@InProceedings{CapoteMastTrav:2015:InAcPr,
author = "Capote, Gil and Mastrapa, G. and Trava-Airoldi, Vladimir Jesus",
affiliation = "{Universidad Nacional de Colombia} and {Pontif{\'{\i}}cia
Universidade Cat{\'o}lica do Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio)} and
{Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE)}",
title = "Influence of the Acetylene Precursor Dilution with Argon on the
Microstructure, Mechanical and Tribological Properties of aC:H
Films Deposited by Modified Pulsed-DC PECVD Method",
year = "2015",
organization = "The International Conference on Metallurgical Coatings and Thin
Films, 42. (ICMCTF).",
abstract = "Amorphous hydrogenated carbon (a-C:H) films have been grown using
different hydrocarbon precursors in order to find the best set of
mechanical and tribological proprieties. The addition of noble
gases to the hydrocarbon precursor atmosphere is expected to
increase the ratio of ion to neutral radicals on the surface of
the growing film without changing the H/C ratio of the gas
mixture. This is in fact a powerful way to investigate the effect
of ion bombardment on the structural arrangement and properties of
a-C:H films. In this work, acetylene (C2H2) was be studied using
argon as an inert additional gas, in order to determine the
mechanical and tribological properties and microstructure of a-C:H
films. The films were deposited employing an asymmetrical bipolar
pulsed-DC plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system
and an active screen that worked as an additional cathode. The
a-C:H films were analyzed according to their microstructure,
mechanical, and tribological properties as a function of the
amount of argon diluted in the acetylene. The films microstructure
and the hydrogen contents were probed by means of Raman
spectroscopy. The internal stress was determined through
measurement of the change in the substrate curvature by means of a
profilometer, while nanoindentation experiments allowed to
determinate the hardness and the elastic modulus of the film. The
friction coefficient and wear resistance of the films were
determined using a tribometer, while the adhesion of the films was
evaluated via the scratch test. In order to improve the a-C:H
films adhesion to steel substrates, a thin amorphous silicon
interlayer was used. The results showed that the atmosphere of
argon diluted in acetylene induced modifications in the properties
of the a-C:H films. Hard, adherent, low-stress, and high wear
resistant a-C:H films were deposited on steel substrates using a
combination of a modified and asymmetrical bipolar pulsed-DC PECVD
system, an active screen as additional cathode, and
acetylene-argon atmospheres. The use of an amorphous silicon
interlayer improved the a-C:H films deposition onto steel
substrates. These results suggest that the used methodology
represented a step forward for thin film growth by using lower
pressure and higher plasma density than the conventional PECVD
system and may represent a new and useful alternative for
mechanical and tribological applications.",
conference-location = "San Diego, California",
conference-year = "20-24 apr.",
language = "en",
urlaccessdate = "28 abr. 2024"
}