Abstract: A process for physical vapor deposition of a refractory coating such as titanium nitride on a nonconductive substrate such as a ceramic substrate and the coated substrate produced thereby. The nonconductive substrate is coated by cleaning the nonconductive substrate surfaces and then depositing a first layer of a refractory metal such as titanium metal on the nonconductive substrate by physical vapor deposition. A second layer of a refractory compound such as titanium nitride is then deposited on the first layer by physical vapor deposition to produce a coated nonconductive substrate having enhanced coating adhesion.

Abstract: An improved magnetic-recording disk and a process for manufacturing magnetic-recording disks are disclosed. An electrically conductive hard coating is deposited upon a ceramic substrate. This coating can be one from the group including the nitrides, carbides, and borides of titanium, zirconium, hafnium, vanadium, niobium, tantalum, chromium, molybdenum, or tungsten. Graded interfacial diffusion or pseudo-diffusion layers are formed between the ceramic substrate and the coating by the elemental metal present in the coating. Magnetic-recording media is then deposited upon the electrically conductive coating. Optionally, a texturable coating that is softer than the hard coating can be placed over the electrically conductive hard coating before the magnetic-recording media is deposited. This texturable coating limits the depth to which abrasive tape texturing can take place.

Abstract: This invention concerns a method for protecting surfaces of diamond, diamondlike carbon and of other forms of carbon, from the effects of oxidation which can occur at high temperatures in an oxidizing environment. The method involves exposing the surface of the diamond or other carbon material to energetic ions of, or containing, an element or elements which can be caused to react with the carbon to form a thin layer containing a carbide compound that is itself more oxidation resistant than the diamond or other carbon material and which is able to serve as a barrier to prevent or delay penetration of oxygen to the thereby protected diamond or other carbon material.

Abstract: A laminate using a polymeric molded article as a substrate and having a light transparency, gas barrier properties and an excellent alkali resistance. The laminate is obtainable by carrying out a surface treatment to deposit an oxide of at least one metal selected from the metal elements of groups 2, 8, 9, 10 and 11 of the periodic table, and then forming a gas barrier layer such as oxides of silicon, nitrides of silicon and carbides of silicon on the treated surface. The gas barrier layer is not peeled off from the polymeric molded article even after being immersed in an alkali solution of pH 12 or more. The amount of the metal on the treated surface is preferably in the range of 5.times.10.sup.14 atoms/cm.sup.2 to 3.times.10.sup.16 atoms/cm.sup.2 in terms of the metal atoms per unit area. The practical performance of the laminate is not deteriorated during the patterning, by alkali etching, of a transparent conductive layer formed on the laminate.

Abstract: The invention provides a method of producing tranparent and conductive ultrathin films of metal carbide or metal nitride on a glass, ceramics or organic polymer substrate, which comprises the steps of exciting a surface of said substrate by irradiating said surface with a carbon or nitrogen ion beam; simultaneously vapor-depositing a transition metal onto said surface to form a carbide or nitride layer; and terminating the excitation and the vapor-deposition when the thickness of the metal carbide or nitride layer is in the range of 1 nm to 50 nm, and the light permeability of the metal carbide or nitride layer is in the range of 30% to 90%, wherein the conductivity of the metal carbide or nitride layer is in the range of 1 k.OMEGA./.quadrature. To 100 k.OMEGA./.quadrature..

Abstract: A method of using an amorphous carbon-based coating to extend the operating life of a fuel injector having a needle operating within a valve body, the valve body, the valve and body having steel surfaces subject to repeated impact and sliding friction contact over the operating life of the injector. The method comprises (a) providing the steel surfaces of at least one of the needle and body with an ion implanted stabilized amorphous carbon-based coating in a thickness of 1-10 micrometers, the coating having low internal stresses and low coefficient of friction independent of humidity and being stabilized by the presence of up to 30% by weight of carbide forming material selected from the group of silicon, titanium and tungsten, and (b) repeatedly and rapidly actuating the fuel injector in time periods of 0.5-1.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for strongly adhering a diamond-like carbon coating to a metal alloy substrate using ion beam assisted deposition of silicon and/or germanium followed by ion beam assisted deposition of diamond-like carbon.

Abstract: This invention relates to a high-strength ceramic fiber composite with a high temperature stability and an improved oxidation stability and to a process for producing it.

Abstract: A composition of matter having an atomic density between that of pure diamond and at least 0.18 g-atoms per cubic centimeter and the formula:C.sub.1-z-w Si.sub.z A.sub.w ?H.sub.1-x F.sub.x !.sub.ywhere: 0.ltoreq.z+w.ltoreq.0.15, 0.ltoreq.w.ltoreq.0.05, 0.ltoreq.x.ltoreq.0.10, 0<y<1.5, and, A is boron or oxygen. Variation of the constituents and the parameters of production of the compositions in self-biasing RF cavities, or primary or secondary ion beam methods, allows formation of films of, for example, desired hardness, lubricity, density, electrical conductivity, permeability, adhesion and stress. Variation of the properties allows production of films formed by the composition as a function of depth.

Abstract: A method for enhancing hydrogenation of oxide-encapsulated materials includes forming an injection layer having a low reflectivity of monatomic hydrogen on an oxide-encapsulated material, and hydrogenating the material with an atomic hydrogen source such as a hydrogen plasma. The method results in a significant decrease in hydrogenation time required to passivate the oxide-encapsulated materials.

Abstract: A process for reducing particle defects in an arc vapor deposition coating on a substrate comprises the steps of providing a metallic wire mesh, providing an arc source adapted to impart a positive charge on coating macroparticles produced during arc vapor deposition, positioning the wire mesh in between the arc source and the substrate, applying a negative bias voltage to the wire mesh and entrapping positively charged macroparticles on the negatively charged wire mesh during coating deposition.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for coating a metal alloy component of a medical implant, particularly a component of a heart valve made of a titanium base alloy, with a strongly adhered coating of diamond-like carbon. The method uses ion beam assisted deposition to form a gradient at the surface of the titanium alloy comprising metal alloy/metal-silicide/(silicon or germanium)/silicon- or germanium-carbide/DLC.

Abstract: A composite material having high hardness comprises a carbon nitrogen compound, such as CN.sub.x where x is greater than 0.1 and up to 1.33, deposited on a metal or metal compound selected to promote deposition of substantially crystalline CN.sub.x. The carbon nitrogen compound is deposited on a crystal plane of the metal or metal compound sufficiently lattice-matched with a crystal plane of the carbon nitrogen compound that the carbon nitrogen compound is substantially crystalline. A plurality of layers of the compounds can be formed in alternating sequence to provide a multi-layered, superlattice coating having a coating hardness in the range of 45-55 GPa, which corresponds to the hardness of a BN coating and approaches that of a diamond coating.

Abstract: A process invention for protecting alpha-2 and gamma titanium aluminide alloy specimens subjected to high temperature oxidation comprises providing an ion beam having an energy range from about 100 keV to about 170 keV. The ion beam incorporates an elemental species capable of promoting alumina formation. The ion beam is exposed to the specimen so as to implant a dose in a range from about 2.times.10.sup.16 to about 8.times.lO.sup.17 ions/cm.sup.2 for a sufficient time period to form a surface alloy of the elemental species and titanium aluminide near the surface of the specimen.

Abstract: In a method for producing corrosion and wear resistant coatings on iron material, in which subsurface areas are enriched with nitrogen, carbon, and oxygen, the iron material is nitrocarburized for forming a connective coating of carbonitride. The surface of the iron material is activated with a plasma-supported vacuum process. The ion material is subsequently oxidized to form a continuous oxide coating.

Abstract: High surface area electrodes for use in electrical and electrochemical energy storage and conversion devices comprise conductive transition metal nitrides, carbides, borides or combinations thereof where the metal is molybdenum or tungsten. Disclosed is a method of manufacturing such electrodes by forming or depositing a layer of metal oxide, then exposing the metal oxide layer at elevated temperature to a source of nitrogen, carbon or boron in a chemically reducing environment to form the desired metal nitride, carbide or boride film. Also disclosed is an ultracapacitor comprised of the new high surface area electrodes having a specific capacitance of 100 mF/cm.sup.2 and an energy density of 100 mJ/cm.sup.3 with improved conductivity and chemical stability when compared to currently available electrodes.

Abstract: The invention concerns a process and a device for surface-modification by physico-chemical reactions with the following steps: a) contacting a solid surface having a crystalline or amorphous structure with a reactive, gaseous fluid (gas, gas mixture, vapour or vapour mixture) which is to interact with the surface; (b) supplying activating energy to the contact area between fluid and surface by means of ions or plasmas, in order to trigger reactions between said partners. In order to improve such a process and device, the activating energy is supplied as ions having at least a double charge and low kinetic energy or plasma streams with a sufficient proportion of ions having at least a double charge and low kinetic energy. The kinetic energy imparted to the ions is selected so that it allows the ions to closely approach the surface atoms but no to enter the surface.

Abstract: A method of making capacitors comprising, providing as the dielectric and/or conductive layers, a material made from a diamond-like nanocomposite solid-state material having interpenetrating atomic scale networks of carbon in a diamond-like carbon network stabilized by hydrogen, a glass-like silicon network stabilized by oxygen, and optionally at least one additional network of dopant elements or dopant compounds having elements from Groups 1-7b and 8 of the periodic table.

Abstract: A coated metal-substrate disk for magnetic-recording applications is disclosed having a first coating selected from the group consisting of nitrides, carbides, or borides of titanium, zirconium, hafnium, vanadium, niobium, tantalum, chromium, molybdenum, or tungsten, or the group consisting of aluminum nitride, silicon nitride, or silicon carbide on the metal substrate and a magnetic-recording material coating on the first coating. The first coatings are applied by evaporative reactive ion plating or by reactive sputtering.

Abstract: The present invention provides a low-temperature method for producing electrocatalytic coatings for fuel cell electrodes. The electrocatalytic coating comprises a thin-film of diamond-like carbon doped with finely-dispersed catalytic agent, preferably platinum, platinum-ruthenium, or other catalytically active materials. The method may be scaled-up as a highly economical reel-to-reel process comparable to the manufacture of coated polymers for food packaging applications.

Abstract: Using an arc ion plating apparatus, a metal not capable of forming a carbide or nitride, such as cobalt, nickel or molybdenum is set as a first target, a metal capable of forming a carbide or nitride, such as silicon, titanium, vanadium, chromium, iron, zirconium, niobium or tungsten is set as a second target and nitrogen, acetylene or methane is fed as a process gas to form a film on a piston ring body which is an article to be coated, thereby providing a piston ring comprising a hard film formed on at least its sliding outer face of the piston ring body, said hard film comprising a mixed structure formed of the metal not capable of forming a carbide or nitride and a carbide or nitride of the metal capable of forming a carbide or nitride. In this piston ring, the hard film has so good adhesion to the body material or film toughness that no cracking or film separation tend to occur even when the film is formed in a large thickness.

Abstract: A method of forming a magnetic structure having layers with different magnetization orientations provided by a common magnetic bias layer includes the steps of depositing an antiferromagnetic layer between first and second ferromagnetic layers. During the deposition of the first and second ferromagnetic layers, magnetization fields of different orientations are employed separately to induce different directions of magnetization in the first and second layers. The different directions of magnetization in the first and second layers are sustained, through the process of exchange coupling, by the interposed antiferromagnetic layer which serves as the bias layer. A magnetic structure thus fabricated, can be used as a read transducer capable of generating differential signals with common mode noise rejection, and can be used as a magnetic pole for a magnetic head with reduced Barkhausen noise.

Abstract: The present invention provides a method for coating a titanium based component with diamond-like carbon to reduce the thrombogeneticity of the component. In a preferred embodiment, the titanium based component is a heart valve.According to the present invention, the component is placed in a vacuum chamber and heated to about 600.degree. -650.degree. C. (1112.degree.-1202.degree. F.). Thereafter, silicon is then deposited onto the component, and the component is simultaneously bombarded with a beam of energetic ions to form a metal-silicide bonding layer. The component then is cooled to at least about 100.degree. C. (212.degree. F.), preferably about 80.degree. C. (176.degree. F.), and a diamond-like carbon precursor is condensed onto the metal-silicide bonding layer. The precursor is simultaneously bombarded with a beam of energetic ions to form a coating of diamond-like carbon.

Abstract: The present invention provides methods for modifying surfaces made from metal alloy and/or UHMWPE, preferably surfaces which are frictionally engaged, e.g., in an orthopaedic implant. The methods of the present invention reduce the coefficient of friction of the metal alloy component, reduce the shearing of fibrils from the UHMWPE component, and reduce sub-surface fatigue in the UHMWPE component. The method involves solvent immersion of the UHMWPE component to remove short chains of polyethylene at or near the surface of the component, and to swell and toughen the subsurface of the component. The method also involves firmly coating the surface of the metal alloy component with an adherent layer of diamond-like carbon ("DLC") by creating a metal-silicide interface at the surface of the metal alloy to permit firmer adhesion of DLC.

Abstract: Wear-resistant titanium nitride coatings onto cast iron and other carbon-containing materials is enhanced by means of a new surface preparation and deposition process. The conventional pre-deposition surface cleaning by Ar.sup.+ ion bombardment is replaced by a hydrogen-ion bombardment process which cleans the substrate surface by chemical reaction with minimal sputtering and simultaneously removes graphite present on the cast iron surface. Removal of the graphite significantly improves the wear resistance of titanium nitride, since the presence of graphite causes initiation of wear at those sites. Hydrogen ion bombardment or electron bombardment may be used to heat the substrate to a chosen temperature. Finally, titanium nitride is deposited by reactive sputtering with simultaneous bombardment of high-flux Ar.sup.+ ions from an independently generated dense plasma.

Abstract: A chemical vapor deposition method of providing a layer of material atop a semiconductor wafer using an organometallic precursor includes, a) positioning a wafer within a chemical vapor deposition reactor; b) injecting an organometallic precursor and a carrier gas to within the reactor having the wafer positioned therein; c) maintaining the reactor at a temperature and a pressure which in combination are effective to deposit a layer of material onto the wafer which incorporates metal and carbon from the organometallic precursor; d) after depositing the layer of material, ion implanting a late transition metal into the layer to a selected dose; and e) after ion implanting, annealing the layer in the presence of a hydrogen source gas which effectively diffuses into the layer, hydrogen atoms of the hydrogen source gas being catalyzed by the late transition metal within the layer into hydrogen radicals, the hydrogen radicals reacting with carbon in the layer to produce gaseous products which diffuse outwardly of

Abstract: The surface of titanium is treated to reduce the friction coefficient and wear loss without sacrificing its corrosion resistance. Pure titanium or titanium alloy is subjected to plasma-carburizing in an atmosphere containing hydrocarbon gas at a pressure of 0.5 to 15 Torr and a temperature of 700.degree. to 1100.degree. C.

Abstract: A process for forming an adherent diamond-like carbon coating on a workpiece of suitable material such as an aluminum alloy is disclosed. The workpiece is successively immersed in different plasma atmospheres and subjected to short duration, high voltage, negative electrical potential pulses or constant negative electrical potentials or the like so as to clean the surface of oxygen atoms, implant carbon atoms into the surface of the alloy to form carbide compounds while codepositing a carbonaceous layer on the surface, bombard and remove the carbonaceous layer, and to thereafter deposit a generally amorphous hydrogen-containing carbon layer on the surface of the article.

Abstract: The disclosed method of forming a high-function material film such as a ZrN thin film on a substrate in a vacuum chamber allows the color tone and uniformity of the film to be controlled. Gaseous nitrogen and gaseous oxygen, or nitrogen ions and oxygen ions, are supplied to the substrate while hard material atoms such as Zr atoms are emitted from an evaporation source toward the substrate. A supply partial pressure of the gaseous oxygen is set at a value within a range from about 10.sup.-5 Torr to about 10.sup.-4 Torr.

Abstract: A process for coating a substrate surface with a diamond-like carbon film, in which a starting material gas comprising a hydrocarbon compound is introduced into a Hall accelerator ion source with an inner pressure thereof reduced to 1.times.10.sup.-5 to 1.times.10.sup.-1 Torr, an ion beam in which 80% or more of the ion beams formed have an impinging energy in the range of 100 to 1500 eV is formed in the ion source, and irradiated onto a substrate comprising various kinds of materials in a vacuum chamber, to thereby coat the substrate surface with a diamond-like carbon film with a strong adhesion to an extent such that is can with stand practical application.

Abstract: A hard film 2 is applied to cover an outer circumferential surface of a piston ring 1 by an ion plating process. Either 3 percent to 20 percent by weight of oxygen, or 2 percent to 11 percent by weight of carbon is included in a solid solution state in a crystal structure of CrN in the hard film 2. The Vickers hardness of the hard film 2 is in a range of 1600 to 2200.

Abstract: A titanium nitride film forming method employing an ion-plating method to produce good decorative properties, to a titanium nitride film forming method which can maintain the stability of the color tone even under high temperatures, and to the vessel obtained through the above methods.

Abstract: A substrate surface is coated with a permeation barrier of inorganic material, which is vaporized from a crucible in a vacuum chamber evacuated to at least 10.sup.-3 mbar and precipitated on the substrate surface.An ionizing electron beam of low energy is thus passed through the gas phase of inorganic material with formation of a plasma, preferably in the direction running approximately parallel to the substrate surface.At least one low voltage electron beam gun with assigned electrode is incorporated in the vacuum chamber between the crucible and the substrate support.The main application is for coating plastic films for the packaging industry.

Abstract: A light absorbing, low reflectance coating and method of fabricating the coating provided by electron beam evaporation of aluminum onto substrates bombarded with nitrogen ions to produce a randomly textured coating which traps light in a labyrinth. The coating is electrically insulating except for the first few tens of atoms which remain metallic. Absorptance exceeds 90% in the 0.4 to 16 .mu.m region. The coating is flexible and can be deposited on a polymer base.

Abstract: A method of producing a doped diamond, typically a boron doped diamond, is provided. The method involves multiple cold implantation/rapid annealing steps. A doped diamond can be produced containing a high concentration of dopant atoms.

Abstract: A thin film superconductor assembly is disclosed along with a method of fabricating same. The assembly comprises a self-supporting substrate defining at least a portion of a containment for a flow of cryogenic fluid, a dielectric layer adherent to a surface of the substrate, a thin film superconductor adherent to the dielectric layer and a moisture and oxygen impervious electrically insulating coating covering the thin film superconductor. A method of forming such thin film superconductor assembly, wherein the dielectric layer consists essentially of aluminum nitride, comprises growing the aluminum nitride dielectric layer integrally on the surface of the substrate.

Abstract: A heat transfer insulated part including a heat transfer substrate formed of a sintered metal of Cu-W or Cu-Mo, an insulating ceramic layer for electrically insulating the heat transfer substrate, formed of ceramic such as Al.sub.2 O.sub.3, SiO.sub.2 and Si.sub.3 N.sub.4, and a barrier layer provided between the heat transfer substrate and an insulating ceramic layer composed of at least either one of metal layers of W and Mo. Furthermore, preferably, an intermediate layer composed of titanium carbide and/or titanium nitride and so forth for enhancing the adhesive property between the insulating ceramic layer and the barrier layer is provided.

Abstract: A material growing by deposition is exposed to a low energy beam of ionized dopant. The ion beam energy is sufficient to implant the dopant in the growing surface of the material. This doping method will work well for any dopant that is substantially immobile in the material at the temperature necessary for deposition growth.

Abstract: The present invention relates to the formation of a class of nanocomposite amorphous materials consisting of interpenetrating random networks of predominantly sp3 bonded carbon stabilized by hydrogen, glass-like silicon stabilized by oxygen and random networks of elements from the 1-7b and 8 groups of the periodic table. The materials have high strength and microhardness, flexibility, low coefficient of friction and high thermal and chemical stability. Nanocomposites containing networks of metallic elements can have conductivity variable from insulating dielectric to metallic. The materials have a wide range of applications as protective coatings and as electrically active materials. Metallic nanocomposites can exhibit superconductivity at low temperatures.

Abstract: A method of preparing the fitting surface of a dental ceramic body for subsequent bonding to a tooth with, for example, glass polyalkenoate and resin based cements, including the step of depositing, by a vapour phase deposition technique, directly onto the fitting surface of the ceramic body a strongly adherent coating of an inorganic substance such as tin oxide at a thickness ideally less than 2 microns, the coating being reactive with the cement to provide a durable chemical bond therewith which is not subject to chemical degradation in the oral environment and which will not compromise the aesthetics of the associated dental restoration.

Abstract: Plasma-enhanced magnetron-sputtered deposition (PMD) of materials is employed for low-temperature deposition of hard, wear-resistant thin films, such as metal nitrides, metal carbides, and metal carbo-nitrides, onto large, three-dimensional, irregularly shaped objects (20) without the requirement for substrate manipulation. The deposition is done by using metal sputter targets (18) as the source of the metal and immersing the metal sputter targets in a plasma (16) that is random in direction and fills the deposition chamber (12) by diffusion. The plasma is generated from at least two gases, the first gas comprising an inert gas, such as argon, and the second gas comprising a nitrogen source, such a nitrogen, and/or a carbon source, such as methane. Simultaneous with the deposition, the substrate is bombarded with ions from the plasma by biasing the substrate negative with respect to the plasma to maintain the substrate temperature and control the film microstructure.

Abstract: In accordance with a preferred method, a new cathode composition is prepared in situ, in a cell, whereby such in situ formation method results in enhanced contact between the cathode composition and the current collector and between the electrolyte layer and the cathode composition. The new method provides such in situ prepared cathode composition comprising first and second polymeric materials, the first being radiation cured and ionically conductive and the second being electrochemically cured and electrically conductive. In accordance with the preferred method, the first is radiation cured before the second is electrochemically cured and the second polymeric material is cured in an electrochemical cell which comprises a preferred alkali metal-containing anode layer.

Abstract: A high dose rate, high impedance plasma ion implantation method and apparatus to apply high voltage pulses to a target cathode within an ionization chamber to both sustain a plasma in the gas surrounding the target, and to implant ions from the plasma into the target during at least a portion of each pulse. Operating at voltages in excess of 50 kV that are too high for the reliable formation of a conventional glow discharge, the plasma is instead sustained through a beam-plasma instability interaction between secondary electrons emitted from the target and a background pulsed plasma. The voltage pulses are at least about 50 kV, and preferably 100 kV or more. Pulse durations are preferably less than 8 microseconds, with a frequency in the 50-1,000 Hz range. The preferred gas pressure range is 1.times.10.sup.-4 -1.times.10.sup.

Abstract: A slidable ceramic member includes a base of a sintered ceramic material which is a compound including silicon (Si) as a constituent element, the base having a sliding surface, and a coated layer covering the sliding surface of the base, the coated layer comprising a compound of elements, such as barium (Ba) and calcium (Ca), belonging to group IIa of the periodic table, silicon (Si), and oxygen (O). The slidable ceramic member is used as a slidable component of a heat engine such as a cylinder liner or a piston ring which is subjected to repeated thermal stresses. Such a slidable ceramic member is manufactured by placing powder of a fluoride including elements belonging to group IIa of the periodic table on a surface of a base, and heating the base while rubbing the powder against the surface of the base, whereby the silicon (Si) contained in the base and the group-IIa elements contained in the powder can react with each other, thereby forming a slidable layer on the surface of the base.

Abstract: A method and an apparatus for coating substrates is described in which the layer to be applied is produced by the condensing particles of a plasma generated by a gas discharge which are incident on the substrates. Both an arc discharge vaporization coating process and a cathode sputtering coating process are effected in the same apparatus, and the arc discharge vaporization process is carried out before the cathode sputtering process.

Abstract: Herein described is a process for forming ohmic electrodes to a diamond film, comprising the steps of implanting the ions of at least one element selected from the group consisting of B, Li, Na, Ar, C, Ti, W, Ta, Mo, Fe, Ni and Co on the diamond film at the surface areas to be formed with electrodes by an ion implantation method so as to form interface levels in the vicinity of the surface areas to be formed with electrodes, forming electrodes to the ion implanted areas, and heating the diamond film formed with the electrodes at a temperature of 400.degree. C. or more. With this process charge carriers can be moved between electrodes and the diamond film through the interface levels to thereby obtain ohmic electrode diamond film contacts, and also the surface recombination speed of the charge carriers is increased for reducing the contact resistances between the electrodes and the diamond film to thereby obtain ohmic electrode-diamond film contacts each having the small contact resistance.

Abstract: A method for stabilizing and lubricating elastomeric material includes depositing a first material film layer of carbide forming material by high energy level vacuum plating onto the elastomeric material to thereby stabilize free carbon atoms present in the elastomeric material. A second material film layer is deposited by high energy vacuum plating onto the first material film layer to thereby lubricate the elastomeric material.

Abstract: A composite substrate comprises a metal substrate, an electrically insulating ceramic layer formed on the metal substrate, a metal layer formed on the ceramic layer, a first mixed layer formed in an area near the interface between the metal substrate and the ceramic layer, and a second mixed layer formed in an area near the interface between the ceramic layer and the metal layer, each of the mixed layers being composed of the materials of the layers situated on both sides thereof. The composite substrate may comprise a plurality of electrically insulating dissimilar ceramic layers between the metal substrate and the metal layer, and a mixed layer formed in an area near the interface between any two of the adjacent ceramic layers.

Abstract: A substrate to be modified is placed in a vacuum vessel, a reducing atmosphere is provided over the substrate and simultaneously therewith the substrate is irradiated with accelerated ions, whereby oxygen which bonds to the substrate is freed from the substrate, the oxygen bonds to a material which forms the reducing atmosphere and the surface of the substrate is modified by the accelerated ion. The surface of the substrate can be thus efficiently modifed at relatively low temperatures. Furthermore, by evaporating carbon for an alumina substrate or alumina powder or providing hydrocarbon gas over the alumina substrate or alumina powder in a vacuum vessel, the alumina substrate or alumina powder is providing in the reducing atmosphere and the alumina substrate or alumina powder is irradiated with accelerated nitrogen ions from an ion source, whereby aluminum and oxygen which constitute the alumina substrate or alumina powder are cut off from each other by irradiation with the accelerated nitrogen ions.

Abstract: A diamond growing by chemical vapor deposition is exposed to a low energy beam of ionized dopant. The ion beam energy is sufficient to implant the dopant in the growing surface of the diamond. This doping method will work well for any dopant that is substantially immobile in the diamond at the temperature necessary for deposition growth.