A study was made of the effect of the deposition temperature and annealing treatment upon H depth profiles in thin films of sputter-deposited hydrogenated amorphous material. The results showed that higher deposition temperatures (285 to 300C) led to a lower degree of H incorporation, and resulted in very steep H distribution profiles. The H content at the film/substrate interface of such films could be equal to about 2/3 of that at the film surface. It was suggested that marked H out-diffusion from the bulk took place during film growth at those relatively high temperatures. When  in situ   annealing was carried out just after deposition, and before the samples reached room temperature, the H distribution through the film thickness had a more homogeneous profile. The resultant films also appeared to be more dense when the samples were subjected to this treatment in an atomic H atmosphere.

R.Rüther, J.Livingstone, N.Dytlewski, D.Cohen: Journal of Applied Physics, 1996, 79[1], 175-8