Realization of Diamond/Metal Laminates through Brazing of Freestanding Diamond Foils

Abstract

Freestanding diamond foils are an exceptionally strong material. A major problem that prevents industrial use is their inherent brittleness. We here present a first approach to introduce metallic interlayers into a diamond matrix by brazing stacks of diamond foils. This represents a potential route to toughen the material. Laminates of two and four layers of diamond were produced from the same batch of diamond foils. A first attempt to approximate the bending strength of this new material was made using a Ball-on-three-Balls (B3B) setup. Substantially higher strength values were achieved for the laminates compared to the freestanding (monolithic) foil.