Investigation of Morphology Changes on Nanocrystalline Diamond Film Surfaces during Reciprocating Sliding against Si3N4 Balls

This paper investigates the morphological modifications of the nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) film surface under reciprocating sliding test conditions. The surface morphology was characterized by atomic force microscopy (AFM). We observed longitudinal grooves and transverse ripples which were formed during the sliding tests on the NCD film surface. The primary goal of the study was to understand the influence of frequency, sliding distance and load variations on the formation of ripple patterns on the wear scars surface. The morphological alteration from continuous to broken ripple shapes was observed. Our study suggests that the geometrical shape of ripples is affected by the formation of the periodic array of grooves.