Hard and superhard nanocomposite coatings

This article reviews the development of hard coatings from a titanium nitride film through superlattice coatings to nanocomposite coatings. Significant attention is devoted to hard and superhard single layer nanocomposite coatings. A strong correlation between the hardness and structure of nanocomposite coatings is discussed in detail. Trends in development of hard nanocomposite coatings are also outlined. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.