Role of substrate and deposition conditions on the texture evolution of titanium nitride thin film on bare and plasma-nitrided high-speed steel

Abstract

Titanium nitride (TiN) films are prepared by direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering of a titanium (Ti) target in an argon (Ar) + nitrogen (N2) atmosphere on bare and pulsed DC plasma-nitrided high-speed steel (AISI M2) substrate. One set of coating is deposited using different N2 partial pressures keeping the working pressure fixed, and it leads to variable film thickness. Another set of coating of equal thickness is prepared at the same working pressure with variable substrate biasing voltage. The detailed structure of the coatings is analyzed by X-ray diffraction study. The texture coefficient (Tc) determined from X-ray diffraction studies at various deposition conditions gives information about crystallographic orientation. It is found that the same deposition condition leads to different orientation of TiN coatings on bare AISI M2 and plasma-nitrided AISI M2 substrate. The results are discussed in terms of energy minimization and substrate-induced preferred orientation.