Hydrogenated amorphous carbon nitride (a-C:N:H) films were synthesized from CH4/N-2, C2H4/N-2 and C2H2/N-2 mixtures using dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasmas. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were used to characterize the surface morphology, bonding structure, and composition of the a-C: N: H films. The influences of plasma parameters (discharge pressure in the range of 25-1000 Pa) and feed gases used on the composition and the structure of deposited films were systematically studied. The a-C: N: H films with the uniform surface structure were deposited by low-pressure DBD plasmas with various systems. Compared to the films deposited in C2H4/N-2 and C2H2/N-2 systems, the films deposited in the CH4/N-2 system exhibit the relatively lower surface roughness and deposition rate. For all the films prepared in these three systems, increasing the discharge pressure leads to an increase in film surface roughness and deposition rate. Significant differences among the FTIR spectra of all deposited a-C: N: H films were also observed. Both FTIR and XPS spectra show that for all the films deposited in three different systems, increasing the N-2 fraction leads to a decrease in the H content of deposited a-C: N: H films and an increase in the N content. The properties of deposited films may change from those of polymerlike to diamond-like when the discharge pressure is increased. Correlations between the film properties and growth processes are discussed in this study. (C) 2010 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.