The thin films of C₆₀ fullerenes were investigated as a coating material in surface finishing applications. The films were coated by vacuum evaporation on glass and silicon substrates. These films were annealed in oxygen ambient and exposed to a oxygen plasma. The C₆₀ films coated substrates were also kept immersed in water and NaOH for a long time and tested for mechanical and optical properties. It was found that the optical properties and bulk properties were stable or modified favorably for surface finishing applications during these treatments. Though low temperature heating resulted in densification of C₆₀ films, higher temperature above 300°C resulted in graphitization in oxygen ambient. These findings indicated that the thin films of C₆₀ can be used as a corrosion resistive coating and UV cutting surface material below 300°C.

Date Published: 23 November 2005
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 6002, Nanofabrication: Technologies, Devices, and Applications II, 60021A (23 November 2005); doi: 10.1117/12.631051

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 6002:
Nanofabrication: Technologies, Devices, and Applications II
Warren Y.-C. Lai; Leonidas E. Ocola; Stanley Pau, Editor(s)