Hetero-epitaxial growth of TiC films on MgO(001) at 100 °C by DC reactive magnetron sputtering

• Hetero-epitaxial TiC0.84 thin films were grown on MgO(001) at 100 °C by magnetron sputtering.
• 62 nm thick films were synthesized by magnetron sputtering, using Ti, Ar and CH4.
• The film comprises a partially strained interface epilayer and a relaxed top layer.
• Both layers preserve the epitaxial relationship with the substrate.
• Low RMS surface roughness ~ 0.55 nm and grains with mean lateral size of ~ 38.5 nm were observed.

Hetero-epitaxial TiC thin films were deposited at 100 °C on MgO(001) by DC reactive magnetron sputtering in a mixture of Ar and CH4. The 62 nm thick films were analyzed for elemental composition and chemical bonding by Auger electron spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and micro-Raman spectroscopy. The crystallographic structure investigation by high resolution X-ray diffraction revealed that the films consist of two layers: an interface partially strained epilayer with high crystalline quality, and a relaxed layer, formed by columnar grains, maintaining the epitaxial relationship with the substrate.The films presented smooth surfaces (RMS roughness ~ 0.55 nm), with circular equi-sized grains/crystallites, as observed by atomic force microscopy. The Hall measurements in Van der Pauw geometry revealed relatively high resistivity value ~ 620 μΩ cm, ascribed to electron scattering on interfaces, on grain boundaries and on different defects/dislocations.