Formation, Structure and Composition of Anodic-Oxide Films on Beryllium

Abstract

<p>The formation, structure and composition of anodic-oxide films on Be is investigated. According to the choice of electrolyte, porosity, dissolution and crystallinity can be varied almost at will for the formed anodic films. Also the procedure for the anodic sectioning of Be is described and applied to determining the depth distributions of energetic ⁸⁵Kr ions.</p> <p>The presence and the distribution of electrolyte components that are incorporated into the anodic films are investigated by the photon-emission technique. The depth profiles of the incorporated species are correlated with the mechanism of film formation.</p> <p>Finally, a criterion for the structure of anodic oxide films on metals is developed based on the kinetics of the formation and crystallization processes of the various oxides. The criterion is applied and found to work successfully with all systems for which information is available, whereas for unstudied systems it for which information is enables predictions to be made.</p>