DC Magnetron Sputtering Research Articles

TiC and (Ti,Nb)3SiC2 based dual-layer coating on SUS430 for solid oxide fuel cell interconnects

TiC and crystalline (Ti,Nb)3SiC2 based dual-layer is prepared on SUS430 alloy by DC magnetron sputtering followed by annealing at 1000 °C for 20 h. The oxidation of TiC/TNSC coated alloy at 800 °C for 500 h follows the parabolic law with a low rate constant of 5.4 × 10−15 g2 cm−4 s−1. The formed oxide scale is composed of Cr2O3/MnCr2O4 dominated inner layer and outer layer of Nb-doped TiO2 and SiO2 uniform mixture. Owing to the barrier effect of TiC layer and dense oxide scale, outward diffusion of Cr and Mn is efficiently suppressed, resulting in the low Cr content in the outer oxide layer, which is beneficial to the reduced volatilization of Cr oxide. Furthermore, the ASR of the formed oxide scale at 800 °C is 15.87 mΩ cm2, suggesting excellent conductivity. It is concluded that the TiC/(Ti,Nb)3SiC2 coating can significantly improve the oxidation resistannce and electrical property of SUS430 alloy, endowing it potential application as SOFC interconnect protective coating.

Structural, optical and electrochromic properties of WAW films for profound electrochromic applications deposited by DC & RF magnetron sputtering

One of the most frequently used transition conducting oxides (TCO) is indium tin oxide. Indium is very expensive because of the lack of availability. So Most of the researchers focused on cost-effective materials and they have developed Dielectric/Metal/Dielectric (DMD) structures for ITO-free applications. Examples of dielectric materials are AZO, MoO3, TiO2, and WO3. The dielectric material is sandwiched between metals such as Au, Ag, Pt, Cu, and Al. The efficacy of these DMD structures is purely based on the thickness of the dielectric and metal layers. Once the metal layer thickness is more than 15 nm, the transmittance is much less due to the thickness of the material and it will work as a reflector. Moreover, as WO3 is the most widely and frequently used material we focus on the fabrication of WO3/Ag/WO3 (WAW) for replacing TCO in the electrochromic device and making it indium-free. WAW structures are widely used in smart windows, gas sensors, solar cells, photodetectors, etc. For electrochromic applications, these WAW structures showed good transmittance, fast switching speed, best coloration efficiency, and best optical modulation in comparison to WO3/ITO structure and are also cost-effective.

Structural and Optical Properties of Aluminium Nitride Thin Films Fabricated Using Pulsed Laser Deposition and DC Magnetron Sputtering on Various Substrates

Abstract Aluminium nitride thin films were fabricated using pulsed laser deposition and DC magnetron sputtering. Different technological parameters and the effects of different substrates on the optical and structural parameters of AlN samples were studied. An X-ray diffraction study was performed for the layer deposited on the Si3N4 substrate. A high-energy electron diffraction study was also carried out for the layer deposited on a KCl substrate. Transmission spectra of layers on quartz, sapphire, and glass substrates were obtained. An evaluation of the optical band gap of the obtained layers was carried out (Eg form 3.81 to 5.81 eV) and the refractive index was calculated (2.58). The relative density of the film (N1TN-AlN sample) is 1.26 and was calculated using the Lorentz-Lorentz relationship. Layers of aluminium nitride show an amorphous character with a polycrystalline region. It was shown that the properties of AlN films strongly depend on the method, growth conditions, and substrate used.

Tunable structure of TiO2 deposited by DC magnetron sputtering to adsorb Cr (VI) and Fe (III) from water

TiO2 thin films with mixtures of the anatase, rutile, and brookite phases were deposited on glass substrates via magnetron sputtering. Based on XRD and Raman results, the TiO2-0.47 and TiO2-3.47 films principally contained the brookite phase, while the TiO2-1.27 and TiO2-2.13 films were primarily anatase. The capacities of the TiO2 films to adsorb heavy metals were tested with Cr(VI) and Fe(III) solutions, and the maximum Cr(VI) and Fe(III) adsorption capacities were realized with the TiO2-0.47 film (334.5 mg/g) and TiO2-3.47 film (271.3 mg/g), respectively. SEM‒EDS results revealed the presence of Cr and Fe on the surfaces of the films, thus corroborating the ability of the TiO2 films to adsorb and remove heavy metals. They are strong candidates for use in wastewater treatment plants.

Oxidation behavior of Ti2AlC MAX phase-based coating on a γ-TiAl alloy TiAl48-2-2 produced by DC magnetron sputtering

The application of intermetallic γ-TiAl-based alloys is limited by the deterioration in strength and creep resistance as well as reduction in oxidation resistance above 750 °C. The deposition of protective coatings is a promising opportunity to enhance the oxidation resistance or the lifetime with regard to the sustainability by several orders of magnitude. Moreover, additive manufacturing processes could enable the production of components with more complex geometries in the future. Thus, designs of γ-TiAl turbine blades with internal cooling systems could be feasible in the near future. In this context, the deposition of thermal barrier coatings and, therefore, oxidation protective bond coatings became important. MAX phases are of increasing interest as coating materials for high temperature applications due to their unique combination of metallic and ceramic properties. Especially the alumina forming MAX phases such as Cr2AlC, Ti2AlC or Ti2AlN are promising coating materials.In the present work a Ti2AlC MAX-phase based coating was deposited by DC magnetron sputtering. Using three pure elemental target materials - Ti, Al and C and a two-fold rotation, a homogenous all-around coating was applied on the γ-TiAl alloy TiAl48-2-2 with a coating thickness of 10 μm. After the deposition process the stochiometric Ti2AlC coating was X-ray amorphous, therefore a post-heat treatment at 800 °C for 1 h was performed to achieve the desired hexagonal phase. Finally, the MAX-phase coated TiAl48-2-2 alloy was subjected to a cyclic oxidation test at 850 °C in laboratory air. The Ti2AlC MAX-phase coated TiAl48-2-2 alloy exhibits an excellent oxidation behavior, due to the formation of a thermally grown alumina top layer with the desired hexagonal Ti2AlC MAX-phase below. Extensive TEM analyses also showed the dependence of Al2O3 formation on post-heat treatment. θ-Al2O3 with a lower protective effect and the concomitant formation of TiN under the TGO was observed with post-heat treatment in Ar, while post-heat treatment in air lead to the formation of a protective α-Al2O3 layer.

Extremely improved the corrosion resistance and anti-wear behavior of aluminum alloy in 3.5% NaCl solution via amorphous CrAlN coating protection

The low hardness and limited anti-wear of aluminum alloys pose obstacles to their stability and service life, especially in corrosive environments. Here, the amorphous CrAlN coating was first deposited on aluminum alloy by DC magnetron sputtering. The CrAlN coating with 30.2% nitrogen content was dense and prevented the intrusion of oxidation and corrosive fluids, thus greatly improving the anti-corrosion of the coating. The wear rate of the coated aluminum alloy in 3.5% NaCl solution decreased by three orders of magnitude. This work paves the way for constructing amorphous protective coatings on light alloys.

Thermal Conductivity Switching in Pd-Catalyzed Gd and GdH2 Films Upon Gasochromic Hydrogenation and Dehydrogenation

Thermal conductivity switching in Pd-catalyzed Gd hydride films was investigated using in situ analyses of electrical, optical, structural, and thermophysical properties upon gasochromic hydrogenation/dehydrogenation at room temperature. These reactions allow the films to reversibly switch between the metallic (GdH2) phase in the hydrogenated state and the semiconductor (GdH3) phase in the dehydrogenated state. We fabricated three-layered films comprising Pd (5 nm)/Gd or GdH2 (300 nm)/Mo (100 nm) using DC magnetron sputtering using Pd, Gd, and Mo targets, respectively, on unheated synthetic quartz substrates. Ar or mixture of Ar + H2 (H2: 5 % to 50 %) gases were used for the deposition of the Gd or GdH2 films, respectively. The thermal conductivities of the Gd or GdH2 films were analyzed using in situ rear-heating/rear-detection type time-domain picosecond pulsed light heating thermoreflectance measurements by employing a gas mixture of N2/Ar and H2 (H2: 3 %) at 1 atm, which is below the explosive limit for hydrogen. The thermal conductivities of Gd and GdH2 films were measured for one and two hydro-/dehydrogenation cycles, respectively. The thermal switching ratios of the ON state thermal conductivity to the OFF state thermal conductivity were 6.4 and 2.9–5.4 for the Gd film and the GdH2 (H2: 5 %–50 %) films, respectively. The thermal conductivity of the Gd hydrides films changed along with those estimated from the Wiedemann–Franz Law and electrical conductivities.

Tribological properties of silver coatings prepared by low temperature pulsed DC magnetron sputtering and electroplating for aero-engines fasteners

In this work, the causes of failure of electroplating silver coatings on aero-engine nuts were explored. And the microhardness of low temperature pulsed DC magnetron sputtering silver coatings was increased by 25%, and the bonding force was increased by about 1.2 times. At high temperature, the friction coefficients of magnetron sputtering silver coatings was about 20% lower than that of electroplating silver coatings, and the wear volume was about 90% lower than that of it at maximum. The wear mechanism of magnetron sputtering silver coatings was mainly abrasive wear, while that of electroplating silver coatings was mainly adhesive wear. Besides, the results of molecular dynamics showed that silver coatings would move and aggregate in layers during the friction.

Electrochromic properties of InON thin films prepared by DC magnetron sputtering

Electrochromic properties of InON thin films prepared by DC magnetron sputtering

Mechanical properties of Xe-ion-irradiated high-entropy-alloy-based multilayers

In this Letter, we investigate the mechanical stability of HEA-based multilayers after Xe-ion irradiation. CrFeCoNi/TiNbZrTa metallic and nitride thin films with a bilayer thickness of 30 nm were grown by reactive dc-magnetron sputtering on Al2O3(0001) substrates for irradiation studies and on Si(100) substrates for other characterizations. The films were subjected to 3-MeV Xe-ion irradiation at room temperature (RT) and at 500 °C. The crystal structure and mechanical properties of the films before and after irradiation were studied by x-ray diffraction and nanoindentation. Before irradiation, both the metallic and nitride multilayers displayed a lower hardness (7 and 20 GPa, respectively). Annealing at 500 °C for 150 min increased the hardness of the multilayer samples, but it also induced intermixing of elements between the sublayers of the metallic multilayer. Irradiation hardening was observed only in the metallic multilayer at room temperature. When comparing the effects of irradiation damage vs the effects of annealing on the mechanical properties, it was observed that annealing the multilayers had a more pronounced effect.

Effect of Substrate Temperature and Deposition Power on the Surface Morphology and Optical Properties of ZnO:Mg Thin Films Deposited by DC Magnetron Sputtering

Magnesium doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Mg) thin films were deposited on soda lime glass slides by DC magnetron sputtering method. Atomic force microscope (AFM), and UV/VIS spectrophotometer were used to investigate the effect of sputtering power and substrate temperature on the surface morphology and optical properties of ZnO:Mg thin films. AFM images revealed that sputtering power and deposition temperature have significant influence on surface morphology of the ZnO:Mg thin films. For all sputtering powers and substrate temperatures investigated, ZnO:Mg films had peak transmittance above 85%. Samples deposited at 110 W sputtering power and 450 °C substrate temperature showed the best peak transmittance of > 90% at 560 nm (visible range). Optical band gap of ZnO:Mg films was in the range of 3.44– 3.69 eV depending on the substrate temperature. The results indicated the potential of the films for transparent conductor applications.

Effect of sputtering pressure and oxygen content on the electrochromic properties of NiO films by DC magnetron sputtering

In this study, NiO films were fabricated using DC magnetron sputtering under various conditions of sputtering pressures and oxygen contents. The effects of the sputtering pressure and oxygen content on the structure, morphology, optical properties, and electrochromic performance of the NiO films were analyzed using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, UV spectrophotometry, and electrochemical workstation. The grain size, thickness, and roughness of the NiO films showed decreasing trends with increasing sputtering pressure; however, these factors showed significant variations with increasing oxygen content. The results demonstrated that when the sputtering pressure was 0.8 Pa, the prepared films were characterized by loose and porous surfaces, high roughness, crystallinity, and excellent electrochromic properties. The optical contrast was 75.34 % (at 550 nm), coloration efficiency was 14.86 cm2/C, coloring time was 2.09 s, and bleaching time was 2.05 s. Furthermore, good cycling stability was achieved.

Study of the Long-Range Exchange Coupling in Nd-Fe-B/Ti/Fe Multilayered Structure

The exchange coupling between two ferromagnetic thin films, one with magnetically hard and the other with soft phases, separated by a thin non-magnetic layer, is studied. Nd-Fe-B/Ti/Fe thin film heterostructures were fabricated using DC magnetron sputtering on Si substrates, which were heated in situ at 650 °C using a house-built vacuum-compatible heater. The effect of the thickness of the Ti buffer layer and the annealing temperature on the formation of various phases of Nd-Fe-B was investigated. The effect of the thickness of the non-magnetic Ti spacer layer on the exchange coupling strength between the hard phase Nd-Fe-B ferromagnetic thin layer and the soft phase transition metal Fe layer was experimentally investigated. Hysteresis loops of multilayer thin films indicate an antiferromagnetic coupling was observed when the thickness of the spacer layer was 2 nm. This is within the range of an antiferromagnetic coupling calculation based on RKKY theory predictions.

Aluminum Co-Deposition via DC Magnetron Sputtering for Enhanced Pitting Resistance of Copper–Nickel Alloys

To investigate the improvements in the resistance of Cu–Ni alloys to surface pitting corrosion, Cu–Ni thin films containing Al were fabricated via DC magnetron sputtering. The morphologies of the fabricated samples were obtained using a scanning electron microscopy, which yielded information on the crystal size and sample surface before and after corrosion tests. X-ray diffraction was employed for the structural characterization of the as-deposited films, and vibrational spectroscopy was used to verify the corrosion products. The corrosion behaviors of the Cu–Ni and Cu–Ni–Al samples were examined using electrochemical polarization and cyclic corrosion tests. The Al co-deposited samples showed a refined crystal size as compared to the Cu–Ni sample, suggesting that they are more susceptible to the formation of a passivation film. The corrosion current density of the Cu–Ni–Al was reduced, and the corrosion potential was lower than that without Al content. The negative shift in the corrosion potential of the Al-containing samples indicates that the Al2O3 film suppressed the cathodic reaction, resulting in a decrease in the corrosion rate. These results are consistent with the cyclic corrosion test results, in which no pitting corrosion is observed in the Cu–Ni–Al sample.

Microstructure, mechanical properties and tribological behavior of (TiZrHfNbTa)Nx high entropy films deposited by magnetron sputtering

High entropy nitride (HEN) films of (TiZrHfNbTa)Nx were deposited by reactive DC magnetron sputtering, choosing 304 stainless steel and silicon wafers as the experimental substrates. The influence of nitrogen flow rate RN: N2/(N2+Ar) on the microstructure and properties of HEN films was investigated. The results showed that HEN films exhibit granular surface morphologies and internal characteristics of amorphous embedded FCC crystals, exhibiting a structure of amorphous at the lower RN (0, 2 %) and transforming to FCC crystals with preferred (111) orientation as RN increasing (6.5%–26 %), with the decrease of crystallinity and the alteration of preferred orientation from (111) to (200) at the further increase of RN at 40 %. The introduction of nitrogen led to significant improvements of film hardness (>23 GPa) and modulus (>270 GPa). When RN = 13 %, the hardness is up to 30.7 GPa, and the modulus is 340 GPa at RN = 6.5 %. The as-deposited films exhibited excellent wear resistance, and the wear rate (6.65✕10−6mm3/Nm) was the lowest when RN = 2 %.

Influence of surface roughness on magnetic property of magnetron sputter deposited FePtCo films

ABSTRACT Thin films of FePtCo ternary alloy with 100 nm thickness have been deposited on an Si substrate using a DC magnetron sputtering system by co-sputtering of Co metal target and Fe40Pt60 alloy target in three different conditions, i.e. as-deposited at room temperature, annealed at 400 °C ∘ C , and deposited on the seed- layer. The effects of target sputtering power, leading to different compositions and various deposition conditions on surface roughness of films and magnetic properties, were studied. The average surface roughness of the as-deposited films decreases with the increase in the sputtering power of the Co target. For the annealed and seed-layered films, an increase in Co sputtering power resulted in an increased in roughness. Moreover, the annealed films possess smallerlower roughness due to an increase in the surface mobility. On the other hand, the Cu seed- layer decreases the roughness by preventing the diffusion of the film into the substrate. The room -temperature M-H measurement shows that the films exhibit soft ferromagnetism with coercivity in the order of 10 3 A/m and large saturation magnetizationmagnetisation of the order 10 6 A/m. The saturation magnetizationmagnetisation decreases with the increase in the sputtering power and is not influenced by the film surface roughness. On the other hand, riseincrease in surface roughness leads to decrease in coercivity of the films.

Annealing Temperature Effect on the Physical Properties of NiO Thin Films Grown by DC Magnetron Sputtering

AbstractNickel oxide is a promising material for transparent electronics applications. This semiconductor demonstrates the possibility of modifying its physical properties depending on the method of growth and subsequent processing. Here the effects of the discharge power are reported during reactive dc magnetron sputtering, as well as the modes of subsequent annealing of NiO films, on their structural, electrical, and optical properties. NiO films are annealed at various temperatures both in an oxygen‐containing environment and under vacuum conditions. Deposited NiO films have a polycrystalline structure with a preferred orientation (200) for the low discharge power mode and (111) for the high discharge power mode. However, obtained NiO films exhibit crystallinity improvement after annealing. The presence of both Ni2+ and Ni3+ oxidation states in the deposited films is found. In addition, it is shown that the relative carrier concentration (Ni3+/Ni2+ peak area ratio) can be controlled by choosing the NiO film preparation mode. The trend in this ratio corresponds to the trend in film conductivity and the number of free‐charge carriers. The deposited films are semitransparent, and the estimated optical bandgap of NiO is in the range from 3.50 to 3.74 eV.

Investigations of TiC and SiC films synthesized by DC magnetron sputtering and thermal annealing

In this research article, two-dimensional thin films of titanium, hierarchical titanium-carbon, titanium carbide, hierarchical silicon-carbon, and silicon carbide films were synthesized on the plates of AISI 304 stainless steel and glass slides, individually, using DC magnetron sputtering techniques. During the sputtering process, the creation of stable plasma was affected by the vacuum level, DC potential, plasma current, and Argon gas. The results showed that the coatings of titanium, titanium-carbon, and titanium carbide modified the optical properties of stainless steel. Additionally, titanium carbide coatings displayed a shiny gold appearance with a hardness of 1500 HV. Besides this, X-ray diffraction studies revealed a hexagonal Ti in the metallic films and C60, and diamond-like structures dispersed on its surface after the carbon coating. The spherical particulates of Ti and C60/diamond-like carbon particulates anchored on its surface were observed using scanning electron microscope analysis. The structural analysis indicated C vacant sites, which are available for ionic/electronic charge diffusion, thereby rendering these structures suitable for making Li storage batteries as electrode material.

Epitaxial light actinide oxide thin films

Epitaxial thin films of ThO2 and (UxTh1−x)O2 mixed oxides (MOX) have been synthesised by DC magnetron sputtering. The samples were characterised using x-ray diffraction and spectroscopic ellipsometry. Three epitaxial ThO2 samples of different crystallographic orientations have been synthesised and confirmed by x-ray diffraction analysis. The samples are [1 1 1], [1 1 0] and [0 0 1] oriented, with lattice parameters determined to be 5.714 ± 0.001 Å, 5.707 ± 0.001 Å and 5.624 ± 0.001 Å respectively. Four [0 0 1] oriented epitaxial (UxTh1−x)O2 samples have been fabricated, across 0≤x≤1, with all samples found to have a unique specular direction. The mixed oxides were found to obey Vegard’s law, with lattice parameter varying linearly with ThO2 content. Values for the optical band gap and optical constants of the epitaxial ThO2 and MOX samples have also been determined by spectroscopic ellipsometry. The band gap determined for the three ThO2 samples were in the 3.9 - 4.6 eV range, which is a slight underestimate compared to other experimental values. The optical band gap was found to vary approximately linearly with ThO2 content, across the sample series. These films can be implemented in the research of thorium-based nuclear fuels, mixed actinide oxide nuclear fuel and the long term storage of nuclear waste forms.

Investigation of electrical, corporeal, ocular, and aquaphobic properties of zirconia thin-films by varying substrate temperature for high voltage insulators

ABSTRACT The addition of ZrO2 nanoparticles to porcelain insulators and its influence on their electrical and corporeal characteristics are studied throughout a wide range of sintering temperatures. The DC magnetron sputtering with a 99.99% pure zirconium target is utilized to create zirconium oxide thin films on glass and silicon substrates in a 12-inch-diameter chamber. Different temperatures were used to sinter the produced samples (room temperature (RT) − 400°C) for 1 h with gas pressure of 15 mTorr for all depositions. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to characterize the microstructures of a subset of the samples. In order to assess the physical and microphysical changes brought on by an increase in substrate temperature, the phase composition of various nanocomposites samples was determined using X-ray diffraction (XRD). The breakdown strength, electrical resistivity, and dielectric constant were measured to assess the electrical attributes of the various samples. The obtained findings showed that the electrical and corporeal characteristics of samples sintered at RT were the best. In addition, the sample of nanocomposite porcelain sintered at room temperature has excellent insulating qualities, confirming the possibility of electro-technical porcelain manufacture (water contact angle = 103.5º), dielectric constant = 24.4, refractive index = 2.15, and bandgap = 5.33.