Zirconium nitride (ZrN) coatings have been deposited on polished steel substrates by a plasma-beam sputtering technique in a Sputron apparatus (Balzers A. G.) at 200 °C. A thin intermediate layer of Zr (0.08 μm) was deposited between the substrate and the 2.8 μm thick ZrN coating. The average roughness, Ra, of the substrate was © 1998 American Vacuum Society.