Effect of diffusion barrier and bombardment on adhesive strength of CuCr alloy films

A novel co-sputtering method that combined magnetron sputtering (MS) with ion beam sputtering (IBS) was used to fabricate CuCr alloy films without breaking vacuum after depositing diffusion barrier with IBS. Different bombardment energies were used to improve the comprehensive properties of Cu alloy film. The results indicated that the effects of diffusion barriers and bombardment energy on adhesive strength could be evaluated by a rolling contact fatigue adhesion test. Diffusion barrier can enhance the adhesive strength, and the adhesion of CuCr/CrN was higher than that of CuCr/TiN. When bombarding energy was higher, the adhesive strength of CuCr/TiN films was higher due to the broader transition zone.