Optimization of energy and fluence of N2+ ions in the conversion of Al2O3 surface into AlN at room temperature

We present a systematic study of energetic N2+ ions (0.1-5 keV) interaction with clean c-plane Al2O3 surface in situ in a UHV system equipped with X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy at room temperature. Results show that maximum thickness of surface is nitride by 5 keV N2+ ion with an optimal fluence of 1.5 × 1015 ions/cm2. This modified surface can be used as a template for low defect III-nitrides growth, with enhanced lattice matching than on bare c-Al2O3.