Effect of dielectric barrier discharge on semiconductor Si electrode surface

Electrode materials and shapes affected the discharge modes. Meanwhile, the discharge has influence upon electrode surface. In order to study the effect of discharge on semiconductor electrode, the experiments were carried out using single crystal Si wafer as high voltage electrode of atmospheric pressure dielectric barrier discharge in air. The effects of dielectric barrier discharge on Si electrode surface are analyzed by means of field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The results show that surface roughness and oxidation increase with discharge time, while surface nitridation is not observed on Si electrode surface. It is different from Cu electrode. The difference is due to different chemical reactions between electrode surface and air plasma but could also be ascribed to the different analysis techniques used.