2-step plasma-enhanced CVD for low-temperature fabrication of silica membranes with high gas-separation performance.

Amorphous SiO(2) membranes were prepared via a 2-step plasma-enhanced CVD (PECVD) technique at room temperature on porous TiO(2)/Al(2)O(3) substrates. SiO(2) membranes showed molecular sieving properties with a high separation factor for He/N(2) and He/H(2), and high thermal stability, indicating the successful preparation of high-performance membranes at low temperatures.