CHARACTERIZATION OF THIN POLYMER-FILMS BY X-RAY REFLECTOMETRY WITH SYNCHROTRON-RADIATION

X-ray reflectivity (XR) measurements with a synchrotron radiation sour ce were carried out for thin polymer films on a glass plate. From the XR data, the film thickness and surface and interface roughnesses coul d be determined. In addition. the appropriate conditions and precision for measurements were also discussed. Kiessig fringes were observed c learly for specular XR measurements of poly(methylmethacrylate) thin f ilm. Analysis of the XR data allowed the determination of the him thic kness very precisely. By a curve-fitting procedure of the XR profile, the film-surface roughness and him-substrate interface roughnesses wer e determined. A Fourier transform of the XR data was performed as an a lternative method of evaluating the him thickness. The values for the film thickness obtained by the curve-fitting procedure and Fourier-tra nsform procedure were slightly different from each other. One possibil ity for the cause of this difference may be an integral error and/or c ut-off effect in the Fourier-transform procedure. The;XR technique wit h synchrotron radiation is a very powerful tool for structural charact erization of thin polymer films.