ATOMIC LAYER DEPOSITION OF SUPER-CONDUCTING NIOBIUM SILICIDE
First Claim
1. A method of forming on a substrate a niobium silicide (NbSi) superconducting film having a tunable superconducting critical temperature by performing a plurality of atomic layer deposition (ALD) cycles within an ALD reactor, the ALD cycle comprising:
- establishing a deposition temperature within the ALD reactor;
exposing the substrate within the deposition chamber to a niobium halide precursor;
purging the deposition chamber with an inert purge gas;
exposing the substrate to a reducing precursor to form a monolayer of NbSi over the substrate, the reducing precursor selected from the group consisting of Si2H6, SiH4, and combinations thereof; and
purging the deposition chamber with the inert purge gas,wherein the superconducting critical temperature is established between about 0.4 K and about 3.1 K by performing a number of the ALD cycles to obtain a predetermined thickness of the NbSi film on the substrate.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method of preparing a superconducting thin film of niobium silicide using atomic layer deposition (ALD) where the superconducting critical temperature of the film is controllable by modulating the thickness of the thin film. The film is formed by exposing a substrate within an ALD reactor to alternating exposures of a niobium halide (NbQx) and a reducing precursor, for example, disilane (Si2H6) or silane (SiH4). A number of ALD cycles are performed to obtain the film thickness and establish the desired superconducting critical temperature between 0.4 K and 3.1 K.
411 Citations
20 Claims
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1. A method of forming on a substrate a niobium silicide (NbSi) superconducting film having a tunable superconducting critical temperature by performing a plurality of atomic layer deposition (ALD) cycles within an ALD reactor, the ALD cycle comprising:
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establishing a deposition temperature within the ALD reactor; exposing the substrate within the deposition chamber to a niobium halide precursor; purging the deposition chamber with an inert purge gas; exposing the substrate to a reducing precursor to form a monolayer of NbSi over the substrate, the reducing precursor selected from the group consisting of Si2H6, SiH4, and combinations thereof; and purging the deposition chamber with the inert purge gas, wherein the superconducting critical temperature is established between about 0.4 K and about 3.1 K by performing a number of the ALD cycles to obtain a predetermined thickness of the NbSi film on the substrate. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7)
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8. A method of preparing a superconducting film having a tunable critical temperature using atomic layer deposition (ALD), comprising:
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providing a first metal precursor capable of forming a superconducting film on a substrate, the first metal precursor comprising a first transition metal and a halide; providing a first reducing precursor, the first reducing precursor comprising silicon and substantially free of oxygen; and forming at least one superconducting film on the substrate by performing in an ALD reactor a number of ALD cycles at a deposition temperature to obtain the at least one superconducting film comprising the first transition metal and silicon and characterized by a film thickness, each ALD cycle comprises exposing the substrate to the first metal precursor for a first predetermined period, exposing the substrate to the first reducing precursor for a second predetermined period, and purging the ALD reactor after each of the first metal precursor and first reducing precursor exposures, wherein the superconducting critical temperature of the at least one superconducting film is selectively tunable by modulating the film thickness of the at least one superconducting film. - View Dependent Claims (9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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17. A film prepared by atomic layer deposition (ALD) having a tunable superconducting critical temperature, comprising:
- a metallic thin film of niobium silicide (NbSi) with a substantially 1;
1 stoichiometry characterized by an amorphous structure and a density of about 6.65 g/cm3, the metallic thin film further defined by a substantially uniform film thickness and a superconducting critical temperature selectively tunable between about 0.4 K and about 3.1 K, wherein the superconducting critical temperature is selected by establishing the substantially uniform film thickness between about 5.2 nm and about 45 nm. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
- a metallic thin film of niobium silicide (NbSi) with a substantially 1;
Specification