• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.02a
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• pp.50-50
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• 2011

The aluminum nitride films were prepared by RF magnetron sputtering using an AlN ceramic target. The crystallinity, grain size, Al-N bonding and thermal conductivity were investigated in dependence on the plasma power densities (4.93, 7.40, 9.87 W/$cm^2$) during sputtering. High thermal conductivity is important properties of A1N passivation layer for functioning properly in thermal inkjet printhead. The crytallinity, grain size, Al-N bonding formation and chemical composition were observed using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), respectively. The AlN thin film was changed from amorphous to crystalline as the power density was increased, and the largest grain size appeared at medium power density. The near stoichiometry Al-N bonding ratio was acquired at medium power density. So, we know that the AlN thin film had better thermal conductivity with crystalline phase and near stoichometry Al-N bonding ratio at 7.40 W/$cm^2$ power density.

• Journal of Korean Vacuum Science & Technology
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.47-51
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• 2001

To obtain high remnant polarization and good crystalinity of ferroelectric thin films in non-volatile memory devices, the high temperature treatment in oxygen ambient is inevitable. Severe problems that occur in this process are oxygen diffusion into substrate, oxidation of electrode and buffer layer, degradation of microstructure and so on. We made ruthenium dioxide thin film by reactive sputtering with oxygen and argon mixture atmosphere. Comparing quantitatively the core-level spectra of Ru and RuO$_2$ obtained by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy(XPS), we found that chemical state of RuO$_2$ is very stable and of good resistance to oxygen diffusion and oxidation of adjacent layers. It opens the use of RuO$_2$ thin film as a multifunctional layer of good conducting electrode and resistive barrier for the diffusion and the oxidation. We also suggest a correct understanding of Ru 3d core-level spectrum for RuO$_2$ based on the scheme of final state screening and charge transfer satellites.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2014.02a
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• pp.211.2-211.2
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• 2014

Epitaxial complex oxide thin film heterostructures have attracted a great attention for their multifunctional properties, such as ferroelectricity, and ferromagnetism. Two dimensional electron gas (2DEG) confined at the interface between two insulating perovskite oxides such as LaAlO3/SrTiO3 interface, provides opportunities to expand various electronic and memory devices in nano-scale. Recently, it was reported that the conductivity of 2DEG could be controlled by external electric field. However, the switched conductivity of 2DEG was not stable with time, resulting in relaxation due to the reaction between charged surface on LaAlO3 layer and atmospheric conditions. In this report, we demonstrated a way to control the conductivity of 2DEG in non-volatile way integrating ferroelectric materials into LAO/STO heterostructure. We fabricated epitaxial Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3 films on LAO/STO heterostructure by pulsed laser deposition. The conductivity of 2DEG was reproducibly controlled with 3-order magnitude by switching the spontaneous polarization of PZT layer. The controlled conductivity was stable with time without relaxation over 60 hours. This is also consistent with robust polarization state of PZT layer confirmed by piezoresponse force microscopy. This work demonstrates a model system to combine ferroelectric material and 2DEG, which guides a way to realize novel multifunctional electronic devices.

• Korean Journal of Metals and Materials
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• v.50 no.4
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• pp.331-337
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• 2012

Electrical properties as a function of composition in silicon nitride ($SiN_x$) films grown at low temperatures ($<200^{\circ}C$) were studied for applications to photonic devices and thin film transistors. Both silicon-rich and nitrogen-rich compositions were successfully produced in final films by controlling the source gas mixing ratio, $R=[(N_2\;or\;NH_3)/SiH_4]$, and the RF plasma power. Depending on the film composition, the dielectric and optical properties of $SiN_x$ films varied substantially. Both the resistivity and breakdown field strength showed the maximum value at the stoichiometric composition (N/Si = 1.33), and degraded as the composition deviated to either side. The electrical properties degraded more rapidly when the composition shifted toward the silicon-rich side than toward the nitrogen-rich side. The composition shift from the silicon-rich side to the nitrogen-rich side accompanied the shift in the photoluminescence characteristic peak to a shorter wavelength, indicating an increase in the band gap. As long as the film composition is close to the stoichiometry, the breakdown field strength and the bulk resistivity showed adequate values for use as a gate dielectric layer down to $150^{\circ}C$ of the process temperature.

• Journal of Sensor Science and Technology
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• v.23 no.1
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• pp.15-18
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• 2014

We present gas sensing performance based on $2{\times}2$ sensor array with four different elements ($TiO_2$, $SnO_2$, $WO_3$ and $In_2O_3$ thin films) fabricated by rf sputter. Each thin film was deposited onto the selected $SiO_2$/Si substrate with Pt interdigitated electrodes (IDEs) of $5{\mu}m$ spacing which were fabricated on a $SiO_2$/Si substrate using photolithography and dry etching. For 5 ppm $NO_2$ and 50 ppm CO, each thin film sensor has a different response to offers the distinguishable response pattern for different gas molecules. Compared with the conventional micro-fabrication technology, $2{\times}2$ sensor array with such remarkable response pattern will be open a new foundation for monolithic integration of high-performance chemoresistive sensors with simplicity in fabrication, low cost, high reliablity, and multifunctional smart sensors for environmental monitoring.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2013.02a
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• pp.161-161
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• 2013

Two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) has been investigated at the heterointerface between two insulating dielectric perovskite oxides, $LaAlO_3$ (LAO)/$SrTiO_3$ (STO). Properties of the 2DEG have attracted an enormous interest in condensed matter physics due to multifunctional properties such as the coexistence of ferromagnetism and superconductivity, as well as the high electron mobility. Here, we have grown $Ta_2O_5$ thin films using pulsed laser deposition on $SrTiO_3$ substrate to investigate the electric properties of the $Ta_2O_5$/STO heterointerface. Our research reveal that the non-polar $Ta_2O_5$/$TiO_2$ heterointerface favors the formation of 2DEG similar to that at the LAO/STO heterointerface. The metallic behavior was found in this heterointerface with the current about $10{\sim}100{\mu}A$ at 5 V by using conventional I-V measurements, when the $Ta_20_5$ film thickness reaches over critical thickness, $d_c{\simeq}2uc$. The finding that electrons was localized at $Ta_2O_5$/STO heterointerface have attracted to be strong and new candidate for nanoscale oxide device applications.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2016.02a
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• pp.159-159
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• 2016

Vertically-aligned carbon nanotubes (VCNT) have attracted much attention due to their unique structural, mechanical and electronic properties, and possess many advantages for a wide range of multifunctional applications such as field emission displays, heat dissipation and potential energy conversion devices. Surface modification of the VCNT plays a fundamental role to meet specific demands for the applications and control their surface property. Recent studies have been focused on the improvement of the electron emission property and the structural modification of CNTs to enable the mass fabrication, since the VCNT considered as an ideal candidate for various field emission applications such as lamps and flat panel display devices, X-ray tubes, vacuum gauges, and microwave amplifiers. Here, we investigate the effect of surface morphology of the VCNT by water vapor exposure and coating materials on field emission property. VCNT with various height were prepared by thermal chemical vapor deposition: short-length around $200{\mu}m$, medium-length around $500{\mu}m$, and long-length around 1 mm. The surface morphology is modified by water vapor exposure by adjusting exposure time and temperature with ranges from 2 to 10 min and from 60 to 120oC, respectively. Thin films of SiO2 and W are coated on the structure-modified VCNT to confirm the effect of coated materials on field emission properties. As a result, the surface morphology of VCNT dramatically changes with increasing temperature and exposure time. Especially, the shorter VCNT change their surface morphology most rapidly. The difference of field emission property depending on the coating materials is discussed from the point of work function and field concentration factor based on Fowler-Nordheim tunneling.