Effects of Oxygen Incorporation on the Physical Properties of Amorphous Metal Thin Films

Incorporated oxygen is known to affect amorphous metal thin film (AMTF) mechanical properties, but comparatively little is known about how it affects their structural characteristics and electrical transport properties. In this study, AMTFs are produced by using sputter deposition. Chemical composition, average interatomic spacing, surface roughness, and electrical transport properties are examined using electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE), and variable-temperature resistivity. ZrCuAlNi amorphous metal thin films exhibit a temperature dependence that is characteristic of d-electron conduction and electrical resistivity that increases substantially with increasing oxygen content. TiAl and ZrCuB are found to be sp-electron conductors with electrical resistivity that decreases with increasing oxygen content. The surface roughness of all films increases with oxygen content, whereas interatomic spacing is relatively insensitive to incorporated oxygen content. The relationships among amorphous metal composition, structural characteristics, and electrical transport properties are discussed.