Single-step grown boron doped nanocrystalline diamond-carbon nanograss hybrid as an efficient supercapacitor electrode.

Direct synthesis of a nano-structured carbon hybrid consisting of vertically aligned carbon nanograsses on top of boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond is demonstrated and the carbon hybrid is further applied as an electrode material for the fabrication of supercapacitors. The hybrid film combines the dual advantages of sp2 (carbon nanograss) and sp3 (nanocrystalline diamond) bonded carbon, possessing not only the excellent electrical characteristics of sp2 carbon but also the exceptional electrochemical stability of sp3 carbon. As a result, the specific capacitance of the as-prepared hybrid material reaches up to 0.4 F cm-2, one of the highest reported in diamond-based supercapacitors. The entire electrochemical results exhibit enhanced electron transfer efficiency with remarkable stability of 95% of capacitance retention even after 10 000 cycles.

Boron-Doped Nanocrystalline Diamond-Carbon Nanospike Hybrid Electron Emission Source.

Electron emission signifies an important mechanism facilitating the enlargement of devices that have modernized large parts of science and technology. Today, the search for innovative electron emission devices for imaging, sensing, electronics, and high-energy physics continues. Integrating two materials with dissimilar electronic properties into a hybrid material is an extremely sought-after synergistic approach, envisioning a superior field electron emission (FEE) material. An innovation is described regarding the fabrication of a nanostructured carbon hybrid, resulting from the one-step growth of boron-doped nanocrystalline diamond (BNCD) and carbon nanospikes (CNSs) by a microwave plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition technique. Spectroscopic and microscopic tools are used to investigate the morphological, bonding, and microstructural characteristics related to the growth mechanism of these hybrids. Utilizing the benefits of both the sharp edges of the CNSs and the high stability of BNCD, promising FEE performance with a lower turn-on field of 1.3 V/µm, a higher field enhancement factor of 6780, and a stable FEE current stability lasting for 780 min is obtained. The microplasma devices utilizing these hybrids as a cathode illustrate a superior plasma illumination behavior. Such hybrid carbon nanostructures, with superb electron emission characteristics, can encourage the enlargement of several electron emission device technologies.

Origin of Conductive Nanocrystalline Diamond Nanoneedles for Optoelectronic Applications.

Microstructural evolution of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) nanoneedles owing to the addition of methane and nitrogen in the reactant gases is systematically addressed. It has been determined that varying the concentration of CH4 in the CH4/H2/N2 plasma is significant to tailor the morphology and microstructure of NCD films. While NCD films grown with 1% CH4 in a CH4/H2/N2 (3%) plasma contain large diamond grains, the microstructure changed considerably for NCD films grown using 5% (or 10%) CH4, ensuing in nanosized diamond grains. For 15% CH4-grown NCD films, a well-defined nanoneedle structure evolves. These NCD nanoneedle films contain sp3 phase diamond, sheathed with sp2-bonded graphitic phases, achieving a low resistivity of 90 Ω cm and enhanced field electron emission (FEE) properties, namely, a low turn-on field of 4.3 V/µm with a high FEE current density of 3.3 mA/cm2 (at an applied field of 8.6 V/µm) and a significant field enhancement factor of 3865. Furthermore, a microplasma device utilizing NCD nanoneedle films as cathodes can trigger a gas breakdown at a low threshold field of 3600 V/cm attaining a high plasma illumination current density of 1.14 mA/cm2 at an applied voltage of 500 V, and a high plasma lifetime stability of 881 min is evidenced. The optical emission spectroscopy studies suggest that the C2, CN, and CH species in the growing plasma are the major causes for the observed microstructural evolution in the NCD films. However, the increase in substrate temperature to ∼780 °C due to the incorporation of 15% CH4 in the CH4/H2/N2 plasma is the key driver resulting in the origin of nanoneedles in NCD films. The outstanding optoelectronic characteristics of these nanoneedle films make them suitable as cathodes in high-brightness display panels.

Evolution of Granular Structure and the Enhancement of Electron Field Emission Properties of Nanocrystalline and Ultrananocrystalline Diamond Films Due to Plasma Treatment Process.

The present work reports the plasma post treatment (ppt) process that instigates the evolution of granular structure of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD), consequently conducing the enhancement of the electron field emission (EFE) properties. The NCD films contain uniform and nanosized diamond grains (∼20 nm) with negligible thickness for grain boundaries that is distinctly different from the microstructure of ultrananocrystalline (UNCD) films with uniformly sized ultrananodiamond grains (∼5 nm) having relatively thick grain boundaries (∼0.1 nm). The turn-on of the electron field emission (EFE) process occurs at ( E0)NCD = 24.1 V/µm and ( E0)UNCD = 18.6 V/µm for the pristine NCD and UNCD materials, respectively. The granular structure of the starting diamond films largely influenced the microstructure evolution behavior and EFE properties of the materials subject to plasma annealing. The CH4/(Ar-H2) ppt-process leads to formation of a hybrid granular structured diamond (HiDNCD and HiDUNCD) via isotropic conjoining of nanosized diamond grains, whereas the CH4/N2 ppt-process leads to the formation of acicular granular structured diamond films (NNCD and NUNCD) via inducing aeolotropic growth of nanodiamond grains. While both of the HiDNCD and HiDUNCD films contain hybrid granular structure, the HiDUNCD films contain a larger proportion of nanographite phase and result in improved EFE properties, viz. ( E0)HiD-UNCD = 7.7 V/µm and ( E0)HiD-NCD = 12.3 V/µm. In contrast, when the films were CH4/N2 ppt-processed, the acicular diamond grains were formed for NUNCD and NNCD films; however, carbon nanoclusters attached to the diamond grains of NNCD films and the nanographitic layers encasing diamond cores are not crystallized very well, as compared with NUNCD films. Therefore, the NNCD films exhibit slightly inferior EFE properties than the NUNCD films, viz. ( E0)N-UNCD = 5.3 V/µm and ( E0)N-NCD = 11.8 V/µm. The difference in EFE properties for ppt-processed NCD and UNCD films corresponds to the dissimilar granular structure evolution behavior in these films that is, in turn, due to the distinct different microstructure of the pristine NCD and UNCD films.

Self-organized multi-layered graphene-boron-doped diamond hybrid nanowalls for high-performance electron emission devices.

Carbon nanomaterials such as nanotubes, nanoflakes/nanowalls, and graphene have been used as electron sources due to their superior field electron emission (FEE) characteristics. However, these materials show poor stability and short lifetimes, which prevent their use in practical device applications. The aim of this study was to find an innovative nanomaterial possessing both high robustness and reliable FEE behavior. Herein, a hybrid structure of self-organized multi-layered graphene (MLG)-boron doped diamond (BDD) nanowall materials with superior FEE characteristics was successfully synthesized using a microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition process. Transmission electron microscopy reveals that the as-prepared carbon clusters have a uniform, dense, and sharp nanowall morphology with sp3 diamond cores encased by an sp2 MLG shell. Detailed nanoscale investigations conducted using peak force-controlled tunneling atomic force microscopy show that each of the core-shell structured carbon cluster fields emits electrons equally well. The MLG-BDD nanowall materials show a low turn-on field of 2.4 V µm-1, a high emission current density of 4.2 mA cm-2 at an applied field of 4.0 V µm-1, a large field enhancement factor of 4500, and prominently high lifetime stability (lasting for 700 min), which demonstrate the superiority of these materials over other hybrid nanostructured materials. The potential of these MLG-BDD hybrid nanowall materials in practical device applications was further illustrated by the plasma illumination behavior of a microplasma device with these materials as the cathode, where a low threshold voltage of 330 V (low threshold field of 330 V mm-1) and long plasma stability of 358 min were demonstrated. The fabrication of these hybrid nanowalls is straight forward and thereby opens up a pathway for the advancement of next-generation cathode materials for high brightness electron emission and microplasma-based display devices.

Microstructural Effect on the Enhancement of Field Electron Emission Properties of Nanocrystalline Diamond Films by Li-Ion Implantation and Annealing Processes.

The impact of lithium-ion implantation and postannealing processes on improving the electrical conductivity and field electron emission (FEE) characteristics of nitrogen-doped nanocrystalline diamond (nNCD) films was observed to be distinctly different from those of undoped NCD (uNCD) films. A high-dose Li-ion implantation induced the formation of electron trap centers inside the diamond grains and amorphous carbon (a-C) phases in grain boundaries for both types of NCD films. Postannealing at 1000 °C healed the defects, eliminated the electron trap centers, and converted the a-C into nanographitic phases. The abundant nanographitic phases in the grain boundaries of the nNCD films as compared to the uNCD films made an interconnected path for effectual electron transport and consequently enhanced the FEE characteristics of nNCD films.

Enhancement of plasma illumination characteristics of few-layer graphene-diamond nanorods hybrid.

Few-layer graphene (FLG) was catalytically formed on vertically aligned diamond nanorods (DNRs) by a high temperature annealing process. The presence of 4-5 layers of FLG on DNRs was confirmed by transmission electron microscopic studies. It enhances the field electron emission (FEE) behavior of the DNRs. The FLG-DNRs show excellent FEE characteristics with a low turn-on field of 4.21 V µm-1 and a large field enhancement factor of 3480. Moreover, using FLG-DNRs as cathode markedly enhances the plasma illumination behavior of a microplasma device, viz not only the plasma current density is increased, but also the robustness of the devices is improved.

Microstructural Evolution of Nanocrystalline Diamond Films Due to CH4/Ar/H2 Plasma Post-Treatment Process.

Plasma post-treatment process was observed to markedly enhance the electron field emission (EFE) properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) films. TEM examinations reveal that the prime factor which improves the EFE properties of these films is the coalescence of ultrasmall diamond grains (∼5 nm) forming large diamond grains about hundreds of nanometers accompanied by the formation of nanographitic clusters along the grain boundaries due to the plasma post-treatment process. OES studies reveal the presence of large proportion of atomic hydrogen and C2 (or CH) species, which are the main ingredients that altered the granular structure of the UNCD films. In the post-treatment process, the plasma interacts with the diamond films by a diffusion process. The recrystallization of diamond grains started at the surface region of the material, and the interaction zone increased with the post-treatment period. The entire diamond film can be converted into a nanocrystalline granular structure when post-treated for a sufficient length of time.