Properties of Thin Epitaxial Aerosol MOCVD CeO2 Films Grown on (1102) Sapphire

Abstract

We have examined the properties of thin epitaxial CeO 2 films prepared by aerosol MOCVD. The films were deposited on (1102) sapphire at deposition temperatures between 500 °C and 900°C. The best properties were observed for the film grown at high deposition temperatures. The films have thickness ∼ 0.2 μm and the full width at half maximum of the rocking curve 0.3° - 0.4°. The minimal yield measured by backscattering spectrometry in the channeling mode was 5.5%, confirming high preferred orientation of the deposited films. The epitaxial character of the CeO 2 films was revealed by the measurement of the φ-scan. The aerosol MOCVD CeO 2 films were found to be suitable as a buffer layer for a preparation of superconducting high-T c films. YBa 2 Cu 3 O 1 superconducting films deposited on the CeO 2 /(1102) sapphire exhibit superconducting transition temperature T 0(R=0) = 86 K