STUDY OF METAL-CONTAINING HYDROGENATED CARBON-FILMS BY STM AFM AND SAXS/

Metal-containing amorphous hydrogenated carbon films are of high inter est for industrial applications because of their excellent frictional properties, their high abrasive wear resistance and their electrical c onductivity, which can be adjusted in a range of 10-12 orders of magni tude. In order to get insight into the mechanical and electrical prope rties it is necessary to study the nanostructure of the films. The str ucture consists of small nanometer sized metallic or carbidic particle s, which are embedded in a three dimensional amorphous hydrogen-carbon matrix. Anomalous small angle X-ray scattering (ASAXS) and scanning t unneling microscopy (STM) have been used to determine size- and distan ce-distributions of the particles as a function of metal content. Prob lems and restrictions of both methods will be discussed. Furthermore t he capabilities of scanning probe techniques to distinguish different materials on a nanometer scale (material contrast) have been studied e mploying barrier height imaging (dI/dz) and friction force microscopy.