Epitaxial growth of lithium niobate film using metalorganic chemical vapor deposition

Abstract Lithium niobate films grown epitaxially on sapphire substrate were prepared using a thermal chemical vapor deposition method from the metalorganic compounds Li(C 11 H 19 O 2 ) and Nb(OC 2 H 5 ) 5 . The range of operating conditions for obtaining pure epitaxially grown LiNbO 3 without other oxides is within that for obtaining pure polycrystalline LiNbO 3 grown on silicon substrate. On analyzing the composition of the epitaxially grown LiNbO 3 film, the composition of the film was similar to that of the LiNbO 3 solid solution in the phase diagram of the Li–Nb composite oxide obtained for crystal growth from a molten solution.