Abstract Recently, high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS) technique has been widely applied to deposit hard coatings such as Ti-based coatings on industrial tools due to its strong merits of high coating density, smooth surface, and excellent adhesion. In this work, TiN (Titanium Nitride) nanostructured coatings were deposited by two different methods (HIPIMS and DCMS techniques) with constant processing parameters and their electrochemical behaviors were investigated in a 3.5% NaCl solution. X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning microscopy (FE-SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to characterize and evaluate the coatings composition, surface morphology, and surface roughness, respectively. It is found that the preferred orientation depends on the applied deposition technique. Potentiodynamic polarization measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) were used to compare the electrochemical responses of these nanostructured coatings in 3.5% NaCl solution. The results indicate that HIPIMS-TiN coating is of well-defined denser nanocrystalline structure, which not only is smoother but also has a superior passivation and better protects the substrate against the ingress of aggressive anions.

中文翻译：

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通过 HIPIMS 和 DCMS 技术沉积的 TiN 涂层的微观结构和电化学比较

摘要 近年来，高功率脉冲磁控溅射（HIPIMS）技术以其镀层密度高、表面光滑、附着力好等优点，被广泛应用于工业工具上钛基镀层等硬质镀层的沉积。在这项工作中，通过两种不同的方法（HIPIMS 和 DCMS 技术）以恒定的工艺参数沉积了 TiN（氮化钛）纳米结构涂层，并在 3.5% NaCl 溶液中研究了它们的电化学行为。X 射线衍射 (XRD)、场发射扫描显微镜 (FE-SEM) 和原子力显微镜 (AFM) 分别用于表征和评估涂层成分、表面形貌和表面粗糙度。发现优选取向取决于应用的沉积技术。动电位极化测量和电化学阻抗谱 (EIS) 用于比较这些纳米结构涂层在 3.5% NaCl 溶液中的电化学响应。结果表明，HIPIMS-TiN 涂层具有明确定义的致密纳米晶结构，不仅更光滑，而且具有优异的钝化能力，更好地保护基材免受侵蚀性阴离子的侵入。