Preparation and characterization of cubic boron nitride and carbon nitride films

Cubic boron nitride (c-BN) is a super hard material with a high potential for applications in different fields. At present c-BN films are being prepared mainly by CVD or PVD techniques. These techniques as well as the different methods used to characterize the films will be discussed. Theoretical considerations have shown that a super hard carbon nitride phase β-C3N4 with mechanical properties equivalent to or even better than those of diamond can exist. In recent years there were many attempts to prepare carbon nitride coatings by PVD or CVD techniques. An essential problem is the incorporation of sufficiently high concentrations of nitrogen in the films. A clear evidence of crystalline β-C3N4 phases in C-N films is outstanding so far. (author). 40 refs., 1 fig