Heavy ion irradiation induced effects in Ni3N/Al bilayers

Abstract

The article reports on the Xe ion beam irradiation studies of Ni3N/Al bilayers at 80 K. The ion-induced modifications were monitored by Rutherford backscattering (RBS), resonant nuclear reaction analysis (RNRA), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). We found preferential loss of nitrogen from the surface region of the Ni3N top layers. The surface roughness Delta (sigmas) and the interface broadening variance Delta sigma (2)(int), increase linearly with the Xe ion fluence Phi. The experimental mixing rate of Delta sigma (2)/Phi = 1.8 nm(4) is explained by considering an enhancement of ballistic mixing due to chemical reactions at the interface. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.