Ion-beam-assisted hexagonal diamond formation from C60fullerene

Ions are commonly believed to be detrimental to diamond growth because of the high degree of lattice disorder induced by ion bombardments. In this paper, we examine the possibility of preparing diamond using thermally evaporated C60 and simultaneous bombardment with Ne+ ions. It is found that the diamonds can be grown on Si wafers in the appropriate substrate temperature and ion energy ranges. Micro-Raman spectroscopy, x-ray diffractometry, and scanning electronic microscopy were employed to characterize the deposited specimen. These measurements provide definite evidence of the structure of nanosized hexagonal diamond. The mechanism responsible for the diamond formation is discussed.