Characterization of TiAlSiON coatings deposited by plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering: XRD, XPS, and DFT studies

摘要

The results of characterization of TiAlSiON hard coatings deposited on ferric-chromium AISI 430 stainless steel by plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering are presented. The coating with maximum hardness (of 43 GPa) was obtained at the following optimal values of elemental concentrations: Si similar to 5 at.%, Al similar to 15 at.%, and Ti similar to 27 at.%. The value of gaseous mixture (Ar-N-2) pressure was of 0.13 Pa and the value of partial pressure of oxygen (02) was 1.3 . 10(-3) Pa. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements showed the presence of Ti(Al)N. High-energy resolved XPS spectra of core levels revealed the formation of Ti-N, Ti-O-N, Si-N and Al-O-N bonds. Comparison of XPS valence band spectra with specially performed density functional theory calculations for disordered Ti0.5Al0.5 N-1 (-) O-x(x) (0 <= x <= 0.3) phases demonstrated that a Ti(Al)OxNy phase is formed on the surface of AISI430 steel upon the plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering, which can provide a good combination of high hardness and additional oxidation resistance of this material. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.