Growth of carbon thin film by low-energy mass-selected ion beam deposition

Low-energy mass-selected C+ ion beams have been used to deposit thin carbon films onto a Si(100) surface covered with a native oxide layer kept at various temperatures in an ultra-high vacuum (UHV) environment in order to find the optimum deposition conditions for the formation of diamond and diamond-like carbon (DLC) thin films. The deposited films were characterized by Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Diamond and DLC films were found to be produced for C+ ion energies between 80 and 120 eV at temperatures from room temperature to 200 degrees C. For the film grown with a C+ ion energy of 120 eV at room temperature, Raman spectroscopy showed clear evidence of diamond formation while XRD showed diamond crystal orientation with the (110) plane parallel to the silicon surface. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.