LOW-TEMPERATURE GROWTH AND ORIENTATIONAL CONTROL IN RUO2 THIN-FILMS BY METAL-ORGANIC CHEMICAL-VAPOR-DEPOSITION

For growth temperatures in the range of 275 degrees C to 425 degrees C , highly conductive RuO2 thin films with either (110)- or (101)-textur ed orientations have been grown by metal-organic chemical vapor deposi tion (MOCVD) on both SiO2/Si(001) and Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si(001) substrates. B oth the growth temperature and growth rate were used to control the ty pe and degree of orientational texture of the RuO2 films. In the upper part of this growth temperature range (similar to 350 degrees C) and at a low growth rate (< 3.0 nm/min.), the RuO2 films favored a (110)-t extured orientation. In contrast, at the lower part of this growth tem perature range (similar to 300 degrees C) and at a high growth rate (> 3.0 nm/min.), the RuO, films favored a (101)-textured orientation. In contrast, higher growth temperatures (> 425 degrees C) always produce d randomly-oriented polycrystalline films. For either of these low-tem perature growth processes, the films produced were crack-free, well-ad hered to the substrates, and had smooth, specular surfaces. Atomic for ce microscopy showed that the films had a dense microstructure with an average grain size of 50-80 nm and a rms. surface roughness of simila r to 3-10 nm. Four-probe electrical transport measurements showed that the films were highly conductive with resistivities of 34-40 mu Omega -cm (at 25 degrees C). Published by Elsevier Science S.A.