FRG: High Pressure Phase Transformations of Silicon, Germanium and Silicon Nitride

拟议研究计划的目标是建立一个由来自联合国夏洛特分校、南加州大学和东京大学的研究人员组成的跨学科小组，他们拥有必要的专业知识，以确定硅、锗和氮化硅在制造过程中的高压相变的作用和影响。可以设想，可以利用这种材料行为来通过提高成品率、减少缺陷并降低由这些材料制造的设备和产品的制造成本来改进制造工艺。该研究计划建议大大扩展对这些材料变形和加工的基本原理和力学的理解。在加工硅、锗和氮化硅的过程中发生的高压相变是最近发现的一种制造工艺机制。现有的科学和工程模型不包括这种重要的影响。有人提出，有关硅高压金属相存在的知识“无疑是一种重大进步的气味：它很可能导致一系列相应的研究”。这一知识是半导体、光学研究和材料界的一项重大突破。利用这些材料的高压相变来改进制造过程是对基本材料过程机理的基本概念的战略性改变。将评估开发半导体和陶瓷高压相变的必要条件。这项研究将促进对这些材料的机械原理的了解，并允许制造商在试图生产更高精度和更低成本的产品时克服目前面临的障碍。这些材料的高压相变工作有望应用于其他工程陶瓷，如碳化硅，以及切片、研磨、研磨和抛光等制造工艺。高压相变代表了一种控制材料、制造工艺和设备以产生所需最终效果或产品的新方法。半导体和陶瓷的全球重要性导致了对材料加工、研磨、研磨和抛光等材料过程中表面变形本质的广泛研究。除了钢铁，作为研究对象的半导体及其各种物理性质在人力投入方面是无与伦比的。尽管如此，对弹性和塑性变形所涉及的物理过程的详细了解仍然是有争议的。根据积累的知识，人们认识到，在基于机械变形的材料制造过程中，硅(Si)、锗(Ge)和氮化硅(Si3N4)的高压相变是导致它们的延性材料行为的原因。拟议的团队项目将提供成功地将高压相变影响的当前知识带入材料、摩擦学和精密工程等领域研究活动的前沿所需的方向、重点和协同效应。通过建议的多所大学小组的努力，我们的有效性得到了提高，因为我们将这些材料的高压相的基本知识和潜在相关性扩展到涉及摩擦、磨损和精密加工的应用中。这一小组研究人员将为业界提供一个协调和整合的资源小组。该小组将为硅、锗和氮化硅材料加工方面的信息和专业知识提供参考来源。

The objective of the proposed research program is to establish an interdisciplinary group of researchers from UN-Charlotte, NCSU and U TN with the necessary range of expertise to characterize the role and influence of the high pressure phase transformations of silicon, germanium, and silicon nitride during manufacturing processing. It is envisaged that this material behavior may be exploited to improve the manufacturing processes by increasing yields, decreasing defects, and reducing the manufacturing costs of devices and products manufactured from these materials. The research plan proposes to extend significantly the understanding of the fundamental principles and mechanics of the deformation and machining of these materials. The high-pressure phase transformations that occur during machining of silicon, germanium, and silicon nitride are a recently discovered manufacturing process mechanism. Existing scientific and engineering models do not include this important effect. It has been suggested that the knowledge of the existence of the high-pressure metallic phase of silicon "has about it the unmistakable scent of a major advance: it is likely to lead to a host of consequential researches". This knowledge is a major breakthrough for the semiconductor and optical research and materials' community. The use of the high-pressure phase transformations of these materials to improve the manufacturing process is a strategic change in the basic conception of the fundamental material process mechanisms. The necessary conditions for exploiting the high-pressure phase transformation of semiconductors and ceramics will be evaluated. This research will advance the knowledge of the mechanics of these materials and permit manufacturers to hurdle the present obstacles that confront them as they attempt to produce products of higher precision and lower cost. The high pressure phase transformation work on these materials promises to be applicable to other engineering ceramics, such as silicon carbide, and to manufacturing processes such as slicing, grinding, lapping and polishing. The high-pressure phase transformation represents a new means for controlling materials, manufacturing processes, and equipment to produce the desired end effect or product. The global importance of semiconductors and ceramics has led to extensive research into the nature of surface deformation as a consequence of materials processes such as machining, grinding, lapping and polishing. With the exception of steels, semiconductors and their various physical properties as the target for research are unsurpassed in terms of human effort invested. In spite of this a detailed knowledge of the physical processes involved in elastic and more so plastic deformation is still at issue. Based on accumulated knowledge it is recognized that the high-pressure phase transformations of silicon (Si), germanium (Ge), and silicon nitride (Si3N4) are responsible for their ductile material behavior during mechanical deformation-based material fabrication processes. The proposed team-based project will provide the direction, focus and synergy needed to successfully bring current knowledge of the influence of the high pressure phase transformation to the forefront of research activities in such areas as materials, tribology, and precision engineering. Through the proposed multi-university small group effort our effectiveness is enhanced by providing for the extension of the basic knowledge and potential relevance of the high pressure phase of these materials to applications involving friction, wear and precision machining. This small group of researchers will provide a coordinated and integrated resource group to industry. The group will provide a reference source for information and expertise on material processing of silicon, germanium and silicon nitride.