Abstract
Titanium dioxide films prepared by magnetron sputtering with titanium dioxide targets, rather than Ti metal targets, were studied. The effect of sputtering parameters such as Ar/O 2 ratio, working pressure, deposition power, and substrate temperature was considered. The results show that the rutile phase crystallizes directly from the amorphous phase without the intermediate formation of anatase. The prepared films have low leakage currents, except for those deposited in pure Ar, at high power and substrate temperature; therefore, post-annealing atmosphere treatment is not required. Increasing the Ar/O 2 ratio, increasing the deposition power, and decreasing the working pressure promote the formation of the rutile phase, which increased the dielectric constant of the sputtered films. The dielectric constants of amorphous titanium dioxide films, ranging from 40 to 80, were found to relate closely to the sputtering parameters. Amorphous titanium dioxide films with high-dielectric constant, low leakage current and low dissipation factor, suitable for microelectronic applications can be fabricated under controlled sputtering parameters.