TiO2 nanoparticles have been investigated in this work. Nanoparticles were obtained in Ar plasma on monocrystaline Si(111) substrate by gas-phase deposition using hollow cathode plasma jet (HCPJ).
The material of a cathode is pure titanium. Cathode’s surface has a high affinity for oxygen and thus an oxide layer rapidly forms upon exposure to the atmosphere or introducing oxygen into the main chamber.
Given method is based on sputtering TiO2/Ti2O3/TiO layer of a hollow cathode. The explanation of nanoparticle growth mechanism and size distribution is given.
Morphology of thin film surface was investigated by means of scanning electron microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM). We used mass spectrometer to monitor a chemical composition of the gas inside the system during deposition.
The chemical composition of the thin films was investigated by means of energy dispersive x-ray analysis (EDX).