Time-resolved high-resolution electron microscopy of grain migration process in MgO films

Author(s):  
T. Kizuka ◽  
M. Iijima ◽  
N. Tanaka

High-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) has been employed intensively to analyze the atomic structures of grain boundaries and interfaces having two dimensional structures inside polycrystalline and composite materials. Furthermore time-resolved HREM (TRHREM) is required to analyze the behavior of grain boundaries and interfaces at atomic scale. The grain boundary migration, which is a typical grain boundary behavior, is a fundamental process relating to structural stability of polycrystalline materials. The mechanism of the migration has been still unknown.In the present study, the variation of atomic arrangement at the grain boundary migration of a MgO [001]Σ5 boundary was analyzed by TRHREM.Magnesium oxide polycrystalline films were prepared by vacuum-deposition on air-cleaved (001) surfaces of sodium chloride at 300°C. TRHREM was carried out at room temperature using a 200-kV electron microscope (JEOL, JEM2010) equipped with a high sensitive TV camera and a video tape recorder. The spatial resolution of the system was 0.2 nm at 200 kV and the time resolution was 1/60 s. Electron beam density was 30 A/cm2.

Author(s):  
T. Kizuka ◽  
N. Tanaka

Mechanical properties of polycrystalline materials become anomalous when the grain size and grain boundary length decrease to nanometer scale. For example, ductility and toughness increase significantly in nanometer-grained ceramics (nanocrystalline ceramics). Ductility increases due to appearance of fine-grained-superplastic deformation. Grain boundary migration and interface migration are fundamental processes of the superplastic deformation. Structural transformation of fine grains is a factor which limits the toughness in polycrystalline ceramics because the transformation relaxes internal strain. The behavior of grain boundaries and interfaces, such as diffusion bonding and Czochralski-type crystal growth at ambient temperature, can be analyzed by a time-resolved high-resolution electron microscopy (TRHREM) developed by Kizuka et al.,In the present study, grain boundary migration and successive transformation of crystal structure in nanocrystalline ZnO were investigated by TRHREM.Zinc oxide was vacuum-deposited on air-cleaved (001) surfaces of sodium chloride at 200°C. TRHREM was carried out at room temperature using a 200-kV electron microscope (JEOL, JEM2010) equipped with a high sensitive TV camera and a video tape recorder.


Author(s):  
T. Kizuka ◽  
N. Tanaka

Structure and stability of atomic clusters have been studied by time-resolved high-resolution electron microscopy (TRHREM). Typical examples are observations of structural fluctuation in gold (Au) clusters supported on silicon oxide films, graphtized carbon films and magnesium oxide (MgO) films. All the observations have been performed on the clusters consisted of single metal element. Structural stability of ceramics clusters, such as metal-oxide, metal-nitride and metal-carbide clusters, has not been observed by TRHREM although the clusters show anomalous structural and functional properties concerning to solid state physics and materials science.In the present study, the behavior of ceramic, magnesium oxide (MgO) clusters is for the first time observed by TRHREM at 1/60 s time resolution and at atomic resolution down to 0.2 nm.MgO and gold were subsequently deposited on sodium chloride (001) substrates. The specimens, single crystalline MgO films on which Au particles were dispersed were separated in distilled water and observed by using a 200-kV high-resolution electron microscope (JEOL, JEM2010) equipped with a high sensitive TV camera and a video tape recorder system.


1996 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1880-1890 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zenji Horita ◽  
David J. Smith ◽  
Minoru Furukawa ◽  
Minoru Nemoto ◽  
Ruslan Z. Valiev ◽  
...  

High-resolution electron microscopy was used to examine the structural features of grain boundaries in Al–1.5% Mg and Al–3% Mg solid solution alloys produced with submicrometer grain sizes using an intense plastic straining technique. The grain boundaries were mostly curved or wavy along their length, and some portions were corrugated with regular or irregular arrangements of facets and steps. During exposure to high-energy electrons, grain boundary migration occurred to reduce the number of facets and thus to reduce the total boundary energy. The observed features demonstrate conclusively that the grain boundaries in these submicrometer-grained materials are in a high-energy nonequilibrium configuration.


1991 ◽  
Vol 238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elsie C. Urdaneta ◽  
David E. Luzzi ◽  
Charles J. McMahon

ABSTRACTBismuth-induced grain boundary faceting in Cu-12 at ppm Bi polycrystals was studied using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The population of faceted grain boundaries in samples aged at 600°C was observed to increase with heat treatment time from 15min to 24h; aging for 72h resulted in de-faceting, presumably due to loss of Bi from the specimen. The majority of completely faceted boundaries were found between grains with misorientation Σ=3. About 65% of the facets of these boundaries were found to lie parallel to crystal plane pairs of the type {111}1/{111]2- The significance of these findings in light of recent high resolution electron microscopy experiments is discussed.


1992 ◽  
Vol 295 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard W. Fonda ◽  
David E. Luzzi

AbstractGrain boundaries in quenched and aged Cu-i.5%Sb were examined with Auger electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and high resolution electron microscopy. The ∑=3 grain boundaries are strongly faceted, with the facets lying primarily along the coincident (111) planes of the two grains. The grain boundaries are enriched in antimony, as demonstrated by both AES and HREM. HREM images of the ∑=3 (111) ║ (111) grain boundary differ from those of the Cu-Bi ∑ =3 (111) ║ (111) grain boundary in the lack of a significant grain boundary expansion to accommodate the excess solute at the boundary. A preliminary investigation of the atomic structure of the ∑=3 (111) ║ (111) facet by HREM and multislice calculations is presented.


2000 ◽  
Vol 652 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. L. Merkle ◽  
L. J. Thompson ◽  
Fritz Phillipp

ABSTRACTAtomic-scale grain boundary (GB) migration has been directly observed by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HREM). Atomic-scale motion of high-angle tilt GBs as well as twist and general GBs at gold island grains with a number of planar facets has been studied at ambient and elevated temperatures. GB migration mechanisms depend on GB structure and geometry. Strong indications for cooperative effects has been found. In this case, as has been proposed before, atoms may undergo small shifts in their lattice positions to be incorporated into the growing grain in a collective mode. At high temperature and in the absence of a strong driving force such small lattice regions are observed to fluctuate back and forth between the two grains. Faceted GBs typically move in spurts. This appears to be inherent to GB migration, whenever the motion is controlled by different structural entities. For some GB geometries the motion was found to proceed by the lateral propagation of atomic-scale steps.


1990 ◽  
Vol 183 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Pirouz ◽  
J. Yang

AbstractHigh resolution electron microscopy has been used to study the structure of the 3C/6H interface, Σ,=3 {111}and Σ.=3 {112}grain boundaries in 3C-SiC. In SiC, as in other compound semiconductors, anti-site bonds occur in a variety of defects. These are high energy bonds comparable to that of dangling bonds. But, while dangling bonds at the grain boundaries may be eliminated by reconstruction just as in elemental semiconductors, it may not be possible to avoid anti-site bonds.These problems are discussed for the Σ=3 {112} grain boundary, where the structures proposed for Ge and Si are used as starting models for SiC.


1989 ◽  
Vol 153 ◽  
Author(s):  
G. J. Thomas ◽  
R. W. Siegel ◽  
J. A. Eastman

AbstractUsing high resolution electron microscopy, consolidated nanophase palladium samples were examined following electrolytic thinning after a hydriding - dehydriding cycle at 310 K. Due to the small size and random orientations of the individual grains, a large number of grain boundaries were available for examination. Some of these yielded adequate imaging conditions to allow observation of the lattice structure in the grain boundary regions. Image simulations were performed to determine the sensitivity of the technique to lattice disorder. The results of these studies suggest that grain boundary structures in nanophase palladium are similar to those in conventional coarse-grained polycrystals.


Author(s):  
M. José-Yacamán

Electron microscopy is a fundamental tool in materials characterization. In the case of nanostructured materials we are looking for features with a size in the nanometer range. Therefore often the conventional TEM techniques are not enough for characterization of nanophases. High Resolution Electron Microscopy (HREM), is a key technique in order to characterize those materials with a resolution of ~ 1.7A. High resolution studies of metallic nanostructured materials has been also reported in the literature. It is concluded that boundaries in nanophase materials are similar in structure to the regular grain boundaries. That work therefore did not confirm the early hipothesis on the field that grain boundaries in nanostructured materials have a special behavior. We will show in this paper that by a combination of HREM image processing, and image calculations, it is possible to prove that small particles and coalesced grains have a significant surface roughness, as well as large internal strain.


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