Deposition of cathode carbon films in the plasma of a low-current gas discharge at atmospheric pressure.

Plasma-chemical deposition of carbon films is carried out under the conditions of an atmospheric-pressure dc discharge from a mixture of hydrocarbons (methane and butane-propane) with helium on substrates (Ni and Cu) that serve as the cathode in the process of discharge. The formation of predominantly disordered films from graphite crystallites is observed at small deposition times. An array of carbon nanotubes coated with structured carbon is formed, as the duration of deposition increases; layers of graphitized scales are formed along the film's edges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]