A brief review of atomic layer deposition: from fundamentals to applications

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a vapor phase technique capable of producing thin films of a variety of materials. Based on sequential, self-limiting reactions, ALD offers exceptional conformality on high-aspect ratio structures, thickness control at the Angstrom level, and tunable film composition. With these advantages, ALD has emerged as a powerful tool for many industrial and research applications. In this review, we provide a brief introduction to ALD and highlight select applications, including Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cell devices, high-k transistors, and solid oxide fuel cells. These examples are chosen to illustrate the variety of technologies that are impacted by ALD, the range of materials that ALD can deposit – from metal oxides such as Zn_1−xSn_xO_y, ZrO₂, Y₂O₃, to noble metals such as Pt – and the way in which the unique features of ALD can enable new levels of performance and deeper fundamental understanding to be achieved.