Formation of carbon nitride films with high N/C ratio by high-pressure radio frequency magnetron sputtering

Carbon nitride films were synthesized on Si(100) substrate using relatively high-pressure radio-frequency magnetron sputtering of a graphite target in a nitrogen ambient. The influences of the substrate temperature and pressure on deposition rate and the film composition ratio N/C and C–N bonding were investigated using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The deposition rate had a maximum in the investigated pressure region and reduced as the substrate temperature increased. XPS spectra showed that the deposited films were very large N/C value up to 1.20, and unchanged after thermal treatment up to about 900 K, the latter confirmed by FTIR.