ESR in Diamond Thin Films Synthesized by Microwave Plasma Chemical Vapor Deposition

Abstract

A variety of diamond films of poor and good quality are synthesized by microwave plasma CVD from a mixture of hydrogen and CH 4 , CH 3 OH or C 2 H 5 OH. A comparative study on the ESR and Raman spectra of these films is performed. The diamond films of good quality have a spin density of ∼10 18 cm -3 . The peak-to-peak linewidth in the ESR signal varies from 6.1 G in the film of poor quality to 3.0 G in the film of good quality. This change can be used as a convenient method for evaluating the quality of diamond films.