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This article describes observation of n-type conductivity for chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond films annealed by using 4-MeV Si2+ ion-beam irradiation at a low temperature of 660 °C. Although CVD diamond films grown on the High-Pressure High-Temperature (HPHT) Ib-substrates showed excellent crystallinity, these films were unintentionally auto-doped with highly concentrated N atoms. At first, n-type conductivity had not been judged for the as-grown state. However, after irradiation by 4-MeV Si2+ ions at 660 °C, the grown diamond film exhibited clear and stable n-type conductivity at a relatively low temperature of 250 °C. This fact was ascertained by measuring the electrical conductivity with a Hall effect apparatus. The as-purchased HPHT Ib-substrate after a normal RCA cleaning processes exhibited evident n-type conductivity at above 300 °C due to intrinsically contained dopant N atoms in the substrate. On the other hand, the as-grown CVD film deposited on the Ib-substrate exhibited evident n-type conductivity at a thoroughly lower temperature of 250 °C after 4-MeV Si2+ irradiation. 250 °C temperature is lower than 300 °C for the as-purchased HPHT Ib-substrate. Theoretical simulations were performed to fit Hall-measured data of sheet resistivity and sheet carrier concentration. The simulation results were based on the charge neutrality principles. The author also proposed novel activation energy of N atoms in diamond semiconductors to be 2.5 eV, which is much larger than formerly reported values of 1.4–1.7 eV. Lastly, the author discussed the possibility of MeV-ion irradiations being as novel and useful annealing technology for heavy type-n-dopants ion implantations into diamond semiconductors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The morphology and crystalline quality of polycrystalline diamond samples were studied by systematically varying the flowrate of nitrogen gas in the microwave plasma. A slight improvement in both crystallite size and crystalline quality is observed for a low concentration of 0.5 sccm nitrogen. With a further increase in nitrogen concentration, diamond switches from micro-crystalline to nanocrystalline (NCD) with a nitrogen flow of 2.5 sccm (10% of methane concentration). The surface roughness of the sample is found to depend strongly on the crystallite size of the sample. Extensive spectroscopic studies have been done to understand the presence and formation of different defect complexes in diamond. XPS and Raman analysis of the films reveal the variation of graphitic content as a function of nitrogen addition. The presence of nitrogen-containing defect complexes has been studied thoroughly and their concentration has been found to be limited by the solubility limit rather than the availability of reactants in the gas environment. In contrast, the effect these complexes have on the strain of the diamond film is found to be negligible. Optical emission spectroscopy of the plasma reveals the presence of C2 dimers as well as C-N radicals. However, they have little role in modifying diamond grain morphology or crystalline quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the miniaturization of electronic devices, thermal management has become a critical challenge, especially for high-power systems where efficient heat dissipation is essential. Polycrystalline diamond films, renowned for their exceptional thermal conductivity, offer a promising solution. However, the thermal boundary resistance (TBR) at the diamond/substrate interface remains a significant bottleneck, severely impacting heat dissipation efficiency. This study presents a measurement approach tailored for quantifying TBR in thick-film diamond heterostructures, focusing on diamond-on-silicon (Diamond-on-Si) systems with a silicon nitride barrier layer. Compared to conventional methods, such as transient thermoreflectance techniques, which often exhibit limited sensitivity for thick layers, this approach demonstrates greater reliability and applicability. The findings establish a foundation for advancing strategies to reduce TBR and improve the thermal management performance of diamond films in high-power electronic applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of diamond technology, its application in the field of electronics has become a new research hotspot. Hydrogen-terminated diamond has the electrical properties of P-type conduction due to the formation of two-dimensional hole gas (2DHG) on its surface. However, due to various scattering mechanisms on the surface, its carrier mobility is limited to 50–200 cm2/(Vs). In this paper, the effects of process parameters (temperature, CH4 concentration, time) on the electrical properties of hydrogen-terminated diamond were studied by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technology, and hydrogen-terminated diamond with a high carrier mobility was obtained. The results show that homoepitaxial growth of a diamond film on a diamond substrate can improve the carrier mobility. Hydrogen-terminated diamond with a high carrier mobility and low sheet resistance can be obtained by homoepitaxial growth of a high-quality diamond film on a diamond substrate with 4% CH4 concentration and hydrogen plasma treatment at 900 ℃ for 30 min. When the carrier concentration is 2.03 × 1012/cm2, the carrier mobility is 395 cm2/(Vs), and the sheet resistance is 7.82 kΩ/square, which greatly improves the electrical properties of hydrogen-terminated diamond. It can enhance the transmission characteristics of carriers in the conductive channel, and is expected to become a potential material for application in devices, providing a material choice for its application in the field of semiconductor devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Telecommunication of the next generation demands filters that can operate in the 10 GHz range with sufficient bandwidths. For surface-acoustic-wave (SAW) devices this prerequisite translates into high sound velocities and high piezoelectric couplings. Wurtzite AlN on diamond, which exploits the strong piezoelectricity of AlN with the very high SAW velocity of diamond, has been considered a promising platform. A significant boost (up to a factor of 4) of the piezoelectric response can be obtained by alloying AlN with Sc. Here, the main challenge lies in the synthesis of highly-oriented thin (Sc,Al)N films on diamond. In this work, we aim at establishing a platform for SAW devices using plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy for the deposition of Sc0.2Al0.8N on diamond. We investigate the structural properties related to SAW generation gearing towards applications at high frequencies. To this end, we prepare (Sc,Al)N thin films on polished polycrystalline diamond wafers and demonstrate the efficient generation of SAW modes with frequencies up to 8 GHz. Systematic studies of the dependence of the SAW velocity and electromechanical coupling coefficient on the Sc0.2Al0.8N film thickness is presented for various SAW modes. Our result demonstrates the potential of this material combination for future application that requires large bandwidth in the ultra-high frequency range. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this work, a nanoporous ultrananocrystalline diamond film (B-UNCDWS/TDNT/Ti) was obtained and compared with a commercial electrode in the degradation of methomyl, a recalcitrant pesticide. The morphological and structural differences between the materials were highlighted by SEM and XRD analysis: while the commercial electrode presented a regular and planar surface with microcrystalline grains, supported by XRD features, the B-UNCDWS/TDNT/Ti electrode presented a porous morphology with DRX features indicating a high film renucleation rate. Those differences affected the electrooxidation of methomyl; B-UNCDWS/TDNT/Ti was responsible for faster and more economic degradation of the pollutant, achieving a methomyl degradation of 78% (against 35% by the commercial electrode). The highly porous surface of UNCDWS/TDNT/Ti provides an electrochemical area threefold greater than the one found in the commercial electrode, justifying the better efficiency in the formation of persulfate, which can be singled out as the main mechanism in methomyl degradation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Integrating nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films on silicon chips has great practical significance and many potential applications, including high-power electronic devices, microelectromechanical systems, optoelectronic devices, and biosensors. In this study, we provide a solution for ensuring heterogeneous interface integration between silicon (Si) chips and NCD films using low-temperature bonding technology. This paper details the design and implementation of a magnetron sputtering layer on an NCD surface, as well as the materials and process for the connection layer of the integrated interface. The obtained NCD/Ti/Cu composite layer shows uniform island-like Cu nanostructures with 100~200 nm diameters, which could promote bonding between NCD and Si chips. Ultimately, a heterogeneous interface preparation of Si/Ag/Cu/Ti/NCD was achieved, with the integration temperature not exceeding 250 °C. The TEM analysis shows the closely packed atomic interface of the Cu NPs and deposited Ti/Cu layers, revealing the bonding mechanism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The electrochemical detection of two pharmaceuticals, diclofenac (DCF) and carbamazepine (CBZ), was investigated as an oxidation current using boron‐doped nanocrystalline diamond (BDD) thin‐film electrodes. Both voltammetry and flow injection analysis with amperometric detection (FIA‐EC) were used to measure the drugs in standard solutions and a urine simulant. The oxidation potential for DCF was ca. 0.7 V vs. Ag/AgCl (3 M KCl) in 0.1 M phosphate buffer (pH 7.2) and was ca. 1.2 V for CBZ in 0.1 M perchloric acid. The DCF oxidation reaction was diffusion controlled at the detection potential with evidence of some surface fouling by reaction products. The CBZ oxidation reaction was also controlled by diffusion at the detection potential, but with no surface fouling. The voltammetric peak currents for both drugs increased linearly with the concentration in the micromolar range (r2≥0.994). FIA‐EC analysis of DCF and CBZ revealed a linear dynamic range from at least 0.1 to 100 μM with the actual minimum concentration detectable (S/N=3) being less than the lowest concentration measured. The recovery percentage for DCF in the urine simulant ranged from 94–108% and from 97–100% for CBZ, both assessed using square wave voltammetry. FIA‐EC data revealed that the BDD electrodes offer excellent intra and inter‐electrode repeatability with an RSD for DCF and CBZ of 4.90% and 3.81%, respectively. The BDD electrode provided good reproducibility and response stability over eight days of continuous use detecting both DCF and CBZ. Overall, BDD electrodes are a viable material for the sensitive, selective, and reproducible electrochemical detection of these two pharmaceuticals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The growth of diamond film with texture on stainless steel can significantly improve its wear properties, while conventional methods such as laser etching and ultrasonic vibration superimposed machining suffered from complex processes and extra equipment. Here, we propose a simple new method to prepare textured diamond film on stainless steel without any special apparatus. In this method, a W/W-N interlayer was first deposited on the stainless steel surface, and then the sample with the interlayer was put into a hot filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) chamber to grow diamond films. The interlayer becomes cracked during the warm-up stage due to the large tensile stress formed by the thermal expansion coefficient difference between the interlayer and the steel. Then the deposited diamond films copy the morphology of the interlayer, forming the textured diamond film. The textured diamond film exhibits a small amount of stress, ~3.4 GPa, and greatly improved wear resistance. Our results provide a way to prepare textured diamond films with good wear resistance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To minimize the detrimental effects of cobalt binder on the thermal stability of polycrystalline diamond compact (PDC) under high temperature working conditions and enhance the PDC's properties. Hot filament chemical vapor deposition diamond coated polycrystalline diamond compact (HFCVD-PDC) was prepared by depositing homogeneous epitaxial diamond film on the polycrystalline diamond layer (PCD layer) treated with cobalt binder removal. The effect of deposition pressure on the microstructure of the diamond film was investigated, and the PDC's wear resistance was assessed using the abrasion ratio test. The drop hammer impact test was utilized to evaluate the impact toughness of the original PDC, cobalt removal PDC, and HFCVD-PDC. The results showed that a continuous and dense nanodiamond film with a cauliflower-like structure was formed on the PDC surface at the deposition pressure of 3 kPa. The abrasion ratio of the HFCVD-PDC increased by 67.44% compared to the original PDC, and by 33.29% compared to the cobalt removal PDC. Furthermore, filling nanodiamonds into the pores of cobalt removal PDC improved its impact toughness. These findings suggest that the application of homogeneous epitaxial diamond on the PCD layer can significantly improve the PDC's wear resistance and impact toughness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The advent of the new 5G communication standard has introduced demanding requirements for the performance of RF front-end filters, necessitating high frequency, large bandwidth, and other improved parameters. Consequently, researchers have been actively investigating the potential of surface acoustic wave resonators and film bulk acoustic resonators to address these needs, leading to the development of numerous novel structures. Through finite element simulation, a new heterogeneous stack structure Al/LN/diamond/Si with an interdigitated electrode resonant cavity is proposed. And the advantageous role of a diamond thin film in the surface acoustic wave resonant structure, including the excitation of high-frequency acoustic resonance modes and modulation of the electromechanical coupling coefficient has been studied. This structure holds promise for addressing the increasing demands for high-frequency, large-bandwidth RF front-end filters in the context of the new 5G communication standard. The results show that the central resonant frequency of the new structure resonator is 5284 MHz, the electromechanical coupling coefficient is 10.96%, and the Q factor value is 10 316, which has potential application value in the field of high-frequency filtering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For the wafer-scale fabrication of diamond devices, the growth of diamond substrates by heteroepitaxial chemical vapor deposition is the most promising option currently available. However, the transfer of growth and also structuring processes from small homoepitaxial to larger heteroepitaxial samples is not straightforward and requires adaptation. In this study, we present an approach for the fabrication of functional microstructures including pyramids and mesas as well as more complex structures with hollow centers. The associated methods were previously demonstrated by homoepitaxial growth and are now evaluated on heteroepitaxially grown diamond films. After optimizing the growth procedures to ensure a sufficient quality of the bare diamond substrates, precursor structures for overgrowth were fabricated by e-beam lithography and plasma etching. In the overgrowth of nanopillars, a truncated pyramidal shape was achieved. The characterization with scanning electron microscopy revealed the growth of higher-index facets. Nevertheless, photoluminescence spectroscopy reveals localized doping on the sides of the microstructures. In addition, optically detected magnetic resonance reaches a contrast of 6 % of one preferred nitrogen vacancy orientation per facet and a transverse relaxation time T 2 ∗ of 96 ns. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To address the issue of heat dissipation caused by the high output power density of gallium nitride (GaN) devices, using diamond‐integrated devices is an effective solution. Recent studies have suggested that incorporating a dielectric layer, such as silicon nitride (SiNx), between diamond and GaN can improve adhesion while also reducing thermal boundary resistance (TBR). In this study, plasma‐enhanced chemical vapor deposition (CVD), low‐pressure CVD, and metal‐organic CVD (MOCVD) techniques are utilized to grow the SiNx layer. The interface behavior of diamond/SiNx/GaN is analyzed through scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), scanning TEM, and energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy, while time‐domain thermoreflectance measurement is used to characterize thermal properties. After analyzing the impact of the growth dielectric layer on the interface thermal resistance of the three growth modes, it is concluded that the dielectric layer produced by the MOCVD technique exhibits a smoother surface and lower TBR compared to the other two methods. Therefore, the use of the MOCVD technique is recommended to achieve optimal thermal performance in diamond/SiNx/GaN systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diamond is renowned as the ultimate semiconductor thanks to its exceptional physical properties, including unmatched hardness, exceptional wear resistance, superior mechanical and tribological characteristics, and high fracture strength. Diamond solution-gate field-effect transistors (D-SGFETs) leverage these advantages, along with their outstanding high-power and high-frequency performance, excellent thermal conductivity, wide bandgap, high carrier mobility, and rapid saturation speed. These features make D-SGFETs highly promising for fast and precise biomedical detection applications. This paper provides a comprehensive review of the fabrication techniques for diamond SGFETs, encompassing diamond film synthesis, surface conduction layer formation, source/drain fabrication, and FET packaging. Furthermore, the study delves into the surface functionalization of diamond SGFETs and their diverse applications in biomedical detection. Finally, the paper discusses the future outlook of diamond SGFETs in advancing biomedical detection technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Multilayer films of diamond‐like carbon (DLC) on monocrystalline diamond substrates have been for the first time obtained by plasma‐chemical deposition. Their chemical composition and structural and morphological properties are studied. The DLC individual layers differ in their sp3 carbon content. The multilayer nature of the resulting coatings is confirmed by periodic density modulation on the small‐angle X‐ray reflectometry curve and modulations in the CsC8, CsC6, CsC4 lines on the crater depth profile of secondary ions of elements (secondary ion mass spectrometry). The dependence of the deposition rate of multilayer DLC films on diamond, their composition and properties on the argon additive to the reaction gas mixture, as well as on methane flow, pressure and growth time, are studied. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Singlet fission (SF), as an effective way to break through the Shockley–Queisser limit, can dramatically improve energy conversion efficiency in solar cell areas. The formation, separation, and relaxation of triplet-pair excitons directly affect the triplet yield, especially triplet-pair separation; thus, how to enhance the triplet-pair separation rate becomes one of the key points to improve SF efficiency; the decay mechanism where the singlet state is converted into two triplet states is significant for the study of the SF mechanism. Herein, we employ ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy to study the singlet-fission process of nano-amorphous 6, 13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)-Pentacene (TIPS-pentacene) films in a diamond anvil cell (DAC). A kinetics model related to the structural geometric details, as well as an evaluation of the pressure manipulation impacts, is demonstrated based on the experimental results. The results indicate that pressure manipulation enhanced the triplet-pair separation rates of SF-based materials according to their structural micro-environmental improvement when compressed in DAC, while the triplet-exciton transportation lifetime is prolonged. This work shows that pressure may effectively optimize the structural disorder of SF materials, which were found to improve triplet-pair separation efficiency and potentially offer an effective way to further improve SF efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work shows considerable advance in combining the exceptional properties of chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamond with the toughness of steel, a subject that has been sought since the early 1990s. Combining both the previously developed techniques for vanadium carbide (VC) deposition, namely laser cladding vanadium carbide (LCVC) and thermo-reactive deposition (TRD) in a salt bath, made it possible to achieve the deposition of a CVD diamond film on a D6 tool steel, with a very low stress level of 1.8 ± 0.1 GPa. This was the lowest value for growth at 750 °C substrate temperature. The LCVC step was a fast processing to thicken the VC layer, while the short-term TRD (only 1 hour) closed the cracks left in the LCVC coating, relieved the residual stresses resulting from the rapid solidification after the laser incidence, and promoted a phase transformation from V8C7 to V6C5, a phase with lower thermal expansion coefficient. Hot Filament Chemical Vapor Deposition (HFCVD) was used to perform the CVD diamond deposition. The vanadium carbide layer has been an intermediate layer capable of acting as an excellent diffusion barrier and able to satisfactorily mitigate the thermal stress of the CVD diamond. The samples were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy with Field Emission Gun (FEG-SEM) equipped with Energy-Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffractometry, Rockwell A (588.6 N) indentation tester. Raman spectroscopy was used to further characterize HFCVD diamond, to compute the thermal compressive stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this study, three different substrate holder shapes—trapezoidal, circular frustum, and adjustable cyclic—were designed and optimized to enhance the quality of polycrystalline diamond films grown using microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD). Simulation results indicate that altering the shape of the substrate holder leads to a uniform distribution of the electric field on the surface, significantly suppressing the formation of secondary plasma. This design ensures a more even distribution of the temperature field and plasma environment on the substrate holder, resulting in a heart-shaped distribution. Polycrystalline diamond films were synthesized under these three different substrate holder conditions, and their morphology and crystal quality were characterized using optical microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and high-resolution X-ray diffraction. Under conditions of 5 kW power and 90 Torr pressure, the adjustable cyclic substrate holder produced high-quality 3-inch diamond films with low stress and narrow Raman full width at half maximum (FWHM). The results confirm the reliability of the simulations and the effectiveness of the adjustable cyclic substrate holder. This approach provides a viable method for scaling up the size and improving the quality of polycrystalline diamond films for future applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present a study of the structural features of polycrystalline a diamond film (PCDF) synthesized by the microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition method from a hydrogen/pentane mixture and consider its photoelectric response to synchrotron radiation. Raman spectroscopy analysis of the PCDF cross-section revealed the presence of sp2-hybridized inclusions. As the distance from the PCDF growth surface increases, the amount of the non-diamond phase also increases, while its morphology changes from amorphous to crystalline graphite-like carbon. The investigation of the photoelectric response of PCDF was carried out at the "Cosmos" station using synchrotron radiation from the VEPP-4M storage ring. The PCDF detector exhibited maximum sensitivity at low bias voltage. This effect was attributed to the increased efficiency of collecting photo-induced charge carriers from the diamond to the sp2-hybridized inclusions followed by their subsequent transport through conductive paths along the boundaries between diamond crystallites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nucleation is important in processing of good quality diamond crystals and textured thin films by microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (MPECVD) for applications in quantum devices and systems. Bias-enhanced nucleation (BEN) is one approach for diamond nucleation in situ during MPECVD. However, the mechanism of diamond nucleation by BEN is not well understood. This paper describes results on the nucleation of diamond within a carbon film upon application of electric field during the BEN-facilitated MPECVD process. The nature of the diamond film and nuclei formed is characterized by SEM (scanning electron microscopy), Raman spectroscopy, and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM). The HRTEM images and associated diffraction patterns of the nucleation layer show that the diamond nuclei are formed within the carbon film close to the Si (100) substrate surface under the influence of microwaves and electric fields that lead to formation of the textured diamond film and crystal upon further growth. These results are expected to develop diamond films of optimum quality containing a nitrogen-vacancy center for application in quantum systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This document is a special issue of the journal "Processes" focused on micro/nano manufacturing processes and optimization techniques. The articles in this issue cover a range of topics including the fabrication of micro/nano-structured surfaces, simulation and experimental investigation of laser manufacturing, and optimization techniques in microscale machining. The articles provide insights into various methods and technologies used in these areas and discuss their advantages, disadvantages, and potential applications. The authors also propose new approaches and techniques to address challenges and improve performance in micro/nano manufacturing processes. [Extracted from the article]

Along with the increasing integration density and decreased feature size of current semiconductor technology, heterointegration of the Si‐based devices with diamond has acted as a promising strategy to relieve the existing heat dissipation problem. As one of the heterointegration methods, the microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD) method is utilized to synthesize large‐scale diamond films on a Si substrate, while distinct structures appear at the Si‐diamond interface. Investigation of the formation mechanisms and modulation strategies of the interface is crucial to optimize the heat dissipation behaviors. By taking advantage of electron microscopy, the formation of the epitaxial β‐SiC interlayer is found to be caused by the interaction between the anisotropically sputtered Si and the deposited amorphous carbon. Compared with the randomly oriented β‐SiC interlayer, larger diamond grain sizes can be obtained on the epitaxial β‐SiC interlayer under the same synthesis condition. Moreover, due to the competitive interfacial reactions, the epitaxial β‐SiC interlayer thickness can be reduced by increasing the CH4/H2 ratio (from 3% to 10%), while further increase in the ratio (to 20%) can lead to the broken of the epitaxial relationship. The above findings are expected to provide interfacial design strategies for multiple large‐scale diamond applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films are attractive for many applications due to their smooth surfaces while holding the properties of diamond. However, their growth rate is generally low using common Ar/CH4 with or without H2 chemistry and strongly dependent on the overall growth conditions using microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD). In this work, incorporating a small amount of N2 and O2 additives into CH4/H2 chemistry offered a much higher growth rate of NCD films, which is promising for some applications. Several novel series of experiments were designed and conducted to tailor the growth features of NCD films by fine-tuning of the gas-phase compositions with different amounts of nitrogen and oxygen addition into CH4/H2 gas mixtures. The influence of growth parameters, such as the absolute amount and their relative ratios of O2 and N2 additives; substrate temperature, which was adjusted by two ways and inferred by simulation; and microwave power on NCD formation, was investigated. Short and long deposition runs were carried out to study surface structural evolution with time under identical growth conditions. The morphology, crystalline and optical quality, orientation, and texture of the NCD samples were characterized and analyzed. A variety of NCD films of high average growth rates ranging from 2.1 μm/h up to 6.7 μm/h were successfully achieved by slightly adjusting the O2/CH4 amounts from 6.25% to 18.75%, while that of N2 was kept constant. The results clearly show that the beneficial use of fine-tuning of gas-phase compositions offers a simple and effective way to tailor the growth characteristics and physical properties of NCD films for optimizing the growth conditions to envisage some specific applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For high dielectric constant, conductive carbide ceramic fillers are scattered in polymer to fabricate composites. However, high conductivity of carbides will lead to high leakage conductance and dielectric loss. In this work, to balance dielectric properties, polymer/ZrC/diamond blends were prepared via complementation of fillers. To perform property comparison, polymer/ZrC blends were prepared. Crystal forms and micromorphology of fillers were confirmed. All blends were measured to obtain dielectric constant, dielectric loss and conductivity at various frequencies. Compared to polymer/ZrC blends, dielectric constant of ternary blends slightly decreases and dielectric loss sharply reduces. By analysing ternary blends, strong interaction at polymer/ZrC interface results in high dielectric constant and insulating diamond results in low-dielectric loss via greatly-decreased leakage conductance. Partner employment of ZrC and diamond is distinctive. Ternary blend loaded with 5 wt% ZrC and 3 wt% diamond exhibits well-balanced dielectric performances (dielectric constant ~ 35.3; dielectric loss ~ 0.48) at 100 Hz. This work will provide valid route for balancing dielectric properties of polymer/conductive carbide blends. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Maintaining the geometrical stability of hot filament is a challenge in chemical vapor deposition (CVD) over a larger area since deformation varies the distance between the filament and the substrate and, consequently, destroys the uniformity of diamond deposition. Herein, Ta filament is straightened with a tensile stress ranging from 4.40 to 11 MPa to suppress deformation, and the stability during the CVD process of diamond film is evaluated. Scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X‐ray are further utilized to investigate the morphological and structural evolutions of Ta filament. Results show that straightened Ta filament maintains geometrical stability without any visible deformation or breakage and uniform deposition of diamond film is obtained through Ta filament undergone a transformation from Ta to Ta2C and then to TaC. At high deposition pressure (7 kPa) or a low concentration of methane (1%), the straightened Ta filament goes through a moderate transformation, which implies the cracks caused by rough transformation can be avoided, thus prolonging the lifetime of straightened Ta filament. These works provide significant guidelines for the large‐scale manufacture of diamond deposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have developed an oxide reactive sputtering technique aiming at rapidly sputtering high-quality oxide films on a diamond surface, providing excellent thermal insulation in high-pressure and temperature experiments using a laser-heated diamond anvil cell (LH-DAC). We identified conditions for rapid deposition of an alumina layer on diamond anvils, showing deposition rates as high as 0.67 um/hr. We also investigated the deposition conditions of zirconia, which have lower thermal conductivity than alumina. Laser-heating tests were performed at high pressures and temperatures to evaluate the thermal insulation of the oxide film deposited on the diamond anvils. The heating efficiency of zirconia-deposited anvils was higher than that of the alumina-deposited ones. Our zirconia-sputtered anvils were capable of generating up to 2580 K at around megabar pressure without additional thermal insulation, demonstrating the potential of this technique for ultra-high temperature generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to optimize the performance of silicon nitride (Si3N4) ceramic bearings in high-temperature and heavy-duty environments and to address the issues of insufficient lubrication and heat generation in vacuum environments. To this end, we prepared diamond and MoS2-TiN composite films on silicon nitride ceramic substrates using a hot-wire chemical vapor deposition system and a physical vapor deposition system. The experimental results show that increasing the deposition time of the diamond films can significantly improve their hardness and elastic modulus, enhance the bonding of the films with the substrate, reduce the friction coefficient, and increase the thermal conductivity. Furthermore, by appropriately reducing the sputtering power of the MoS2 film, we can effectively minimize damage to the diamond film and further enhance the overall performance of the composite film. This study offers valuable insights for addressing lubrication and heat dissipation challenges in vacuum environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diamond films were prepared on silicon nitride and zirconia ceramic substrates using hot filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD). The surface morphology, friction, and wear properties of the diamond films prepared with different methane concentrations (2%, 4%, and 6%) were compared using scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction, and friction and wear testing machines. The results showed that, with an increase in the methane concentration, the diamond particles gradually changed from micro- to nanodiamonds, and the grain size first increased and then decreased. The diamond films on silicon nitride substrates were of excellent quality, with good wear resistance, strong adhesion, and wear rates of 2.857 × 10−8 mm−3•m−1•N−1, 5.151 × 10−8 mm−3•m−1•N−1, and 1.334 × 10−7 mm−3•m−1•N−1, respectively. The diamond films on zirconia substrates had more impurities on the surface, higher internal stress, poorer wear resistance, and weaker adhesion, with wear rates of 3.789 × 10−8 mm−3•m−1•N−1, 5.899 × 10−8 mm−3•m−1•N−1, and 2.074 × 10−7 mm−3•m−1•N−1, respectively. Hence, the deposition of diamond films on ceramic substrates significantly reduced the friction coefficient, and the performance of diamond films on silicon nitride substrates was excellent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To further improve the manufacturing process and product performance of decorated bamboo filament board, the Box–Behnken response surface analysis method was used to analyze the correlation between the hot-pressing parameters and surface bonding strength, and the optimal process optimization parameters were obtained. In addition, the wettability and color of each group of samples were tested. The results show that the optimum process parameters of decorated bamboo filament boards were 130 °C, 165 s and 2.00 MPa, and the surface bonding strength was 1.58 MPa. The relative error between the measured value and the predicted value was less than 5%. The contact angle of the bamboo filament after hot pressing was higher than without hot pressing. However, there was no correlation between wettability and the hot-pressing parameters. There was no effect on the change in bamboo surface color. This indicates that the temperature range selected in this study meets the requirements of surface color control in production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern integrated circuits (ICs) take advantage of three-dimensional (3D) nanostructures in devices and interconnects to achieve high-speed and ultra-low-power performance. The choice of electrical insulation materials with excellent dielectric strength, electrical resistivity, strong mechanical strength, and high thermal conductivity becomes critical. Diamond possesses these properties and is recently recognized as a promising dielectric material for the fabrication of advanced ICs, which are sensitive to detrimental high-temperature processes. Therefore, a high-rate low-temperature deposition technique for large-grain, high-quality diamond films of the thickness of a few tens to a few hundred nanometers is desirable. The diamond growth rate by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition (MPCVD) decreases rapidly with lowering substrate temperature. In addition, the thermal conductivity of non-diamond carbon is much lower than that of diamond. Furthermore, a small-grain diamond film suffers from poor thermal conductivity due to frequent phonon scattering at grain boundaries. This paper reports a novel MPCVD process aiming at high growth rate, large grain size, and high sp3/sp2 ratio for diamond films deposited on silicon. Graphite paste containing nanoscale graphite and oxy-hydrocarbon binder and solvent vaporizes and mixes with gas feeds of hydrogen, methane, and carbon dioxide to form plasma. Rapid diamond growth of diamond seeds at 450 °C by the plasma results in large-grained diamond films on silicon at a high deposition rate of 200 nm/h. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of diamond allows the controllable formation of the material with desirable structure and elemental composition. In this study, Ge-doped microcrystalline and nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films are synthesized using microwave plasma-assisted CVD in CH4-H2-GeH4-N2 gas mixtures. We grow series of 2 μm thick NCD films with variations in gas composition [N2] = 0 − 4% and [CH4] = 10 − 15%. We investigate and compare the structure, phase composition, and luminescent characteristics of the grown films. The luminescent signals from Silicon vacancy (SiV, 738 nm) and Germanium vacancy (GeV, 602 nm) color centers in diamond are registered. The additional annealing of the as-grown films in air is used to remove the excessive sp2 phase that hinders their luminescent properties. For both SiV and GeV centers, we find conditions for CVD growth of NCD films that are as bright or even brighter than Si-doped and Ge-doped high-quality microcrystalline diamond films (MCD) grown without N2 additions. These results may be used for the fabrication of NCD films and plates with high concentrations of SiV and GeV centers, which may serve as source material for the fabrication of sub-micrometer-sized luminescent diamond particles for local optical thermometry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A bottom-up method is described to grow patterned polycrystalline diamond on silicon substrates using polymer assisted seeding and photolithography. Diamond seeding densities were > 1011 cm−2. The pattern consists of well-defined features ranging from microns to millimeters in size. A systematic study was carried out to investigate the effects of CH4 concentration (1.5, 2.0, 2.5, and 3.0% in H2) on diamond grown using hot-filament chemical vapor deposition. The study is focused on the early growth regime following 30 min, 45 min, and 2 h process times. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy measurements are used to study thickness, growth rate, grain size, grain morphology, and surface roughness of the polycrystalline diamond. SEM cross section images confirm the growth of high seeding diamond films without voids at the substrate interface. An increasing trend of lateral particles sizes, with increasing CH4, is observed reaching ~ 365 nm at the highest CH4 concentration. Material quality is checked using UV micro-Raman spectroscopy including line scans to investigate uniformity of patterned features. The results show that higher CH4 concentration leads to narrow linewidths and higher relative integrated intensities of diamond. These characteristics are consistent with improvements in the diamond quality in the early growth stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diamonds produced using chemical vapor deposition (CVD) have found many applications in various fields of science and technology. Many applications involve polycrystalline CVD diamond films of micron thicknesses. However, a variety of optical, thermal, mechanical, and radiation sensing applications require more bulky CVD diamond samples. We report the results of a magnetic resonance and structural study of a thick, sizable polycrystalline CVD diamond disc, both as-prepared and treated with e-beam irradiation/high-temperature annealing, as well as gamma irradiation. The combination of various magnetic resonance techniques reveals and enables the attribution of a plentiful collection of paramagnetic defects of doublet and triplet spin origin. Analysis of spectra, electron, and nuclear spin relaxation, as well as nuclear spin diffusion, supports the conclusion of significant macro- and micro-inhomogeneities in the distribution of nitrogen-related defects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Optically active color centers in diamonds have been intensively studied due to their potential in photonics, energy harvesting, biosensing, and quantum computing. Silicon vacancy (SiV) center offers an advantage of suitable emission wavelength and narrow zero‐phonon line at room temperature. Measurement of surface potential and photovoltage can provide better understanding of the physics and control of SiV light emission, such as charge states and charging effects. Herein, optoelectronic properties of nanocrystalline diamond films with SiV centers at different layer thicknesses (10–200 nm, controlled by the growth time) under ambient conditions are studied. Time‐dependent measurements are performed in the light–dark–light cycle. Positive photovoltage arises on samples with SiV layer thicknesses below 55 nm on both H‐ and O‐terminated surfaces. Above 55 nm the photovoltage switches to negative. This layer thickness thus represents a halfway boundary between surface‐controllable and bulk SiV centers dominant contribution. A band diagram scheme explaining the photovoltage switching mechanism is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

High radiation resistance, chemical inertness, the ability to operate at elevated temperatures, high mobility and efficiency of charge-carrier collection are important properties of diamond for designing detectors and spectrometers of ionizing radiation. Currently, diagnostics of neutrons and neutral particle fluxes based on diamond detectors for the ITER thermonuclear reactor are justified and developed. This work presents the results of a Raman spectroscopy and photoluminescence spectroscopy study of the electronic quality of synthesized epitaxial diamond films obtained by vapor deposition in a hydrogen and methane mixture in the ARDIS reactor on boron-doped single-crystal diamond substrates. To confirm their electronic quality, detectors have been made from films selected by spectrometric methods and the charge collection efficiency and energy resolution have been measured when irradiated with alpha particles from a 241Am source and 14.7 MeV fast neutrons from the ING-07T2 neutron generator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to deposit diamond films on zirconia ceramic substrates, a three-dimensional finite element simulation of the substrate temperature field is proposed to optimize the deposition process parameters. First, the validity of the simulation results is verified by experiments in the actual deposition system. Second, the influence of parameters such as the height of the hot filament (h ), the distance of the hot filament (d ), the number of hot filaments (N ), and the presence or absence of cemented carbide ingots on the uniformity of the temperature field of the substrate is analyzed through temperature field simulation. Third, according to the optimal parameters obtained from the simulation results, the diamond film was deposited on the zirconia ceramic substrate by experiment. Finally, the properties of diamond films deposited on zirconia ceramic substrates with optimized parameters are characterized with scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Raman spectroscopy. The simulation results have indicated that the optimal parameters obtained are h = 4 mm , d = 7 mm , and N = 7 , and the protective cemented carbide ingot is acceptable due to its negligible temperature impact. The diamond film prepared according to the optimized parameters is a typical micro-diamond film, with relatively dense growth, grain size of about 0.6 ~ 1 μ m , deposition rate of about 0.625 μ m / h , residual stress of about − 6.61 GPa , and FWHM of 18 cm −1. However, impurities are present on the surface of the diamond film prepared without optimization parameters, and the graphitization is more serious. The residual stress is about − 9.07 GPa , and the FWHM is 23 cm −1. The quality of diamond films is significantly improved through parameter optimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Creating dense and shallow nitrogen-vacancy (NV) ensembles with good spin properties is a prerequisite for developing diamond-based quantum sensors exhibiting better performance. Ion implantation is a key enabling tool for precisely controlling spatial localization and density of NV color centers in diamond. However, it suffers from a low creation yield, while higher ion fluences significantly damage the crystal lattice. In this work, we realize N2+ ion implantation in the 30–40 keV range at high temperatures. At 800 °C, NV's ensemble photoluminescence emission is three to four times higher than room temperature implanted films, while narrow electron spin resonance linewidths of 1.5 MHz, comparable to well-established implantation techniques, are obtained. In addition, we found that ion fluences above 2 × 1014 ions/cm2 can be used without graphitization of the diamond film, in contrast to room temperature implantation. This study opens promising perspectives in optimizing diamond films with implanted NV ensembles that could be integrated into quantum sensing devices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present site-coincident imaging of a high dislocation density boron-doped chemical vapor deposition-grown homoepitaxial (001) diamond film using electron channeling contrast imaging (ECCI), cathodoluminescence, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning secondary ion mass spectroscopy (SIMS). With growing interest in large area heteroepitaxial substrates, we show that ECCI is a promising technique to accurately evaluate dislocations in diamond films. We find the electron backscatter yield is sufficient to distinguish individual threading dislocations in ECCI despite the low atomic number of carbon, and we have generally good agreement between dislocations observed in ECCI and TEM of the same region. Importantly, relying on luminescence in the 430 nm dislocation-related A-band alone results in an underestimation of the defect density as we find only 20%–40% of the threading dislocations luminesce. We further show that dislocations do not perturb the spatial uniformity of boron doping measured by SIMS, even when the dislocations are clustered with high density, and we can tentatively rule out strong segregation effects at the dislocations. Our results establish the complementary use of microscopy and microanalysis methods to rapidly characterize and understand the impact of dislocations in diamond thin films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chemical vapor deposition produced diamonds attract considerable scientific and industrial interest due to their exceptional mechanical and functional properties. Here, hot filament (HF) chemical vapor deposition was used to synthesize two diamond thin films with different cross-sectional microstructure and residual stresses. Structural characterization by scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and cross-sectional synchrotron x-ray nanodiffraction revealed different diamond morphologies. While the microcrystalline diamond film exhibits pronounced microstructural gradients expressed by gradually increasing (i) intensities of the 111 Debye-Scherrer rings, (ii) ⟨ 110 ⟩ fiber texture sharpness, (iii) grain size, and (iv) slightly oscillating residual stress at the level of −0.5 GPa, the nanocrystalline diamond film showed no pronounced cross-sectional variation of microstructure above the nucleation zone of ∼0.5 μm and a steady stress level of 0.25 GPa. In situ micromechanical cantilever bending tests revealed highly different mechanical properties of the two films. In detail, Young's modulus of 830 ± 53 and 459 ± 53 GPa, fracture stress of 12.4 ± 0.8 and 7.8 ± 1.0 GPa, and fracture toughness values of 6.9 ± 0.4 and 3.6 ± 0.3 MPa⋅m½ were evaluated for the micro- and nanocrystalline diamond films, respectively. In summary, this study provides valuable insights into the microstructure-residual stress correlation in micro- and nanocrystalline diamond films, especially illuminating their influence on micromechanical properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A systematic study is reported on the effects of nano-diamond seeding density on the growth, quality, and morphology of diamond films. A process is described to examine nano-diamond seeding densities 4 × 108, 8 × 1010, and 2 × 1012 cm−2 on silicon wafers. The diamond film is grown using hot-filament chemical vapor deposition with CH4/H2/O2 feed gases and varying growth time to determine properties at coalescence and as thickness increases. Polycrystalline morphology is examined by scanning electron and atomic force microscopy. Both vertical and lateral growth rates are found to be higher for sparse seeding prior to coalescence. Following coalescence, the growth rate is similar for all densities. The development of polycrystals is found to be influenced by the initial growth with smaller mean lateral size at higher seeding density and reduced surface roughness that also improves with thickness to reach ≲ 90 nm at a thickness of 6.4 μm. The crystal quality is examined by micro-Raman spectroscopy from the sample surfaces and line images from cross sections. Narrowing of the diamond phonon peak shows material quality to improve with the thickness, at a given seed density, and as density increases. Concomitant improvements are seen from the relative intensity of the diamond phonon and Raman bands from non-diamond carbon. Cross-section micro-Raman results suggest improved diamond film quality and crystallinity near the substrate interface as well as at the growth surface for the film grown with 2 × 1012 cm−2 seed density compared to 4 × 108 and 8 × 1010 cm−2. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy confirms these trends at the diamond surface. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To obtain the VO2 film/CVD diamond-coated tools, the deposition process of CVD diamond coating on the VO2 film surface is investigated in this paper. Firstly, the effect of carbonization treatment on VO2 film is studied. Then, the deposition process of CVD diamond coating on the VO2 film is studied. Finally, it is studied that the change law of the VO2 film/CVD diamond coating system stresses under thermal loading. Results indicate that the CVD diamond coating can be grown on the VO2 film after carbonization and diamond seed crystal treatment. The V6C5 is the most stable material after the carbonization of the VO2 film, and it is used to connect diamond coating and VO2 film. The VO2 film/CVD diamond coating system stress undergoes a sudden change under thermal loading. After the sudden change of stress, the VO2 film/CVD diamond coating system stress is only half of the CVD diamond coating stress. The adhesion of CVD diamond coating is more than 100 N. This study can provide a new idea for the deposition of CVD diamond-coated cutting tools with high bonding performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cemented carbide (WC–Co), which has a low coefficient of thermal expansion, is employed as a substrate rather than the more typical Si, Ti, and Nb ones. BDD films are deposited on this substrate using hot filament chemical vapor deposition with various [B]/[C]gas ratios. Physical and electrochemical characteristics of the WC–Co/BDD electrodes are investigated by field emission scanning electron microscopy, Micro-Raman spectroscopy, and cyclic voltammetric. The addition of boron atoms is found to reduce the grain size and sp3(diamond)/sp2 (graphite) ratio in the films. Also, heavy boron doping is likely to cause substantial residual stress in the films. The electrodes with the various doping levels exhibit a wide potential window greater than 3.5 V and featureless background current in 0.5 mol L−1 of H2SO4 solution. Only the highly doped electrodes showed quasi-reversible behavior in the K3[Fe (CN)6] redox system. These electrochemical performances of BDD films on the WC–Co substrate are similar to or even slightly better than that on the commonly used substrates. Subsequently, the electrode with the preferred [B]/[C]gas ratio (5000 ppm) is characterized by repeated oxidizing phenol studies and accelerated life tests (ALT). Remarkably, with an excellent current efficiency of 94%, the average COD value drops from 1142 to 78 mg L−1. Moreover, the BDD films with thickness of 10 μm have a long service life of around 1600 h in the ALT of 3 mol L−1 of H2SO4 electrolyte at the constant current density of 1 A cm−2. Overall, the WC–Co/BDD electrode shows great potential for efficient oxidation processes and long-term durability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We perform a data-constrained simulation with the zero- β assumption to study the mechanisms of strong rotation and failed eruption of a filament in active region 11474 on 2012 May 5 observed by Solar Dynamics Observatory and Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory. The initial magnetic field is provided by nonlinear force-free field extrapolation, which is reconstructed by the regularized Biot–Savart laws and magnetofrictional method. Our simulation reproduces most observational features very well, e.g., the filament large-angle rotation of about 130°, the confined eruption, and the flare ribbons, allowing us to analyze the underlying physical processes behind observations. We discover two flux ropes in the sigmoid system, an upper flux rope (MFR1) and a lower flux rope (MFR2), which correspond to the filament and hot channel in observations, respectively. Both flux ropes undergo confined eruptions. MFR2 grows by tether-cutting reconnection during the eruption. The rotation of MFR1 is related to the shear-field component along the axis. The toroidal field tension force and the nonaxisymmetry forces confine the eruption of MFR1. We also suggest that the mutual interaction between MFR1 and MFR2 contributes to the large-angle rotation and the eruption failure. In addition, we calculate the temporal evolution of the twist and writhe of MFR1, which is a hint of probable reversal rotation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Low-temperature growth of diamond films using the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method is not so widely reported and its initial periods of nucleation and growth phenomenon are of particular interest to the researchers. Four sets of substrates were selected for growing diamond films using linear antenna microwave plasma-enhanced CVD (LA-MPCVD). Among them, silicon and sapphire substrates were pre-treated with detonation nanodiamond (DND) seeds before diamond growth, for enhancement of its nucleation. Carbon nanotube (CNT) films on Si substrates were also used as another template for LA-MPCVD diamond growth. To enhance diamond nucleation during CVD growth, some of the CNT films were again pre-treated by the electrophoretic deposition (EPD) of diamond nanoparticles. All these substrates were then put inside the LA-MPCVD chamber to grow diamond films under variable processing conditions. Microwave input powers (1100–2800 W), input power modes (pulse or continuous), antenna-to-stage distances (5–6.5 cm), process gas recipes (with or without CO2), methane gas percentages (3%–5%), and deposition times (11–120 min) were altered to investigate their effect on the growth of diamond film on the pre-treated substrates. The substrate temperatures were found to vary from as low as 170 °C to a maximum of 307 °C during the alteration of the different processing parameters. Contrary to the conventional MPCVD, it was observed that during the first hour of LA-MPCVD diamond growth, DND seeds and the nucleating structures do not coalesce together to make a continuous film. Deposition time was the most critical factor in fully covering the substrate surfaces with diamond film, since the substrate temperature could not become stable during the first hour of LA-MPCVD. CNTs were found to be oxidized rapidly under LA-MPCVD plasma conditions; therefore, a CO2-free process gas recipe was used to reduce CNT burning. Moreover, EPD-coated CNTs were found to be less oxidized by the LACVD plasma during diamond growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Orthorhombic κ-Ga2O3 thin films were grown for the first time on polycrystalline diamond free-standing substrates by metal-organic vapor phase epitaxy at a temperature of 650 °C. Structural, morphological, electrical, and photoelectronic properties of the obtained heterostructures were evaluated by optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, current-voltage measurements, and spectral photoconductivity, respectively. Results show that a very slow cooling, performed at low pressure (100 mbar) under a controlled He flow soon after the growth process, is mandatory to improve the quality of the κ-Ga2O3 epitaxial thin film, ensuring a good adhesion to the diamond substrate, an optimal morphology, and a lower density of electrically active defects. This paves the way for the future development of novel hybrid architectures for UV and ionizing radiation detection, exploiting the unique features of gallium oxide and diamond as wide-bandgap semiconductors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Microcrystalline diamond films were grown by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition from a CH4/H2 gas mixture on Si single-crystalline substrates placed on negatively charged and grounded substrate holders. The obtained diamond films had the (100) predominant faceting of microcrystals. The film structure and morphology were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy, photoluminescence, Raman and FTIR spectroscopies. The main physical factor causing the difference in the structure of the diamond films grown on the grounded and charged substrate holders was found to be the flow of low-energy (up to 200 eV) Si+, N2+, H, O ions in the latter holder. These ions predominantly embedded into the structure of the diamond films grown on the charged substrate holder leading to appearance of residual mechanical stress up to 2 GPa. Ion bombardment led to increase in the volume fraction of non-diamond carbon component in the film grain boundaries, decrease in sp³-bonded carbon fraction and reduction of the diamond microcrystals lateral size. Larger amount of grain boundaries in the diamond films grown on the charged substrate holder promoted diffusion of Si atoms from the substrate to the plasma and growing film surface, inducing formation of SiV centers in the diamond microcrystals even in the 150...200 μm thick films. The concentration of Si-related defects was much smaller in the films grown using the grounded substrate holder. These films had substantially smaller volume fraction of graphite-like carbon in the grain boundaries and were more homogeneous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Extending the spin‐dephasing time (T2*) of perfectly aligned nitrogen‐vacancy (NV) centers in large‐volume chemical vapor deposition (CVD) diamonds leads to enhanced DC magnetic sensitivity. However, T2* of the NV centers is significantly reduced by the stress distribution in the diamond film as its thickness increases. To overcome this issue, they developed a method to mitigate the stress distribution in the CVD diamond films, leading to a T2* extension of the ensemble NV centers. CVD diamond films of ≈60 µm thickness with perfectly aligned NV centers are formed on (111) diamond substrates with misorientation angles of 2.0°, 3.7°, 5.0°, and 10.0°. The study found that T2* of the ensemble of NV centers increased to approach its value limited only by the electron and nuclear spin bath with increasing the misorientation angle. Microscopic stress imaging revealed that the stress distribution is highly inhomogeneous along the depth direction in the CVD diamond film at low misorientation angles, whereas the inhomogeneity is largely suppressed on highly misoriented substrates. The reduced stress distribution possibly originates from the reduction of the dislocation density in the CVD diamond. This study provides an important method for synthesizing high‐quality diamond materials for use in highly sensitive quantum sensors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We performed the CH4/(Ar–H2) plasma post-treatments on ultrananocrystalline diamond films prepared by hot filament chemical vapor deposition. The results show that during the CH4/(Ar–H2) plasma treatment, 3–5 nm diamond grains agglomerate and regrow, and the graphite between the grains transformed into diamond due to the combined action of hydrogen and tantalum atoms in the samples. This produces bigger diamond grains in size of 200 nm with a large number of stacking faults formed during the grain aggregation, and the graphite phase is greatly reduced. Moreover, the electron field emission (EFE) performance of the films is significantly improved after the CH4/(Ar–H2) plasma treatment. This suggests that the improved EFE performance is not caused by the graphite phase, but by the diamond grains with lots of stacking faults that provide transport channels for electrons. This provides a method for enhancing the EFE properties of diamond films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: A Cr5Te8@expanded graphite heterostructure is fabricated by chemical vapor deposition, exhibiting remarkable microwave absorption performance with a minimum reflection loss of up to − 57.6 dB at a thin thickness of only 1.4 mm under a low filling rate of 10%. Density functional theory calculations deeply reveal the polarization loss mechanism triggered by heterogeneous interfaces. The heterostructure coating displays a remarkable radar cross section reduction of 31.9 dB m2, demonstrating a great electromagnetic microwave scattering ability and radar stealth capability. Two-dimensional (2D) transition metal chalcogenides (TMCs) hold great promise as novel microwave absorption materials owing to their interlayer interactions and unique magnetoelectric properties. However, overcoming the impedance mismatch at the low loading is still a challenge for TMCs due to the restricted loss pathways caused by their high-density characteristic. Here, an interface engineering based on the heterostructure of 2D Cr5Te8 and graphite is in situ constructed via a one-step chemical vapor deposit to modulate impedance matching and introduce multiple attenuation mechanisms. Intriguingly, the Cr5Te8@EG (ECT) heterostructure exhibits a minimum reflection loss of up to − 57.6 dB at 15.4 GHz with a thin thickness of only 1.4 mm under a low filling rate of 10%. The density functional theory calculations confirm that the splendid performance of ECT heterostructure primarily derives from charge redistribution at the abundant intimate interfaces, thereby reinforcing interfacial polarization loss. Furthermore, the ECT coating displays a remarkable radar cross section reduction of 31.9 dB m2, demonstrating a great radar microwave scattering ability. This work sheds light on the interfacial coupled stimulus response mechanism of TMC-based heterogeneous structures and provides a feasible strategy to manipulate high-quality TMCs for excellent microwave absorbers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]