Magnetron Co-sputtering Technique Research Articles

Crystal Structure Evolution of Piezoelectric Fe-Doped ZnO Film by Magnetron Co-Sputtering Technique

Zinc oxide (ZnO) exhibits piezoelectric properties due to its asymmetric structure, making it suitable for piezoelectric devices. This experiment deposited Fe-doped ZnO films on silicon substrates using a dual-target magnetron co-sputtering system. The films achieved a high c-axis orientation, and the piezoelectric coefficient of the film reached its optimal value of 44.35 pC/N when doped with 0.5 at% of Fe. This value is approximately three times that of undoped ZnO films with a piezoelectric coefficient of 13.04 pC/N. The study utilized a diffractometer, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and atomic force microscopy to evaluate the crystal structure evolution of the zinc oxide films and employed X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to assess the valence state of the Fe ions.

The structural, optical, topographical, and H2 sensing characteristics of a Zn-doped Fe2O3 thin layer deposited via DC & RF magnetron co-sputtering method

In this study, a Zn-doped iron oxide layer was deposited onto a microscope slide using the magnetron co-sputtering technique with direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF) sources. We comprehensively characterized the resulting Zn-doped Fe2O3 thin layer, employing techniques such as XRD, Raman spectroscopy, UV–VIS spectrophotometry, SEM, EDX, & AFM. XRD examination showed the nanocrystalline structure in the thin layer under investigation. Based on recorded absorption data, the band gap energy value calculation resulted in a value of 2.23 eV for the thin film. Raman spectroscopy identified peaks possessing Raman shifts from 100 to 1400 cm−1. SEM investigation illustrated a consistently uniform thin film surface characteristic throughout the substrate. Additionally, the AFM study disclosed a small RMS roughness value, indicative of an unrough surface for the Zn: Fe2O3 thin layer. The Fe2O3 thin film doped with Zn employing a 30 W DC voltage demonstrated effective hydrogen sensing capability at 300 °C, achieving notable response and recovery time. This work presents a novel application of Zn-doped Fe2O3 thin films as highly sensitive and stable hydrogen sensors, tailored for high-temperature environments. The unique combination of nanocrystalline structure and Zn doping optimizes the material’s electronic properties, enhancing its responsiveness to hydrogen gas. This approach offers a scalable, cost-effective pathway for developing advanced sensor technologies suited to environmental monitoring, industrial safety, and hazardous gas detection, making it a valuable addition to the field of gas-sensing materials.

Composition-Activity-Stability Relationship Investigation of Trimetallic Pt-Ni-Au Oxygen Reduction Reaction Catalyst

Hydrogen-fuelled proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) offer a promising path towards zero-emission energy, but their commercialization is hindered by challenges, particularly in the cathode catalysts responsible for the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Current catalysts rely heavily on expensive platinum, which degrades quickly in the harsh cathodic environment. Efforts are thus focused on developing cost-effective and stable catalysts. Recent research has shown that alloying platinum with earth-abundant transition metals can reduce costs and improve ORR activity. Bimetallic Pt-M (M=Ni, Cu, Co, Fe, etc.) alloy catalysts, particularly those incorporating gold, have demonstrated superior performance. However, achieving both high activity and long-term stability remains a challenge. Our recent work emphasizes the importance of precise catalyst engineering to optimize both activity and durability, highlighting the need for a balanced alloy structure and compositional profile in Pt–Au catalysts.In this work, a magnetron co-sputtering technique was utilized to introduce a small amount of Au (5, 10, and 20 at%) into Pt50Ni50 alloy. The resulting ternary PtNiAu alloy demonstrated enhanced stability compared to PtNi, as evidenced by reduced platinum and nickel dissolution with increasing Au content, confirmed over a wide potential range up to 1.5 VRHE. On the other hand, at elevated concentrations, Au showed a detrimental effect on the ORR activity. Despite showing lower activity than PtNi, the ternary PtNiAu alloy still displayed superior activity compared to pure Pt. The investigation employed robust characterization methods, including synchrotron radiation photoelectron spectroscopy (SRPES), in-situ scanning flow cell coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometer (SFC-ICP-MS), and rotating disc electrode (RDE), to probe the composition-activity-stability relationship and identify the optimal Pt-Ni-Au composition meeting both high activity and stability requirements.

Magnetron sputtered Zn-Ta2O5 thin films for electronic, thermoelectric, and optical applications

In the current study, the optical and electronic properties of Zn-Ta2O5 have been investigated as a potential optoelectronic material. Theoretically, the density functional theory was employed to pure and Zn doped Ta2O5 compositions using the Wien2k code. For experimental investigations uniform thin films were fabricated by magnetron co-sputtering technique on the silicon substrate. The optical, thermoelectric, electronic, and morphological properties were studied by relating the outcomes of simulations and experimental results providing the correlation among the findings. Graphs of the total density of states and partial density of states revealed the hybridization between the dopant and host orbitals. The p-d hybridization of O and Ta atoms was shown by the density of states. Structural studies reveal the growth of primary phase identified as orthorhombic Ta2O5. The grain growth of the Zn-Ta2O5 thin films gradually increase as the Zn content was increased and led to more compact film formation. Zn incorporation improves the thermal transport properties by increasing the Seebeck coefficient and reducing thermal conductivity. Band gap values were reduced by increasing the Zn concentration and recorded value was observed as 3.07 eV for Ta2O5 and 1.77 eV for maximum zinc concentration. Optical characteristics are measured in relation to photon energy which shows enhancement by the Zn doping. The outcomes of the current study manifest that these materials provide great potential for thermoelectric and optoelectronic applications.

Mechanisms of electrical transition using a conformal MoOx cap on Mo-doped VO2 thermochromics

Mo-doped VO2 thin-films are deposited on the soda-lime glass by a reactive high-power impulse magnetron co-sputtering technique (R-HiPIMS). Rapid thermal annealing at 500 °C for 3 min is performed to achieve the fabrication under low thermal budget. To prevent VO2 from further oxidation, a conformal and semi-conducting MoOx film is applied as the capping layer by the plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PE-ALD). After MoOx film is deposited, an electrical transition in the resistance ratio of 6–10 orders of magnitude has been found, especially for MoOx thicknesses less than 20 nm. A secondary phase of V2O3 plays an important role in abrupt change of current transportation. Also, the hysteresis of optical transition in transmittance at a wavelength of 2500 nm shows that both the width and transition temperature (TC) decrease with increasing the thickness of the MoOx cap. Moreover, the effect of localized surface plasmonic resonance (LSPR) due to the Karst-like structure has been detected by the absorption spectrum. The variations in LSPR peak, such as intensity, blue-shifting, and red-shifting, originated from either excess carrier or structure change are discussed. The high aspect ratio of surface morphology is further examined by atomic force microscopy. In addition, the coverage of MoOx on Mo-doped VO2 concerning the friction behavior is evaluated by lateral force microscopy (LFM), which is helpful in clarifying the responsible mechanisms during TC transition.

Impact of Silver Incorporation and Flash-Lamp-Annealing on the Photocatalytic Response of Sputtered ZnO Films.

Thin films of silver-doped zinc oxide (SZO) were deposited at room temperature using a DC reactive magnetron co-sputtering technique using two independent Zn and Ag targets. The crystallographic structure, chemical composition and surface morphology of SZO films with different silver concentrations were correlated with the photocatalytic (PC) properties. The crystallization of the SZO films was made using millisecond range flash-lamp-annealing (FLA) treatments. FLA induces significant structural ordering of the wurtzite structure and an in-depth redistribution of silver, resulting in the formation of silver agglomerates. The wurtzite ZnO structure is observed for silver contents below 10 at.% where Ag is partially incorporated into the oxide matrix, inducing a decrease in the optical band-gap. Regardless of the silver content, all the as-grown SZO films do not exhibit any significant PC activity. The best PC response is achieved for samples with a relatively low Ag content (2-5 at.%) after FLA treatment. The enhanced PC activity of SZO upon FLA can be attributed to structural ordering and the effective band-gap narrowing through the combination of silver doping and the plasmonic effect caused by the formation of Ag clusters.

Effect of gamma irradiation on the linear and non-linear optical properties of magnetron Co-sputtered CdO–SnO2 thin films

In this work, CdO–SnO2 thin films were deposited using the magnetron Co-sputtering technique. The presence of single-phase Cadmium Stannate (Cd2SnO4) films was verified by X-ray diffraction (XRD) of the as-prepared and irradiated films. The obtained results reveal that crystallite size (D) increasing by gamma irradiation up to 50 kGY and then seem to be not affected by increasing the dose of gamma radiation for the different phases. The resulting dislocation density (δ) and number of crystallites per unit area (N) decreased irradiation of gamma till 50 kGY and seem to be not affected by increasing gamma irradiation. The microstrain εc did not show systematic variations with gamma dose. The refractive index of un-irradiated and irradiated films showed normal dispersion. Aurbach tail Eu, plasma frequency (ωp), and third order susceptibility χ(3) increased by irradiation and seem to be not affected by increasing gamma dose beyond 50 kGY. In contrast, the optical energy gap Eop found to be decrease by irradiation and seem to be not affected by increasing gamma dose beyond 50 kGY. Other optical parameters, including the absorption coefficient, and dispersion energies, are investigated before and after gamma irradiation.

High performance symmetric supercapacitors based on Au incorporated CrN thin films fabricated by reactive magnetron sputtering

Recently, transition metal nitrides are being investigated extensively as potential supercapacitor material. In the present study, Au incorporated CrN (Au_CrN) thin films have been synthesized using reactive magnetron co-sputtering technique for application as supercapacitor electrode material. Films have been prepared at different Ar to N2 flow rates keeping total deposition pressure constant to achieve the required structural phase in the sample. Electrochemical properties of the deposited materials have been investigated with a three-electrode system in 0.5 M H2SO4 aqueous electrolyte. The CrN thin film deposited under 3:1 Ar: N2 partial pressure or flow rate ratio shows the highest specific capacitance. Upon Au incorporation, the film shows an areal capacitance of 56.8 mFcm−2 at 1.0 mAcm−2discharge current density which is an almost nine-fold enhancement in specific capacitance value compared to pristine CrN sample. Symmetric supercapacitors have also been developed by sandwiching two identical Au_CrN thin film electrodes, which have found to deliver excellent specific capacitance of 86.03 mFcm−2at 1.0 mAcm−2 discharge current density with no decline in capacitance value till 20,000 cycles. Furthermore, it can deliver a high energy density of 52.02mWhcm−2and a power density of 0.12mWcm−2. The electrochemical properties of the supercapacitors fabricated with the Au_CrN thin film electrodes are found to be better than most of the results reported so far in the literature with CrN electrodes. Results of the present study clearly demonstrate that these Au enhanced CrN films prepared by easily scalable and highly reproducible magnetron sputtering technique have great potential as a high capacitance supercapacitor electrode material.

Grown Silicon Iron Oxide by DC- RF Magnetron Co-Sputtering Technique

In this study, the structure of silicon iron oxide (Si:Fe2O3) was grown using co-sputtering. The Si:Fe2O3 film was grown on glass substrates at a pressure of 8.5 mTorr and a temperature of 450°C for 35 minutes. Optical measurements have revealed that the band gap of the structure ranges from 2.54 to 2.73 eV. The roughness values of the films in AFM images are Ra 3.08 nm and Sa 2.7 nm for Si:Fe2O3, and Ra 1.88 nm and Sa 2.09 nm for Fe2O3, respectively. As can be seen from the XPS figures, the change in binding energy is attributed to electron exchange among silicon, iron, and oxygen. In the iron-silicon oxide structure, the energy increases slightly as a result of the chemical environment. XRD measurements indicate that the size of crystal grains decreases gradually with an increase in silicon content. The Si4+ ion has a strong tendency to distribute itself within the tetrahedral region of spinel-like structures. The behavior of the structure is influenced by the stoichiometry of oxygen. The consistent results from both XRD and SEM images indicate that the crystal grain sizes gradually decrease as the silicon content increases.

Co-Ni co-sputter deposited bimetallic thin film catalysts for alkaline hydrogen and oxygen evolution reactions

Co-Ni bi-metallic thin films with different stoichiometries have been deposited by magnetron co-sputtering technique on Ni foam (NF), Si and carbon paper substrates. The structural and morphological characterisations of these films have been done by X-ray diffraction, X-ray absorption spectroscopy and Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscope measurements. The performances of these films for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) have been evaluated through electrochemical measurements like Linear Sweep Voltammetry, Cyclic Voltammetry and Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy measurements. Operando X ray absorption near edge spectroscopy measurements have also been carried out during HER and OER to decipher the redox reaction mechanisms. It has been observed that the HER and OER performance of all the Co Ni bi-metallic thin films on NF are found to be better than that of bare NF. The CoNi sample with composition of 58.7 % Co and 41.3 % Ni shows the best catalytic activity and stability towards HER and OER reactions. Though the HER activity is not the best but is comparable to many results reported in the literature, however the catalyst shows excellent OER activity with overpotential of 214 mV for 10 mA/cm2 current density. This is much better than that of the OER benchmark catalyst RuO2 and most of those reported in the literature. The OER is kinetically slower than HER and requires more overpotential, hence a significant improvement in the catalytic OER activity will definitely enhance the overall water splitting activity and hydrogen production efficiency. Thus the Co-Ni bi-metallic catalyst prepared by an easily scalable and highly reproducible magnetron co-sputtering technique has significant potential to emerge out as a technologically viable water splitting catalyst.

Optical, structural, morphological, and gas sensing properties of Mg-doped α-Fe2O3 thin films deposited by RF and DC magnetron Co-sputtering technique

In this research, Mg-doped hematite (α-Fe2O3) thin films with different Mg-doping concentrations were synthesized on glass substrates using the direct current (DC) and radio frequency (RF) magnetron co-sputtering technique, and the changes of some physical properties due to the concentration of the dopant were investigated. The optical, structural, morphological, and elemental properties of the obtained Mg-doped α-Fe2O3 thin films were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, UV–Vis spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy (AFM). XRD analysis revealed that the investigated thin films have a rhombohedral crystal structure. The deposition of films at different DC sputtering voltages caused significant variations in stoichiometry and nanostructure. The thin films' band gap energy values were estimated based on absorption measurements, and results ranged from 2.15 eV to 2.69 eV. Raman peaks were observed between 218 cm−1 and 1305 cm−1. The thin films exhibit uniform surface morphology throughout the substrate according to the SEM images. The low RMS roughness values obtained from AFM images showed that the surfaces of Mg:Fe2O3 thin films are smooth. The Mg-doped α-Fe2O3 thin film doped by 150 W DC voltage exhibited a good gas-sensing response at 300 °C. A remarkably quick response/recovery time was achieved.

Synthesis and characterization of low-friction W-V-N alloy coatings using reactive magnetron sputtering technique for tribological applications

In recent years, self-lubricating hard coatings have garnered significant interest across various industries such as cutting tools, molds, and manufacturing because of their ability to reduce friction and wear at high temperatures in dry-cutting applications. The present study focuses on synthesis of tungsten-vanadium-nitride (W-V-N) coatings using the reactive magnetron cosputtering technique in an Ar + N2 plasma gas environment. The coating microstructure, surface morphology, wetting behavior, and mechanical properties were characterized by grazing incidence x-ray diffraction, field-emission scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, energy-dispersive spectroscopy, and nanoindentation. Wear resistance properties of the prepared W-V-N alloy coatings were investigated using a ball-on-disk tribometer at two different temperatures. The findings indicate that all W-V-N coatings, regardless of the vanadium content, exhibit a face-centered cubic structure and form a solid solution of W-V-N. Among the coatings studied, W0.68V0.32N exhibited the highest hardness (14.25 GPa) and Young's modulus (257.53 GPa), as well as an excellent wear resistance. Increasing the vanadium content in the W-V-N coating led to a notable reduction in both the specific wear rate and friction coefficient. Moreover, this reduction was more pronounced with an increase in temperature during the wear test. Improvement in the wear properties can be attributed to the formation of Magnéli phases of vanadium oxides on the surface of the coatings. The ability of the W-V-N coating to reduce friction and wear, combined with its improved mechanical properties, makes it a promising candidate for solid lubricating coatings in tribological applications.

Mg storage properties and reaction mechanism of PbSn alloy films in Mg ion batteries

Alloy-type anodes in magnesium ion batteries (MIBs) have sparked considerable interest due to their notable characteristics, including high theoretical specific capacities, low reaction potentials and compatibility with conventional electrolytes, but their development still needs to be further expanded and explored. Herein, we fabricated the self-supporting biphase PbSn alloy films using a one-step magnetron co-sputtering technique. As anodes for MIBs, the PbSn alloy electrode delivers more stable capacity values and better capacity recoverability than those of pure Pb electrode, which could be associated with the improvement of structural/performance stability derived from the biphase constitution. Most importantly, the Mg storage mechanism of PbSn anodes was distinctly revealed by integrating both ex situ and operando X-ray diffraction methods, elucidating a two-step alloying reaction.

Influence of substrate temperature on the properties of ZnTe:Cu films prepared by a magnetron co-sputtering method

Copper-doped Zinc Tellurium (ZnTe:Cu) films were deposited on borosilicate glass using magnetron co-sputtering technique. The influence of the substrate temperature on the structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties of ZnTe:Cu films was investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV–Vis spectrophotometer and Hall effect measurement system. The results indicate that substrate temperature significantly affects the properties of the ZnTe:Cu films. When the substrate temperature increases from room temperature to 600 °C, the (111)-preferred orientation of ZnTe:Cu films is gradually replaced by the (220)-preferred orientation. At high substrate temperatures (≥500 °C), the CuxTe phase appears in the ZnTe:Cu films, resulting in higher carrier concentration (>1019 cm−3) and lower resistivity (<10−2 Ω cm) of the prepared films.

Magnetic and anomalous Hall effect investigations of co-sputtered Co2MnGa Heusler alloy thin films

The cobalt-based full Heusler alloy Co2MnGa (CMG) is well known for exhibiting an exotic phenomenon such as magnetic Weyl semimetallic nature with a high Curie temperature of ∼700 K and a giant anomalous Hall effect. Here, we report a detailed study of structural, electrical, and magnetic properties of Co2MnGa thin films (thickness in the 40–10 nm range) grown on Si(100) by the direct-current magnetron co-sputtering technique using Co and MnGa targets. Structural analysis of the samples revealed the polycrystalline nature of these films with B2 type structural ordering. The damping parameter decreases with the increase in film thickness and reaches the minimum value of 6.1 × 10−3 for a 40 nm thin CMG film. These CMG films are magnetically isotropic and soft ferromagnetic in nature. A remarkably high value of anomalous Hall conductivity (AHC) of 1920 S/cm (2 K) is found for the 40 nm thin film, which is comparable to earlier reported values on highly ordered CMG films. Nearly 73% of this AHC value originates from the intrinsic contribution. The AHC and longitudinal conductivity both increase with the film thickness. Different scaling mechanisms are used to compute the intrinsic and extrinsic contributions playing a role in AHC. The analysis of advanced scaling [by Tian et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 1–4 (2009)] performed on these CMG films suggests the consistency in the enhanced intrinsic AHC value irrespective of the thickness and a decrease in skew scattering contribution with thickness. These results will enhance the understanding about the magnetic and transport properties of Co2MnGa thin films of different thicknesses and suggest it to be a promising material for topospintronic applications.

Growth and stability of epitaxial zirconium diboride thin films on silicon (111) substrate

The epitaxial growth of boron rich hexagonal zirconium diborides (h-ZrB2+δ) thin films on Si(111) substrates using the magnetron co-sputtering technique with elemental zirconium and boron is reported. The effect of process temperature (700–900 °C) on the compositions and epitaxy quality was investigated. The chemical composition of the films was found to have a higher boron to zirconium ratio than the ideal stoichiometric AlB2-type ZrB2 and was observed to be sensitive to process temperature. Films deposited at 700 °C exhibited intense diffraction peaks along the growth direction corresponding to (000ℓ) of h-ZrB2 using both lab and synchrotron-based x-ray diffractograms. The thermal and compositional stability of the epitaxial h-ZrB2+δ film was further evaluated under a nitrogen-rich environment through isothermal annealing which showed a reduction in in-plane misorientation during thermal annealing. The relative stability of deviating compositions and the energetics of impurity incorporations were analyzed using density functional theory simulations, and the formation of native point defects or impurity incorporation in h-ZrB2 was found to be endothermic processes. Our experimental results showed that an epitaxial thin film of h-ZrB2+δ can be grown on Si(111) substrate using a magnetron co-sputtering technique at a relatively low processing temperature (700 °C) and has the potential to be used as a template for III-nitride growth on Si substrates.

High Thermoelectric Performance of Non-Stoichiometric and Oriented GeTe Thin Films.

The increasing demand for micro-thermoelectric coolers and generators promotes the research on thermoelectric (TE) thin films. As a promising medium-temperature TE material, GeTe has attracted wide attention recently. However, the thermoelectric performance of thin-film GeTe remains inferior. Herein, oriented GeTe films with excessive Ge are obtained by magnetron co-sputtering technique, which can not only reduce the carrier concentration but also increase the carrier mobility, maintaining the high electrical conductivity of GeTe. Furthermore, higher structural symmetry and grain boundary scattering enhance the Seebeck coefficient of oriented GeTe films. As a result, the power factor (PF) value can reach as high as 2848 µW m-1 K-2 at room temperature and increase to 5263 µW m-1 K-2 at 600 K. Furthermore, a TE device with the Ge-rich GeTe thin film is fabricated and the maximum output power density (power per unit area) reaches 0.3W cm-2 at ΔT = 250 K. This work demonstrates that the stoichiometry and orientation modulations are effective strategies to improve the thermoelectric performance of GeTe thin films.

Dense and hard TiWC protective coatings grown with tungsten ion irradiation using WC-HiPIMS/TiC-DCMS co-sputtering technique without external heating

Titanium tungsten carbide (TiWC) coatings are deposited by a combined high-power impulse and dc magnetron co-sputtering (HiPIMS/DCMS) technique. No external heating is applied during deposition phase, instead, the thermally driven adatom mobility is substituted by heavy ion irradiation. DCMS sources equipped with titanium carbide targets provide constant neutral fluxes to establish the predominant coating structures, whereas tungsten carbide target in HiPIMS mode serves as the source of heavy metal-ions. Substrate bias of −60 V is synchronized to W+ ion-rich time domains of HiPIMS pulses to minimize the contribution from working gas ions. The influence of W+ ion flux intensity, controlled by varying peak target current density (JT), on film properties is investigated. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals the presence of over stoichiometric carbon forming an amorphous phase, the amount of which can be fine-tuned by varying JT. Changes in film composition as a function of JT are explained based on the in-situ ion mass spectroscopy analyses. Dense TiWC coatings by hybrid process exhibit hardness higher than 30 GPa, which are comparable to TiWC films deposited by DCMS with dc substrate bias and external heating. The relative energy consumption in the hybrid process is reduced by 77 % as compared to high-temperature DCMS processing.

Enhanced thermoelectric performance of p-type PbTe thin films deposited by magnetron sputtering via incorporating SnS

Incorporating second phase or solid solution into the thermoelectric (TE) material matrix has been proven effective to promote its performance. Recent investigations manifest that the synergistical optimization of the electrical and phonon transport properties could be achieved in the PbTe–SnSe system. Being an analogue of SnSe and more environmental, here, SnS was introduced into p-type PbTe film through intermittent magnetron co-sputtering technique. Small amount SnS was observed to induce the shift of predominant orientation from the (200) plane to the (222) plane as well as distinct change in the surface morphology. After the quite possible SnS solid solution and appropriate subsequent annealing, the electrical conductivity and the power factor (PF) have been optimized prominently. In comparison with that of the pristine PbTe film, the maximum PF has been increased by 217% in the annealed film with the intermediate SnS content.

Structural and mechanical behavior of Zr-W-Ti thin film metallic glasses prepared by multitarget co-magnetron sputtering

Zr-W-Ti thin films were deposited by magnetron co-sputtering technique with varied Ti-sputtering power between 25 and 150 W. The effect of Ti-sputtering power on their physical and mechanical properties was investigated. As a results of FE-SEM, XPS, AFM, XRD, and HR-TEM investigations, the Ti-sputtering power affected the Ti-containing structure of ZrW-based films, which exhibited an amorphous phase with a very low surface roughness layer. The mechanical properties, tested by nano-indentation, revealed the films strongest hardness and elastic modulus of 8.6 GPa and 121.3 GPa, respectively. In addition, the plastic responded, especially the serrated flow and shear banding showed that the prepared Zr-W-Ti thin films were excellent candidates for surface coating as the thin film metallic glasses (TFMGs).