Influence of V Content on Microstructure, Mechanical and Friction Properties of TaVN Composite Films

A series of TaVN composite films with different V contents were fabricated by magnetron sputtering technique. The microstructures, mechanical properties, friction properties at different temperatures were investigated by X-ray diffraction, nano-indentation, CSM high-temperature ball-on-disc tribo-meter, respectively. The results show that the microstructure of TaVN films has fcc structure. With V content increasing, the preferential orientation changes from (111) to (200), and the hardness increases to a peak value (32.3 GPa) and then decreases. At room temperature, the friction coefficient of TaVN films decreases as V content increases, which may be related to the formation of V2O5. When the temperatures increase from room temperature to 800 degrees C, the friction coefficient increases and then decreases. The friction mechanisms of TaVN composite films and TaN film at high temperature are compared based on the crystal chemistry theory.