Wear resistance of ZrC/TiN and ZrC/ZrN thin multilayers grown by pulsed laser deposition

ZrC/TiN and ZrC/ZrN multilayers thinner than 350 nm were grown on (100) Si substrates at a temperature of 300 °C by the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique using a KrF excimer laser (λ=248 nm, pulse duration τ=25 ns, 8.0 J/cm2 fluence and 40 Hz repetition rate). Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy, Auger electron spectroscopy depth profiling and simulations of X-ray reflectivity curves indicated that there was intermixing between the deposited layers at the interfaces as well as between the first layer and the substrate. Nanoindentation investigations found hardness values between 35 and 38 GPa for the deposited multilayers. Linear unidirectional sliding wear tests were conducted using a ball-on-plate tribometer under 1 N normal force. Wear tracks were produced in a Hysitron nanoindenter with 1 μm radius diamond tip under a 500 μN load. High-resolution cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy studies of the wear tracks showed that the multilayers withstood these tests without significant damage. The results could be explained by the use of a high laser fluence during deposition that resulted in very dense and strongly adherent nanocrystalline layers.