Coating thickness measurements

Determining the actual thickness of coatings, surface treatments or diffusion layers requires a careful preparation by cross-section followed by observation and measurement by optical microscopy (as per standard ISO 1463) or electron microscopy (ISO 9220).

We perform thickness measurements of electroplating treatments, thin PVD/CVD layers, lacquers and varnishes, diffusion layers on pieces and items of any type.

This service is often combined with the identification of the nature of the coatings by analysis of their chemical composition. In the case of gold plating, determining the fineness of the gold coating requires a specific procedure.

In some cases, the coating thickness is performed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) on broken sample (fractography).