MOCVD of nanocrystalline Fe2O3-ZrO2 and Fe2O3-Y2O3-ZrO2 thin films

Nanocrystalline Fe2O3-ZrO2 thin films were synthesised via CVD on quartz substrates using Fe(acac)3 (iron tris-(2,4 pentanedionate), and Zr(OiPr)3(thd) (zirconium tris-isopropoxy 2,2-6,6-tetramethyl-3,5-heptanedionate) as precursors. In order to assess a possibile stabilization of cubic zirconia, Fe2O3-Y2O3-ZrO2 films were deposited. To this aim, Y(acac)3.xH2O (yttrium tris-(2,4 pentanedionate)) was employed as Y precursor. Film composition, microstructure and morphology were investigated as a function of the preparative conditions. In particular, the films were characterised by X-ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM).