A three‐dimensional ballistic deposition model for thin film growth has been developed, incorporating the mechanisms of shadowing and relaxation which are essential to microstructure formation. In addition to generating columnar structure similar to that found in films deposited at low temperature, the simulation produces columns which become elliptic cylinders as the angle of incident vapor flux is increased. The model clearly confirms that this structural anisotropy which develops in the film plane is due to self‐shadowing in the growing film. The anisotropy, originally revealed in magnetic and electrical properties of obliquely deposited alloys, appears as the elongation of column structure in a direction perpendicular to the plane of incidence. In agreement with titanium films sputtered using a planar magnetron at 65 mPa argon pressure, simulations show a maximum ratio of column major axis to minor axis of about 2 at a deposition angle of 60°. The effect is seen to decrease in both simulations and real films at higher angles of incidence.
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July 1992
38th National Symposium of the American Vacuum Society
11−15 Nov 1991
Seattle, Washington (USA)
Research Article|
July 01 1992
Structural anisotropy in oblique incidence thin metal films
R. N. Tait;
R. N. Tait
Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2G7, Canada
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T. Smy;
T. Smy
Department of Electronics, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario K1S 5B6, Canada
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M. J. Brett
M. J. Brett
Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta T6G 2G7, Canada
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J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A 10, 1518–1521 (1992)
Article history
Received:
October 10 1991
Accepted:
October 28 1991
Citation
R. N. Tait, T. Smy, M. J. Brett; Structural anisotropy in oblique incidence thin metal films. J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A 1 July 1992; 10 (4): 1518–1521. https://doi.org/10.1116/1.578037
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