Interdiffusion mechanisms in Ag-Au thin-film couples

Abstract

The roles of grain‐boundary and bulk diffusion in thin‐film couples of Ag‐Au have been elucidated by comparing interdiffusion profiles in single‐crystal and polycrystalline couples. The use of self‐supporting couples, and Rutherford backscattering for depth analysis, greatly simplify interpretation of the data. Room‐temperature grain‐boundary diffusion is observed in polycrystalline couples with a diffusion coefficient ∼⁻10¹⁴ cm² sec⁻¹. On annealing these polycrystalline films, at temperatures ⩽400 °C, an initial fast interdiffusion is observed followed by a slower process; models for this behavior are presented.