Release Time:2019-03-09  Hits:

Indexed by: Journal Article

Date of Publication: 2009-04-01

Journal: CHINESE PHYSICS B

Included Journals: Scopus、CSCD、ISTIC、EI、SCIE

Volume: 18

Issue: 4

Page Number: 1570-1573

ISSN: 1674-1056

Key Words: hard disk overcoat; ultra-thin; a-SiNx; plasma enhanced magnetron sputtering

Abstract: This paper reports that amorphous silicon nitride (a-SiNx) overcoats were deposited at room temperature by microwave ECR plasma enhanced unbalanced magnetron sputtering. The 2 nm a-SiNx overcoat has better anti-corrosion properties than that of reference a-CNx overcoats (2 4.5nm). The superior anti-corrosion performance is attributed to its stoichiometric bond structure, where 94.8% Si atoms form Si-N asymmetric stretching vibration bonds. The N/Si ratio is 1.33 as in the stoichiometry of Si3N4 and corresponds to the highest hardness of 25.0 GPa. The surface is atomically smooth with RMS < 0.2 nm. The ultra-thin a-SiNx overcoats are promising for hard disks and read/write heads protective coatings.