In situ synchrotron based x-ray techniques as monitoring tools for atomic layer deposition

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a thin film deposition technique that has been studied with a variety of in situ techniques. By exploiting the high photon flux and energy tunability of synchrotron based x-rays, a variety of new in situ techniques become available. X-ray reflectivity, grazing incidence small angle x-ray scattering, x-ray diffraction, x-ray fluorescence, x-ray absorption spectroscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are reviewed as possible in situ techniques during ALD. All these techniques are especially sensitive to changes on the (sub-)nanometer scale, allowing a unique insight into different aspects of the ALD growth mechanisms.