Growth of four-fold grained K₃Li₂Nb₅O₁₅ thin film using RF-magnctron sputtering

K₃Li₂Nb₅O₁₅ (KLM) thin films were prepared using an rf-magnelron sputtering technique with a sintered ceramic target containing 60mol% and 30mol% excess K and Li, compared with sloichiomctric KLM, respectively. In this experiment the optimum sputtering conditions were an rf power of 100W, a working pressure of ISOmTorr, and a substrate temperature of 600°C. When KLN was grown on a Pl/Ti/SiO₂/Si(100) substrate at a temperature of 600°C with 150 mTorr, the thin film KLN was (OOl)-orientcd with diffraction peaks from the (311) plane. The re-vaporization of the volatile clement on the substrate was successfully suppressed by increasing the sputtering pressure. In this work 4-fold grains of KLN thin film and the growth mechanism of 4-fold symmetric grains were both observed for the first time.