In Situ Observation of Growing Surface of Oxide Films By Reflection High-Energy Electron Diffraction Beam Excited Auger Electron Spectroscopy

The reflection high-energy electron diffraction beam excited Auger electron spectroscopy (AES) was applied to in situ and real time observation of the growing surface of films during molecular-beam epitaxy deposition. A compact electron energy analyzer assembly which consists of an einzel lens, sector-type energy analyzer, microchannel plate detector, and magnetic shielding case was built to enable the measurement close to the substrate without disturbing the deposition. The system was checked by the in situ AES measurement of crystals surface during cleaning with ozone. The technique is applicable to analyze in situ the growing surface of more complicated materials such as oxide superconductors whose microstructures at an atomic level must be well controlled for better quality and for use in microelectronic devices such as the Josephson junction.