Tribological texturing of steel surfaces with a novel diamond embossing tool technique

A novel technique has been developed to manufacture well-defined micro-scale embossing tools, intended for tribological texturing of metallic surfaces. The tools are formed by growing a CVD diamond film onto a silicon mould. This film is then supported by a thicker layer of electro deposited nickel, and cut into the final size. The finished tool is then pressed against the metallic surfaces, thus forming the large array of small indents that constitute the final texture. The tool manufacturing technique is briefly described and examples of texturing flat and curved steel surfaces in a lab scale are given. The possibilities to develop this technique into commercial production techniques are discussed. (c) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.