Tungsten and iridium multilayered structure by DGP as ablation-resistance coatings for graphite

► Tungsten interlayer is used to enhance the adhesion of the iridium coating to the graphite substrate. ► A newly designed multilayer coating of tungsten/iridium is produced by double glow plasma onto graphite substrate. ► The coated graphite substrates are protected more effectively by W/Ir multilayer coating than Ir single-layer coating. ► The mass loss rate of the W/Ir-coated specimen is about 1.62%.