Structure and mechanical properties of Ag–Cu films prepared by vacuum codeposition of Au and Cu

Abstract

We have studied in detail the structure formation process in Ag-Cu films in the course of vacuum deposition of the metals, followed by thermal annealing, and compared the hardness values of nanocrystalline Ag, Cu, and Ag-Cu films. Under equivalent deposition conditions, the hardness of the Ag-Cu films pro duced by codeposition of the metals exceeds that of the Ag and Cu films. The high hardness of the mixed phase Ag-Cu films is due to their amorphous-nanocrystalline structure. We have determined the limiting grain size above which plastic deformation follows a dislocation mechanism.

One-Step Synthesis of Ag–Cu Bimetallic Nanoparticles on p-Si Photoelectrodes for Solar-Driven CO2 Reduction

“…The diffractogram of Cu in Cu/p-Si shows a similar pattern, with peaks appearing at 2θ values of 43.5°, 50.7°, 74.14°, and 90.2°, corresponding to the (111), (200), (220), and (311) planes. , The two powders exhibit face-centered cubic (FCC) structures with a polycrystalline nature (broad XRD peaks; see Figure b). The pattern of the synthesized Ag 50 Cu 50 /p-Si powder contains the peaks of both pure metals (together with those of the support Si), showing a typical phase-separated crystalline structure. , These can be the pure Ag and Cu phases or some α (Ag-rich) and β (Cu-rich) phases (FCC α and β solid solutions can reach at high temperature a maximum solubility of 14.1 atom % Cu and 4.9 atom % Ag, respectively). A closer look at the region of the most intense peaks is shown in Figure b.…”

“…The estimated values for Ag and Cu in Ag 50 Cu 50 are 15 and 19 nm, respectively, lower than those of pure metals (approximately 20 and 30 nm for Ag and Cu crystallites, respectively). Thus, co-depositing Ag and Cu reduces the crystallite size to some extent. , …”

“…The pattern of the synthesized Ag 50 Cu 50 /p-Si powder contains the peaks of both pure metals (together with those of the support Si), showing a typical phase-separated crystalline structure. 26,28 These can be the pure Ag and Cu phases or some α (Ag-rich) and β (Cu-rich) phases (FCC α and β solid solutions can reach at high temperature a maximum solubility of 14.1 atom % Cu and 4.9 atom % Ag, respectively 29 ). A closer look at the region of the most intense peaks is shown in Figure 3b.…”

“…Thus, co-depositing Ag and Cu reduces the crystallite size to some extent. 28,31 Further analysis of the structure and bulk composition of the bimetallic NPs was performed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Figure 4 The low magnification TEM images in Figure 4a−c show typical Ag x Cu 100−x NPs agglomerates.…”

Metallic Glass Nano-composite Thin Films for High-performance Functional Applications

“…[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Sputtering represents a versatile technique for producing homogeneous thin films of immiscible alloys with varying composition and tunable properties. 14,15 While there are a few studies on the structure as a function of composition for silver-copper alloys by far-from-equilibrium processing, 13,[16][17][18] there are no reports on the physics of electrical transport in this immiscible system of immense technological importance. Fundamental understanding of electrical transport properties in Ag-Cu alloys has the potential to open up a new paradigm of highly conducting metals for deeply scaled interconnects, energy conversion technologies, and micro-/nano-electromechanical systems (MEMS/NEMS).…”