SURFACE CHARACTERIZATION AND GRAIN SIZE CALCULATION OF SILVER FILMS DEPOSITED BY THERMAL EVAPORATION

Muhammad Maqbool () and Tahirzeb Khan
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Muhammad Maqbool: Department of Science and Mathematics, Mount Olive College, 634 Henderson Street, Mount Olive, NC 28365, USA
Tahirzeb Khan: Department of Physics, University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 Morrissey, Boulevard, Boston, MA 02125, USA

Surface Review and Letters (SRL), 2005, vol. 12, issue 05n06, 759-766

Abstract: Thin films of pure silver were deposited on glass substrate by thermal evaporation process at room temperature. Surface characterization of the films was performed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Thickness of the films varied between 20 nm and 60 nm. XRD analysis provided a sharp peak at 38.75° from silver. These results indicated that the films deposited on glass substrates at room temperature are crystalline. 3D and top view pictures of the films were obtained by AFM to study the grain size and its dependency on various factors. Grain sizes were calculated using the XRD results and Scherer's formula. Average grain size increased with the thickness of the deposited films. A minimum grain size of 8 nm was obtained for 20 nm thick films, reaching a maximum value of 41.9 nm when the film size reaches 60 nm. We could not find any sequential variation in the grain size with the growth rate.

Keywords: Silver; grain size; atomic force microscopy; X-ray diffraction; thin films growth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2005
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DOI: 10.1142/S0218625X05007621

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