Characterization of Structural, Optical, Corrosion, and Mechanical Properties of HfO Thin Films Deposited Using Pulsed DC Magnetron Sputtering.

Various properties of HfO, such as hardness, corrosion, or electrical resistance, depend on the method and the conditions of deposition. In this work, a thorough comparison of scarcely investigated mechanical properties of HfO thin films deposited with different conditions of reactive magnetron sputtering process is presented. Four thin films were sputtered in processes that varied in plasma ignition method (continuous or sequential) and target-substrate distance.

Investigation of the Microstructure, Optical, Electrical and Nanomechanical Properties of ZnOx Thin Films Deposited by Magnetron Sputtering.

The paper presents the results of an investigation of the influence of technological parameters on the microstructure, optical, electrical and nanomechanical properties of zinc oxide coatings prepared using the pulsed reactive magnetron sputtering method. Three sets of ZnOx thin films were deposited in metallic, shallow dielectric and deep dielectric sputtering modes. Structural investigations showed that thin films deposited in the metallic mode were nanocrystalline with mixed hexagonal phases of metallic zinc and zinc oxide with crystallite size of 9.