Low pressure deposition of perovskite thin films

At present time we are preparing a ferroelectrics thin films of Ba_xSr_1-xTiO₃ (BSTO) on a silicon substrate by a low pressure UHV plasma jet system with a hollow cathode and plasma jet channel.
For preparation of thin films under ultra-high vacuum (UHV) conditions, we use a hollow cathode discharge stabilized by a flow of working gas (mostly Ar and O₂). In the past we have prepared by this way for example:

• tribological films: TiN, TiO₂, Cu₃N, CN_x
• layers: LiCoO₂, LiMn₂O₄ as a cathodes in Li-ion microbatteries
• ferroelectrical films: PbZr_xTi_1-xO₃
• dielectrical films: Li_1-xZn_xO
• piezoelectrical films: ZnO with 'c' axis of the crystal is perpendicular to the substrate
• semiconducting films for solar collectors: amorphous Si:H and amorphous SiGe:H

Because the discharge plasma is strongly non-isothermic (the temperature of neutral gas is only slightly higher than the room temperature while the electron temperature reaches up to 100 000 K), thermally sensitive substrates are not being destroyed during the deposition and therefore we can deposit not only on metallic and thermally resistant substrates but also on polymer materials. Directly during the deposition we perform the probe and optical diagnostics; the latter one especially using optical emission spectroscopy. Thanks to knowledge of corresponding plasma parameters, we are able to reproduce particular deposition processes together with desired parameters of deposited films.

UHV system for deposition of thin films

Working group:
Mgr. Zdeněk Hubička, Ph.D
Mgr. Martin Čada, Ph.D
RNDr. Jiří Olejníček, Ph.D
Ing. Štěpán Kment
RNDr. Vítězslav Straňák, Ph.D
RNDr. Lubomír Jastrabík, CSc.
Mgr. Olexander Churpita