Dedication

At a Glance

Metadata	Details
Publication Date	2016-08-01
Journal	physica status solidi (a)
Authors	Christoph E. Nebel
Analysis	Full AI Review Included

Technical Documentation: MPCVD Diamond for Advanced Wide-Bandgap Applications

This documentation analyzes the material requirements and technological achievements highlighted in the dedicated volume honoring Dr. Christoph E. Nebel, focusing on the growth, characterization, and application of CVD diamond in fields ranging from quantum metrology to bio-interfacing and power electronics.

Executive Summary

The research portfolio analyzed demonstrates the critical need for highly controlled, high-purity, and custom-engineered MPCVD diamond materials for next-generation devices.

Quantum and Optoelectronics: Successful tuning of Nitrogen-Vacancy (NV) center emission requires ultra-high purity Single Crystal Diamond (SCD) combined with precise metalization (Schottky junctions) and PIN diode structures.
Power and RF Devices: Development of diamond-based power devices relies on controlled Boron Doping (BDD) and the formation of stable 2D-hole accumulation layers via H-termination on SCD surfaces.
Electrochemical and Sensing: Highly porous diamond foam and vertically aligned BDD nanowires are essential for high-surface-area applications, including supercapacitors, DNA sensing, and photocatalysis.
Material Foundation: The core methodology across all applications is Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD), demanding precise control over growth parameters to achieve specific doping profiles and surface characteristics.
6CCVD Value Proposition: 6CCVD specializes in supplying the foundational SCD and BDD substrates, custom-engineered for thickness, doping, surface finish (Ra < 1 nm), and integrated metalization required for these complex device architectures.

Technical Specifications

The following table summarizes the critical material parameters and performance targets implied by the research applications (e.g., NV centers, supercapacitors, and power devices).

Parameter	Value	Unit	Context / Application
Material Purity (SCD)	Ultra-High	N/A	Quantum Metrology (NV Centers), Optomechanical Circuits
Required Doping	Boron (p-type)	N/A	PIN Diodes, Supercapacitors, Biosensors
Surface Termination	Hydrogen (H-terminated)	N/A	2D-hole accumulation layer, Schottky junctions, Chemical functionalization
Surface Roughness (SCD)	Ultra-low	Ra < 1 nm	Epitaxial growth, Optomechanical integration
Required Thickness Range	0.1 to 500	µm	Thin-film devices, Substrates, Free-standing membranes
Metalization Requirements	Al, Ti/Pt/Au, Pd	N/A	Ohmic contacts, Schottky barriers for NV tuning
Device Structure	Vertically Aligned Nanowires	N/A	High surface area for DNA sensing and electrochemistry
Target Application Fields	Power Electronics, Quantum Sensing, Bio-Interfacing	N/A	Wide-bandgap semiconductor utilization

Key Methodologies

The research relies heavily on advanced MPCVD growth and precise post-processing techniques to achieve functional diamond devices.

Plasma Enhanced CVD (PECVD) Growth: Utilizing microwave plasma reactors to achieve high growth rates and control over defect incorporation, essential for both high-purity Single Crystal Diamond (SCD) and heavily doped Boron-Doped Diamond (BDD).
Controlled Doping: Precise introduction of Boron sources during CVD to create highly conductive p-type layers (Type IIb diamond) necessary for PIN diodes and electrochemical electrodes.
Surface Engineering: Post-growth treatment (typically H-plasma exposure) to achieve stable Hydrogen termination, which is critical for forming the 2D-hole accumulation layer on the diamond surface.
Advanced Structuring: Techniques such as reactive ion etching (RIE) or selective growth to fabricate high aspect ratio structures, including vertically aligned nanowires and porous diamond foam for enhanced surface area.
Integrated Metalization: Deposition of specific metal stacks (e.g., Al for Schottky contacts, Ti/Pt/Au for robust ohmic contacts) to enable electrical injection and control of quantum states (NV centers).

6CCVD Solutions & Capabilities

6CCVD is uniquely positioned to supply the foundational diamond materials and custom engineering services required to replicate and advance the research outlined in this dedication, particularly in quantum, power, and electrochemical applications.

Applicable Materials

To achieve the performance metrics described (e.g., NV tuning, 2D-hole accumulation, high-efficiency supercapacitors), 6CCVD recommends the following materials from our catalog:

Application Focus	Recommended 6CCVD Material	Key Feature
Quantum Metrology & Optoelectronics	Optical Grade SCD (High Purity)	Nitrogen concentration < 1 ppb; Thickness control 0.1 µm to 500 µm.
Power Devices & PIN Diodes	Electronic Grade SCD & BDD Heterostructures	Precise control over Boron doping profiles; Substrates up to 10 mm thick.
Supercapacitors & Biosensors	Heavy Boron Doped PCD (BDD)	High conductivity and electrochemical stability; Custom plates up to 125 mm diameter.
Optomechanical Circuits	Ultra-Polished SCD	Surface roughness guaranteed Ra < 1 nm for low-loss integration.

Customization Potential

The research highlights the need for integrated device fabrication, which requires specialized material preparation beyond standard substrates. 6CCVD offers comprehensive customization:

Custom Dimensions: We supply large-area PCD plates up to 125 mm and SCD wafers tailored to specific device footprints, eliminating material waste.
Precision Thickness Control: We provide SCD and PCD films with thicknesses ranging from 0.1 µm (for thin-film devices) up to 500 µm, with tight tolerance control for reproducible device performance.
Integrated Metalization: We offer in-house deposition of critical metal stacks, including Ti/Pt/Au, Al, Pd, and W, necessary for forming the ohmic and Schottky contacts used in NV tuning and power device fabrication.
Advanced Polishing: For applications requiring low optical loss or high-quality epitaxial growth (e.g., optomechanical circuits), our SCD polishing achieves Ra < 1 nm.

Engineering Support

6CCVD’s in-house PhD team specializes in wide-bandgap semiconductor physics and CVD growth optimization. We can assist researchers and engineers with:

Material Selection: Guidance on selecting the optimal SCD purity or BDD doping level required for specific Quantum Sensing or High-Frequency Power Device projects.
Surface Preparation: Consultation on achieving and maintaining stable H-termination for 2D-hole gas applications and subsequent chemical functionalization (e.g., for biomimetic interfaces).
Custom Recipe Development: Collaboration on developing unique MPCVD recipes for novel structures, such as highly porous diamond films or specific isotopic compositions.

For custom specifications or material consultation, visit 6ccvd.com or contact our engineering team directly.

View Original Abstract

Christoph E. Nebel (9 August 1956) It is with immense pleasure that we dedicate this Topical Section on “Novel aspects of diamond” in the journal physica status solidi (a) - applications and materials science to Dr. Christoph E. Nebel in honor and celebration of his 60th birthday. As a pioneer, innovator and contributor in the fields of chemistry, physics and engineering of wide-band gap semiconductors, Dr. Nebel is well recognized all over the world. His inspiration which he imparted to his students, postdoctoral research associates, collaborators and peers is evident in the collection of articles archived in this issue. Dr. Nebel is the head of the Department of Semiconductor Sensors at the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics (IAF) in Freiburg, Germany, since 2009. He obtained his PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Stuttgart in 1990 and his second PhD degree in Physics in 1998 due to his habilitation that addressed optical and electronic characteristics of CVD diamond. Between 1990 and 1992 he was a post-doc at the Xerox Research Center, Palo Alto, California, USA, financed by the Alexander v. Humboldt Foundation, Germany, as part of the Fedor Lynen Research Fellowship program. In 1993 he joined the team of Martin Stutzmann at the Walter Schottky Institute, Technische Universität München, Germany, to work on diamond as a promising new wide bandgap material. In 2004 he moved to the newly founded Diamond Research Center of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Japan, to become team leader of the Bio-Functionalized Device team. Since 2008 he was back to Germany at the Fraunhofer IAF. Dr. Nebel impacted the community with his work on the growth and characterization of amorphous semiconductors, application and characterization of laser crystallization of microcrystalline silicon for solar cell applications. He has devoted himself more and more to the growth, characterization and applications of diamond films, such as plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition of single-crystalline diamond, diamond based power devices, photocatalytic applications of diamond, quantum metrology etc. In these fields he has co-edited 5 books, written 12 editorials and 15 review articles, and published around 300 papers in peer-reviewed journals. Some of his key publications are listed below. He was the Chair of the European Conference on Diamond, Diamond-Like Materials, Carbon Nanotubes and Nitrides (now DCM for Diamond and Carbon Materials). He has been strongly involved as organizer and program committee member for further 10 international conferences. In this special issue we collected 17 papers contributed by diamond specialists and experts from all over the world. The Feature Article by Matthias Schreck et al. is a brief review about multiple roles of dislocations in heteroepitaxial growth of diamond. The Expert Opinion by Nicholas Nunn and Olga Shenderova presents a golden standard in single digit detonation nanodiamond. In our view, the other 15 Original Papers cover almost all diamond related research topics: there are 5 articles about the growth and properties of diamond, 2 articles about surface chemistry of diamond, 5 articles about the applications in the fields of biochemistry, medicine and electrochemistry, as well as 3 articles about device development. We acknowledge the quality of all contributions published in this very special issue. Happy Birthday, Christoph! We are looking forward to seeing and joining your activities in the coming years. Nianjun Yang (University of Siegen, Germany) Philippe Bergonzo (CEA Saclay, France) Diamond-Based Supercapacitors: Realization and Properties F. Gao and C. E. Nebel, ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, doi:10.1021/acsami.5b07027 (2015). Highly porous diamond foam as a thin-film micro-supercapacitor material F. Gao, M. Wolfer, and C.E. Nebel, Carbon 80, 833-840 (2014). Tuned NV emission by in-plane Al-Schottky junctions on hydrogen terminated diamond C. Schreyvogel, M. Wolfer, H. Kato, M. Schreck, and C.E. Nebel, Sci. Rep. 4, 3634 (2014), doi:10.1038/srep03634. Surface electronic properties of diamond C. E. Nebel, in: Super Hard Materials, edited by C.E. Nebel and V. Sarin (Elsevier, 2014), ISBN: 9780080965277, pp. 339-364. Photocatalysis: A source of energetic electrons C.E. Nebel, Nature Mater. 12(9), 780-781 (2013). Tunable light emission from nitrogen-vacancy centers in single crystal diamond PIN diodes H. Kato, M. Wolfer, C. Schreyvogel, M. Kunzer, W. Müller-Sebert, H. Obloh, S. Yamasaki, and C.E. Nebel, Appl. Phys. Lett. 102(15), 151101 (2013). Diamond-integrated optomechanical circuits P. Rath, S. Khasminskaya, C.E. Nebel, C. Wild, and W.H.P. Pernice, Nature Commun. 4, 1690 (2013). The creation of a biomimetic interface between boron-doped diamond and immobilized proteins R. Hoffmann, A. Kriele, H. Obloh, N. Tokuda, W. Smirnov, N. Yang, and C.E. Nebel, Biomaterials 32(30), 7325-7332 (2011). Light sources: Tackling the deep ultraviolet Christoph E. Nebel, Nature Photon. 3(10), 564-566 (2009). Isotopic homojunction band engineering from diamond H. Watanabe, C.E.Nebel, and S. Shikata, Science 324(5933), 1425-1428 (2009). Vertically Aligned Nanowires from Boron-Doped Diamond N. Yang, H. Uestuka, E. Osawa, and C.E. Nebel, Nano Lett. 8(11), 3572-3576 (2008). Vertically aligned diamond nanowires for DNA sensing N. Yang, H.Uetsuka, E. Osawa, and C.E. Nebel, Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 47, 5183-5185 (2008). Properties of hybridized DNA arrays on single-crystalline undoped and boron-doped (100) diamonds studied by atomic force microscopy in electrolytes B. Rezek, D. Shin, and C.E. Nebel, Langmuir 23(14), 7626-7676 (2007). Diamond for biosensor applications C.E. Nebel, B. Rezek, D. Shin, H. Uetsuka, and N. Yang, J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys. 40, 6443-6466 (2007). Photochemical amine layer formation on H-terminated single-crystalline CVD diamond N. Yang, H. Uetsuka, H. Watanabe, T. Nakamura, and C.E. Nebel, Chem. Mater. 19, 2852-2859 (2007). Alkene/Diamond Liquid/Solid Interface Characterization Using Internal Photoemission Spectroscopy C.E. Nebel, D. Shin, D. Takeuchi, T. Yamamoto, H. Watanabe, and T. Nakamura, Langmuir 22(13), 5645-5653 (2006). Insulator-Metal Transition of Intrinsic Diamond D. Shin, H. Watanabe, and C.E. Nebel, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 127(32), 11236-11237 (2005). 2D-hole accumulation layer in hydrogen terminated diamond C.E. Nebel, B. Rezek, and A. Zrenner, Phys. Status Solidi A 11, 2432-2438 (2004). From gemstone to semiconductor C.E. Nebel, Nature Mater. 2(7), 431-432 (2003). Electronic properties of CVD diamond C.E. Nebel, in: Semiconductor Science and Technology Vol. 18, Special issue: Diamond Electronics, Guest editor: R. Jackman (Institute of Physics Publishing, 2003), pp. S1-S11. Periodic light coupler gratings in amorphous thin film solar cells C. Eisele, C.E. Nebel, and M. Stutzmann, J. Appl. Phys. 89 (12), 7722-7726 (2001). Long living excited states in boron doped diamond C.E. Nebel, E. Rohrer, and M. Stutzmann, J. Appl. Phys. 89 (4), 2237 -2240 (2001). Deep level transient spectroscopy of synthetic type IIb diamond R. Zeisel, C.E. Nebel, and M. Stutzmann, J. Appl. Phys. 84 (11), 6105-6108 (1998). The sign of the Hall effect in hydrogenated amorphous and disordered silicon C.E. Nebel, M. Rother, M. Stutzmann, C. Summonte, and M. Heintze, Philos. Mag. Lett. 74, 455 (1996). High-electric field transport in a-Si:H: 2. Dark conductivity C.E. Nebel, R.A. Street, N.M. Johnson, and C.C. Tsai, Phys. Rev. B 46, 6803 (1992). High-electric field transport in a-Si:H: 1. Transient photoconductivity C.E. Nebel, R.A. Street, N.M. Johnson, and J. Kocka, Phys. Rev. B 46, 6789 (1992). Solution of the -problem in a-Si:H J. Kocka, C.E. Nebel, and C.-D. Abel, Philos. Mag. B 63, 221 (1991). As a service to our authors and readers, this journal provides supporting information supplied by the authors. Such materials are peer reviewed and may be re-organized for online delivery, but are not copy-edited or typeset. Technical support issues arising from supporting information (other than missing files) should be addressed to the authors. Please note: The publisher is not responsible for the content or functionality of any supporting information supplied by the authors. Any queries (other than missing content) should be directed to the corresponding author for the article.

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/pssa.201670655