Wüest M. 51 Wykes M. 82 Yamaguchi M. 17 Ybarra G. 129 Yubero F ...

JUNE 26 MONDAY AFTERNOON
RIVA-TF-MoA-OR.16 DUAL DC MAGNETRON CATHODE CO DEPOSITION OF (Al,
Ti) AND [(Al, Ti) N] THIN FILMS WITH CONTROLLED DEPTH COMPOSITION. Y.
Nunes, A. Wemans, H. P. Marques, Q. Ferreira, O. M. N. Todoro and M. J. P. Maneira. Cefitec -
Department of Physics, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, New University of Lisbon, P-2829-
516, Caparica, PORTUGAL.
Recent publications show that [(Ti, Al) N] thin films produced with direct current reactive magnetron
sputtering can significantly improve electrochemical and biocompatibility properties of the base
metal alloy. The purpose of this work is to study the characteristics of titanium-aluminium nitride
[(Ti, Al) N] films produced using a novel coating technique.
Thin (Al, Ti) films with a linear gradient depth composition are obtained from a custom made codeposition
system which employs pure Al and Ti sputter targets. Two direct current magnetron cathodes
with independent plasma sources are simultaneous controlled by custom LabView software
which allows real-time and independent control of the deposition parameters for both cathodes.
Two types of gradient thin films were produced. Starting with 100% Al at bottom and 100% Ti at
surface and starting 100% Ti and ending with 100% Al at surface. Both types of films are of 500nm
thin. Depth profile was acquired using secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). These films of (Ti,
Al) and [(Ti, Al) N], have been grown onto Mg, Glass and Si (100) substrates, the first in argon atmosphere
and the later in nitrogen.
Further analysis will be carried using atomic force microscopy to investigate the surface morphology
and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) in order to detect possible chemical interactions between
the film compounds.
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