Influence of the oxygen stoichiometry on the structural and optical properties of reactively evaporated ZrOx films

Abstract
Thin ZrOx films are deposited by reactive electron beam evaporation of pure zirconium metal at different oxygen partial pressures. Stoichiometry, structural composition and optical properties of these films are studied. Results from x‐ray diffraction and ellipsometry show that the crystallographic phase composition and the optical properties of the films can be controlled by a proper choice of the oxygen partial pressure. In comparison with direct evaporation of ZrO2, the reactive evaporation of zirconium metal improves the homogeneity of the refractive index along the film thickness thanks to an increased homogeneity in the crystallographic phase composition.

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