Synthetic diamond electrodes: The effect of surface microroughnesson the electrochemical properties of CVD diamond thin films on titanium

The electrochemical behavior of B-doped diamond films on Ti substrates subjected to different pretreatment procedures (annealing, sand-blasting, and etching in HCl) is evaluated as a function of surface microroughness. Generally, the differential capacitance follows the true surface area of the electrodes. The width of the potential window also increases, but slightly, with the roughness. The electrode reversibility in the [Fe(CN)6]3−/[Fe(CN)6]4− redox system increases with increasing surface roughness. The apparent increase in the reversibility of the reaction may be also explained by the decrease in the true current density. Although the variations in the electrochemical parameters are not strongly pronounced, the tendencies observed can be used to optimise the electrode properties.