NSF-DFG: Advances in ion-surface interaction-driven manufacturing of one-dimensional metal oxide heterostructures

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This proposal is dedicated to the exploration of advanced manufacturing methods for the reactive growth of spatially coherent, homogeneous, and high-quality compound one-dimensional nano-heterostructures by principles of oblique angle deposition and assist ion bombardment (iGLAD). One assist ion source implemented into the fabrication process will be subsequentially operated for i) substrate pre-patterning via ion erosion, ii) control of phase and stoichiometry via reactive ion bombardment, and iii) nanostructure size control via ion figuring. A hypothesis driven approach is employed to investigate nucleation, growth, interface formation, surface patterning and nanostructure crafting for the fabrication of metal oxide nano-heterostructures in correlation to process parameters such as ion energy, ion current density, angle of incidence and ion mass, using ZrO2-MoO3-x as a model substance. In-situ spectroscopic ellipsometry at arbitrary sample positions will be applied to monitor material development during manufacturing in real-time. The advancements of the fabrication process are accompanied by a comprehensive analysis of particle fluxes which are involved in the ion assisted growth process, and by Monte-Carlo based simulations of the particle transport during deposition. If successful, a modified Thornton diagram of microstructure evolution in 1D nanostructures as a function of ion bombardment and oblique particle fluxes will be established. This proposal is based on mutual scientific interest in low-energy reactive ion beam processing for advanced additive manufacturing and combines expertise from Dr. Eva Schubert, Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (U.S.A.) and Dr. Frank Frost, Head of Division for Ion Beam Assisted Patterning and Smoothing at the Leibniz-Institute for Surface Engineering (Germany). High resolution STEM imaging in combination with EDX elemental analysis will be conducted by Dr. René Feder, Team Manager Hybrid Systems, from IOM sub-contractor Fraunhofer-Institute for Microstructures of Materials and Systems in Halle/Saale (Germany).