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 structures, or different crystalline orientations, or different compositions, or a combination thereof to provide different nanoindentation hardness. The first coating has a hardness lower than that of the second coating.

There is provided a tool blade, comprising a backing strip particles of abrasive material and a binder layer of binding material which binds the abrasive particles along an edge of the backing strip, wherein the edge of the backing strip is pre-formed with teeth, on which the abrasive particles are bound by the binding material. A profiled cutting portion extends beyond the pre-formed teeth. The pre-formed teeth are shaped as generally triangular waves or are flattened at least partially along an upper edge on which the cutting portion is at least partially disposed. A method of making such a blade is also provided.

In a vanadium nitride film formed on a surface of a base material, a ratio V [at %]/N [at %] between a vanadium element concentration and a nitrogen element concentration in the film is 1.08 or more and a chlorine element concentration in the film is 1 at % or more and 5 at % or less.

A method of applying a multi-color finish to a plumbing fixture includes depositing a first coating on the plumbing fixture; selectively applying a masking material in a graduated fashion over at least a portion of the first coating to define a gradient from a first portion of the plumbing fixture that is substantially completely covered by the masking material to a second portion of the plumbing fixture that has substantially no masking material; depositing a second coating over the masking material; and removing the masking material from the plumbing fixture such that the plumbing fixture has a surface finish including a transition region representing a gradual transition between the first coating and the second coating.

A cutting tool includes a substrate and a hard layer, wherein the hard layer includes a first unit layer and a second unit layer being alternately layered in the hard layer, a thickness of the first unit layer is 2 to 100 nm, a thickness of the second unit layer is 2 to 100 nm, the first unit layer is composed of Ti.sub.aAl.sub.bB.sub.cN, the second unit layer is composed Ti.sub.dAl.sub.eB.sub.fN, an atomic ratio a satisfy 0.25≤a<0.45, an atomic ratio b satisfy 0.55≤b<0.75, an atomic ratio c satisfy 0<c≤0.1, a total of the atomic ratios a, b and c is 1, an atomic ratio d satisfy 0.35≤d<0.55, an atomic ratio e satisfy 0.45≤e<0.65, an atomic ratio f satisfy 0<f≤0.1, a total of the atomic ratios d, e and f is 1, the atomic ratios a and d satisfy 0.05≤d−a≤0.2, and the atomic ratios b and e satisfy 0.05≤b−e≤0.2.

Coating (210) deposited on a surface of a substrate (201) comprising a multi-layered film (216) consisting of a plurality of A-layers and a plurality of B-layers deposited alternating one on each other forming a A/B/A/B/A . . . architecture, the A-layers comprising aluminium chromium boron nitride and the B-layers comprising aluminium chromium nitride and not comprising boron, whereas the multi-layered film (216) comprises at least a first portion (216a) and a last portion (216c), wherein the average boron content in the first coating portion (216a) is higher than the average boron content in the last coating portion (216c), and both the first coating portion (216a) and the last coating portion (216c) exhibit inherent compressive stresses and wherein the inherent compressive stress in the first coating portion (216a) is lower than it in the last coating portion (216c).

In a vanadium nitride film formed on a surface of a base material, a ratio V [at %]/N [at %] between a vanadium element concentration and a nitrogen element concentration in the film is 1.08 or more and a chlorine element concentration in the film is 1 at % or more and 5 at % or less.

Provided is a coated cutting tool having a base material side single layer portion and a laminated portion provided as a hard coating in order from a base material side. The base material side single layer portion is formed of a nitride-based hard coating in which a proportion of Al is highest among metal (including metalloid) elements, a sum of Al and Cr in a content ratio (atomic ratio) is 0.9 or more, and at least B is contained. In the laminated portion, a nitride-based a layer in which a proportion of Ti is highest among metal (including metalloid) elements and at least B is contained, and a nitride-based b layer in which a proportion of Al is highest among metal (including metalloid) elements and at least Cr and B are contained are alternately laminated.

A cutting tool comprising a base material and a coating, wherein the coating includes a first layer having a multilayer structure in which a first unit layer and a second unit layer are alternately stacked; a thickness of the first unit layer is 2 to 50 nm; a thickness of the second unit layer is 2 to 50 nm; a thickness of the first layer is 1.0 m or more and 20 m or less, the first unit layer is composed of Ti.sub.aAl.sub.bB.sub.cN, and the second unit layer is composed of Ti.sub.dAl.sub.eB.sub.fN, wherein 0.49a0.70, 0.190.40, 0.10<c0.20, a+b+c=1.00, 0.39d0.60, 0.29e0.50, 0.10<f0.20, d+e+f=1.00, 0.05ad0.20, and 0.05eb0.20 are satisfied, and a percentage of the number of atoms of titanium to the total number of atoms of titanium, aluminum and boron is 45% or more in the first layer.

A coating comprising a bottom layer comprising a hard physical vapor deposition (PVD) coating applied to the end mill. The bottom layer has an edge-prep and polished top surface with reoriented cutting forces. The coating includes a top layer comprising a friction reducing coating applied to the top surface of the bottom layer to prevent or minimize titanium or titanium alloy adhesion to the end mill during milling operations of a metal object comprising the titanium or titanium alloy. The coating has a chemical composition which has inertness toward titanium or titanium alloy. A cutter tool and method are also provided.