DIAMOND NUCLEATION AT THE ORGANIC LIQUID-METAL INTERFACE BY LASER-INDUCED REACTIVE QUENCHING

Diamond particulates in the form of a film were deposited on tungsten surfaces by laser-induced reactive quenching of cyclohexane and decali n liquids whose stereostructure is closely related to that of diamond. Transmission electron microscopy, glancing angle X-ray diffraction, a nd laser Raman spectroscopic studies indicate that the deposited film consists mainly of a mixture of hexagonal polytypes of diamond. The an alysis shows that these molecules serve as building blocks for the for mation of diamonds.