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Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films
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Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films

A special issue of Coatings (ISSN 2079-6412). This special issue belongs to the section "Thin Films".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 December 2025 | Viewed by 6664

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Ana Maria Julieta Popescu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
National R&D Institute for Non-Ferrous and Rare Metals, 077145 Pantelimon, Romania
Interests: thin films; electrochemistry; corrosion
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

With the development of electrochemical technology, the preparation processes and applications of thin films have developed rapidly. The wear resistance and corrosion resistance of thin films are closely related to their microstructures. This Special Issue aims to explore optimal thin films that are appropriate for use in anticorrosive and tribological applications in the natural environment, including thin films synthesis, thin films deposition, predicting/modeling thin films with special corrosion resistance, structural analysis, characterization, corrosion and frictional behavior investigations, applications of thin films, etc. Full papers, review articles, and communications are all welcome.

In particular, the topics of interest include, but are not limited to

  • obtaining of thin films (TFs) and characterization;
  • applications of TFs;
  • electrochemical properties properties and microstructure of TFs;
  • predicting/modeling TF with special corrosion resistance.

Dr. Ana Maria Julieta Popescu
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • thin films
  • modeling and prediction
  • electrodeposition
  • corrosion
  • microstructure

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 1608 KiB  
Article
Antibacterial and Film Characteristics of Copper-Doped Diamond-like Carbon Films via Sputtering Using a Mixed Target of Copper and Graphite
by Kazuya Kanasugi, Takayoshi Nakajima and Kenji Hirakuri
Coatings 2025, 15(5), 559; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings15050559 (registering DOI) - 7 May 2025
Abstract
Copper-doped diamond-like carbon films (Cu-DLC) are effective antibacterial materials and are fabricated using different techniques. By controlling the ratio of the graphite and diamond structures as well as the hydrogen bonds, the biocompatibility, chemical stability, wear resistance, and high hardness of Cu-DLC can [...] Read more.
Copper-doped diamond-like carbon films (Cu-DLC) are effective antibacterial materials and are fabricated using different techniques. By controlling the ratio of the graphite and diamond structures as well as the hydrogen bonds, the biocompatibility, chemical stability, wear resistance, and high hardness of Cu-DLC can be regulated. In this study, three types of Cu-DLC films were deposited on SUS304 substrates using Ar-sputtering with mixed targets comprising different C/Cu ratios. The films’ structures, surface, and antibacterial properties were investigated using electron probe microanalysis, Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and ball-on-disk tests. The Cu concentration in the Cu-DLC films increased with an increase in its content in the target; however, no significant differences were observed in the Raman spectra. The surface composition, roughness, and dynamic friction coefficients were similar across all Cu-DLC films, which displayed smoothness and friction properties similar to those of standard DLC films without Cu. The antibacterial activity (R value) was evaluated as per ISO 22196. Although DLC films exhibited no antibacterial activity (R < 2), all the prepared Cu-DLC films displayed good antibacterial activity (R ≥ 2). The proposed deposition process facilitated Cu-DLC coating, thus promoting its use in the healthcare fields. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films)
12 pages, 6490 KiB  
Article
Research on the Correlation of Physical Properties Between NbN Superconducting Thin Films and Substrates
by Zeming Hu, Yang Pei, Qian Fan, Xianfeng Ni and Xing Gu
Coatings 2025, 15(5), 513; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings15050513 - 24 Apr 2025
Viewed by 270
Abstract
This paper investigates the relationship between the physical properties of NbN thin films and a series of different substrates/buffer layers used for the thin film growth. Substrates, including 4H-SiC, AlN/Si, AlN/sapphire, and annealed AlN/sapphire, were selected for NbN film deposition via DC magnetron [...] Read more.
This paper investigates the relationship between the physical properties of NbN thin films and a series of different substrates/buffer layers used for the thin film growth. Substrates, including 4H-SiC, AlN/Si, AlN/sapphire, and annealed AlN/sapphire, were selected for NbN film deposition via DC magnetron sputtering. Post-deposition annealing was also employed to study its impact on the films’ quality. Comprehensive characterizations were performed on NbN films, focusing on superconducting critical temperature (TC), transition width (ΔTC), crystalline quality, and surface roughness. The results demonstrate that the annealed NbN films grown on 4H-SiC substrates with the highest crystalline quality exhibit optimal crystalline quality, achieving a TC of 16.3 K. Experimental results reveal intrinsic correlations between the critical properties of NbN superconducting thin films and substrate structural characteristics; the impact of post-growth annealing on the TC is also studied. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films)
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15 pages, 2326 KiB  
Article
An Improved Fabrication Method for Van Der Pauw Mobility Measurement on GaN Epitaxy on Conductive and Non-Conductive Substrates
by Dan Qiao, Xianfeng Ni, Qian Fan and Xing Gu
Coatings 2025, 15(4), 491; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings15040491 - 20 Apr 2025
Viewed by 162
Abstract
A novel empirical method for fabricating Van der Pauw Hall test samples on GaN epitaxy is proposed and tested, which enables rapid preparation of Van der Pauw Hall test samples on both conductive and non-conductive substrates. Compared to traditional Van der Pauw Hall [...] Read more.
A novel empirical method for fabricating Van der Pauw Hall test samples on GaN epitaxy is proposed and tested, which enables rapid preparation of Van der Pauw Hall test samples on both conductive and non-conductive substrates. Compared to traditional Van der Pauw Hall sample preparation, this approach eliminates the need for annealing to form Ohmic contacts, thereby facilitating more accurate measurement of the resistivity, Hall coefficient, majority carrier concentration, and mobility in semiconductor wafers, which may be subject to change after high-temperature annealing. This method is based on the use of specialized plasma dry-etched patterns to form the Ohmic electrodes, which reduces the metal–semiconductor contact barrier, allowing the tunneling current to dominate and thus forming Ohmic contacts. In the validation experiments, three different substrate materials for GaN-epi—silicon, sapphire, and silicon carbide—were selected for the preparation of the Van der Pauw Hall test samples, followed by testing and analysis to confirm the accuracy of the new test method. The measurement results for the electron mobility and carrier concentration on the sapphire and silicon carbide substrate samples were verified via the contactless RF reflectance mapping method, with an average difference only 4.0% and 7.0%, respectively, and a minimum of only 0.53% and 1.8%. The proposed fabrication method features a relatively simple structure, enabling rapid preparation and avoiding the damage and errors caused by high-temperature annealing processes. It shows great potential for industrial application on precise carrier property measurements, especially for GaN-epi on a conductive substrate. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films)
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17 pages, 15977 KiB  
Article
CoCrFeMnNi High-Entropy Alloy Thin Films Electrodeposited on Aluminum Support
by Ana-Maria Julieta Popescu, Florina Branzoi, Marian Burada, Jose Calderon Moreno, Mihai Anastasescu, Ioana Anasiei, Mihai Tudor Olaru and Virgil Constantin
Coatings 2023, 13(6), 980; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings13060980 - 24 May 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2416
Abstract
We investigate the corrosion behavior on the microstructure of CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy thin film potentiodynamic alloys electrodeposited on aluminum support. Using electrolytes based on dimethyformamide (DMF), (HCON(CH₃)₂), dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO, (CH3)2SO), an acetonitrile (AN, CH3CN) organic system (4:1 vol. [...] Read more.
We investigate the corrosion behavior on the microstructure of CoCrFeMnNi high-entropy thin film potentiodynamic alloys electrodeposited on aluminum support. Using electrolytes based on dimethyformamide (DMF), (HCON(CH₃)₂), dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO, (CH3)2SO), an acetonitrile (AN, CH3CN) organic system (4:1 vol. ratio), LiClO4 in different concentrations and CoCl2, CrCl3 × 6H2O, FeCl2 × 4H2O, MnCl2 × 4H2O and NiCl2 × 6H2O in different conditions, the HEA components were co-deposited on an aluminum foil substrate. Using the CALPHAD method and the MatCalc PC software, the structure of the HEA system under study was investigated by calculating the characteristic kinetic and thermodynamic criteria. The influence of each metal from HEA inside the solid solution zone and over the formation of the solid solution phase were obtained from the ratio between the derived parameters. The electrochemical measurements, which demonstrate that on an aluminum support the HEA thin films have lower corrosion resistance, were performed at ambient temperature in an aerated artificial solution. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were used to investigate the microstructure of HEA thin films before and after corrosion in artificial seawater. This complex study demonstrates that the electrodeposition of HEA thin films on an aluminum support is more difficult and that the resistance to corrosion is much lower compared to that in the previous work on HEA deposits on a copper support. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films)
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21 pages, 7301 KiB  
Article
Influence of Heat Treatment on the Corrosion Behavior of Electrodeposited CoCrFeMnNi High-Entropy Alloy Thin Films
by Ana-Maria Julieta Popescu, Florina Branzoi, Marian Burada, Irina Atkinson, Ionut Constantin, Jose Calderon Moreno, Florin Miculescu, Dumitru Mitrica, Ioana-Cristina Badea, Mihai Tudor Olaru and Virgil Constantin
Coatings 2022, 12(8), 1108; https://doi.org/10.3390/coatings12081108 - 3 Aug 2022
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2834
Abstract
In this paper, we investigate what effects heat treatment can have on potentiodynamically electrodeposited high-entropy thin film (HEA) CoCrFeMnNi alloys. We focused our study on the corrosion resistance in synthetic seawater, corroborated with the structure and microstructure of these thin films. Thin films [...] Read more.
In this paper, we investigate what effects heat treatment can have on potentiodynamically electrodeposited high-entropy thin film (HEA) CoCrFeMnNi alloys. We focused our study on the corrosion resistance in synthetic seawater, corroborated with the structure and microstructure of these thin films. Thin films of HEA alloys were deposited on a copper foil substrate, using an electrolyte based on the organic system dimethyl-sulfoxide (DMSO-(CH3)2SO)-acetonitrile (AN-CH3CN) (in a volume ratio of 4:1), which contains LiClO4 as electrolyte support and chloride salts of CoCl2, CrCl3 × 6H2O, FeCl2 × 4H2O, MnCl2 × 4H2O and NiCl2 × 6H2O. Using MatCalc PC software, based on the CALPHAD method, the structure and characteristics of the HEA system were investigated, and thermodynamic and kinetic criteria were calculated. The modeling process generated in the body-centered-cubic (BCC) or face-centered-cubic (FCC) structures a series of optimal compositions that are appropriate to be used in anticorrosive and tribological applications in a marine environment. Electrochemical measurements were carried out in an aerated artificial seawater solution at ambient temperature. In the experimental media, HEA thin films proved to have good corrosion resistance and were even better than the copper substrate. Corrosion resistance was improved after heat treatment, as shown by polarization and EIS tests. The structure and microstructure of HEA thin films before and after corrosion in artificial seawater were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectrometry (EDS). The XRD data showed no significant changes in the structure of HEA heat-treated thin films after the corrosion in saline media. The data obtained by polarization and ESI are supported by results from SEM-EDS. This complex study reveals that, for HEA thin films, heat treatment leads to an increase in corrosion resistance. So, this finding suggests that thermal annealing is an appropriate method for improving the corrosion performance of HEA thin films. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Electrochemical Properties and Applications of Thin Films)
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