Effects of annealing on structures and properties of Cu–Hf–Al amorphous thin films

Abstract

Abstract We have investigated the formation of Cu-based amorphous alloy film in Cu–Hf–Al ternary system and the effect of annealing temperature on the mechanical, electrical and electrochemical properties. The films with a composition of Cu 72.4 Hf 18.4 Al 9.2 were prepared using a DC magnetron sputtering method. We found that the glass transition temperature T g of the Cu–Hf–Al amorphous film is around 550 °C. Upon annealing at temperatures above T g , the films displayed (partial) crystallization and remarkable changes in mechanical properties and electrical resistance. The Cu–Hf–Al amorphous thin film exhibited high Young’s modulus of 127.1 GPa and hardness of 7.2 GPa, and has a strong passivation ability and high corrosion resistance in H + or Na + environments.