Abstract
The role of the tungsten filament in the growth of polycrystalline diamond films by filament-assisted CVD of hydrocarbons was investigated. Besides the well known phenomenon of catalytic dissociation of molecular hydrogen on a hot W-filament, we found that the filament undergoes carburization and converts into α-W 2C. The kinetics of this carburization process and its effects on the nucleation of the diamond films can be investigated by studying the resistance of the filament during the carburization stage. The carburized filament was found to be a better electron emitter. This together with the fact that electron bombardment of the substrate leads to higher nucleation rate suggests that an α-W 2C filament will lead to more efficient growth of diamond thin films.
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