METAL PARTICLES ON THE SURFACES OF HEAT-TREATED CERAMIC THIN-FILMS

Transmission electron microscopy has been used to study the orientatio n relationships between small metal particles and heat-treated ceramic thin films. Thinned samples were prepared in a form suitable for imag ing in the electron microscope and then heat-treated both to remove da mage at the sample surface introduced during ion milling and to produc e a well-defined surface morphology. Metal particles were then deposit ed onto the surface by heating the sample in the presence of a metal s ource. The material systems studied were SiC and Al2O3 as the thin fil m with the particles being copper and tungsten.