Microcantilever-assessed fracture toughness of industrially deposited TiZrN coatings at various nitrogen partial pressures
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2026 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Vacuum |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| web | https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0042207X26001247 |
| Doi | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.vacuum.2026.115186 |
| Keywords | Fracture toughness; Hardness; Nitrogen partial pressure; Reactive magnetron sputtering; Solid solution |
| Description | TiZrN coatings were deposited using reactive magnetron sputtering under industrial conditions at three different nitrogen partial pressures: 0.008, 0.040, and 0.200 Pa. TiN and ZrN coatings were also prepared as reference materials. All ternary TiZrN coatings exhibited a face-centered cubic (FCC) structured solid solution. TiZrN coating deposited at a nitrogen partial pressure of 0.040 Pa exhibited the highest hardness of 31 ± 1 GPa, while TiN and ZrN approached 25 ± 3 GPa and 26 ± 1 GPa, respectively. The fracture toughness of the coatings was evaluated using the microcantilever bending method. KIC (critical stress intensity factor in mode I) for TiN reached 2.2 ± 0.4 MPa.m1/2 compared to 2.6 ± 0.3 MPa.m1/2 for ZrN. Incorporating Zr to TiN led to an enhanced fracture resistance by 17-27%, depending on the nitrogen partial pressure. The highest KIC recorded was 2.8 ± 0.3 MPa.m1/2, achieved at a partial pressure of 0.040 Pa. |
| Related projects: |