The microstructure and electrical transport properties of immiscible copper-niobium alloy thin films

Mutually immiscible in the solid state, copper and niobium exhibit a relatively strong clustering (phase separating) tendency in the liquid state and can therefore only be alloyed in a highly metastable form: for example, by vapor quenching. We have deposited metastable Cu–Nb alloy thin films with nominal compositions ranging from 5 to 90 at. % Nb by magnetron cosputtering. The microstructure of these films depends strongly on the composition and ranges from coarse-grained solid solutions for Cu-rich and Nb-rich compositions to phase-separated amorphous mixtures when the two elements are in comparable amounts. The crystalline Cu- or Nb-rich compositions exhibit positive temperature coefficients of resistivity (TCR) with the Cu–90 at. % Nb film exhibiting a superconducting transition with (TC)onset∼4.5 K. The amorphous films show high room temperature resistivity, a negative TCR, and composition dependent superconducting transitions. We investigate the relation between the microstructure, phase stability, and the electrical transport properties.