Diffraction Analysis
Reflection High Energy Electron Diffraction (RHEED), Low Energy Electron Diffraction (LEED) & X-ray Diffraction (XRD)
The crystallographic structure of materials can be monitored using electron or x-ray diffraction techniques. The differentially pumped reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) system included in the Thin Film Synthesis and Characterization Facility can monitor thin film structure during growth. This capability is particularly important in epitaxial growth studies since the structure of the first few monolayers of nucleation and growth can be directly monitored in real time.
Low energy electron diffraction (LEED) is an extremely sensitive probe to characterize surface structure. LEED instruments are available on several of our UHV chambers and are used to analyze the surface structure following gas adsorption, thin film growth, and surface processing.
Information on crystalline structure and texture is obtained using x-diffraction (XRD). A Scintag XRD unit with a monochromatic source can be configured for thin film work as well as conventional XRD. Methods include Bragg-Brentano Θ-Θ geometry, grazing incidence diffraction, rocking curves, and Schultz pole figure geometry.