Abstract: A metal doped carbon coating wherein the Me-doped C coating is for operation in boundary lubrication conditions, in which the metal is present in the coating in an amount of from 5 to 20% by atomic percent, i.e. the ratio of the number of atoms of the metal Me to the number of atoms of the carbon C does not exceed 1:4. The coating is made by pre-treating a workpiece surface by simultaneous bombardment of the surface with accelerated ions of W, Mo and C ions generated by a HIPIMS discharge in a treatment chamber. This is followed by deposition of a transition layer of metal and/or metal nitride of a thickness in the range from 20 nm-1000 nm thick by magnetron sputtering optionally in the form of or including HIPIMS sputtering, the metal being at least one of W and Mo. Thereafter a main layer the main layer of Me-doped C coating is deposited by HIPIMS sputtering.

Abstract: A vacuum treatment apparatus (10) for treating at least one substrate (12) and comprising a treatment chamber (14), at least one cathode (16), a power supply (18) associated with the cathode for generating ions of a material present in the gas phase in the chamber and/or ions of a material of which the cathode is formed, a substrate carrier (20) and a bias power supply for applying a negative bias to the substrate carrier and any substrate present thereon, whereby to attract said ions to said at least one substrate, said cathode power supply being adapted to apply relatively high power pulses of relatively short duration to said cathode at intervals resulting in lower average power levels comparable with DC operation, e.g. in the range from ca.

Abstract: A method for the manufacture of a hard material protective coating on a substrate consisting of a metal or of a electrically conductive ceramic material, e.g. a coated tool for use in a machine tool, or components exposed to high temperature wherein, prior to the deposition of the hard protective material coating, the substrate is pretreated by bombardment with metal ions of at least one rare earth element thereby resulting in implantation of some of said ions into said substrate.