Structural properties of sputter-deposited nanocrystalline Ni thin films

Abstract

For this study, Ni thin films were deposited on a glass substrate by using 200, 300, and 400 W direct-current magnetron sputtering method for observing the effect of sputtering power on the structural properties of thin films. Grain size, crystallinity, orientation, and texture of the deposited thin films were observed and evaluated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. According to XRD analysis, all thin films presented crystalline atomic structure. Furthermore, the effect of texture on the structural properties were observed using strain analysis and grain sizes that were calculated by Scherrer’s method and Williamson-Hall analysis. The analysis revealed that the grain size of sputter-deposited thin films increased linearly with respect to the increasing sputtering power. Additionally, the elastic modulus and indentation hardness of the samples were measured by nanoindentation method, and the results were evaluated in terms of grain size and texture. The highest grain size, 7.30 nm, was observed on a 400 W sputter-deposited sample, which also had the highest elastic modulus and indentation hardness values as 98 and 3.6 GPa, respectively.

Chiral Sulfur Nanosheets for Dual-Selective Inhibition of Gram-Positive Bacteria

“…51-2290) (Figure S8), manifesting their high purity. Notably, the diffraction peaks are shifted to the left compared to sublimated sulfur, which may be a result of the expanded interplanar spacing of sulfur during liquid-phase exfoliation . Considering that the antibacterial activity of sulfur is closely associated with a negative surface charge, small size, ultrathin structure, and good dispersity in aqueous solution, chiral S-NSs are expected to serve as effective antibacterial agents.…”