Abstract

A capacitively coupled r.f. plasma beam source was applied for direct plasma beam deposition of thin carbon nitride (C x N y ) layers. For N 2-Ar mixtures and pure N 2 as working gases and by sputter injection of carbon into the source plasma, mixed plasma beams containing N 2 +, N +, Ar + ions and post-ionized C + are obtained. The CN films were deposited on Si(100) substrates with an ion energy of 100 eV in the electrically neutral plasma beam. A distinct influence of the nitrogen fraction in the working gas on both the growth rate and the film composition was found. Nitrogen concentrations in the films up to 41 at.% are achieved. IR spectra of the deposited films corroborate that nitrogen is chemically bonded to carbon in the C-N network. The formation of small β-C 3N 4 agglomerates under specific deposition conditions is surmised by several results from scanning tunnelling microscopy imaging, ellipsometric studies and hardness measurements.

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