Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of titanium oxide films has been performed for the first time under ultra-high vacuum (UHV) conditions. The films were deposited through the pyrolysis reaction of titanium isopropoxide, Ti(OPr(i))4, and in situ characterized by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). A small amount of C incorporation was observed during the initial stages of deposition, through the interaction of precursor molecules with the bare Si substrate. Subsequent deposition produces pure and stoichiometric TiO2 films. Si-O bond formation was detected in the film-substrate interface. Deposition rate was found to increase with the substrate temperature. Ultra-high vacuum chemical vapor deposition (UHV-CVD) is especially useful to study the initial stages of the CVD processes, to prepare ultra-thin films, and to investigate the composition of deposited films without the interference from ambient impurities.
