Mo, Al2O3 single layer, Mo-Al2O3 granular cermet layer, Mo/Al2O3 tandem and an optimized Mo-Al2O3 multilayer coating with a double cermet layer configuration were deposited on stainless steel substrates by magnetron sputtering technique. The samples were annealed in vacuum at different temperatures ranging from 350 degrees C to 1000 degrees C for 2-5 It to evaluate their thermal stability. The spectral absorbance and thermal emissivity for the multi-layer selective coatings in the region of 1.3-25 mu m were 0.91-0.93 and 0.19-0.27, respectively, depending on heat treatment temperature. Increasing annealing temperature has more obvious influence on the rise of emissivity than the drop of spectral absorbance. The microstructure, surface morphology, composition distribution and diffusion for various films before and after high temperature aging were investigated employing scanning electronic microscopy, X-ray diffraction and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Fe2O3, as a diffusion barrier between Mo layer and SS substrate, effectively holds back the presence of Mo2C and Fe2MoC complex phases. Al2O3 is a stable phase even at 1000 degrees C for 3 h. However, defects such as widened boundaries, cracks and holes, which could appear in Al2O3 layer when heated at higher temperature than 650 degrees C, will provide the paths of Mo diffusion. Two diffusion modes of Mo, including inner self-congregation of Mo inside the cermet layer and Mo infiltration through the Al2O3 layer in Mo/Al2O3 tandem at 800 degrees C for 5 h, were observed after annealing. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All tights reserved.