Laser ablation in a reactive atmosphere: Application to the synthesis and deposition performance of titanium carbide thin films

We report the synthesis and deposition of Ti carbide thin layers by multipulse excimer laser ablation of Ti targets in CH4 at low ambient pressure (in the microbar range). The layers deposited on single-crystalline Si wafers are characterized by optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, photoelectron spectroscopy, and spectroscopic ellipsometry. We obtained deposition rates in the range 0.2 to 0.3 Angstrom pulse for a target-collector separation distance of 12.5 mm. The deposition parameters were found to be in good agreement with the predictions of the theoretical model based on the assumption of the adiabatic expansion of the plasma in the ambient gas. (C) 1996 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.