Investigation of Porous Zn Growth Mechanism during Zn Reactive Sputter Deposition

M.A. Borysiewicza, T. Wojciechowskib, E. Dynowskaa, b, E. Kamińskaa and A. Piotrowskaa aInstitute of Electron Technology, al. Lotników 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland bInstitute of Physics, PAS, al. Lotników 32/46, 02-668 Warsaw, Poland

Received: March 22, 2013

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Ar-O-Zn plasma discharges created during DC reactive magnetron sputtering of a Zn target and RF reactive magnetron sputtering of a ceramic ZnO target were investigated and compared by means of the Langmuir probe measurements in order to determine the mechanism of growth of porous Zn films during DC-mode Zn reactive sputtering. The power supplied to the magnetrons during the sputtering was kept at 125 W and the plasma was characterised as a function of oxygen content in the sputtering gas mixture, ranging from 0 to 60% for two gas pressures related to porous Zn film deposition, namely 3 mTorr and 5 mTorr. Based on the correlation of plasma properties measurements with scanning electron microscope imaging and X-ray diffraction of the films deposited under selected conditions it was found that the growth of porous, polycrystalline Zn films was governed by high electron density in the plasma combined with a high electron temperature and an increased energy of the ions impinging on the substrate.

DOI: 10.12693/APhysPolA.125.1144 PACS numbers: 52.70.-m, 81.15.Cd, 77.55.hf, 81.10.Pq, 52.27.Cm