Cluster-beam deposition of thin metallic antimony films: Cluster-size and deposition-rate effects

Low-energy cluster-beam deposition is a technique that allows the growth of thin films via a mechanism different from the conventional molecular-beam deposition technique. These differences have been recently demonstrated in the case of antimony. This work shows that the deposition rate and the mean size of incident clusters of Sb evaporated on amorphous carbon are two crucial parameters. Crystalline aspect and coverage rate of deposits depends strongly on these two parameters. Transmission-electron-microscopy studies allow us to determine the optimum conditions under which, especially in the case of low-energy cluster-beam deposition, very thin films of high quality may be obtained.