High-speed deposition of titanium carbide coatings by laser-assisted metal–organic CVD

A semiconductor laser-assisted chemical vapor deposition (LCVD) of titanium carbide (TiCx) coatings on Al2O3 substrate using tetrakis (diethylamido) titanium (TDEAT) and C2H2 as source materials were investigated. The influences of laser power (PL) and pre-heating temperature (Tpre) on the microstructure and deposition rate of TiCx coatings were examined. Single phase of TiCx coatings were obtained at PL = 100–200 W. TiCx coatings had a cauliflower-like surface and columnar cross section. TiCx coatings in the present study had the highest Rdep (54 μm/h) at a relative low Tdep than those of conventional CVD-TiCx coatings. The highest volume deposition rate (Vdep) of TiCx coatings was about 4.7 × 10−12 m3 s−1, which had 3–105 times larger deposition area and 1–4 order lower laser density than those of previous LCVD using CO2, Nd:YAG and argon ion laser.