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Surface Structure and Particulate Generation in Pb 0.97 Nd 0.02 (Zr 0.55 Ti 0.45 )O 3 Ablation Targets During Pulsed Laser Deposition
Author(s) -
Lappalainen Jyrki,
Frantti Johannes,
Lantto Vilho
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
journal of the american ceramic society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.9
H-Index - 196
eISSN - 1551-2916
pISSN - 0002-7820
DOI - 10.1111/j.1151-2916.1999.tb01850.x
Subject(s) - fluence , materials science , scanning electron microscope , laser ablation , thin film , amorphous solid , excimer laser , analytical chemistry (journal) , raman spectroscopy , laser , ablation , pulsed laser deposition , optics , chemistry , composite material , nanotechnology , crystallography , physics , engineering , chromatography , aerospace engineering
A pulsed XeCl excimer laser was used to deposit amorphous Nd‐modified lead zirconate titanate thin films with thicknesses between 25 and 500 nm. Atomic force microscopy was used to study the thin‐film surface morphology and to determine the particulate number density (PND) on film surfaces. The dependence of the PND and the growth rate of the film on the laser‐beam fluence and the density of Pb 0.97 Nd 0.02 (Zr 0.55 Ti 0.45 )O 3 targets was also studied. It was found that the PND of particulates with diameters larger than 150 nm increased with increasing laser‐beam fluence and decreased with increasing target density. The surface morphology and quality of the target after ablation were studied by scanning electron microscopy. The generation of laser‐cone structures and particulates at the target surface was also studied. X‐ray diffraction measurements and element analyses by the energy dispersive spectroscopy of X‐rays revealed the formation of extra compounds and phases at the target surface during ablation processes. Raman spectroscopy was also used to study the structure of the topmost surface layer of the target after ablation.