Deposition of nanostructured metal coatings on the modified silicon surfaces in the magnetoplasma compressor

The process of formation of nanostructured metal coatings on silicon and sodium chloride surfaces exposed to compression plasma flow has been studied. To analyze microstructure, morphology, elemental and phase composition of near-surface layer, methods of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) microanalysis, and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) were used. The coating obtained looks like a monolayer consisting of spherical particles, a few to 200 nm in size, bonded to each other. These particles cover both plane surface areas and cylindrical structures formed in the course of plasma treatment. The coating thickness correlates with sizes of particles.