Synthesis of Graphene-Diamond Hybrid Using Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Ibrahim, Diaa; Garamoon, Abdu; Elaksher, Farouk; El-Sherif, Ashraf F.; Soliman, Wafaa; ElSabbagh, Mansour

doi:10.21608/ejchem.2025.346693.11029

Synthesis of Graphene-Diamond Hybrid Using Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Egyptian Academy for Engineering and Advanced Technology,Cairo,,Egypt

² Physics Department, Faculty of Science (male), Al-Azhar University,Cairo, Egypt

³ Faculty of Engineering, Ahram Canadian University (ACU), Giza, Egypt

⁴ Department of Laser Sciences and Interactions, National Institute of Laser Enhanced Sciences (N.I.L.E.S), Cairo University, Giza,12613, Egypt

⁵ Center of Plasma Technology, Al-Azhar University,Cairo, Egypt

10.21608/ejchem.2025.346693.11029

Abstract

A homemade Plasma-Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition (PECVD) system was developed to synthesize a graphene-diamond hybrid material using Radio Frequency Capacitively Coupled Plasma (RF-CCP) under high-pressure discharge conditions. This study stands out by operating RF-CCP at elevated pressures (200 and 700 mbar), an unconventional regime for this type of plasma, leading to unique dynamics in methane dissociation and reactive species formation. Optical Emission Spectroscopy (OES) identified key plasma species and predicted critical chemical pathways governing hybrid material growth. The high-energy plasma environment effectively dissociated methane, breaking its strong molecular bonds and generating reactive species such as CH and C₂, which facilitated the simultaneous deposition of sp²-hybridized graphene and sp³-hybridized diamond structures.

This study demonstrates the synthesis of a graphene-diamond hybrid material using RF-CCP at high pressure, Enabling precise control over its formation. Structural characterization via X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) confirmed the coexistence of graphene and diamond phases. The findings suggest that CH and C₂ species played a crucial role in material formation, offering a new strategy for designing hybrid carbon materials

Keywords