Effect of Thermal Annealing on Structural Properties and Electrochemical Performance of Carbon Films with Porous Microstructure

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Abstract
Carbon films that are highly porous and have large surface area can be used in electroanalysis, supercapacitors, and energy storage devices. We have previously fabricated and characterized as-deposited porous carbon thin film electrodes formed by a relatively new film fabrication technique called glancing angle deposition (GLAD). We examine here the effect of thermal annealing on structural properties and electrochemical performance of GLAD carbon thin film (GTF) electrodes. We utilize scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy to characterize the surface structure of annealed GTF electrodes. Electrochemical measurements commonly used to probe the reactivity of carbon electrodes are also employed to characterize the annealed GTF electrodes. Our findings indicate substantial structural changes in which the annealed films undergo extensive graphitization at treatment temperatures above 900°C. We further note that annealing of the GTF electrodes results in significant improvement in electrode reactivity as compared to as-deposited films. © 2004 The Electrochemical Society. All rights reserved.