Inhomogeneous structure in hydrogenated tetrahedral amorphous carbon thin films

摘要

The structure of hydrogenated tetrahedral amorphous carbon (ta-C:H) thin film was investigated by observing variations in film stress and mass density as a function of the film thickness. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy clearly shows an inhomogeneous microstructure that includes a region near the substrate/film interface with a higher density than the remainder of the film. It is postulated that surface charge accumulation of the insulating coating reduces the energy of the incoming ions. Lower-energy ion bombardment results in a ta-C:H film with both reduced stress and mass density. [S0163-1829(99)05520-4]. [References: 14]