4. Conclusion
Nano-composite HSS-TiN films have been energetically deposited from a HSS/Ti cathode with microstructure depending on both the energy of the depositing flux (controlled by substrate bias) and the substrate temperature. With a bias of − 25 V at RT, a fine nanocrystalline microstructure was produced. An increase in preferred orientation of the FCC TiN phase was observed in films deposited at RT with elevated substrate biases. Elevated temperature in the absence of bias promoted the formation of an oriented BCC Fe phase. The mechanical properties (hardness, effective elastic modulus and elastic recovery) of the HSS-TiN thin films were improved with moderate substrate bias (~− 200 V) and high substrate temperature (> 250 °C). With properties that can be tuned by bias and/or temperature, energetically deposited HSS-TiN films may be suitable for application within functionally graded coatings, enabling better property matching between HSS tools and TiN coatings.
Acknowledgements
The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Australian Research Council (ARC) project number LP0776931.