Scanning probe microscopy and X-ray studies of confined metal films

X-ray scattering and scanning probe microscopy studies of thin metallic films deposited by sputtering techniques is reviewed briefly. It is shown through examples that morphology of such thin films can be obtained by these reciprocal and real spaces studies. The relation between morphology and film thickness can then be used to predict the growth mechanism of these films. Although preparation of smooth films is desired for the formation of ideal multilayer system and to study the confinement effects in one dimension, usually one obtains islands structure in these films having 1–10 nm thickness. This essentially complicates I–V characteristic measured by scanning tunnelling microscopy in spectroscopic mode and these measurements can be used to study the evolution of metallicity as a function of thickness.