Effect of oxygen pressure on the texture of a magnetite film grown by reactive deposition on a SiO$_2$/Si(001) surface

Magnetite films (Fe$_3$O$_4$) 75 nm thick were grown on an oxidized Si(001) surface using reactive iron deposition in an oxygen atmosphere. Iron oxide films were grown under different O$_2$ pressures. The structure of the films was controlled during their growth by the reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) method. It was established that the growth of magnetite films with a texture occurs only in a specific range of O$_2$ pressures. A decrease in oxygen pressure led to the growth of a Fe$_3$O$_4$ film without a texture, while reactive deposition under pressures above the upper limit of the aforementioned range resulted in the formation of hematite crystallites ($\alpha$-Fe$_2$O$_3$) in the Fe$_3$O$_4$ film.