In a surface-coated cutting tool, an A layer made of an (Al.sub.1-xTi.sub.x)N layer (0.35≦x≦0.6 by an atom ratio) and a B layer made of a (Al.sub.1-y-zTi.sub.ySi.sub.z)N layer (0.35≦y≦0.6 and 0.01≦z≦0.1 by an atom ratio) are layered on a surface of a tool body in which at least a cutting edge is made of a cBN sintered body. A layer thickness ratio of the A layer and the B layer (t.sub.B/t.sub.A) is 2 to 5, an X-ray diffraction intensity ratio I(200)/I(111) as the entire hard coating layer is more than 3 and 12 or less, a full width at half maximum of a peak of I(200) is 0.3 to 1.0, the I.sub.A(200)/I.sub.A(111) of the A layer is 2 to 10, and a full width at half maximum of the peak of the I.sub.A(200) is 0.3 to 1.0.

A protective coating layer, an electronic device including such a protective coating layer, and the methods of making the same are provided. The electronic device includes a substrate, a thin film circuit layer disposed over the substrate, and a protective coating layer disposed over the thin film circuit layer. The protective coating layer includes a first coating and a second coating disposed over the first coating. Each coating has a cross-plane thermal conductivity in a direction normal to a respective coating surface equal to or higher than 0.5 W/(m*K). The first coating and the second coating have different crystal or amorphous structures, different crystalline orientations, different compositions, or a combination thereof to provide different nanoindentation hardness. The first coating has a hardness lower than that of the second coating.

A cutting tool for machining titanium alloy or superalloy includes a Me-B-N coating. The Me-B-N coating is Me1-B-N; Me1 is one or more selected from transition metal elements Hf, V, Nb, Ta and Mo, and the atomic percentage of each element is: Me1: 8-40%, B: 15-60%, and N: 10-65%; and the Me-B-N coating includes Me1Nx phase and BN phase; or, the Me-B-N coating is Me1-Me2-B-N, Me1 is one or more selected from transition metal elements Hf, V, Nb, Ta and Mo; Me2 is one or more selected from transition metal elements Ti, Zr, Cr, and W; and the atomic percentage of each element is: Me1: 4-36%, Me2: 4-36%, B: 15-60%, and N: 10-65%; and the Me-B-N coating includes Me1Nx phase, Me2Nx phase and BN phase.

Methods, systems, and apparatuses for coating flexible substrates are provided. A coating system includes an unwinding module housing a feed reel capable of providing a continuous sheet of flexible material, a winding module housing a take-up reel capable of storing the continuous sheet of flexible material, and a processing module arranged downstream from the unwinding module. The processing module includes a plurality of sub-chambers arranged in sequence, each configured to perform one or more processing operations to the continuous sheet of flexible material. The processing module includes a coating drum capable of guiding the continuous sheet of flexible material past the plurality of sub-chambers along a travel direction. The sub-chambers are radially disposed about the coating drum and at least one of the sub-chambers includes a deposition module. The deposition module includes a pair of electron beam sources positioned side-by-side along a transverse direction perpendicular to the travel direction.

Provided is a transparent structure having improved wear resistance and flexibility, and a structure according to the present invention is a nanolayered structure in which a nitride nanofilm of one or more elements selected from metals and metalloids; and a boron nitride nanofilm are alternately layered.

A method for preparing a super-lubricative multi-layer composite fullerene-like carbon layer/graphene-like boron nitride thin film is provided. A substrate is ultrasonically cleaned in absolute ethyl alcohol and acetone sequentially for 15 min. The substrate is cleaned by argon plasma bombardment for 15 min. A fullerene-like carbon layer A having an onion-like structure is prepared by high-vacuum medium-frequency magnetron sputtering for 30 s. A graphene-like boron nitride layer B is prepared by high-vacuum medium-frequency magnetron sputtering and coating device to sputter the elemental boron target for 30 s. Steps (3) and (4) are repeated 80 times to overlay the fullerene-like carbon layer A and the graphene-like boron nitride layer B in an alternate way. The super-lubricative multi-layer composite fullerene-like carbon layer/graphene-like boron nitride thin film has a large load capacity, and excellent wear resistance, high temperature resistance and super lubrication.

A plumbing fixture having a multi-color appearance includes a first portion including a first finish having a first appearance and a second portion including a second portion having a second appearance that differs from the first appearance. The plumbing fixture further includes a transition region between the first portion and the second portion, wherein the appearance of the third region is graduated from the first appearance to the second appearance between a first end of the transition region adjacent the first portion and a second end of the transition region adjacent the second portion. The plumbing fixture has an ombré appearance as a result of the graduated transition between the first portion and the second portion.

A device of executing vacuum processing is provided with: a chamber including a single main chamber executing the vacuum processing and being capable of keeping the chamber as a whole in a depressurized state; a plurality of feeding rollers so arranged as to hang down a plurality of threads in the main chamber with keeping the threads from each other; a plurality of winding bobbins respectively winding the plurality of threads independently, the winding bobbins arranged in the chamber horizontally apart from the plurality of threads vertically hung down; and a plurality of movable arms being respectively movable in the chamber from a first position horizontally apart from the plurality of threads vertically hung down, via a second position in contact with any of the plurality of threads, to a third position to make the threads in contact be in contact with corresponding winding bobbins.

At least one layer in a coating located on a surface of a substrate is a domain structure layer constituted of two or more domains different in composition and a thin layer located between the domains and being different in composition from each of the domains. The thin layer is located between any one domain and any another domain and in contact therewith. When the size of each of a plurality of first domains present in the domain structure layer is defined as a diameter of a virtual circumcircle in contact with each first domain, the average value of the size of each first domain is not smaller than 1 nm and not greater than 10 nm and a thickness of the thin layer in a direction of thickness of the domain structure layer is not less than 1 atomic layer and not more than 10 atomic layers.

Processes for synthesizing the hexagonal polymorph of boron nitride (h-BN) produce h-BN of a grade that is highly suitable for ultraviolet (UV) field-emission lights and other UV applications.