Electron-beam modification of the parameters of the insulator-metal phase transition in vanadium dioxide films

Using optical spectroscopy, Raman scattering, and optical diffractometry, modification of the parameters of the insulator-metal transition in VO$_2$ films upon bombardment with a mean-energy (6–10 keV) electron beam is investigated. It is shown that growth of the irradiation dose leads to a decrease in the temperature of the phase transition, an increase in the reflectance and a decrease in its jump, a change of phonon peaks of the monoclinic phase for broad bands characteristic of the tetragonal phase in the Raman spectrum, and a shift of the reflection-spectrum features to the short-wavelength region by 65 nm. The modification is attributed to the generation of oxygen vacancies with the donor properties in the crystal lattice.