Film Growth Lab

Our group owns a home-made multi-purpose RF magnetron sputtering system to grow thin films and heterostructures. At the present time, it is equipped with six different magnetrons allowing to grow different types of heterostructures.
The system is fully automatised via a Labview based control software.
A cluster gun source is also coupled with the sputtering chamber for the fabrication of nanoparticles

Main characteristics of the system:

• Substrate heater up to 950ºC
• Oxygen background pressure up to 0.4 Torr
• Groth rates from 1nm/min up to 10 nm/min

We have grown a large variety of functional oxide thin films with properties ranging from ferromagnetic to antiferromagnetic, metallic or insulating as weel as transparent films. Design of novel functionalities can be made by tuning the structural strain imposed a proper substrate choice.

Thin films are fully characterized mainly with the experimental techniques available at ICMAB scientific services. In close collaboration with technical staff we have established novel measurements methodologies and advanced data analysis to further exploit the capabilities of the different equipments.