Ion beam sputter deposition of zirconia thin films

Abstract

We determined the optical constants (the refractive index n and the extinction coefficient k) of ion beam sputter deposited zirconia thin films with spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). First, we obtained the structure information (the layer thickness, surface roughness and layer diffusion) by fitting the grazing x-ray reflection (GXRR) spectra. The fitted surface roughness is verified by atomic force micrometer (AFM) measurement. Second, based on the acquired structure information, the measured ellipsometry spectra are fitted in the range of 240-800nm at an incident angle of 70.25 degree. The optical constants are solved based on the Tauc-Lorentz dispersion. The optical band gap extracted by SE is 4.79eV. Finally, the optical band gap is verified by Tauc plot method, which is well consistent with that of SE.