (hexagonal close-packed AlN), Cr₂N, (CrAl)₂N) and Me-DLC (Si-DLC and Cr-DLC) coatings were prepared using a closed field unbalanced magnetron reactive sputtering system. The coatings were annealed in air for 2 h at various temperatures, after which the anti-sticking properties were assessed using water contact angle (WCA) measurements. The as-deposited hcp-AlN, Cr₂N and (CrAl)₂N coatings exhibit hydrophobic behavior and exhibit respective WCAs of 119°, 106° and 101°. The as-deposited Si-DLC and Cr-DLC coatings exhibit hydrophilic behavior and exhibit respective WCAs of 74° and 88°. The annealed Cr₂N and (CrAl)₂N coatings exhibit hydrophobic behavior with higher WCAs, while the annealed hcp-AlN, Si-DLC and Cr-DLC coatings are hydrophilic. The increased WCA of the annealed Cr₂N and (CrAl)₂N coatings is related to their crystal structure and increased roughness. The decreased WCA of the annealed hcp-AlN, Si-DLC and Cr-DLC coatings is related to their crystal structures and has little correlation with roughness.

Oxidation and thermal shock behavior of thermal barrier coated 18/10CrNi alloy with coating modifications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Guergen, Selim [Vocational School of Transportation, Anadolu University, Eskisehir (Turkmenistan); Diltemiz, Seyid Fehmi [Turkish Air Force1st Air Supply and Maintenance Center Command, Eskisehir (Turkmenistan); Kushan, Melih Cemal [Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Eskisehir Osmangazi University, Eskisehir (Turkmenistan)

2017-01-15

In this study, substrates of 18/10CrNi alloy plates were initially sprayed with a Ni-21Cr-10Al-1Y bond coat and then with an yttria stabilized zirconia top coat by plasma spraying. Subsequently, plasma-sprayed Thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) were treated with two different modification methods, namely, vacuum heat treatment and laser glazing. The effects of modifications on the oxidation and thermal shock behavior of the coatings were evaluated. The effect of coat thickness on the bond strength of the coats was also investigated. Results showed enhancement of the oxidation resistance and thermal shock resistance of TBCs following modifications. Although vacuum heat treatment and laser glazing exhibited comparable results as per oxidation resistance, the former generated the best improvement in the thermal shock resistance of the TBCs. Bond strength also decreased as coat thickness increased.

Generating Tunable Magnetism in AlN Nanoribbons Using Anion/Cation Vacancies:a First-Principles Prediction

Science.gov (United States)

Chegeni, Mahdieh; Beiranvand, Razieh; Valedbagi, Shahoo

2017-04-01

Using first-principles approach, we theoretically study the effect of anion/cation vacancies on structural and electro-magnetic properties of zigzag AlN nanoribbons (ZAlNNRs). Calculations were performed using a full spin-polarized method within the density functional theory (DFT). Our findings shed light on how the edge states combined with vacancy engineering can affect electro-magnetic properties of ZAlNNRs. We found that depending on the nature and number of vacancies, ZAlNNRs can design as half-metal or semiconductor. Our results reveal a significant amount of spin magnetic moment for ZAlNNR with Al vacancies (VAl). These results may open new applications of AlN nano-materials in spintronics.

Estudo da viabilidade de obtenção de cerâmicas de SiC por infiltração espontânea de misturas eutéticas de Y2O3-AlN, Y2O3-Al2O3, R2O3-AlN Study of the viability to produce SiC ceramics by Y2O3-AlN, Y2O3-Al2O3, R2O3-AlN spontaneous infiltration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

G. C. R. Garcia

2008-06-01

Full Text Available As cerâmicas de carbeto de silício, SiC, apresentam excelentes propriedades quando obtidas por infiltração de determinados líquidos. Na infiltração o tempo de contato entre o líquido e o SiC a temperaturas elevadas é muito curto, diminuindo a probabilidade de formação dos produtos gasosos que interferem negativamente na resistência da peça final, como ocorre na sinterização via fase líquida. O objetivo deste trabalho é mostrar uma correlação entre molhabilidade e capacidade de infiltração de alguns aditivos em compactos de SiC. Foram preparados compactos de SiC por prensagem isostática a frio e posterior pré-sinterização via fase sólida. Nesses compactos foram infiltradas misturas de Y2O3-AlN, Y2O3-Al2O3, R2O3-AlN, nas composições eutéticas, 10 ºC acima da temperatura de fusão das respectivas misturas por 4, 8 e 12 min. Após infiltração, as amostras foram analisadas quanto à densidade aparente e real, fases cristalinas, microestrutura e grau de infiltração, sendo que as amostras infiltradas com Y2O3-AlN apresentaram melhores resultados.Silicon carbide ceramics, SiC, obtained by liquid infiltration have shown excellent properties. In infiltration process the contact time of the liquid with SiC at elevated temperature is short, decreasing the probability to form gaseous products that contribute negatively in the final product properties. This phenomenon occurs during SiC liquid phase sintering. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the correlation between wettability and infiltration tendency of some additives in SiC compacts. SiC compacts were prepared by cold isostatic pressing followed by solid phase pre-sintering. Into the compacts were introduced Y2O3-AlN, Y2O3-Al2O3, R2O3-AlN liquids with eutectic compositions at a temperature 10 ºC higher than the melting point of each mixture for 4, 8 and 12 min. Before infiltration, the samples were analyzed by determining densities, crystalline phases

Effects of Bond Coating on NiCrBSi-Mo Composite Functional Coating Properties in Plasma Spraying NiCrBSi-Mo/Ni Coating

OpenAIRE

DU Ji-yu; LI Fang-yi; LU Hai-yang; SHANG Jian-tong; LI Zhen

2017-01-01

Nickel-based bond coating and composite functional coating were sprayed on leaf blade steel material FV520B successively by using air plasma spraying system. NiCrBSi-Mo powder deposition rate, coating porosity, bonding strength and surface hardness were tested. The results indicate that, for the NiCrBSi-Mo/Ni coating, bond coating with 180-220μm thickness can improve NiCrBSi-Mo powder deposition rate while the surface coating with lower porosity, higher bonding strength and high hardness is p...

Thermal fatigue behavior of thermal barrier coatings by air plasma spray

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Han Sang; Kim, Eui Hyun [Korea Electric Power Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Lee, Jung Hyuk [Korea Plant Service and Engineering Co. Ltd., Incheon (Korea, Republic of)

2008-06-15

Effects of top coat morphology and thickness on thermal fatigue behavior of Thermal Barrier Coatings (TBC) were investigated in this study. Thermal fatigue tests were conducted on three coating specimens with different top coat morphology and thickness, and then the test data were compared via microstructures, cycles to failure, and fracture surfaces. In the air plasma spray specimens (APS1, APS2), top coat were 200 and 300 {mu}m respectively. The thickness of top coat was about 700 {mu}m in the Perpendicular Cracked Specimen (PCS). Under thermal fatigue condition at 1,100 .deg. C, the cycles to top coat failure of APS1, APS2, and PCS were 350, 560 and 480 cycles, respectively. The cracks were initiated at the interface of top coat and Thermally Grown Oxide (TGO) and propagated into TGO or top coat as the number of thermal fatigue cycles increased. For the PCS specimen, additive cracks were initiated and propagated at the starting points of perpendicular cracks in the top coat. Also, the thickness of TGO and the decrease of aluminium concentration in bond coat do not affect the cycles to failure.

Insulator layer formation in MgB2 SIS junctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shimakage, H.; Tsujimoto, K.; Wang, Z.; Tonouchi, M.

2005-01-01

The dependence of current-voltage characteristics on thin film deposition conditions was investigated using MgB 2 /AlN/NbN SIS junctions. By increasing the substrate temperature in AlN insulator deposition, the current density decreased and the normal resistance increased. The results indicated that an additional insulator layer between the MgB 2 and AlN formed, either before or during the AlN deposition. The thickness of the additional insulator layer was increased with an increase in the AlN deposition temperature. From the dependence of current density on the thickness of AlN in low temperature depositions, the thickness of the additional insulator layer was estimated to be 1-1.5 nm when the AlN insulator was deposited from 0.14 to 0.7 nm. Moreover, with the current density of MgB 2 /AlN/MgB 2 SIS junctions, further insulator layer formation was confirmed

Studies on properties of low atomic number ceramics as limiter materials for fusion applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Thiele, B.A.; Hoven, H.; Koizlik, K.; Linke, J.; Wallure, E.

1986-01-01

The present study deals with thermal shock and erosion-redeposition behaviour of low-Z-bulk-ceramics: SiC, SiC + Si, SiC + 3% Al, SiC + 2% AlN, AlN, Si 3 N 4 , BN with graphite as reference material. Also included are substrate-coating systems: TiC coated graphite, Cr 2 C 3 coated graphite and TiN on Inconel. The properties are being investigated by electron beam and in-pile fusion machine tests in the KFA-Tokamak machine Textor. The electron-beam tests showed that sublimation was the dominant damaging effect for graphite, BN and SiN 4 . Materials with mediocre thermo-mechanical properties, such as SiC and AlN, showed cracks. The highest energy density values were tolerated by specimens of SiC alloyed with 2% AlN. In general, the in pile behaviour of the ceramics was comparable with the electron beam tests: BN and SiC + 2% AlN are at present regarded as the prime candidates for future irradiation tests. (author)

Zigzag and Helical AlN Layer Prepared by Glancing Angle Deposition and Its Application as a Buffer Layer in a GaN-Based Light-Emitting Diode

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lung-Chien Chen

2012-01-01

Full Text Available This study investigates an aluminum nitride (AlN nanorod structure sputtered by glancing angle deposition (GLAD and its application as a buffer layer for GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs that are fabricated on sapphire substrates. The ray tracing method is adopted with a three-dimensional model in TracePro software. Simulation results indicate that the zigzag AlN nanorod structure is an optimal buffer layer in a GaN-based LED. Furthermore, the light output power of a GaN-based LED with a zigzag AlN nanorod structure improves to as much as 28.6% at a forward current of 20 mA over that of the GaN-based LED with a normal AlN buffer layer.

Structural ceramic coatings in composite microtruss cellular materials

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bele, E.; Bouwhuis, B.A.; Codd, C. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Toronto, 184 College Street, Toronto, Ontario (Canada); Hibbard, G.D., E-mail: glenn.hibbard@utoronto.ca [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Toronto, 184 College Street, Toronto, Ontario (Canada)

2011-09-15

Graphical abstract: The compressive strength increase per unit sleeve thickness of Al cores reinforced with Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} sleeves is lower than the corresponding strength increase when the same cores are reinforced with nanocrystalline Ni (n-Ni) sleeves (left). However, because anodizing is a transformative surface treatment, the Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} coating was able to achieve this performance increase with little overall weight penalty (right). Display Omitted Highlights: {yields} A new type of metal/ceramic microtruss cellular composite has been created. {yields} Reinforcing sleeves of Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} were deposited on low density Al microtruss cores. {yields} Significant compressive strength increases were seen at virtually no weight penalty. {yields} Failure mechanisms were studied by electron microscopy and finite element analysis. {yields} Buckling, sleeve wrinkling, and coating fracture dictated the compressive strength. - Abstract: In the present study, anodizing was used to produce Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} coatings in a conventional 3003 aluminum alloy microtruss core; a 38.5 {mu}m thick anodic coating provided a 143% increase in compressive strength. Finite-element analyses were used to illustrate the dependence of the compressive strength and failure mechanism on the thickness of the anodic coating. At low thicknesses the microtruss strength is dictated by global bucking of the internal struts. However, at higher thicknesses the compressive strength is controlled by coating fracture and local deformation in the hinge region of the struts. Regardless of the failure mechanism, the compressive strength of the composite microtruss increased with increasing anodic coating thickness, with very little corresponding weight penalty.

Local thermal conductivity of polycrystalline AlN ceramics measured by scanning thermal microscopy and complementary scanning electron microscopy techniques

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Yue-Fei; Wang Li; Wei Bin; Ji Yuan; Han Xiao-Dong; Zhang Ze; Heiderhoff, R.; Geinzer, A. K.; Balk, L. J.

2012-01-01

The local thermal conductivity of polycrystalline aluminum nitride (AlN) ceramics is measured and imaged by using a scanning thermal microscope (SThM) and complementary scanning electron microscope (SEM) based techniques at room temperature. The quantitative thermal conductivity for the AlN sample is gained by using a SThM with a spatial resolution of sub-micrometer scale through using the 3ω method. A thermal conductivity of 308 W/m·K within grains corresponding to that of high-purity single crystal AlN is obtained. The slight differences in thermal conduction between the adjacent grains are found to result from crystallographic misorientations, as demonstrated in the electron backscattered diffraction. A much lower thermal conductivity at the grain boundary is due to impurities and defects enriched in these sites, as indicated by energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. (condensed matter: structural, mechanical, and thermal properties)

Preparation of selenium coatings onto beryllium foils

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Erikson, E.D.; Tassano, P.L.; Reiss, R.H.; Griggs, G.E.

1984-09-01

A technique for preparing selenium films onto 50.8 microns thick beryllium foils is described. The selenium was deposited in vacuum from a resistance heated evaporation source. Profilometry measurements of the coatings indicate deposit thicknesses of 5.5, 12.9, 37.5, 49.8 and 74.5 microns. The control of deposition rate and of coating thickness was facilitated using a commercially available closed-loop programmable thin film controller. The x-ray transmission of the coated substrates was measured using a tritiated zirconium source. The transmissivities of the film/substrate combination are presented for the range of energies from 4 to 20 keV. 15 references, 3 figures

Room temperature H{sub 2}S gas sensing characteristics of platinum (Pt) coated porous alumina (PoAl) thick films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

More, P.S., E-mail: p_smore@yahoo.co.in [Department of Physics, Institute of Science, Mumbai 400 032 (India); Raut, R.W. [Department of Botany, Institute of Science, Mumbai 400 032 (India); Ghuge, C.S. [Department of Physics, Institute of Science, Mumbai 400 032 (India)

2014-02-14

The study reports H{sub 2}S gas sensing characteristics of platinum (Pt) coated porous alumina (PoAl) films. The porous alumina (PoAl) thick layers were formed in the dark on aluminum substrates using an electrochemical anodization method. Thin semitransparent platinum (Pt) films were deposited on PoAl samples using chemical bath deposition (CBD) method. The films were characterized using energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The thicknesses of coated and bare films were measured using ellipsometry. The sensing properties such as sensitivity factor (S.F.), response time, recovery time and repeatability were measured using a static gas sensing system for H{sub 2}S gas. The EDAX studies confirmed the purity of Pt–PoAl film and indicated the formation of pure platinum (Pt) phase. The ellipsometry studies revealed the thickness of PoAl layer of about 15–17 μm on aluminum substrates. The SEM studies demonstrated uniform distribution of spherical pores with a size between 0.250 and 0.500 μm for PoAl film and nearly spherical platinum particles with average particle size ∼100 nm for Pt–PoAl film. The gas-sensing properties of these samples were studied in a home-built static gas characterization system. The H{sub 2}S gas sensing properties of Pt–PoAl at 1000 ppm of H{sub 2}S gave maximum sensitivity factor (S.F.) = 1200. The response time and recovery time were found to be 2–3 min and ∼1 min respectively. Further, the measurement of H{sub 2}S gas sensing properties clearly indicated the repeatability of gas sensing response of Pt–PoAl film. The present study indicated the significant potential of Pt coated PoAl films for H{sub 2}S gas sensing applications in diverse areas. - Highlights: • Electrochemical anodization, cheap and effective method for fabrication of PoAl. • Chemical bath deposition, a simple and effective method for deposition of Pt on PoAl. • A nano-composite film sensor with high sensitivity

European coatings conference - Marine coatings. Proceedings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

2008-07-01

This volume contains 13 lectures (manuscripts or powerpoint foils) with the following topics: 1. Impact of containerization on polyurethane and polyurea in marine and protective coatings (Malte Homann); 2. The application of combinatorial/high-throughput methods to the development of marine coatings (Bret Chisholm); 3. Progress and perspectives in the AMBIO (advanced nanostructured surfaces for the control of biofouling) Project (James Callow); 4. Release behaviour due to shear and pull-off of silicone coatings with a thickness gradient (James G. Kohl); 5. New liquid rheology additives for high build marine coatings (Andreas Freytag); 6. Effective corrosion protection with polyaniline, polpyrrole and polythiophene as anticorrosice additives for marine paints (Carlos Aleman); 7. Potential applications of sol gel technology for marine applications (Robert Akid); 8: Performance of biocide-free Antifouling Coatings for leisure boats (Bernd Daehne); 9. Novel biocidefree nanostructured antifouling coatings - can nano do the job? (Corne Rentrop); 10. One component high solids, VOC compliant high durability finish technology (Adrian Andrews); 11. High solid coatings - the hybrid solution (Luca Prezzi); 12. Unique organofunctional silicone resins for environmentally friendly high-performance coatings (Dieter Heldmann); 13. Silicone-alkyd paints for marine applications: from battleship-grey to green (Thomas Easton).

A new coating material for reducing indoor radon level

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhuo, W.; Tokonami, S.; Ichitsubo, H.; Yamada, Y.; Yamada, Y.

2002-01-01

In order to mitigate indoor radon level, a new fast-setting, solvent-free, polyurethane-based coating material was developed. The permeability of radon gas in the new material was estimated with a simple radon permeation test system set up in this study. It was found that the permeation velocity depended on the thickness of the coating material, and a thickness of 2.0 mm of the coating material seems sufficient for preventing radon permeation. The permeability of radon in the coating material was estimated to be (2.2± 0.8)x10 -10 m 2 ·s -1 for a thickness of about 1.0 mm. The value is much lower than those reported for membrane materials and caulking compounds. For its performance test, the coating material was used in an existing room with high radon level. By spraying a thickness of 1.5 mm of the material, the indoor radon level reduced by about 80%

Enhanced corrosion protective PANI-PAA/PEI multilayer composite coatings for 316SS by spin coating technique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Syed, Junaid Ali; Lu, Hongbin; Tang, Shaochun; Meng, Xiangkang, E-mail: mengxk@nju.edu.cn

2015-01-15

Highlights: • PANI-PAA/PEI multilayers with controllable thickness were fabricated by spin assembly. • PAA matrix results in the homogeneous dispersion of PANI in the composite coatings. • Spin coating combined with heating assures the linear increase in thickness with n. • The corrosion protection property of PANI-PAA/PEI coatings were optimized at n = 20. • Enhanced protection owing to multilayer structure that lengthens the diffusion pathway of ions. - Abstract: In the present study, polyaniline-polyacrylic acid/polyethyleneimine (PANI-PAA/PEI) composite coatings with a multilayer structure for corrosion protection of 316 stainless steels (316SS) were prepared by an alternate deposition. Spin coating combined with heating assists removal of residual water that result in a linear increase in thickness with layer number (n). The combination of PANI-PAA composite with PEI and their multilayer structure provides a synergistic enhancement of corrosion resistance properties as determined by electrochemical measurements in 3.5% NaCl solution. Importantly, the PANI-PAA/PEI coating with an optimized layer number of n = 20 shows improved corrosion protection. The superior performance was attributed to the formation of an interfacial oxide layer as well as the multilayer structure that extend the diffusion pathway of corrosive ions.

Radon prevention coating in hot and humid environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Yushan; Dong Faqin; Deng Yuequan; Qu Ruixue

2013-01-01

The radon prevention performance of a new self-made radon prevention coating was researched in the radon contamination provided by the releasing radon modules. With coating thickness of 0.8 mm, the radon mitigation efficiency in 1 # radon module concentration is optimal when the addition of defoaming agent is 0.3% (mass fraction). The radon mitigation efficiency increases with the coating thickness when the defoaming agent of 0.3% is added, but the radon mitigation efficiency tends to be stable as the coating thickness is more than 2.0 mm. The radon mitigation efficiency of radon prevention coating appended precipitated barium sulphate decreases obviously, and the addition of ash calcium, white cement and gesso don't decrease radon mitigation efficiency. The addition of white cement and gesso addition affects the radon prevention stability, while radon mitigation efficiency of radon prevention coating with ash calcium keeps a good performance. Under the hot and humid environment, the radon prevention coating still has good radon mitigation efficiency in 2 # radon module concentration. (authors)

The effect of nanocrystalline Ni-W coating on the tensile properties of copper

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. P. Georgiou

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Nanostructured Ni-W alloy coatings containing approximately 40 wt.% tungsten were electrodeposited onto copper substrates. The effect of the coatings thickness on the surface topography, microstructure and grain size was investigated with the aid of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM and X-ray Diffraction (XRD techniques respectively. In addition, this research work aims in understanding the influence and correlation between microstructure and thickness of these Ni-W coatings with the bulk mechanical properties of coated specimens. The experimental results indicated that the micro-hardness and Ultimate Tensile Strength (UTS of the Ni-W coated copper were higher than that of bare copper, whereas both slightly increased with increasing coating thickness up to 21 μm. On the other hand, the ductility of Ni-W coated copper decreased significantly with increasing coating thickness. Thus it could be said that when applying Ni-W coatings there are certain limitations not only in terms of their composition, but their thickness, grain size and coating structure should be also taken into consideration, in order to obtain an understanding of their mechanical behavior.

Dust coatings on basaltic rocks and implications for thermal infrared spectroscopy of Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, J. R.; Christensen, P.R.; Lucey, P.G.

2002-01-01

Thin coatings of atmospherically deposited dust can mask the spectral characteristics of underlying surfaces on Mars from the visible to thermal infrared wavelengths, making identification of substrate and coating mineralogy difficult from lander and orbiter spectrometer data. To study the spectral effects of dust coatings, we acquired thermal emission and hemispherical reflectance spectra (5-25 μm; 2000-400 cm-1) of basaltic andesite coated with different thicknesses of air fall-deposited palagonitic soils, fine-grained ceramic clay powders, and terrestrial loess. The results show that thin coatings (10-20 μm) reduce the spectral contrast of the rock substrate substantially, consistent with previous work. This contrast reduction continues linearly with increasing coating thickness until a "saturation thickness" is reached, after which little further change is observed. The saturation thickness of the spectrally flat palagonite coatings is ~100-120 μm, whereas that for coatings with higher spectral contrast is only ~50-75 μm. Spectral differences among coated and uncoated samples correlate with measured coating thicknesses in a quadratic manner, whereas correlations with estimated surface area coverage are better fit by linear functions. Linear mixture modeling of coated samples using the rock substrate and coating materials as end-members is also consistent with their measured coating thicknesses and areal coverage. A comparison of ratios of Thermal Emission Spectrometer (TES) spectra of dark and bright intracrater and windstreak deposits associated with Radau crater suggests that the dark windstreak material may be coated with as much as 90% areal coverage of palagonitic dust. The data presented here also will help improve interpretations of upcoming mini-TES and Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) observations of coated Mars surface materials.

Microstructure of vapor deposited coatings on curved substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rodgers, Theron M.; Zhao, Hengbei; Wadley, Haydn N. G., E-mail: haydn@virginia.edu [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Virginia, 395 McCormick Rd., P.O. Box 400745, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904 (United States)

2015-09-15

Thermal barrier coating systems consisting of a metallic bond coat and ceramic over layer are widely used to extend the life of gas turbine engine components. They are applied using either high-vacuum physical vapor deposition techniques in which vapor atoms rarely experience scattering collisions during propagation to a substrate, or by gas jet assisted (low-vacuum) vapor deposition techniques that utilize scattering from streamlines to enable non-line-of-sight deposition. Both approaches require substrate motion to coat a substrate of complex shape. Here, direct simulation Monte Carlo and kinetic Monte Carlo simulation methods are combined to simulate the deposition of a nickel coating over the concave and convex surfaces of a model airfoil, and the simulation results are compared with those from experimental depositions. The simulation method successfully predicted variations in coating thickness, columnar growth angle, and porosity during both stationary and substrate rotated deposition. It was then used to investigate a wide range of vapor deposition conditions spanning high-vacuum physical vapor deposition to low-vacuum gas jet assisted vapor deposition. The average coating thickness was found to increase initially with gas pressure reaching a maximum at a chamber pressure of 8–10 Pa, but the best coating thickness uniformity was achieved under high vacuum deposition conditions. However, high vacuum conditions increased the variation in the coatings pore volume fraction over the surface of the airfoil. The simulation approach was combined with an optimization algorithm and used to investigate novel deposition concepts to tailor the local coating thickness.

Microstructure of vapor deposited coatings on curved substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rodgers, Theron M.; Zhao, Hengbei; Wadley, Haydn N. G.

2015-01-01

Thermal barrier coating systems consisting of a metallic bond coat and ceramic over layer are widely used to extend the life of gas turbine engine components. They are applied using either high-vacuum physical vapor deposition techniques in which vapor atoms rarely experience scattering collisions during propagation to a substrate, or by gas jet assisted (low-vacuum) vapor deposition techniques that utilize scattering from streamlines to enable non-line-of-sight deposition. Both approaches require substrate motion to coat a substrate of complex shape. Here, direct simulation Monte Carlo and kinetic Monte Carlo simulation methods are combined to simulate the deposition of a nickel coating over the concave and convex surfaces of a model airfoil, and the simulation results are compared with those from experimental depositions. The simulation method successfully predicted variations in coating thickness, columnar growth angle, and porosity during both stationary and substrate rotated deposition. It was then used to investigate a wide range of vapor deposition conditions spanning high-vacuum physical vapor deposition to low-vacuum gas jet assisted vapor deposition. The average coating thickness was found to increase initially with gas pressure reaching a maximum at a chamber pressure of 8–10 Pa, but the best coating thickness uniformity was achieved under high vacuum deposition conditions. However, high vacuum conditions increased the variation in the coatings pore volume fraction over the surface of the airfoil. The simulation approach was combined with an optimization algorithm and used to investigate novel deposition concepts to tailor the local coating thickness

Effect of Annealing Temperature on the Water Contact Angle of PVD Hard Coatings

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yu-Sen; Cho, Ting-Pin

2013-01-01

Various PVD (physical vapor deposition) hard coatings including nitrides and metal-doped diamond-like carbons (Me-DLC) were applied in plastic injection and die-casting molds to improve wear resistance and reduce sticking. In this study, nitrides hcp-AlN (hexagonal close-packed AlN), Cr2N, (CrAl)2N) and Me-DLC (Si-DLC and Cr-DLC) coatings were prepared using a closed field unbalanced magnetron reactive sputtering system. The coatings were annealed in air for 2 h at various temperatures, after which the anti-sticking properties were assessed using water contact angle (WCA) measurements. The as-deposited hcp-AlN, Cr2N and (CrAl)2N coatings exhibit hydrophobic behavior and exhibit respective WCAs of 119°, 106° and 101°. The as-deposited Si-DLC and Cr-DLC coatings exhibit hydrophilic behavior and exhibit respective WCAs of 74° and 88°. The annealed Cr2N and (CrAl)2N coatings exhibit hydrophobic behavior with higher WCAs, while the annealed hcp-AlN, Si-DLC and Cr-DLC coatings are hydrophilic. The increased WCA of the annealed Cr2N and (CrAl)2N coatings is related to their crystal structure and increased roughness. The decreased WCA of the annealed hcp-AlN, Si-DLC and Cr-DLC coatings is related to their crystal structures and has little correlation with roughness. PMID:28811440

Early stages of interface reactions between AlN and Ti thin films

CERN Document Server

Pinkas, M; Froumin, N; Pelleg, J; Dariel, M P

2002-01-01

The early stages of interface reactions between AlN and Ti thin films were investigated using x-ray diffractions, Auger electron spectroscopy, cross section transmission electron microscopy (XTEM), and high resolution XTEM. The AlN/Ti bilayers were deposited on a molybdenum substrate using reactive and nonreactive magnetron sputtering techniques. After deposition, the bilayers were heat treated for 1-10 h at 600 deg. C in a nitrogen atmosphere. Decomposition of the AlN layer took place at the AlN/Ti interface and its products, Al and N, reacted with Ti to produce a AlN/Al sub 3 Ti/Ti sub 2 N/Ti sub 3 Al/alpha-(Ti, Al)ss phase sequence. This phase sequence is not consistent with the Ti-Al-N phase diagram and is believed to be the outcome of the particular conditions that prevail in the thin film and correspond to a particular set of kinetic parameters. A model that explains the development of the phase sequence and predicts its evolution after prolonged heat treatments is put forward. The applicability of such...

Influence of metallic surface states on electron affinity of epitaxial AlN films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mishra, Monu; Krishna, Shibin; Aggarwal, Neha [Advanced Materials and Devices Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR-NPL Campus, Dr. K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India); Gupta, Govind, E-mail: govind@nplindia.org [Advanced Materials and Devices Division, CSIR-National Physical Laboratory, Dr. K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi110012 (India); Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR-NPL Campus, Dr. K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012 (India)

2017-06-15

The present article investigates surface metallic states induced alteration in the electron affinity of epitaxial AlN films. AlN films grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy system with (30% and 16%) and without metallic aluminium on the surface were probed via photoemission spectroscopic measurements. An in-depth analysis exploring the influence of metallic aluminium and native oxide on the electronic structure of the films is performed. It was observed that the metallic states pinned the Fermi Level (FL) near valence band edge and lead to the reduction of electron affinity (EA). These metallic states initiated charge transfer and induced changes in surface and interface dipoles strength. Therefore, the EA of the films varied between 0.6–1.0 eV due to the variation in contribution of metallic states and native oxide. However, the surface barrier height (SBH) increased (4.2–3.5 eV) adversely due to the availability of donor-like surface states in metallic aluminium rich films.

Fabrication of yttrium-doped barium zirconate thin films with sub-micrometer thickness by a sol–gel spin coating method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Xie, Hanlin; Su, Pei-Chen, E-mail: peichensu@ntu.edu.sg

2015-06-01

A modified sol–gel process was developed for the fabrication of sub-micrometer scale yttrium-doped barium zirconate (BZY) thin film at much lower processing temperatures. The film was fabricated by direct spin-coating of the sol on a Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} passivated Si substrate, followed by low temperature thermal annealing at 1000 °C, and single BZY phase without barium carbonate residue was obtained. A 200 nm-thick thin film without obvious through-film cracks was fabricated with optimized process parameters of sol concentration and heating rate. The stoichiometry of the BZY thin film was well-controlled and no Ba evaporation was observed due to the low processing temperature. The combination of sol–gel and spin coating method can be a promising alternative to vacuum-based thin film deposition techniques for the fabrication of sub-micrometer scale BZY thin film. - Highlights: • A sol–gel spin coating method was developed for the fabrication of BZY thin films. • The processing temperature was much lower compared to powder-based sintering. • Sub-micrometer scale BZY thin film with well-controlled stoichiometry was obtained.

Preparation of Ti-coated diamond particles by microwave heating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gu, Quanchao; Peng, Jinghui; Xu, Lei; Srinivasakannan, C.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • The Ti-Coated diamond particles have been prepared using by microwave heating. • The uniform and dense coating can be produced, and the TiC species was formed. • With increases the temperature results in the thickness of coating increased. • The coating/diamond interfacial bonding strength increased with temperature increasing until 760 °C, then decreased. - Abstract: Depositing strong carbide-forming elements on diamond surface can dramatically improve the interfacial bonding strength between diamond grits and metal matrix. In the present work, investigation on the preparation of Ti-coated diamond particles by microwave heating has been conducted. The morphology, microstructure, and the chemical composition of Ti-coated diamond particles were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy dispersive x-ray spectrometer (EDX). The thickness of Ti coating was measured and the interfacial binding strength between Ti coating and diamond was analyzed. The results show that the surface of the diamond particles could be successfully coated with Ti, forming a uniform and continuous Ti-coated layer. The TiC was found to form between the surface of diamond particles and Ti-coated layer. The amount of TiC as well as the thickness of coating increased with increasing coating temperature, furthermore, the grain size of the coating also grew gradually. The interfacial bonding strength between coating and diamond was found to be best at the temperature of 760 °C.

Preparation of Ti-coated diamond particles by microwave heating

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gu, Quanchao [National Local Joint Laboratory of Engineering Application of Microwave Energy and Equipment Technology, Faculty of Metallurgical and Energy Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093 (China); Yunnan Copper Smelting and Processing Complex, Yunnan Copper (Group) CO., LTD., Kunming 650102 (China); International Joint Research Center of Advanced Preparation of Superhard Materials Field, Kunming Academician Workstation of Advanced Preparation of Superhard Materials Field, Kunming 650093 (China); Peng, Jinghui [National Local Joint Laboratory of Engineering Application of Microwave Energy and Equipment Technology, Faculty of Metallurgical and Energy Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093 (China); International Joint Research Center of Advanced Preparation of Superhard Materials Field, Kunming Academician Workstation of Advanced Preparation of Superhard Materials Field, Kunming 650093 (China); Xu, Lei, E-mail: xulei_kmust@aliyun.com [National Local Joint Laboratory of Engineering Application of Microwave Energy and Equipment Technology, Faculty of Metallurgical and Energy Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming 650093 (China); Mechanical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195 (United States); International Joint Research Center of Advanced Preparation of Superhard Materials Field, Kunming Academician Workstation of Advanced Preparation of Superhard Materials Field, Kunming 650093 (China); Srinivasakannan, C. [Chemical Engineering Department, The Petroleum Institute, P.O. Box 2533, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates); and others

2016-12-30

Highlights: • The Ti-Coated diamond particles have been prepared using by microwave heating. • The uniform and dense coating can be produced, and the TiC species was formed. • With increases the temperature results in the thickness of coating increased. • The coating/diamond interfacial bonding strength increased with temperature increasing until 760 °C, then decreased. - Abstract: Depositing strong carbide-forming elements on diamond surface can dramatically improve the interfacial bonding strength between diamond grits and metal matrix. In the present work, investigation on the preparation of Ti-coated diamond particles by microwave heating has been conducted. The morphology, microstructure, and the chemical composition of Ti-coated diamond particles were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and energy dispersive x-ray spectrometer (EDX). The thickness of Ti coating was measured and the interfacial binding strength between Ti coating and diamond was analyzed. The results show that the surface of the diamond particles could be successfully coated with Ti, forming a uniform and continuous Ti-coated layer. The TiC was found to form between the surface of diamond particles and Ti-coated layer. The amount of TiC as well as the thickness of coating increased with increasing coating temperature, furthermore, the grain size of the coating also grew gradually. The interfacial bonding strength between coating and diamond was found to be best at the temperature of 760 °C.

Performance of ceramic coatings on diesel engines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MacAdam, S.; Levy, A.

1986-01-01

Partially stabilized zirconia ceramic thermal barrier coatings were plasma sprayed on the valve faces and tulips and the piston crowns and cylinder heads of a locomotive size diesel engine at a designated thickness of 375μm (0.015''). They were tested over a range of throttle settings for 500 hours using No. 2 diesel oil fuel. Properly applied coatings performed with no change in composition, morphology or thickness. Improperly applied coatings underwent spalling durability was dependent on quality control of the plasma spray process

Coating compositions comprising bismuth-alloyed zinc

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

2008-01-01

The present application discloses (i) a coating composition comprising a particulate zinc-based alloyed material, said material comprising 0.05-0.7% by weight of bismuth (Bi), the D50 of the particulate material being in the range of 2.5-30 µm; (ii) a coated structure comprising a metal structure...... having a first coating of the zinc-containing coating composition applied onto at least a part of the metal structure in a dry film thickness of 5-100 µm; and an outer coating applied onto said zinc-containing coating in a dry film thickness of 30-200 µm; (iii) a particulate zinc-based alloyed material......, wherein the material comprises 0.05-0.7%(w/w) of bismuth (Bi), and wherein the D50 of the particulate material is in the range of 2.5-30 µm; (iv) a composite powder consisting of at least 25%(w/w) of the particulate zinc-based alloyed material, the rest being a particulate material consisting of zinc...

Effect of the Die Temperature and Blank Thickness on the Formability of a Laser-Welded Blank of a Boron Steel Sheet with Removing Al-Si Coating Layer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. S. Lee

2014-05-01

Full Text Available Reducing carbon emissions has been a major focus in the automobile industry to address various environmental issues. In particular, studies on parts comprised of high strength sheets and light car bodies are ongoing. Accordingly, this study examined the use of boron steel, which is commonly used in high strength sheets. Boron steel is a type of sheet used for hot stamping parts. Although it has high strength, the elongation is inferior, which reduces its crash energy absorption capacity. To solve this problem, two sheets of different thickness were welded so the thin sheet would absorb crash energy and the thick sheet would work as a support. Boron steel, however, may show weakening at the welding spot due to the Al-Si coating layer used to prevent oxidation from occurring during the welding process. Therefore, a certain part of the coating layer of a double-thickness boron steel sheet that is welded in the hot stamping process is removed through laser ablation, and the formability of the hot-work was examined.

Operation Procedure of Inspection Equipment for TRISO-coated Fuel Particle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, S. H.; Kim, Y. K.; Cho, M. S.; Kim, Y. M.; Park, J. Y.; Kim, W. J.; Jeong, K. C.; Oh, S. C.; Lee, Y. W.

2007-03-01

TRISO-coated fuel particle for HTGR(high temperature gas cooled reactor) is composed of fuel kernel and coating layers. The kernel and coated particle are characterized by inspection processes for inspection items such as diameter of kernel, thickness, density and an-isotropy of coating layer. The coating thickness can be nondestructively measured by X-ray inspection equipment. The coating thickness as well as the sphericity can be also measured by optical inspection system as a ceramography method. The an-isotropy can be characterized by photometer. The density of coating layer can be measured by density column. The size and sphericity of particles can be measured by PSA(particle size analyzer). The thermo-chemical characteristics of kernel can be analyzed by TG/DTA(Thermogravimetric/Differential Thermal Analyzer). The inspection objective, equipment composition, operation principle, operation manual for each equipment was described in this operation procedure, which will be used for the characterization of inspection items described above

Quantification the Effect of the Thickness of Thin Films on their Elastic Parameters

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gacem, A.; Doghmane, A.; Hadjoub, Z

2011-01-01

The determination of the characteristics and properties of thin films deposited on substrates is necessary in any device application in various fields. Adequate mechanical properties are highly required for the majority of surface waves and semiconductor devices. In this context, modelling the ultrasonic-material interaction, we present results of simulation curves of acoustic signatures for multiple thin film/substrate combinations. The results obtained on several structures (Al, SiO 2 , ZnO, Cu, AlN, SiC and Cr)/(Al 2 O 3 , Si, Cu or Quartz) showed a velocity dispersion of the Rayleigh wave as a function of layer thickness. The development of a theoretical calculation model based on the acoustic behaviour of these structures has enabled us to quantify the dispersive evolution (positive and negative) density. Thus, we have established a universal relationship describing the density-thickness variation. In addition, networks of dispersion curves, representing the evolution of elasticity modulus (Young and shear), were determined. These charts can be used to extract the influence of thickness of layers on the variation of elastic constants.(author)

Microstructure and elevated-temperature erosion-oxidation behaviour of aluminized 9Cr-1Mo Steel

Science.gov (United States)

Huttunen-Saarivirta, E.; Honkanen, M.; Tsipas, S. A.; Omar, H.; Tsipas, D.

2012-10-01

Degradation of materials by a combination of erosive wear and atmospheric oxidation at elevated temperatures constitutes a problem in some power generation processes, such as fluidized-bed combustion. In this work, 9Cr-1Mo steel, a common tube material in combustion chambers, is coated by a pack cementation method from an Al-containing pack in order to improve the resistance to erosion-oxidation at elevated temperatures. The resulting coating is studied in terms of microstructure and microhardness and tested for its resistance against impacts by sand particles in air at temperatures of 550-700 °C under several conditions, with thickness changes and appearance of the exposed surfaces being studied. The coating was found to contain several phases and layers, the outermost of which was essentially Al-rich and contained e.g., small AlN precipitates. The microhardness values for such coating ranged from 950 to 1100 HV20g. The coating provided the substrate with increased protection particularly against normal particle impacts, as manifested by smaller thickness losses for coated specimens as compared to uncoated counterparts. However, much of the coating was lost under all test conditions, despite the fact that particle debris formed a homogeneous layer on the surface. These results are described and discussed in this paper.

Metallic coating of microspheres

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meyer, S.F.

1980-01-01

Extremely smooth, uniform metal coatings of micrometer thicknesses on microscopic glass spheres (microspheres) are often needed as targets for inertial confinement fusion (ICF) experiments. The first part of this paper reviews those methods used successfully to provide metal coated microspheres for ICF targets, including magnetron sputtering, electro- and electroless plating, and chemical vapor pyrolysis. The second part of this paper discusses some of the critical aspects of magnetron sputter coating of microspheres, including substrate requirements, the sticking of microspheres during coating (preventing a uniform coating), and the difficulties in growing the desired dense, smooth, uniform microstructure on continuously moving spherical substrates

Silica coatings on clarithromycin.

Science.gov (United States)

Bele, Marjan; Dmitrasinovic, Dorde; Planinsek, Odon; Salobir, Mateja; Srcic, Stane; Gaberscek, Miran; Jamnik, Janko

2005-03-03

Pre-crystallized clarithromycin (6-O-methylerythromycin A) particles were coated with silica from the tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS)-ethanol-aqueous ammonia system. The coatings had a typical thickness of 100-150 nm and presented about 15 wt.% of the silica-drug composite material. The properties of the coatings depended on reactant concentration, temperature and mixing rate and, in particular, on the presence of a cationic surfactant (cetylpyridinium chloride). In the presence of cetylpyridinium chloride the silica coatings slightly decreased the rate of pure clarithromycin dissolution.

Economical Fabrication of Thick-Section Ceramic Matrix Composites

Science.gov (United States)

Babcock, Jason; Ramachandran, Gautham; Williams, Brian; Benander, Robert

2010-01-01

A method was developed for producing thick-section [>2 in. (approx.5 cm)], continuous fiber-reinforced ceramic matrix composites (CMCs). Ultramet-modified fiber interface coating and melt infiltration processing, developed previously for thin-section components, were used for the fabrication of CMCs that were an order of magnitude greater in thickness [up to 2.5 in. (approx.6.4 cm)]. Melt processing first involves infiltration of a fiber preform with the desired interface coating, and then with carbon to partially densify the preform. A molten refractory metal is then infiltrated and reacts with the excess carbon to form the carbide matrix without damaging the fiber reinforcement. Infiltration occurs from the inside out as the molten metal fills virtually all the available void space. Densification to thick-section components required modification of the conventional process conditions, and the means by which the large amount of molten metal is introduced into the fiber preform. Modification of the low-temperature, ultraviolet-enhanced chemical vapor deposition process used to apply interface coatings to the fiber preform was also required to accommodate the high preform thickness. The thick-section CMC processing developed in this work proved to be invaluable for component development, fabrication, and testing in two complementary efforts. In a project for the Army, involving SiC/SiC blisk development, nominally 0.8 in. thick x 8 in. diameter (approx. 2 cm thick x 20 cm diameter) components were successfully infiltrated. Blisk hubs were machined using diamond-embedded cutting tools and successfully spin-tested. Good ply uniformity and extremely low residual porosity (41 ksi (approx. 283 MPa) flexural strength.

Recent RHIC in-situ coating technology developments

CERN Document Server

Hershcovitch, A.; Brennan, J.M.; Chawla, A.; Fischer, W.; Liaw, C-J; Meng, W.; Todd, R.; Custer, A.; Erickson, M.; Jamshidi, N.; Kobrin, P.; Laping, R.; Poole, H.J.; Jimenez, J.M.; Neupert, H.; Taborelli, M.; Yin-Vallgren, C.; Sochugov, N.

2013-04-22

To rectify the problems of electron clouds observed in RHIC and unacceptable ohmic heating for superconducting magnets that can limit future machine upgrades, we started developing a robotic plasma deposition technique for $in-situ$ coating of the RHIC 316LN stainless steel cold bore tubes based on staged magnetrons mounted on a mobile mole for deposition of Cu followed by amorphous carbon (a-C) coating. The Cu coating reduces wall resistivity, while a-C has low SEY that suppresses electron cloud formation. Recent RF resistivity computations indicate that 10 {\\mu}m of Cu coating thickness is needed. But, Cu coatings thicker than 2 {\\mu}m can have grain structures that might have lower SEY like gold black. A 15-cm Cu cathode magnetron was designed and fabricated, after which, 30 cm long samples of RHIC cold bore tubes were coated with various OFHC copper thicknesses; room temperature RF resistivity measured. Rectangular stainless steel and SS discs were Cu coated. SEY of rectangular samples were measured at ro...

Preparation and microwave shielding property of silver-coated carbonyl iron powder

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cao, Xiao Guo; Ren, Hao; Zhang, Hai Yan

2015-01-01

Highlights: • The silver-coated carbonyl iron powder is prepared by the electroless plating process. • The silver-coated carbonyl iron powder is a new kind of conductive filler. • The reflection and absorption dominate the shielding mechanism of the prepared powder. • Increasing the thickness of electroconductive adhesive will increase the SE. - Abstract: Electroless silver coating of carbonyl iron powder is demonstrated in the present investigation. The carbonyl iron powders are characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD) before and after the coating process. The relatively uniform and continuous silver coating is obtained under the given coating conditions. In this paper, the electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding mechanism of the silver-coated carbonyl iron powder is suggested. The reflection of silver coating and absorption of carbonyl iron powder dominate the shielding mechanism of the silver-coated carbonyl iron powder. The silver-coated carbonyl iron powders are used as conductive filler in electroconductive adhesive for electromagnetic interference shielding applications. The effect of the thickness of electroconductive adhesive on the shielding effectiveness (SE) is investigated. The results indicate that the SE increases obviously with the increase of the thickness of electroconductive adhesive. The SE of the electroconductive adhesive with 0.35 mm thickness is above 38 dB across the tested frequency range

Tribological behavior of dual-layer electroless-plated Ag–carbon nanotube coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Hyun-Dai; Penkov, Oleksiy V.; Kim, Dae-Eun

2013-01-01

The tribological behavior of electroless Ag-plated carbon nanotube (CNT) dual-layer coatings was assessed and compared to that of the pure CNT coating. The motivation was to protect the surface of CNT coatings from wear by depositing a thin, soft Ag coating. The methods used for coating CNTs and Ag were spin coating and electroless plating, respectively. These coating methods were selected based on their simplicity and cost effectiveness. Wear tests were conducted by sliding the coatings against a stainless steel ball under a 10–30 mN applied load. Results showed that the wear rate of the dual-layer coating was strongly dependent on the thickness of the Ag layer as well as the applied load. At a 10 mN load and an Ag thickness of 65 nm, the wear rate of the dual-layer coating was about 10 times less than that of the pure CNT coating. However, when the thickness of the Ag was decreased to 11.5 nm, the wear rate was significantly higher. Also, the steady-state friction coefficients of the CNT and the dual-layer Ag–CNT coatings were in the range of 0.65–0.73 for all loads. A model of the wear reduction mechanism of the dual-layer Ag–CNT coating was proposed. - Highlights: ► Dual-layer Ag–carbon nanotube (CNT) coatings were deposited on silicon wafer. ► Friction coefficient of the Ag–CNT coatings was about 0.65. ► Wear of Ag–CNT coatings depended on the thickness of Ag layer and the applied load. ► Wear rate of the Ag–CNT coating was 10-fold less than that of the pure CNT coating