Abstract
The friction and wear behaviors of magnetron sputtered MoS$_2$ films were investigated through the use of a pin and disk type tester. The experiments were performed for two kinds of specimens (ground (Ra 0.5 $\mu\textrm{m}$) and polished (Ra 0.01 $\mu\textrm{m}$) substrates) under the following operating condifions : linear sliding velocities in the range of 22~66 mm/s (3 types), normal loads varying from 9.8~29.4 N(3 types) and atmospheric conditions of air, medium and high vacuum (3types). Silicon nitride pin was used as the lower specimen and magnetron sputtered MoS$_2$ on bearing steel disk was used as the upper specimen. The results showed that low friction property of the MoS$_2$ films could be identified in high vacuum and the specific wear rate in air was much higher than that in medium and high vacuum due to severe oxidation. It was found that the main wear mechanism in air was oxidation whereas in high vacuum accumulation of plastic flow and adhesion, were the main causes of wear.