Materials 2014, 7, 5643-5663; doi:10.3390/ma7085643 materials ISSN 1996-1944 www.mdpi.com/journal/materials Article Reduction of Photoluminescence Quenching by Deuteration of Ytterbium-Doped Amorphous Carbon-Based Photonic Materials Hui-Lin Hsu 1 , Keith R. Leong 1 , I-Ju Teng 2,3 , Michael Halamicek 1 , Jenh-Yih Juang 2 , Sheng-Rui Jian 3 , Li Qian 1, * and Nazir P. Kherani 1,4, * 1 Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3G4, Canada; E-Mails: huilin.hsu@mail.utoronto.ca (H.-L.H.); keith.leong@mail.utoronto.ca (K.R.L.); michael.halamicek@mail.utoronto.ca (M.H.) 2 Center for Interdisciplinary Science, National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu 30010, Taiwan; E-Mails: eru7023@gmail.com (I-J.T.); jyjuang@nctu.edu.tw (J.-Y.J.) 3 Department of Materials Science and Engineering, I-Shou University, Kaohsiung 84001, Taiwan; E-Mail: srjian@gmail.com 4 Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3E4, Canada * Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mails: l.qian@utoronto.ca (L.Q.); kherani@ecf.utoronto.ca (N.P.K.); Tel.: +1-416-946-5517 (L.Q.); +1-416-946-7372 (N.P.K.). Received: 29 May 2014; in revised form: 21 July 2014 / Accepted: 31 July 2014 / Published: 6 August 2014 Abstract: In situ Yb-doped amorphous carbon thin films were grown on Si substrates at low temperatures (<200 °C) by a simple one-step RF-PEMOCVD system as a potential photonic material for direct integration with Si CMOS back end-of-line processing. Room temperature photoluminescence around 1 μm was observed via direct incorporation of optically active Yb 3+ ions from the selected Yb(fod) 3 metal-organic compound. The partially fluorinated Yb(fod) 3 compound assists the suppression of photoluminescence quenching by substitution of C–H with C–F bonds. A four-fold enhancement of Yb photoluminescence was demonstrated via deuteration of the a-C host. The substrate temperature greatly influences the relative deposition rate of the plasma dissociated metal-organic species, and hence the concentration of the various elements. Yb and F incorporation are promoted at lower substrate temperatures, and suppressed at higher substrate temperatures. O concentration is slightly elevated at higher substrate temperatures. OPEN ACCESS