A comparison of qualitative and quantitative adhesion analysis for a composite thin film system

The adhesion strength of a thin film to the substrate determines the life cycle of the thin film system. Analyzing techniques for this adhesion strength are categorized into two types, 1. Qualitative and 2. Quantitative. Both types of techniques are established and standardized for metallic, polymeric, and compound thin films. However, there are very few works available that give credibility to the qualitative analyzing techniques for a metallic composite thin film. In this study, by the magnetron deposition process, composite TungstenTantalum thin films on a steel substrate are deposited. Both qualitative and quantitative techniques implemented to analyze thin films adhesion. Indentation technique selected as the qualitative process and Nano scratch technique selected as the quantitative process in this study. Simple Rockwell indentation, according to VDI 3198 standard, is used to qualitatively categorize the films into acceptable adhesion and not acceptable adhesion films. Nano scratch with a Nano indenter assessed the adhesion strength of the thin films quantitatively. The films categorised as not acceptable adhesion in Rockwell micro indentation test have fared poorly in the Nano scratch test, and the films which emerged as acceptable adhesion have better adhesion strength registered in the Nano scratch test. This study concludes that the qualitative indentation results produced using Rockwell indenter are similar to the results produced by the quantitative Nano scratch test. (c) 2021 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 28th International Conference on Processing and Fabrication of Advanced Materials.