Realization of superhard nanocomposites with sufficient toughness: Superlattice nanocrystal-TiN/amorphous-(W,Ti)C0.83 films

A superhard nanocrystal (nc)-TiN/amorphous (a)-(W,Ti)C0.83 film with sufficient toughness was synthesized by arc ion plating and dc magnetron sputtering. The superlattice structure of nc-TiN/a-(W,Ti)C0.83 with a modulation period of 10 nm was obtained on amorphous (Ti,W)C1 − x bonding layers. Accordingly, the nc-TiN/a-(W,Ti)C0.83 nanocomposite showed a superhard effect (~ 52 GPa), meanwhile, exhibiting a sufficient toughness (~ 590 MPa). Compared to TiN films, the friction and wear performance of nc-TiN/a-(W,Ti)C0.83 was significantly improved. As such, the superlattice nc-TiN/a-(W,Ti)C0.83 nanocomposites have good potential in high-speed drying machines and high-temperature applications.