A Comparison of Diamond-Like Carbon Films Properties Obtained by Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition and Electro-Deposition

Abstract

This paper compares the microstructure and electrochemical properties of the diamond-like carbon films obtained by two different deposition methods - microwave electron cyclotron resonance plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (MWECR-PECVD) techniques and electro-deposition – chosen for their low cost and capacity to produce films. The microstructure of the DLC films are investigated by Raman spectroscopy, FTIR spectroscopy, and electrochemical behavior is investigated by potentiodynamic and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). Raman spectroscopy indicates that all the films deposited by different techniques show amorphous structure and typical characteristic of DLC film. FTIR spectrum results indicate that these DLC films are a-C:H films. As a result of EIS, the DLC films made by different methods showed obviously different electrochemical characters. The obtained results show that the DLC films deposited using the PECVD methods provided the better results, presenting a high corrosion resistance , high adherence to substrate, and a denser and more uniform surface.