Surface evolution and dynamic scaling of sputter-deposited Al thin films on Ti(1 0 0) substrates

The surface morphology and dynamic scaling behavior of Al thin films sputter-deposited on rough Ti(100) substrates were studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM). It was found that the rough Ti(100) substrates played a crucial role in determining the surface morphology and roughness evolution of Al thin films at the initial stage of the film growth. Due to the substrate roughness contribution, a smoothing effect of initially rough surfaces could be observed. Also, surface roughness increased at a relatively low rate in the early growth time. The roughness exponent α and growth exponent β for Al films were determined to be 0.79±0.05 and 0.16±0.01, respectively. The observed substrate effect on the evolution of surface roughness was also discussed in terms of the competition between the substrate roughness contribution and the growth-induced roughening. © 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.