Abstract
Highly oriented Sb2Te3 films were successfully deposited by RF-magnetron sputtering on both crystalline and amorphous substrates. A novel deposition mechanism and method are proposed based on van der Waals epitaxy. Due to the selective reactivity of the top surface atoms of the substrate with sputtered atoms, a Te monolayer is the first layer formed on the substrate, resulting in the subsequent layer-by-layer growth of the Sb2Te3 film independent of the crystallinity of the substrates. We believe that this method can be applied to the mass production of a wide range of various van der Waals solids, such as transition metal dichalcogenides and topological insulators for future electronics devices. Self-organized van-der-Waals epitaxy was proposed as a possible growth mechanism of highly-oriented layered chalcogenide materials, like Sb2Te3, by sputtering. It was found that depending on the composition of the substrate, there existed a selectivity of the chemical reaction between the film and substrate elements that resulted in the preferential formation of a Te monolayer and subsequent layer-by-layer growth of Sb2Te3. This novel mechanism enables one to fabricate highly-oriented chalcogenide films over a large area and can be applied to the mass production of a wide range of various van-der-Waals solids, such as transition metal dichalcogenides and topological insulators for future electronics devices.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 2151-2158 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Physica Status Solidi (B) Basic Research |
Volume | 252 |
Issue number | 10 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 2015 Oct |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Layered chalcogenides
- Sb2Te3
- Self-organized growth
- Sputtering
- Topological insulators
- Van der Waals epitaxy
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
- Condensed Matter Physics