Synthesis and characterization of Zr2Al3C4 thin films

Abstract

Zr2Al3C4 is an inherently nanolaminated carbide where layers of ZrC alternate with layers of Al3C2. Characterization of bulk samples has shown it has improved damage tolerance and oxidation resistance compared to its binary counterpart ZrC. Though a potential candidate for coatings applied for use in harsh environments, thin films of Zr2Al3C4 have not been reported. We have synthesized epitaxial Zr2Al3C4 thin films by pulsed cathodic arc deposition from three elemental cathodes, and have studied the effect of incident atomic flux ratio, deposition temperature, and choice of substrate on material quality. X-ray diffraction analysis showed that Zr2Al3C4 of the highest structural quality was obtained for growth on 4 H-SiC(001) substrate at 800 °C. Also, suppression of competing phases could be achieved on α-Al2O3(001) at elevated substrate temperatures. Very similar growth behavior to that of the well-known Mn+1AXn phasesAl supersaturation, binary carbide intergrowth and high sensitivity to choice of substrate -indicates a strong connection between the two families of materials, despite their differences in structure and in chemistry.

Elastic, mechanical, electronic, and defective properties of Zr–Al–C nanolaminates from first principles

“…Generally speaking, as the intercalated Al layers increase, the formation energy of V Zr and V Al increases, while the formation energy of V C decreases. It is reported that the Zr–Al–C nanolaminates are the potential candidates for nuclear fuel cladding materials . A direct evaluation on the radiation resistance of the Zr–Al–C nanolaminates is difficult from the first‐principles calculation due to the complexity of the irradiation process.…”

“…For (ZrC) n Al 3 C 2 (n = 2, 3, 4), the Zr-C bond adjacent to the Al-C slab with the C atom intercalated in the Zr layers is the strongest, but the one with the C atom intercalated between the Zr layer and Al layer is the weakest. However, the situation for (ZrC) n Al 4 The available theoretical values for ZrC are listed in parentheses. (The atom sites are labeled in Figure 1).…”

“…It is reported that the Zr-Al-C nanolaminates are the potential candidates for nuclear fuel cladding materials. 4,65 A direct evaluation on the radiation resistance of the Zr-Al-C nanolaminates is difficult from the first-principles calculation due to the complexity of the irradiation process. The defect properties could affect the irradiation resistance of a material in many aspects.…”

“…Bulk Zr 2 Al 3 C 4 was first reported by Schuster and Nowotny in 1980. And then Zr 2 Al 3 C 4 thin film was synthesized through pulsed cathodic arc deposition by Lai et al in 2015. Zr 3 Al 3 C 5 ‐based composites were fabricated by Hashimoto et al in 1998, meanwhile these composites were reported to display satisfactory oxidation resistance.…”

“…Bulk Zr 2 Al 3 C 4 was first reported by Schuster and Nowotny 3 in 1980. And then Zr 2 Al 3 C 4 thin film was synthesized through pulsed cathodic arc deposition by Lai et al 4 synthesized and characterized by X-ray powder diffraction by Sugiura et al 7 Zr 2 AlC and Zr 3 AlC 2 were screened as stable MAX phases by Aryal et al 8 according to the elastic and thermodynamic stability. Bai et al 9 also confirmed the dynamic stability of Zr 2 AlC and Zr 3 AlC 2 by exhibiting their calculated phonons having no imaginary wave number.…”