Open AccessAtomic layer deposition of AlN on different SiC surfaces
Author(s) -
Milena Beshkova,
Petro Deminskyi,
C-W Hsu,
Ivan Shtepliuk,
I. Avramova,
Rositza Yakimova,
Henrik Pedersen
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
journal of physics. conference series
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.21
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1742-6596
pISSN - 1742-6588
DOI - 10.1088/1742-6596/2240/1/012004
Subject(s) - x ray photoelectron spectroscopy , materials science , substrate (aquarium) , scanning electron microscope , layer (electronics) , atomic layer deposition , deposition (geology) , thin film , surface roughness , analytical chemistry (journal) , chemical vapor deposition , surface finish , chemical engineering , nanotechnology , composite material , chemistry , sediment , engineering , paleontology , oceanography , chromatography , biology , geology
Thin AlN films were grown using a Picosun R-200 atomic layer deposition (ALD) reactor on SiC surfaces with different crystallographic orientation: on-axis 4H-SiC (0001) and 8° off-axis 4H-SiC. TMA (trimethylaluminium) and NH 3 were used as precursors while hydrogen and nitrogen plasma were applied for in-situ substrate cleaning. The substrate temperatures were 400 °C and 450 °C, with 20 ALD cycles. The surface morphology was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), which revealed nanometer-sized islands in all films. The AlN films deposited on on-axis 4H-SiC at 450 °C substrate temperature exhibited a relatively small roughness of about 0.255 nm. The chemical composition and bonding states were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. For all layers, high-resolution XPS showed Al 2p and N 1s spectra that are characteristic of AlN. These results are a good prerequisite of establishing the growth conditions of AlN films for surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices.