Significant texture improvement in single-crystalline-like materials on low-cost flexible metal foils through growth of silver thin films

Low texture spreads of single-crystalline-like materials are critical for high performance of low-cost flexible semiconductors and second-generation high-temperature superconductors based on metal foils. For texture improvement, a single-crystalline-like Ag film is epitaxially grown on an ion-beam-assisted deposition TiN substrate using magnetron sputtering. Ultra-low texture spreads are found in the thin Ag film (similar to 330nm), with an out-of-plane texture spread (Delta omega) of similar to 1.03 degrees and an in-plane texture spread (Delta phi) of similar to 1.34 degrees. Compared with the texture spreads of the TiN substrate, Delta omega and Delta phi of the Ag film are reduced by similar to 42 and similar to 79%, respectively. Applying this Ag buffer, the texture spreads of a single-crystalline-like Ge film are reduced by similar to 37% (Delta omega) and similar to 36% (Delta phi). Factors contributing to the texture improvement by Ag are studied using single-crystalline-like Ag films with various thicknesses.