The influence of a heat treatment on the microstructure and mechanical properties of sputtered coatings

The aim of this paper was to examine correlations between deposition parameters and the coating properties of RF-sputtered films in deposition conditions and after heat treatment at temperatures up to 700 degrees C. The investigations deal with titanium-, chromium- and hafnium-based nitrides, borides and ternary alloys. Different materials such as SAE 52100 steel, ASP 23 highspeed steel and Ti6Al4V titanium alloy, which are commonly used in the aerospace industry, were coated to analyse the influence of the substrate material. The coatings were tested with respect to their phase composition, microstructure, residual stress, thickness, microhardness and adhesion. It is shown that the deposition parameters, as well as heat treatment at a temperature as low as 400 degrees C, can change considerably the coating properties. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science S.A.