There are provided: a sintered material having an excellent wear resistance even under a high speed cutting condition; a tool using the sintered material; and a method of producing the sintered material. The sintered material includes: a first particle group including a particle having a cubic rock-salt structure represented by Al.sub.(1-x)Cr.sub.xN (formula (1)) (where x satisfies 0.2≦x≦0.8); and a second particle group including a particle of at least one first compound selected from a group consisting of oxide and oxynitride of aluminum, zirconium, yttrium, magnesium, and hafnium.

Certain exemplary embodiments can provide a system, which can comprise an ultra-thin polymer ceramic composite separator. The ultra-thin polymer ceramic composite separator can comprise Li-ion conducting ceramic material. The ceramic composite separator has a columnar grained microstructure. The ultra-thin polymer ceramic composite separator can comprise a single or bi-layer combination of LiPON, LATP, garnets, lithium sulfides, or Li.sub.1+2xZr.sub.2−zCa(PO.sub.4).sub.3.

Electrochromic devices and methods may employ the addition of a defect-mitigating insulating layer which prevents electronically conducting layers and/or electrochromically active layers from contacting layers of the opposite polarity and creating a short circuit in regions where defects form. In some embodiments, an encapsulating layer is provided to encapsulate particles and prevent them from ejecting from the device stack and risking a short circuit when subsequent layers are deposited. The insulating layer may have an electronic resistivity of between about 1 and 10.sup.8 Ohm-cm. In some embodiments, the insulating layer contains one or more of the following metal oxides: aluminum oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, silicon aluminum oxide, cerium oxide, tungsten oxide, nickel tungsten oxide, and oxidized indium tin oxide. Carbides, nitrides, oxynitrides, and oxycarbides may also be used.

The invention relates to a method for producing a coated cutting tool in which a coating with at least one oxide layer is applied to a base layer by means of a PVD method. The method includes voltage-pulsed sputtering of at least one cathode metal selected from the group of aluminum, scandium, yttrium, silicon, zinc, titanium, zirconium, hafnium, chromium, niobium, and tantalum, as well as mixtures and alloys thereof in the presence of a reactive gas; and the depositing of at least one oxide layer formed by converting the reactive gas with the sputtered cathode metal onto the base body. The cathode metal includes at least aluminum. Dinitrogen oxide is used as the reactive gas. The at least one oxide layer is in the form of an oxide, mixed oxide, or oxide mixture of the at least one cathode metal.

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.

A layered coating for a sapphire component is described herein. The sapphire component comprises one or more layers of alumina adhered to the surface of a sapphire member. At least the first layer of alumina adheres to the surface of the sapphire member filling all defects in the surface forming a pristine new layer that also provides isolation from damage.

A coated article includes a substrate having a major surface, and an optical coating disposed on the major surface of the substrate. At least a portion of the optical coating includes a residual compressive stress of about 50 MPa or more. The coated article has strain-to-failure of about 0.5% or more as measured by a Ring-on-Ring Tensile Testing Procedure. The coated article has an average photopic transmission of about 80% or greater.

Light wave separation lattices and methods of formation are provided herein. In some embodiments, a light wave separation lattice includes a first layer having the formula RO.sub.XN.sub.Y, wherein the first layer has a first refractive index; and a second layer, different from the first layer, disposed atop the first layer, and having the formula R′O.sub.XN.sub.Y, wherein the second layer has a second refractive index different from the first refractive index, and wherein R and R′ are each one of a metal or a dielectric material. In some embodiments, a method of forming a light wave separation lattice includes depositing a first layer having a predetermined desired refractive index atop a substrate by a physical vapor deposition process; and depositing a second layer, different from the first layer, atop the first layer, wherein the second layer has a predetermined second refractive index different from the first refractive index.

The invention relates to an object having a coating arranged on at least one surface of the object, which comprises at least one antimicrobially active layer having an antimicrobial agent, wherein the agent comprises a copper (I) compound and/or a copper (II) compound.

A cathodic arc evaporation apparatus including a target which has a target surface including an active surface from where material can be evaporated in a cathodic arc process; a confinement surrounding an outer boarder of the target surface; an anode having an electron receiving surface, the anode encompassing at least one of the target and the confinement in at least one of a target plane and an axial distance in front of the active surface; and a magnetic guidance system adapted to provide a magnetic field at the target surface being essentially in parallel to at least an outer region of the target surface so that magnetic field lines are in parallel to the target surface or inclined to it in an acute angle α, whereat an active surface is defined in a surface area where magnetic field lines enter the target surface in an acute angle α≤45°.