Critical parameters in hot filament chemical vapor deposition of diamond films on tool steel substrates with CrN interlayers

The accomplishment of adherent and continuous diamond coatings on tool steel substrates with CrN interlayers is determined by many key parameters such as appropriate surface finish, interlayer thickness, substrate temperature and system pressure. A detailed study is carried out to probe the effect of these parameters on diamond nucleation and growth. Substrates with different surface finishes are prepared by electrical discharge machining (EDM) and CrN interlayers of various thicknesses are deposited onto these substrates by arc plating. Samples with a CrN interlayer of 2.5 μm are found to provide a continuous diamond film at a low pressure value of about 5 mbar. Nonetheless, the process window for obtaining such diamond layers is small, which results in limited reproducibility.