Deposition and physical characterization of thin films of lithium niobate on silicon substrates

Abstract

Thin films (0.1–0.6 μm) of LiNbO3 have been deposited on silicon substrates by reactive rf sputtering. Under optimized deposition conditions the resulting thin films of LiNbO3 were optically transparent and adhered well to the silicon substrates. X-ray diffraction showed the films were oriented polycrystalline with the c axis normal to the silicon surface. Rutherford backscattering and Auger electron spectroscopy were used to evaluate the physical properties of these films. Potential applications of this technology include nonvolatile electronic and optical memories, and optical detectors.