Laser ablated hard coating for microtools

Patent · Tue May 05 00:00:00 EDT 1998

OSTI ID:871524

Balooch, Mehdi ^[1]; Siekhaus, Wigbert J ^[1]

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1. Berkeley, CA

Wear-resistant coatings composed of laser ablated hard carbon films, are deposited by pulsed laser ablation using visible light, on instruments such as microscope tips and micro-surgical tools. Hard carbon, known as diamond-like carbon (DLC), films produced by pulsed laser ablation using visible light enhances the abrasion resistance, wear characteristics, and lifetimes of small tools or instruments, such as small, sharp silicon tips used in atomic probe microscopy without significantly affecting the sharpness or size of these devices. For example, a 10-20 nm layer of diamond-like carbon on a standard silicon atomic force microscope (AFM) tip, enables the useful operating life of the tip to be increased by at least twofold. Moreover, the low inherent friction coefficient of the DLC coating leads to higher resolution for AFM tips operating in the contact mode.

• Research Organization: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
• DOE Contract Number: W-7405-ENG-48
• Assignee: Regents Of University Of California (Oakland, CA)
• Patent Number(s): US 5747120
• Application Number: 08/799085
• OSTI ID: 871524
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

laser
ablated
hard
coating
microtools
wear-resistant
coatings
composed
carbon
films
deposited
pulsed
ablation
visible
light
instruments
microscope
tips
micro-surgical
tools
diamond-like
dlc
produced
enhances
abrasion
resistance
wear
characteristics
lifetimes
sharp
silicon
atomic
probe
microscopy
significantly
affecting
sharpness
size
devices
example
10-20
nm
layer
standard
force
afm
tip
enables
useful
operating
life
increased
twofold
moreover
inherent
friction
coefficient
leads
resolution
contact
mode
resistant coating
operating life
hard carbon
diamond-like carbon
visible light
pulsed laser
carbon film
laser ablation
resistant coatings
carbon films
significantly affecting
wear characteristics
atomic force
force microscope
hard coating
friction coefficient
abrasion resistance
probe microscopy
laser ablated
films produced
significantly affect
wear-resistant coating
ablated hard
/427/