Advances in Doping Modification and Processing of Diamond-like Carbon Coatings: A Review

This review provides an overview of the fundamental properties and classification of diamond-like carbon (DLC) coatings, exploring how artificial intelligence (AI) can be leveraged to optimize coating performance in light of recent advancements. It then delves into a detailed discussion on the modification of DLC coatings through the doping of various elements, encompassing modifications ranging from tribological to biological to optical aspects. Furthermore, it consolidates and compares findings from prior research to illustrate the impact of different variables, such as the type of dopant elements, proportion of dopants, and doping methods, on DLC coatings. Finally, we summarize the preparation methods for DLC coatings based on the research papers of the last 10 years and outline their respective advantages and disadvantages.