Preparation, characterization and performance of Ti1-xAlxN/Ag/Ti1-xAlxN low-emissivity films

In this paper, Ti1-xAlxN/Ag/Ti1-xAlxN sandwich structure low-emissivity (Low-E) films were prepared by radio frequency reactive magnetron sputtering (RF-MS) on glass substrates. The morphology, chemical state and performance of the film system were characterized by FIB-SEM, XPS, FT-IR, UV-vis spectrophotometer and electrochemical workstation. The results showed that the multilayer films exhibit an excellent visible light transmittance (T% > 85% at), lambda = 550 nm) and remarkable high infrared reflectivity (R% >96% in the 2.5 similar to 25 mu m range). The Ti1-xAlxN dielectric-layer could not only increase transmittance in the visible light range of Ag film based on an anti-reflection effect, but also modify the intrinsic color of Ag film from sapphire to total color neutrality. In addition, Ti1-xAlxN layer could enhance the chemical stability of the Ag film. In principle, the approach to obtain Ti1-xAlxN/Ag/Ti1-xAlxN sandwich structure in our work could provide an alternative way to fabricate outstanding Low-E films. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.