Experimental verification of model for prediction of coating composition deposited by sputtering using mosaic target in nitrogen

Sputtering, a physical vapor deposition technique, is widely used for preparation of compound coatings. Binary, ternary or multi component compound coatings deposited by sputtering find a variety of applications. The properties of these coatings depend strongly on the composition of the films. A mathematical model has been developed to predict the composition of the metallic constituents of the coatings deposited by reactive sputtering using two metals mosaic target in the presence of a reactive gas atmosphere. The model has been worked out utilizing first order approximation and taking into consideration that there is no resputtering effect at the substrate. The model developed can also calculate the percentage of covered areas of the target surfaces (target poisoning) with reactive gas flow. The model has been verified experimentally for Ti–Al mosaic target in a nitrogen gas environment utilizing experimental data of sticking coefficient values.

► A model is proposed to predict the composition of the reactive sputter coatings.
► Model predicts metallic constituents of the coating deposited using mosaic target.
► Model also predicts the percentage of covered areas of targets by reactive gas.
► Model has been tested experimentally for Ti–Al mosaic target in N2.