Textured growth of cubic boron nitride film on nickel substrates

Abstract

Textured cubic boron nitride (c-BN) films have been deposited on (220) oriented crystallized polycrystalline nickel substrate by a hot filament assisted rf plasma chemical vapor deposition method. X-ray diffraction shows that the films are (220) preferentially grown, the peak ratio of (220) to the main peak [i.e., the (111) peak] is about 5.2. The scanning electron microscopy images exhibit regular grain shapes. Most of the grains are rectangular, also indicating the (220) growth. The grain size is about 5 μm. The well-matched Ni lattice with c-BN, the catalytic effect of Ni, and the appropriate rf bias are considered to be the key factors in the textured growth.