Controlling synthesis of Ti–O/Ti–N gradient films by PIII

Titanium oxide and titanium nitrogen gradient films were synthesized using plasma-immersion ion implantation and deposition (PIIID). A intelligent control system was developed to control pushing of the metal cathode source and variation of the gas composition by programmable logical control (PLC); cathode pushing rules can be conveniently set, multi-channel gas composition control was achieved by D/A and mass flow control (MFC), and gas change has quick dynamic response velocity and a good degree of linearity. The results show that the whole system is stable and reliable, has strong anti-interference capacity and sets flexibly correlative technological parameters. The mechanical properties of the films synthesized on silicon wafer, titanium and low-temperature isotropic carbon (LTIC) were analyzed by microhardness tests, pin-on-disc wear experiments and scratch adhesion tests. X-Ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to evaluate the properties. Good mechanical properties were achieved by controlling the synthesis of the Ti–O/Ti–N gradient films discussed in this paper.