Ar, O2, CHF3, and SF6 plasma treatments of screen-printed carbon nanotube films for electrode applications

Abstract This paper investigates the consequence of the material property and the plasma gas chemistry (herein referred to the plasma gas-feeding species and methods) on the electrode performance in plasma treatments of screen-printed carbon nanotube (CNT) films. Four plasma gases (Ar, O 2 , SF 6 , and CHF 3 ) and three gas-feeding methods were examined. The surface morphology, microstructure, and composition of 11 sample groups have been carefully characterized. Tests of the CNT film electrode subjected to gas discharge and field emission show that surface morphology modification is the most influential factor in respect of lowering the onset voltages. In detail, O 2 /Ar (O 2 followed by Ar) and Ar + CHF 3  + SF 6 (mixed three gases) treatments are the best choices for ionization and field emission applications, respectively. The relevant results are even better than that of the samples of aligned CNT films prepared by chemical vapor deposition. The underlying mechanisms are modeled by two opposing processes (etching and coating), which phenomenally produce three competing effects, i.e., CNT protruding, bundle forming, and neo-nanostructure forming. The results and the correct behavior of our model suggest that the plasma gas chemistry is the most fundamental factor in the process of plasma treatments of CNT films.