Epitaxial Lateral Overgrowth of Diamonds on Iridium by Patterned Nucleation and Growth Method

Epitaxial lateral overgrowth (ELO) of diamond on Ir(001)/MgO(001) substrates was demonstrated by using a patterned nucleation and growth method. Epitaxial nucleation areas of fine line shape aligned with various crystal orientations were prepared on an Ir(001) surface before diamond growth. The growth rate of the diamonds in the lateral direction markedly changed depending on both the crystal orientation and the growth conditions. A lateral/vertical growth rate ratio of approximately 4.9 was obtained. The full widths at half maximum of the diamond Raman peak observed at the laterally grown areas were approximately threefold better than that of the vertically grown areas on the nucleation sites.