Related papers: Depth resolution optimized sputter depth profiling…
A none conventional approach for depth profiling of thin film systems with enhanced depth resolution has been developed using standard Auger microprobe instruments. For the preparation of an in situ low angle cross-section, the sample is…
Thin film systems are often analysed by using sputter depth profiling. First the sample gets eroded by inert gas ion impact during sputter depth profiling. Then the elemental composition of the freshly unveiled surface is determined by…
In this communication, we report results of a high resolution sputter depth profiling analysis of a stack of 16 alternating MgO and ZnO nanolayers grown by atomic layer deposition (ALD) with thickness of ~5.5 nm per layer. We used an…
For sputter depth profiling often sample erosion by Ar+ ions is used. Only a high purity of the sputter gas and a low contamination level of the ion gun avoids misleading depth profile measurements results. Here a new measurement procedure…
New developments in quantitative sputter depth profiling during the past ten years are reviewed, with special emphasis on the experimental achievement of ultrahigh depth resolution (below 2 nm for sputtered depths larger than 10 nm). In…
We investigate the growth conditions for thin (less than 200 nm) sputtered aluminum (Al) films. These coatings are needed for various applications, e.g. for advanced manufacturing processes in the aerospace industry or for nanostructures…
X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy combined with Ar+ ion etching is a powerful concept to identify different chemical states of compounds in depth profiles, important for obtaining information underneath surfaces or at layer interfaces. The…
Quantification of sputter depth profiles is frequently done by fitting the convolution integral over concentration and depth resolution function. For a thin delta layer, there exist analytical solutions. The analytical depth resolution…
Often a surface sensitive analytical technique in combination with sample erosion by inert ion sputtering is used for compositional in-depth analysis of solid state samples. Layer by layer the sample gets eroded and then the composition of…
Co-sputtered Au-Ni thin films having thickness of 30 nm were deposited on Si(100) substrates and irradiated with 160 keV ^{40}Ar^{+} under ambient condition at a number of fluences and analyzed using Rutherford backscattering spectrometry…
X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS) depth profiling using monoatomic Ar+ ion etching sources is a common technique that allows for the probing of the vertical compositional profiles of a wide range of materials. In polymer-based organic…
Auger parameter analysis provides in-depth information about the electronic and chemical bonding properties of TiN and AlN thin films, which are relevant across a wide range of technologies. Meaningful interpretation and analysis of the…
The overall quality of multilayer thin films prepared by electrodeposition is strongly influenced by the surface and interface roughness which increases with the layer number. For that very reason the reliable analysis of the first few…
By knowing the phase and modules of the reflection coefficient in neutron reflectometry problems, a unique result for the scattering length density (SLD) of a thin film can be determined which will lead to the exact determination of type…
Thin film processing by means of sputter deposition inherently depends on the interaction of energetic particles with a target surface and the subsequent particle transport. The length and time scales of the underlying physical phenomena…
Cross contaminations are observed on sample surfaces by AES and XPS, if multiple samples are mounted on one sample holder and a neighbouring sample was sputter depth profiled. During sputter depth profiling sputtered material is deposited…
White light interferometry (WLI) can be used to obtain surface morphology information on dimensional scale of millimeters with lateral resolution as good as ~1 {\mu}m and depth resolution down to 1 nm. By performing true three-dimensional…
The depth dependence of crystalline structure within thin films is critical for many technological applications, but has been impossible to measure directly using common techniques. In this work, by monitoring diffraction peak intensity and…
The authors report in situ Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) of the surfaces of complex oxides thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The authors demonstrate the utility of the technique in studying chemical composition by…
We present an assessment of a multi-method approach based on ion beam analysis to obtain high-resolution depth profiles of the total chemical composition of complex alloy systems. As a model system we employ an alloy based on several…