Search

This work is devoted to the investigation of decorative zirconium oxynitride, ZrOxNy, films prepared by dc reactive magnetron sputtering, using a 17:3 nitrogen-to-oxygen-ratio gas mixture. The color of the films changed from metallic-like, very bright yellow pale, and golden yellow, for low gas mixture flows [from 0 to about 9 SCCM (SCCM denotes cubic centimeter per minute at STP)] to red brownish for intermediate gas flows (values up to 12 SCCM). Associated to this color change there is a significant decrease of brightness. With further increase of the reactive gas flow, the color of the samples changed from red brownish to dark blue (samples prepared with 13 and 14 SCCM). The films deposited with gas flows above 14 SCCM showed only apparent colorations due to interference effects. This change in optical behavior from opaque to transparent (characteristic of a transition from metallic to insulating-type materials), promoted by the change in gas flow values, revealed that significant changes were occurring in the film structure and electronic properties, thus opening new potential applications for the films, beyond those of purely decorative ones. Taking this into account, the electrical behavior of the films was investigated as a function of the reactive gas flow and correlated with the observed chemical, electronic, and structural features. The variations in composition disclosed the existence of four different zones, which were correlated to different crystalline structures. For the so-called zone I, x-ray diffraction revealed the development of films with a B1 NaCl face-centered cubic zirconium nitride-type phase, with some texture changes. Increasing the reactive gas flow, the structure of the films is that of a poorly crystallized overstoichiometric nitride phase, which may be similar to that of Zr3N4, but with some probable oxygen inclusions within nitrogen positions. This region was characterized as zone II. Zone III was indexed as an oxynitride-type phase, similar to that of γ-Zr2ON2 with some oxygen atoms occupying some of the nitrogen positions. Finally, occurring at the highest flow rates, zone IV was assigned to a ZrO2 monoclinic-type structure. The composition/structure variations were consistent with the chemical bonding analysis carried out by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, which showed oxygen doping in both Zr3N4- and ZrN-type grown films. The electronic properties of the films exhibited significant changes from zone to zone. Resistivity measurements revealed a very wide range of values, varying from relatively highly conductive materials (for zone I) with resistivity values around few hundreds of μΩ cm to highly insulating films within zones III and IV, which presented resistivity values in the order of 1015 μΩ cm. Regarding zone II, corresponding to oxygen doped Zr3N4-type compounds, the observed behavior revealed resistivity values increasing steeply from about 103 up to 1015 μΩ cm, indicating a systematic transition from metallic to insulating regimes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dc reactive sputtering was successfully implemented to deposit titanium oxynitride thin films using a titanium metallic target, argon, nitrogen and water vapour as reactive gases. The nitrogen partial pressure was kept constant during every deposition whereas that of the water vapour was systematically changed from 0 to 0.1 Pa. The study aims at comparing the structural and mechanical properties of the coatings deposited at room temperature (293 K) and at 673 K. Surface morphology of the film was examined by atomic force microscopy and showed different aspects according to the growth temperature. Topography mainly depends on the amount of water vapour introduced during the deposition process. Some significant changes of the crystallographic structure, due to the high substrate temperature were correlated with the evolution of the surface aspect and roughness parameters. Determination of the phase occurrence by X-ray diffraction was also carried out and appeared to be a significant parameter in understanding the evolution of mechanical properties like nanohardness ( H n) and Young’s modulus ( E). H n and E values obtained by nanoindentation ranged from 16.5 to 7 GPa and from 240 to 100 GPa, respectively. For both temperatures, mechanical properties of titanium oxynitride thin films were notably reduced as a function of the water vapour supply, especially for partial pressures higher than 4 × 10−2 Pa. These mechanical behaviours were correlated and discussed with the phase occurrence and the amorphous structure of titanium oxynitride thin films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: There is a growing interest in the quality of work life (QWL) of healthcare professionals and staff well-being. We decided to measure the perceived QWL of ICU physicians and the factors that could influence their perception. Methods: We performed a survey coordinated and executed by the French Trade Union of Intensive Care Physicians (SMR). QWL was assessed using the French version of the Work-Related Quality of Life (WRQoL) scale, perceived stress using the French version of 10 item-Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) and group functioning using the French version of the Reflexivity Scale, the Social Support at Work Questionnaire (QSSP-P). Results: 308 French-speaking ICU physicians participated. 40% perceived low WRQoL, mainly due to low general well-being, low satisfaction with working conditions and low possibility of managing the articulation between their private and professional lives. Decreased QWL was associated with being a woman (p = .002), having children (p = .022) and enduring many monthly shifts (p = .022). Conclusions: This work highlights the fact that ICU physicians feel a significant imbalance between the demands of their profession and the resources at their disposal. Communication and exchanges within a team and quality of social support appear to be positive elements to maintain and/or develop within our structures., Competing Interests: Declaration of Conflicting InterestsThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: N. Terzi reports personal fees from Pfizer outside the submitted work. None of the other authors have any competing interests to disclose.

Background: Many studies show the existence of gender inequalities at work. For example, in France, only 37% of women have a managerial role, which is far from parity. Among these gender inequalities, the present study considers the Quality of Working Life (QWL) for women and managers., Method: This study measures the Quality of Working Life (QWL) perceived by individuals according to their gender (Women vs. Men) and their status (Managers vs. Co-workers). A questionnaire was distributed to 1,321 employees. It comprised two scales: the WRQoL scale and the QUALTRA-Scale. The QUALTRA-Scale permits the calculation of an index δ that measures the gap between the ideal QWL and the perceived QWL., Results: The ANOVA (2×2) revealed an impact of status on the perceived QWL on both scales. There was no gender effect. However, there was an effect of both gender and status on the index δ of the QUALTRA-Scale. In particular, for the Women group, δ was higher for the Social Relationships at Work whereas for the Co-workers, it was higher for the Work Environment., Conclusion: These results are discussed, highlighting the value of measuring the ideal QWL as a reference point for assessing the QWL., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2023 Salès-Wuillemin, Minondo-Kaghad, Chappé, Gélin and Dolard.)