PREPARATION OF TiN FILMS BY N_2 ASSISTED Xe^+ ION BEAM ENHANCED DEPOSITION AND THEIR MECHANICAL PROPERTIES

A new method for preparation of hard TiN films has been developed by using electron beam evaporation-deposition of Ti and bombardment with 40 keV Xe^+ ion beam in a N_2 gas environment.The synthesized TiN films were superior to PVD and CVD ones in respects of improved adhesion to substrate and low preparing temperature.They exhibited good wear resistance and high hardness up to 2200 kg/mm^2.Some industrial applications have been reported.

A Study on Biocompatibility of TiN Thin Film Deposited on 317L Stainless Steel by Ion Beam Assisted Deposition

Titanium nitride ceramic thin films on 317L stainless steel(SS317L) substrate were deposited by Ion Beam Assisted Deposition (IBAD). The composition of the TiN films were investigated by Auger electron spectroscopy(AES), while the preferential orientation of the deposited film and phase composition were determined by X-ray diffraction(XRD). Adhesion was measured through Micro Scratch Tester(MST), and the corrosion resistance was evaluated by the electrochemical corrosion experiments in Hamk’s simulated human plasma. Specially, the biocompatibility of SS317L and TiN thin films were studied with fibroblast and marrow cell cultures in vitro. The results show that TiN thin films deposited on SS317L by means of IBAD can make remarkable changes on the structure and properties of the surface. At 37℃ Hank’s simulated plasma, free corrosion potential (E corr ) and breakthrough potential of pitting corrosion (E b) were both improved by coating TiN films . The culture results show that ion beam assisted TiN coatings exhibit a higher degree of cytocompatibility than that of SS317L and the cells grow better on those proper rough surfaces.

SYNTHESIS OF TiN FILM WITH ION BEAM ENHANCED DEPOSITION AND ITS PROPERTIES

The TiN films were synthesized with an alternate process of depositing titanium from a E-gun evaporation source and 40 keV N^+ bombarding onto the target.It is shown from the composi- tion analysis and structure investigations using RBS,AES,TEM,XPS and X-ray diffraction spectrum that the formed fihns are mainly composed of TiN phase with grain size of 30—40 nm and without preferred orientation,the nitrogen content in the film is much less than that in case without N^+ bombarding,and an intermixed region about 40 nm thick exists between the film and the substrate.The films exhibt high microhardness and low friction. ZHOU Jiankun,Ion Beam Laboratory,Shanghai Institute of Metallurgy,Academia Sinica, Shanghai 200050,China

CORROSION BEHAVIOR OF Cu-Nb AND Ni-Nb AMORPHOUS FILMS PREPARED BY ION BEAM ASSISTED DEPOSITION

The Cu25 Nb75 and Ni45Nb55 amorphous films with about 500nm thickness were prepared by ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD). Potentiodynamic polarization measurement was adopted to investigate the corrosion resistance of samples and the tests were carried out respectively in 1mol/L H2SO4 and NaOH aquatic solution. The corrosion performance of the amorphous films was compared with that of multilayered and pure Nb films. Experimental results indicated that the corrosion resistance of amorphous films was better than that of the corresponding multilayers and pure Nb films for both Ni-Nb system with negative heat of formation and Cu-Nb system with positive heat of formation.

Cr/CrN Compound Films Prepared by Ion Beam Assisted Deposition for Improving the Performance of Bearing Steel

With the development of industry, much attention has been paid to lengthening the life span of bearings. As reported in this paper, we investigated the Cr/CrN compound films formed on the specimens of W9Cr4V2Mo bearing steel by ion beam assisted deposition for improving the performance of bearing steels. The Vicker＇s microhardness, pin-on-disc, electrochemical measurement, XRD and SEM tests were used to characterize and analyze the treated samples. All results indicated that the mechanical properties of the treated samples were good, with the microhardness greater than that of the uncoated specimen, and the wear resistance, the passivity and pitting corrosion resistance increased considerably, the films possessed alternate Cr and CrN compound phases and produced different effects on the improvement of the performance of W9Cr4V2Mo bearing steels with different composing phases.

PREPARATION OF B-N FILMS BY ION BEAM ASSISTED DEPOSITION

BN films,synthesized by ion beam assisted deposition,were analysed by RBS,AES, IR spectra and TEM.Formatiom of c-BN phase was shown not only by IR spectra at absorption peak of 1100 cm^(-1),but also by electron diffraction pattern.The results of AES demonstrate an effect of N^+ implantation near the film surface.The deposited films consist of three layers,i.e.,ion implantation layer,film layer and mixed intermediatelayer, according to the difference of concentration.The micro-Knoop hardness of the film is 25—35 GPa.

Structural Characterization of Thin Epitaxial GaN Films on Polymer Polyimides Substrates by Ion Beam Assisted Deposition

The Epitaxial GaN thin films have been fabricated by Ion Beam Assisted Deposition (IBAD) process using nitrogen ions with hyperthermal energies on the polyimides polymer substrates. By applying with the Reflection of High-Energy Electron Diffraction (RHEED), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Quantum Design Physical Properties Measurement System, the behaviour of hexagonal GaN thin films is investigated. The result showed that the high quality of the deposited GaN layers kept appearing for many parameters depending on the temperature greatly. The behaviour of high quality of epitaxial GaN coating on the polyimide polymer substrates is a promising material for optoelectronic devices and semiconductor devices application.

Microanalyses of the hydroxyl-poly-calcium sodium phosphate coatings produced by ion beam assisted deposition

Thin calcium phosphate catings on titanium alloy substrates were prepared by Ar^+ ion beam assisted deposition(IBAD) from hydroxyl-poly-calcium sodium phosphate(HPPA) target.The coatings were analyzed by XRD,FTIR,XPS,These analyses revealed that the as-deposited films were amorphous or no apparent crystallinity.No distinct absorption band of the hydroxyl group was observed in FTIR spectra of the coatings but new absorption bands were presented for CO3^-2,The calcium to phosphorous ratio of these catings in different IBAD conditions varied from 0.46 to 3.36.

AMORPHIZATION IN Nb-M (M=Fe, Co, Ni) BINARY METAL SYSTEMS INDUCED BY ION BEAM ASSISTED DEPOSITION (IBAD)

Ion beam assisted deposition technique (IBAD) was utilized to systematically study amorphization in binary metal systems of Nb-magnetic element, i.e., Nb-M (M=Fe, Co or Ni). The glass forming range termed as Nb fraction of Nb-Fe system was about 34at.% to 56at.%, that of Nb-Co system was about 32at.% to 72at.% and that of Nb-Ni about 20at. % to 80at. %. Similar percolation patterns were found in amorphous alloy films. The fractal dimensions of the percolation patterns approach to 2, which indicates 2-D layer growth for amorphous phases. It is regarded that the assisted Ar+ ion beam during the deposition process plays important role for the 2-D layer growth. Some metastable crystalline phases were obtained in these three systems by IBAD, e.g., bcc supersaturated solid solutions in Nb-Fe and Nb-Co systems, fcc and hcp phases in Nb-Co and Nb-Ni systems. The formation and competing between the amorphous and the metastable crystalline phases were determined by both the phases' thermodynamic states in binary metal systems and kinetics during IBAD process.

Tribological Properties of DLC Film Prepared by C^+ Ion Beam-assisted Deposition (IBAD)

C ^＋ ion beam-assisted deposition was utilized to prepare deposit diamond-like carbon （ DLC ） film. With the help of a series of experiments such as Raman spectroscopy, FT-IR spectroscopy, AFM and nanoindentation , the DLC film has been recognized as hydrogenated DLC film and its tribologicul properties have been evaluated. The bull-on-disc testing results show that the hardness and the tribologicul properties of the DLC film produced by C^ ＋ ion beam- assisted deposition are improved significantly. DLC film produced by C ^＋ ion beam- assisted deposition is positive to have a prosperous tribologicul application in the near future.

Effects of SiO_2 and TiO_2 on resistance stabilities of flexible indium-tin-oxide films prepared by ion assisted deposition

Inorganic buffer layers such as SiO2 or TiO2 and transparent conductive indium-tin-oxide （ITO） films were prepared on polyethylene terephthalate （PET） substrates by ion assisted deposition （IAD） at room temperature, and the effects of SiO2 and TiOzon the bending resistance performance of flexible ITO films were investigated. The results show that ITO films with SiO2 or TiO2 buffer layer have better resistance stabilities compared to ones without the buffer layer when the ITO films are inwards bent at a bending radius more than 1.2 cm and when the ITO films are outwards bent at a bending radius from 0.8 cm to 1.2 cm. 1TO films with SiO2 buffer layer have better resistance sta- bilities compared to ones with TiO2 buffer layer after the ITO fdms are bent several hundreds of cycles at the same bending radius, for the adhesion of SiO2 is stronger than that of TiO2. The compressive stress resulted from inward bending leads to the formation of more defects in the ITO films compared with the tensile stress arising from outward bending. SiO2 and TiO2 buffer layers can effectively improve the crystallinity of ITO films in （400）, （440） directions.

Effect of ion-beam assisted deposition on the film stresses of TiO_2 and SiO_2 and stress control

Based on Hartmann-Shack sensor technique, an online thin film stress measuring system was introduced to measure the film stresses of TiO2 and SiO2, and comparison was made between the film stresses prepared respectively by the conventional process and the ion-beam assisted deposition. The effect of ion-beam assisted deposition on the film stresses of TiO2 and SiO2 was investigated in details, and the stress control methodologies using on-line adjustment and film doping were put forward. The results show that the film stress value of TiO2 prepared by ion-beam assisted deposition is 40 MPa lower than that prepared by conventional process, and the stress of TiO2 film changes gradually from tensile stress into compressive stress with increasing ion energy; while the film stress of SiO2 is a tensile stress under ion-beam assisted deposition because of the ion-beam sputtering effect, and the film refractive index decreases with increasing ion energy. A dynamic film stress control can be achieved through in-situ adjustment of the processing parameters based on the online film stress measuring technique, and the intrinsic stress of film can be effectively changed through film doping.

A Review of Ion Beam Assisted Deposition of Thermal Barrier Coatings

Ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) technology has been employed more and more in the fabrication of films and/or coatings,especially in the composite system.In the present work,after the introduction about IBAD,the latest development of IBAD in thermal barrier coatings (TBCs) is briefly summarized and the future trend is also concluded.

Hemocompatibility of DLC coatings synthesized by ion beam assisted deposition

Ion beam-assisted diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings have beenused for growing the human platelet, fibrinogen, and albumin in the control environment in order to assess their hemocompatibility. The hard carbon films were prepared on polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) at room temperature using ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD). Raman spectroscopic analysis proved that the carbon films on PMMA are diamond-like with a higher fraction of sp\+3 bonds in the structure of mixed sp\+2+sp\+3 bonding. The blood protein adsorption tests showed that DLC coatings can adsorb more albumin and are slightly more fibrinogen than the PMMA chosen as a control sample. The platelets adhered on DLC coatings were reduced significantly in number. These results indicate good hemocompatibility of DLC coatings.

The Effects of Annealing and Discharging on the Characteristics of MgO Thin Films Prepared by Ion Beam-Assisted Deposition as a Protective Layer of AC-PDP

This study investigated the effects of annealing and discharging on the characteristics of MgO thin films prepared by ion beam-assisted deposition as a protective layer of AC-PDP. By an annealing process at a temperature of 450 ℃ for more than three hours, the crystallinity of the deposited MgO films was improved, but the surface of the （200）-oriented MgO thin films in the vicinity of the discharge electrodes, especially on the inner sides of the electrodes, was subjected to crack formation to the compressive stress of The failure mechanism of the MgO films plus the additional （200）-oriented MgO films was due compressive stress induced by the differences in the coefficient of thermal expansion between the electrode and the dielectric layer. In the discharging process, all MgO films were eroded unevenly, and the serious erosion occurred near the edges of the discharge electrodes. ATM（atomic force microscopy） images show that the eroded surface of the （200）-oriented MgO thin film is smoother than that of the （111）-oriented fihn. Also, the （200）-oriented MgO thin film shows an improved ability to resist ion erosion compared to the （111）-oriented film.

Effect of bombarding energy on ion beam assisted deposited DLC film on UHMWPE

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films on ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene substrates were prepared at CHn+ ion bombarding energies of 200-1000eV at room temperature using ion beam assisted deposition technique. The wear tests exhibited a high wear resistance for all DLC films. X-ray photoelectron spectfoscopy and Raman spectroscopy analysis indicated that DLC film was amorphous with a characteristic high fracdion of sp3 bonds in the structure of mixed sp:2+ sp3 bonding at an optimal bombardingenergy of 600eV.

Effects of the ion-beam voltage on the properties of the diamond-like carbon thin film prepared by ion-beam sputtering deposition

Diamond-like carbon （DLC） thin film is one of the most widely used optical thin films. The fraction of chemical bondings has a great influence on the properties of the DLC film. In this work, DLC thin films are prepared by ion-beam sputtering deposition in Ar and CH4 mixtures with graphite as the target. The influences of the ion-beam voltage on the surface morphology, chemical structure, mechanical and infrared optical properties of the DLC films are investigated by atomic force microscopy （AFM）, Raman spectroscopy, nanoindentation, and Fourier transform infrared （FTIR） spec- troscopy, respectively. The results show that the surface of the film is uniform and smooth. The film contains sp2 and sp3 hybridized carbon bondings. The film prepared by lower ion beam voltage has a higher sp3 bonding content. It is found that the hardness of DLC films increases with reducing ion-beam voltage, which can be attributed to an increase in the fraction of sp3 carbon bondings in the DLC film. The optical constants can be obtained by the whole infrared optical spectrum fitting with the transmittance spectrum. The refractive index increases with the decrease of the ion-beam voltage, while the extinction coefficient decreases.

A New hcp Phase Formed in the Ni-Nb System during Ion-beam-assisted Deposition

The Ni80Nb20 films were prepared by ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) with various Ar+ ion energies. A phase evolution of fcc→amorphous→Ni+Nb→Ni+hcp was observed with the increasing of ion beam energy from 2 keV to 8 keV. When bombarded by Ar+ ions of 8 keV during deposition, a new crystalline phase with hcp structure was obtained, of which the lattice parameters are a=0.286 nm and c=0.483 nm, different from those of the similar A3B-type hcp phase previously reported. The experimental results were discussed in terms of thermodynamics and restricted kinetic conditions in the far-from-equilibrium process of IBAD. The formation of hep phase may also be related to the valence electron effect.

Study on Blood Compatibility of Carbon-Nitride Film Synthesized by Ion Beam Enhanced Deposition

In this paper, blood compatibility of carbonnitride film synthesized by ion beam enhanced deposition is studied. Clotting time measurement, platelet adhesion test and surface energy determination were performed to evaluate the interaction between blood and material. The results show that carbonnitride film has better blood compatibility than titanium, and may be promising in biomaterial filed.

Deposition of diamond like carbon films by using a single ion gun with varying beam source

Diamond like carbon films have been successfully deposited on the steel substrate, by using a single ion gun with varying beam source. The films may appear blue, yellow and transparent in color, which was found related to contaminants from the sample holder and could be avoided. The thickness of the films ranges from tens up to 200 nanometers, and the hardness is in the range 20 to 30 GPa. Raman analytical results reveal the films are in amorphous structure. The effects of different beam source on the films structure are further discussed.