MOCVD of magnesium titanium oxide thin films using an unusual magnesium precursor

Magnesium titanium oxide thin films were deposited at 450 °C on fused quartz and Si (001) substrates by using the MOCVD technique, employing titanium tetra-isopropoxide Ti(OiPr)4 and bis-(ç5 methylcyclopentadienyl)Mg(II) [(Mg(Cp-Me)2] as metalorganic sources. The Mg (Cp-Me)2 can be considered an unusual MOCVD precursor having never been used for this purpose to date. The as grown samples, amorphous at this deposition temperature, became polycrystalline after an annealing treatment in air between 600 °C and 800 °C. The films were analyzed by XRD and RBS for a thorough characterization of their microstructure and chemical composition. The obtained results indicated the possibility to obtain the Mg2TiO4 (qandilite) or the MgTiO3 (geikielite) crystalline phases as a function of the input Mg/Ti molar ratio.