Comparative surface and nano-tribological characteristics of nanocomposite diamond-like carbon thin films doped by silver

In this study we have deposited silver-containing hydrogenated and hydrogen-free diamond-like carbon (DLC) nanocomposite thin films by plasma immersion ion implantation-deposition methods. The surface and nano-tribological characteristics were studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and nano-scratching experiments. The silver doping was found to have no measurable effect on sp2–sp3 hybridization of the hydrogenated DLC matrix and only a slight effect on the hydrogen-free DLC matrix. The surface topography was analyzed by surface imaging. High- and low-order roughness determined by AFM characterization was correlated to the DLC growth mechanism and revealed the smoothing effect of silver. The nano-tribological characteristics were explained in terms of friction mechanisms and mechanical properties in correlation to the surface characteristics. It was discovered that the adhesion friction was the dominant friction mechanism; the adhesion force between the scratching tip and DLC surface was decreased by hydrogenation and increased by silver doping.