V. Balan, C. Vigreux, A. Pradel

Chalcogenide thin films deposited by radio-frequency sputtering

Journal of Optoelectronics and Advanced Materials 6 (2004) 875–882

Several properties of chalcogenide glasses make these materials attractive candidates for integrated optics. These properties include infrared transparency, high refractive index, photosensitivity, low phonon energy and ease in preparation of thin film. We report on the radiofrequency sputtering deposition of thin columnar films of chalcogenide glasses (Ge₃₃As₁₂Se₅₅ and Ge₂₈Sb₁₂Se₆₀) and on the influence of their thickness and morphology on their optical characteristics (optical band gap and refractive index). It is shown that the higher the thickness, the larger the gathering of the columns in clusters, leading to an increase in the porosity (from 18 % for 0.2 mm thick films to 33 % for 5 mm thick ones), and to a decrease in the optical band gap and refractive index (about 10 %).

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Cited Articles

1. Ohlídal I., Franta D., Frumar M., Jedelský J., Omasta J.,
   Influence of composition, exposure and thermal annealing on optical properties of As–S chalcogenide thin films,
   Chalcogenide Letters 1 (2004) 1–10