AVS 64th International Symposium & Exhibition
    Thin Films Division Thursday Sessions
       Session TF-ThP

Paper TF-ThP9
Crystalline Quality and Surface Roughness Optimization of Hetero-Epitaxial Titanium Nitride on Sapphire

Thursday, November 2, 2017, 6:30 pm, Room Central Hall

Session: Thin Films Poster Session
Presenter: Hadley Smith, University of Dayton
Authors: H.A. Smith, University of Dayton
A.N. Reed, Air Force Research Laboratory
S. Elhamri, University of Dayton
B.M. Howe, Air Force Research Laboratory
L. Grazulis, Air Force Research Laboratory
M.J. Hill, Air Force Research Laboratory
Correspondent: Click to Email
In this project we optimized the growth of hetero-epitaxial titanium nitride (TiN) on sapphire using controllably unbalanced reactive magnetron sputtering. TiN is a mechanically-robust, high-temperature stable metallic material; these properties make TiN a material of interest for robust electrodes and resilient plasmonics. We adjusted deposition parameters such as external coil current, temperature, growth time and magnetron power to optimize the crystalline quality and surface morphology of TiN. Post-growth, we measured crystallinity using X-ray diffraction, and surface morphology using atomic force microscopy. X-ray diffraction showed a single TiN peak with pendellösung fringes; from these fringes we obtained a film thickness of ~55 nm. Atomic force microscopy showed a surface roughness of ~111 pm. Based on this characterization, we determined that the deposition parameters outlined in this presentation yielded (111)-oriented hetero-epitaxial TiN with minimal surface roughness. This optimization is a crucial first step in maximizing the usefulness of TiN for plasmonic applications.