Annealing-induced extensive solid-state amorphization in metallic films

Abstract

An thin film alloy based on chemical elements with high glass forming ability is disclosed. The alloy is deposited as a thin film from a source of substantially the same chemical composition. Within the deposited thin film, amorphization is induced extensively up to decades of micrometers in size during controlled annealing. Such controllable extensive amorphization throughout the thin film is useful to regulate the proportion of amorphous phase to crystalline phase, establish the structure/property relationships and thus tailor specific properties.

1 . An alloy film which is deposited as a film from a source composed of desired chemical elements and annealed in a controllable annealing process to form partly or fully amorphous structures in the film, comprising a principal element with high glass-forming ability and at least two secondary elements different from said principal element; said principal elements with high glass-forming ability are selected from a group consisting of iron, cobalt, nickel, palladium, zirconium, titanium, magnesium, and lanthanide series; and said secondary elements are selected from a group consisting of aluminum, zirconium, copper, tin, zinc, palladium, titanium, iron, cobalt, nickel, niobium, beryllium, gallium, germanium, chromium, molybdenum, hafnium, lanthanide series, VI˜VIII group transition elements, phosphorus, boron, carbon and silicon.  
     
     
         2 . The alloy film of  claim 1 , wherein said partly amorphous structure in the film refers to that there are nanocrystallite/amorphous nanophase composite structures formed extensively in the film.  
     
     
         3 . The alloy film of  claim 1 , wherein said principal element with high glass-forming ability is zirconium.  
     
     
         4 . The alloy film of  claim 3 , wherein said secondary elements comprise copper, aluminum and nickel.  
     
     
         5 . The alloy film of  claim 4 , wherein the atomic percentage of said alloy film is zirconium 40˜60%, copper 15˜35%, aluminum 5˜20% and nickel 0˜15%.  
     
     
         6 . The alloy film of  claim 5 , wherein the atomic percentage of said alloy film is zirconium 47%, copper 31%, aluminum 13%, and nickel 9%.  
     
     
         7 . The alloy film of  claim 1 , wherein said principal element with high glass-forming ability is iron.  
     
     
         8 . The alloy film of  claim 7 , wherein said secondary elements comprise cobalt, nickel, titanium, niobium and boron.  
     
     
         9 . The alloy film of  claim 8 , wherein the atomic percentage of said alloy film is iron 50˜70%, cobalt 5˜15%, nickel 5˜15%, titanium 5˜15%, niobium 0˜10% and boron 0˜20%.  
     
     
         10 . The alloy film of  claim 9 , wherein the atomic percentage of said alloy film is iron 65%, cobalt 8%, nickel 7%, titanium 13%, niobium 1%, and boron 6%.  
     
     
         11 . The alloy film of  claim 1 , wherein the thickness of said alloy film is 0.2 μm˜50 μm.  
     
     
         12 . A process for manufacturing the alloy film of  claim 1 , comprising the following steps: 
 (a) using a alloy composed of desired chemical elements as a film source;    (b) depositing the alloy onto a substrate to form a film; and    (c) annealing the film to induce partial or full amorphization in the film.    
     
     
         13 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the step of (b) is depositing the alloy onto a substrate to form a film by physical vapor deposition.  
     
     
         14 . The process of  claim 13 , wherein said physical vapor deposition is DC or RF magnetron sputtering.  
     
     
         15 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the step of (c) is annealing the film by rapid thermal annealing to induce partial of full amorphization in the film.  
     
     
         16 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the step of (c) is annealing the film in an argon atmosphere.  
     
     
         17 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the heating rate of annealing in step (c) is 5 K/min ˜200 K/min.  
     
     
         18 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the temperature of annealing in step (c) is in the supercooled liquid region of the alloy film.  
     
     
         19 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the temperature of annealing in step (c) is in the range of 400 K˜1200 K.  
     
     
         20 . The process of  claim 12 , wherein the holding time of annealing in step (c) is 10 seconds˜3600 seconds.