Revealing the atomic mechanism of diamond–iron interfacial reaction
Yalun Ku,
Kun Xu,
Longbin Yan,
Kuikui Zhang,
Dongsheng Song,
Xing Li,
Shunfang Li,
Shaobo Cheng,
Chongxin Shan
Affiliations
Yalun Ku
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Kun Xu
Department of Mechanical Engineering Stanford University Stanford California USA
Longbin Yan
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Kuikui Zhang
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Dongsheng Song
Information Materials and Intelligent Sensing Laboratory of Anhui Province, Key Laboratory of Structure and Functional Regulation of Hybrid Materials of Ministry of Education Institutes of Physical Science and Information Technology Anhui University Hefei China
Xing Li
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Shunfang Li
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Shaobo Cheng
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Chongxin Shan
Henan Key Laboratory of Diamond Optoelectronic Materials and Devices, Key Laboratory of Material Physics Ministry of Education, School of Physics and Microelectronics Zhengzhou University Zhengzhou China
Abstract Diamond, with ultrahigh hardness, high wear resistance, high thermal conductivity, and so forth, has attracted worldwide attention. However, researchers found emergent reactions at the interfaces between diamond and ferrous materials, which significantly affects the performance of diamond‐based devices. Herein, combing experiments and theoretical calculations, taking diamond–iron (Fe) interface as a prototype, the counter‐diffusion mechanism of Fe/carbon atoms has been established. Surprisingly, it is identified that Fe and diamond first form a coherent interface, and then Fe atoms diffuse into diamond and prefer the carbon vacancies sites. Meanwhile, the relaxed carbon atoms diffuse into the Fe lattice, forming Fe3C. Moreover, graphite is observed at the Fe3C surface when Fe3C is over‐saturated by carbon atoms. The present findings are expected to offer new insights into the atomic mechanism for diamond‐ferrous material's interfacial reactions, benefiting diamond‐based device applications.
