Structure of Polycrystalline Cu Films as Solar Selective Coatings

Copper thin films (5–150 nm) were prepared by vacuum deposition with different rates (0.7, 1.5 and 3 nm/s). The position, intensity and profile of X-ray diffraction lines were analysed to study the phases, the crystallographic preferred orientation as well as the residual strain and crystallite size. The fcc polycrystalline Cu phase was revealed and no oxide phases were identified. The films were highly oriented with 〈111〉 fiber texture. The ratio of P₁₁₁/P₂₀₀ increased with the film thickness. Thus, in case of amorphous substrate, the type of the crystallographic texture of a film depends mainly on the structure of the deposited material. The crystallite size increases while the residual strain decreases, as the film thickness or the deposition rate is increased. The crystallite size was very small compared with the film thickness. The effect of deposition rate was pronounced specially from 0.7 to 1.5 nm/s.