Influence of rf power on carbon nitride films prepared by rf magnetron sputtering

Jiang, Luidi, Fitzgerald, A.G. and Rose, M.J. (2000) Influence of rf power on carbon nitride films prepared by rf magnetron sputtering. Chu, Junhao, Liu, Pulin and Chang, Yong (eds.) 4th International Conference on Thin Film Physics and Applications, Shanghai, China. 08 - 11 May 2000. pp. 540-543 . (doi:10.1117/12.408317).

Abstract

Since (beta) -C3N4 has been predicted to be a superhard material with a higher hardness than diamond, many research groups have attempted to synthesize carbon nitride materials. We have prepared amorphous carbon nitride (a-C:N) films by rf magnetron sputtering of graphite with N2 as the sputter gas. In this investigation, a series of film samples have been deposited at different rf power. AFM images have shown that the higher the rf power, the bigger the cluster size on the films and the rougher the surface of the films. By analyzing the results of our XPS experiments, we have found that with the decrease of the rf power, not only the incorporated nitrogen but also the concentration of sp3-bonded nitrogen in the films increased. We believe this is because f lower rf power results in smaller carbon clusters on the surface of the films, leading to larger carbon surface area. A larger film surface area makes it easier for the nitrogen to bond with carbon.

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Contributors

Author: Luidi Jiang

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