• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.275-281
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• 2017

In this work, we have fabricated anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) with ordered nanoscale porosity through an anodization process. We deposited gold and nano-organic thin films on the porous AAO surface to protect its structure and reduce friction. We investigated the tribological characteristics of the porous AAO with respect to the protective surface coatings using tribometers. While investigating the frictional characteristics of the samples by applying normal forces of the order of micro-Newton, we observed that AAO without a protective coating exhibits the highest friction coefficient. In the presence of protective surface coatings, the friction coefficient decreases significantly. We applied normal forces of the order of milli-Newton during the tribotests to investigate the wear characteristics of AAO, and observed that AAO without protective surface coatings experiences severe damage due to the brittle nature of the oxide layer. We observed the presence of several pieces of fractured particles in the wear track; these fractured particles lead to an increase in the friction. However, by using surface coatings such as gold thin films and nano-organic thin films, we confirmed that the thin films with nanoscale thickness protect the AAO surface without exhibiting significant wear tracks and maintain a stable friction coefficient for the duration of the tribotests.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Technology Engineers
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.475-480
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• 2015

Ultrasonic atomic force microscopy (Ultrasonic-AFM) has been used to investigate the elastic property of the ultra-thin coating layer in a thin-film system. The modified Hertzian theory was applied to predict the contact resonance frequency through accurate theoretical analysis of the dynamic characteristics of the cantilever. We coat 200 nm thick Aluminum and Titanium thin films on the substrate using the DC Magnetron sputtering method. The amplitude and phase of the contact resonance frequency of a vibrating cantilever varies in response to the local stiffness constant. Ultrasonic-AFM images were obtained using the variations in the elastic property of the materials. The morphology of the surface was clearly observed in the Ultrasonic-AFM images, but was barely visible in the topography. This research demonstrates that Ultrasonic-AFM is a promising technique for visualizing the distribution of local stiffness in the nano-scale thin coatings.

• Journal of the Korean Vacuum Society
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.110-116
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• 2006

The mechanical property and cutting performance of the cutting tools coated with nanoscale nyktukatered nitride film have been investigated. $Ti_{0.54}Al_{0.46}N-CrN$ and $Ti_{0.84}Al_{0.16}N-NlN$ systems, which showed super-lattice in nanoscale multilayered coating, were deposited on WC-Co insert by UBM sputtering, The superlattice coatings with different bilayer periods were manufactured by controlling deposition parameters. The superlattice formation and hardness of the nanoscale multilayered nitride film and the cutting performance of the insert coated with the film were examined. The hardness and cutting performance were dependent on the bilayer periods of the coatings. The flank wear of the inserts with superlattice coatings were decreased over $20\%$, compared to those of commonly used cutting tools coated with TiAIN single phase.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.39 no.12
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• pp.1245-1249
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• 2015

This study investigated the reflection spectra of wrinkled metal/polymer multilayers. A wavy surface was self-assembled by annealing an aluminum-coated poly(methyl metacrylate) layer on a silicon substrate. The total and diffuse reflectance characteristics of the sample with additional metal coatings(aluminum or silver) were evaluated in the visible wavelength(400~800 nm) using a spectrophotometer. The results showed that the wrinkled surface enhanced the diffuse reflectance up to 40~50% in the lower-wavelength range, demonstrating its potential for applications to optical thin-film devices.

• Tribology and Lubricants
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• v.35 no.5
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• pp.286-293
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• 2019

In friction and wear tests that use friction force microscopy (FFM), the wear debris transfer to the tip apex that changes tip radius is a crucial issue that influences the friction and wear performances of films and coatings with nanoscale thicknesses. In this study, FFM tests are performed for bilayer $MoS_2$ film to obtain a better understanding of how geometrical and chemical changes of tip apex influence the friction and wear properties of nanoscale molecular layers. The critical load can be estimated from the test results based on the clear distinction of the failure area. Scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy are employed to measure and observe the geometrical and chemical changes of the tip apex. Under normal loads lower than 1000 nN, the reuse of tips enhances the friction and wear performance at the tip-sample interface as the contact pair changes with the increase of tip radius. Therefore, the reduction of contact pressure due to the increase of tip radius by the transfer of $MoS_2$ or Mo-dominant wear debris and the change of contact pairs from diamond/$MoS_2$ to partial $MoS_2$ or Mo/$MoS_2$ can explain the critical load increase that results from tip reuse. We suggest that the wear debris transfer to the tip apex should be considered when used tips are repeatedly employed to identify the tribological properties of ultra-thin films using FFM.