Influence of energetic ion bombardment on W-C:H coatings deposited with W and WC targets

Tungsten containing diamond-like carbon (W-C:H) coatings have been produced by unbalanced magnetron sputtering using two different target materials. In the first series of coatings, W has been used as target material, and in the second series, WC has been used as target material. In both series of W-C:H coatings, the deposition energy has been varied by changing the ion current density and the bias voltage on the substrate.The aim of the investigation has been to study the changes in the microstructure of the coatings and link it to mechanical and tribological properties of the coatings.Depending on the process conditions, we could observe differences in the growth of the W-C:H coatings. This opens the window for application tailored coating design. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.