Unbalanced Magnetron Sputtering Research Articles

Investigation of Cu-doped amorphous carbon film in improving corrosion resistance and interfacial conductivity of proton exchange membrane fuel cell

This study investigated Cu-doped a-C films prepared under a substrate bias gradually reducing from 120 to 60 V and different Cu target currents of 0, 0.15, 0.2, 0.3, 0.5 A, respectively, using closed field unbalanced magnetron sputtering physical vapour deposition technique. While the Cu-doped a-C film at the lowest Cu target current of 0.15 A (A0.15) remained an amorphous microstructure, Cu nanoprecipitates occurred at Cu target currents of 0.2–0.5 A. All the Cu-doped a-C films prepared exhibited good combination of corrosion resistance to a corrosive chemical mixture of 0.5 M H2SO4 + 5 ppm HF (as suggested by the corrosion current densities) and interfacial electric conductivity (as demonstrated by the interfacial contact resistance, ICR). Among all coatings, A0.15 showed the best corrosion resistance and interfacial electric conductivity, which is attributable to the precipitate-free Cu-doped amorphous microstructure. The measured current density of A0.15 was 1.95 × 10−7 A/cm2 at 0.6 V (vs. SCE) during potentiodynamic polarization, which was lower than that of the Cu-free a-C film at 7.34 × 10−7 A/cm2. The ICR value of A0.15 was 4.40 mΩcm2 at an assembly pressure of 1.4 MPa, which is about one third of the Cu-free a-C film. This study demonstrates a new deposition strategy combining Cu-doping and the control of substrate bias to improve the corrosion resistance and interfacial electric conductivity of a-C films for PEMFC.

Comparative Performance Evaluation of Magnetron Sputtered TiN, AlCrN, and TiAlCrN Coatings

This study presents a comparative performance evaluation of magnetron-sputtered TiN, AlCrN, and TiAlCrN coatings on tool steel substrates. Coatings play a pivotal role in enhancing the durability of engineering components exposed to harsh conditions. TiN is known for outstanding hardness and durability, AlCrN for superior wear resistance, and TiAlCrN for exceptional thermal stability and oxidation resistance. The substrate (EN 1.2363) underwent PVD coating using a closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputter ion plating (CFUBMSIP) process in a water-cooled stainless-steel vacuum chamber with four magnetron ports, operating for 3 hours per batch followed by 12 hours of natural convection cooling, utilizing TiN, AlCrN, and TiAlCrN films deposited for 180 minutes in an Ar and nitrogen atmosphere. X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed distinctive crystal structures, with all coatings exhibiting a common preferred orientation of the (111) plane and TiAlCrN showing a ternary nitride phase. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images displayed the compact nature of TiAlCrN with finer grains, while TiN exhibited a densely compacted with no evidence of delamination and AlCrN showed denseness with smaller grains. Nano-indentation test was conducted to assess the coatings' hardness and elastic modulus. TiAlCrN exhibited the highest hardness (3091±243 HV), highest elastic modulus (369.86±54.19 GPa), and the best wear rate (0.1887 x 10-4 mm3/Nm-1) suggesting potential suitability for applications demanding superior rigidity and wear resistance. The study provides valuable insights for materials scientists and engineers in optimizing coating selection for specific applications.

Impact of carbon content on the phase structure and mechanical properties of TiBCN coatings via direct current magnetron sputtering

Abstract In this study, unbalanced direct current magnetron sputtering was employed to develop TiBCN coatings on Si (100) wafers. The carbon (C) concentration was varied to manipulate the phase structure and mechanical properties of the coatings. The coatings were analyzed using Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and nanoindentation. The results revealed that the TiBCN-2 coating, with a C concentration of 4.4 at.%, exhibited optimal hardness and elastic modulus values of 33 and 291 GPa, respectively. On the other hand, as the C content increased from 4.4 to 24.4 at.%, the hardness and elastic modulus values of the coatings decreased to 21 and 225 GPa, respectively, due to the formation of boron nitride and carbon phases within the coating matrix. Therefore, the inclusion of an ideal C concentration can considerably improve the properties of TiBCN coatings, thus rendering the coating a desirable material for cutting tools.

Corrosion Resistance and Conductivity of Ta-Nb-N-Coated 316L Stainless Steel as Bipolar Plates for Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells

The large-scale application of stainless steel (SS) bipolar plates (BPs) in proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) is mainly limited by insufficient corrosion resistance and electrical conductivity. In this work, Ta-Nb-N coatings were prepared on 316L SS substrates by unbalanced magnetron sputtering to improve corrosion resistance and conductivity. The Ta-Nb-N coatings had a dense structure without obvious defects. In simulated PEMFC cathode environments consisting of 0.5 M H2SO4 + 2 ppm HF at 70 ± 0.5 °C, which is harsher than the U.S. Department of Energy specification, the corrosion current density of Ta-Nb-N-coated BPs was reduced to 2.2 × 10−2 μA·cm−2. Ta-Nb-N-coated samples showed better electrical conductivity than 316L SS, which had an excellent interfacial contact resistance of 9.2 mΩ·cm2. In addition, the Ta-Nb-N-coated samples had a water contact angle of 100.7°, showing good hydrophobicity for water management. These results indicate that Ta-Nb-N coatings could be a promising material for BPs.

Characterization of Cr/CrN nano multilayers obtained through reactive sputtering with different degrees of unbalance in the magnetron

Nanoscale hard coatings of bilayers of Cr/CrN were obtained and characterized through unbalanced magnetron sputtering (UBMS) in an atmosphere of Ar and Ar + N2 on silicon and hardened and tempered H13 steel, with a degree of unbalanced K0 between 0.87 and 1.37. The deposition parameters were as follows: a power of 160 watts, Ar and N2 flow rates of 9 and 3 sccm, and a substrate target distance of 5 cm. A Gen coa VT 100 magnetron with varying degrees of unbalance, obtained by displacing its central magnet, was used. The electrochemical behavior of these coatings was characterized using the technique of potentiodynamic anodic polarization. The coatings' microstructure and hardness were analyzed via X-ray diffraction (XRD) and nanoindentation tests; Cr, CrN, and Cr2N phases were obtained, with a hardness that increases with the degree of unbalance between 18.90 and 24.97 GPa.

Application of honeycomb pattern to Ti2AlN MAX phase films by plasma etching

The honeycomb pattern possesses a distinctive hexagonal structure capable of seamless repetition on a flat surface, leaving no gaps. Moreover, all arm thicknesses and angles are equal to one another. This remarkable configuration is deemed biomimetic, with numerous examples found in nature. Notably, it exhibits remarkably low density and exceptional mechanical strength. MAX phase films have gathered significant attention due to their exceptional capacity to amalgamate the essential properties of both metals and ceramics. Additionally, they possess the unique ability to effectively mend surface cracks that may arise as a result of friction-wear, restoring the material to a certain degree of integrity. In this study, Ti2AlN MAX phase thin films were deposited on M2 steel substrates by a closed field unbalanced magnetron sputtering system (CFUBMS). 750 °C heat treatment was applied to obtain the produced films in crystalline form. In addition, plasma etching parameters suitable for the phase structure of the deposited film were determined. With the inductive coupling plasma etching (ICP) process, the honeycomb pattern was given to the Ti2AlN MAX phase films with a continuous and smooth geometry at a depth of 2 μm. This study gives ideas for the development of multi-coating systems in which patterns of different geometries are included in a single layer.

Effect of substrate bias on the formation of nanotwin and properties in Cu thin films for advanced packaging technology

Materials with nanotwinned structures have drawn much attention due to their unique properties. The high-density nanotwinned Cu films are generally deposited at room temperature with high deposition rate. In this study, we report nanotwins can be formed in the Cu films at 150 °C with the aid of the ion bombardment effect caused by applied substrate bias. Cu thin films were deposited on Si (100) substrate by the unbalanced magnetron sputtering system using different applied substrate biases ranging from 0 V to −160 V. The results show that, with a suitable applied substrate bias of −120 V, the twinning density of the Cu films can reach over 80 % and exhibit a high hardness of 3.1 GPa. This study provides a concept to tailor the microstructure of the sputtered Cu films by tuning applied substrate biases and realizing the mechanism of substrate bias on the twin formation during deposition.

Corrosion behavior of metallic coatings on titanium bipolar plates of proton exchange membrane water electrolysis

The corrosion resistance, conductivity, and cost of the metallic bipolar plates are the main limitations for the Proton Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis (PEMWE) commercialization. In the present study, Ta, Nb, and Ti non-precious metallic coatings were deposited by closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering to increase the corrosion resistance and conductivity of titanium bipolar plates in PEMWE, respectively. The coating samples suffer from corrosion in a simulated extreme anode operating environment of PEMWE (0.5 M H2SO4 + 5 ppm HF, 80 °C, O2). The surface of the Ti coating forms the micropores due to the high dissolution rate in initial formation stage of the passivation film, resulting in a higher current density (1.41 × 10−6 A cm−2). The hydrolysis reaction of Ta coating causes the adsorption of sulfide ions, thereby affecting the density of the passivation film. Despite the Ta coating exhibiting a favorable current density (4.82 × 10−7 A cm−2), ICR (463.11 mΩ cm2) is lamentably poor. The surface of Nb coating has been completely covered by Nb2O5 and NbO2 in the simulated PEMWE environment. The reoxidation process of NbO2 promotes the rate of passivation film formation and provides excellent conductivity. Therefore, Nb coating exhibits the lowest current density and interfacial contact resistance of 2.23 × 10−8 A cm−2 and 119.78 mΩ cm2, respectively, which is very low compared to the bare titanium bipolar plates.

Tribological and corrosive behavior under HCl corrosive environment of diamond-like carbon films with doped H, Cr and WC

Diamond-like carbon films exhibit low friction and strong wear resistance under various conditions. In order to evaluate tribological and corrosion resistant performance of different types of diamond-like carbon films in hydrochloric acid (HCl) environment, DLC, Cr/DLC, H/DLC and WC/DLC films were prepared by unbalanced magnetron sputtering technology. Their microstructure, mechanical properties, tribological properties and corrosion resistance were characterized and studied. The results show that the prepared DLC film exhibits the lowest wear rate in 1 M HCl solution. H/DLC film has an obvious corrosion resistance due to its high sp3 C bond and dense structure. Cr/DLC and WC/DLC films show a lower friction coefficient. In general, tribological failure of DLC film is mainly due to ordinary mechanical wear; while that of Cr/DLC film is mainly attributed to abrasive wear caused by, for example, hard particles and wear products; adhesive wear is found to be responsible for H/DLC film, which is caused by transformation of CH bond to oxygen group at the friction interface. The WC/DLC film is experienced with both local degradation and low resistance to elastic/plastic changes (H/E and H3/E2), and therefore both granular and chemical failures occurred. This study provides a complete and comprehensive understanding of tribological and anti-corrosive performance of diamond-like carbon films in hydrochloric acid environment, and can be used further as a reference for industrial applications.

Deposition of alternative plasmonic ZrHfN thin films via closed-field dual-cathode DC unbalanced magnetron sputtering for enhanced SEF substrate applications

We present the preparation of zirconium hafnium nitride thin films as an alternative plasmonic sensing material. The ZrHfN thin films were deposited by closed-field dual-cathode DC unbalanced magnetron sputtering without an external substrate heating/biasing. A comprehensive investigation into the effect of zirconium sputtering current on the physical structural, and chemical compositions was systematically characterized by grazing-incidence X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Our results indicate that the optimal ZrHfN thin films deposited at 500 mA-IZr exhibit good crystallinity and high surface roughness, which presents excellent surface-enhanced fluorescent substrate performance for detecting rhodamine 6G at a limit of detection of 5.99 × 10−8 M, an enhancement factor of 15.62 ± 0.79-fold and displaying reusability through 25 cycles. These findings suggest promising prospects for developing ZrHfN-based SEF sensor chips for diverse applications in the future.

Scratch hardness of diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings deposited by closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering

Thin coatings are subject to scratch and wear damage in tribological applications. Scratch hardness numbers are used to evaluate scratch and abrasive wear resistance. Few studies have measured the scratch hardness of thin films, and a proper scratch hardness measurement method for thin coatings is still lacking. In this study, the scratch hardness of these DLC coatings was measured at both micro-scale and nano-scale, respectively. The micro-scratch test using a 200 µm tip is an inapplicable method because the substrate effect has dominated the scratch hardness measurement. On the other hand, a nano-scratch hardness test using a sharper tip is an effective method to measure the scratch hardness of thin coatings. Although the scratch hardness introduces a lateral force compared with the indentation hardness, it well correlates with the nano-indentation hardness. The ratio of the scratch hardness to the indentation hardness is close to 1 for DLC coatings due to the amorphous structure. It proves that the tangential force induced by scratching does not influence the hardness property. In addition, a simple approach is proposed to obtain the scratch hardness of DLC coatings qualitatively without width measurement.

Corrosion resistance and conductivity behavior of Cr-Al-N MAX phase coatings prepared by magnetron sputtering technology

Chromium aluminum nitride (CrAlN) coatings containing Cr2AlN phase were prepared by unbalanced magnetron sputtering followed by annealing at 1000 °C. The crystal structures, X-ray diffraction patterns, and selected area electron diffraction patterns of the Cr2AlN phase were modeled using computer software and compared with experimental observations. A good agreement was found between the two sets of results, thereby confirming the presence of Cr2AlN phase in the coatings. While previous studies have demonstrated the formation of Cr2AlN phase theoretically, this study presents experimental evidence of its physical existence. The potentiodynamic polarization results and interfacial contact resistance measurements show that the CrAlN coating with Cr2AlN phase has excellent corrosion resistance (a corrosion current density of 5.35 × 10−7 A/cm2 and electrical conductivity of 5.5 mΩ·cm2) and is thus a promising candidate for the protection of fuel cell bipolar plates.

Pulsed-dc bias magnetron sputtered TiB2 ceramic coating

Titanium diboride, TiB2, is well known as a ceramic material with a hexagonal structure which presents various attractive properties, such as high hardness and excellent corrosion, thermal oxidation, and wear resistance. However, one drawback of TiB2 coatings is their poor adhesion to substrate materials due to high compressive residual stress after deposition. The present study aimed to assess whether a PVD-TiB2 coating with both high hardness and sufficiently good adhesion to the substrate and good wear properties can be developed by a closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering system using pulsed-dc biasing. The TiB2 coating deposited on AISI M2 steel substrates was characterized in terms of the structural, mechanical and tribological property. From the experimental results, it can be concluded that a closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering system using pulsed-dc biasing can be used to produce a TiB2 coating with sufficiently good adhesion (82 N), and high hardness (2300 HK0.01), and low friction (0.34) under given deposition conditions. The deposition conditions, particularly substrate biasing and rotation, which inhibited the formation of (001) orientation, played a role in the coating's lack of superhardness.

Investigation of properties of novel multilayer Cr/CrN/CrTiN/CrTiAlN hard coating with four bilayers

A novel multilayer Cr/CrN/CrTiN/CrTiAlN hard coating with four bilayers was developed by reactive closed field unbalanced magnetron sputtering (CFUBMS). The substrate temperature was kept in the range of 170 °C to 200 °C. The reactive gas flow was controlled by Optical Emission Monitoring. A thickness of 1.8 μm was determined using a calotester. The morphology and chemical composition were studied by electron microscopy (SEM and EDS). Nanohardness of 34.1 GPa and a modulus of elasticity of 386 GPa were determined using the nanoindentation technique. The scratch test against a diamond Rockwell indenter did not show features indicating poor adhesion. The reciprocating wear test revealed strong resistance to wear, and a coefficient of friction of 0.19 was determined. The developed multilayered hard coating showed optimal mechanical properties for industrial applications on instruments of low-temperature materials.

The effect of different annealing temperatures on the mechanical and tribological properties of the Ti2AlN MAX phase films

Ti2AlN MAX phase films produced at different N2 flow rates and different annealing temperatures were deposited on 52100 steel substrates using the closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering technique. N2 flow rates were changed to 2, 3.5, and 5 sccm. Due to the increasing N2 flow rate, film thickness decreased from 2 to 1.3 µm. Then the produced films were subjected to annealing at temperatures of 700, 750, and 800°C. After the film produced at a flow rate of 2 sccm was annealed at 750°C, the presence of the Ti2AlN MAX phase was determined. The binding energies of Ti 2p, Al 2p, and N 1s determined in the XPS analysis confirmed the existence of the Ti2AlN film. The friction coefficient measured for Ti2AlN MAX phase films was calculated as 0.53, the hardness value as 22.8 GPa, the elastic modulus as 291.4 GPa, and the wear rate as 2.96 × 10−4 mm3/(N·m).

Copper target erosion during unbalanced magnetron sputtering under different electromagnetic fields

Unbalanced magnetron sputtering (UBMS) is used to deposit mechanical and optical coatings due to the advantages of high deposition rate and low pollution level, but the low utilization rate of the target material limits its applications for industrial-scale production. To improve target utilization during UBMS, a magnetron system combining a coil magnet and a permanent magnet has been developed. The effects of the operating parameters of the magnetic flux density on the magnetic field were investigated, and the erosion profiles on the target surface were examined in terms of the plasma distribution. It was found that the erosion center was located where the lines of magnetic induction were parallel to the target surface. A strategy of changing the current of the central coil was finally proposed, which improved the target utilization to 52.9 %. These results provide theoretical guidance to improve the target utilization of UBMS by optimizing the design of the cathode target and magnetic field.

(Invited) Nickel Nanoparticles Modified Carbon Film Electrodes for Detection of Sugars

Metal nanoparticles such as Pt, Au, Ni and Cu have been employed to detect various analytes including hydrogen peroxide, alcohol and sugar. Among these metal nanoparticles, Ni and Cu nanoparticles show excellent electrocatalytic activity for oxidizing sugars in alkaline solution. We employed co-sputtering and plating technique to fabricate nanostructured electrodes for enhancing electrocatalytic activity for oxidation of sugars. First example is a metal hererodimer modified carbon film electrodes. The metal nanoparticles embedded carbon film electrodes was fabricated by unbalanced magnetron (UBM) sputtering and then plated different metal nanoparticles selectively only on the embedded metal nanoparticles by utilizing overpotential difference between carbon and metal nanoparticles surfaces. Using this technique, various combinations of metals are available to fabricate vertically oriented heterodimers embedded in the carbon films. In fact, we succeeded to fabricated Ni(upper)@Pd(lower), Pt@Pd, Au@Pd, Ni@Au, Pt@Au and Pd@Au heterodimers partially embedded in the carbon film. Among these heterodimers, Ni@Pd heterodimer embedded carbon film electrode shows much higher redox reaction of Ni(OH)2 covered on the Ni nanoparticles surface compared with that on the Ni nanoparticles without Pd. The NiOOH formed by electrochemical oxidation shows much higher electrocatalytic activity for glucose compared with that formed on Ni nanoparticles modified carbon film electrode. Also, the Ni@Pd heterodimers are mechanically very stable and most of the heterodimers remained on the surface after ultrasonication treatment because surface Ni nanoparticles attached strongly to Pd nanoparticles embedded in the carbon film. In contrast, almost all Ni nanoparticles deposited on pure carbon film were detached from carbon surface after ultrasonication. The second example is a nitrogen terminated carbon film modified with Ni nanoparticles by plating. Carbon films were fabricated by UBM or RF sputtering methods and then introduced nitrogen containing functional groups. Then Ni nanoparticles were deposited by plating. The supporting effect of a N-doped carbon film induced superior crystallinity in plated Ni@Ni(OH)2 nanoparticles, which was confirmed by HAADF-STEM-EDS. This realized a much higher regeneration rate of catalytic sites (NiOOH) , leading to higher oxidation current for maltopentaose, which is well known oligosaccharide. Also, the overpotential of maltopentaose oxidation decreased significantly due to the effect of the electrostatic interaction between Ni nanoparticles and maltopentaose in the alkaline solution at pH 12.7. We also studied dependence of nitrogen concentration in the carbon film on regeneration rate of NiOOH and glucose oxidation. Both regeneration rate and electrocatalytic current of glucose oxidation increased with increasing nitrogen concentration from 0 to 3.1 %. With optimized nitrogen concentration, we could measure glucose from 25 µM to 400 µM. The enhanced activity of Ni nanoparticles could be advantageous to develop enzyme free biosensor or fuel cells using organic compounds such as sugars and oligosaccharides.[1]S. Shiba, A. Koike, S. Takahashi, D. Kato, T. Kamata and O. Niwa, ACS Nano, 16, 10589-10599 (2022).[2] S. Shiba, S. Ohta, K. Ohtani, S. Takahashi, D. Kato and O. Niwa, RSC Advances, 11, 13311-13315 (2021).

Magnetron configurations dependent room temperature sputtered ZnO thin films for highly responsive, stable, and selective CO gas sensing

This letter has reported the impact of balanced and unbalanced magnetron sputtering on the CO gas sensing properties of ZnO thin films. It was noticed that the ZnO film deposited under a balanced magnetron (i.e., ZnO-BM) has superior sensing properties compared to the film deposited under an unbalanced magnetron configuration (i.e., ZnO-UBM). The optimum operating temperature (Topt) was determined as 250 °C for the ZnO-BM sample with a sensor response of ∼ 85.5 % and a faster response/recovery time (∼ 28 s/55 s). Further, the ZnO-BM sample demonstrated a notable response to even 1 ppm CO gas at Topt and exhibited a detection limit of 69 ppb. Also, it displayed remarkable selectivity and stability towards CO gas, which makes it a preferable choice for an energy-efficient CO gas sensor.

High-temperature tribological behavior of nanolayered TiAlN/TiSiN coating deposited on WC-Co cemented carbide

In this study, high-temperature tribological behavior of nanolayered TiAlN/TiSiN coating was evaluated against the Al2O3 counter-body using a pin-on-disk tribometer. The coating was deposited on the WC-Co substrate, in an industrial unbalanced magnetron sputtering system. Tribological tests were conducted at room temperature, 500, 600, 700, and 760 °C, in air and nitrogen atmospheres. After the tests, the coating was examined using confocal microscopy, tactile profilometry, scanning electron microscopy, focused ion beam, energy dispersive spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and secondary ion mass spectrometry. The coating retained its microstructure and mechanical properties after exposure to high temperatures. At lower temperatures coating exhibited abrasive and adhesive wear mechanisms, while at higher temperatures abrasive and oxidative wear mechanisms were observed. In high-temperature tests, AlO, TiO and SiO were detected inside of wear tracks, in both atmospheres. However, the oxide thickness was significantly lower in tests with nitrogen atmosphere. Additionally, the top of the oxide layer was enriched in AlO with respect to TiO and SiO. The enrichment of AlO was more pronounced in nitrogen atmosphere. The coating tested in air exhibited slightly higher and more unstable coefficient of friction (COF) values, than in nitrogen atmosphere. This is attributed to the increased oxidation in air atmosphere. At room temperature tests in nitrogen, the wear rate was approximately 3 times lower than in air. At higher temperatures the wear rate was lower than at room temperature, in both atmospheres, due to formation of protective oxides. However, with the increase in testing temperature the wear rate increased. The reason for such behavior is the loss of substrate's and coating's hardness at high temperatures, and thickening of the oxide layer which accelerated its removal. The latter effect is not so pronounced in nitrogen atmosphere due to thinner oxide layer, which agrees with the lower wear rate in nitrogen atmosphere at high temperatures than in air.

Effect of Nb and V doped elements on the mechanical and tribological properties of CrYN coatings

One of the most promising approaches to enhancing the tribological properties of engineering coatings is to add transition elements to the structure. In this study, Nb-doped CrYN and V-doped CrYN thin films were deposited by pulsed DC reactive sputtering in a closed-field unbalanced magnetron sputtering (CFUBMS) system. The deposition parameters examined were target current (1, 1.5 and 2 A), deposition pressure (0.15, 0.25 and 0.35 Pa), pulse frequency (100, 200 and 350 kHz) and duty cycle (85 %, 70 % and 50 %). A Taguchi L9 orthogonal design was used to define the deposition process parameters for each doped film. The Nb and V-doped CrYN thin films were characterized in terms of their microstructure, thickness, composition, hardness and tribological properties by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), nanohardness and pin-on-disc testing, respectively. The bond strength between the substrate and the films (adhesion) was analyzed by scratch testing. For the Nb-doped thin films, a maximum hardness value of 21.4 GPa and the lowest friction coefficient of 0.36 were obtained. On the other hand, in the V-doped thin films, the maximum hardness value was 16.1 GPa, while the lowest friction coefficient obtained was 0.11. In addition, Nb-doped and V-doped CrYN thin films exhibited extraordinary adhesion properties. The effect of the selected deposition parameters (target current, pulse frequency, and duty cycle) in relation to the film thickness, hardness, and coefficient of friction properties of the Nb and V-doped CrYN thin films were investigated using the Taguchi approach and optimum operating conditions were identified and confirmed.