Structure and characteristics of amorphous (Ti,Si)-C:H films deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering

Jinlong Jiang, Junying Hao, Xianjuan Pang, Peng Wang, Weimin Liu

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

34 Scopus citations

Abstract

The hydrogenated amorphous carbon films doped with Ti and Si ((Ti,Si)-C:H) were deposited on silicon substrates using reactive magnetron sputtering Ti 80Si20 composite target in an argon and methane gas mixture. The structures of the films were analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Visible Raman spectroscopy. The morphologies were observed by atomic force microscope. The friction coefficients of the films were tested on the ball-on-disc tribometer. The results indicate that the sp 3/sp2 ratios in the films can be varied from 0.18 to 0.63 by changing Ti and Si contents at various CH4 flow rates. The surface of the films becomes smoother and more compact as the CH4 flow rate increases. The lowest friction coefficient is as low as 0.0139 for the film with Ti of 4.5 at.% and Si of 1.0 at.%. Especially, the film exhibits a superlow value (μ < 0.01) under ambient air with 40% relative humidity in friction process. The superlow friction coefficient in ambient air may be, attributable to synergistic effects of a combination of Ti and Si in the film.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1172-1177
Number of pages6
JournalDiamond and Related Materials
Volume19
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2010
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Amorphous hydrogenated carbon
  • Doping
  • Microstructure
  • Superlow friction

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