The coating of temperature-sensitive, e.g., vitreous substrates in the microtechnology with high melting point nanostructured materials is challenging. The use of special volatile organometallic compounds can be an answer to solve this ambitious task.
Chemical vapour deposition processes of organometallic compounds (OMCVD) are widely used for the low-temperature deposition of (metal) layers[1] on temperature sensitive substrate surfaces. Organometallic compounds are employed as the basic precursor material. Thus, the organic ligands are cleaved from the central metal atom by external energy input.
We have developed[2] an experimental set-up for the thermal deposition of elements (metals), element oxides and other functional composites in a glass microreactor (diameter: 70 µm or lower) and in mesoporous material by means of organometallic chemical vapour deposition (OMCVD).
The deposited layers were investigated by REM, EDX and AFM. We observed that energy-sensitive coatings could not successfully been investigated by REM, so we preferred AFM as standard analytical method to obtain structural information.
Here, we will present our results on our AFM investigations for surfaces prepared by organometallic chemical vapour deposition. We will discuss the preparation and the analysis of prepared surfaces in terms of improving the coating method for potential applications in catalytic or optical components.
[1] M. Hampden-Smith, T. Kodas, Chemical Vapor Deposition 1995, 1, 8-23., M. Hampden-Smith, T. Kodas, The chemistry of Metal CVD, VCH 1994
[2] J. Heck, S. Kneip, A. Knöchel, M. Haller, F. Moritz, Patents DE19852722 2000; EP1001050 2000; DE59912321 2005, AT300629TT 2005.
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