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Mild heating of the Zn(C5F6HO2)(2)center dot 2H(2)O center dot CH3(OCH2CH2)(2)OCH3 precursor allowed MOCVD deposition of ZnO films, in a low-pressure horizontal hot-wall reactor, on ITO substrates. The ZnO films were subsequently implanted with Sb ions. XRD measurements provided evidence that they consist of hexagonal, (002) and (101) oriented, crystals. UV-vis spectra showed that the transmittance of these films in the visible region is about 90%. The Sb implanted ZnO film showed a current-voltage characteristic that resembles that of a rectifying diode. This study represents the first example of Sb-implantation in ZnO films obtained by MOCVD.

A new tetraglyme adduct of sodium hexafluoroacetylacetonate [Na(hfa)·tetraglyme] has been synthesized and successfully used, together with the RE(hfa)3·diglyme (RE = Y, Yb, Er) complexes, in the synthesis of hexagonal phase NaYF4:Yb3+,Er3+ upconverting films through a facile sol–gel method.

An innovative sol–gel process, using a mixture of Na(hfa)·tetraglyme and RE(hfa)3·diglyme (RE = Y, Yb, Tm) complexes, has been optimized to produce upconverting β-NaYF4:Yb3+/Tm3+ thin films. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirms that the new sol–gel preparation route yields reproducibly and selectively the hexagonal Na(Y1.5Na0.5)F6 structure (β-NaYF4) without any impurity phases, since no peaks of the cubic NaYF4, YOF, Y2O3 or NaF phases were observed. This final goal has been achieved through an accurate optimization of the operative parameters such as the molar ratio of the precursor mixture, the aging time of the sol, the spin coating procedure and the annealing temperature. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) images indicate that the morphology of the surfaces, grain dimensions and thickness are strongly related to the processing parameters, with the hexagonal phase films having a very uniform morphology. Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analyses established the film composition in terms of dopant ions, which are responsible for the upconverting properties of the material. Luminescence measurements under laser excitation at 980 nm confirmed the promising upconversion properties of the β-NaYF4:Yb3+/Tm3+ films.

NiO thin films were grown through metalorganic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD) on quartz and LaAlO3 (001) single crystal substrates. Two different volatile and thermally stable nickel β-diketonate adducts, Ni(hfa)2·tmeda and Ni(tta)2·tmeda [H-hfa = 1,1,1,5,5,5-hexafluoro-2,4-pentandione; tmeda = N,N,N′,N′-tetramethylethylendiamine, Htta = 2-thenoyltrifluoroacetone], were applied as precursors for NiO film growth. The comprehensive study, applying two different precursors and changing the processing parameters, allowed for morphological control of the deposited NiO films. The AFM analyses indicated different values of roughness for NiO films obtained from the two different precursors and those from Ni(tta)2·tmeda showed a lower roughness. In addition, UV-Vis and ellipsometric measurements on NiO films grown from the Ni(tta)2·tmeda show higher transparency, fewer defects/impurities, better crystallinity and a higher refractive index than films deposited using the Ni(hfa)2·tmeda source. Raman spectroscopy confirmed the antiferromagnetic nature of the NiO layers. Work functions, around 5.1 eV, were measured by Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy for NiO films grown from Ni(tta)2·tmeda. The relationship between the precursor/substrate nature and film properties allowed us to define the best precursor and conditions for the MOCVD growth of good quality NiO films.

Calcium-doped praseodymium manganite films (Pr0.7Ca0.3MnO3, PCMO) were prepared by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) on SrTiO3 (001) and SrTiO3 (110) single-crystal substrates. Structural characterization through X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analyses confirmed the formation of epitaxial PCMO phase films. Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) characterization was used to confirm lateral and vertical composition and the purity of the deposited films. Magnetic measurements, obtained in zero-field-cooling (ZFC) and field-cooling (FC) modes, provided evidence of the presence of a ferromagnetic (FM) transition temperature, which was correlated to the transport properties of the film. The functional properties of the deposited films, combined with the structural and chemical characterization collected data, indicate that the MOCVD approach represents a suitable route for the growth of pure, good quality PCMO for the fabrication of novel spintronic devices.