Open AccessConductive-probe atomic force microscopy and Kelvin-probe force microscopy characterization of OH-terminated diamond (111) surfaces with step-terrace structures
Author(s) -
Masao Nagai,
Ryo Yoshida,
Tatsuro Yamada,
Taira Tabakoya,
Christoph E. Nebel,
Satoshi Yamasaki,
Toshiharu Makino,
Tetsuya Matsumoto,
Takao Inokuma,
Norio Tokuda
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
japanese journal of applied physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.487
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1347-4065
pISSN - 0021-4922
DOI - 10.7567/1347-4065/ab1b5c
Subject(s) - kelvin probe force microscope , conductive atomic force microscopy , diamond , annealing (glass) , schottky diode , volta potential , microscopy , atomic force microscopy , schottky barrier , materials science , semiconductor , electrostatic force microscope , insulator (electricity) , analytical chemistry (journal) , chemistry , nanotechnology , optoelectronics , diode , optics , composite material , physics , chromatography
We characterized OH-terminated diamond (111) surfaces which show step-terrace (ST) and bunching-step (BS) regions from contact potential difference (CPD) and current to investigate the relationships between surface topography and generation of interface states on the surfaces. The OH-termination was performed using water vapor annealing. The CPD and current measurements were conducted by conductive-probe AFM and Kelvin-probe force microscopy. The CPD and current were highly correlated with the surface topography. The I – V characteristics shows typical ideality factors ( n ) of about 1.5 and 2.0 in the ST region and the BS region, respectively. As the n were higher than that of an ideal Schottky contact ( n = 1.0), we concluded that a metal insulator semiconductor diode structure, whose n increases as its interface state density increases, was formed. Considering that step density in the BS region was much higher than that in the ST region, the steps seemed to have generated the interface states.