Growth and Stress-induced Transformation of Zinc blende AlN Layers in Al-AlN-TiN Multilayers

AlN nanolayers in sputter deposited {111}Al/AlN/TiN multilayers exhibit the metastable zinc-blende-structure (z-AlN). Based on density function theory calculations, the growth of the z-AlN is ascribed to the kinetically and energetically favored nitridation of the deposited aluminium layer. In situ...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Li, Nan, Yadav, Satyesh K., Wang, Jian, Liu, Xiang-Yang, Misra, Amit
Format: Online
Language:English
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2015
Online Access:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4683522/
Description
Summary:AlN nanolayers in sputter deposited {111}Al/AlN/TiN multilayers exhibit the metastable zinc-blende-structure (z-AlN). Based on density function theory calculations, the growth of the z-AlN is ascribed to the kinetically and energetically favored nitridation of the deposited aluminium layer. In situ nanoindentation of the as-deposited {111}Al/AlN/TiN multilayers in a high-resolution transmission electron microscope revealed the z-AlN to wurzite AlN phase transformation through collective glide of Shockley partial dislocations on every two {111} planes of the z-AlN.