eprintid: 10077144 rev_number: 38 eprint_status: archive userid: 608 dir: disk0/10/07/71/44 datestamp: 2019-07-02 11:46:36 lastmod: 2021-10-04 00:23:18 status_changed: 2019-07-25 11:47:33 type: article metadata_visibility: show creators_name: Hicks, M-L creators_name: Pakpour-Tabrizi, AC creators_name: Zuerbig, V creators_name: Kirste, L creators_name: Nebel, C creators_name: Jackman, RB title: Optimizing reactive ion etching to remove sub-surface polishing damage on diamond ispublished: pub divisions: UCL divisions: B04 divisions: C05 divisions: F46 note: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. abstract: Low defect smooth substrates are essential to achieve high quality diamond epitaxial growth and high performance devices. The optimization of the Ar/O2/CF4 reactive ion etching (RIE) plasma treatment for diamond substrate smoothing and its effectiveness to remove subsurface polishing damage are characterized. An O2/CF4 RIE process and the effect of different process parameters (inductively coupled plasma, platen power, and pressure) were initially examined. This process, however, still produced a detrimental effect to surface roughness, with etch pits across the surface of the sample. The addition of argon to the process achieved near-zero surface pit density and reduced roughness by 20%–44% after 6 and 10 μm etching. Iterative high-resolution X-ray diffraction measurements provided a nondestructive tool to examine the effectiveness of polishing damage removal and in this case reduced after removal of 6 μm of material from the surface of the diamond substrate with the smoothing treatment. date: 2019-06-28 date_type: published publisher: AIP Publishing official_url: https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5094751 oa_status: green full_text_type: pub language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green verified: verified_manual elements_id: 1668178 doi: 10.1063/1.5094751 lyricists_name: Hicks, Marie-Laure lyricists_name: Jackman, Richard lyricists_id: HICKS03 lyricists_id: RBJAC40 actors_name: Jackman, Richard actors_id: RBJAC40 actors_role: owner full_text_status: public publication: Journal of Applied Physics volume: 125 number: 24 article_number: 244502 issn: 1089-7550 citation: Hicks, M-L; Pakpour-Tabrizi, AC; Zuerbig, V; Kirste, L; Nebel, C; Jackman, RB; (2019) Optimizing reactive ion etching to remove sub-surface polishing damage on diamond. Journal of Applied Physics , 125 (24) , Article 244502. 10.1063/1.5094751 <https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5094751>. Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077144/1/Jackman%20VoR1.5094751.pdf