Ion implantation has been used to modify the organic semiconducting polymer, polyacetylene, (CH)x, and the semimetal, graphite, Cx. Implantation results in the formation of a unique polymer-fluorine interaction. This interaction leads to increased conductivity. The implantation also made the “doped” (CH)x resistant to the usual air oxidation which normally occurs with the conventionally doped polymers.

Ion-implantation can increase the electrical conductivity of the polymer poly (p-phenylene sulfide) (PPS) by ~ 14 orders of magnitude. This conductivity increase, which is stable under ambient conditions, is studied as a function of temperature, ion energy, fluence and species, using a novel technique, based on microelectronics processing, capable of accurately measuring conductivities as low as 10−10 (Ω-cm)−1. Mechanisms for the enhanced conductivity of PPS are discussed in relation to our measurements.

Amorphous metallic alloys can be synthesized by many techniques including melt quenching, vapor quenching, electrodeposition, and irradiation of crystalline alloys by neutrons or by ions. Certain alloys are prone to glass formation and can be readily made amorphous by all of these methods. In this article, a survey of experimental data on the atomic and electronic structure of such good glass forming alloys is presented. On the basis of this data, it is argued that good glass forming alloys tend to have in common several underlying microscopic features. The article concludes with some general remarks on the relationship of these common features to glass formation.

Ribbons of Fe75B25, prepared by quenching from the melt, were mostly amorpbous. After annealing at 773 K, the ribbons were entirely crystalline, with the phases Fe3B, Fe2B and α - Fe. Annealed ribbons were bombarded at RT with 4 MeV argon ions, at a damage rate of 7 × 10−4 dpa sec−1 near the surface. The Fe3B was completely converted to an amorphous form at 0.15 dpa, the lowest damage level at which amorphization of a metal alloy has been reported. The Fe2B disappeared by about 1.5 dpa. The α -Fe disappeared between 17 and 50 dpa, apparently by ion beam mixing rather than direct amorphization. Amorphous films also were prepared by sputtering at low power level, and crystallized at 773 K, which also caused sintering. Bombardment with argon ions produced major changes in resistivity and magnetic coercive force at the same low damage levels that caused amorphization of Fe3B Hc of the bombarded film was the same as in an as-quencheo amorpous ribbon. The relatively high resistivity of as sputtered amorphous film was apparently due to the porosity in the columnar cell walls. With present technology, it should be possible to produce amorphous films or structures of Fe3B at rates approaching 50 m2 hr−1.

Specimens of amorphous Fe75B25 produced by rapid quenching from the melt were annealed to complete crystallization and subjected to 1 MeV electron irradiation in a transmission electron microscope at room temperature and at 130 K. The irradiation was interrupted at various intervals in order to obtain bright field images and diffraction patterns. The Fe3B crystals did not become amorphous at room temperature, even after damage levels of several dpa, whereas at 130 K the crystalline to amorphous transformation was observed to be complete at damage levels below 1 dpa. The results are combined with those of ion irradiation work on Fe3B; qualitative agreement is found between Fe3B and previous work on the Zr3Al alloy concerning their response to displacement damage by electron and ion irradiation.

125Te was implanted into Te single crystals, held at different temperatures, and studied by Mössbauer Spectroscopy. It is shown that amorphization of the target occurs during implantation at liquid nitrogen temperature. The role of the target temperature in the Naguib and Kelly criterion for amorphization is discussed.

After 6K implantation of Si in Pd films, resistivity measurements (previously reported (1)) had provided preliminary evidence that an amorphous state had been reached for a composition Pd.80 SiO 20· This result has been recently confirmed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations : diffuse diffraction rings appear in the implanted part of the Pd film. New experiments are reported : - resistivity dose dependence (and temperature dependence) of a 300K Si implanted Pd film ; - in situ TEM experiments to follow the amorphization process during implantation.

The resistivity (and resistivity temperature dependence) of low temperature B implanted Pd films was measured at B concentrations up to x ֮0.55. Both properties indicate that the evolution of the system towards an amorphous structure sets in at about x ֮0.30 (the deep eutectic composition). The previous discovery of superconductivity by Stritzker and Becker at high values of x is confirmed. Annealing properties of the system were also investigated.

Xenon irradiation of Fe-W multilayers at room temperature (R.T.) can produce two types of metastable states: low doses (< 1 × 1016 Xe/cm2 ) extend the equilibrium solid solubility of W in Fe and vice versa, maintaining the equilibrium b.c.c. lattice structure of Fe and W; at high doses (> 1 × 1016 Xe/ cm2 ) and in the vicinity of the composition Fe70W30, amorphization can occur. In comparison, RF sputter-deposited FexWl-x films were amorphous over the whole range (0.35<x < 0.79) investigated. The recrystallization temperatures of these amorphous layers exceed 600°C for 15 min vacuum annealing. Whereas Fe-W compounds always form during thermal annealing, these compounds are normally not found after Xe-irradiation of multilayers.

Intermetallic compounds and ordered phases in the Ti-Ni, Ti-Fe, Re-Ta, and Mo-Ni systems became amorphous after high energy, ion irradiation. Compounds in the Ni-Al and Fe-Al systems remained crystalline and formed dislocation networks after similar irradiation. The ease of amorphous formation correlated best with the lack of solubility within the phase field. The high internal energy of the defect state in these limited solubility alloys is believed responsible for the tendency to transform to an amorphous state. A correlation with other properties such as atom size ratio or outer electron concentration was not found.

Two b.c.c. ordered alloys Fe-40 at % Al and Ni-Ti have been investigated by transmission electron microscopy after self ion implantation Al+ and Ni+ respectively. Partially disordered regions are observed in the Fe-40 at % Al. On the contrary, in the Ni-Ti alloy, complete transformation to the amorphous state occured. During post implantation annealings, the precipitation of a new f.c.c. phase is observed in the Fe-40 at % Al ordered alloy, in the amorphous Ni-Ti the recrystallization occurs in a temperature range 400 – 550°C; the new phase has a structure either martensite type or B2 type with modulatiens.

High dose boron implantation into instrument grade 1–400 beryllium has been found to produce a substantial increase of its wear resistance. A comparison of the friction and wear behavior resulting from two shapes of the boron depth distribution is made. The wear resistance provided by a boron layer of constant (flat) concentration was found to be superior to that of a gradually decreasing (graded) profile. Rutherford backscattering was used to determine the boron depth distribution profiles and transmission electron microscopy was used to examine the microstructure. Electron diffraction pattern analysis provides evidence for the formation of beryllium borides.

Friction and wear tests were completed on Fe, and stainless steels of the type 304, 15–5 PH, Nitronic 60 and 440C implanted with Ti and C. Samples were mechanically polished prior to ion implantation to fluences of 2 × 1017 Ti/cm2 (90–180 keV) and 2 × 1017 C/cm2 (30 keV); the implantation profiles of the two elements overlapped to 0.1 μm. Light load wear conditions with no lubrication were evaluated in a pin-on-disc configuration. Ion implantation significantly reduced the friction coefficient by up to 75% and decreased the maximum wear depth by up to 95%, but both effects were material and load dependent. Only stainless steel 304 had both friction and wear reduced by implantation for all loads examined. Fine-scale parallel grooves were present in the wear track for light loads, but this wear pattern was transformed to a galled structure at high loads. A correlation existed between decreased friction, reduced wear, the wear track morphology and Ti in the wear track.

Martensite will form in austenitic 304 stainless steel when it is deformed. Transmission electron microscope studies show that nitrogen ion implantation causes a reversion of the martensite to austenite. Specimens containing martensite resulting from fine surface polishing and heavy rolling are examined. The transformation is shown not to occur because of temperature increases during implantation. The effect is related to recent wear results in 304 stainless steel.

Tensile deformation experiments on Al single crystals and parallel microstructural studies by T.E.M. on specimens directly thinned prior to a Zn+ ion implantation have been carried out. An uniform concentration of 7 at % Zn has been obtained on 1200Å thick layers by implantation using multiple energies. The temperature ranges of metastable phase of these samples are different from bulk Al-Zn alloys of identical concentration. Room and 80°C temperature thermal treatments leading to an important precipitation hardening in bulk alloys do not produce any significant mechanical modification in implanted Al single crystals. T.E.M. observations do not show any supplementary scattering around Bragg spots. On the contrary, we observe the direct appearance of precipitates at 135°C and 150°C after some days annealing.

High cycle reversed load fatigue test in vacuum show significant modifications of surfacedamage of an oxygen implanted copper specimen.

Very heavy doses of B ions, up to 22 At%, were implanted into Nb3Al substrates depleted of Al. Energies as high as 1 MeV were used. The surface composition was Nb3Al1−xBx where x varied from 0 to 1 over a distance of 20,000Å. Auger analysis was done to determine composition depth profiles. Structure was analyzed with a diffractometer using Cr radiation. The x-rays sampled primarily the implanted layer. Phase analysis was carried out as a function of incremental heat treatments up to 1000 C. The A–15 phase was always present although its composition was uncertain. The tetragonal Nb3B2 phase appeared after annealing at 95OC. Superconducting transition temperatures were measured at all stages; no increase in Tc above that of the substrate was observed.

A series of A15 structure V-Si films were sputtered with compositions ranging from approximately V90Si10 to V75Si25 . The as-deposited critical temperature onsets were between ~ 8 and 17K. Carbon levels of up to 5 at.%(average) were implanted and the films subsequently annealed at various temperatures between 650 and 1050°C. No Tc's above 17K were obtained in the C-implanted films. However enhancements of as much as ~ 9K, from ~ 8 to 17K, in highly Si-deficient films indicated that carbon was incorporated into the A15 structure of these films to form pseudo-binary V-Si-C alloys. Experimental details are given and some reasons why Tc values greater than 17K were not obtained are discussed.

A series of simple mechanical tests on single crystal diamond, diamond styli and diamond finishing tools has shown that frictional force, surface cracking and strength behaviour under simulated wear conditions can be improved as the result of N and Bion implantation at room temperature. Scratch tests on a polished macroscopic diamond of (111) planar orientation submitted to a total dose of 9.1015 N ions/cm2 revealed that a slight reduction in friction force occurred during dry sliding over the implanted region. Nitrogen implanted diamond gramophone styli held against a slowly rotating polished TiC disc under light load were found to significantly outlast unimplanted or carbon implanted samples, which generally failed abruptly on contact. In a third series of experiments, diamond tipped finishing tools used for high speed machining operationson acrylic plastic were implanted with N, B, and C ions to similar doses, all below 1016 per cm2. Nitrogen and boron implantations were found to improve the cutting life and quality of cut by as much as a factor 5, whereas carbon ions were much less effective.

The effects of implanting chromium at fluences of up to 2.6 × 1016/cm2 on the structure and properties of single- and polycrystalline samples of SiC were studied. The material turned amorphous due to the implantation. The hardness decreased by as much as 25% and the fracture toughness increased by approximately 10% due to the implantation. The most interesting finding was that the material swells by as much as 30% upon implantation of some 2 × 1016 Cr-ions/cm2.

Silicon wafers with (001), (011), and (111) orientations were irradiated with pulsed Ba beams that caused shallow surface melting. Upon resolidification the dislocations are trapped with configurations which are characteristically different for each orientation. A novel feature are dislocations with a [100] Burgers vectors. The dislocations accommodate part of the thermal misfit between substrate and solidifying layer.