Mapping residual stress distributions at the micron scale in amorphous materials

Residual stresses in crystalline or glassy materials often play a key role in the performance of advanced devices and components. However, stresses in amorphous materials cannot easily be determined at the micron scale by diffraction, or by other conventional laboratory methods. In this article, a technique for mapping residual stress profiles in amorphous materials with high spatial definition is presented. By applying a focused ion beam (FIB)-based semidestructive mechanical relaxation method, the stresses are mapped in a peened and fatigued bulk metallic glass (BMG) (Zr50Cu 40Al10 at. pct). The residual stresses are inferred using finite element analysis (FEA) of the surface relaxations, as measured by digital image correlation (DIC), that occur when a microslot is micromachined by FIB. Further, we have shown that acceptable accuracy can in most cases be achieved using a simple analytical model of the slot. It was found that the fatigue cycling significantly changes the distribution of compressive residual stresses with depth in the plastically deformed surface layer. Our observations point to the scalability of this method to map residual stresses in volumes as small as 1 × 1 × 0.2 μm3 or less. © The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society and ASM International 2009

Anomalous Plastic Deformation and Sputtering of Ion Irradiated Silicon Nanowires

[Image: see text] Silicon nanowires of various diameters were irradiated with 100 keV and 300 keV Ar(+) ions on a rotatable and heatable stage. Irradiation at elevated temperatures above 300 °C retains the geometry of the nanostructure and sputtering can be gauged accurately. The diameter dependence of the sputtering shows a maximum if the ion range matches the nanowire diameter, which is in good agreement with Monte Carlo simulations based on binary collisions. Nanowires irradiated at room temperature, however, amorphize and deform plastically. So far, plastic deformation has not been observed in bulk silicon at such low ion energies. The magnitude and direction of the deformation is independent of the ion-beam direction and cannot be explained with mass-transport in a binary collision cascade but only by collective movement of atoms in the collision cascade with the given boundary conditions of a high surface to volume ratio