Structure and phase composition study of thin TiO₂:C films deposited by r.f. magnetron sputtering

Abstract

Thin films of TiO2 doped with carbon were deposited on 15×25×1 mm3 glass substrates by r.f. magnetron co-sputtering of TiO2 target and carbon plates on their erosion zone in Ar + air atmosphere (0.5 Pa and 0.6 Pa, respectively). Two different process parameters were varied in different experiments: the total area of the carbon plates (84 mm2, 560 mm2, 830 mm2 or 1480 mm2) and the radial distance from the center of the circle of the erosion zone with maximum rate of sputtering (2 cm or 4 cm). The as-deposited and annealed (air, 400 °C, 1 h) thin films with thicknesses of 40 - 60 nm were studied by ellipsometry, grazing incidence X-ray diffractometry (GIXRD), Raman spectroscopy, transmission (TEM) and scanning electron microscopies (SEM). The ellipsometric studies revealed the band gap, as well as the tail states and optical constants of the thin films obtained. The GIXRD patterns revealed a mix of amorphous and nanocrystalline anatase and rutile TiO2 phases in all thin films. The Raman study confirmed this conclusion, but the TEM study showed the presence of some nanocrystalline C20O14Ti3, together with the other TiO2 phases - brookite and nonstoichiometric TiOx phases (anatase and rutile). The effects of annealing at 400 °C in air for 60 min are also discussed.