Microstructure and Properties of Zr-Si-N Composite Films Prepared by Reactive Magnetron Co-sputtering

A series of Zr-Si-N composite films with different Si contents were prepared by reactive magnetron co-sputtering method.The films were characterized with EDS,XRD,SEM and nano-indentation.The effect of Si content on microstructure,oxidation resistance and mechanical properties of the Zr-Si-N films was studied.The results show that with the increase of Si content,ZrN(111) and ZrN(220) coystal face diffraction peaks of the composite dispeared gradually and ZrN(200) orientation preferred.The maximum hardness and elastic module of Zr-Si-N films are 37.8 GPa and 363 GPa when Si/Zr atomic rate was 0.030.With a further increase of Si content in the films,crystalline Zr-Si-N composite films turned into amorphous films and the mechanical properties decreased gradually.The oxidation resistance was obviously improved with the increase of Si content.