Influence of Alloying Elements on Structures and Mechanical Properties of Direct Current Magnetron Sputtering Ti Films

Thin films of Ti and its alloys TiMo, TiMoY and TiMoYAl were deposited on monocrystalline silicon substrates by direct current magnetron sputtering. The morphology and structure of thin films were analyzed by SEM, AFM, XRD and TEM. The experimental results indicate that the addition of alloy elements leads to the formation of a more uniform and finer-grained film structure. X-ray diffraction analysis shows that the alloy films are composed of two phases: α-Ti and β-Ti. In addition, Ti and TiMo thin films are of (002) preferential orientation, as to TiMoY and TiMoYAl films, the (002) preferential orientation intensity decreases rapidly while (101) orientation intensity increases. Moreover, the mechanical properties of thin films were tested, and the results show that the alloy films exhibit higher hardness.