The effect of microstructure on interphase interaction in layered polycrystalline films of silver-nickel and silver-copper-nickel

The purpose of this research work was to study how the microstructure of in dividual phases influences the interphase interaction in the Ni-Ag and Ni-C u-Ag layered structures at elevated temperatures. The paper presents the de pth distributions of each element in the Ni-Ag and Ni-Cu-Ag layered structu res, before and after annealing. The depth distributions were obtained by A uger Electron Spectroscopy (AES). These AES studies are an extension of pre vious research. It has been discovered that microstructure will critically affect interphase boundary formation, when copper is introduced into the Ag -Ni interfacial region. Copper mainly diffuses into nickel and less into si lver. The shape of the copper concentration profile is dependent on which t ype of diffusion is dominant, grain boundary or volume. The diffusion-type interphase boundary has not been observed in the silver-nickel binary syste m. (C) 2000 Kluwer Academic Publishers.