Passivation of CdHgTe surface using low-temperature plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition of HfO$_2$

Thin films of hafnium oxide formed by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition on the surface of mercury-cadmium telluride in the temperature range of 80–160$^\circ$C were studied. To characterize the properties of the films and the insulator-semiconductor interface, the following techniques were used: X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), spectral ellipsometry, and analysis of capacitance-voltage characteristics (C–V) of metal–insulator–semiconductor structures. The paper presents the dependences of the studied parameters on the insulator deposition temperature.