Influence of plasma parameters on the growth and properties of magnetron sputtered CNx thin films

Carbon nitride CNx thin films were grown by unbalanced dc magnetron sputtering from a graphite target in a pure N-2 discharge, and with the substrate temperature T-s kept between 100 and 550 degrees C. A solenoid coil positioned in the vicinity of the substrate was used to support the magnetic field of the magnetron, so that the plasma could be increased near the substrate. By varying the coil current and gas pressure, the energy distribution and fluxes of N-2(+) ions and C neutrals could be varied independently of each other over a wide range. An array of Langmuir probes in the substrate position was used to monitor the radial ion flux distribution over the 75-mm-diam substrate, while the flux and energy distribution of neutrals was estimated through Monte Carlo simulations. The structure, surface roughness, and mechanical response of the films are found to be strongly dependent on the substrate temperature, and the fluxes and energies of the deposited particles. By controlling the process parameters, the film structure can thus be selected to be amorphous, graphite-like or fullerene-like. When depositing at 3 mTorr N-2 pressure, with T-s> 200 degrees C, a transition from a disordered graphite-like to a hard and elastic fullerene-like structure occurred when the ion flux was increased above similar to 0.5-1.0 mA/cm(2). The nitrogen-to-carbon concentration ratio in the films ranged from similar to 0.1 to 0.65, depending on substrate temperature and gas pressure. The nitrogen film concentration did, however, not change when varying the nitrogen ion-to-carbon atom flux ratios from similar to 1 to 20. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-8979(00)00413-8].