Electron-beam deposited boron coatings for the extreme ultraviolet

Boron films deposited by evaporation with an electron-beam were found to have a relatively high reflectance in the extreme ultraviolet with values similar to those of ion-beam-sputtered (IBS) SiC and IBS B4C. The largest reflectance was measured for an 11 nm thick boron film. Some reflectance degradation was observed for boron films stored in a desiccator. Reflectance degradation varied from sample to sample and was found to be either similar to that of IBS SiC and IBS B4C or larger. (C) 2008 Optical Society of America.