Structural properties of Al2O3/AlN thin film prepared by magnetron sputtering of Al in HF-activated nitrogen plasma

Abstract A process for ion-plasma formation of aluminum nitride (AlN) nanolayers on nitrided sapphire (Al 2 O 3 ) substrates is presented. The method is based on the direct current magnetron sputtering of a high-purity aluminum target in the presence of an argon–nitrogen gas mix and high frequency-activated nitrogen plasma. The method, combined with ion etching, produced matched layers by nitration of Al 2 O 3 in the (0001) plane, and formation of high quality AlN epilayers on this surface was observed. The processing characteristics and morphology dependence on synthesis parameters were studied using atomic force microscopy.