Atomic-level flat polishing of polycrystalline diamond by combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing

Song Yuan; Chi Fai Cheung; Alborz Shokrani; Zejin Zhan; Chunjin Wang

doi:10.1016/j.cirp.2025.03.024

Atomic-level flat polishing of polycrystalline diamond by combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing

Song Yuan
, Chi Fai Cheung
, Alborz Shokrani
, Zejin Zhan
, Chunjin Wang

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

52 Citations (SciVal)

Abstract

This paper presents an atomic-level flat polishing method based on hydroxyl (•OH) oxidation combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) of polycrystalline diamond (PCD). The PCD surface was firstly modified using •OH generated by He-based H2O2 plasma leading to the formation of an approximately 30 nm thick uniform oxidation layer on the PCD surface composed of carbon-oxygen mixed layer and oxygen-rich layer. Reactive force field molecular dynamics (ReaxFF MD) simulations explained the plasma modification mechanism. The modified layer was then removed using CMP resulting in an atomic-level flat surface with arithmetical mean height (Sa) of 0.366 nm.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	441-445
Number of pages	5
Journal	CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology
Volume	74
Issue number	1
Early online date	21 Apr 2025
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cirp.2025.03.024
Publication status	Published - 31 Dec 2025

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the Beijing Super Cloud Computing Center (BSCC) for providing HPC resources that have contributed to the research results reported within this paper. The authors also thank Prof. Hui Deng from Southern University of Science and Technology for his strong support to this paper.

Funding

The authors would like to express thanks to the National Key R&D Program of China (No. 2023YFE0203800), Innovation and Technology Commission (ITC) of the Government of the HKSAR, China (MHP/151/22), Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation (2025A1515011366), and Postdoc Matching Fund Scheme of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (1-W29X).

Funders	Funder number
Beijing Super Cloud Computing Center
Southern University of Science and Technology
National Key Research and Development Program of China	2023YFE0203800
Innovation and Technology Commission	MHP/151/22
Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province	2025A1515011366
The Hong Kong Polytechnic University	1-W29X

Keywords

Diamond
Plasma
Polishing
Atomic surface
polycrystalline diamond
Molecular dynamic simulation

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10.1016/j.cirp.2025.03.024Licence: CC BY

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abstract = "This paper presents an atomic-level flat polishing method based on hydroxyl (•OH) oxidation combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) of polycrystalline diamond (PCD). The PCD surface was firstly modified using •OH generated by He-based H2O2 plasma leading to the formation of an approximately 30 nm thick uniform oxidation layer on the PCD surface composed of carbon-oxygen mixed layer and oxygen-rich layer. Reactive force field molecular dynamics (ReaxFF MD) simulations explained the plasma modification mechanism. The modified layer was then removed using CMP resulting in an atomic-level flat surface with arithmetical mean height (Sa) of 0.366 nm.",

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AU - Yuan, Song

AU - Cheung, Chi Fai

AU - Shokrani, Alborz

AU - Zhan, Zejin

AU - Wang, Chunjin

PY - 2025/12/31

Y1 - 2025/12/31

N2 - This paper presents an atomic-level flat polishing method based on hydroxyl (•OH) oxidation combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) of polycrystalline diamond (PCD). The PCD surface was firstly modified using •OH generated by He-based H2O2 plasma leading to the formation of an approximately 30 nm thick uniform oxidation layer on the PCD surface composed of carbon-oxygen mixed layer and oxygen-rich layer. Reactive force field molecular dynamics (ReaxFF MD) simulations explained the plasma modification mechanism. The modified layer was then removed using CMP resulting in an atomic-level flat surface with arithmetical mean height (Sa) of 0.366 nm.

AB - This paper presents an atomic-level flat polishing method based on hydroxyl (•OH) oxidation combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) of polycrystalline diamond (PCD). The PCD surface was firstly modified using •OH generated by He-based H2O2 plasma leading to the formation of an approximately 30 nm thick uniform oxidation layer on the PCD surface composed of carbon-oxygen mixed layer and oxygen-rich layer. Reactive force field molecular dynamics (ReaxFF MD) simulations explained the plasma modification mechanism. The modified layer was then removed using CMP resulting in an atomic-level flat surface with arithmetical mean height (Sa) of 0.366 nm.

KW - Diamond

KW - Plasma

KW - Polishing

KW - Atomic surface

KW - polycrystalline diamond

KW - Molecular dynamic simulation

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JO - CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology

JF - CIRP Annals - Manufacturing Technology

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ER -

Atomic-level flat polishing of polycrystalline diamond by combining plasma modification and chemical mechanical polishing

Abstract

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Keywords

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