Growth behavior of CVD diamond films with enhanced electron field emission properties over a wide range of experimental parameters

In this study, diamond films were synthesized on silicon substrates by microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition（CVD） over a wide range of experimental parameters. The effects of the microwave power,CH;/H;ratio and gas pressure on the morphology, growth rate, composition, and quality of diamond films were investigated by means of scanning electron microscope（SEM）, X-ray diffraction（XRD）, Raman spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy（XPS）. A rise of microwave power can lead to an increasing pyrolysis of hydrogen and methane, so that the microcrystalline diamond film could be synthesized at low CH;/H;levels. Gas pressure has similar effect in changing the morphology of diamond films, and high gas pressure also results in dramatically increased grain size. However,diamond film is deteriorated at high CH;/H;ratio due to the abundant graphite content including in the films. Under an extreme condition of high microwave power of 10 kW and high CH;concentration, a hybrid film composed of diamond/graphite was successfully formed in the absence of N;or Ar,which is different from other reports. This composite structure has an excellent measured sheet resistance of 10-100 Ω/Sqr. which allows it to be utilized as field electron emitter. The diamond/graphite hybrid nanostructure displays excellent electron field emission（EFE） properties with a low turn-on field of 2.17 V/μm and β= 3160, therefore it could be a promising alternative in field emission applications.

Effect of oxygen terminated surface of boron-doped diamond thin-film electrode on seawater salinity sensing

Tremendous demands for highly sensitive and stable seawater salinometers have motivated intensive research on advanced electrode materials.Boron-doped diamond(BDD)is attractive in terms of its high mechanical stability and chemical inertness,but is usually hindered by its low double-layer capacitance(C_(dl))for seawater salinity detection.Here,inspired by the principle of oxygen-terminated BDD electrode endowing higher C_(dl)than hydrogen-terminated surface,we introduce the oxygen terminated surface by oxygen plasma or reactive ion etch(RIE),and the fabricated oxygen terminated BDD electrodes demonstrate high sensitivity and long-term stability in seawater salinity detection comparing with the hydrogen terminated BDD electrodes.Significantly,the as-fabricated O-BDD-RIE electrodes not only show remarkable enhanced response even better than the commercial platinum black electrodes but also display long-time stability which is weekly verified by continuous monitor for 90 days.The outstanding performance of the oxygen terminated BDD electrodes can be ascribed to the enhancement of C-O surface functional group on C_(dl).In addition,a comprehensive analysis of effective electroactive surface area(EASA)and C_(dl)proves that the surface oxygen is the major factor for the improved C_(dl).In summary,the excellent oxygen terminated BDD electrodes promise potential application in seawater salinity detection.

Integration of 3D interconnected porous microstructure and high electrochemical property for boron-doped diamond by facile strategy

Three-dimensional(3D)porous boron-doped diamond(BDD)flm is an attractive electrode material but tough to synthesize.Herein,the 3D porous BDD flms were constructed in a facile and template-free way.The BDD/non-diamond carbon(NDC)composite flms were frstly fabricated by hot flament chemical vapor deposition(HFCVD)technique,and then the porous BDD flms with 3D interconnected porous microstructure,different pore size and NDC-free diamond were achieved by selective removal of NDC.It is manifested that higher electrochemical response,large double layer capacitance(17.54 m F/cm^(2))in diamond electrodes,wide electrochemical window of 2.6 V and superior long-term stability were achieved for 3D porous BDD flm.This derives from the synergistic effect of microstructure and phase composition of the porous flms.3D interconnected structure possesses prominent improvement of effective surface area and accessible porous channel,signifcantly enhancing the species adsorption and mass transfer.The3D porous BDD flms,composed of NDC-free diamond,exhibit excellent structural stability and corrosion resistance,which favor the enhancement of long-term stability and water splitting overpotential.The facile fabricating approach and excellent structure/electrochemical character demonstrate the appealing application in many electrochemical felds for 3D porous BDD flms,such as energy storage and conversion,wastewater treatment and purifcation.