Nitrogen ion implantation on group IVb metals: chemical, mechanical and tribological study

This paper reports the study of the effects induced by nitrogen implantation on metals of the IVb group. Different doses of atomic and molecular nitrogen have been implanted on titanium, zirconium and hafnium samples to investigate their reactivity towards nitrides precipitation. Microhardness, friction and wear tests have been carried out. An increase in microhardness was found where, in some cases, was greater than 80%. Moreover, they were observed improvements in the wear resistance and a decrease in the friction coefficient. XPS analysis and AES profiles have been performed on all the implanted samples. The N1s XPS spectra show a binding energy corresponding to the nitride formation which is thought as the main cause of the mechanical and tribological improvement.