Kinetics of chemical vapor deposition of boron on molybdenum

Experimental rate data of chemical vapor deposition of boron by reduction of boron trichloride with hydrogen are analyzed to determine the reaction mechanism. The experiments were conducted at atmospheric pressure. The weight change of the sample was noted by means of a thermobalance. Molybdenum was used as the substrate. It has been found that the outer layer of the deposited film is Mo/sub 2/B/sub 5/ and the inner layer is MoB, and in the stational state of the reaction, the diffusion in the solid state is considered not to be rate controlling. When mass transport limitation was absent, the reaction orders with respect to boron trichloride and hydrogen were one third and one half, respectively. By comparing these orders with those obtained from Langmuir-Hinshelwood type equations, the rate controlling mechanism is identified to be the desorption of hydrogen chloride from the substrate