Deposition of diamond-like carbon films from the magnetron discharge plasma

This paper concerns with the problem of obtaining the diamond-like carbon (DLC) films. DLC films have high hardness, low friction coefficient, low electrical conductivity, chemical inertness, high thermal conductivity and other valuable properties. Due to these properties DLC films are used as protective, dielectric, antireflecting, antifriction and biocompatible coatings. The most popular methods for DLC film production are vacuum arc evaporation and pulsed laser ablation. However, using these methods presents some difficulties. The main disadvantage of the coatings´ deposition from the arc discharge plasma is drop fraction which degrades the quality of the obtained coatings. The disadvantage of the pulsed laser ablation is its technical complexity and difficulties in realization of the method. In this paper the magnetron sputtering is treated as an alternative method for producing the DLC films. The object of research is dual magnetron sputtering system (DMSS), which has advantages over planar magnetron system. The research of different operation modes of the DMSS while sputtering the carbon target in the Ar environment and the analysis of the hardness, electrical resistance and phase structure of the obtained DLC films on polished stainless steel are reported.