We have studied the influence of in situ laser annealing on the growth
of garnet films by pulsed laser deposition. The KrF excimer laser tha
t is used for ablation also provides in situ laser irradiation to the
film with an energy density in the range 60-130 mJ/cm(2). Results show
that laser annealing helps crystallize the mm and affects the film mi
crostructure dramatically depending upon the annealing laser fluence.
When using a substrate temperature of 570 degrees C, a laser irradiati
on at a low fluence of 60 mJ/cm(2) induces crystallization and the fil
m consists of densely packed grains. At 100 mJ/cm(2), the film is part
ially melted resulting in a very smooth film surface and a decrease in
crystallization. Ablation starts to occur at an energy density of 130
mJ/cm(2) for these garnet films. We also show that such laser anneali
ng does not lead to a significant reduction in the required substrate
temperature for crystallization even though the transient temperature
rise can be high enough to melt the film.