The Structure and Properties of Inductively Coupled Plasma Assisted Magnetron Sputtered Nanocrystalline NbN Coatings in Corrosion Protective Die Casting Molds.

Niobium nitride coatings for the surface modified die casting molds with various ICP powers have been prepared using ICP assisted magnetron sputtering. The applied ICP power was varied from 0 to 200 W. The deposited coatings were characterized post-deposition using X-ray diffractometry (XRD) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Single NbN phased coatings with nano-grain sized (<7.6 nm) were identified. The corrosion resistance and hardness of each coating were evaluated from potentiostat and nanoindentator. Superior corrosion protective coatings in excess of 13.9 GPa were deposited with assistance of ICP plasma during sputtering.