Deposition of Copper Oxide Coatings with an Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Source: II – Characterization of the Films

Copper oxide films have been deposited successfully on borosilicate glass substrates with a copper containing nitrogen plasma at atmospheric pressure. This was done by using a non‐thermal DC jet with a sacrificial electrode as copper source. The produced films have been systematically investigated by different methods, including scanning electron microscopy and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). It is demonstrated that various copper morphologies, such as nanoflakes, can be produced by non‐thermal atmospheric pressure plasma sources. The XPS data suggest that the nanostructures produced in the deposition process consist mostly of Cu(II)O. The dominant shape of these nanoparticles is flake‐like with a high aspect ratio. Furthermore, it is shown that the temperature during the deposition process is well below 70 °C, and thus, enables copper oxide deposition on heat sensitive materials.