Ohmic contacts and interface properties of Au/Ti/p-diamnond prepared by r.f. sputtering

The Au/Ti/p-diamond contacts were prepared by r.f. sputtering and I-V measu rements showed that the as-deposited contacts were ohmic, Upon annealing at 500 degrees C for 10 min in a vacuum of 10(-4) Pa, the ohmic characteristi cs of the contacts were improved by 30%. The specific contact resistivity, which was calculated by the transmission line model (TLM), decreased from 2 .9 x 10(-3) to 2.0 x 10(-3) Omega.cm(2) as a result of post-deposition anne aling, Analysis by XPS indicated the formation of titanium carbide at the T i/diamond interface in the as-deposited and annealed states. This gave the contacts their good ohmic characteristics. Copyright (C) 2000 John Whey & S ons, Ltd.