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The Effects of Gas Composition on the Ion Milling of Cross Sectional Tem Samples Containing Carbon Layers

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

Scott D. Walck ,
Frank J. Scheltens  and
Josekutty J. Nainaparampil
Scott D. Walck
Affiliation:
Materials Directorate, Wright Laboratory, WPAFB, OH 45433-7750
Frank J. Scheltens
Affiliation:
UES, Inc., Dayton, OH 45432
Josekutty J. Nainaparampil
Affiliation:
Systran, Inc., Dayton, OH 45432
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Abstract

During conventional ion milling of carbon thin films on Si or SiC, the carbon has a much slower milling rate than the Si, SiC, and the epoxy resin. As a result, the substrates were thinned much more rapidly than the carbon films. A solution suggested by several subscribers to the Microscopy Society of America's Microscopy Listserver among others was to reactively ion mill the samples with a 20–25% oxygen-argon gas mixture. Is this the best inert gas to use? Neon has a mass that is between Si and C and therefore should impart a higher energy transfer to the C atoms than Ar. To determine whether the mass of the inert gas is important in balancing the milling rates, four gases were used to ion mill samples of a PLD DLC film with a nominal thickness of 0.5 μm. For improved adhesion of the films to the Si substrate, an initial 2 nm of Ti and a nominal 0.5 μm thick layer of TiC was grown using a combined PLD and magnetron sputtering technique prior to the PLD DLC.1,2 The gases were 100%Ar, 100%Ne, 75%Ar-25%O2, and 75%Ne-25%O2. Using the Tripod Polisher, the samples were polished flat using typical conditions and the surfaces examined by atomic force microscopy and compared. TEM samples prepared by single-sided dimpling prior to ion milling were prepared using the gas composition which gave the best results with respect to the AFM. A methodology is established for determining ion milling conditions for samples having layers of different compositions.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 480: Symposium Z – Specimen Preparation for Transmission Electron Microscopy…IV , 1997 , 137
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1997

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References

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