Correlation between morphology and bonding structure in titanium oxide films produced by reactive pulsed magnetron sputtering

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin films have been grown by reactive pulsed magnetron sputtering (PMS) under different O2 partial pressures in an O2/Ar atmosphere. The films were analyzed by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS), spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray absorption near edge structure (XANES), grazingincidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). RBS shows that stoichiometric TiO2 films are obtained even at low O2 fraction in the process gas (O2/Ar > 0.05). The formation of mixed or dominant amorphous, rutile and anatase atomic arrangements during PMS has been assessed by XANES and GIXRD as a function of the O2 partial pressure. Further, a clear structural evolution with film thickness (derived by SE) has been detected by AFM and TEM, its dynamics driven by the O2 availability in the gas. Interestingly, this evolution leads to a correlation between the surface morphology and the relative content of the rutile phase, resulting in a nanoscale lateral modulation of the surface properties. Growth experiments varying substrate temperature and bias voltage have been also conducted for further control over the film evolution and to deepen in the growth mechanisms.