Combined refinement of GiXRF, XRR and XRD data in a global approach: analysis of textured ITO/Ag/ITO/Si architectures and more

There is a critical need for optoelectronic devices optimization to give quantitative chemical composition measurement of these materials with buried interfaces and with nanometer depth resolution. Grazing-incidence X-Ray Fluorescence (GIXRF) is a new technique that offers the potential to substantially provide high sensitivity to investigate surface or buried interface contamination as well as elemental depth-profiling capabilities. In combination with X-Ray Reflectometry (XRR), this method will also allow for depth resolved material characterization with resolution in the nanometer range. Moreover, as sometimes the polycrystalline studied films exhibiting also preferential orientations, these two techniques can be also coupled with X-Ray quantitative texture measurements (XRD). For the first time, on transparent conducting oxides multilayered samples for photovoltaic applications, using the new developed combined GIXRF-XRR-XRD analysis approach (through the MAUD program) we have determined the different layer thicknesses and their crystallographic preferred orientations and we have evidenced the presence of a gradient profile for the chemical composition and for the films density.
An another example of the MAUD combined analysis approach will be quickly presented for the study of the relationship between structure/microstructure and mechanical properties of flax fiber bundles.