Porous low dielectric films containing nano pores (∼20Å) with low dielectric constant (<2.2), have been prepared by using various kinds of cyclodextrin derivatives as porogenic materials. The pore structure such as pore size and interconnectivity can be controlled by changing functional groups of the cyclodextrin derivatives. We found that mechanical properties of porous low-k thin film prepared with mCSSQ (modified cyclic silsesquioxane) precursor and cyclodextrin derivatives were correlated with the pore interconnection length. The longer the interconnection length of nanopores in the thin film, the worse the mechanical properties of the thin film (such as hardness and modulus) even though the pore diameter of the films were microporous (∼2nm).

We have investigated the changes in the temperature dependence of the dc conductivity and the optical gap with nitrogen content in amorphous carbon nitride (a-C:N) films, in order to find the effect of nitrogen doping on the electrical and optical properties of amorphous carbon films. Specimens were deposited onto borosilicate glass substrates by the rf magnetron sputtering method using Ar and N2 as a sputtering gas and a reactive one, respectively. The values of the activation energy of the dc conductivity, Ea, of these films are 0.3∼0.8 eV and those of the optical gap, Eg, are 0.8∼ 1.4 eV. Both values decrease with increasing nitrogen content, which is due to the increase of the concentration or average size of sp islands segregated into the sp matrix by nitrogen doping. From the investigation of the behavior of both Ea and Eg in accordance with the nitrogen content, we discuss the three subsequent shifts of band edge and Fermi level, accompanied with the subsequent changes of microstructure in a-CN films by nitrogen doping.

Lead lanthanum titanate ((Pb1−x/100Lax)Ti1−x/400O3, x=10, 20, 28) sol-gel thin films were prepared on SiO2/Si and glass substrates using lanthanum nitrate as a La precursor. The effect of the processing conditions was investigated and the optical properties of the films were measured to obtain good films for waveguide applications. The perovskite crystalline phase is achieved regardless of the heating condition but the slower heating creates better quality films. La content in the film does not effect on the refractive index and transparency of the film.