Issue 32, 2023

Thermal atomic layer deposition of Er2O3 films from a volatile, thermally stable enaminolate precursor

Abstract

Thin films of Er2O3 films were grown by atomic layer deposition using the Er precursor tris(1-(dimethylamino)-3,3-dimethylbut-1-en-2-olate)erbium(III) (Er(L1)3), with water as the co-reactant. Saturative, self-limited growth was observed at a substrate temperature of 200 °C for pulse lengths of ≥4.0 s for Er(L1)3 and ≥0.2 s for water. An ALD window was observed from 175 to 225 °C with a growth rate of about 0.25 Å per cycle. Er2O3 films grown at 200 °C on Si(100) and SiO2 substrates with a thickness of 33 nm had root mean square surface roughnesses of 1.75 and 0.75 nm, respectively. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction patterns showed that the films were composed of polycrystalline Er2O3 at all deposition temperatures on Si(100) and SiO2 substrates. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed stoichiometric Er2O3, with carbon and nitrogen levels below the detection limits after argon ion sputtering to remove surface impurities. Transmission electron microscopy studies of Er2O3 film growth in nanoscale trenches (aspect ratio = 10) demonstrated conformal coverage.

Graphical abstract: Thermal atomic layer deposition of Er2O3 films from a volatile, thermally stable enaminolate precursor

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
12 Jun 2023
Accepted
26 Jul 2023
First published
27 Jul 2023

Dalton Trans., 2023,52, 11096-11103

Author version available

Thermal atomic layer deposition of Er2O3 films from a volatile, thermally stable enaminolate precursor

N. Jayakodiarachchi, R. Liu, C. D. Dharmadasa, X. Hu, D. E. Savage, C. L. Ward, P. G. Evans and C. H. Winter, Dalton Trans., 2023, 52, 11096 DOI: 10.1039/D3DT01824E

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