Characterization of the recovery of mechanical properties of\ud ion-implanted diamond after thermal annealing

摘要

Due to their outstanding mechanical properties, diamond and diamond-like\udmaterials find significant technological applications ranging from\udwell-established industrial fields (cutting tools, coatings, etc.) to\udmore advanced mechanical devices as micro- and nano-electromechanical\udsystems. The use of energetic ions is a powerful and versatile tool to\udfabricate three-dimensional micro-mechanical structures. In this\udcontext, it is of paramount importance to have an accurate knowledge of\udthe effects of ion-induced structural damage on the mechanical\udproperties of this material, primarily to predict potential undesired\udside-effects of the ion implantation process, and possibly to tailor the\uddesired mechanical properties of the fabricated devices. We present an\udAtomic Force Microscopy (AFM) characterization of free-standing\udcantilevers in single-crystal diamond obtained by a FIB assisted\udlift-off technique, which allows the determination of the Young's\udmodulus of the diamond crystal after the MeV ion irradiation process\udconcurrent to the fabrication of the microstructures, and subsequent\udthermal annealing. The AFM measurements were performed with the\udbeam-bending technique and show that the thermal annealing process\udallows for an effective recovery of the mechanical properties of the\udpristine crystal. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.