A Metallographic Investigation of the Damaged Layer in Abraded Germanium Surfaces

Abstract

The structure of the damaged layer produced on {111} surfaces of germanium by several abrasion processes has been studied by a metallographic taper‐sectioning technique. The study confirms that the abrasion process involves both cleavage and noncrystallographic fracture and establishes that the surface layers contain many cracks initiated by these fracture processes. Dislocations are not introduced into the surface layers. Measurements of the depth of the layers containing the damage cracks are in sufficiently good agreement with estimates of the depth of damage made by established methods to indicate that the cracked layer is the classical damaged layer.