Photon irradiation-induced structural and interfacial phenomena in pure and alio-valently doped zirconia thin films

摘要

We report on the effect of ultra-violet (UV) irradiation on structural and interfacial phenomena in pure and doped zirconia thin film grown by physical vapour deposition. Interfacial layer formation by substrate oxidation and resultant densification of zirconia layer was found in yttria-doped zirconia (YDZ) films grown on Si, while no change was observed in identical films grown on Ge. A comparison of un-doped zirconia and YDZ films indicates yttria-doping significantly assists structural changes during UV irradiation. Interestingly, the effect of UV photons becomes minimal at similar to 300 degrees C in films grown on Si, while the effect of UV becomes more pronounced in YDZ films grown on Ge. An interfacial layer was formed between the YDZ and Ge substrate at 300 degrees C in the presence of UV irradiation, in contrast to the sharp interface maintained, even after annealing at 300 degrees C, without UV. The results suggest that photon irradiation may be an elegant approach to tailor structural and interfacial properties at near-atomic length scales.