Electron affinity and Schottky barrier height of metal–diamond (100), (111), and (110) interfaces

Abstract

The electron emission properties of metal–diamond (100), (111), and (110) interfaces were characterized by means of UV photoemission spectroscopy (UPS) and field-emission measurements. Different surface cleaning procedures including annealing in ultrahigh vacuum (UHV) and rf plasma treatments were used before metal deposition. This resulted in diamond surfaces terminated by oxygen, hydrogen, or free of adsorbates. The electron affinity and Schottky barrier height of Zr or Co thin films were correlated by means of UPS. A negative electron affinity (NEA) was observed for Zr on any diamond surface. Co on diamond resulted in NEA characteristics except for oxygen-terminated surfaces. The lowest Schottky barrier heights were obtained for the clean diamond surfaces. Higher values were measured for H termination, and the highest values were obtained for O on diamond. For Zr, the Schottky barrier height ranged from 0.70 eV for the clean to 0.90 eV for the O-terminated diamond (100) surface. Values for Co ranged from 0.35 to 1.40 eV for clean- and O-covered (100) surfaces, respectively. The metal-induced NEA proved to be stable after exposure to air. For the oxygen-terminated diamond (100) surface a field-emission threshold of 79 V/μm was measured. Zr or Co deposition resulted in lower thresholds. Values as low as 20 V/μm were observed for Zr on the clean diamond (100) surface. Results for Zr or Co on H- or O-terminated surfaces were higher. H or O layers on diamond tend to cause an increase in the Schottky barrier height and the field-emission threshold field of Zr– and Co–diamond interfaces. The value of the electron affinity and Schottky barrier were correlated with work function and different initial surface preparation. The results were largely consistent with a model in which the vacuum level was related to the metal work function and the measured Schottky barrier.