Beryllium nitride thin films were grown on silicon substrates by laser ablating a beryllium foil in molecular nitrogen ambient. The composition and chemical state were determined with Auger (AES), X-Ray photoelectron (XPS) and energy loss (EELS) spectroscopies. A low absorption coefficient in the visible region, and an optical bandgap of 3.8 eV, determined by reflectance ellipsometry, were obtained for films grown at nitrogen pressures higher than 25 mTorr. The results show that the reaction of beryllium with nitrogen is very effective using this preparation method, producing high quality films.keywords: Beryllium nitride, laser ablation, thin films, wide bandgap, optical properties.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.