Surface chemical changes of TiC, TiN and TiO2 by light-ion bombardments

Surface chemical chances of TiC, TiN and TiO2 due to ion bombardment with H2+, D2+ and He+ ions in the energy range of 0.5 keV to 10 keV have been studied by electron spectroscopy. In almost all cases, depletion of the light constituents was observed. No evidence for formation of titanium hydride or the metallic state is obtained for bombarded TiC and TiN surfaces. Preferential loss of oxygen from TiO2 results in formation of Ti2O3 by the H2+ and D2+ bombardments, and of a mixture of Ti2O3 and TiO by the He+ bombardment. In the cases of TiC and TiN, a similar dependence on the incident ion energy was observed for the changes between the X/Ti (X=C,N) surface compositional ratio at steady state and the Ti+/X+ signal ratio of secondary-ion mass spectra. The compositional change is discussed in relation to sputtering properties of the constituents. (orig.)