Effect of deposition of Al2O3 as interdiffusion barrier on the microstructure and optical properties of Ti thin film.

In this work, magnetron sputtered Ti and Al2O3/Ti have been investigated. Microstructure, morphology, phase identification, mechanical, and optical properties were studied. Heat treatment at 600◦ C for 2h with different cooling rates was applied. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used in phase and structure identification. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used for microstructure and morphology investigations. Microhardness is used for mechanical properties measurements. The FTIR and spectrophotometry were used for optical characterizations. It was found that the Al2O3/Ti structure has a higher hardness value at all conditions compared to Ti. Resulted in TiO2 phases after heat treatment varying due to the cooling rate. As deposited Al2O3/Ti structure has the highest selectivity value (absorbance/emittance). Al2O3/Ti structure has a higher selectivity value at all conditions than Ti.