Optical characterization of sputtered carbon films (magnetic media overlayers)

Raman spectroscopy is nondestructive and relatively rapid and is well suited for the characterization of carbon films. The Raman spectra of a-C and a-C:H films consisting of two broad and overlapped features between 1000 and 1600 cm/sup -1/ have been obtained. Specific features in the Raman spectra are empirically correlated with the rates of specific types of mechanical wear for both hydrogenated and unhydrogenated films. This observation is interpreted in terms of a random covalent network, in which the mechanical performance of the film is determined by the nature of the bonding that links sp/sup 2/-bonded domains.>