Effective target arrangement for detecting the properties of Ni doped diamond-like carbon by pulsed laser deposition

Abstract

In the current study, diamond-like carbon (DLC) was synthesized by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) in a vacuum at room temperature, focusing on Ni-dopant concentration and arrangement of Ni strips in both parallel and transverse positions. The morphology and structural properties of Ni-DLC films were analyzed by Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM) analysis, cross-section analysis, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), contact angle (CA), and nanoindentation test. AFM images exhibit the new shapes of Ni-DLC thin films, named conic and nano-mushroom particles. The Raman spectra of Ni-DLC films show that the calculated intensities D-line to G-line ratio experiences a decrease with increasing Ni dopants in the transverse arrangement while the parallel arrangement represents a different trend. The stoichiometry of Ni-DLC thin films has been reported from the cross-section of thin films. It is also observed from the measured CA that the hydrophilic properties of Ni-DLCs increase in the transverse arrangement. Low nickel content in diamond-like carbon matrix exhibited the dominance of diamond phase and good mechanical properties have been found.