Characterization of diamond-like nanocomposite thin films grown by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition

Journal Article · Tue Jun 15 00:00:00 EDT 2010 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3415548· OSTI ID:21476331

Santra, T S; Liu, C H ^[1]; Bhattacharyya, T K ^[2]; Patel, P ^[3]; Barik, T K ^[4]

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1. Institute of Nanoengineering and Microsystems (NEMS), National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu, Taiwan 30043 (China)
2. Department of Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur 721302, West Bengal (India)
3. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, Urbana, Illinois 61801 (United States)
4. School of Applied Sciences, Haldia Institute of Technology, Haldia 721657, Purba Medinipur, West Bengal (India)

Diamond-like nanocomposite (DLN) thin films, comprising the networks of a-C:H and a-Si:O were deposited on pyrex glass or silicon substrate using gas precursors (e.g., hexamethyldisilane, hexamethyldisiloxane, hexamethyldisilazane, or their different combinations) mixed with argon gas, by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. Surface morphology of DLN films was analyzed by atomic force microscopy. High-resolution transmission electron microscopic result shows that the films contain nanoparticles within the amorphous structure. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to determine the structural change within the DLN films. The hardness and friction coefficient of the films were measured by nanoindentation and scratch test techniques, respectively. FTIR and XPS studies show the presence of C-C, C-H, Si-C, and Si-H bonds in the a-C:H and a-Si:O networks. Using Raman spectroscopy, we also found that the hardness of the DLN films varies with the intensity ratio I{sub D}/I{sub G}. Finally, we observed that the DLN films has a better performance compared to DLC, when it comes to properties like high hardness, high modulus of elasticity, low surface roughness and low friction coefficient. These characteristics are the critical components in microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and emerging nanoelectromechanical systems (NEMS).

• OSTI ID: 21476331
• Journal Information: Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 107, Issue 12; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.3415548; (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 0021-8979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
77 NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY
CARBON
CHEMICAL VAPOR DEPOSITION
COMPOSITE MATERIALS
ELASTICITY
FRICTION FACTOR
HARDNESS
INFRARED SPECTRA
MICROSTRUCTURE
NANOSTRUCTURES
ORGANIC SILICON COMPOUNDS
PLASMA
RAMAN SPECTROSCOPY
SEMICONDUCTOR MATERIALS
SILICON
SUBSTRATES
THIN FILMS
TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY
X-RAY PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY
CHEMICAL COATING
DEPOSITION
DIMENSIONLESS NUMBERS
ELECTRON MICROSCOPY
ELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY
ELEMENTS
FILMS
LASER SPECTROSCOPY
MATERIALS
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
MICROSCOPY
NONMETALS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PHOTOELECTRON SPECTROSCOPY
SEMIMETALS
SPECTRA
SPECTROSCOPY
SURFACE COATING