Structure and nanohardness of TaNx thin films prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering

Autor: Jerčinović, Marko, Radić, Nikola, Salamon, Krešimir, Čekada, Miha, Drnovšek, Aljaž, Panjan, Peter
Přispěvatelé: Kovač, Janez, Jakša, Gregor
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2015
Předmět:
Popis: Tantalum nitride films exhibit some remarkable properties - high hardness, thermal stability, chemical inertness, good conductivity, catalytic activity - which make them attractive for various applications. Here we present the results of structural and mechanical characterization of tantalum nitride films widely differing in nitrogen content. Series of TaNx thin films (thickness ~ 100 nm) were produced by reactive magnetron sputtering of pure Ta target in the mixed Ar+N2 working gas atmosphere. Different stoichiometric composition of the films was achieved by varying the nitrogen content in the working gas mix at constant total pressure. Deposited films were subsequently annealed for 1h at different temperatures from 450°C to 950°C in 100 degrees steps. The structure and phase composition of the films were determined by the XRD measurements, while nanohardness measurements gave insight into the mechanical properties of the as-grown and annealed thin films. The obtained nanohardness data were compared to the preliminary TaNx phase diagram in order to establish a relation between mechanical and strucural properties of the investigated films. It is found that nanohardness strongly depends upon phase composition, which can be efficiently controlled in a reactive DC sputtering process and subsequent annealing.
Databáze: OpenAIRE