Pulsed laser deposition of Bi2Te3 thin films

A feasibility study of thin stoichiometric Bi₂Te₃ films by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) was performed, the difficulty arising from the differences of vapour pressure between Te and Bi. The films were elaborated using a pulsed Nd:YAG laser under various experimental conditions and were characterized by electron microsprobe, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and secondary ion mass spectroscopy analyses. Congruent transfer of stoichiometry occurs from the target to the substrate on several cm² and a good crystallinity can be achieved, even on glass substrates at room temperature, by combining convenient target to substrate facing and distance, respectively. Depletion in Te observed in some films may result from a laser beam-plume interaction that was put forward during elaboration of films on large scale substrates.