| abstract |
On a machine element of a metallic material, for example, a piston or a piston rod (7, 7') for a shock absorber for a motor vehicle, with at least one hard-material coating deposited on the machine element, the hard-material coating essentially consists of an alloy of silicon and carbon, preferably of Si x C 1-x , x having a value of from 0 to 1. The deposition of the hard-material coating occurs on the cathode or the anode of a plasma CVD unit at a pressure of the gas or gas mixture in the deposition chamber (1) of between 10 -4 and 20 millibars. |