The invention relates to a carbonitriding facility (IC) which includes: a heating chamber (CC), for heating at least one steel part (PA) to a first temperature, in the presence of a neutral gas and under a selected pressure; a first enriching chamber (CE1) for enriching the heated part with nitrogen, by nitriding same in α-phase at a second temperature no higher than the first temperature; a second enriching chamber (CE2) for enriching the nitrogen-enriched part with carbon, by carburising same at a third temperature higher than the second temperature; a quench chamber (CT) for quenching the nitrogen- and carbon-enriched part under pressure; a transfer airlock (ST) communicating with the chambers and suitable for temporarily receiving the part in a controlled atmosphere; and transfer means (MT) for transfer-ring the part from one chamber to another chamber via the transfer airlock (ST).

The invention relates to a carbonitriding facility (IC) which includes: a heating chamber (CC), for heating at least one steel part (PA) to a first temperature, in the presence of a neutral gas and under a selected pressure; a first enriching chamber (CE1) for enriching the heated part with nitrogen, by nitriding same in α-phase at a second temperature no higher than the first temperature; a second enriching chamber (CE2) for enriching the nitrogen-enriched part with carbon, by carburising same at a third temperature higher than the second temperature; a quench chamber (CT) for quenching the nitrogen- and carbon-enriched part under pressure; a transfer airlock (ST) communicating with the chambers and suitable for temporarily receiving the part in a controlled atmosphere; and transfer means (MT) for transfer-ring the part from one chamber to another chamber via the transfer airlock (ST).

Provided is a plasma etching method which enables etching with high accuracy while controlling and reducing surface roughness of a transition metal film. The etching is performed for the transition metal film, which is formed on a sample and contains a transition metal element, by a first step of isotropically generating a layer of transition metal oxide on a surface of the transition metal film while a temperature of the sample is maintained at 100° C. or lower, a second step of raising the temperature of the sample to a predetermined temperature of 150° C. or higher and 250° C. or lower while a complexation gas is supplied to the layer of transition metal oxide, a third step of subliming and removing a reactant generated by an reaction between the complexation gas and the transition metal oxide formed in the first step while the temperature of the sample is maintained at 150° C. or higher and 250° C. or lower, and a fourth step of cooling the sample.

An annealing separator for an oriented electrical steel sheet includes: a first component including a Mg oxide or a Mg hydroxide; and a second component including one kind among oxides and hydroxides of a metal selected from Al, Ti, Cu, Cr, Ni, Ca, Zn, Na, K, Mo, In, Sb, Ba, Bi, and Mn, or two or more kinds thereof.

An annealing separator for an oriented electrical steel sheet includes: a first component including a Mg oxide or a Mg hydroxide; and a second component including one kind among oxides and hydroxides of a metal selected from Al, Ti, Cu, Cr, Ni, Ca, Zn, Na, K, Mo, In, Sb, Ba, Bi, and Mn, or two or more kinds thereof.

The invention relates to a method for producing a sintered component comprising the steps: providing a metallic powder; filling the powder into a powder press; pressing the powder to form a green compact; removing the green compact from the powder press; sintering the green compact into a sintered component with pores; optional redensification of the sintered component; hardening of the sintered component, wherein the pores of the sintered component, prior to hardening at least in that region of the surface of the sintered component which is subjected to a hardening, are at least partially filled with a filling agent.

A method for vacuum heat treating Nb, such as is used in superconducting radio frequency cavities, to engineer the interstitial oxygen profile with depth into the surface to conveniently optimize the low-temperature rf surface resistance of the material. An example application is heating of 1.3 GHz accelerating structures between 250-400° C. to achieve a very high quality factor of 5×10.sup.10 at 2.0 K. With data supplied by secondary ion mass spectrometry measurements, application of oxide decomposition and oxygen diffusion theory was applied to quantify previously unknown parameters crucial in achieving the oxygen alloy concentration profiles required to optimize the rf surface resistance. RF measurements of vacuum heat treated Nb superconducting radio frequency cavities confirmed the minimized surface resistance (higher Q.sub.0) previously expected only from 800° C. diffusive alloying with nitrogen.

Metal components subject to wear or contact fatigue in a first area, and subject to bending, axial and/or torsional stress loading in a second area comprise a surface hardened, first surface layer in the first area, and a surface compressive-stress treated, second surface layer in the second area. The second surface layer has a material hardness different from, and typically lower than, the first surface layer, and induced residual compressive stress to improve fatigue strength. Example components described include a gear, a cog, a pinion, a rack, a splined shaft, a splined coupling, a torqueing tool and a nut driving tool. A hybrid manufacturing process is described, including area-selective surface hardening combined with a process to add compressive stress to fatigue failure prone areas.

A method for manufacturing a watch component is a method for manufacturing a watch component formed of austenitized ferritic stainless steel including a base formed of a ferrite phase and a surfacing layer formed of an austenitized phase in which the ferrite phase is austenitized, the method including a first processing step for forming a hole portion or a recessed portion at a base material formed of ferrite stainless steel, a heat treatment step for performing a nitrogen absorption treatment on the base material to form the surfacing layer at a surface side of the base, and a second processing step for cutting a surfacing layer corresponding to the hole portion or the recessed portion to form the watch component.

Development of different inorganic materials, having the capacity to generate visible colors when excited in the infrared region, which can be used to determine the origin of explosives, fuses and ammunition, even after detonation, and in weapons and metal projectiles, thus serving as a safety marking tool thereof. The following were developed: LaNbO.sub.4 (called Mark1), BiVO.sub.4, Sr.sub.3V.sub.2O.sub.8 and YNbO.sub.4 (called Mark2), doped with different rare earth ions (erbium, ytterbium, holmium and thulium). The markers were physically inserted inside the explosives and in the gunpowder and by carburizing and forging in steel or metal alloy, with which the weapon or metal projectile is manufactured. The parameter used to demonstrate the presence of the markers in the products, after detonation or scraping of the weapon, was the verification of the color identity of the marker fluorescence, before and after, via laser in the infrared region.