An external part of a timepiece has a substrate that includes a base layer and a surface layer, the surface layer including Ti or stainless steel; and a coating disposed on the substrate. The coating includes an outermost layer formed primarily of TiC defining an external surface, and an interior layer formed primarily of TiC positioned between the substrate and the outermost layer. An elastic modulus of the interior layer is greater than the elasticmodulus of the outermost layer.

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 decorative article has a substrate of which at least part of the surface is configured with Ti or stainless steel; and a coating made of primarily TiC and disposed on the substrate. The coating has at least a first region, and a second region disposed closer to the substrate than the first region. The elastic modulus of the second region is greater than the elastic modulus of the first region.

A method is for manufacturing a part including a support made of an electrically non-conductive material, the support being provided with at least one recess filled with an aesthetic element made of an electrically conductive material, and the aesthetic element forms a decoration on a side of the part that is intended to be visible. The method includes inlaying by pressing a preform intended to form the aesthetic element into the at least one recess of the support, and treating the surface of the aesthetic element. The at least one recess opens in one or more places onto a side of the part that is intended to be non-visible, to respectively form one or more contact points for carrying current across the aesthetic element during the surface treatment.

A method for depositing a decorative and/or functional layer on at least a portion of a surface of a finished or semi-finished article made of a non-conductive ceramic material, this deposition method includes the following operations: subjecting the at least a portion of the surface of the article to a carburising or nitriding treatment during which carbon, respectively nitrogen atoms, diffuse in the at least a portion of the surface of the article, then depositing, by galvanic growth of a metallic material, the decorative and/or functional layer on at least a portion of the surface of the article which has undergone the carburising or nitriding treatment.

A method for fabricating an external element or a timepiece dial from non-conductive material, by performing or repeating a basic cycle of making a base from a non-conductive, or ceramic, or glass. or sapphire substrate; dry coating the base with a first sacrificial protective metal layer; etching a decoration with an ultrashort pulse laser to a depth at least equal to the local thickness of the first layer; dry coating the decoration and the remaining part of the first layer with a second metal and/or coloured decorative treatment layer; chemically removing each first layer; and before or after chemical removal of each first layer, mechanically levelling on the upper level of the base the compound thus formed.

A method for fabricating a timepiece component made of conductive material includes: making a base from conductive material; coating the base with a first layer of sacrificial metal protection material; etching a recessed decoration mechanically or with a laser; coating the first recessed decoration and the remaining part of the first layer with a second metal and/or coloured decorative treatment layer; and removing each first sacrificial metal protection layer by chemical devices, to obtain a blank including a first decoration formed by the remaining part of the second layer.

A timepiece part includes a metallic luster portion which has a first region constituted of a first material including a nitride or carbide of Ti, a nitride or carbide of Cr, or a metallic material, a film-like second region constituted of a second material including a nitride or carbide of Ti, a nitride or carbide of Cr, or a metallic material, and a film-like third region which is provided between the first region and the second region and is constituted of a light transmissive material and which exhibits metallic luster and a tone film which is provided on the second region side of the metallic luster portion, is constituted of a multilayer film of a metallic oxide, and has a function of adjusting tone.

A device including a first portion made of a first material and a second portion made of a second material, the second part extends from one of faces of the first portion and is made of an amorphous material.

The present invention concerns a method for obtaining a finished or semi-finished zirconia-based article, the surface of the article having a metallic external appearance and non-zero surface electrical conductivity, wherein the method includes the steps of: taking at least one zirconia article, pre-shaped in its finished or semi-finished form; placing said article in a chamber in which a hydrogen and carbon/nitrogen gas mixture is heated; heating said article and the gas mixture using at least one resistive element traversed by an electric current to obtain dissociation of the hydrogen and carbon/nitrogen based gas molecules and an increase in the temperature of said article; keeping said article in the reactive atmosphere thus created to obtain diffusion of the carbon/nitrogen atoms in the external surface of said article.