Effects of the Deposition Mode and Heat Treatment on the Microstructure and Wettability of Y2 O3 Coatings Prepared by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

Abstract

A robust hydrophobic Y2 O3 coating at high temperatures is important for industrial ap-plications. In this study, Y2 O3 thin films on Si substrates were prepared by reactive direct current magnetron sputtering. By changing the deposition power, Y2 O3 thin films with different microstruc-tures were obtained in poison mode and metallic mode, respectively. In order to understand the effect of heat treatment on the microstructure and hydrophobicity of Y2 O3, the samples were annealed at 400◦ C in the air. Compared to metallic mode, no crack was formed on the surface of the Y2 O3 film prepared in poison mode. In addition, the water contact angle on the surface of the Y2 O3 thin film deposited in poison mode was above 90◦ before and after annealing at 400◦ C. It has been demonstrated that the initial high concentration of physically absorbed oxygen and its slow desorption process in a Y2 O3 thin film prepared in poison mode contributes to the hydrophobicity of the thin film at high temperatures. These results can provide insights into the large-scale fabrication of hydrophobic Y2 O3 coatings for high-temperature applications.