A pretreatment process for enhanced diamond nucleation on smooth silicon substrates coated with hard carbon films

Abstract

Diamond nucleation on unscratched silicon substrates coated with thin films of hard carbon was investigated experimentally with a microwave plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition system. A new pretreatment process was used to enhance the nucleation of diamond. Relatively high diamond nucleation densities of ∼10⁸ cm⁻² were achieved by pretreating the carbon-coated silicon substrates with a methane-rich hydrogen plasma at a relatively low temperature for an hour. Scanning electron microscopy and laser Raman spectroscopy studies revealed that diamond nucleation occurred from nanometer-sized spherical particles of amorphous carbon produced during the pretreatment. The nanoparticles possessed a structure different from that of the original hard carbon film, with a broad non-diamond Raman peak centered at ∼1500 cm⁻¹, and a high etching resistance in pure hydrogen plasma. The high diamond nucleation density is attributed to the significant percentage of tetrahedrally bonded (sp³) atomic carbon configurations in the nanoparticles and the presence of sufficient high-surface free-energy sites on the pretreated surfaces.