Phase evolution of radio frequency magnetron sputtered Cr-rich (Cr,Zr)(2)O-3 coatings studied by in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction during annealing in air or vacuum

The phase evolution of reactive radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtered Cr0.28Zr0.10O0.61 coatings has been studied by in situ synchrotron X-ray diffraction during annealing under air atmosphere and vacuum. The annealing in vacuum shows t-ZrO2 formation starting at similar to 750-800 degrees C, followed by decomposition of the alpha-Cr2O3 structure in conjunction with bcc-Cr formation, starting at similar to 950 degrees C. The resulting coating after annealing to 1140 degrees C is a mixture of t-ZrO2, m-ZrO2, and bcc-Cr. The air-annealed sample shows t-ZrO2 formation starting at similar to 750 degrees C. The resulting coating after annealing to 975 degrees C is a mixture of t-ZrO2 and alpha-Cr2O3 (with dissolved Zr). The microstructure coarsened slightly during annealing, but the mechanical properties are maintained, with no detectable bcc-Cr formation. A larger t-ZrO2 fraction compared with alpha-Cr2O3 is observed in the vacuum-annealed coating compared with the air-annealed coating at 975 degrees C. The results indicate that the studied pseudo-binary oxide is more stable in air atmosphere than in vacuum.Funding Agencies|Swedish Research Council (VR)Swedish Research Council [621-20124368, 330-2014-6336]; Knut and Alice Wallenberg FoundationKnut & Alice Wallenberg Foundation; Swedish Government Strategic Research Area in Materials Science on Functional Materials at Linkoping University (Faculty Grant SFO-Mat-LiU) [2009 00971]; Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions, Cofund, Project INCA [600398]; Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (SSF) through the Future Research Leaders 6 program; Swedish Research Council via the Rontgen Angstrom Cluster (RAC) Frame Program [2011-6505]; German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)Federal Ministry of Education & Research (BMBF) [05K12CG1]