Controllable substrate bias voltages effectively tailoring nanocomposite Nb-B-Al-O film properties

Nb-B-Al-O nanocomposite films were synthesized by multi-target magnetron co-sputtering. Different substrate bias voltages can influence properties of obtained nanocomposite films. The maximum hardness at −160 V bias also showed the better thermostability and oxidation resistance properties at 300 °C in the air. More significantly, the TEM images and XRD results of the nanocomposite films at different bias obviously interpreted the change in mechanical properties, which provides a powerful inspiration to better understand the strategies to improve these films' engineering applications.