LOW HYDROGEN CONTENT HYDROGENATED AMORPHOUS CARBON FILMS USING DIRECT CURRENT GLOW DISCHARGE PLASMA CVD

Abstract

We report on the growth of hydrogenated amorphous carbon (a-C:H) films, using a simple dc glow discharge plasma chemical vapor deposition method. A variety of complementary techniques were employed to analyze the properties of these films. a-C:H films having high fraction of tetrahedrally ( sp 3) bonded carbon atoms (~ 70%) and low hydrogen content (< 5at.%) were obtained. These films were characterized by a high optical bandgap ~ 2.7 eV, and refractive index (at 600nm) ~ 2.2. Growth of metastable diamond structure in a-C:H is attributed to energetic condensation of carbon containing ions in ( sp 3) configuration.