Stable secondary electron emission observations from chemical vapor deposited diamond

Abstract

High secondary electron emission (SEE) from chemical vapor deposited (CVD) diamond films (σ=14–48) has been reported previously. Effective negative electron affinity of the diamond surface due to hydrogen termination is believed to be responsible for these high yields. Typically the total secondary yield is unstable under continuous electron beam exposure due to desorption of the surface hydrogen but stable when exposed to electrons in a hydrogen environment. Recent observations of SEE from a CVD diamond film on Mo suggest that impurities on the diamond surface may lead to stable high secondary yields under continuous electron beam exposure without the use of hydrogen. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Auger electron spectroscopy (AES), and Raman spectroscopy were used to characterize the diamond surface as well as the bulk.