Deposition of Chromium Thin Films on Stainless Steel-304 Substrates Using a Low Energy Plasma Focus Device

In this paper, we study thin films of chromium deposited on stainless steel-304 substrates using a low energy (1.6 kJ) plasma focus device. The films of chromium are likewise deposited with 25 focus shots each at various axial distances from the top of the anode (3, 5, 7, 9 and 11 cm). We also consider different angular positions with respect to the anode axis (0A degrees, 15A degrees and 30A degrees) at a distance of 5 cm from the anode tip to deposit the chromium films on the stainless steel substrates. To characterize the structural properties of the films, we benefit from X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) are applied as well to study the surface morphology of these deposited films. Furthermore, we make use of Vicker's micro-hardness measurements to investigate the mechanical properties of chromium thin films. The XRD results show that the degree of crystallinity of chromium thin films depends on the substrate axial and angular positions. The AFM images illustrate that the film deposited at the distance of 5 cm and the angular position of 0A degrees has quite a uniform surface with homogeneous distribution of grains on the film surface. From the hardness results, we observe that the sample deposited at the axial distance of 5 cm from the anode tip and at the angle of 0A degrees with respect to the anode axis, is harder than the other deposited films.