Deposition of cubic boron nitride films by anode layer linear ion source assisted radio frequency magnetron sputtering

Anode Layer Linear Ion Source (ALLIS) can improve the ionization rate of working gases and enhance the activity of gas molecules. In the present work, the ALLIS assisted Radio Frequency Magnetron Sputtering (RFMS) method was proposed to deposit cubic boron nitride (cBN) films, and the effect of ALLIS on the microstructure and mechanical properties of the deposited cBN films was investigated. The phase component, chemical composition, bonding states, surface topography, deposition rate and nanohardness of the cBN films were characterized respectively by Fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and nanoindentation. The results indicated that the sp3 phase content in cBN films increased at first and then decreased with the increase of ALLIS power, and the maximum value was 83% when the ALLIS power was 200 W, the surface quality and growth rate of cBN films were enhanced markedly. The hardness and elastic modulus exhibited the same trend to variation of cubic phase content. Finally, the effect of ALLIS on the cBN synthesis was discussed systematically.