Diamond Nucleation by Carbon Transport from Buried Nanodiamond TiO2 Sol-Gel Composites

Ultra-dispersed nanodiamond particles (UDD) particles buried under a sol-gel TiO2 layer spin-coated on UDD seeded silicon substrates using NanoCrystalline Diamonds (NCD) film nucleation and growth, was reported. This was studied using High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HRTEM), Energy-Filtered TEM (EFTEM), and Electron Energy Loss Spectroscopy (EELS). The EFTEM maps show a significantly lower intensity for carbon-related signal inside TiO2 layer. EELS data confirm the finding that carbon from the UDD seeds can be dissolved into the TiO2 layer and is transported through the same layer. The finding reveals that diamond nuclei can be formed from sp3-bonded carbon that is stabilized in a solid state environment. The EELS and HRTEM data show that pure diamond crystals can be nucleated and grown on pristine TiO2 sol-gel interlayers using MW PE Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD).status: publishe