Epitaxial and large area Sb2Te3thin films on silicon by MOCVD

Antimony telluride (SbTe) thin films were prepared by a room temperature Metal-Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition (MOCVD) process using antimony chloride (SbCl) and bis(trimethylsilyl)telluride (Te(SiMe)) as precursors. Pre-growth and post-growth treatments were found to be pivotal in favoring out-of-plane and in-plane alignment of the crystallites composing the films. A comprehensive suite of characterization techniques were used to evaluate their composition, surface roughness, as well as to assess their morphology, crystallinity, and structural features, revealing that a quick post-growth annealing triggers the formation of epitaxial-quality SbTefilms on Si(111).