Abstract:
Chromium zirconium nitride (CrZrN) thin films were deposited by reactive DC
magnetron co-sputtering method on glass slides and silicon wafers. The effect of zirconium
sputtering current (IZr) ranging from 0.5 A to 2.0 A on the crystal structure, crystallite size,
surface morphology, thickness and composition of the films were characterized by X-ray
diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), field emission scanning electron microscopy
(FE-SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), respectively. The results showed
that the crystal structure, crystallite size, surface morphology, thickness and composition of the
films are strongly dependent on the zirconium sputtering current (IZr). All the films are composed
of the CrZrN crystal structure (111), (200) and (220) planes. The crystallite sizes decreased with
increasing Zr current. The surface roughness of the films were in the range of 0.888 to 1.959 nm,
whereas thickness increased from 324 to 669 nm. The EDX measurement indicated that the
composition of the film are strongly dependent on the zirconium sputtering current (IZr).