Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 February 2011
The structures of SiC/Si3N4 interfaces and Si3N4 matrix grain boundaries in Ceramic Matrix Composites (CMC) were investigated by high resolution electron microscopy. The light element chemistry of the interfaces was analyzed by high spatial resolution (∼3 nm) position resolved EELS in a field emission TEM and by high spatial resolution EDS in a dedicated scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). High-angle annular dark-field (HAADF) imaging (resolution < 1 nm) technique was used to determine the distribution of yttrium atoms at matrix grain boundaries and at SiC/Si3N4 interfaces. HAADF images suggest that yttrium might diffuse into Si3N4 crystals bounding the interfacial and grain boundary regions.