Mechanical properties of amorphous Ta100 − xCrx thin films

The mechanical properties—hardness, Youngʹs modulus and wear resistance—of thin, amorphous films of Ta100 − xCrx were studied by nano-indentation and micro-abrasive wear tests. The films, deposited with two independent magnetrons, had thicknesses between 1.8 and 2.2 μm. With compositions varied in small steps from x = 28 to x = 66, no influence on the mechanical properties of chemical short-range order, which might be expected close to compositions where crystalline compounds form, was observed. The correlation between microscale wear resistance and indentation hardness is discussed for these alloys as well as for TiAl metallic glasses.