Ultra-violet light assisted reactive RF magnetron sputtering deposition of AlN thin films at room temperature

An ultra-violet (UV) assisted reactive RF magnetron sputtering deposition method for AlN thin film on Si (100) substrate is proposed and developed. The experiments are conducted at room temperature and the highest substrate temperature is below 86 °C. AlN thin films are amorphous-like crystal structure if deposited without UV light exposure, and become either (002) or (100) orientation dominated crystals with large grain sizes with the UV-light assistance if deposited either at high RF power or high N2/Ar flow ratio. UV-light enhanced Al ionization is believed to be responsible for the increased deposition rate and well-aligned crystal orientation of the AlN at room temperature.

► Proposed and developed a UV assisted reactive RF magnetron sputtering. ► Deposited highly c-axis oriented AlN thin films at room temperature. ► UV-light enhanced Al ionization is beneficial for AlN deposition.