The influence of annealing temperature and annealing time on the structure of coatings with the composition of Ti41Zr41Ni18 (at.%) was analyzed. The conditions for obtaining nanodispersed, single-phase quasicrystalline and 2/1 phase-approximant coatings have been determined. Detailed data about the structure of the films of the little-studied 2/1 approximant phase were collected, using XRD and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. By nanoindentation, a comparative study of mechanical properties was carried out with samples having different phase compositions. It was established that single-phase coatings of the 2/1 approximant phase are superior to quasi-crystalline ones in terms of hardness and Young's modulus. Coatings of the 2/1 approximant phase reach a hardness of H = 15.42 GPa, Young's modulus of E = 201 GPa at the ratio H/E = 0.077. This allows them to be considered as close to ultra-strong materials.

The results of structural and optical investigations of thin carbon films deposited from the mass-separated beam of accelerated C60 ions with energy of 5 keV are presented. The substrate temperature ranged from 100°C to 400°C. It was established that change of the TS from 100°C to 400°C leads to the consecutive formation of diamond-like carbon (DLC) films with amorphous state and superhard nanocomposites consisting nanographite structures (1-2 nm) surrounded by a diamond-like amorphous matrix. For amorphous films the band gap (Eg) was in the range of 1.2 - 1.4 eV. For nanocomposite films on optical absorption spectra, there are two energy components: one with a narrow Eg = 1 eV, which is associated with three-dimensional nanocrystals of graphite, and the other - with a wide optical gap (Eg =3,45-3,55 eV) that corresponds to the diamond-like amorphous matrix of nanocomposite. According to the results of scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) and tunnel spectroscopy (TS), the size of graphite nanocrystals is about 1-2 nm and an amorphous shell around the graphite nanocrystals had a thickness of about 1.5 nm. The graphite component had n-type conductivity and an amorphous component had p-type conductivity. The electrical conductivity of such semiconductor nanocomposite was 103 S/m that to 6 orders higher compared to the DLC film in the amorphous state.

The study of electronic and transport properties of amorphous and nanocomposite superhard carbon films deposited from the mass-separated beam of accelerated C60 ions with an energy of 5 keV onto a substrate with temperatures (Ts) ranging from 373 K to 773 K is present. The films demonstrate a transition from the amorphous state with sp2 2D clusters to nanocomposite one with 3D graphite nanocrystals at Ts ∼ 573 K. That is accompanied by the registration of two phases with optical gaps of 3.6 eV and <1 eV. The narrow optical gap (<1 eV) is shown to attribute to the graphite nanocrystals, and a wide one (3.6 eV) to the amorphous diamond-like matrix. Measurement of the electrical conductivity of films at low temperatures showed a gradual transition at Ts increasing from hopping conductivity with variable length of jump in amorphous films to the tunnel one with power-law dependence from temperature for the nanocomposite and further to the percolation conductivity at direct contact of graphite nanocrystals. The role of intergranular insulator at tunneling conductivity of nanocomposite is played by amorphous carbon matrix which has an electronic structure close to amorphous diamond.

The fullerite films with texture (110) were prepared by the condensation of C-60 molecules on KCl, LiF, and Si substrates. The hardness (H = 0,42 GPa) and Young's modulus (E = 14,1 GPa) of the fullerite films were determined by nanoindentation method at continuous scanning in depth. The results were compared with theoretical estimates of elastic modules and previous works on measurements of elastic characteristics and hardness of crystalline C-60.

The semiconductor materials with values of energy band gap in the range of 1-2 eV are the most suitable for manufacturing solar cells. These objects include some of the carbon allotropic modifications, as well as quantum dots on the surface of these materials, which use as the basis for the creation of new optoelectronic devices based on nanostructures. This paper presents the investigations of optical properties and structure of synthesized multilayer system diamond-like carbon film/carbon quantum dots/C(60)film (DLC/Qdots/C-60).

The results of optical investigations of ITO and C-60 thin films and diamondlike carbon (DLC) films as functional layers of photovoltaic converters are presented. The absorption spectra are calculated, and the optical band gap of ITO, C-60 and DLC films are determined, using experimentally obtained transmission and reflection spectra. The multilayer ITO/DLC/C-60/Ag system manifesting photovoltaic effect is synthesized.