Abstract: Coating method for arc coating or arc ion plating coating of substrates in a vacuum chamber in which using an arc evaporator solid material that functions as cathode is evaporated, during arc evaporation the motion of the cathode spot on the solid material surface is accelerated using a magnetic field for avoiding ejection of a large amount of macro-particles or droplets from the solid material surface, negative charged particles resulted from the arc evaporation flow from the cathode to an anode, characterized by the motion of the negative charged particles from the cathode to the anode fundamentally doesn't cause an additional increase of the absolute value of the potential difference between cathode and anode allowing a lower increment of the substrate temperature during coating.

Abstract: The present invention relates to an (AI,Ti)N coating exhibiting at least two different coating portions, A and B, having grain size in nanometer magnitude order characterized in that the coating portion A exhibit larger grain size and higher elastic modulus than the coating portion B. The present invention relates as well to a method for coating a substrate with a coating as described above whereby at least the coating portion A and/or the coating portion B of the (AI,Ti)N coating are/is deposited by means of PVD techniques.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for using a target for a coating process of metal oxide and/or metal nitride coatings by means of spark evaporation, wherein the target can be operated at a temperature that is higher than the melting point of the metal used in the target, and wherein the target is comprised of a metal whose oxides and/or nitrides are not electrically conducting. The invention further relates to the use of a target for producing metal oxide coatings and/or metal nitride coatings by means of spark evaporation, wherein the target has a matrix comprised of a metal, in which matrix non electrically conducting oxides and/or nitrides of the metal are embedded.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a coating for workpieces with at least one layer, the at least one layer comprising metal components represented by AlxCr1?x wherein x is an atomic ratio meeting 0?x?0.84 and comprising non metallic components represented by O1?yZy where Z is at least one Element selected from the group N, B, C and 0?y?0.65, preferably y?0.5 characterized in that the coating comprises at least partially a cubic non gamma Cr and oxide comprising phase in such a way that the x-ray diffraction pattern shows formation of cubic phase which is not the cubic phase of CrN.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a coating for workpieces with at least one layer, the at least one layer comprising metal components represented by AlxCr1?x wherein x is an atomic ratio meeting 0?x?0.84 and comprising non metallic components represented by O1?yZy where Z is at least one Element selected from the group N, B, C and 0?y?0.65, preferably y?0.5 characterized in that the coating comprises at least partially a cubic non gamma Cr and oxide comprising phase in such a way that the x-ray diffraction pattern shows formation of cubic phase which is not the cubic phase of CrN.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method for using a target for a coating process of metal oxide and/or metal nitride coatings by means of spark evaporation, wherein the target can be operated at a temperature that is higher than the melting point of the metal used in the target, and wherein the target is comprised of a metal whose oxides and/or nitrides are not electrically conducting. The invention further relates to the use of a target for producing metal oxide coatings and/or metal nitride coatings by means of spark evaporation, wherein the target has a matrix comprised of a metal, in which matrix non electrically conducting oxides and/or nitrides of the metal are embedded.

Abstract: When treating workpiece or substrate surfaces with the help of a vacuum plasma discharge between an anode and an cathode and whereby due to such treatment a solid is formed and deposited on the anode surface, which solid has a higher specific DC impedance than the specific DC impedance of the anode material, at least parts of the anode surface are shielded from such deposition by establishing thereat a shielding plasma.