An experimental investigation of the relation between operating conditions and growth rate and morphology is presented for nickel films processed from nickelocene by MOCVD. It is shown that growth rates up to 1 mm h ±1 can be obtained under the investigated conditions. Deposits present a nodular morphology, the nodules being composed of small (~20 nm) crystallites. Deposition is favored at temperatures between 160 C and 180 C, and at pressures higher than 100 torr, with a high hydrogen partial pressure. This parametric window is delimited by the decrease of the dissociative adsorption of hydrogen on the surface and by the increase of the desorption of nickelocene.
In this study, results are reported on the composition and the electrical and magnetic properties of thin films of nickel deposited by metal-organic CVD (MOCVD) from nickelocene. It was found that the films contain carbon, whose content decreases with increasing deposition pressure and hydrogen flow rate and with decreasing molar fraction of the precursor. Ferromagnetic properties, namely saturation magnetization, Curie temperature, and also electrical conductivity of the films decrease with increasing carbon content. The evolution of the saturation magnetization M s of the films with measurement temperature follows Bloch's law. Carbon is found in the films in different forms, namely carbidic (interstitial), aliphatic, or cyclic. Deposition of these forms is discussed and is correlated with the variations of the properties of the films.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.