Strongly oriented Co3O4 thin films on MgO(100) and MgAl2O4(100) substrates by PE-CVD

Co3O4 thin films were grown on MgO(100) and MgAl2O4(100) by plasma enhanced-chemical vapor deposition (PE-CVD) from the [Co(dpm)2] precursor. Depositions on both single crystal substrates were performed from Ar/O2 plasmas at temperatures between 100 and 400 C in order to tailor the chemical and physical properties of the synthesized films. The composition, morphology and structure of the Co3O4 systems were thoroughly analyzed by XPS, SIMS, FE- SEM and bidimensional XRD. The obtained results evidenced the formation of high-purity and strongly oriented Co3O4 thin films, with features dependent on the used substrate and the adopted growth temperature.