MULTILAYERS DIAMOND-LIKE CARBON FILM WITH GERMANIUM BUFFER LAYERS BY PULSED LASER DEPOSITION

Multilayer diamond-like carbon film with germanium buffer layers, which was composed of several thick DLC layers and thin germanium island "layers" and named as Ge-DLC film, was prepared on the germanium substrate by ultraviolet laser. The Ge-DLC film had almost same surface roughness as the pure DLC film. Hardness of the Ge-DLC film was above 48.1 GPa, which was almost the same as that of pure DLC film. Meanwhile, compared to the pure DLC film, the critical load of Ge-DLC film on the germanium substrate increased from 81.6mN to 143.8 mN. Moreover, Ge-DLC film on germanium substrates had no change after fastness tests. The results showed that Ge-DLC film not only kept high hardness but also had higher critical load than that of pure DLC film. Therefore, it could be used as practical protective films.