The role of heat treatment on the structural and nano-mechanical properties of SmCo5 thin films grown by RF magnetron sputtering technique

In this study, the influence of annealing temperature on structural, morphological, and nano-mechanical properties of SmCo5 thin films, which was produced by RF magnetron sputtering technique, was investigated. A set of 1 mu m thick SmCo5 thin films were grown on a Si (100) substrate at room temperature, and subsequently annealed at 400 degrees C, 500 degrees C, 600 degrees C, and 700 degrees C in an argon atmosphere. These films have a hexagonal CaCu5 structure with (110) preferential orientation corresponding to SmCo5 films observed. The Structural morphological and nano-mechanical properties of SmCo5 thin films were examined using the Grazing Incident X-ray Diffraction (GIXRD), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Nano indentation techniques. Results showed that the as-deposited SmCo5 thin films had a polycrystalline structure. Following the heat treatment, both crystallite and grain size increased and thin film crystallinity improved. In addition, nano-hardness and reduced elastic modulus of the SmCo5 thin films were measured with a Berkovich tip. Nano hardness and reduced elastic modulus values decrease with the increasing annealing temperature.