Luminescence Enhancement in Silicon Oxycarbide Thin Films Obtained by Catalytic Chemical Vapor Deposition Using Mesoporous Silica Pellets and Tetraethoxysilane

•Catalytic chemical vapor deposition of silicon oxycarbide films on silicon substrates.•Properties of the films modified by the use of different deposition reagents.•Mesoporous silica pellets as reagents resulted in enhanced luminescence of the films. Silicon oxycarbide thin films were obtained by catalytic chemical vapor deposition technique using mesoporous silica pellets and tetraethoxysilane as reagents. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy demonstrated the presence of silicon, oxygen, and carbon, which agreed with X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy characterization results. Scanning electron microscopy images showed the presence of globular clusters with an average size of 221.8 nm containing dispersed aggregates as much as 50 nm in diameter dispersed on their surface. Ellipsometry measurements showed that the thickness of thin films increased at higher hydrogen flow rates during the deposition process. Photoluminescence spectra showed a luminescence enhancement for the samples prepared with mesoporous silica pellets and tetraethoxysilane as reagents.