Plasma parameters of pulsed-dc discharges in methane used to deposit diamondlike carbon films

Abstract

Here we approximate the plasma kinetics responsible for diamondlike carbon (DLC) depositions that result from pulsed-dc discharges. The DLC films were deposited at room temperature by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) in a methane (CH4) atmosphere at 10 Pa. We compared the plasma characteristics of asymmetric bipolar pulsed-dc discharges at 100 kHz to those produced by a radio frequency (rf) source. The electrical discharges were monitored by a computer-controlled Langmuir probe operating in time-resolved mode. The acquisition system provided the intensity-voltage (I-V) characteristics with a time resolution of 1 μs. This facilitated the discussion of the variation in plasma parameters within a pulse cycle as a function of the pulse waveform and the peak voltage. The electron distribution was clearly divided into high- and low-energy Maxwellian populations of electrons (a bi-Maxwellian population) at the beginning of the negative voltage region of the pulse. We ascribe this to intense stochastic heating due to the rapid advancing of the sheath edge. The hot population had an electron temperature Tehot of over 10 eV and an initial low density nehot which decreased to zero. Cold electrons of temperature Tecold∼1 eV represented the majority of each discharge. The density of cold electrons necold showed a monotonic increase over time within the negative pulse, peaking at almost 7×1010 cm−3, corresponding to the cooling of the hot electrons. The plasma potential Vp of ∼30 V underwent a smooth increase during the pulse and fell at the end of the negative region. Different rates of CH4 conversion were calculated from the DLC deposition rate. These were explained in terms of the specific activation energy Ea and the conversion factor xdep associated with the plasma processes. The work deepens our understanding of the advantages of using pulsed power supplies for the PECVD of hard metallic and protective coatings for industrial applications (optics, biomedicine, and electronics).