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Title: Optimization of ion assist beam deposition of magnesium oxide template films during initial nucleation and growth

Journal Article ·
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [3]
  1. Los Alamos National Laboratory
  2. STANFORD UNIV.
  3. STANFOED UNIV.
+ Show Author Affiliations

Recent efforts in investigating the mechanism of ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) of biaxially textured thin films of magnesium oxide (MgO) template layers have shown that the texture develops suddenly during the initial 2 nm of deposition. To help understand and tune the behavior during this initial stage, we pre-deposited thin layers of MgO with no ion assist prior to IBAD growth of MgO. We found that biaxial texture develops for pre-deposited thicknesses < 2 nm, and that the thinnest layer tested, at 1 nm, resulted in the best qualitative RHEED image, indicative of good biaxial texture development. The texture developed during IBAD growth on the 1.5 nm pre-deposited layer is slightly worse and IBAD growth on the 2 nm pre-deposited layer produces a fiber texture. Application of these layers on an Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} starting surface, which has been shown to impede texture development, improves the overall quality of the IBAD MgO and has some of the characteristics of a biaxially texture RHEED pattern. It is suggested that the use of thin (<2 nm) pre-deposited layers may eliminate the need for bed layers like Si{sub 3}N{sub 4} and Y{sub 2}O{sub 3} that are currently thought to be required for proper biaxial texture development in IBAD MgO.

Research Organization:
Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), Los Alamos, NM (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
AC52-06NA25396
OSTI ID:
1011481
Report Number(s):
LA-UR-10-03037; LA-UR-10-3037; TRN: US201109%%457
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (8)

Effects of ion beams on the early stages of MgO growth journal January 2002
Rapid biaxial texture development during nucleation of MgO thin films during ion beam-assisted deposition journal May 2002
Progress in scale-up of second-generation HTS conductor journal October 2007
Biaxially Textured IBAD-MgO Templates for YBCO-Coated Conductors journal August 2004
Materials science challenges for high-temperature superconducting wire journal September 2007
Improvement of IBAD MgO template layers on metallic substrates for YBCO HTS deposition journal June 2003
Fundamental Aspects of Ion Beam Assisted Deposition of Magnesium Oxide Template Films journal June 2009
Deposition of in-plane textured MgO on amorphous Si3N4 substrates by ion-beam-assisted deposition and comparisons with ion-beam-assisted deposited yttria-stabilized-zirconia journal November 1997

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Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
DEPOSITION
FIBERS
ION BEAMS
MAGNESIUM OXIDES
NUCLEATION
OPTIMIZATION
TEXTURE
THIN FILMS