A SYSTEMATIC INVESTIGATION OF THE IONIZED CLUSTER BEAM (ICB) DEPOSITION TECHNIQUE IS PROPOSED.

A SYSTEMATIC INVESTIGATION OF THE IONIZED CLUSTER BEAM (ICB) DEPOSITION TECHNIQUE IS PROPOSED. THE ICB METHOD ALLOWS A BROAD RANGE OF CONTROL OVER THE SURFACE MOBILITY OF DEPOSITED ATOMS AND HAS BEEN APPLIED SUCCESSFULLY TO A VARIETY OF THIN FILM MATERIALS. HOWEVER, A NUMBER OF FACTORS HAVE HAMPERED U.S. RESEARCH IN THIS AREA, SO THAT THERE IS NOT NOW A SUFFICIENT BASE OF KNOWLEDGE OR EXPERIENCE TO ALLOW COMMERCIAL UTILIZATION. THE PROPOSED RESEARCH WILL FIRST ADDRESS SOME OF THE CRITICAL GAPS IN UNDERSTANDING OF THE ICB PROCESS, INCLUDING: 1) HOW ARE CLUSTERS FORMED; 2) WHAT IS THE ACTUAL MAKEUP OF A CLUSTER BEAM; 3) HOW DO CLUSTERS AND OTHER BEAM SPECIES INTERACT TO FORM THIN FILMS; AND 4) WHAT INTRINSIC ADVANTAGES DOES ICB HOLD OVER OTHER TECHNIQUES. THE PHASE I APPROACH WILL COMBINE MODELING AND EXPERIMENTAL WORK WITH AN EMPHASIS ON FRONT-END ISSUES OF BEAM GENERATION AND CHARACTERIZATION. A LIMITED SERIES OF THIN FILMS WILL ALSO BE GROWN AND STUDIED IN PREPARATION FOR A MUCH BROADER PROGRAM EMPHASIZING FILM DEVELOPMENT IN PHASE II RESEARCH.