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Microstructural evolution of ion-irradiated sol–gel-derived thin films

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Abstract

The effects of ion irradiation on the microstructural evolution of sol–gel-derived silica-based thin films were examined by combining the results from Fourier transform infrared, Raman, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, and elastic recoil detection. Variations in the chemical composition, density, and structure of the constituent phases and interfaces were studied, and the results were used to propose a microstructural model for the irradiated films. It was discovered that the microstructure of the films after ion irradiation and decomposition of the starting organic materials consisted of isolated hydrogenated amorphous carbon clusters within an amorphous and carbon-incorporated silica network. A decrease in the bond angle of Si–O–Si bonds in amorphous silica network along with an increase in the concentration of carbon-rich SiO x C y tetrahedra were the major structural changes caused by ion irradiation. In addition, hydrogen release from free carbon clusters was observed with increasing ion energy and fluence.

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Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the National Science Foundation for providing financial support for this project (Grants Nos. OISE-0352377 and OISE-0128050). The financial support from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft in Transregionaler Sonderforschungsbereich SFB/TR4 is also gratefully acknowledged. This work was partially performed at the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies, an Office of Science User Facility operated for U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. Los Alamos National Laboratory, an affirmative action equal opportunity employer, is operated by Los Alamos National Security LLC, for the National Nuclear Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC52-06NA25396.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA

    S. A. Shojaee, Y. Qi & D. A. Lucca

  2. Materials Science and Technology Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, 87545, USA

    Y. Q. Wang

  3. Stiftung Institut für Werkstofftechnik, 28359, Bremen, Germany

    A. Mehner

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10853_2017_1386_MOESM1_ESM.pdf

The Raman spectra of the ion-irradiated and heat-treated films without carbon related D and G Raman modes (Fig. S.1) and the XPS Si 2p spectra of the N2+ irradiated films with fluences of 1013 and 5 × 1015 ions cm- −2 (Fig. S.2). (PDF 257 kb)

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Shojaee, S.A., Qi, Y., Wang, Y.Q. et al. Microstructural evolution of ion-irradiated sol–gel-derived thin films. J Mater Sci 52, 12109–12120 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-017-1386-x

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