Diamond coatings chemically vapor deposited onto WC-Co cemented carbid
es by use of specially developed barrier underlayers are described. Pr
eliminary seeding the barrier underlayers with nano-grain diamond part
icles by laser ablation allows obtaining fine-grained and uniform diam
ond coatings. The diamond coatings obtained in this way have high adhe
sion to the cemented carbide substrate due to enhanced interaction bet
ween the underlayer, nano-grained diamond nuclei and gas phase employe
d in their plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition.