Electrostatic force microscopy mapping of electrical conductivity of hydrogen-terminated diamond films.

A method for mapping the surface conductivity of hydrogen-terminated (H-terminated) diamond on a sub-100 nm scale is presented. The measuring technique relies on electrostatic force microscopy imaging of the voltage distribution of a current-carrying H-terminated diamond film. The uniform linear voltage drop in highly conductive H-terminated diamond surface layers indicates that the layers behave as homogeneous, diffusive conductors with a well-defined value of the sheet resistance. On the other hand, we observe conductive as well as insulating regions that coexist for not perfectly H-terminated diamond surfaces with poor electric conductivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]