Electrical contacts to nanocrystalline diamond films studied at high temperatures

Electrical contacts of Ni, NiSi, Cu, Au, Al, and Ti electrodes to an n-type nanocrystalline diamond film are studied at temperatures between room temperature and 500 °C in a vacuum by the transmission line measurement. Direct current-voltage characteristics measured between pairs of electrodes on the film show almost straight lines, typical of ohmic contacts, for all kinds of electrode materials. The measured series resistance is divided into resistance of the film, resistance of the electrode, and the contact resistance between the electrode and film. The Ni electrode has the lowest contact resistance, which decreases from about 380 to 200 mΩ cm² with temperature. The contact resistance accounts for a large portion of the total resistance at low temperatures. The results confirm that the contact resistance has a close relation with the work function of electrodes such that the larger the work function, the lower the contact resistance.