Tribological characteristics of diamond-like films deposited with an are-discharge method

Using an are-discharge method, we deposited a diamond-like carbon film 600 nm thick on hardened steel. Characterization of the film was carried out with Raman spectroscopy. In dry sliding wear and friction tests, with a hardened steel pin as a counterpart, we obtained a friction coefficient between 10000 and 20000 cycles, with the maximum value of 0.18. The value decreased to 0.12 after about 100000 cycles. We obtained a wear coefficient of 7 × 10−17 m3/mN. A transfer layer formed on the pin during sliding and probably had the dominating effect on the tribological behavior. We observed in nanoindentation measurements that the film softened in a wear track during the first 20000 cycles. Although fracture pits on the wear track occurred, fracture is not the dominant failure mechanism of these films. Degradation of good tribological properties was caused mainly by partial wear-through of the film after 370000 cycles and by a subsequent redeposition of the transfer film on the wear track during prolonged sliding.