Re-based alloy coatings have been produced so far mainly by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and electroplating. This work focused on the characterization of high rhenium content ultra-thin Re-Ni alloy (~ 40 nm) films electroless plated on a functionalized SiO2 substrate. Electroless deposition may be preferable in many applications due to the combination of simplicity, low cost, low process temperature (<100°C), and selective deposition. Re-Ni films can be apply as a protective or barrier layers for the Ultra Large Scale Integration (ULSI), Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) and thermocouple (TFTC) sensor technology. Re-Ni coatings were not investigated yet for this application, although Re-W and Re-Mo alloys are already widely used as thermocouples.
As-deposited Re-Ni films are amorphous and not chemically stable in air at room temperature, therefore thermal treatment is required. Heating causes recrystallization of the coating, which influences the electrical and magnetic properties of polycrystalline material. The grains in such films are usually not oriented randomly. Electron Backscattered Diffraction (EBSD) is a powerful tool for measuring film texture and has become a well-established technique for their crystallographic investigation in SEM. In this study the application of EBSD for micro-texture and phase analysis of the annealed Re-Ni coatings was performed. It was shown that after annealing at 500ºC for 1h the films have demonstrated the HCP structure with the preferred [001] orientation at the z axis (Figure 1), which allowed their ferromagnetic properties. In addition, the effect of heat treatment on the structure, morphology, electrical properties and corrosion behavior has been investigated for the prepared Re-Ni films.
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Figure 1. EBSD image of phase and texture analysis of Re-Ni (40 nm thick) film on SiO2/Si substrate after annealing at 500ºC for 1h.
