Spectroscopic study of La₂O₃ thin films deposited by indigenously developed plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition system

The spectroscopic study of La₂O₃ thin films deposited over Si and SiC at low RF power of 25 W by using indigenously developed plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (IDPEALD) system has been investigated. The tris (cyclopentadienyl) lanthanum (III) and O₂ plasma were used as a source precursor of lanthanum and oxygen, respectively. The ∼1.2 nm thick La₂O₃ over SiC and Si has been formed based on our recipe confirmed by means of cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. The structural characterization of deposited films was performed by means of X-ray photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and X-ray Diffraction (XRD). The XPS result confirms the formation of 3+ oxidation state of the lanthania. The XRD results reveals that, deposited La₂O₃ films deposited on SiC are amorphous in nature compare to that of films on Si. The AFM micrograph shows the lowest roughness of 0.26 nm for 30 cycles of La₂O₃ thin films.