Study on structural properties of epitaxial silicon films on annealed double layer porous silicon

In this paper, epitaxial silicon films were grown on annealed double layer porous silicon by LPCVD. The evolvement of the double layer porous silicon before and after thermal annealing was investigated by scanning electron microscope. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy were used to investigate the structural properties of the epitaxial silicon thin films grown at different temperature and different pressure. The results show that the surface of the low-porosity layer becomes smooth and there are just few silicon-bridges connecting the porous layer and the substrate wafer. The qualities of the epitaxial silicon thin films become better along with increasing deposition temperature. All of the Raman peaks of silicon films with different deposition pressure are situated at 521 cm⁻¹ under the deposition temperature of 1100 °C, and the Raman intensity of the silicon film deposited at 100 Pa is much closer to that of the monocrystalline silicon wafer. The epitaxial silicon films are all (4 0 0)-oriented and (4 0 0) peak of silicon film deposited at 100 Pa is more symmetric.     

On the creation of ordered nuclei by ion bombardment for obtaining nanoscale si structures on the surface of CaF<Subscript>2</Subscript> films

The effect of preliminary low-energy (~1 keV) and low-dose (~10¹²–10¹⁴ cm^–2) ion bombardment on the initial stages of growth of Si films on a CaF₂/Si surface is investigated. Ordered nanocrystal phases (thickness less than 5–6 monolayers) and homogeneous epitaxial nanofilms (thickness more than 8–10 monolayers) of silicon are shown to be formed after annealing.     

488 nm连续激光晶化本征非晶硅薄膜的喇曼光谱研究

利用等离子增强化学气相沉积系统制备了本征非晶硅薄膜,并选用488 nm波长的连续激光进行晶化.采用喇曼测试技术对本征非晶硅薄膜在不同激光功率密度和扫描时间下的晶化状态进行了表征,并用514 nm波长与488 nm波长对样品的晶化效果进行了比较.测试结果显示:激光照射时间60 s, 激光功率密度在1.57×10⁵ W/cm²时,能实现非晶硅向多晶硅的转变,在功率密度达到2.7 56×10⁵ W/cm²时,有非晶开始向单晶转变,随着激光功率密度的继续增加,晶化结果仍为单晶;在功率密度为2.362×10⁵ W/cm²下,60 s照射时间晶化效果较好;在功率密度为2.756×10⁵ W/cm²和照射时间为60 s的条件下,用488 nm波长比514 nm波长的激光晶化本征非晶硅薄膜效果较好,并均为单晶态.     

Microstructural evolution and electrical properties of La<Subscript>0.7</Subscript>Ca<Subscript>0.3</Subscript>MnO<Subscript>3</Subscript> thin films grown on SrTiO<Subscript>3</Subscript> substrates by excimer-laser assisted metal-organic deposition

Thin films of La_0.7Ca_0.3MnO₃ were successfully grown epitaxially on (100) single-crystal SrTiO₃ substrates by excimer-laser assisted metal-organic deposition. Initial amorphous LCMO thin films were obtained by metal-organic deposition at 500 °C. Crystallization and epitaxial growth of the films was achieved using a KrF pulsed laser irradiation while the film/substrate samples were kept at 500 °C. High resolution transmission electron microscopy observations on cross-sections demonstrate the formation mechanism of the epitaxial films. The crystallization process starts at the LCMO/STO interface and grows by increasing the number of laser shots. A fully crystallized film was obtained after 5 min of irradiation. The film/substrate interface was found to be sharp and abrupt. The temperature dependence of the resistance R(T) shows various behaviors, starting from insulating to semiconducting and metal–insulator transition material during the formation of the manganite film. The oxygen content was also improved by increasing the irradiation time. Promising values of the temperature coefficient of resistance were obtained from these manganite films for prospect integration in silicon based microbolometric devices. PACS 81.15.-z; 81.15.Np; 73.61.-r; 71.30.+h     

Electron microscopy study of the structural defect formation in ZnS under irradiation by electrons with energy of 400 keV

ZnS crystals grown form the vapor phase and ZnS/(001)GaAs epitaxial structures grown by metalorganic vapor phase epitaxy are studied by transmission electron microscopy after in situ irradiation in an electron microscope at an electron energy of 400 keV and intensity of (1–4) × 10¹⁹ electrons/cm² s. It is shown that irradiation leads to the formation of small (2.5–45 nm) dislocation loops with a density of 1.4 × 10¹¹ cm^–2, as well as voids and new phase inclusions ≤10 nm in size. Using the moire fringe contrast analysis, these inclusions were identified as ZnO and ZnO₂.     

Pulsed-laser crystallization and epitaxial growth of metal-organic films of Ca-doped LaMnO3 on STO and LSAT substrates

Ca-doped LaMnO₃ (LCMO) thin films have been successfully prepared on SrTiO₃ (STO) and [(LaAlO₃)_0.3-(SrAlTaO₆)_0.7] (LSAT) substrates using the excimer laser assisted metal-organic deposition (ELAMOD) process. The crystallization and the epitaxial growth of the amorphous metal-organic LCMO thin films have been achieved using a KrF excimer laser irradiation while the substrates were kept at constant temperature of 500 °C. Epitaxial films were obtained using laser fluence in the interval of 50-120 mJ/cm². The microstructure of the LCMO films was studied using cross-section transmission electron microscopy. High quality of LCMO films having smooth surfaces and sharp interfaces were obtained on both the STO and the LSAT substrates. The effect of the laser fluence on the temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) was investigated. The largest values of TCR of the LCMO grown on the LSAT and the STO substrates of 8.3% K⁻¹ and 7.46% K⁻¹ were obtained at different laser fluence of 80 mJ/cm² and 70 mJ/cm², respectively.     

Epitaxial growth of zinc oxide by the method of atomic layer deposition on SiC/Si substrates

For the first time, zinc oxide epitaxial films on silicon were grown by the method of atomic layer deposition at a temperature T = 250°C. In order to avoid a chemical reaction between silicon and zinc oxide (at the growth temperature, the rate constant of the reaction is of the order of 10²²), a high-quality silicon carbide buffer layer with a thickness of ~50 nm was preliminarily synthesized by the chemical substitution of atoms on the silicon surface. The zinc oxide films were grown on n- and p-type Si(100) wafers. The ellipsometric, Raman, electron diffraction, and trace element analyses showed that the ZnO films are epitaxial.     

Cold electrons acceleration in TNSA laser-generated plasma using a low-contrast fs laser

The fs laser facility in Bordeaux, delivering an intensity of 10¹⁸ W/cm² at normal incidence on thin foils, has been used to induce forward electron and ion acceleration in target-normal-sheath-acceleration (TNSA) regime. Micrometric thin foils with different composition, thickness, and electron density, were prepared to promote the charge particle acceleration in the forward direction. The plasma electron and ion emission monitoring were performed on-line using SiC semiconductor detectors in time-of-flight (TOF) configuration and gaf-chromics films both covered by thin absorber filters. The experiment has permitted to accelerate electrons and protons. A special attention was placed to detect relativistic hot electrons escaping from the plasma and cold electrons returning to the target position. The electron energies of the order of 100 keV and of about 1 keV were detected as representative of hot and cold electrons, respectively. A high cold electron contribution was measured using low-contrast fs laser, while it is less evident using high-contrast fs lasers. The charge particle acceleration depends on the laser parameters, irradiation conditions, and target properties, as will be presented and discussed.     

Synthesis of silicon carbide films by combined implantation with sputtering techniques

Silicon carbide (SiC) films were synthesized by combined metal vapor vacuum arc (MEVVA) ion implantation with ion beam assisted deposition (IBAD) techniques. Carbon ions with 40 keV energy were implanted into Si(1 0 0) substrates at ion fluence of 5 × 10¹⁶ ions/cm². Then silicon and carbon atoms were co-sputtered on the Si(1 0 0) substrate surface, at the same time the samples underwent assistant Ar-ion irradiation at 20 keV energy. A group of samples with substrate temperatures ranging from 400 to 600 °C were used to analyze the effect of temperature on formation of the SiC film. Influence of the assistant Ar-ion irradiation was also investigated. The structure, morphology and mechanical properties of the deposited films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and nanoindentation, respectively. The bond configurations were obtained from IR absorption and Raman spectroscopy. The experimental results indicate that microcrystalline SiC films were synthesized at 600 °C. The substrate temperature and assistant Ar-ion irradiation played a key role in the process. The assistant Ar-ion irradiation also helps increasing the nanohardness and bulk modulus of the SiC films. The best values of nanohardness and bulk modulus were 24.1 and 282.6 GPa, respectively.     

Excimer laser crystallization of amorphous silicon on metallic substrate

An attempt has been made to achieve the crystallization of silicon thin film on metallic foils by long pulse duration excimer laser processing. Amorphous silicon thin films (100 nm) were deposited by radiofrequency magnetron sputtering on a commercial metallic alloy (N42-FeNi made of 41 % of Ni) coated by a tantalum nitride (TaN) layer. The TaN coating acts as a barrier layer, preventing the diffusion of metallic impurities in the silicon thin film during the laser annealing. An energy density threshold of 0.3 J?cm^?2, necessary for surface melting and crystallization of the amorphous silicon, was predicted by a numerical simulation of laser-induced phase transitions and witnessed by Raman analysis. Beyond this fluence, the melt depth increases with the intensification of energy density. A complete crystallization of the layer is achieved for an energy density of 0.9 J?cm^?2. Scanning electron microscopy unveils the nanostructuring of the silicon after laser irradiation, while cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy reveals the crystallites’ columnar growth.     

Stoichiometry dependent changes in the optical properties and nanoscale track formation of PECVD grown a-SiNx:H thin films upon 100 MeV Au8+ ion irradiation

a-SiN_x:H thin films of different stoichiometry grown by PECVD were subjected to irradiation by 100 MeV Au⁸⁺ ions with various fluences to understand the effect of stoichiometry on properties of thin films upon irradiation. Ellipsometry and UV–Vis study suggest the variation in the refractive index of thin films with fluence. The evolution of Hydrogen due to irradiation is quantified with the help of ERDA. RBS was probed to study the change in thin films' composition upon irradiation, which further helps understand the change in thin films' optical properties. Quenching of photoluminescence in the films with all stoichiometries was also observed due to ion irradiation. X-TEM images show the formation of discontinuous ion tracks of radius 2.5 nm in the film closer to silicon nitride stoichiometry. However, Si rich film does not show the clear formation of tracks. Results are explained in the framework of the Thermal spike mechanism of ion-solid interaction.     

Structure and orbital ordering of ultrathin LaVO3 probed by atomic resolution electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy

Orbital ordering has been less investigated in epitaxial thin films, due to the difficulty to evidence directly the occurrence of this phenomenon in thin film samples. Atomic resolution electron microscopy enabled us to observe the structural details of the ultrathin LaVO₃ films. The transition to orbital ordering of epitaxial layers as thin as ≈4 nm was probed by temperature‐dependent Raman scattering spectroscopy of multilayer samples. From the occurrence and temperature dependence of the 700 cm^–1 Raman active mode it can be inferred that the structural phase transition associated with orbital ordering takes place in ultrathin LaVO₃ films at about 130 K.     

DCEMS of neon implantation in yttrium iron garnet

⁵⁷Fe-enriched, epitaxial Y₃Fe₅O₁₂ films have been implanted with 50 keV and 100 keV neon ions with a dose of 4·10¹⁴Ne⁺/cm². Depth-selective conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy has been performed at 300 K and 40 K. The results show that the 50 keV-implanted sample can be interpreted as an amorphous layer on top of an almost unperturbed YIG layer. In the 100 keV-implanted film a buried amorphous layer is observed.     

Silicon carbide synthesis with energy pulses

Polycrystalline SiC layers were synthesized through nanosecond pulse heating of thin carbon films deposited on single-crystalline silicon wafers. The samples were submitted to electron beam irradiation (25 keV, 50 ns) at various current densities in vacuum (10^–4mbar) and to XeCl excimer laser pulses (308 nm, 15ns) in air. Rutherford backscattering spectrometry (RBS) showed that in the e-beam annealed samples mixing of the elements at the interface starts at current densities of about 1200 A/cm². The mixed layer thickness increases almost linearly with current density. From the RBS spectra a composition of the intermixed layers close to the SiC compound was deduced. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and electron diffraction studies clearly evidenced the formation of SiC polycrystals. Using the XeCl excimer laser, intermixing of the deposited C film with the Si substrate was observed after a single 0.3 J/cm² pulse. Further analysis evidenced the formation of SiC nanocrystals, embedded in a diamond film.     

Heterojunction solar cells produced by porous silicon layer transfer technology

In this paper, we present the result of heterojunction solar cells based on porous silicon layer transfer technology. a-Si/c-Si structured solar cells were prepared in which the c-Si was deposited on annealed double-layer porous silicon by low-pressure chemical vapor deposition. The structural properties and the evolvement of the double-layer porous silicon before and after thermal annealing were investigated by scanning electron microscopy. X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy and a microwave photoconductive decay method were used to investigate the properties of the epitaxial silicon thin films deposited at different pressures. And, the influence of the deposition pressure on the properties of the c-silicon thin films was investigated. The spectral responses of the cells were studied by a quantum efficiency test. The results show that the epitaxial silicon thin film deposited at 100 Pa has better carrier lifetime and better spectral response. Furthermore, the Raman peak intensity of the silicon film prepared at 100 Pa is much closer to that of a monocrystalline silicon wafer. A simple solar cell structure without any light-trapping features showed an efficiency of up to 10.1 %.     

Electron escape depth in silicon

The ESCA electron escape depth in silicon is determined from the peak areas in the electron spectra from evaporated thin films. For electron energies in the region 320 eV to 3.6 keV values from 13 to 83 Å are obtained. The escape depth in silicon dioxide is determined for the energies 1.6 and 3.6 keV. Binding energies and Auger energies are determined in silicon and silicon oxides.     

Beta-induced reduction in Cu/Si-structure adhesion

The effect of low-flux (I ～ 1.8 × 10⁵ cm^?2 s^?1) β irradiation on the process of the delamination of thin copper films (with a thickness of ～100 nm) from a silicon substrate under indentation by a Berkovich pyramid is studied. It is revealed that irradiation with a fluence of F = 3.24 × 10¹⁰ cm^?2 leads to an increase in the perimeter and area of the copper-film delaminations formed upon penetration of the indenter. This indicates a β-induced reduction in adhesion in the Cu/Si structure.     

Epitaxial growth of silicon on silicon implanted with iron ions and optical properties of resulting structures

The method of ultrahigh-vacuum low-temperature (T = 850°C) purification of silicon single crystals having the (100) and (111) orientation and implanted with low-energy (E = 40 keV) iron ions with various doses (Φ = 10¹⁵?1.8×10¹⁷ cm^?2) and subjected to pulsed ion treatment (PIT) in a silicon atom flow has been tested successfully. The formation of semiconducting iron disilicide (β-FeSi₂) near the surface after PIT is confirmed for a Si(100) sample implanted with the highest dose of iron ions. The possibility of obtaining atomically smooth and reconstructed silicon surfaces is demonstrated. Smooth epitaxial silicon films with a roughness on the order of 1 nm and a thickness of up to 1.7 μm are grown on samples with an implantation dose of up to 10¹⁶ cm^?2. Optical properties of the samples before and after the growth of silicon layers are studied; the results indicate high quality of the grown layers and the absence of iron disilicide on their surface.     

Swift heavy ion irradiation-induced modifications of tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminum thin films

Tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminum (Alq₃), one of the most widely used light emitting and electron transport materials in organic luminescent devices, has been synthesized. Alq₃ thin films have been deposited by a thermal evaporation process on glass substrates. The effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation using 40 MeV Li³⁺ on the Alq₃ thin films has been studied by UV-visible, infrared, photoluminescence (PL) and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) spectroscopy. From TRPL studies, it is found that the PL of Alq₃ thin films arises from two species corresponding to its two geometrical isomers, namely facial and meridional having two different life times. It is also confirmed that the PL and lifetimes of excitons decrease with the increase of ion fluences of SHI of 40 MeV Li³⁺, indicating a transfer of exciton energy to unstable cationic Alq₃ species generated by SHI irradiation.     

Influence of ion-irradiation parameters on defect formation in silicon films

It is shown that unlike bulk silicon, for which amorphization is observed at an irradiation dose of 5 × 10¹⁶ ion/cm², thin silicon films on sapphire are amorphized at lower critical doses (10¹⁵ ion/cm²). An undamaged surface layer remains when the silicon films are irradiated with Si⁺ ion beams. Its thickness depends on the current density of the incident beam. Rutherford backscattering studies show that annealing at 950°C improves the crystallinity of the irradiated silicon film. Annealing of the films at 1100°C leads to mixing of the silicon-sapphire interface.