Influence of post-deposition annealing on the structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films prepared by sol–gel and spin-coating method

Thin films of zinc oxide have been deposited onto (0001) sapphire substrate by sol–gel and spin-coating methods. The XRD pattern showed that the crystallinity of the annealed ZnO films had improved in comparison with that of the as-grown films. Photoluminescence spectra revealed a two-line structure, which is identified in terms of UV emission and defect-related emission. The emission intensity was found to be greatly dependent on heat treatment. Host phonons of ZnO and a shift of the _E2$E_2$ (high) peak from its position have been observed from Raman spectra. The surface morphologies of the film had been improved after annealing was observed from AFM images.     

Investigation of the structural and electrical properties of air-annealed ruthenium thin films on 6H–SiC at different temperatures

Ruthenium (Ru) Schottky contacts and thin films on n-type 6H–SiC were fabricated and characterised by physical and electrical methods. The characterisation was done after annealing the samples in air at various temperatures. Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy (RBS) analysis of the thin films indicated the oxidation of Ru after annealing at a temperature of 400 °C, and interdiffusion of Ru and Si at the Ru–6H–SiC interface at 500 °C. XRD analysis of the thin films indicated the formation of RuO₂ and RuSi in Ru–6H–SiC after annealing at a temperature of 600 °C. The formation of the oxide was also corroborated by Raman spectroscopy. The ideality factor of the Schottky barrier diodes (SBD) was seen to generally decrease with annealing temperature. The series resistance increased astronomically after annealing at 700 °C, which was an indication that the SBD had broken down. The failure mechanism of the SBD is attributed to deep inter-diffusions of Ru and Si at the Ru–6H–SiC interface as evidenced by the RBS of the thin films.     

Effects of annealing temperature on GO–Cu2O composite films grown by electrochemical deposition for PEC photoelectrode

In this work, graphene oxide–cuprous oxide (GO–Cu₂O) composite films were grown on fluorine-doped tin oxide substrates by electrochemical deposition. We investigated the effects of the annealing temperature on the morphological, structural, optical and photoelectrochemical (PEC) properties of GO–Cu₂O composite films. As a result, our work shows that while GO–Cu₂O composite films exhibit the highest XRD (111) peak intensity at 300 °C sample, the highest photocurrent density value obtained was −4.75 mA/cm² at 200 °C sample (using 0.17 V versus a reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE)). In addition, a reduction reaction at 300 °C sample was observed using XPS analysis from the shift in the O1s peak in addition to a weaker O1s peak intensity.     

Observation of positive and small electron affinity of Si-doped AlN films grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition on n-type 6H–SiC

We have investigated the electron affinity of Si-doped AlN films(N_(Si)= 1.0 × 10~(18)–1.0 × 10_(19)cm~(-3)) with thicknesses of 50, 200, and 400 nm, synthesized by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition(MOCVD) under low pressure on the ntype(001)6H–SiC substrates. The positive and small electron affinity of AlN films was observed through the ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy(UPS) analysis, where an increase in electron affinity appears with the thickness of AlN films increasing, i.e., 0.36 eV for the 50-nm-thick one, 0.58 eV for the 200-nm-thick one, and 0.97 e V for the 400-nm-thick one.Accompanying the x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS) analysis on the surface contaminations, it suggests that the difference of electron affinity between our three samples may result from the discrepancy of surface impurity contaminations.     

Post‐deposition annealing and crystallisation of Y-Ba-Cu-O thin films deposited on polycrystalline substrates

Superconducting thin films of Y-Ba-Cu-O have been prepared by 50 Hz ac sputtering on polycrystalline SrTiO₃, yttria-stabilized-ZrO₂, and MgO substrates. Films deposited on different substrate materials are required to be annealed at different temperatures to induce superconductivity. The optimum annealing temperature for a film depends on the reaction between the film and its substrate material. It appears that a correlation exists between the process of crystallisation and substrate-film reaction.     

Mid-gap photoluminescence and magnetic properties of GaMnN films grown by metal–organic chemical vapor deposition

Metal-organic chemical vapor deposition （MOCVD） grown ferromagnetic GaMnN films are investigated by photo- luminescence （PL） measurement with a mid-gap excitation wavelength of 405 nm. A sharp PL peak at 1.8 eV is found and the PL intensity successively decreases with the addition of Mn, in which the Mn concentration of sample A is below 1% （[Mn]A =0.75%） but its PL intensity is stronger than other samples＇. The 1.8-eV PL peak is attributed to the recombination of electrons in the t2 state of the neutral Mn3＋ acceptor with holes in the valence band. With Mn concentration increasing, the intensity of the PL peak decreases and the magnetic increment reduces in our samples. The correlation between the PL peak intensity and ferromagnetism of the samples is discussed in combination with the experimental results.     

Influence of post-deposition annealing on the structural,optical and electrical properties of Li and Mg co-doped ZnO thin films deposited by sol–gel technique

Lithium (Li) and magnesium (Mg) co-doped zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films were deposited by sol–gel method using spin coating technique. The films were deposited on glass substrates and annealed at different temperatures. The effects of annealing temperature on the structural, optical and electrical properties of the deposited films were investigated using X-ray diffraction (XRD), Ultraviolet–Visible absorption spectra (UV–VIS), photoluminescence spectra (PL), X-ray photo electron spectroscopy (XPS) and Hall measurements. XRD patterns indicated that the deposited films had a polycrystalline hexagonal wurtzite structure with preferred (0 0 0 2) orientation. All films were found to exhibit a good transparency in the visible range. Analysis of the absorption edge revealed that the optical band gap energies of the films annealed at different temperatures varies between 3.49 eV and 3.69 eV. Room temperature PL spectra of the deposited films annealed at various temperatures consist of a near band edge emission and visible emission due to the electronic defects, which are related to deep level emissions, such as oxide antisite (O_Zn), interstitial zinc (Zn_i), interstitial oxygen (O_i) and zinc vacancy (V_Zn) which are generated during annealing process. The influence of annealing temperature on the chemical state of the dopants in the film was analysed by XPS spectra. Ion beam analysis (Rutherford back scattering) experiments were performed to evaluate the content of Li and Mg in the films. Hall measurements confirmed the p-type nature of the deposited films.     

Effect of in situ post-deposition annealing on the formation of α-In2Se3 thin films grown by elemental evaporation

Stoichiometric polycrystalline In₂Se₃ thin films have been grown by elemental evaporation on both glass and quartz substrates. The compositions are examined by DAN fluorimetry and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Structure of the films are characterized by X-ray diffraction. The structure of this -form of thin films have been determined to be hexagonal. Optimization of the preparative conditions employed for elemental evaporation, helped in preparing monophasic films by the suppression of other phases to a very minor extent. Influence of annealing conditions on the stoichiometry of the films are investigated in detail.     

Influence of annealing temperature on passivation performance of thermal atomic layer deposition Al_2O_3 films

Chemical and field-effect passivation of atomic layer deposition （ALD） Al2O3 films are investigated, mainly by corona charging measurement. The interface structure and material properties are characterized by transmission electron microscopy （TEM） and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy （XPS）, respectively. Passivation performance is improved remarkably by annealing at temperatures of 450 ℃ and 500 ℃, while the improvement is quite weak at 600 ℃, which can be attributed to the poor quality of chemical passivation. An increase of fixed negative charge density in the films during annealing can be explained by the Al2O3/Si interface structural change. The Al–OH groups play an important role in chemical passivation, and the Al–OH concentration in an as-deposited film subsequently determines the passivation quality of that film when it is annealed, to a certain degree.     

Influences of high-temperature annealing on atomic layer deposited Al2 O3/4H-SiC

High-temperature annealing of the atomic layer deposition (ALD) of Al2O3 films on 4H-SiC in O 2 atmosphere is studied with temperature ranging from 800℃ to 1000℃. It is observed that the surface morphology of Al2O3 films annealed at 800℃ and 900℃ is pretty good, while the surface of the sample annealed at 1000℃ becomes bumpy. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) measurements demonstrate that the as-grown films are amorphous and begin to crystallize at 900℃. Furthermore, C-V measurements exhibit improved interface characterization after annealing, especially for samples annealed at 900℃ and 1000℃. It is indicated that high-temperature annealing in O2 atmosphere can improve the interface of Al2O3 /SiC and annealing at 900℃ would be an optimum condition for surface morphology, dielectric quality, and interface states.     

Characteristics and properties of metal aluminum thin films prepared by electron cyclotron resonance plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition technology

Metal aluminum (Al) thin films are prepared by 2450 MHz electron cyclotron resonance plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition on glass and p-Si substrates using trimethylaluminum as the precursor and hydrogen as the reductive gas. We focus our attention on the plasma source for the thin-film preparation and annealing of the as-deposited films relative to the surface square resistivity. The square resistivity of as-deposited Al films is greatly reduced after annealing and almost reaches the value of bulk metal. Through chemical and structural analysis, we conclude that the square resistivity is determined by neither the contaminant concentration nor the surface morphology, but by both the crystallinity and crystal size in this process.     

Permeation barrier properties of an Al2O3/ZrO2 multilayer deposited by remote plasma atomic layer deposition

We report the permeation barrier properties of Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ multi-layers deposited by remote plasma atomic layer deposition. Electrical Ca degradation tests were performed to derive the water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) of Al₂O₃, ZrO₂ and Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ multi-layers at 50 °C and 50% relative humidity (RH). Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ multi-layers exhibit better barrier properties than Al₂O₃ and ZrO₂ layers, and when more individual layers were deposited in the same total thickness, the WVTR value was reduced further, indicating a better barrier property. The WVTR of the Al₂O₃ and ZrO₂ layers were 9.5 × 10⁻³ and 1.6 × 10⁻² g/m² day, respectively, but when deposited alternatively with 1 cycle of each layer, the WVTR decreased to 9.9 × 10⁻⁴ g/m² day. X-ray diffraction results indicated that ZrO₂ has a monoclinic structure but Al₂O₃ and Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ multi-layers show an amorphous structure. Cross sectional Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ multi-layer structures and the formation of a ZrAl_xO_y phase are observed by transmission electron microscopy (TEM). X-ray photoelectron spectrometry (XPS) results indicate that Al₂O₃ and ZrO₂ contain 33.7% and 37.8%, respectively, Al–OH and Zr–OH bonding. However, the ZrAl_xO_y phase contained 30.5% Al–OH and Zr–OH bonding. The results of transmittance measurement indicate that overall, Al₂O₃, ZrO₂ and Al₂O₃/ZrO₂ multi-layers show high transmittance greater than 80% in the visible region.     

Characteristics and properties of metal aluminum thin film prepared by electron cyclotron resonance plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition technology

Metal aluminum (Al) thin films are prepared by 2450-MHz electron cyclotron resonance plasma-assisted atomic layer deposition on glass and p-Si substrates using trimethylaluminum as the precursor and hydrogen as the reductive gas. We focus our attention on the plasma source for thin-film preparation and annealing of as-deposited films related to the surface square resistivity. The square resistivity of as-deposited Al film is greatly reduced after annealing and almost reaches the value of bulk metal. Through chemical and structure analysis we conclude that the square resistivity is determined by neither contaminant concentration nor surface morphology, but by both crystallinity and crystal size in this process.     

等离子增强原子层沉积低温生长GaN薄膜

采用等离子增强原子层沉积技术在低温下于单晶硅衬底上成功生长了Ga N多晶薄膜,利用椭圆偏振仪、低角度掠入射X射线衍射仪、X射线光电子能谱仪对薄膜样品的生长速率、晶体结构及薄膜成分进行了表征和分析.结果表明,等离子增强原子层沉积技术生长Ga N的温度窗口为210—270?C,薄膜在较高生长温度下呈多晶态,在较低温度下呈非晶态;薄膜中N元素与大部分Ga元素结合成N—Ga键生成Ga N,有少量的Ga元素以Ga—O键存在,多晶Ga N薄膜含有少量非晶态Ga_2O_3.     

TiO2/Al2O3薄膜的原子层沉积和光学性能分析

采用原子层沉积技术在熔石英和BK7玻璃基片上镀制了TiO2/Al2O3薄膜,沉积温度分别为110℃和280℃。利用X射线粉末衍射仪对膜层微观结构进行了分析研究,并在激光损伤平台上进行了抗激光损伤阈值测量。采用Nomarski微分干涉差显微镜和原子力显微镜对激光损伤后的形貌进行了观察分析。结果表明,采用原子层沉积技术镀制的TiO2/Al2O3增透膜的厚度均匀性较好,Φ50 mm样品的膜层厚度均匀性优于99%;光谱增透效果显著,在1 064 nm处的透过率〉99.8%;在熔石英和BK7基片上,TiO2/Al2O3薄膜在110℃时的激光损伤阈值分别为（6.73±0.47）J/cm2和（6.5±0.46）J/cm2,明显高于在280℃时的损伤阈值。     

Preparation of tantalum oxide thin films by photo-assisted atomic layer deposition

Tantalum oxide thin films were prepared by photo-assisted atomic layer deposition (Photo-ALD) in the substrate temperature range of 170–400 °C using Ta(OC₂H₅)₅ and H₂O as precursors. The constant growth rates of 0.42 and 0.47 Å per cycle were achieved for the films grown by normal ALD and Photo-ALD, respectively. The increased growth rate in Photo-ALD is probably due to the reactive surface by photon energy and faster surface reaction. In Photo-ALD, however, the constant growth rate started at lower temperature of 30 °C and one cycle time shortened up to 5.7 s than that of normal ALD. The films grown by normal ALD and Photo-ALD were amorphous and very smooth (0.21–0.35 nm) as examined by X-ray diffractometer and atomic force microscopy, respectively. Also, the refractive index was found to be 2.12–2.16 at the substrate temperature of 190–300 °C, similar to that of the film grown by normal ALD. However, the remarkably low leakage current density of 0.6×10⁻⁶ A/cm² to 1×10⁻⁶ A/cm² at applied field of 1 MV/cm is several order of magnitude smaller than that of normal ALD, probably due to the presence of reactive atom species.     

等离子增强原子层沉积低温生长AlN薄膜

采用等离子增强原子层沉积技术在单晶硅基体上成功制备了AlN晶态薄膜, 利用椭圆偏振仪、原子力显微镜、小角掠射X射线衍射仪、高分辨透射电子显微镜、 X射线光电子能谱仪对样品的生长速率、表面形貌、晶体结构、薄膜成分进行了表征和分析, 结果表明, 采用等离子增强原子层沉积制备AlN晶态薄膜的最低温度为200 ℃, 薄膜表面平整光滑, 具有六方纤锌矿结构与(100)择优取向, Al_2p与N_1S的特征峰分别为74.1 eV与397.0 eV, 薄膜中Al元素与N元素以Al-N键相结合, 且成分均匀性良好. 关键词： 氮化铝 等离子增强原子层沉积 低温生长 晶态薄膜