Growth of (Zr,Ti)N Thin Films by Ion-Assisted Dual D.C. Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

摘要

The ternary nitride (Zr,Ti)N thin films were grown on silicon substrates by ion-assisted dual d.c. reactive magnetron sputtering technique. The substrates were exposed to ion bombardment with varying kinetic energy in the range of 3-103 eV under N/Ar ratio of 1:3. The (Zr_(0.6)Ti_(0.4))N was formed at all growth conditions. X-ray diffraction measurement indicates the presence of (Zr,Ti)N solid solution with (111) and (200) preferred orientations. The (200) orientation is only present when the films are grown at ion bombardment energies higher than 33 eV. Optimum conditions for film growth produced hardness in the range of 27-29 GPa.