The present disclosure relates to a protective layer composition that includes TixSiyA, where A is Cm, CmNl, OnCm, or OnCmNl and x, y, l, m, and n are positive integers. In one implementation, the protective layer composition has a ratio of x over (x+y) in the range of between about 0.1 and about 1.0. In another implementation, the protective layer composition has a ratio of x over (x+y) in the range of between about 0.3 and about 0.9. In yet another implementation, the protective layer composition has a ratio of x over (x+y) that is about 0.6. The protective layer composition may be amorphous. Also, the protective layer composition may include an atomic percentage of Ti that is less than about 20%. In one implementation of the protective layer composition, x is 2, y is 1, and A is C3.