Low resistivity and near-zero temperature drift ZrB2-Ag composite films prepared by DC magnetron co-sputtering

Nanocrystalline ZrB2-Ag composite films, which utilize Ag nanoparticles as embedded ions, were directly fabricated via the direct current magnetron co-sputtering technique. Keithley Hall Measuring Instrument allowed insight into the physical features in the temperature of 77 K to 373 K. Ag-containing composite film led to resistivity for composite films descended exponentially rather than linearly, however also resulting in the temperature coefficient of resistivity (TCR) values varied from negative to positive. Both comparable lower resistivity (114.9 mu S2 center dot cm) and even near-zero TCR77-373 K at 3 ppm center dot K-1 indicated that low resistivity and nearzero temperature drift ZrB2-Ag composite film can be obtained by tailoring the Ag content. Moreover, this provides a promising approach to develop sophisticated thin-film resistors (TFR) materials below and above ambient temperature with a broader temperature range.