Titanium nitride thin film deposition by laser CVD

Investigations aimed at the development of a laser induced chemical vapor deposition process for use in structured deposition of titanium nitride coatings on tool steel were performed. Experiments were carried out using a focused argon ion laser beam, where lateral film growth is realized by laser scanning. In particular, the deposition of titanium nitride from TiCl4/N2/H2-precursor gas mixtures at atmospheric pressure was investigated. The deposited TiN films are adherent, hard, rough and porous. The double layer capacitance of those films is approximately one order of magnitude higher than that of smooth and dense TiN films. In order to estimate the laser induced temperatures in the film-substrate-system, lateral and temporal temperature fields were calculated.