Surface Morphology and Tribological Properties of Nanoscale (Ti, Al, Si, C)N Multilayer Coatings Deposited by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

Abstract

The current topics related to the morphology and tribology of TiAlN monolayer, TiAlN/ SiNx, TiAlN/CNx and TiAlN/CNxAECNx nanoscale multilayer coatings and refer to our recent results on the evaluation of surface morphology, and nanoscale mechanical and tribological properties of coatings deposited on cemented carbide cutting tools and silicon wafer substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering deposition. The surface morphology and microstructure of the coatings were evaluated with an atomic force microscope in dynamic friction mode together with transmission electron microscope imaging. The tribological properties of the coatings were evaluated by pin-on-disc friction testing in dry air, and high-frequency linear-oscillation friction testing under various lubrication conditions. The tribological properties of the multilayer TiAlCrSiN and TiAlSiN coatings were compared with those of a single layer TiAlN coating to evaluate their possible applications to the surfaces of cutting tools. The machining performances of single layer TiAlN, multilayer TiAlSiN, and TiAlCrSiN coated drills were investigated in drilling of carbon steel.