Doesn't the same thing happen with sputtering since the sputter rate of
the different species (i.e. Fe/Cr/Ni) is not the same. This is a known
problem for NiTi SMA and I would surprised if you don't have the same
problem for stainless...

Michael Pedersen

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BERAUER,FRANK (HP-Singapore,ex7) wrote:
> Hi there,
>
> We bought stainless steel (grade 316) sputter targets from Balzers
> & Leyboldt Singapore. I'm sure they are available from their other
> worldwide representatives as well.
> With e-beam or other evaporation methods it is very difficult to
> get consistent results for depositing alloys or compounds: Because
> of different vapour pressures, one material evaporates first and
> depletes from the target, resulting in film composition drift over
> lifetime of the target.
>