Abstract
Plasma-Enhanced Pulsed Laser Deposition (PE-PLD) is a technique for depositing metal oxide thin films that combines traditional PLD of metals with a low-temperature oxygen background plasma. This proof-of-concept study shows that PE-PLD can deposit copper oxide and zinc oxide films of similar properties to ones deposited using traditional PLD, without the need for substrate heating. Varying the pressure of the background plasma changed the stoichiometry and structure of the films. Stoichiometric copper oxide and zinc oxide films were deposited at pressures of 13 Pa and 7.5 Pa, respectively. The deposition rate was ∼5 nm/min and the films were polycrystalline with a crystal size in the range of 3 nm–15 nm. The dominant phase for ZnO was (110) and for CuO, they were (020) and (111¯), where (020) is known as a high-density phase not commonly seen in PLD films. The resistivity of the CuO film was 0.76 ± 0.05 Ω cm, in line with films produced using traditional PLD. Since PE-PLD does not use substrate heating or post-annealing, and the temperature of the oxygen background plasma is low, the deposition of films on heat-sensitive materials such as plastics is possible. Stoichiometric amorphous zinc oxide and copper oxide films were deposited on polyethylene (PE) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PFTE).
Highlights
Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) is a well-established and widely used deposition technique for, e.g., dielectric, ferroelectric, and magnetic oxide thin films
The current paper aims to provide a more comprehensive proof-of-concept for Plasma-Enhanced Pulsed Laser Deposition (PE-PLD) of copper oxide and zinc oxide films, focusing on stoichiometry and on the film structure, morphology, and film resistance
The stoichiometry of films deposited with the PE-PLD experimental system was investigated as a function of the oxygen Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) pressure
Summary
Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) is a well-established and widely used deposition technique for, e.g., dielectric, ferroelectric, and magnetic oxide thin films. A low-pressure rf-driven Inductively Coupled Plasma (ICP) used as the background plasma can provide reactive oxygen species, e.g., O and O∗2 , at densities of ∼1014 cm−3 to 1015 cm−3, depending on operating conditions.6 Since these densities are similar, it seems feasible that significant interaction between the plasma plume and background plasma is possible, resulting in the deposition of both metal and oxygen at comparable rates. Huang et al report ZnO films deposited at room temperature with their RF-PEPLD system and De Giacomo et al investigated TiO2 films produced by Plasma-Assisted PLD.17 The layout of both these systems was very similar to ours, for both studies, the target was a metal oxide, not a pure metal as in our case. The EDX results show that for both CuO and ZnO, it is possible to deposit stoichiometric films from pure metal targets using the PEPLD technique
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 
Published Version (
Free)
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call