Vapor deposited coatings onto strip steel are a promising alternative as functional layers for corrosion protection or high abrasion resistance.Conventional coating systems have some limits regarding environmental compatibility,the range of coating materials and application properties. Physical vapor deposition(PVD) is an environment-friendly technology and enables nearly unlimited material and process variety.Electron beam high-rate evaporation with deposition rates up to some micrometers per second is the most productive PVD technology for low cost coating.The combination of evaporation with powerful plasma is an efficient way to improve the layer properties.The developed plasma sources can be used for special plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition(PECVD) processes too. The paper gives an overview about the latest developments in these technologies.Furthermore,the paper explains some examples of new layer stacks onto steel strips.While enhanced corrosion protection can be obtained by magnesium,aluminium or copper containing coatings other functional surface properties come more and more in the focus of interest.For instance,decorative gold colored layers,transparent scratch resistant layers,hard coatings and photo catalytic layers were deposited on running steel strips.Functional layers and layer systems for energy saving and sun energy absorption by solar thermal effects and photo voltaics are under development.The coatings are prepared under the conditions of very high deposition rates using our in-line vacuum coater for metallic strips and sheets with the name MAXI.The influence of the process and plasma parameters on the layer properties were investigated and will be demonstrated for some applications. Vapor deposited coatings coatings onto strip steel are a promising alternative as functional layers for corrosion protection or high abrasion resistance. Conventional coating systems have some limits regarding environmental compatibility, the range of coating materials and application properties. Physical vapor deposition (PVD) is an environment- friendly technology and allows nearly unlimited material and process variety. Electron beam high-rate evaporation with deposition rates up to some micrometers per second is the most productive PVD technology for low cost coating. combination of evaporation with powerful plasma is an efficient way to improve the layer properties. developed plasma sources can be used for special plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) processes too. The paper gives an overview about the latest developments in these technologies. Future, the paper explains some examples of new layer stacks onto steel strips.While enhanced corrosion protection can be obtained by magnesium, aluminum or copper containing coatings other functional surface properties come more and more in the focus of interest. For instance, decorative gold colored layers, transparent scratch resistant layers, hard coatings and photo catalytic layers were deposited on running steel strips. Functional layers and layer systems for energy saving and sun energy absorption by solar thermal effects and photo voltaics are under development. coatings are prepared under the conditions of very high deposition rates using our in-line vacuum coater for metallic strips and sheets with the name MAXI. The influence of the process and plasma parameters on the layer properties were investigated and will be demonstrated for some applications.