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Multi-element (CrHfNbTaTiVZr)N coatings were prepared through the magnetron sputtering of an equimolar CrHfNbTaTiVZr alloy target. This study determined the influences of N2-to-total (N2 + Ar) ratios (RN) on the composition, structure, mechanical properties, and electrical performance of the coatings. Coating thickness decreased from 898 nm to 128 nm with increasing RN from 0% to 100%. The alloy coating has bundles of fibrous structures with remarkable void boundaries. The coating changed from amorphous phase to face-centered cubic (FCC) phase with (111) preferred orientation, then to FCC phase with (200) preferred orientation, and finally to near-amorphous phase as RN increased from 0% to 100%. The microstructure of the nitride coatings transformed from a columnar structure with rough faceted tops and void boundaries into a dense and small structure with smooth domed tops. The grain size of the nitride coatings also decreased with RN. Accordingly, the electrical performance at high RN was poor. The nitride coating deposited at RN = 60% had the highest hardness of 16.6 GPa and the lowest friction coefficient of 0.52, owing to structural densification and grain refinement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dependence of the structure of (TiZrHf)N coatings deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering on different working pressures and their mechanical and electro-optical properties were investigated. The increased working pressure contributed to the decreased oxygen contamination. With increased working pressure, the compressive stress was transitioned to tensile one. Compressively stressed coatings consisted of tightly packed columns with a smooth surface. The tensile stressed coatings presented void network structure surrounding the columnar grains with a rough surface. Moreover, the grain size initially increased and subsequently decreased. Accordingly, the (TiZrHf)N coatings deposited at high working pressure were characterized with poor hardness, low electrical conductivity, and low light reflectivity due to the porous structure and high oxygen contamination. In addition, the coating color changed from bright gold to dark gray. In this study, the working pressure was proven a sensitive deposition parameter in controlling the microstructure, mechanical, and electro-optical properties of the coating. The wide structural variation in the (TiZrHf)N coatings allowed a diverse physical performance suitable for a broad range of applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Indium zinc oxide (IZO) films were grown by direct current magnetron sputtering from vacuum hot-pressed ceramic oxide targets of In 2 O 3 :ZnO with a weight ratio of 7:3 onto glass substrates. No external heating of the substrate was used during deposition. The thickness dependences of the structural, optical, and electrical properties of IZO films were characterized. The IZO film structure remained amorphous with low roughness as its thickness increased but showed an increased degree of short-range order. The thick IZO film contained relatively high carrier concentration and mobility but exhibited low transmittance in the visible region and high reflectance in the IR region. The smallest electrical resistivity was 5.44 × 10 −4 Ω-cm for the 800 nm-thick IZO film. The optical band gap shifted to a higher energy with thickness as the carrier concentration and Urbach energy increased. An inverse linear relation was found between band gap energy and Urbach energy. In consideration of the figure of merit values, the optimized thickness of the IZO film was 800 nm due to the effect of IZO film thickness on sheet resistance. Given its low temperature process and good optoelectronic properties, the IZO film has a wide range of potential applications in various optoelectronic devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cu–Cr–O films were prepared by DC magnetron co-sputtering using Cu and Cr targets on quartz substrates. The films were then annealed at temperatures ranging from 400 °C to 900 °C for 2 h under a controlled Ar atmosphere. The as-deposited and 400 °C-annealed films were amorphous, semi-transparent, and insulated. After annealing at 500 °C, the Cu–Cr–O films contained a mixture of monoclinic CuO and spinel CuCr 2 O 4 phases. Annealing at 600 °C led to the formation of delafossite CuCrO 2 phases. When the annealing was further increased to temperatures above 700 °C, the films exhibited a pure delafossite CuCrO 2 phase. The crystallinity and grain size also increased with the annealing temperature. The formation of the delafossite CuCrO 2 phase during post-annealing processing was in good agreement with thermodynamics. The optimum conductivity and transparency were achieved for the film annealed at approximately 700 °C with a figure of merit of 1.51×10 −8 Ω −1 (i.e., electrical resistivity of up to 5.13 Ω-cm and visible light transmittance of up to 58.3%). The lower formation temperature and superior properties of CuCrO 2 found in this study indicated the higher potential of this material for practical applications compared to CuAlO 2 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the frame of this work, reactive magnetron-sputtered (TiZrHf)N coatings were deposited on Si substrates. The depositions were carried out from a pure TiZrHf target with varying N 2 -to-total (N 2 +Ar) flow ratios, R N . The TiZrHf alloy and its nitride coatings exhibited body-centered cubic and face-centered cubic crystal structures, respectively. The increase in R N contributed to the decrease in O 2 contamination. For nitrides, with increasing R N , the grain size decreased to a nano-sized level. Consequently, the microstructure of the nitride coatings was converted from a large columnar structure with rough surface to a fine columnar structure with a smooth surface. Moreover, the compressive stress and the corresponding lattice parameter increased initially and then decreased. The golden-like (TiZrHf)N coatings deposited at R N =20% exhibited the highest hardness of 40.7 GPa, which attained the superhard grade. Meanwhile, low electrical resistivity of 129.2 μΩ-cm and high reflectivity at 0.62 eV of 84.0% were obtained. The electro-optical behavior of (TiZrHf)N coatings was demonstrated further by spectroscopic ellipsometry on the basis of their dielectric function and energy loss function. The gold-colored (TiZrHf)N coating with excellent physical properties has a wide range of diverse potential industrial applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cu-Cr-O films were prepared by DC magnetron co-sputtering using Cu and Cr targets on fused silica substrates. The as-deposited Cu-Cr-O films were amorphous, semi-transparent, and insulated. After annealing at 800 °C for 30-240 min, the surface roughness and optical transmittances of the resultant films increased, but their electrical resistivity, direct optical band gap (E) values, and compressive residual stress decreased. The as-deposited amorphous Cu-Cr-O films crystallized to the delafossite structure of the CuCrO phase and showed p-type conductivity. The maximum optical transmittance of the films was as high as 80 % at a visible wavelength of 740 nm. In addition, the electrical resistivity of the films decreased from 34.72 to 14.73 Ω cm as annealing time increased from 30 to 120 min but became saturated after 240 min. These results indicate that the CuCrO films obtained in this work show promising optoelectronic properties under a suitable annealing time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated the effects of sputtering power on the microstructure of direct-current magnetron sputter-deposited TiVCr films on silicon wafer grown at room temperature. When the sputtering power was 100 W, composite structure with amorphous and body-centered cubic (BCC) crystal phases can be observed. When sputtering power was increased to 200 W, the composite structure was almost transformed into crystal columnar structure. Apart from interface region, the amorphous zone was composed of bundles of fine fibrous structure, whereas the BCC crystal zone contained V-shaped columnar structures without significant element segregation. Results indicated that the high sputtering power favored the formation of crystal films and the decrease of intracolumnar voids. However, a significant crack occurred, thereby widening intercolumnar voids. The film deposited at high sputtering power demonstrates slight improvement of mechanical properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, an Na source was integrated into the back contact stack, which is a MoNa layer. MoNa layers with varying thicknesses were deposited on Al 2 O 3 substrate as intermediate layers of an Mo back contact by DC magnetron sputtering of a Mo-10 at% Na target. We examined the effect of MoNa thickness on the standard production of Cu(In, Ga)Se 2 (CIGS) solar cell fabricated using three-stage evaporation. The structure of the MoNa layer was composed of fibers with considerably small grain size (~5 nm). By contrast, the Mo layer presented a columnar structure with relatively large grain size. The Na concentration in the CIGS absorber can be adjusted by varying the thickness of the MoNa layer. Cell efficiency was heavily raised from 2.08% to 11.7% using MoNa layer as Na source. However, the enhanced deliquescence property with MoNa thickness limited further improvement in cell efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(CrTaTiVZr)N x coatings were deposited via reactive radio frequency magnetron sputtering. We investigated the effects of substrate bias at 0 V to −200 V on the chemical composition, microstructure, as well as mechanical and electrical properties of the coatings. All these coatings have a single NaCl-type face-centered cubic structure. The increase of substrate bias results in the transformation of preferred orientation from (111) to (200) out-of-plane. At the substrate bias of 0 V, the deposited coatings are composed of V-shaped columnar grains with void boundaries and faceted surfaces, which contribute to the tensile stress in the deposited coatings. The grain refinement and lattice expansion increase gradually with increasing substrate bias up to −100 V. A typical columnar structure converts into a dense and featureless structure. Further increase of substrate bias results in the decrease of lattice parameter, which may be due to stress relaxation. The internal stress in the deposited coatings is also strongly dependent on the substrate bias. The increase of substrate bias results in the transition of tensile to compressive stress and increase of compressive stress in the deposited coatings. Accordingly, the physical properties are improved significantly by applying moderate substrate bias. At the optimized substrate bias of −100 V, the high hardness value of 36.4 GPa, low electrical resistivity of 131 μΩ-cm, and high light reflectivity near 2000 nm of 74% are achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Various (AlCrMoTaTi)-Si x -N coatings were prepared on Si substrates through a reactive magnetron sputtering system to methodically investigate the effects of Si contents and free Si on oxidation behavior. The as-deposited Si-containing coating presented a relatively dense and compact structure compared with the Si-free coating. An oxide layer was formed on the coating surface and continued to thicken when the coatings were exposed to ambient air at elevated temperatures. At 1073 K, a two-layer structure, which consists of an amorphous Al 2 O 3 layer with traces of other target elements followed by a rutile TiO 2 + oxide of the target element mixed zone, was developed in the oxide layer. Oxidation resistance was gradually enhanced with the continued increase in Si concentration in the coatings. At 1173 K, the coatings with Si content of as low as 7.51 at.% exhibited a single order of magnitude lower oxidation rate than that of the Si-free coating. Nanohardness measurement of the coatings further confirmed the oxidation behavior. The significantly enhanced oxidation resistance may be attributed to the presence of Al and Si in the coatings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(CrTaTiVZr)Nx coatings were deposited via reactive radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The effects of N2 flow at 0-8 SCCM on the chemical composition, microstructure, and mechanical properties of the films were investigated. The coatings deposited at a N2 flow of ≤2 SCCM showed a featureless structure with an amorphous phase. When the N2 flow was at 4 SCCM, two distinct layers were observed, namely, the bottom layer (close to the substrate) with an amorphous structure and the top layer with a fibrous structure and face-centered cubic phase. When the N2 flow was further increased, the structure was converted from fibers to columns with larger grains. Accordingly, the maximum hardness value of 36.4 GPa was achieved at a N2 flow of 4 SCCM, thereby indicating that (CrTaTiVZr)Nx coatings may be suitable as hard protective coatings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to investigate the effects of discharge power on the composition and the microstructural, mechanical, and electro-optical properties of (TiZrHf)N coatings. The coatings were deposited on Si substrates via reactive magnetron sputtering. The coatings were deposited at varying discharge powers (50–300 W). At low discharge powers, amorphous structures were produced during the initial sputtering period. High (2 0 0)-axis orientation structures were formed when sputtering time was increased. The upper part of the coatings was composed of open columnar structures with extended voids along the column boundaries. Increasing the discharge power decreased the thickness of the amorphous layer. Consequently, the microstructures became dense and compact; however, the grain size did not change significantly. Meanwhile, an enhanced compressive stress was observed, followed by an increase in the texture coefficients of the (1 1 1) plane and lattice parameters. The physical properties of the coatings were improved by increasing the discharge power. The coating hardness was increased to approximately 32.1 GPa. In addition, the electrical resistivity was decreased to approximately 134 μΩ cm, and the light reflectivity in the infrared region (700–2400 nm) was increased to 75%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Si-doped (AlCrMoTaTi)N coatings were deposited onto an Si substrate by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering of an AlCrMoTaTi alloy target under direct current bias in an N 2 /Ar atmosphere. The crystal, microstructural, mechanical, and electrical properties at different Si-target powers were investigated. As the Si content reached 7.51 at.%, the simple NaCl-type face-centered cubic structure of nitride was retained. Significant lattice decline and grain growth were observed in the nitride coatings. The microstructure of coatings transformed from loose columns with rough-faceted surface into dense ones with smooth-domed surface. The solubility of approximately 7.51 at.% Si content was demonstrated. Si incorporation significantly improved the mechanical properties of the coatings, but degraded their electrical properties. The hardness of the coatings increased from 20.7 GPa to 35.5 GPa, and the electrical resistivity increased from 793 μΩ cm to 3872 μΩ cm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, Cu (In, Ga)Se 2 (CIGS) film was formed using a two-stage process. Bilayer CuGa/In metallic precursors were sequentially deposited using both CuGa alloy and In targets in magnetron sputtering. Then, the Se layer was coated on the sputter-deposited CuGa/In precursors through evaporation. The diffusion behaviors of each element during the post-selenization annealing process were determined based on FESEM, XRD, and SIMS. The higher annealing temperature was proposed to have improved Ga diffusion toward the film surface, and thus, achieved the growth of more uniform, more densely packed, and larger grains. Moreover, Na and O contents were found to be correlated due to the strong affinity between Na and O. The distribution of Na seems to be similar to the Ga profile, which may be ascribed to the diffusion of Ga, which was retarded by Na and O. The CIGS films fabricated by the two-step method consisted of a single chalcopyrite phase, and the efficiency of the cell fabricated by the films was 2.56%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(TiVCrZrY)N coatings were deposited onto Si substrate by the radio-frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering of a TiVCrZrY alloy target in an N/Ar atmosphere. The crystal, microstructural, mechanical, and electrical properties at different N-to-total (N+Ar) flow-rate ratio ( R) values were investigated. The coating produced in pure Ar had an equiaxed structure with a hexagonal-close-packed phase. With increased R, the crystallinity and grain size markedly decreased. The microstructure of (TiVCrZrY)N coatings transformed from V-shaped columnar with a rough-domed surface into fine fibrous with a smooth surface. The amorphous transition layer above the substrate was also significantly thickened. The hardness of (TiVCrZrY)N decreased from 20.9 GPa to 18.9 GPa, and the electrical resistivity increased from 398.2 μΩ⋅cm to 21870 μΩ⋅cm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: (TiVCrZrHf)N coatings prepared using quinary metallic elements were deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering. The effects of post vacuum annealing on the structure and properties of the coatings were investigated using different analytical instruments. The (TiVCrZrHf)N coatings showed continuous changes in the microstructure as the coating thickness increased. A 270nm-thick amorphous layer was initially formed, followed by a columnar structure with a face-centered cubic phase. The crystal structure and microstructure of the coatings remained unchanged after annealing at 1073K. The amorphous layer appeared at an annealing temperature of 1173K. Furthermore, a Cr–Si solid state phase was observed near the substrate. The coatings nearly independent of the postannealing temperature exhibited a hardness of 31GPa and an electrical resistivity of 150μΩcm. In addition, a 15nm-thick (TiVCrZrHf)N coating was used as a potential diffusion barrier for metallization. The (TiVCrZrHf)N barrier layer failed after annealing at 1173K. Severe interdiffusion of Si and Cu through the layers was observed, and a large amount of Cu silicides was formed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Highlights: [•] The R N influences the structure and properties of (AlCrMoTaTi)N coatings. [•] The alloy coating has a composite structure with amorphous and bcc crystal phases. [•] The nitride coating displays V-shaped columnar structure with fcc crystal phase. [•] Increasing R N to 30% caused the hardness to reach maximum values of 30.6GPa. [•] Electrical resistivity increased to 8212μΩcm when R N increased to 50%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

(TiVCrZrHf)N coatings were deposited on Si substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering system. Their oxidation behaviors and structure were studied after static oxidation tests in air at different temperatures. The evolution of the chemical composition, microstructure, nanohardness, and electrical resistivity of these coatings after annealing at different temperatures in air was systematically analyzed. The as-deposited coating showed continued variation in structure from amorphous to columnar with the face-centered cubic crystal phase, but had no significant change in structure with increased annealing temperature to 300°C. The hardness of the coating was stable at a high value of 31.24GPa up to an annealing temperature of 300°C. However, a thin oxide overlayer was observed at 400°C, which increased in thickness at 500°C and thus drastically decreasing the hardness to 11.85GPa. Above 600°C, the coating was almost fully oxidized and became quite porous and loose. Accordingly, a very low hardness of only 2.3GPa was obtained. The electrical resistivity of the coatings followed the same trend as the hardness. The electrical resistivity of the as-deposited coating was about 144μΩ-cm, followed by an apparent increase to 100Ω-cm due to the formation of oxide phases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Ti–V–Cr–Al–N films were prepared by dc magnetron co-sputtering by utilizing TiVCr and Al targets. By using glancing incidence X-ray diffraction, a single NaCl solid solution phase with (200) preferred orientation for the Al-doped films was revealed, as opposed to the undoped films that possessed predominantly (111) preferred orientation. This indicates that Al addition can lead to the enhancement of adatom mobility and consequently, to a thermodynamically favorable (200) orientation. This also leads to grain growth and increased surface roughness. However, based on results from transmission electron microscopy, the microstructure morphology seemed independent of the Al concentration, implying that adatom mobility is not sufficient for the barriers present at the grain boundaries. Accordingly, hardness was enhanced by the increase in Al concentration. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this study, we investigated the microstructure of (TiVCrZrHf)N multi-element coating deposited on Si(100) substrate by magnetron sputtering system. Interestingly, the film showed an unusual structure evolution. A continuous and amorphous initial (TiVCrZrHf)N layer formed on the substrate. As film thickness increased, randomly oriented small (TiVCrZrHf)N grains formed, followed by the development of columnar grains with FCC crystal phase. In contrast to previous studies, the nitride coatings grew on substrates with a 270-nm amorphous interlayer. Under appropriate parameters, the occurrence of the unusual microstructure could be attributed to the sluggish diffusion of the multi-principal components. The maximum hardness of 33.5GPa was obtained when coating was deposited under substrate bias of −100V and at substrate temperatures of 723K. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: (TiVCrZrHf)N coatings were deposited via reactive radio-frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering at different substrate biases (0 to 200V). The chemical composition, microstructure, and mechanical properties of the coatings were investigated. As the substrate bias increased, the preferred orientation of the (TiVCrZrHf)N coatings changed from (111) to (200). Reduced grain size and surface roughness were also observed. The microstructure obviously changed, from a V-shaped columnar structure with clearly faceted surface features to a highly dense structure with a very smooth surface. Moreover, a continuous variation in the microstructure, from randomly oriented nanograins to columns with a face-centered cubic (FCC) phase, was evident. The hardness of the coatings deposited at 100V or higher was around 32–33GPa. The structural evolution and strengthening mechanism of the coatings were also discussed. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: In this study, (TiVCrZrHf)N multi-component coatings with quinary metallic elements were deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering system. The composition, structure, and mechanical properties of the coatings deposited at different N2 flow rates were investigated. The (TiVCrZrHf)N coatings deposited at N2 flow rates of 0, 1, and 2SCCM showed an amorphous structure, whereas those deposited at N2 flow rates of 4 and 6SCCM showed a simple face-centered cubic solid solution structure. A saturated nitride coating was obtained for N2 flow of 4SCCM and higher. By increasing N2 flow to 4SCCM, the hardness and modulus reached a maximum value of 23.8±0.8 and 267.3±4.0GPa, respectively. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The present paper reports the influence of growth conditions on the characteristics of (TiVCr)N coatings prepared by dc reactive magnetron sputtering at various N2-to-total (N2 +Ar) flow ratios, R N. The crystal structures, microstructure, and mechanical, electrical and optical properties under the R N were characterized. Results indicate that the TiVCr alloy and nitride coatings exhibited a single body-centered cubic type (BCC) and a face-centered cubic (FCC) solid solution structure, respectively. As the R N increases, the preferred orientation (TiVCr)N coatings changed to (200). The grain size also had a significant increase. The microstructure of the coatings obviously changed from a porous to a compact and dense columnar structure. Accordingly, the physical properties of the coatings were improved due to the densification of the structure. The hardness of the (TiVCr)N was enhanced to about 15GPa, and the electrical resistivity was lowered to 10,000μΩ-cm. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The (TiVCr)N coatings were deposited on Si substrate via rf magnetron sputtering of a TiVCr alloy target under dc bias in a N2/Ar atmosphere. The deposition rate of the coatings gradually decreased with increasing N2-to-total (N2 +Ar) flow ratio, R N. The TiVCr alloy and its nitride coatings exhibited a body-centered cubic (BCC) and a face-centered cubic (FCC) crystal structure, respectively. The preferred orientation of the (TiVCr)N coatings changed from (111) to (200) with increasing R N. In addition, the microstructure of the nitride coatings was also converted from a columnar structure with void boundaries and rough-faceted surface to a very dense structure with a smooth-domed surface. The grain size of the (TiVCr)N coatings decreased as the R N was increased. Accordingly, the hardness of the (TiVCr)N coatings was enhanced from 4.06 to 18.74GPa as the R N was increased. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This study reports the influence of growth conditions on the characteristics of (TiVCrZrY)N coatings prepared by reactive magnetron sputtering at various N2-to-total (N2 +Ar) flow ratio, which is RN. The crystal structures, microstructure, and mechanical properties for different RN were characterized by electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis, X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, field-emission-scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and nanoindentation. The results indicate that the TiVCrZrY alloy and nitride coatings have hexagonal close-packed (hcp)-type and sodium chloride (NaCl)-type solid–solution structures, respectively. The voids in the coatings are eliminated and the growth of the columnar crystal structures is inhibited along with an increasing RN. As a consequence, highly packed equiaxed amorphous structures with smooth surfaces are formed. The coatings accordingly achieved a pronounce hardness of 17.5GPa when RN =100%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, TiVCr and T1VCrZrY films were deposited on Si substrates by magnetron sputtering with the application of radio-frequency substrate bias of different powers from 0 to 15 W. The crystal structures, microstructure, and mechanical, electrical, and optical properties under the effect of bias were characterized. Both the TiVCr and TiVCrZrY films constructed simple solid solutions from all alloyed elements. The TiVCr films possessed a body-centered cubic crystal structure with a pyramid-like surface, while the TiVCrZrY films had a hexagonal close-packed crystal structure with a domelike surface. The microstructure and properties of the films varied with bias power. As the bias power increased, the microstructure of the films obviously changed from a porous to a dense columnar feature, and the density of the voids existing between the columns decreased. Accordingly, the physical properties of the films were improved. The hardness of the TiVCr and TiVCrZrY films was enhanced to about 11 and 14 GPa, and the electrical resistivity was lowered to 80 and 100 μΩ cm, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The present paper reports the influence of growth conditions on the characteristics of (TiVCrZrHf)N films prepared by rf reactive magnetron sputtering at various substrate temperatures. The nitrogen content is observed to decrease with increasing substrate temperature. The X-ray diffraction results indicate that all (TiVCrZrHf)N films are simple face centered cubic (FCC) structures. Initially, there is an obvious decrease followed by an increase in grain size with the increase in substrate temperature. The lower part of the microstructure has an amorphous structure. A nano grain structure (size ∼1nm) with a random orientation is also observed above the amorphous structure. The fully dense columnar structure with an fcc crystal phase then starts to develop. Extreme hardness of around 48GPa is obtained in the present alloy design. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Mo layers were deposited on soda lime glass via DC magnetron sputtering of a Mo target in a pure Ar atmosphere. The structure and electrical resistivity of Mo thin films, which may be varied by controlling the sputtering pressure, were investigated. The films showed (110) preferred orientation regardless of the working pressure. Films sputtered at low working pressure had low resistivity but adhered poorly to glass. A study of the deposition of a Mo bilayer was conducted. Optimum properties of the Mo bilayer were obtained when the bottom layer was deposited at 10 mtorr and the top layer was deposited at 2.5 mtorr. The extremely low resistivity of 6.57 μΩ-cm was obtained, which is better than other literatures. A Cu(In, Ga)Se2 cell fabricated on a Mo film sputtered under optimized conditions showed 10.40% efficiency. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]