Section Days abstract book 2010.indd - RUB Research School ...

NSE_14
CONTROL OF ALUMINUM OXIDE DEPOSTION
BY VARAIBLE BIASING
M. Prenzel, T. Baloniak, A. Kortmann, T. de los Arcos and A. von Keudell
Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Institute for Experimental Physics II
Research Group Reactive Plasmas
Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780 Bochum, Germany
email: marina.prenzel@rub.de
Thin film deposition by plasma enhanced chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) is an established
technique. Advantages are the control of deposition rate, stoichiometry and crystallinity
of the films [1]. Within the project, the influence of a substrate bias on the material properties
during thin film deposition from plasma is investigated. The external bias voltage manipulates
the energy distribution function of the ions impinging on the substrate (IEDF) [2]. An optimized
ion bombardment can significantly improve film properties like film hardness, adhesion,
crystallinity, or wear resistance. Here, we report on the influence of sinus RF biasing at 1
MHz on the crystallinity of aluminium oxide films. The films are prepared in a RF magnetron
discharge, which is used for reactive sputtering of an aluminium target. The temperature of
the substrate is varied and reaches up to 700 °C.
First results show that the orientation of the crystal structure can be manipulated by the variation
of bias voltage. Theses and subsequent results will help to optimize the Al2O3 deposition
process and to reveal the role of the ion energy in the film growth in the future. The work is
funded by DFG within SFB-TR 87.
References
[1] Y. Yamada-Takamura et al., Characterization of α-phase aluminum oxide films deposited by filtered vacuum
arc. Surf. Coat. Tech. 142-144, pp. 260-264. 2001.
[2] T. Baloniak. Erzeugung maßgeschneideter Ionen-Energieverteilungsfunktionen in Niederdruckplasmen. PhD
Thesis. 2010.