Probing the atomic structure of amorphous Ta₂O₅ coatings

Low optical and mechanical loss Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub> amorphous coatings have a growing number of applications in precision optical measurements systems. Transmission electron microscopy is a promising way to probe the atomic structure of these coatings in an effort to better understand the causes of the observed mechanical and optical losses. Analysis of the experimental reduced density functions using a combination of reverse Monte Carlo refinements and density functional theory molecular dynamics simulations reveals that the structure of amorphous Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub> consists of clusters with increased contribution from a Ta<sub>2</sub>O<sub>5</sub> ring fragment