Cluster-Assembled Carbon Thin Films

Abstract

The supersonic cluster beam deposition (SCBD) of neutral carbon clusters produced in a pulsed microplasma cluster source (PMCS) is an effective technique for producing nanostructured carbon (nsC) thin films with controlled nanostructures. The use of carbon clusters as building blocks allows the synthesis of carbonaceous materials with structural properties that are determined not only by the characteristics of the clusters but also by their organization upon deposition. NsC films produced by SCBD/PMCS grow in a ballistic deposition regime where incoming particles land on the growing interface and do not diffuse significantly. This growth regime leads to remarkable statistical scale invariance of the evolving interface at which the carbon clusters aggregate in larger and larger superunits. Due to negligible stress accumulation during the low-energy deposition process, nsC films with thicknesses of between a few tens of nanometers and a few micrometers can be routinely deposited onto and will adhere to almost any kind of surface. This deposition approach enables the production of carbon thin films characterized by low density, high surface roughness, and high porosity, making them promising materials for use in the fabrication of devices such as electrolyte-gated transistors, supercapacitors, and photocatalytic systems for sustainable energy technologies.