Observation of the phase formation in TiO2 nano thin film by Raman scattering

Two groups of TiO2 thin films were deposited onto Corning glass substrates by the RF magnetron sputtering in reactive argon gas containing 20% oxygen and by the sol–gel technique combined with dip coating. The films prepared by RF sputtering were annealed for 15 min at 650 °C with different rates of increase of temperature with the aim to search for the TiO2 anatase phase formation. Besides, with the same aim, a set of the TiO2 films prepared by sol–gel technique was doped with Co in the concentration range from 0 to 8% by weight. Influence of the rate of increase of temperature and Co doping on the anatase phase formation have been observed and estimated by x-ray diffraction and Raman scattering. Structure deformation induced by rapid heating and Co doping is considered as the main reason affecting the anatase phase formation in TiO2 thin films. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.