Anatase thin films on glass from the chemical vapor deposition of titanium(IV) chloride and ethyl acetate

Thin (50-500 nm) films of TiO2 may be deposited on glass substrates by the atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition (APCVD) reaction of TiCl4 with ethyl acetate at 400600 C. The TiO2 films are exclusively in the form of anatase, as established by Raman microscopy and glancing angle X-ray diffraction. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy gave a 1:2 Ti:O ratio with Ti 2P(3/2) at 458.6 eV and O 1s is at 530.6 eV. The water droplet contact angle drops from 60degrees to

Multiple self-aligned iron nanowires by a dual selective chemical vapor deposition process

We have demonstrated a self-aligned process to fabricate organized iron nanowires on a planarized surface with wire dimensions down to 50 nm. Polishing was used to expose an alternating silicon silicon dioxide edge and a dual selective metal deposition process produced the nanowires. The initial selective deposition produced a tungsten layer on the exposed polysilicon regions. The discovery that selective chemical vapor deposition of iron from Fe(CO)(5) precursor on dielectric surfaces over tungsten surfaces is the key factor that enables the self-alignment of the iron nanowires. Dimensions of the wires are determined by the thickness of the thermal oxide. (c) 2007 The Electrochemical Society.

Multilayered graphene films prepared at moderate temperatures using energetic physical vapour deposition

Carbon films were energetically deposited onto copper and nickel foil using a filtered cathodic vacuum arc deposition system. Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and UV–visible spectroscopy showed that graphene films of uniform thickness with up to 10 layers can be deposited onto copper foil at moderate temperatures of 750 C. The resulting films, which can be prepared at high deposition rates, were comparable to graphene films grown at 1050 C using chemical vapour deposition (CVD). This difference in growth temperature is attributed to dynamic annealing which occurs as the film grows from the energetic carbon flux. In the case of nickel substrates, it was found that graphene films can also be prepared at moderate substrate temperatures. However much higher carbon doses were required, indicating that the growth mode differs between substrates as observed in CVD grown graphene. The films deposited onto nickel were also highly non uniform in thickness, indicating that the grain structure of the nickel substrate influenced the growth of graphene layers. 

Modifications of Surface Properties of Beta Ti by Laser Gas Diffusion Nitriding

Beta-type Ti-alloy is a promising biomedical implant material as it has a low Young’s modulus and is also known to have inferior surface hardness. Various surface treatments can be applied to enhance the surface hardness. Physical vapor deposition and chemical vapor deposition are two examples of this but these techniques have limitations such as poor interfacial adhesion and high distortion. Laser surface treatment is a relatively new surface modification method to enhance the surface hardness but its application is still not accepted by the industry. The major problem of this process involves surface melting which results in higher surface roughness after the laser surface treatment. This paper will report the results achieved by a 100 W continuous wave (CW) fiber laser for laser surface treatment without the surface being melted. Laser processing parameters were carefully selected so that the surface could be treated without surface melting and thus the surface finish of the component could be maintained. The surface and microstructural characteristics of the treated samples were examined using x-ray diffractometry, optical microscopy, three-dimensional surface profile and contact angle measurements, and nanoindentation test.

Photocatalytically active gamma-WO3 films from the atmospheric pressure CVD of WOCl4 with ethyl acetate or ethanol

Communication: Coatings Of Yellow gamma-WO3 are deposited on glass by APCVD of WOCl4 and either ethanol or ethylacetate at 350-450degreesC. The yellow films show significant photoactivity for the destruction of stearic acid, and photoinduced superhydrophilicity. Preparation of blue reduced WO2.92 films from the same reaction at higher substrate temperatures of 500-600degreesC (Figure) is also found to be possible. These films show no photoactivity, but can be converted into the fully stoichiometric photoactive form simply by heating in air.

Ultra-broadband Polarisers Based on Metastable Free-Standing Aligned Carbon Nanotube Membranes

A carbon nanotube free-standing linearly dichroic polariser is developed using solid-state extrusion. Membrane cohesion is experimentally and numerically demonstrated to derive from inter-tube van der Waals interactions in this family of planar metastable morphologies, controlled by the chemical vapour deposition conditions. Ultra-broadband polarisation (400 nm – 2.5 mm) is shown and corroborated by effective medium and full numerical simulations.

Modifications of Surface Properties of Beta Ti by Laser Surface Treatment

β -type Ti-alloy is a promising biomedical implant material as it has a low Young’s modulus but is also known to have inferior surface hardness. Various surface treatments can be applied to enhance the surface hardness. Physical vapour deposition (PVD) and chemical vapour deposition (CVD) are two examples of this but these techniques have limitations such as poor interfacial adhesion and high distortion. Laser surface treatment is a relatively new surface modification method to enhance the surface hardness but its application is still not accepted by the industry. The major problem of this process involves surface melting which results in higher surface roughness after the laser surface treatment. This paper will report the results achieved by a 100 W CW fiber laser for laser surface treatment without the surface being melted. Laser processing parameters were carefully selected so that the surface could be treated without surface melting and thus the surface finish of the component could be maintained. The surface and microstructural characteristics of the treated samples were examined using X-ray diffractometry (XRD), optical microscopy (OM), 3-D surface profile & contact angle measurements and nano-indentation test.