Title: Mechanical and surface properties of Ti-sputtered thin films

Authors: G. Costanza, F. Mercuri, M.E. Tata

Addresses: Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Via del Politecnico, 1, 00133 Rome. ' Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Via del Politecnico, 1, 00133 Rome. ' Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Via del Politecnico, 1, 00133 Rome

Abstract: The mechanical behaviour of the film and the thickness influence on the surface morphology have been studied in detail for Ti-sputtered coatings deposited at room temperature on AA6082 T6 and AA2618/20% Al₂O₃ flat samples. The intrinsic hardness and surface roughness of Ti thin films ranging from 0.5 µm to 2 µm have been investigated. The higher the coating thickness (up to 2 µm), the lower the surface roughness and the higher the intrinsic hardness of the film. The improvement of surface roughness has been achieved by Ti-sputtered clusters able to cover the micro-valleys.

Keywords: aluminium alloys; Al-MMC; titanium film; sputtering; mechanical properties; intrinsic hardness; surface roughness; thin films; coatings; metal matrix composites.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSURFSE.2008.021348

International Journal of Surface Science and Engineering, 2008 Vol.2 No.5, pp.366 - 375

Published online: 20 Nov 2008 *

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