Abstract
The surface morphology and physical (density), optical (refractive index), and mechanical (hardness, elasticity) properties of amorphous hydrogenated silicon carbide (a‐SiC:H) films produced by remote microwave hydrogen plasma (RHP)CVD from a triethylsilane precursor are investigated. The effect of substrate temperature (varied in the range T~s~ = 30–400 °C) on the properties of a‐SiC:H films is reported. In view of the atomic force microscopy (AFM) examination the films were found to be morphologically homogeneous materials exhibiting small surface roughness which varies with T~s~ in a narrow range of values (1.0–1.5 nm). The relationships between the film compositional parameter, expressed by the atomic concentration ratio Si/C, and structural parameter described by the relative integrated intensities of the absorption IR band from the SiC bonds (controlled by substrate temperature) are examined. On the basis of the results of these examinations, reasonable compositional and structural dependencies of film properties are determined. The properties of investigated a‐SiC:H films are compared with those reported in the literature for films produced from various organosilicon precursors by different CVD techniques. Due to their good mechanical properties a‐SiC:H films produced in a high substrate temperature regime (T~s~ = 300–400 °C) seem to be useful as protective coatings improving the surface mechanics of various engineering materials.