2019 SVC TechCon

World’s Fastest DLC Coater for Wear and Corrosion Applications (Room Promenade Lobby)

01 May 19
2:20 PM - 2:30 PM

Tracks: Vendor Innovator Showcase

DLC (a-C:H) has become one of the most important and commonly used thin film coatings in the world today. However, it is typically deposited with a combination of PVD interlayers, Cr/Ti and CrN/WC and PECVD for the DLC deposition in a larger batch coater. These coatings work well for most tribological applications, but do not provide any real corrosion protection and cannot be made thick due to low deposition rates and cost of production (deposition rates of 1 µm per hour are common). A new system has been developed for the ultrafast nitriding and conformal coating of three-dimensional parts with DLC. These coatings are comparable to standard DLC coatings with regards to friction and wear, but also offer corrosion protection. Cycle times for 3-5 µm thick DLC coatings range from 30-40 minutes door to door. There are no moving fixture parts and the entire fixture and chamber is completely renewed each batch minimizing pinholes created from particulate. New results on metal and metal nitride layers will also be presented.