Effect of Silane Flow Rate on Structure and Corrosion Resistance of Ti–Si—N Thin Films Deposited by a Hybrid Cathodic Arc and Chemical Vapour Process

Ti–Si–N thin films with different silicon contents are deposited by a cathodic arc technique in an Ar+N2 +SiH4 mixture atmosphere. With the increase of silane Bow rate, the content of silicon in the Ti–Si–N films varies from 2.0 at. % to 12.2 at. %. Meanwhile, the cross-sectional morphology of these films changes from an apparent columnar microstructure to a dense fine-grained structure. The x-ray diffractometer (XRD) and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) results show that the Ti–Si–N film consists of TiN crystallites and SiNx amorphous phase. The corrosion resistance is improved with the increase of silane Bow rate. Growth defects in the films produced play a key role in the corrosion process, especially for the local corrosion. The porosity of the films decreases from 0.13% to 0.00032% by introducing silane at the Bow rate of 14sccm. (gases, plasmas, and electric discharges)