Decorative
Coatings
Decorative PVD coatings are those for which the attributes
of coating color and uniformity are most important. As a result,
decorative coatings are typically less thick than functional
coatings. Typical decorative coating applications include:
pens, eyeglass frames, cellular phone housings, watch bezels
and bands, door hardware and plumbing fixtures.
Functional Coatings
The term "functional coating" has often been used
as a synonym for tool coating: typically, TiN or CrN. These
coatings are applied at higher temperatures and in greater
thickness than decorative PVD coatings. Coating color and
surface uniformity are less important than wear characteristics.
Typical applications include instrument blades, knives, augers,
drills, automotive wear parts, machine bits and molds.
Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD)
Also termed “atomic deposition” processes in which
material vaporized from a source is transported in the form
of a vapor through a vacuum to the substrate where it condenses.
PVD processes are used to deposit films of varying colors
and attributes. Depending on the required film attributes,
the deposition process can be reactive or non-reactive.
The three main categories of PVD coating are: Thermal Evaporation,
Arc Evaporation and Sputtering.
Sputtering
Sputtering is a process of depositing particles physically
extracted from a target surface. It is used to coat optical
films, semiconductors, architectural glass, medical instruments
and other precise, thin-film applications. Like all PVD applications,
sputtered films offer distinct advantages over traditional
electroplating; of which superior corrosion protection, wear
resistance and adhesion are but a few. Sputtered films, moreover,
offer greater precision and uniformity than do other processes.
