Monte Carlo study of the molecular beam epitaxy process for manufacturing magnesium oxide nano-scale films

Abstract

This article presents a Monte Carlo-based factor-wise sensitivity analysis conducted on the performance variables of a Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) process. Using lab-scale MBE equipment, magnesium oxide (MgO 111) films are grown on a hexagonal silicon carbide 6H-SiC (0001) substrate. The thin film surface chemistry in terms of O‒Mg and OH‒Mg bonding states is examined using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. A multi-layer perceptron is used to model the process. Monte Carlo experiments are conducted on the process model to study the causal relationship between the critical process control variables and the key performance indicators. The sensitivity of O‒Mg and OH‒Mg bonding states in MgO films to each of the four process control variables (growth time, substrate temperature, magnesium source temperature, and percentage starting oxygen) is examined. Each control variable is varied individually while keeping other control variables constant at their mid values in one case and randomly varying in another case. The sensitivity of the performance variables to the interaction between a select set of control variable pairs is also examined. The interaction between substrate temperature and oxygen on the starting surface is found to significantly affect the dynamics of OH‒Mg bonding state.

Keywords:

• Nano manufacturing
• factor-wise sensitivity analysis
• nano-scale metal oxide films
• molecular beam epitaxy
• magnesium oxide thin films
• functional oxide heterostructures
• Monte Carlo experiments
• non-parametric regression
• neural network
• interface engineering

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ghulam Moeen Uddin

Ghulam Moeen Uddin is a Postdoctoral Research Assistant at the University of York. His area of expertise include manufacturing process development for semiconductor devices on wide band gap substrates, UHV thin film growth processing and characterization, and wet and dry etching-based surface processing and chemical and structural characterization. He has published research papers in the areas of surface processing, UHV thin film growth for metal oxides, and developing process control models for optimizing nano-manufacturing processes for transfer from the lab to high-volume manufacturing.

Katherine S. Ziemer

Katherine (Kate) Ziemer is an Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering at Northeastern University. Her research explores the fundamental mechanisms of the growth and processing of thin films and nanostructures, literally at the atomic scale, with the aim to create next-generation electronic devices based on multifunctional materials to address the challenges of renewable and sustainable energy, medical diagnostics and treatments, and environmental monitoring and protection. She has over 60 refereed publications and 80 presentations on both educational and research topics. She has secured research grants totaling over $2.3 million.

Abe Zeid

Abe Zeid is a Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Northeastern University. His research interests include database and information systems in manufacturing, the use of mobile agents to facilitate information access in manufacturing environments, developing XML-based algorithms for mass customization, and developing Java-based and web-based systems for disassembly analysis. Currently his research is focused on scalable nano-manufacturing and engineering education. He has published over 200 papers and secured research grants worth over $3 million.

Sagar Kamarthi

Sagar Kamarthi is an Associate Professor of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering at Northeastern University. His research interests are in the areas of advanced manufacturing, scalable nano-manufacturing, machine learning, process monitoring and diagnosis, and intelligent sensors/sensor integration. He has published more than 160 articles in internationally reputed journals and has secured several grants from the National Science Foundation. He has secured research grants worth over $3.5 million. His current research focuses on scalable manufacturing of nano-enabled products.