AB-INITIO STUDY OF THIN METALLIC AND CERAMIC FILMS

Thin metallic (Al, Mo, Ti) and ceramic (Al2O3) layers, prepared by the ion beam assisted deposition, were investigated with the aid of the X -ray reflectivity measurement. A procedure based on the Fourier transf ormation of the reflectivity curves was applied to resolve the real st ructure of coatings, namely to submit the number of subsequent layers, their thickness, electron density and roughness. The final refinement of the free parameters of the respective structure model was carried out using the non-linear least-squares algorithm. The applicability of the ab initio method and the stability of the refinement are discusse d. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.