Crystallographic Texture of MgO and its Effect on the Growth of BaTiO<sub>3</sub> Thin Films by RF Sputtering

Abstract

In this work, MgO thin films were prepared by rf magnetron sputtering technique on two different substrates of Si (100) wafers and amorphous glasses. The influence of different deposition conditions such as substrate temperature, Ar pressure, film thicknesses on the crystal structure of MgO thin films were studied. BaTiO3 ferroelectric thin films were subsequently deposited on the MgO films. The XRD results showed that the orientation of MgO films was dependent greatly on the substrate temperature. A highly (100) oriented MgO thin films were obtained at the temperature of 800°C. The crystallographic texture has been deteriorated rapidly as the argon pressure decreased to 1.0 Pa. It has been also found that the film thickness has a great influence on the film orientation. High substrate temperature, high argon pressure and a certain thickness appear to be favorable for formation of a good texture for the MgO films. The structure and microstructure of the BaTiO3 films were various both with deposition conditions and with the crystallographic texture of the MgO. A highly (001) oriented ferroelectric BTO film was obtained on the MgO films with an optimized deposition conditions.