Investigations of thin films on GaAs using the proton resonant scattering technique

We have characterized a number of thermally stable thin film/GaAs systems including thin films of refractory metal suicides and nitrides as well as dielectric films on GaAs substrates using a MeV proton scattering technique. Thin films of tungsten suicides, zirconium nitride and silicon dioxide on GaAs substrates are investigated. The enhanced proton scattering cross sections of nitrogen, silicon and oxygen at their corresponding resonant energies enable us to accurately measure the compositions of these films. The advantages and disadvantages of this technique regarding depth resolution, accessible depth, and mass resolution compared to the conventional Rutherford backscattering spectrometry for thin film analysis are discussed. © 1988.