Provided is a coated cutting tool, which includes a hard coating film containing a layer (b) formed of a nitride or a carbonitride, a layer (c) which is a layered coating film formed by alternately layering a nitride or carbonitride layer (c1) that contains 55 atom % or more and 75 atom % or less of Al, Cr having a second highest content percentage, and at least Si and a nitride or carbonitride layer (c2) that contains 55 atom % or more and 75 atom % or less of Al and Ti having a second highest content percentage, each layer having a film thickness of 50 nm or less, and a layer (d) that is a nitride or carbonitride that contains, with respect to a total amount of metal elements (including metalloid elements), 55 atom % or more and 75 atom % or less of Al, Cr having a second highest content percentage.

A cathodic arc coating apparatus includes a vessel, a cathode disposed in the vessel, and a stinger assembly. The stinger assembly includes a first magnetic field generator disposed in a first stinger cup in selective contact with the cathode. The first stinger cup has at least a first electrically conductive cup portion spaced from a second electrically conductive cup portion by a thermally insulating layer therebetween.

A mask blank with phase shift film where changes in transmittance and phase shift to an exposure light of an ArF excimer laser are suppressed. The film transmits light of an ArF excimer laser at a transmittance of 2% or more and less than 10% and generates a phase difference of 150 degrees or more and 190 degrees or less between the exposure light transmitted through the phase shift film and the exposure light transmitted through the air for the same distance as a thickness of the phase shift film. The film has a stacked lower layer and upper layer, the lower layer containing metal and silicon and substantially free of oxygen. The upper layer containing metal, silicon, nitrogen, and oxygen. The lower layer is thinner than the upper layer, and the ratio of metal to metal and silicon of the upper layer is less than the lower layer.

The invention relates to a method for coating a substrate 40, a coating system for carrying out the method, and a coated body. In a first method step 62, the substrate 40 is to pretreated in a ion etching process. In a second method step 64, a first coating layer 56a with a thickness of 0.1 μm to 6 μm is deposited on the substrate 40 by means of a PVD process. In order to achieve a particularly high-quality and durable coating 50, the surface of the first coating layer 56a is treated by means of an ion etching process in a third method step 66, and an additional coating layer 56b with a thickness of 0.1 μm to 6 μm is deposited on the first coating layer 56a by means of a PVD process in a fourth method step 68. The coated body comprises at least two coating layers 56a, 56b, 56c, 56d with a thickness of 0.1 μm to 6 μm on a substrate 40, wherein an interface region formed by ion etching is arranged between the coating layers 56a, 56b, 56c, 56d.

A coated cutting tool has a substrate and a coating layer. At least one layer of the coating layer is a coarse grain layer with an average layer thickness of 0.2 to 10 μm and an average grain diameter in excess of 200 nm measured at the direction parallel to the interface of the coating layer. A composition of the layer is represented by (Al.sub.aTi.sub.bM.sub.c)X, wherein M represents at least one of Zr, Hf, V, Nb, Ta, Cr, Mo, W, Y, B and Si, X represents at least one of C, N and O, and a, b and c represents atomic ratios of Al, Ti and M relative to one another such that 0.30≦a≦0.65, 0.35≦0.70, 0≦c≦0.20 and a+b+c=1.

A surface-coated cutting tool has a hard coating layer and a tool body, which is coated with a lower layer including a TiCN layer having at least an NaCl type face-centered cubic crystal structure and an upper layer formed of a TiAlCN layer having a single phase crystal structure of NaCl type face-centered cubic crystals or a mixed phase crystal structure of NaCl type face-centered cubic crystals and hexagonal crystals. The tool body is further coated with an outermost surface layer including an Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer, when the layer of a complex nitride or complex carbonitride of Ti and Al is expressed by the composition formula: (Ti.sub.1-xAl.sub.x)(C.sub.yN.sub.1-y), the average amount Xave of Al in Ti and Al and the average amount Yave of C in C and N (both Xave and Yave are atomic ratios) respectively satisfy 0.60≦Xave≦0.95 and 0≦Yave≦0.005.

Coated cutting implements having increased longevity, corrosion and stain resistance, a smooth and uniform appearance and color, and/or reduced friction between cutting blades are provided. The coatings on the cutting implements have at least two layers. The first layer is a metal-based layer that imparts hardness or wear-resistance to the cutting implement. The second layer is comprised of an organic polymer.

A coated member, an electronic device, and a method for manufacturing the coated member are provided. The coated member comprises a substrate, a color layer formed on a surface of the substrate, and an interference layer formed on a surface of the color layer. A coordinate L* corresponding to a color space presented by the color layer in a CIE LAB color system is within a preset range. When the coordinates of L* are within the preset range, the color of the coated member may be the same or may be different from the color of the color layer. Light passes through the interference layer and then enters the color layer. The color layer reflects and refracts the light. The reflected light enters the interference layer. The interference layer interferes with the reflected light, so that the coated member appears to be a target color.

An electronic device such as a wristwatch may include a conductive housing. A corrosion-resistant coating may be deposited on the conductive housing. The coating may include transition layers and an uppermost alloy layer. The transition layers may include a chromium seed layer on the conductive housing and a chromium nitride layer on the chromium seed layer. The uppermost alloy layer may include TiCrCN or other alloys and may provide the coating with desired optical reflection and absorption characteristics. The transition layers may include a minimal number of coating defects, thereby eliminating potential sites at which visible defects could form when exposed to salt water. This may allow the electronic device to exhibit a desired color and to be submerged in salt water without producing undesirable visible defects on the conductive housing structures.

A coated tool may include a base member and a coating layer located on the base member. The coating layer may include a plurality of AlTi layers and a plurality of AlCr layers. The AlTi layers may include at least one kind selected from nitride, carbide or carbonitride, each including aluminum and titanium. The AlCr layers may include at least one kind selected from nitride, carbide or carbonitride, each including aluminum and chromium. The coating layer may include a laminate structure in which the AlTi layers and the AlCr layers are alternately laminated one upon another. The AlCr layers may include a first AlCr layer and a second AlCr layer located farther away from the base member than the first AlCr layer. A content ratio of chromium in the second AlCr layer may be higher than a content ratio of chromium in the first AlCr layer.