Graphitic carbon grown on fluorides by molecular beam epitaxy

We study the growth mechanism of carbon molecules supplied by molecular beam epitaxy on fluoride substrates (MgF(2), CaF(2), and BaF(2)). All the carbon layers form graphitic carbon with different crystallinities depending on the cation. Especially, the growth on MgF(2) results in the formation of nanocrystalline graphite (NCG). Such dependence on the cation is a new observation and calls for further systematic studies with other series of substrates. At the same growth temperature, the NCG on MgF(2) has larger clusters than those on oxides. This is contrary to the general expectation because the bond strength of the carbon-fluorine bond is larger than that of the carbon-oxygen bond. Our results show that the growth of graphitic carbon does not simply depend on the chemical bonding between the carbon and the anion in the substrate.