Microstructural Characterization of Thin Films and Surfaces by a New Grazing Incident X-ray Diffractometer

Modern devices require the production and characterization of state-of-the-art-ultra-thin films under 10-nanometers thick. Examples can be found in integrated circuits, magnetic pickup heads and high effi-ciency solid state lasers. In “thin films” with thickness greater than 10 nanometers, the crystallographic properties (crystalline quality, orientation relationship between films and substrates, etc.) were mainly investigated by rocking curve measurements and reciprocal lattice mapping using a high resolution X-ray diffractometer [1-4]. However, the characterization of ultra thin films with thickness less than 10 nanometers has been a scientific challenge. To analyze crystallographic and physical properties such as film uniformity, interfacial morphology and density of the films etc., X-ray reflectivity at grazing incidence has been a powerful [5, 6] .