NUCLEATION AND GROWTH OF ION-BEAM SPUTTERED METAL-FILMS

Transmission electron microscope observations have been made on ion beam sputtered (IBS) films of Cu, Au, Pt and Ni (of predetermined thickness t' greater-than-or-equal-to 0.5 nm) deposited on amorphous carbon substrates. The influence of IBS parameters on particle size distribution and deposition rate has been measured, also the fractional substrate coverage f as a function of t' which indicates three-dimensional island growth in Au, Cu films and two-dimensional growth in Pt, Ni films. Electron diffraction measurements appear to show that the f.c.c. metal particles grow with (110) parallel to the substrate with, in the case of Ni, a critical island thickness of approximately 0.8 nm.