Characterization of BCN films synthesized by radiofrequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition

Boron carbonitride (BCN) films have been synthesized on Si(1 0 0) substrate by radio frequency plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition using tris-(dimethylamino)borane (TDMAB) as a precursor. The deposition was performed at the different RF powers of 400–800 W, at the working pressure of 2×10−1 Torr. The formation of the sp2-bonded BCN phase was confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements showed that B atoms were bonded to C and N atoms to form the BCN atomic hybrid configurations with the chemical compositions of B52C12N36 (sample 1; prepared at the RF power of 400 W), B52C10N38 (sample 2; at 500 W) and B46C18N36 (sample 3; at 800 W), respectively. Near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) measurements indicated that B atoms were bonded not only to N atoms but also to C atoms to form various configurations of sp2-BCN atomic hybrids. The polarization dependence of NEXAFS suggested that the predominant hybrid configuration of sp2-BCN films oriented in the direction perpendicular to the Si substrate.