Deposition of diamond-like carbon (DLC) films using hydrocarbon plasmas

Summary form only given, as follows. The structure-property relationships of two differently processed hydrogenated amorphous carbon thin films (a-C:H) and their application as protective overcoats for thin film magnetic media have been studied. The films were deposited by a reactive sputtering system and the plasma source ion implantation (PSII) techniques. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RES) and forward recoil energy spectrometry (FRES) results showed all film compositions to be in the following carbon, hydrogen and oxygen atomic percent ranges 40<[C]<50, 40<[H]<50 and 2<[O]. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) results validated the amorphous nature of the films. Laser Raman spectroscopy and parallel detection electron energy-loss spectroscopy (PEELS) demonstrated that the films were a mixture of sp/sup 2/ and sp/sup 3/ bonded carbon. Scanning Auger microscopy (SAM) revealed an indication of carbide formation in the biased film. Optical, hardness, and adhesion qualities of the films compared well with those reported in literature. Pin-on-disk and thin film head-on-disk tests were performed to study the tribological characteristics of the films. For the sputtered films a correlation was found between Raman spectroscopy results and carbon durability. A methodology for classification of a-C:H films by their composition, structure as well as their optical and mechanical properties will be presented.