Influence of Substrate Temperature and Deposition Rate on the Texture and Surface Morphology of ISD–MgO

In this study, MgO thin films were grown on Hastelloy metal tapes by the inclined substrate deposition (ISD) method for coated conductors. The effects of substrate temperature and deposition rate on the biaxial texture alignment, texture angle (defined as the tilt angle of the MgO (002) plane from the substrate normal) as well as surface morphology of MgO films were investigated systematically. For the substrate inclination angle of 30°, as the increase of substrate temperature from room temperature to 600°C, the texture quality of the MgO films degrades significantly, meanwhile the texture angle decreases from 27° to 19°. For depositions under substrate inclination angles of 30°, 35°, and 55°, the full-width-at-half-maximum value of the in-plane and out-of-plane alignment of MgO films exhibits a “V” shape relationship with the deposition rate. Scanning electron microscopy images show that enhanced surface random diffusion causes the film to become dense and reduces the intergrain voids in the columnar structure.