Ion Bombardment Effects on the Growth of Rutile Phase of Reactively Sputtered TiO2 Thin Films

Abstract

ABSTRACTTitania thin films grown by reactive bias sputtering were characterized. In order to investigate the role of energetic ion on the growth of crystalline phases of TiO2 thin films, we applied substrate biases during deposition. The structural properties were analyzed using X-ray diffractometry (XRD), and related to the optical properties of the films. The atomic composition was determined using Rutherford backscattening spectrometry (RBS).Negative substrate bias, Vb, showed a significant influence on the phase formed composition and microstructure: Vb in the range of 15 and 60 V enhanced the growth of crystalline phases and the rutile dominated the phase composition. However, the quantity of rutile decreased when Vb was raised to 100 V. The excess of oxygen was shown in the films by RBS.