Effects of tungsten contents on the microstructure, mechanical and anticorrosion properties of Zr-W-Ti thin film metallic glasses

While thin film metallic glass (TFMG) materials have been studied widely due to their easy fabrication process and unique properties, the W-based or W-containing TFMGs have yet to be explored extensively. In this work, four W-containing Zr-W-Ti TFMGs were fabricated by a magnetron co-sputtering system. The power of W target was adjusted to obtain TFMGs with different W concentrations. The amorphous phase of TFMG was determined by X-ray diffraction and high resolution transmission electron microscopy. In cross-sectional morphologies, a vein fracture pattern was observed using field-emission scanning electron microscopy. Although the hardness of W-containing Zr-W-Ti TFMG was not very high, the hardness of coating increased with increasing W content to reach 7.6 GPa. Good adhesion quality and adequate corrosion resistance were also obtained for each Zr-W-Ti TFMGs.