Plasma-assisted deposition of thin carbon films from methane and the influence of the plasma parameters and additional gases

Abstract

Carbon films in a thickness range between 10 and 100nm were deposited on silicon and glass substrates in an RF-plasma CVD reactor using methane as precursor. Various deposition parameters were changed, such as methane gas flow, plasma power, temperature and bias voltage of the substrate, and different gases were added to the deposition process (nitrogen, hydrogen, krypton). During deposition, an in-situ soft X-ray reflectivity measurement provided information about the growing film and controlled the thickness of the film. The resulting carbon films were characterized by grazing incidence X-ray reflectometry, Auger electron spectroscopy, infrared spectroscopy and spectral ellipsometry. The results showed that the carbon films were polymeric, with a smooth surface. In addition, the photoluminescence of the films was measured. In addition, some of the films showed strong photoluminescence.