Effects of Nitrogen Content on the Structural, Mechanical, and Corrosion Properties of ZrN Thin Films Grown on AISI 316L by Radiofrequency Magnetron Sputtering

Abstract

Zirconium nitride films are deposited onto stainless steel AISI 316L and silicon (100) by radio frequency magnetron sputtering at different nitrogen flow ratios [N2/(Ar+N2)] varied between 0 and 0.25). Scanning electron microscope, atomic force microscopy, X‐ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman are used to investigate the surface morphology and microstructure of the thin films. The mechanical and electrochemical properties of all coatings are evaluated and compared with the uncoated AISI 316L to explore the efficiency of surface modification. The XRD and Raman analysis show that all the films are crystalline. This shows that the increased nitrogen content leads to a transformation from hexagonal α‐Zr phase to cubic c‐Zr and then to mixed α‐Zr and face centered cubic c‐ZrN phases. The films deposited with nitrogen flow ratio of 0.2 show the highest hardness of 32.2 GPa. Using the potentiodynamic polarization method, the corrosion behavior of the films is studied in Hank's solution. The comparison between uncoated and coated substrates shows a decrease in corrosion current density for all coated samples.

Magnetron Sputtered Thin Films Based on Transition Metal Nitride: Structure and Properties

“…In a recent work conducted by Azibi et al, [ 161 ] ZrN films were developed on AISI 316 L steel and silicon at various N 2 flow rates using RF magnetron sputtering. The ZrN films exhibited excellent columnar growth with a smooth surface and better crystallinity.…”

“…[ 158,162–166 ] Moreover, hardness and elastic modulus of ZrN films deposited using HiPIMS were compared with RF magnetron sputtering at various N 2 rates in Figure 20b. [ 161,167 ] The deposition conditions for these studies are tabulated in Table 4 . Furthermore, the effect of deposition temperature was analyzed with varying Ar/ N 2 flow rates using DC magnetron sputtering.…”

“…Base pressure [161] b) hardness and elastic modulus of ZrN thin films deposited by RF magnetron sputtering and HiPIMS at a power densities of 5.48 and 8.82 W cm 2 . [161,167] was analyzed with varying Ar/ N 2 flow rates using DC magnetron sputtering. At low temperature deposition, the films are having better corrosion resistance compared to the pure substrate.…”

“…Azibi et al [161] Chang et al [167] Target to substrate distance [cm] Reflectivity of the ZrN thin films at particular N:Zr ratio. [172] Figure 22.…”

Recent Progress on High-Entropy Films Deposited by Magnetron Sputtering

“…For example, TiN and TiAlN present oxidation temperatures around 700 • C and 900 • C, respectively [16]. Other similar films show a good corrosion resistance, such as ZrN [43][44][45][46], making them potential coatings for various applications.…”