An article protected by a protective coating has a substrate and a protective coating having an outer layer deposited upon the substrate surface and a diffusion zone formed by interdiffusion of the outer layer and the substrate. In a preferred embodiment, a collar of programmable logic is inserted between the functional component on the hybrid die and its IO terminals. The honeycomb body is extruded with an extrusion die in such a way that an additional relative movement between the honeycomb body and the extrusion die takes place, leading to a deformation of the wall regions of the passages. If the unit balance is sufficient to cover the preauthorization amount, the presentation instrument is authorized for the transaction.