A Study on Metal-Doped Diamond-Like Carbon Film Synthesized by Ion Source and Sputtering Technique

DLC (diamond-like carbon) has many excellent properties similar to diamond, which make it an attractive film in industrial applications. However, the large residual stress of DLC films limits the maximum film thickness because it reduces the adhesion of the DLC film to substrate causing delamination and cracking of the film. Metal-doped DLC (Me-DLC) has been studied extensively to avoid these disadvantages. Both large area Ti-doped and W-doped DLC films have been synthesized by a hybrid of ion source technique and unbalanced magnetron sputtering. The microstructure and mechanical properties have been analyzed by SEM, Raman, and XPS. A wear tester was used to evaluate the tribiological behavior of Me-DLC. Experimental results demonstrated that a smooth large area DLC film with good mechanical properties could be prepared by this hybrid technology, thick Me-DLC could be deposited with good adhesion and excellent wear resistance.