Deposition of diamond/β-SiC nanocomposite films onto a cutting tool material

The motivation behind depositing nanocrystalline diamond/β-SiC composite thin films onto a cutting tool material is not only to obtain films having a whole range of combined properties of the components but also to enhance their fracture toughness without compromising on the hardness aspect. Nanocrystalline diamond composites are expected to behave differently owing to the large volume of grain boundaries. With smooth surface morphology and improved adhesion, diamond/β-SiC nanocomposite film system may not only serve as a separate film system but may also serve as an interlayer for the further deposition of adherent diamond top layers with regard to cutting tool applications. In this paper we report the deposition of nanocrystalline diamond/β-SiC composite thin films onto WC–6 wt.% Co substrates by employing microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MWCVD) technique using gas mixtures of H2 and CH4 and tetramethylsilane [TMS, Si(CH3)4]. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), glancing angle X-ray diffraction (GIXRD), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), micro Raman scattering and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopic analyses have been carried out to characterize the microstructure and composition of the deposited films. The microstructure of the composite films constitutes a phase mixture of nanometer sized diamond and β-SiC grains. By adjusting TMS gas flow during deposition, β-SiC content in the nanocomposite films can be controlled. This aspect was utilized to successfully realize diamond/β-SiC nanocomposite gradient films with diamond top layers on the hard metal substrates in a single process step.