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Introducing a single silicon nanowire with a known orientation and dimensions to a specific layout location constitutes a major challenge. The challenge becomes even more formidable, if one chooses to realize the task in a monolithic fashion with an extreme topography, a characteristic of microsystems. The need for such a monolithic integration is fueled by the recent surge in the use of silicon nanowires as functional building blocks in various electromechanical and optoelectronic applications. This challenge is addressed in this work by introducing a top-down, silicon-on-insulator technology. The technology provides a pathway for obtaining well-controlled silicon nanowires along with microstructures up to a three-order-of-magnitude scale difference. A two-step etching process is developed, where the first shallow etch defines a nanoscale protrusion on the wafer surface. After applying a conformal protection on the protrusion, a deep etch step is carried out forming the surrounding microscale features. A minimum nanowire cross-section of 35 nm by 168 nm is demonstrated in the presence of an etch depth of 10 m. All cross-sectional features are characterized via transmission electron microscopy and linked to specific process steps. The technology allows control on all dimensional aspects along with the exact location and orientation of the silicon nanowire.
A cross-section sample of the friction film formed on top of a disc during a brake testing procedure against Polymer Matrix Composite pads was made using a Focused Ion Beam (FIB). The FIB-cut sampled the "third body" magnetite layer and the upper part of the cast iron disc containing a graphite flake. Images of the sample examined in a Energy Filtered Transmission Electron Microscope captured an instant view of the important role of the graphite flakes in magnetite formation, where few layer graphene batches interacted with the iron border promoting cracking and oxidation along the graphite–iron interface. The resulting nano-scale interlayer of magnetite and strongly disordered graphite formed a third body which yielded adequate brake performance.
A gray cast iron disc, which had been submitted to a heavy duty automotive brake test, was examined with energy filtered transmission electron microscopy. A graphite flake in a convenient angular position showed the shear interaction of graphite layers with the iron matrix in nano-scale resolution. Atomic layers of graphite were wedged into the ferritic bulk, allowing the entrance of oxygen and the subsequent formation of magnetite. The exfoliated few-layer graphene batches deformed heavily when forced into the matrix. When Raman spectra from the disc surface, which show distinctive carbonaceous bands, were compared with Raman spectra from graphite subjected to deformation in a shaker mill with different milling times, it could be seen that the shear stress on the brake surface was much more effective to induce disorder than the milling, where compressive and impact forces had been additionally exerted on the sample. During shear load the high anisotropy of elastic modulus in the graphite crystalline structure and the low adhesion between graphite basal planes allowed the exfoliation of wrinkled few-layer grapheme batches, causing the formation of more defect related Raman bands than the mechanical stress during high-energy milling.
Tribofilms formed during dry sliding usually exhibit a nanocrystalline structure and complicated composition. In the present study, tribofilms consisting mainly of a solid lubricant, namely graphite nanoparticles, are considered. Systems providing such tribofilms are candidates for anti-friction applications. Since sliding action always leads to mixing of the materials at both sides of the tribological interface, it was of major interest to study the impact of different amounts of a hard constituent, SiC in the considered case, within the soft matrix systematically. Furthermore, the impact of normal pressure was considered. A mechanically mixed layer was observed for the whole range of normal pressures and SiC volume fractions. The calculated coefficient of friction decreased significantly with increasing thickness of this layer but was only marginally affected by SiC volume fraction, which is good news for anti-friction applications.
Multi-layer ohmic contact systems such as Au/Pt/Ti/Pt on III-V double layers such as n-InGaP/p+-GaAs are of considerable technological relevance, e.g. for heterojunction bipolar transistors. The paper shows that such contacts can be effectively reacted through the InGaP layer and exhibit very good contact resistances (0.1 O mm) to the base layer if the thickness of the first Pt layer is properly matched to the thickness of the contacted InGaP layer. Interdiffusion and phase formation associated with the annealing processes are studied by cross-sectional analytical transmission electron microscopy, thin-film x-ray diffraction and Auger electron spectroscopy depth profiling. Thermal ageing experiments up to 400 °C show good electrical stability. Device related reliability tests do not show any degradation effect related to this novel base contact.
A new type of test sample for the determination of lateral resolution in surface analysis is presented. The certified reference material BAM-L002 Nanoscale strip pattern for length calibration and testing of lateral resolution is an embedded cross-section of epitaxially grown layers of AlxGa1-xAs and InxGa1-xAs on GaAs substrate. The surface of the sample provides a flat pattern with strip widths of 0.4-500 nm. The combination of gratings, isolated narrow strips and sharp edges of wide strips offers improved possibilities for the calibration of a length scale, the determination of lateral resolution and the optimization of instrument settings. The feasibility of the reference material for an analysis of lateral resolution is demonstrated for SIMS.
Low-cycle fatigue experiments under combined axial-torsional loading have been carried out on alloy 800 H tubular specimens at room temperature. In comparison with proportional loading, an extra cyclic hardening effect produced by nonproportional loading was observed. The microstructure study highlights the fact that the dislocation arrangement under proportional loading is significantly different from that under nonproportional loading. Mechanical twinning was found in specimens cycled under axial loading and nonproportional loading. It is suggested that mechanical twinning depends not only on shear stress but also on normal stress on the plane of maximum shearing. The extra hardening can be interpreted in terms of the deformation microstructure. Fatigue cracking was initiated generally at the specimen surfaces along the plane of maximum shearing, but under nonproportional loading cracks were found also in the bulk of the specimens. Transcrystalline crack propagation was observed in the specimens after proportional and nonproportional LCF tests.
The size, surface charge and agglomeration state of nanoparticles under physiological conditions are fundamental parameters to be determined prior to their application in toxicological studies. Although silica-based materials are among the most promising candidates for biomedical applications, more systematic studies concerning the characterisation before performing toxicological studies are necessary. This interest is based on the necessity to elucidate the mechanisms affecting its toxicity. We present here TEM, SAXS and SMPS as a combination of methods allowing an accurate determination of single nanoparticle sizes. For the commercial material, Ludox TM50 single particle sizes around 30 nm were found in solution. DLS measurements of single particles are rather affected by polydispersity and particles concentration but this technique is useful to monitor their agglomeration state. Here, the influence of nanoparticle concentration, ionic strength (IS), pH and bath sonication on the agglomeration behaviour of silica particles in solution has been systematically investigated. Moreover, the colloidal stability of silica particles in the presence of BSA has been investigated showing a correlation between silica and protein concentrations and the formation of agglomerates. Finally, the colloidal stability of silica particles in standard cell culture medium has been tested, concluding the necessity of surface modification in order to preserve silica as primary particles in the presence of serum. The results presented here have major implications on toxicity investigations because silica agglomeration will change the probability and uptake mechanisms and thereby may affect toxicity.
The chemical and microstructural changes occurring during braking simulation tests at the surface of a conventional brake pad material were investigated mainly by scanning and transmission electron microscopy and surface analytical techniques. It can be shown that patches of a third body material develop, comprising a compositional mix of all constituents of the pad and iron oxides from the disk. Milled debris particles still have the crystal structure of barite, the major phase of the pad material, but the grain size is reduced drastically to the nanometer scale. The major wear mechanism is delamination of filler particles from the organic binder, supported by local degradation of the phenolic resin during asperity heating. Quartz crystals are preserved thereby adopting the function of primary contact areas.
A model system was used to simulate the properties of tribofilms which form during automotive braking. The model system was prepared by ball milling of a blend of 70 vol.% iron oxides, 15 vol.% molybdenum disulfide and 15 vol.% graphite. The resulting mixture was characterized by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and various transmission electron microscopic (TEM) methods, including energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS), high resolution investigations (HRTEM) with corresponding simulation of the HRTEM images, diffraction methods such as scanning nano-beam electron diffraction (SNBED) and selected area electron diffraction (SAED). It could be shown that the ball milling caused a reduction of the grain size of the initial components to the nanometer range. Sometimes even amorphization or partial break-down of the crystal structure was observed for MoS2 and graphite. Moreover, chemical reactions lead to a formation of surface coverings of the nanoparticles by amorphous material, molybdenum oxides, and iron sulfates as derived from XPS.
The formation of a third body layer on a conventional friction material during braking tests was studied in some detail using TEM, SEM, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) techniques. Plate shaped micro-contact areas representing a compositional mix of all components of the tribocouple and exhibiting a nanocry stalline microstructure were identified after a run-in period.
Results are reported from a pilot study under the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance (CCQM) to compare measurements of and resolve any relevant measurement issues in, the amount of thermal SiO2 oxide on (100) and (111) orientation Si wafer substrates in the thickness range 1.5 - 8 nm. As a result of the invitation to participate in this activity, 45 sets of measurements have been made in different laboratories using 10 analytical methods: medium-energy ion scattering spectrometry (MEIS), nuclear reaction analysis (NRA), RBS, elastic backscattering spectrometry (EBS), XPS, SIMS, ellipsometry, grazing-incidence x-ray reflectrometry (GIXRR), neutron reflectometry and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The measurements are made on separate sets of 10 carefully prepared samples, all of which have been characterised by a combination of ellipsometry and XPS using carefully established reference conditions and reference parameters.
The results have been assessed against the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) data and all show excellent linearity. The remaining data sets correlate with the NPL data with average root-mean-square scatters of 0.15 nm, half being better than 0.1 nm and a few at or better than 0.05 nm. Each set of data allows a relative scaling constant and a zero thickness offset to be determined. Each method has an inherent zero thickness offset between 0 nm and 1 nm and it is these offsets, measured here for the first time, that have caused many problems in the past. There are three basic classes of offset: water and carbonadeous contamination equivalent to ~1 nm as seen by ellipsometry; adsorbed oxygen mainly from water at an equivalent thickness of 0.5 nm as seen by MEIS, NRA, RBS and possibly GIXRR; and no offset as seen by XPS using the Si 2p peaks. Each technique has a different uncertainty for the scaling constant and consistent results have been achieved. X-Ray photoelectron spectroscopy has large uncertainties for the scaling constant but a high precision and, critically, if used correctly, has zero offset. Thus, a combination of XPS and the other methods allows the XPS scaling constant to be determined with low uncertainty, traceable via the other methods. XPS laboratories returning results early were invited to test a new reference procedure. All showed very significant improvements. The reference attenuation lengths thus need scaling by 0.986 ± 0.009 (at an expansion factor of 2) deduced from the data for the other methods. Several other methods have small offsets and, to the extent that these can be shown to be constant or measurable, then these methods will also show low uncertainty. Recommendations are provided for parameters for XPS, MEIS, RBS and NRA to improve their accuracy.
Determination of the elastic behavior of silicon nanowires within a scanning electron microscope
(2016)
Three-point bending tests were performed on double-anchored, <110> silicon nanowire samples inside a scanning electron microscope (SEM) via a micromanipulator equipped with a piezo-resistive force sensor. Representing the upper and lower boundaries achievable in a consistent manner, silicon nanowires with widths of 35 nm and 74 nm and a height of 168 nm were fabricated. The nanowires were obtained monolithically along with their 10-m-tall supports through a top-down fabrication approach involving a series of etching processes. Hence, no interface compliance was introduced between supports and nanowires. Exact nanowire dimensions and cross-sectional features were determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) following sample preparation through focused ion beam (FIB) machining. Conducting the experiments inside an SEM chamber further raised the opportunity of the direct observation of any deviation from ideal loading conditions such as twisting, which was taken into consideration in simulations. Measured force-displacement behavior was observed to exhibit close resemblance to simulation results obtained by finite element modeling, when the bulk value of 169 GPa was taken as the modulus of elasticity for <110> silicon. Hence, test results show neither any size effect nor evidence of residual stresses for the considered nanoscale objects. The increased effect of the native oxide with reduced nanowire dimensions was captured as well. Thus this very simple in-situ testing method was found to be an alternative to elaborate AFM measurements on geometrically formidable nanostructures. The results demonstrate the applicability of the developed fabrication approach to the incorporation of silicon nanowires in functional micromechanical devices.