THE EFFECTS OF SUBSTITUTIONS AND TYPE OF SUBSTRATES ON THE MORPHOLOGYOF LA(0.8)A(0.2)CU(0.5)MN(0.5)O(3) (A = CA, SR, BA) THIN-FILMS

Thin La(0.8)A(0.2)Cu(0.5)Mn(0.5)O(3) (A = Ca, Sr, Ba) films have been deposited using the sol-gel technique on Al2O3, glass ceramic and sing le crystal (101) quartz substrates. It was found that the morphology o f pure and Ca containing films is affected by the type of substrate us ed. The films deposited on Al2O3 have good adhesion and uniform struct ure due to the rough surface of the substrate and its temperature expa nsion coefficient which has a value close to the corresponding one of the film. The morphology of Sr and Ba containing films is affected by both the type of substrate and substituting elements. The bigger ionic radius of these elements limits their incorporation in the crystal la ttice and leads to the appearance of secondary phases and inhomogeneou s films. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.