Effect of oxidation dynamics on the film characteristics of Ce:YIG thin films deposited by pulsed-laser deposition

Thin films with different compositions of Ce-substituted yttrium iron garnet (Ce:YIG (Y2CeFe5O12)), Ga-doped Ce:YIG (Ce:Ga:YIG (Y2CeFe4.25Ga0.75O12)), and Gd-doped Ce:YIG (Ce:Gd:YIG (Y1.6CeGd0.4Fe5O12)) were deposited on gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG (Gd3Ga5O12)) substrates in O2 or Ar background gas by pulsed-laser deposition (PLD) technique. Crystalline films were obtained at a lower O2 gas pressure of 20 mTorr or at higher Ar gas pressures of more than 100 mTorr. In addition, the behavior of YO molecules was visualized by two-dimensional laser-induced fluorescence (2D-LIF), in order to investigate the oxidation dynamics in the ablation plume. The oxidation dynamics and the crystallinity had close correlation.