Impact of lanthanum on the modification of HfO2 films structure

LaxHf1–xOy thin films with various concentrations of La, homogeneous and nonhomogeneous distributions of elements throughout the films thickness was purposefully grown by CVD. The composition of the films and their chemical structures were characterized throughout the films thickness by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometry (EDXA). A full picture of the film crystallinity was provided by the combination of grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) synchrotron radiation (SR) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR TEM). It was shown that La acted as “molar volume modulator” and stabilized the nonequilibrium at T≤1300 °C cubic phases. The samples with La content in range of 7 at.%

TEM micrographs for sample with 32 at.% La (a), SAED of crystalline layer (b) and SAED of amorphous layer (c)Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide