The stability of short period Sc/Cr and Sc/B₄C/Cr multilayers was investigated over a large temperature range. The aim was to find a stable reflective coating for an off-axis parabola for focusing x rays from a soft x-ray free-electron laser. Normal incidence reflectivity, surface roughness, and intrinsic stress were investigated as a function of annealing temperature and two samples were also studied with a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (TEM), a scanning TEM, and through electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS). Interface-engineered Sc/B₄C/Cr multilayers showed increased thermal stability and higher reflectivity as compared to pure Sc/Cr multilayers.