The invention relates to a process for coating a substrate with electrically conductive materials, preferably aluminum, including a direct current source which is connected to an electrode disposed in a coating chamber which can be evacuated. The electrode is electrically connected to the target to be sputtered and the sputtered particles of which are deposited on the substrate, for example, a part made of a plastic material, and in this process, a process gas can be introduced into the coating chamber. The invention also comprises a device for the working of this process.
In known processes an aluminum layer is-directly sputtered onto the plastic substrate, e.g. polycarbonate, without an intermediate or adhesive layer.
This process has the disadvantage of limiting adhesive strength of the aluminum to a great extent. It turned out that when the coated substrates were further processed the layer peeled off.