A study of the formation of fuzzy tungsten in a HiPIMS plasma system

Ali, Zeyad, Bahri, Mounib ORCID: 0000-0002-8336-9158, Bilton, Matthew ORCID: 0000-0002-0475-2942 and Bradley, James W ORCID: 0000-0002-8833-0180 (2024) A study of the formation of fuzzy tungsten in a HiPIMS plasma system Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics, 57 (17). p. 175202. ISSN 0022-3727, 1361-6463

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Abstract

Abstract Nanostructured “fuzzy” tungsten has been grown for the first time in a high-power impulse magnetron sputtering HiPIMS system. The fuzzy layers were formed over range of surface temperatures Ts, from 1025 to 1150 K, for helium ion fluences of 5.02 × 1024 m-2, and mean ion bombardment energy of 55 eV. The time-evolution of the helium ion flux (ΓHe) and incident energy (EHe) were determined during the HiPIMS pulse (of width of 150 µs) using a planar Langmuir probe. The micrographic findings revealed that, the thickness of HiPIMS-grown nano-tendrill layers increased by 83 % (from 274 to 501 nm) for only a 125 K rise in Ts. This result is explained by the fact that higher surface temperatures led to larger helium bubbles which ultimately produce a thicker nanostructured layer. The growth rate of fuzzy tungsten layers in HiPIMS conditions is approximately 50 % lower than those observed for DC magnetron operation.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	nanotendril, fuzz, nanostructured, tungsten, helium, HiPIMS, Langmuir probe
Divisions:	Faculty of Science & Engineering > School of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Computer Science Faculty of Science & Engineering > School of Engineering
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	15 Feb 2024 11:43
Last Modified:	28 Feb 2026 14:14
DOI:	10.1088/1361-6463/ad2005
Related Websites:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3178669
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