Heat treatment induced structural and optical properties of rf magnetron sputtered tantalum oxide films

Abstract

Rf magnetron sputtering technique was employed for preparation of tantalum oxide films on quartz and crystalline silicon (111) substrates held at room temperature by sputtering of tantalum in an oxygen partial pressure of 1x10 -4 mbar. The films were annealed in air for an hour in the temperature range 573 -993 K. The effect of annealing on the chemical binding configuration, structure and optical absorption of tantalum oxide films was systematically studied.