The mechanism of low temperature deposition of crystalline anatase by reactive DC magnetron sputtering

It has been reported that TiO₂ film deposition by direct current (DC) magnetron reactive sputtering can occur according to the mechanism proposed by the theory of charged clusters (TCC). In the current study, the TCC was used to explain the mechanism of low temperature TiO₂ crystalline thin film growth. Highly oriented anatase thin films were deposited on unheated substrates. The degree of crystallinity of the thin film was found to depend on the cluster size and its crystallinity as well as the charging efficiency in the reactor. Larger clusters tend to be crystalline. These produce amorphous (nanocrystalline) films. Smaller clusters tend to be amorphous and adopt the structure of clusters already deposited to produce an ordered crystalline film. Increasing the substrate-to-target distance increased the cluster size. In addition, the charge density decreased as the target to substrate distance was increased. Clusters of <2 and 3 nm in diameter were observed at a substrate-to-target distance of 50 and 250 mm, respectively, which correspondingly produced crystalline and amorphous films. The DC power level did not appear to have a large effect on the cluster size nor did it affect the degree of crystallinity of the resulting thin film. The main factors affecting whether or not a crystalline film is deposited are the cluster size and the charge density in the reactor.