Microstructure and composition evolution of He Charged solid-gas Nanocomposite Films of Different Matrix Elements During Thermal Annealing in Vacuum

Sputtering of cobalt, silicon and zirconium in a helium magnetron discharge (MS) is reported as a bottom-up procedure to obtain He-charged films (i.e. 4He and 3He filled nanopores encapsulated in the matrix material). Composition and microstructural analyses are presented from ion beam analysis (IBA...

Descripción completa

Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Fernández, Asunción, Jiménez de Haro, María del Carmen, Hufschmidt, Dirk, Montes, Olga, Sauvage, Thierry, Ferrer Fernández, Francisco Javier, Caillard, Amaël, Brault, Pascal, Thomann, Anne Lise
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Universidad de Sevilla (US)
Repositorio:idUS. Depósito de Investigación de la Universidad de Sevilla
OAI Identifier:oai:idus.us.es:11441/177016
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/11441/177016
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-06889-8
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Helium assisted magnetron sputtering of Co Si and Zr
He and He charged thin films
Helium release by thermal annealing
Nanobubbles and nanopores
Microstructural characterization
IBA analysis
Descripción
Sumario:Sputtering of cobalt, silicon and zirconium in a helium magnetron discharge (MS) is reported as a bottom-up procedure to obtain He-charged films (i.e. 4He and 3He filled nanopores encapsulated in the matrix material). Composition and microstructural analyses are presented from ion beam analysis (IBA) and scanning and transmission electron microscopies (SEM and TEM). Helium desorption was investigated by IBA in a dedicated chamber for “in situ” thermal evolution in vacuum. The simultaneous recording of the helium and matrix-element signals shows different behaviors of the different matrix elements (i.e. Co, Si and Zr) and deposition conditions (i.e., DC or RF discharge modes and dynamic or quasistatic vacuum). Effusion, blistering, delamination and flaking have been observed for the different samples leading to the formation of nano-porous/nanostructured thin films. The methodology is being envisaged as a process for nanostructured thin-films fabrication with potential applications.