PROCESSING OF INSULATING THIN-FILMS AND THEIR PROPERTIES

The electrical properties of rf-sputter deposited thin films of ZrO2 d oped with 4 mole % of Y2O3 were examined from 296 K to 773 K. The film s were deposited in an Ar/O-2 (80/20) atmosphere at a pressure of 2 Pa under various substrate de bias conditions (from -30 V to +20 V). A R utherford Backscattering Spectroscopy techniques was used to determine the thickness of the films. Results showed that the deposition rate i ncreased with applied negative de bias ranging from 0.0486 nm/s for fi lms produced dth +20 V to 0.0972 nm's for films produced with -30 V. C urrent-time measurements as a function of temperature were made in an electric field of 10(3) V/mm. Distinct conduction mechanisms of the Zr O2-Y2O3 films were observed from the slope change in Arrhenius plots o f de resistivity at 523 K. At low temperatures, the conduction was due to the migration of free oxygen vacancies. At temperatures above 500 K, the conduction was governed by the dissociation of oxygen vacancies trapped by the yttrium cations resulting in a higher activation energ y for conduction. The effects of thermal cycling on the electrical beh avior of the thin films were also investigated.