Atomic force microscopy analysis of CAIP CrN and CrC coatings

Coatings of CrN and CrC were deposited on a YT14 cemented carbide cutting tool using cathodic arc ion plating (CAIP). The surface and interface morphologies of the as-obtained CrN and CrC coatings were analysed using a field emission scanning electron microscope. The heights, particle diameters and power spectral densities of CrN and CrC coatings were analysed using atomic force microscopy and the correlated parameters of roughness were obtained.

Little effect of cathodic arc ion plating

The results show that the roughness of the CrN and CrC coatings is 81.7 × 10⁻³ and 70.2 × 10⁻³ nm, respectively, and CAIP has little effect on the CrN and CrC coating roughness. The height of the peak values of CrN and CrC coatings is 0.498 and 0.502 nm, respectively, and the reduction friction of the CrN coating was slightly better than that of the CrC coating.

Uniform particle distribution

The average particle diameter of the CrN and CrC coatings is 6.575 × 10² and 7.678 × 10² nm, respectively, and the particles are uniformly distributed with no large-scale fluctuations. The power between the cursors of the CrN and CrC coatings is 1.44 × 10⁻² and 9 × 10⁻³ nm², respectively, with the power spectral density of the CrN coating being the dominant frequency.

The study is published in: Journal of Coatings Technology and Research  July 2018, Volume 15, Issue 4, pp 781–787.