  The deposition of nano-crystalline ZnS/diamond composite protective coatings
on silicon, sapphire, and ZnS substrates, as a preliminary step to coating
infrared transparent ZnS substrates from powder mixtures by the aerosol
deposition method is presented. Advantages of the aerosol deposition method
include the ability to form dense, nanocrystalline films up to hundreds of
microns thick at room temperature and at a high deposition rate on a variety of
substrates. Deposition is achieved by creating a pressure gradient that
accelerates micrometer-scale particles in an aerosol to high velocity.
  Upon impact with the target substrate the particles fracture and embed.
Continued deposition forms the thick compacted film. Deposition from an
aerosolized mixture of ZnS and diamond powders onto all targets results in
linear trend from apparent sputter erosion of the substrate at 100% diamond to
formation of a film with increasing fractions of ZnS. The crossover from
abrasion to film formation on sapphire occurs above about 50% ZnS and a mixture
of 90% ZnS and 10% diamond forms a well-adhered film of about 0.7 \mu m
thickness at a rate of 0.14 \mu m/min. Resulting films are characterized by
scanning electron microscopy, profilometry, infrared transmission spectroscopy,
and x-ray photoemission spectroscopy. These initial films mark progress toward
the future goal of coating ZnS substrates for abrasion resistance.
