Room temperature synthesis of c-AlN thin films by nitrogen-ion-assisted pulsed laser deposition

Cubic aluminum nitride (c-AlN) thin films have been deposited at room tempe rature on silicon substrates by nitrogen-ion-assisted pulsed laser ablation of a hexagonal AlN target. The deposited thin films exhibit good crystal p roperties with sharp x-ray diffraction peaks. The influences of the nitroge n ion energy on the morphological, compositional, and electronic properties of the AlN thin films have been studied. The nitrogen ions can effectively promote the formation of Al-N bonds and improve the crystal properties of the deposited thin films. A nitrogen ion energy of 400 eV is proposed to de posit high quality c-AlN thin films. (C) 2000 American Institute of Physics . [S0021-8979(00)03623-9].