Improvement of the Uniformity of Tungsten/Carbon Multilayers by Thermal Processing

Tungsten/carbon (W/C) multilayers deposited by ion beam sputtering were annealed by focused infrared rays in vacuum and investigated by X-ray diffraction. The periodic spacing increased with the annealing temperature between 200 and 600° C after only 4-min annealing time, and the ratio of increase was about 0.01%/° C. A new control method of the periodic spacing distribution by thermal processing was suggested, where several areas of the sample were annealed at different temperatures. The periodic spacing distribution, which was a convex profile for the as-prepared W/C multilayer films, became uniform and the periodic spacing difference compared with the designated one was within 0.06 nm.