A low pressure, flat flame burner will be used to grow diamond under highly controlled and well characterized conditions. Low pressure, porous plug-stabilized flames have a simple one- dimensional structure which lend themselves to accurate modeling and diagnostic probing, providing a significant advantage for fundamental studies over other types of diamond growth reactors. Stable species concentrations will be measured in the boundary layer of a temperature-controlled substrate placed in the flow. Radical species and temperatures will be measured using laser-induced fluorescence, resonantly-enhanced multiphoton ionization, and Raman scattering techniques. IR/visible sum generation will be used to detect molecules adsorbed on the substrate during diamond growth. A reacting flow numerical model will be developed and predicted species, temperature, and growth rates will be compared to experimentally measured values. Diamond films appear very promising for tribological, optical, and electronic applications, but the quality of currently- grown films is insufficient for most uses. The experiments planned will be the first to study diamond growth in a thoroughly characterized environment, and should yield significant information on the processes responsible for maximizing growth rate and controlling quality.
