Affiliation:
1. Shijiazhuang Mechanical Engineering College
Abstract
Ultra-thin films of SiO2 (nominally 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10nm thick) on silicon, prepared by thermal oxidation, were investigated using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The thickness of these thin films was obtained from a measurement of the photoelectron intensities originating from the substrate and the oxide layers by applying an appropriate quantitative model. The uncertainty budget of that thickness measurement method is given. The effective attenuation lengths or the corresponding electron inelastic mean free paths are of the most importance in the contribution of the uncertainties. For the SiO2 ultra-thin film with the nominal thickness of 2nm, it could generate 20% of the uncertainty.
Publisher
Trans Tech Publications, Ltd.