Abstract
Diamond-like carbon (DLC) is a metastable amorphous film that exhibits unique properties. However, many limitations exist regarding the use of DLC, for example, its tribological characteristics at high temperature, as well as its limited thermal stability. In this study, silicon/oxygen and silicon/nitrogen co-incorporated diamond-like carbon (Si-O-DLC and Si-N-DLC) films are studied, taking into account the thermal stability and tribological performance of these films compared with pure DLC. All the films were prepared on Si wafers, WC-Co materials, and aluminum foils using a plasma-based ion implantation (PBII) technique using acetylene (C2H2), tetramethylsilane (TMS, Si(CH3)4), oxygen (O2) and nitrogen (N2) as plasma sources. The structure of the films was characterized using Raman spectroscopy. The thermal stability of the films was measured using thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis (TG-DTA). The friction coefficient of the films was assessed using ball-on-disk friction testing. The results indicate that Si-N-DLC films present better thermal stability due to the presence of Si-O networks in the films. The Si-N-DLC (23 at.%Si, 8 at.%N) film was affected using thermal annealing in an air atmosphere with increasing temperature until 500°C. The film can also resist thermal shock by cycling 10 times between the various temperatures and air atmosphere until 500°C. Further, Si-O-DLC and Si-N-DLC films exhibit excellent tribological performance, especially the Si-N-DLC (23 at.%Si, 8 at.%N) film, which exhibits excellent tribological performance at 500°C in an air atmosphere. It is concluded that Si-O-DLC and Si-N-DLC films improve upon the thermal stability and tribological performance of DLC.
Highlights
Diamond-like carbon (DLC) is a metastable amorphous film that exhibits unique properties, such as high hardness, a low friction coefficient, chemical inertness, and high wear and corrosion resistance
The Si-O-DLC and Si-N-DLC films fabricated in this experiment exhibit a broad spectrum composed of a D peak (1350 cm−1) and a G peak (1580 cm−1), which are similar to the peaks observed in conventional DLC films
Based on the aforementioned results, the Si-N-DLC (23 at.%Si, 8 at.%N) film was affected by thermal annealing in an air atmosphere with an increase in temperature until 500 ̊C
Summary
Diamond-like carbon (DLC) is a metastable amorphous film that exhibits unique properties, such as high hardness, a low friction coefficient, chemical inertness, and high wear and corrosion resistance. These films are commonly applied in the protective coatings of cutting tools, magnetic storage disks and biomedical applications [1,2,3]. The methods used to create DLC films include ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD), magnetron sputtering deposition (MSD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and plasma-based ion implantation (PBII) [4,5,6,7,8,9,10] Among these methods, the PBII process is considered as one of the most promising techniques, owing to its ability to uniformly implant and deposit ions into three-dimensional substrates with complex shapes. Many researchers have reported that the introduction of additional elements, such as silicon, nitrogen and various metals, improves the properties of DLC [2]
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