Effect of oxidation dynamics on the film characteristics of Ce:YIG thin films deposited by pulsed-laser deposition

Abstract Thin films with different compositions of Ce-substituted yttrium iron garnet (Ce:YIG (Y 2 CeFe 5 O 12 )), Ga-doped Ce:YIG (Ce:Ga:YIG (Y 2 CeFe 4.25 Ga 0.75 O 12 )), and Gd-doped Ce:YIG (Ce:Gd:YIG (Y 1.6 CeGd 0.4 Fe 5 O 12 )) were deposited on gadolinium gallium garnet (GGG (Gd 3 Ga 5 O 12 )) substrates in O 2 or Ar background gas by pulsed-laser deposition (PLD) technique. Crystalline films were obtained at a lower O 2 gas pressure of 20 mTorr or at higher Ar gas pressures of more than 100 mTorr. In addition, the behavior of YO molecules was visualized by two-dimensional laser-induced fluorescence (2D-LIF), in order to investigate the oxidation dynamics in the ablation plume. The oxidation dynamics and the crystallinity had close correlation.