ISO DIS 20523

Description / Abstract: This International Standard specifies a classification as well as designations and short names for carbon based films, in which carbon is the predominant constituent part, which may contain additional elements like hydrogen, metal elements or others and which are deposited by physical vapour deposition (PVD) or chemical vapour deposition (CVD) process. This includes amorphous carbon-based films, also called diamond-like carbon films (DLC) as well as CVD diamond films, graphite and polymer-like films. This International Standard is applicable to those films which are produced on an industrial scale. Additional carbon based films are under development.

This International Standard refers to the material of carbon based films. It does not refer to the entire coating that may consist of a main functional layer with additional layers below or on top. Additional layers must be taken into account for a full description of a coating.

A layer may change in composition and/or material property over its thickness. Such layers are called gradient layers. The definitions of this International Standard refer to non-gradient layers.

A carbon based film may include other elements like hydrogen, metal elements or others. Metal constituents may be included as metal carbides. Films with additional elements are only covered by this International Standard if carbon is the predominant constituent part. Carbon incorporated as carbide, as it may be present in metal-containing amorphous carbon films (a-C:Me, a-C:H:Me), does not count to this amount.

This International Standard does not cover the class of carbon materials like fullerenes, carbon nanotubes and graphene.