Sputtering is a nonthermal vaporization process in which the surface atoms are physically ejected from a surface by momentum transfer from an energetic bombarding species of atomic/molecular size. It uses a glow discharge or an ion beam to generate a flux of ions incident on the target surface. This article provides an overview of the advantages and limitations of sputter deposition. It focuses on the most common sputtering techniques, namely, diode sputtering, radio-frequency sputtering, triode sputtering, magnetron sputtering, and unbalanced magnetron sputtering. The article discusses the fundamentals of plasma formation and the interactions on the target surface. A comparison of reactive and nonreactive sputtering is also provided. The article concludes with a discussion on the several methods of process control and the applications of sputtered films.

This article focuses on the principles and applications of high-sputter-rate dynamic secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS) for depth profiling and bulk impurity analysis. It begins with an overview of various factors pertinent to sputtering. This is followed by a discussion on the effects of ion implantation and electronic excitation on the charge of the sputtered species. The design and operation of the various instrumental components of SIMS is then reviewed. Details on a depth-profiling analysis of SIMS, the quantitative analysis of SIMS data, and the static mode of operation of time-of-flight SIMS are covered. Instrumental features required for secondary ion imaging are presented and the differences between quadrupole and high-resolution magnetic mass filters are described. The article also reviews the optimum method for analysis of nonmetallic samples and high detection sensitivity of SIMS. It ends with a discussion on a variety of examples of SIMS applications.

Physical vapor deposition (PVD) coatings are harder than any metal and are used in applications that cannot tolerate even microscopic wear losses. This article describes the three most common PVD processes: thermal evaporation, sputtering, and ion plating. It also discusses ion implantation in the context of research and development applications.

This article focuses on transport phenomena and modeling approaches that are specific to vapor-phase processes (VPP). It discusses the VPP for the synthesis of materials. The article reviews the basic notions of molecular collisions and gas flows, and presents transport equations. It describes the modeling of vapor-surface interactions and kinetics of hetereogeneous processes as well as the modeling and kinetics of homogenous reactions in chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The article provides information on the various stages of developing models for numerical simulation of the transport phenomena in continuous media and transition regime flows of VPP. It explains the methods used for molecular modeling in computational materials science. The article also presents examples that illustrate multiscale simulations of CVD or PVD processes and examples that focus on sputtering deposition and reactive or ion beam etching.

Ion-beam-assisted deposition (IBAD) refers to the process wherein evaporated atoms produced by physical vapor deposition are simultaneously struck by an independently generated flux of ions. This article discusses the energy utilization of this process. It describes the physical and chemical processes occurring at the film-vacuum interface during IBAD and dual-ion-beam sputtering with illustrations. The article also reviews the methods used for large-area, high-volume implementation of IBAD and the modes of film formation for IBAD. It contains a table that presents information on deposition and synthesis of inorganic compounds by IBAD and concludes with a discussion on the improved coating properties, advantages, limitations, and applications of IBAD.

This article begins with a list of the factors that influence the properties of physical vapor deposited films. It describes the steps involved in ion plating, namely, surface preparation, nucleation, interface formation, and film growth. The article discusses the factors influencing the properties of ion-plated films. The sources of potential applied on substrate surface, bombarding species, and depositing species are addressed. The article also provides information on the parameters that influence bombardment. It concludes with a discussion on the advantages, limitations, and applications of ion plating.

Coatings and thin films can be studied with surface analysis methods because their inherently small depth allows characterization of the surface composition, interface composition, and in-depth distribution of composition. This article describes principles and examples of common surface analysis methods, namely, Auger electron spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, ion scattering spectroscopy, secondary ion mass spectroscopy, and Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy. It also provides useful information on the applications of surface analysis.

This article covers the three most popular techniques used to characterize the very outermost layers of solid surfaces: Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS). Some of the more important attributes are listed for preliminary insight into the strengths and limitations of these techniques for chemical characterization of surfaces. The article describes the basic theory behind each of the different techniques, the types of data produced from each, and some typical applications. Also discussed are the different types of samples that can be analyzed and the special sample-handling procedures that must be implemented when preparing to do failure analysis using these surface-sensitive techniques. Data obtained from different material defects are presented for each of the techniques. The examples presented highlight the typical data sets and strengths of each technique.

This article describes the characteristics of continuous cathodic arc sources and filtering process for removing macroparticles from a cathodic arc. It provides information on the types of arc sources and the properties of deposited materials. The advantages, limitations, and applications of arc deposition are also discussed.

This article is intended to provide the reader with a good understanding of the underlying science, technology, and the most common applications of focused ion beam (FIB) instruments. It begins with a survey of the various types of FIB instruments and their configurations, discusses the essential components, and explains their function only to the extent that it helps the operator obtain the desired results. An explanation of how the components of ion optical column shape and steer the ion beam to the desired target locations is then provided. The article also reviews the many diverse accessories and options that enable the instrument to realize its full potential across all of the varied applications. This is followed by a detailed analysis of the physical processes associated with the ion beam interacting with the sample. Finally, a complete survey of the most prominent FIB applications is presented.

Ion implantation involves the bombardment of a solid material with medium-to-high-energy ionized atoms and offers the ability to alloy virtually any elemental species into the near-surface region of any substrate. This article describes the fundamentals of the ion implantation process and discusses the advantages, limitations, and applications of ion implantation. It also reviews a typical medium current semiconductor implanter adapted for implantation of metals with the aid of illustrations.

Aluminum and its alloys are characterized by their low hardness and less satisfactory tribological performance. These limits can be overcome by means of load-specific surface engineering. This article provides information on the structure and properties of nitrided layers, and the technologies and mechanisms used for nitriding aluminum and its alloys. It also describes the nitriding behavior of aluminum alloys. The article concludes by describing how a combination of technologies can be utilized to achieve aluminum nitride with the highest tribological properties.

This article discusses the basic principles of and chemical effects in Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), covering various factors affecting the quantitative analyses of AES. The discussion covers instrumentation and sophisticated electronics typically used in AES for data acquisition and manipulation and various limitations of AES. Various examples highlighting the capabilities of the technique are also included.

This article describes eight stages of the atomistic film growth: vaporization of the material, transport of the material to the substrate, condensation and nucleation of the atoms, nuclei growth, interface formation, film growth, changes in structure during the deposition, and postdeposition changes. It also discusses the effects and causes of growth-related properties of films deposited by physical vapor deposition processes, including residual film stress, density, and adhesion.

This article is an overview of the division Surface Analysis of this volume. The division covers various developed surface-analysis techniques, such as scanning probe and atomic force microscopy. The division focuses on the analysis of surface layers that are less than 100 nm. A quick reference summary of surface-analysis methods is presented in this article.

This article provides a brief account of glow discharge mass spectrometry (GDMS) for direct determination of trace elements in solid samples and for fast depth profiling in a great variety of innovative materials. It begins by describing the general principles of GDMS. This is followed by a discussion on the various components of a GDMS system as well as commercial GDMS instruments. A description of processes involved in specimen preparation and cleaning in GDMS is then presented. Various problems pertinent to multielemental calibrations in GDMS are discussed along with measures to overcome them. The article further provides information on the processes involved in the analytical setup of parameters in GDMS, covering the steps involved in the analysis of GDMS data. It ends with a section on the application and interpretation of GDMS in the metals industry.

This article focuses on the principles and applications of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) for the analysis of elemental and chemical composition. The discussion covers the nomenclature, instruments, and specimen preparation process of XPS. Some of the factors pertinent to the calibration of materials for accurate measurements using XPS are provided, along with some aspects of the accuracy in quantitative analysis by XPS. In addition, the article presents examples of how XPS data can be used to solve problems with surface interactions.

This article is a detailed account of optical emission spectroscopy (OES) for elemental analysis. It begins with a discussion on the historical background of OES and development trends in OES methods. This is followed by a description of the general principles and optical systems of OES, along with various types of emission sources commonly used for OES. Some of the processes involved in calibration and quantification of OES for direct solids analysis by the ratio method are then described. The article ends with a discussion on the applications of each type of emission sources.

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has unique capabilities for analyzing fracture surfaces. This article discusses the basic principles and practice of SEM, with an emphasis on its applications in fractography. The topics include an introduction to SEM instrumentation, imaging and analytical capabilities, specimen preparation, and the interpretation of fracture features. SEM can be subdivided into four systems, namely, illuminating/imaging, information, display, and vacuum systems. The article also describes the major criteria and techniques of SEM specimen preparation, and the general features of ductile and brittle fracture modes.