An x-ray diffraction method for measuring thicknesses of epitaxial thin films

Abstract

An x-ray diffraction technique capable of measuring the thicknesses of epitaxial thin films with high precision is described. The advantages of this method are that it is nondestructive, straightforward, and rapidly performed. The equations, based on the kinematical theory of x-ray diffraction and the mosaic crystal model, were developed. As an example of the application of this method, thicknesses of AlxGa1-xAs thin films on GaAs were determined. The integrated reflected intensities from the film and the substrate were obtained using an x-ray double-crystal diffractometer. Excellent agreement between the results from x-ray measurements and reflection high-energy electron diffraction oscillation data was obtained.