Pulsed laser deposition and characterization of conductive RuO₂ thin films

RuO₂ thin films have been produced on silicon-based substrates by in situ pulsed laser deposition for the first time. The electrical properties, the surface characteristics, the crystalline structure, and the film-substrate interface of deposited samples have been investigated by 4-probe resistance versus temperature technique, scanning electron microscopy, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy, respectively. The films show good electrical properties. The RuO₂-substrate interface is very thin (≈3 nm), since it is not degraded by any annealing process. These two characteristics render our films suitable to be used as electrodes in PZT-based capacitors.