Oriented growth of thin films of samarium oxide by MOCVD

Thin films of Sm₂O₃ have been grown on Si(100) and fused quartz by low-pressure chemical vapour deposition using an adducted β-diketonate precursor. The films on quartz are cubic, with no preferred orientation at lower growth temperatures (∼ 550°C), while they grow with a strong (111) orientation as the temperature is raised (to 625°C). On Si(100), highly oriented films of cubic Sm₂O₃ at 625°C, and a mixture of monoclinic and cubic polymorphs of Sm₂O₃ at higher temperatures, are formed. Films grown on either substrate are very smooth and fine-grained. Infrared spectroscopic study reveals that films grown above 600° C are free of carbon.