On the Growth of Stannic Oxide by Ion Beam Sputter Deposition (IBSD)

SnO₂ thin films were grown on (0001) (c‐plane), (r‐plane), (a‐plane) and (m‐plane) sapphire substrates using ion beam sputter deposition (IBSD) of a pure metallic Sn target at a constant gas mixture of 2.5 sccm argon and 15 sccm oxygen at 550 °C substrate temperature. X‐ray diffraction in Bragg–Brentano geometry revealed that SnO₂ film deposited on each substrate is grown with preferential out‐of‐plane orientation. The determined orientation relationships were SnO₂ Al₂O₃ (0001) (c‐plane), SnO₂ Al₂O₃ (a‐plane), SnO₂ Al₂O₃ (r‐plane) and SnO₂ Al₂O₃ (m‐plane). X‐ray diffraction (XRD) proved epitaxial growth, perceivable by very narrow full width at half maximum (FWHM) in rocking curves and Laue oscillations in standard Θ–2Θ Bragg–Brentano scans. X‐ray pole figures even revealed epitaxial in‐plane relationships.