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Microstructural Studies of Pulsed-Laser Irradiated Graphite Surfaces1

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

J. S. Speck,
J. Steinbeck,
G. Braunstein,
M. S. Dresselhaus and
T. Venkatesan
J. S. Speck
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
J. Steinbeck
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
G. Braunstein
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
M. S. Dresselhaus
Affiliation:
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139
T. Venkatesan
Affiliation:
Bell Communications Research, Murray Hill, NJ 07974
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Abstract

The surface structures of laser-irradiated samples of highly oriented pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) have been investigated using optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM). The samples were irradiated with a 30 ns ruby laser (λ = 6943 !A) pulse with energy fluences ranging from 0.1 to 3.0 J cm−2. Optically, the specimens show a damage region approximately 5 mm in diameter. The surface structure displays three characteristic regions: an outer boundary characterized by submicron carbon spheroids resting on the surface; an inner boundary characterized by both submicron spheroids and 1 to 5 [m ‘torn’ carbon layers which appear to have broken away from the graphite surface after irradiation; a central region characterized by a uniform density of spheroids and a pattern of surface upheavals which trace out a grain pattern similar to that of the pristine substrate. Electron diffraction patterns taken on the irradiated region indicate an ultra-fine grain 2-dimensionally ordered carbon. Qualitative trends in the areal density of different microstructural features are presented. In addition, a simple model explaining the observed features is given. All observations are consistent with the rapid solidification of liquid carbon.

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Footnotes

1

The MIT authors acknowledge NSF Grant #DMR 83-10482 for the support of their portion of the work, and JSS acknowledges NSF for financial support in the form of a graduate fellowship.

References

REFERENCES

[1] Braunstein, G., Steinbeck, J., Dresselhaus, M.S., Dresselhaus, G., Elman, B.S., Venkatesan, T., Wilkens, B., and Jacobsen, D.C., current symposium proceedings.Google Scholar
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