In-situ X-ray Diffraction Studies During Magnetron Co-sputtering of Ni-Ti Shape Memory Alloy Films

The study of Ni-Ti shape memory alloy films is of great technological interest for applications in the field of microengineering. They can work as sensors and actuators at the same time.
However, there are still important issues unresolved like formation of film texture and its control. Films exhibiting the two-way shape memory effect are also required.
A better understanding of the underlying growth mechanisms and their microstructural development requires sophisticated in-situ techniques. A two-magnetron sputter deposition chamber mounted into the six-circle diffractometer of the Rossendorf Beamline at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility has been used for the processing of the Ni-Ti films. The in-situ x-ray diffraction studies enabled us to identify the different steps of the structural evolution during deposition with a set of parameters as well as to evaluate the effect of changing parameters (Ti target power) during film growth.
It has been found that the type of substrate plays an important role for the preferential orientation of sputtered Ni-Ti films. In some cases they exhibit a pronounced depth dependence of their preferential orientations. Amorphous SiO2 and TiN buffer layers have been used to successfully control their crystallographic orientations. This is an important achievement since the texture has a strong influence on the extent of the strain recovery of the Ni-Ti films. The deposition conditions leading to films mainly containing grains with (100) or (110) planes of the B2 phase parallel to the film surface are presented.
The deposition of graded Ni-Ti films by changing deliberately the Ti:Ni ratio, thereby altering microstructure and transformation temperatures across the film thickness, has also been performed. The aim has been the optimization of the deposition parameters in order to fabricate films with a “two-way” actuation (films with a combination of superelasticity and shape memory characteristics). It will lead to the development of smaller devices due to an optimal design of microdevices regarding size and weight (i.e., no consideration has to be paid to a resetting spring).