Hydrogen Absorption in Gd Thin Films

In this contribution we have studied an initial hydrogen absorption in Gd thin films using in-situ X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and ex-situ standard X-ray diffraction. As an initial hydrogen absorption indicator we have used broadening of the Gd-4f peak. The Gd thin films with a thickness of 200 nm were deposited at room temperature (RT) using UHV RF magnetron sputtering. As a substrate we have used naturally oxidised Si(100) wafers with 20 nm - Pd buffer layer. Furthermore, hydrogen absorption kinetics under a pressure of 100 mbar in Pd covered 200 nm Gd thin film was studied at RT using four-point resistivity measurements.