A new regime for high rate growth of nanocrystalline diamond films using high power and CH4/H2/N2/O2 plasma

C.J. Tang, I. Abe, A.J.S. Fernandes, M.A. Neto, L.P. Gu, S. Pereira, H. Ye, X.F. Jiang, J.L. Pinto

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

In this work, we report high growth rate of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films on silicon wafers of 2 inches in diameter using a new growth regime, which employs high power and CH4/H2/N2/O2 plasma using a 5 kW MPCVD system. This is distinct from the commonly used hydrogen-poor Ar/CH4 chemistries for NCD growth. Upon rising microwave power from 2000 W to 3200 W, the growth rate of the NCD films increases from 0.3 to 3.4 μm/h, namely one order of magnitude enhancement on the growth rate was achieved at high microwave power. The morphology, grain size, microstructure, orientation or texture, and crystalline quality of the NCD samples were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray diffraction, and micro-Raman spectroscopy. The combined effect of nitrogen addition, microwave power, and temperature on NCD growth is discussed from the point view of gas phase chemistry and surface reactions.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)304-309
Number of pages6
JournalDiamond and Related Materials
Volume20
Issue number3
Early online date18 Jan 2011
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2011

Keywords

  • CH/H /N/O plasma
  • high growth rate
  • high-power MPCVD
  • microwave power
  • nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films

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