Influence of bias voltage on the microstructure and mechanical properties of TiZrN coatings prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering in industrial conditions
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2025 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Surface and Coatings Technology |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.surfcoat.2025.132240 |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.surfcoat.2025.132240 |
| Keywords | Magnetron sputtering; Bias voltage; Lattice parameter; Microstructure; Hardness; Stress |
| Description | TiZrN coatings were prepared using three bias voltages of -50 V, -100 V and -175 V via a combinatorial approach, which led to the coatings with different Ti/(Ti+Zr) values. The deposition rate of TiN and ZrN remained practically constant with increasing the bias voltage. The TiZrN coatings, however, exhibited a drop of 15% in their deposition rates with increasing the bias voltage. The microstructure of TiN and ZrN did not change with the bias voltage applied, unlike TiZrN, which underwent microstructural changes with increasing bias voltage. For all binary and ternary nitrides, the lattice parameter increased and crystallite size decreased with increasing the bias voltage. All TiN, ZrN and TiZrN coatings showed enhanced compressive stress with increasing the bias voltage. ZrN hardness peaked at the bias voltage of -100 V, in contrast to that of TiN, which exhibited a constant increase with the bias voltage and peaked at -175 V. In ternary nitrides, bias voltage significantly influenced the hardness values, whereas in the case of Ti/(Ti+Zr), the effect was minimal, especially at the higher bias voltages. For all binary and ternary coatings, H/E and H3/E increased with the bias voltage, indicating an enhanced wear resistance and resilience with increasing bias voltage. |
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