Surface Structuring of Diamond-Like Carbon Films by Chemical Etching of Zinc Inclusions

Abstract

A diamond-like carbon (DLC) film with a nanostructured surface can be produced in a two-step process. At first, a metal-containing DLC film is deposited. Here, the combination of plasma source ion implantation using a hydrocarbon gas and magnetron sputtering of a zinc target was used. Next, the metal particles within the surface are dissolved by an etchant (HNO3:H2O solution in this case). Since Zn particles in the surface of Zn-DLC films have a diameter of 100–200 nm, the resulting surface structures possess the same dimensions, thus covering a range that is accessible neither by mask deposition techniques nor by etching of other metal-containing DLC films, such as Cu-DLC. The surface morphology of the etched Zn-DLC films depends on the initial metal content of the film. With a low zinc concentration of about 10 at.%, separate holes are produced within the surface. Higher zinc concentrations (40 at.% or above) lead to a surface with an intrinsic roughness.

Shape Deviation of Surface Structures Produced by WaveShape (Structuring by Laser Remelting) on Ti6Al4V and a Method for Deviation Reduction

“…Researchers have various surface treatment methods at their disposal to adapt the surface properties. They can be divided into low-scale methods, where high-selectivity of the process is required (e.g., micro-milling [ 5 ], electron beam processing [ 6 ], and various laser-based methods), and large-scale methods, where a significant part of the area can be treated in the uniform manner (for example, sandblasting [ 7 ], electrical discharge machining (EDM) [ 8 ], or electrochemical etching [ 9 ]). Despite a wide variety of processing purposes, surface treatment methods are mainly based on the removal of material up to predetermined spatial properties.…”

Optimizing the Microstructure, Mechanical, and Tribological Properties of Si-DLC Coatings on NBR Rubber for Its Potential Applications

“…Considering that the friction and wear always occur on the surface and subsurface of materials, and thus the surface coatings with excellent friction and wear have been suggested as protective coatings. Diamond-like carbon (DLC) film is popularly regarded as a promising protective coating because of their outstanding mechanical and tribological properties such as high hardness, low friction coefficient and high wear resistance [1][2][3][4][5][6]. In the past decade, the related studies experienced great momentum since T. Nakahigashi et al [7] claimed that a new flexible film has been applied to the rubber o-rings for zoom cameras.…”

Investigation of High Voltage Anodic Plasma (HVAP) Ag-DLC Coatings on Ti50Zr with Different Ag Amounts

“…In this idea, surface vitro ceramic coatings on TiZr obtained by laser ablation [16] and diamond-like carbon (DLC) films [17] were investigated for their performance in biomedical applications. Incorporation of metallic elements such as Ag [17] and Zn [18] into diamond-like carbon (DLC) films was a strategy of adding functional features regarding mechanical and antibacterial properties recommended for wear, tribology, and bioapplications. Nevertheless, future studies are required to evaluate success rates of coated TiZr implant.…”