EFFECT OF HEATING PROBE ON REACTIVELY SPUTTERED TIO2 FILM GROWTH

In this paper we propose a simple method to ionize sputtered neutral Ti and added oxygen gas, by inserting a heating probe into the plasma space. The effect of bias voltage applied to the heating probe on the crystalline structure and optical properties was investigated for the TiO2 films deposited by reactive sputtering using this method. In the films deposited with the heating probe applying positive bias voltage to the substrate, the rutile phase was grown on the Si(111) substrate at a low temperature, and this film showed better optical properties than the films prepared without bias voltage. These changes in crystalline and optical properties were attributed to the ionization and acceleration of Ti and oxygen particles.