Microstructure of Homoepitaxial SrTiO3 Films Deposited by Laser Ablation

Abstract

Homoepitaxial strontium titanate thin films have been grown by pulsed laser deposition on (001) SrTiO3 (STO) substrates with pulse rates ranging from 0.15 Hz to 100 Hz. The microstructure of the as-deposited films has been characterised by cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. It is found that the growth mode and microstructure of the films are strongly influenced by the intervals between the laser pulses. Films have homogeneous microstructure under a critical thickness, above which the film breaks into toothlike columns. The growth is unstable against the formation of low angle boundaries which result in the formation of grains elongated in the direction of film growth. These become toothlike structures and the size of the tooth depends on the pulse rate and the growth time. The diffusion of point defects in films grown over a long time can lead instead to the development of elongated vacancy clusters directed normal to the film-vacuum interface. All films grow with a high density of point defects which may be related to deviation from the stoichiometry of the ceramic ablation target. Microanalysis suggests that there is strontium loss in the film, which causes defect formation inside the STO films.