Metalorganic chemical vapor deposition of Er2O3 thin films: Correlation between growth process and film properties

Er2O3 thin films have been grown by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) at 600 °C on different substrates, including glass, Si (100) and sapphire (0001) using tris(isopropylcyclopentadienyl)erbium and O2. The effects of growth parameters such as the substrate, the O2 plasma activation and the temperature of organometallic precursor injection, on the nucleation/growth kinetics and, consequently, on film properties have been investigated. Specifically, very smooth (111)-oriented Er2O3 thin films (the root mean square roughness is 0.3 nm) are achieved on Si (100), α-Al2O3 (0001) and amorphous glass by MOCVD. Growth under O2 remote plasma activation results in an increase in growth rate and in (100)-oriented Er2O3 films with high refractive index and transparency in the visible photon energy range.