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Atomic layer deposition

Nature Reviews Methods Primers volume 5, Article number: 66 (2025) Cite this article

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Abstract

Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is a surface-controlled chemical vapour deposition method, in which materials are prepared one atomic layer at the time. With ALD, film thickness can be controlled very precisely, and it allows the user to cover large areas and surfaces with a complex three-dimensional structure uniformly and conformally. ALD is used for the deposition of high-quality thin films and nanostructures, as well as for surface functionalization and interface engineering in a wide range of applications, both from a research and development perspective, as well as for high-volume manufacturing. This Primer outlines the method of ALD, describing the precursors, coreactants and tools commonly used and illustrating examples of typical results from ALD processes. We describe the implementation of ALD in high-volume manufacturing in the semiconductor, solar and display industry and detail other existing and emerging application fields. We devote special attention to the reproducibility of the method, key technical specifications and figures of merit, as well as its limitations and challenges. Finally, we outline the future perspective of ALD and its applications to position it within the broader trend of atomic-scale processing.

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Fig. 1: Basics of ALD.
Fig. 2: Elements of an ALD process.
Fig. 3: Overview of common ALD reactors.
Fig. 4: Typical results for ALD.
Fig. 5: Applications of ALD in the semiconductor industry.
Fig. 6: Applications of ALD in the solar cell, display, battery and other industries.

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Acknowledgements

J.-S.P. was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (grant no. RS-2023-00260527). A.Y.-G. was supported by Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) funding from Argonne National Laboratory, provided by the Director, Office of Science, of the US Department Of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC02-06CH11357. A.D. acknowledges the Leibniz Association (ASPIRE-2D project P155/2023) and Fraunhofer Society (Attract Project Grant No. Attract 40-00643) for supporting this work.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Physics, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands

    Erwin Kessels

  2. Leibniz Institute for Solid State and Materials Research, Dresden, Germany

    Anjana Devi

  3. Fraunhofer IMS, Duisburg, Germany

    Anjana Devi

  4. Chair of Materials Chemistry, Dresden University of Technology, Dresden, Germany

    Anjana Devi

  5. Division of Materials Science and Engineering, Hanyang University, Seongdong-gu Seoul, Republic of Korea

    Jin-Seong Park

  6. Department of Chemistry, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Mikko Ritala

  7. Applied Materials Division, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, USA

    Angel Yanguas-Gil

  8. CNR-IMM, Unit of Agrate Brianza, Agrate Brianza, Italy

    Claudia Wiemer

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  1. Erwin Kessels
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  2. Anjana Devi
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  3. Jin-Seong Park
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  4. Mikko Ritala
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  5. Angel Yanguas-Gil
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The authors contributed equally to all aspects of the article.

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Correspondence to Erwin Kessels.

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Related links

ALD elements database: https://www.atomiclimits.com/alddatabase/

AtomicLimits ReviewBase: https://base.atomiclimits.com/

Guidelines for ALD process development: https://www.atomiclimits.com/2019/02/12/atomic-layer-deposition-process-development-10-steps-to-successfully-develop-optimize-and-characterize-ald-recipes/

Glossary

π-bonding

A covalent bond formed by lateral overlap of atomic orbitals.

Batch reactor

A reactor system that can process multiple wafers simultaneously.

Chelating ligands

Ligands that form multiple bonds with a single metal ion, creating a stable ring-like complex.

Cross-flow reactor

A reactor in which the precursor, coreactant and purge gas are supplied flowing over the substrates from one side of the reactor to the other.

Dative bond

A type of covalent bond in which both electrons in the shared pair originate from the same atom — commonly observed when a ligand donates a lone pair to a metal centre.

FinFET

A non-planar metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor with the gate placed on three sides of a fin-shaped channel.

Gate-all-around FETs

A non-planar metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (FET) with the gate placed on all sides of a nanowire or nanosheet channel.

High-k dielectric

A material with a dielectric constant higher than that of SiO2.

Oxophilic

A material with a high tendency to bind to oxygen.

Pyrophoric compounds

Compounds that ignite immediately upon contact with air.

Residence time

The average time a gas molecule spends inside an atomic layer deposition reactor, typically determined by the reactor volume and the pumping speed.

Showerhead reactor

A reactor in which the precursor and coreactant dosing is distributed over the substrate using a showerhead injector.

Standard reduction potential

The electric potential of an electrochemical half-reaction measured against the potential of the standard hydrogen electrode.

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Kessels, E., Devi, A., Park, JS. et al. Atomic layer deposition. Nat Rev Methods Primers 5, 66 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43586-025-00435-6

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