Texture analysis of smooth i n s i t u laser ablated YBa2Cu3O7 thin films on (100) SrTiO3

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Abstract
The texture of YBa2Cu3O7 thin films on (100) SrTiO3, grown by in situ laser ablation, was investigated by x-ray diffraction. The surface morphology is smooth with only 105 cm−2 particulates of about 0.1 μm in diameter. High-resolution x-ray diffraction shows that the c-axis of YBa2Cu3O7 is epitaxially aligned with the [001] direction of SrTiO3 irrespective of the misorientation. The {018} pole figure of YBa2Cu3O7 shows a fourfold symmetry which indicates that the films are ordered with respect to the substrate lattice. Moreover, the alignment in the {018} pole figure of the (220) reflections of SrTiO3 and the (018) reflections of YBa2Cu3O7 indicates that over the whole surface of the film the a- and b-axes of YBa2Cu3O7 are aligned along the [100] and [010] direction of SrTiO3. The epitaxial nature of the films, the low density of particulates, and the lack of interdiffusion as concluded from secondary ion mass spectrometry measurements, allows for the preparation of heteroepitaxial stacks containing high-Tc superconductors.