Structural reorientation and compaction of porous MoS2 coatings during wear testing

Industrial upscaling frequently results in a different coating microstructure than the laboratory prototypes presented literature. Here, we investigate wear behavior of physical vapor deposited (PVD) MoS2 coatings: A dense, nanocrystalline coating, and porous, prismatic-textured coating. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) investigations before after testing evidence crystallographic reorientation towards basal texture both samples. is usually desirable due to its low-friction properties. This favorable associated tribological compaction porous specimens. Following running-in, sliding under high contact pressure ultimately leads rate as small for an ideal grown bulk single crystal by chemical deposition (CVD). suggests that imperfections industrial grade coatings can be remediated suitable pretreatment.