A coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite is disclosed. The coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite has a structure in which algae-like transition metal-doped nickel phosphide nanosheets are deposited on coral-like tungsten oxide nanostructures grown vertically on a substrate. This structure allows the coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite to have a large surface area, which leads to a significant increase in the number of catalytic active sites, and ensures high conductivity and electrochemical stability of the coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite. Due to these advantages, the coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite has a low overpotential and superior hydrogen evolution reaction or oxygen evolution reaction efficiency when applied to a water splitting catalyst under alkaline conditions. Also disclosed are a method for preparing the coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite and a catalyst for electrochemical water splitting including the coral reef-like nickel phosphide-tungsten oxide nanocomposite.

A coated cutting tool includes a substrate and a hard film on coated on the substrate. The hard film contains a complex nitride of Al and Cr. The hard film includes aggregates of columnar grains grown on the substrate along the thickness of the film. The nitride has an Al content of 60 atom % or more, a Cr content of 10 atom % or more, and a total content of Al and Cr of 90 atom % or more relative to the total amount of metal and metalloid elements. The complex nitride has the highest peak intensity assigned to crystal plane (311) of an fcc structure in X-ray diffractometry. In the hard film, the ratio of an X-ray diffraction intensity of plane (311) to the intensities of the other planes is 1.30 or more. A method and a system are also provided for manufacturing the coated cutting tool by chemical vapor deposition.

A coated tool of the present disclosure is provided with a base member and a coating layer located on a surface of the base member. The coating layer includes a TiCNO layer and an Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer. The Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer is located in contact with the TiCNO layer at a position farther from the base member than the TiCNO layer is. The TiCNO layer includes a plurality of first protrusions that project toward the Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer, and a beam that extends in a direction intersecting a direction in which the first protrusions project, to connect the first protrusions. A cutting tool of the present disclosure is provided with: a holder extending from a first end toward a second end and including a pocket on a side of the first end; and the above-described coated tool located in the pocket.

Embodiments described and discussed herein provide methods for selectively depositing a metal oxides on a substrate. In one or more embodiments, methods for forming a metal oxide material includes positioning a substrate within a processing chamber, where the substrate has passivated and non-passivated surfaces, exposing the substrate to a first metal alkoxide precursor to selectively deposit a first metal oxide layer on or over the non-passivated surface, and exposing the substrate to a second metal alkoxide precursor to selectively deposit a second metal oxide layer on the first metal oxide layer. The method also includes sequentially repeating exposing the substrate to the first and second metal alkoxide precursors to produce a laminate film containing alternating layers of the first and second metal oxide layers. Each of the first and second metal alkoxide precursors contain different types of metals which are selected from titanium, zirconium, hafnium, aluminum, or lanthanum.

A coated tool of the present disclosure is provided with a base member and a coating layer located on a surface of the base member. The coating layer includes a TiCNO layer and an Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer. The Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer is located in contact with the TiCNO layer at a position farther from the base member than the TiCNO layer is. The TiCNO layer includes a first composite protrusion including a first protrusion that projects toward the Al.sub.2O.sub.3 layer and a second protrusion that projects from the first protrusion in a direction intersecting a direction in which the first protrusion projects. A cutting tool of the present disclosure is provided with: a holder extending from a first end toward a second end and including a pocket on a side of the first end; and the above-described coated tool located in the pocket.

A surface-coated cutting tool includes: a substrate including a rake face and a flank face; a first coating film that coats the rake face; and a second coating film that coats the flank face, wherein the first coating film includes a first composite nitride layer at a region d1 on the rake face, the second coating film includes a second composite nitride layer at a region d2 on the flank face, the first composite nitride layer includes Ti.sub.1-x1-y1Al.sub.x1Ta.sub.y1C.sub.α1N.sub.β1, the second composite nitride layer includes Ti.sub.1-x2-y2Al.sub.x2Ta.sub.y2C.sub.α2N.sub.β2.

Exemplary methods of coating a semiconductor component substrate may include submerging the semiconductor component substrate in an alkaline electrolyte. The alkaline electrolyte may include yttrium. The methods may include igniting a plasma at a surface of the semiconductor component substrate for a period of time less than or about 12 hours. The methods may include forming a yttrium-containing oxide on the semiconductor component substrate. A surface of the yttrium-containing oxide may be characterized by a yttrium incorporation of greater than or about 10 at. %.

An article includes a ceramic-based substrate and a barrier layer on the ceramic-based substrate. The barrier layer includes a matrix of barium-magnesium alumino-silicate or SiO.sub.2, a dispersion of silicon oxycarbide particles in the matrix, and a dispersion of particles, of the other of barium-magnesium alumino-silicate or SiO.sub.2, in the matrix.

A cutting tool incudes a substrate and a coating that coats a surface of the substrate, the coating including a multilayer structure layer composed of at least one layer A and at least one layer B alternately deposited from a side closer to the substrate toward a side closer to a surface, the layer A having an average composition of Al.sub.xCr.sub.(1-x)N, the layer B being composed of Ti.sub.yAl.sub.zSi.sub.(1-y-z)N, the layer A being composed of a domain region and a matrix region, the domain region having a composition ratio of Cr larger than that of Cr of the matrix region, wherein x has a range of 0.5≤x≤0.8, y has a range of 0.5≤y<0.71, z has a range of 0.29≤z<0.5, and 1−y−z has a range of 0<1−y−z≤0.1.

Layered dielectric materials for use in controlling dielectric strength in microelectronic devices, especially as they relate to electrophoretic and electrowetting applications. Specifically, a combination of a first atomic layer deposition (ALD) step, a sputtering step, and a second ALD step result in a layer that is chemically robust and nearly pinhole free. The dielectric layer may be disposed on the transparent common electrode of an electrophoretic display or covering the pixelated backplane electrodes, or both.