Pulsed Laser Deposition work station

The Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) work station is manufactured by SURFACE systems+technology GmbH & Co. KG and is used for preparation of epitaxial thin films, especially advanced oxide layers, having the major advantage of stoichiometric material transfer from a target to the substrate.

Characteristics:

-2 deposition chambers, each with 4-target carousels;

– KrF excimer laser with 248 nm wavelength,

 – repetition rate of 1 – 10 Hz,

– maximum energy of 700 mJ;

– control of laser fluence;

– substrate heating up to 1000 °C;

– control of working gases pressure;

Applications: One reaction chamber is used to deposit ferroelectric layers based on perovskites and other metal oxides (e.g., doped ZnO, HfO₂) (has also in-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) capabilities), whilst the other chamber is used to prepare superconducting thin films (e.g. YBa₂Cu₃O₇) and heterostructures of superconductor/ferromagnet (e.g. YBa₂Cu₃O₇/CaRuO₃). The superconducting and ferromagnetic properties of the thin films can be optimized by varying the deposition parameters such as the number of pulses, fluence, temperature etc.