Lb. Hackenberger et al., EFFECT OF STOICHIOMETRY ON THE PHASES PRESENT IN BORON-NITRIDE THIN-FILMS, Journal of vacuum science & technology. A. Vacuum, surfaces, and films, 12(4), 1994, pp. 1569-1575
Citations number
28
Categorie Soggetti
Physics, Applied","Materials Science, Coatings & Films
Boron nitride thin films were deposited by ion-assisted evaporation an
d characterized by neutron depth profiling (NDP), a nondestructive met
hod for the compositional analysis of solids. The phases present in th
e films were determined by infrared spectroscopy. Examination of the d
ata presented here and comparison with the work of other authors revea
led that stoichiometric or nearly stoichiometric films contained the g
reatest amount of the cubic phase. This led to the proposition that fi
lm stoichiometry is one of the factors that stabilize cubic boron nitr
ide in boron nitride thin films. A shift in the position of the cubic
boron nitride infrared absorption was also observed by the present aut
hors which was related to film stoichiometry. Discussion of the variou
s techniques commonly used to determine the stoichiometry of boron nit
ride thin films emphasized the need for all stoichiometry measurements
to be made using the same characterization method in order for all re
sults to be compared with confidence. The advantages of NDP, such as i
ts high accuracy and depth profiling capability, make it a suitable ca
ndidate for this application.