Growth and SIMS study of d.c.-sputtered indium oxide films on silicon

• Published in: Surface and interface analysis 2005-03, Vol.37 (3), p.281-287
• Main Authors: Malar, P., Mohanty, Bhaskar Chandra, Balamurugan, A.K., Rajagopalan, S., Tyagi, A.K., Kasiviswanathan, S.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Atomic, molecular, and ion beam impact and interactions with surfaces; Chemical composition analysis, chemical depth and dopant profiling; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Electrical properties of specific thin films; Electrical properties of specific thin films and layer structures (multilayers, superlattices, quantum wells, wires, and dots); Electron and ion emission by liquids and solids; impact phenomena; Electronic structure and electrical properties of surfaces, interfaces, thin films and low-dimensional structures; Exact sciences and technology; Impact phenomena (including electron spectra and sputtering); interface; Materials science; Materials testing; Optical constants (including refractive index, complex dielectric constant, absorption, reflection and transmission coefficients, emissivity); Optical constants: refractive index, complex dielectric constant, absorption, reflection and transmission coefficients, emissivity; Optical properties and condensed-matter spectroscopy and other interactions of matter with particles and radiation; Optical properties of bulk materials and thin films; Physics; SIMS; thin films; transmission electron microscopy; XRD
• ISSN: 0142-2421; 1096-9918
• DOI: 10.1002/sia.2016

Indium oxide thin films were grown onto Si and quartz substrates by d.c. reactive sputtering of elemental indium. X‐ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy studies confirmed the single‐phase and polycrystalline nature of the films. Secondary ion mass spectrometry investigations of In2O3/Si structures showed the formation of an inhomogeneous interface region ∼20 nm thick between In2O3 and Si. The overall feature of the interface remained the same under annealing in an oxygen atmosphere, but annealing in an argon atmosphere drastically altered the nature of the interface. The observations indicate that interface formation and stability depend critically on the availability of oxygen. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.