Structural characterization of Ti-Si thin-film superlattices

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Abstract
Thin films of amorphous/polycrystalline Ti layers alternating with amorphous Si have been grown on room-temperature {001} Si substrates by electron beam evaporation. Cross-section transmission electron microscopy of these films indicates that the deposition results in the formation of ultrathin superlattice layers with no cumulative roughening and with atomically abrupt interfaces. The crystallinity of the layers containing Ti is found to depend on the layer thickness. For thicknesses ≤20 Å they appear amorphous, whereas layers thicker than ∼40 Å consist of polycrystalline hexagonal Ti grains exhibiting a (0001) preferred orientation parallel to the interfaces.