Growth of glassy carbon on natural fibers

Diamond-like carbon films were grown on pyrolised bamboo substrates by hot filament-chemical vapor deposition from ethanol/hydrogen mixtures. Different stages of deposition of films grown on untreated substrates and substrates seeded with diamond dust were compared. Changes in film morphology and structure under changes in these parameters were investigated using scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Diamond-like carbon (DLC) with ball-like morphology on the micrometer scale and glassy DLC with a stacked planar structure were observed for depositions of >2 h on unseeded and seeded substrates, respectively. Gasification of the fibers by hydrogen in the early stages of growth may play a role in film growth, but this requires further study. Nevertheless, DLC films can be grown on pyrolised bamboo substrates, which suggests that other carbonaceous substrates for film fabrication by hot-filament chemical vapor deposition also merit systematic investigation.