Pulsed laser deposition and in situ diagnostics of the process applied to shape-memory alloys

Ni Ti films deposited by pulsed laser ablation on Si/SiO2 are shown to exibit structural and functional properties related to the shape-memory effect. Film characterization suggests that relevant temperature for the solid-to-solid transformation responsible for the shape memory are in substantial agreement with those of the bulk target material, demonstrating a good congruency of the deposition preosess. Besides the technological interest for this class of thin films, our findings point out the suitability of laser ablation for metal alloy deposition. An investigation based on in situ ion-mass spectroscopy and covariance mapping analysis allows us to determinate the main vapor-phase process leading to the formation of steichiometric clusters expected to play a relevant role in assisting the growth on NiTi thin films.