Influence of sputtering parameters on hydrogen evolution overvoltage in sputter-deposited Co-Mo alloy electrode

Sputtering method was used to prepare the Co-Mo alloy electrode for the hydrogen evolution reaction in water electrolysis. We studied the influence of the sputtering parameters (Ar pressure during deposition, RF power, and substrate temperature) on the hydrogen evolution overvoltage. It was found that the Overvoltage was significantly influenced by the Ar pressure which affected critically the Co-Mo surface geometrical structure. We referred to the Thornton model for the microstructure of sputter-deposited films to explain the observed structural change. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.