Design of DC semi-industrial magnetron-sputtered W-Ti-N/Ag composite films: Insights into the microstructure and mechanical properties

A semi-industrial magnetron sputtering system was employed to deposit a series of W-Ti-N/Ag composite films with varying Ag content, aiming to provide practical parameters for industrial-scale PVD applications. The films were deposited by DC sputtering a W + 30 wt%Ti alloy target and an Ag target in an Ar and N 2 atmosphere. The results indicated that the composite films, regardless of Ag content, exhibited a face-centered cubic (fcc) structure and consisted of a three-phase mixture of W 2 N, TiN and Ag. The Ag particles were embedded within the crystalline grains of solid solution of (WTi) 2 N and (TiW)N, resulting in grain refinement and increased interface density in the films. The predominant cross-section fracture of the Ag-alloyed was identified as transgranular. Both hardness and elastic modulus of the composite films gradually decreased with the Ag content due to the soft nature of the Ag phase. • The W-Ti-N/Ag composite films was deposited by semi-industrial magnetron sputtering system. • Alloying Ag contributed to the predominant transgranular fracture mode.