Premium
Temperature effects of sputtering of Langmuir–Blodgett multilayers
Author(s) -
Mao Dan,
Brenes Daniel A.,
Lu Caiyan,
Wucher Andreas,
Winograd Nicholas
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
surface and interface analysis
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.52
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1096-9918
pISSN - 0142-2421
DOI - 10.1002/sia.5082
Subject(s) - langmuir–blodgett film , sputtering , materials science , langmuir probe , langmuir , monolayer , chemistry , nanotechnology , plasma , thin film , physics , plasma diagnostics , nuclear physics , aqueous solution
Time‐of‐flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF‐SIMS) and atomic force microscopy are used to characterize a wedge‐shaped crater eroded by a 40‐keV C 60 + cluster ion beam on an organic thin film of 402 nm of barium arachidate multilayers prepared by using the Langmuir–Blodgett technique. Sample cooling at 90 K was used to help reduce chemical damage, to improve depth resolution and to maintain constant erosion rate during depth profiling. The film was characterized at 90, 135, 165, 205, 265 and 300 K. It is shown that sample cooling to 205 K or lower helps to inhibit erosion rate decay, whereas at 300 and 265 K, the erosion rate continues to drop after 250 nm of erosion, reaching approximately half of the initial value after removal of the entire film. Depth profiles are acquired from the SIMS images of the eroded wedge crater. The results suggest that sample cooling only slightly improves the altered layer thickness but eliminates the decrease in erosion rate observed at temperatures higher than 265 K. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.