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Title: Detection of intrinsic stress in cubic boron nitride films by x-ray absorption near-edge structure: Stress relaxation mechanisms by simultaneous ion implantation during growth

Journal Article · · Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics
 [1]; ;  [2]; ;  [3]
  1. Centro de Micro-Analisis de Materiales and Departamento de Fisica Aplicada, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, E-28049 Madrid (Spain)
  2. Institute of Ion Beam Physics and Materials Research, Forschungszentrum Dresden-Rossendorf, PF-510119, D-01314 Dresden (Germany)
  3. Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, E-28049 Madrid (Spain)

The bonding structure of cubic boron nitride (cBN) films with different levels of intrinsic stress (1-10 GPa) has been studied from the K-shell x-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES). The stress level was tuned by the damage induced from simultaneous medium-energy ion implantation (1-10 keV) during growth. The films show a dominant sp{sup 3} arrangement for damage values below a certain threshold, with an appreciable sp{sup 3} to sp{sup 2} transformation taking place above this limit. Interestingly, the degree of stress in sp{sup 3} structures is reflected in the B 1s spectral line shape, which progressively converges to that of stress-free cBN powder for increasing ion damage. These results indicate that stress buildup and release occur at a microscopic level. The changes in the spectral line shape are correlated with modifications in the electronic structure due to the presence of intrinsic stress and bond distortion within the cubic network, as predicted by density functional theory calculations. Our findings reveal the potential of XANES spectroscopy to detect stress in disordered BN systems.

OSTI ID:
21052743
Journal Information:
Physical Review. B, Condensed Matter and Materials Physics, Vol. 76, Issue 17; Other Information: DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevB.76.174111; (c) 2007 The American Physical Society; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1098-0121
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English