PLD of thin films for applications

Thin films are widely used in a variety of applications either as structural overcoats or as functional coatings. Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) shows various advantageous properties for the deposition of thin films for applications. Firstly, evaporation by laser radiation is not limited by the electrical charging of the target or the substrate. Secondly, very short laser pulses allow transfer of the target material with stoichiometric deposition at the substrate. Also, deposition of materials without a stable melting phase (e.g. SiC) is possible. Ceramic films were deposited with PLD on metallic substrates by a variation of laser parameters and processing variables. The structure, morphology and composition, as well as the mechanical properties, such as wear, corrosion resistance and adhesion of the deposited films were examined. The broad variety of film structures obtained by varying the deposition conditions are discussed in view of applications.