Wear characteristic dependence of carbon overcoats on target material

Carbon films used as overcoats for thin-film rigid media were DC sputtered onto disks from different types of carbon targets. The wear performance of the disks was studied using a head-on-disk-type apparatus. Results show a significant dependence of the wear behavior on the target´s preparation method. Density of the carbon target was shown to be the significant factor influencing durability, while purity of the starting material did not seem to affect the wear life of the resultant deposit. The target´s behavior under various sputtering conditions is discussed