Ti, TiN and Au-TiN （Au content： from 0.5%to 7.7%） thin films were deposited on stainless steel substrates by dc reactive magnetron sputtering with a metal Ti target. The crystal structure, surface morphology and visiblelight reflectivity of the films for different film compositions are studied in detail. Distinctly different surface morphologies appear for the Ti, TiN and Au-TiN thin films. It can be observed that the surface morphology of the TiN film is affected by the Au-doping, when the Au content increases from 0% to 7.7%, surface roughness enlarges from 62.4 to 82.8 nm. Moreover, visible-light reflectivity varies significantly with increasing A u contents in the TiN films. However, the rettectivity of the TiN thin film at 550-800 nm is higher than that of the Au-TiN thin film. The present work illustrates the dependence of metal elements on the surface morphology and on the reflectivity of Au-TiN thin films. It is speculated that the addition of Au can suppress the formation and growth of TiN grains so that it changes the surface morphology and the Au-TiN thin film has potential applications in spectral selective coating.
