MOCVD of magnesium titanium oxide thin films using an unusual magnesium precursor

Magnesium titanium oxide thin films were deposited at 450 °C on fused quartz and Si (001) substrates by using the MOCVD technique, employing titanium tetra-isopropoxide Ti(OiPr)4 and bis-(η5-methylcyclopentadienyl)Mg(II) [(Mg(Cp-Me)2] as metalorganic sources. The Mg(Cp-Me)2 can be considered an unusual MOCVD precursor having never been used for this purpose to date. The as-grown samples, amorphous at this deposition temperature, became polycrystalline after an annealing treatment in air between 600 °C and 800 °C. The films were analyzed by XRD and RBS for a thorough characterization of their microstructure and chemical composition. The obtained results indicated the possibility to obtain the Mg2TiO4 (qandilite) or the MgTiO3 (geikielite) crystalline phases as a function of the input Mg/Ti molar ratio.