Abstract
SiC-rich nano-layers were produced at room temperature by applying ion beam mixing of various C/Si multilayer structures using argon and xenon ions with energy in the range of 40–120 keV and fluences between 0.25 and 3 × 1016 ions/cm2. The mechanical behavior of the layers was characterized by scratch test. The scratching resistance of the ion mixed samples has been measured by standard scratch test applying an atomic-force microscope with a diamond-coated tip (radius < 15 nm) and they were compared to that measured on Si single crystal. The applied load varied in the range of 4–18 μN. The scratching resistance of the samples correlated with the effective areal density of the SiC; with increasing effective areal density the scratch depth decreases. Above sufficiently high effective areal density of SiC the scratch resistance (hardness) of the produced layer was somewhat higher than that of single crystal silicon. Previously it has been shown that such layers have excellent corrosion resistive properties as well. These findings allow to tune and design the mechanical and chemical properties of the SiC protective coatings.
Highlights
Thin films serving as protective coatings in different environments are essentially important in various applications
The scratch resistance of the irradiated sample together with a Si single crystal have been measured by standard scratch test applying an atomic force microscope (AFM) with a diamond-coated tip
The scratch resistance of Journal Pre-proof the irradiated sample correlated with the effective areal density of the Silicon carbide (SiC); with increasing effective areal density the scratch depth decreased
Summary
Thin films serving as protective coatings in different environments are essentially important in various applications. Silicon carbide (SiC) is a material with many advantageous properties like biocompatibility, high heat resistance, high wear resistance, good thermal conductivity and inertness in corrosive environments. Due to these properties among others it is often used as a protective coating in harsh and in biological environment [1,2,3,4,5]. Laboriante et al [2] deposited 50 nm thick SiC on Si (100) using low pressure CVD at 780 °C These above works applied elevated temperatures and the thickness of the produced SiC was mostly above 100 nm
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