PVD

PVD stands for physical vapor deposition, a family of vacuum-based coating processes used to deposit thin films on substrates. In PVD, material from a solid or liquid source is vaporized in a vacuum and transported as a vapor to the substrate, where it condenses into a film. Unlike chemical vapor deposition, deposition is not driven by gas‑phase chemical reactions.

The principal PVD methods are evaporation (thermal evaporation or electron-beam), sputtering (including magnetron sputtering), and arc evaporation. In evaporation, the source is heated until it vaporizes; in sputtering, energetic ions eject atoms from a target which then deposit on the substrate; in arc evaporation, a high‑current arc erodes the target to release material.

Materials used include metals, alloys, ceramics, nitrides, carbides, and oxides. Reactive PVD introduces reactive gases (for example nitrogen or oxygen) to form compounds during deposition. PVD can produce hard, wear-resistant coatings and optically transparent films.

Equipment consists of a vacuum chamber, a source (target) material, a substrate holder, and control of temperature and atmosphere. Substrates may be heated or cooled, and deposition occurs under vacuum or low-pressure inert environments.

Advantages include high-purity, dense coatings with strong adhesion and the ability to coat complex shapes; deposition often occurs at lower temperatures than some CVD processes. Limitations include slower deposition rates for thick films, equipment cost, and directional deposition.

Applications span cutting-tool coatings (e.g., hard nitrides), optical and decorative coatings, wear-resistant surfaces for aerospace and automotive components, and protective optical coatings.

Note that PVD may also refer to peripheral vascular disease in medical contexts.