AVS 52nd International Symposium
    Thin Films Monday Sessions
       Session TF-MoP

Paper TF-MoP22
Experimental AES and Computer Model Based Elemental Depth-Profile Analysis of Tungsten Carbide Doped Diamond Like Carbon Films

Monday, October 31, 2005, 5:00 pm, Room Exhibit Hall C&D

Session: Aspects of Thin Films Poster Session
Presenter: J.A. Carlson, Bradley University
Authors: J.A. Carlson, Bradley University
J. Abou-Hanna, Bradley University
J. Lozano, Bradley University
Correspondent: Click to Email
Tungsten-doped diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings, with a thickness of approximately three microns, have been magnetron sputtered onto 52100 steel with chromium and chromium/tungsten carbide dual interlayers using a Hauzer Techno Coating HTC 1200 4 UBM system. The process gas for the deposition is acetylene. The deposition chamber uses a two degree of freedom rotational system to rotate parts to be coated so that eventually each portion of the part will experience the full impact of the target. Depending on the speed of the rotation, the rotation pattern may take several minutes to repeat. At certain intervals during deposition, the acetylene flow is linearly altered to change characteristics throughout the film. AES sputter depth profiling analysis shows a spatial dependency on the depth profile which is likely attributable to the fixture rotational system. AES depth profiling also reveals trace amounts of titanium within the DLC and within the interlayers. The presence of titanium has further been confirmed with EDS/SEM analysis. Furthermore, AES shows significant amounts of oxygen in the area of the interlayer/substrate interface. Lastly, in addition to the experimental data, mathematical models are presented that were used to predict film chemistry, film thickness, and film structure.