Stress and mechanical properties of Ti–Cr–N gradient coatings deposited by vacuum arc

This paper reports on the investigation of Ti–Cr–N gradient coatings deposited by cathodic arc vapor deposition. The Ti–Cr–N coatings were formed by the method of condensation from a plasma phase in a vacuum with ion bombardment of sample surfaces with combined Ti and Cr plasma flows in a residual nitrogen atmosphere. Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES) investigations showed that the deposited coatings exhibited compositional gradient: a Cr-rich transition layer was formed during pretreatment of the substrate with Cr ions and a main Ti–Cr–N layer of varying Ti and Cr composition along the coating thickness was obtained by changing the arc current of Ti and Cr cathodes during deposition. Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) observations showed that TixCr1−xN solid solutions, with 0.60