Professor Papken Hovsepian has more than 30 years experience in the field of physical vapour deposition (PVD) and has carried out a pioneering work on the development of cathodic arc PVD technologies and systems leading to industrial implementation of the process. At present he is head of the Thin Films Research Centre.

His major field is development of industrial technologies for deposition of application tailored nanoscale multilayer/superlattice structured PVD coatings using magnetron sputtering and various other advanced deposition techniques. Some examples include wear and corrosion resistant coatings (CrN/NbN), high temperature oxidation resistant coatings (CrAlYN/CrN), tribological low friction coatings (TiAlCN/VCN and C/Cr).

Other fields of interest are coatings for decorative applications (Nb based), and duplex technologies combining plasma nitriding with PVD coatings. The superlattice coating family has found applications in the textile, paper, automotive, hydraulic and petrochemical industries, wood cutting, machining and protection of aerospace alloys, protection of surgical blades and others.

He has been principal investigator or co-investigator in a number of European Commission (EC), Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and industry-funded research projects with total budget over the past 10 years of £3.1m. His recent projects were

• FP6, EC funded project for development of nanoscale multilayer structured protective coatings on Gamma TiAl alloys used in aerospace industry, 25 partners, total budget €12.5m -Sheffield Hallam University part €1.1m
• EPSRC funded project 'Creation of a National Innovation Playground to Widen the Operational Envelope for Tribological PVD Coatings' in cooperation with Leeds and Sheffield Universities, total budget £2.3m, Sheffield Hallam University share £400k

Professor Hovsepian has published more than 150 scientific papers, been granted 11 patents, (three European and three USA) and three product patents, and contributed chapters to two books dedicated to the PVD field.

He is a member of the European Joint Committee on Plasma and Ion Surface Engineering representing the UK, a member of the Thin Film Division committee of the International Union for Vacuum Science, Technique and Applications (IUVSTA), committee member of the British Vacuum Society, and former committee member of the Ion and Plasma Surface Interactions Group, Institute of Physics, UK.

He is a board member of the recently established Sheffield Hallam University-Fraunhofer IST HIPIMS Research Centre.

He was awarded the R.F. Bunshah award by the American Vacuum Society in 2005 and the Innovation Award for PVD Coating Development on Cutting Tools by Yorkshire Forward Centre for Industrial Collaboration in 2006.