Erosion of thin hydrogenated carbon films in oxygen, oxygen/hydrogen and water plasmas

The erosion of amorphous hydrogenated carbon films in oxygen, oxygen/hydrog en and water electron cyclotron resonance plasmas was investigated by in si tu ellipsometry. The erosion was measured as a function of the energy of th e impinging ions and the substrate temperature. Erosion is most effective i n pure oxygen plasmas. The erosion rate rises with increasing ion energy an d substrate temperature, in the latter case however only at low ion energie s. The reaction layer at the surface of the eroded film is further analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The C 1s peak of the XPS spectr a shows, that oxygen is implanted in the films and forms double and single bonds to the carbon atoms. This modification, however, is limited to a few atomic layers. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.