Advanced Materials & Development - Coatings for demanding environments

Coatings for demanding environments

Techniques including chemical Vapor deposition (CVD), PVD and aerosol deposition are used to deposit coatings of a variety of materials for demanding environment applications. 

The thin film and surface engineering group specializes in advanced deposition techniques for the fabrication of functional materials and coatings across a range of substrates. Our capabilities encompass a comprehensive suite of vapor-phase deposition systems compatible with both research and scalable industrial processes. The breadth of our equipment enables exploration and development in the following areas:

•Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) – Used to fabricate high-purity, conformal coatings and thin films with precise control over composition, crystallinity, and thickness. This technique supports the synthesis of semiconductors, barrier layers, and advanced materials for energy and electronic applications. Expertise includes low-pressure CVD, plasma-enhanced CVD, and atomic layer deposition.

•Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD) – This system enables the deposition of metals, oxides, and nitrides using techniques such as thermal evaporation, sputtering, and electron-beam evaporation. PVD allows the formation of dense, adherent thin films with tailored microstructures suitable for optical, magnetic, and wear-resistant applications.

The system consists of two deposition modes in one station: Electron Beam Evaporation, and Magnetron Sputtering. These techniques can be used individually or in combination, allowing for sequential or hybrid coatings on a single sample. This flexibility makes the system ideal for advanced, multi-layered, or functionally graded coatings used in modern material engineering.

•Aerosol Deposition – A unique room-temperature process for forming dense ceramic and composite films directly from dry powders. This technique is particularly suited for coating temperature-sensitive substrates and developing functional coatings for energy storage, thermal barriers, and electronics. Emphasis is placed on understanding particle-substrate interaction and film densification mechanisms.

•Plasma Electrolytic Oxidation (PEO) -  Is an advanced surface treatment process used to produce ceramic-like oxide coatings on light metals such as aluminium, magnesium, and titanium. It significantly enhances surface properties including hardness, corrosion resistance, wear resistance, and thermal stability. The process involves immersing the metal component in an electrolyte solution and applying a high-voltage electrical current, which generates micro-arc discharges on the metal surface. These localized discharges produce intense heat, causing the metal surface to oxidize and form a hard, crystalline oxide layer that is strongly bonded to the substrate.

Applications:

•Biomedical implants (e.g. titanium implants with biocompatible surfaces)

•Aerospace parts (lightweight aluminium components with improved wear resistance)

•Automotive components (improving performance of lightweight metals)

•Energy systems (corrosion-resistant surfaces for harsh environments)

Thermo-electrical Ceramic materials

The ceramics lab currently encompasses a number of academic groups. Research projects are concerned with lead-free piezoelectric ceramics, high temperature ferroelectrics, energy storage dielectrics and the use of powder aerosol deposition (AD) as a method for the manufacture of both protective and functional ceramic coatings. Research also includes the microstructure-property relationships in functional ceramics, particularly thermoelectric materials for energy applications and microwave dielectric ceramics for communications applications. A common theme over a number of years has been the role and behaviour of grain boundaries and interfaces, and their impact on functional properties.

Academic groups: David Hall, Bob freer, Ge Wang, David Lewis

Composite and 2D materials

The Advanced materials and development platform also supports composite and 2D formulation work. 

Academic groups: Ian Kinloch, Mark Bissett, Christina Vallés