Analysis of excimer laser annealing of amorphous SiGe on La2O3//Si structures

The reduction of complementary metal oxide semiconductor dimensions through transistor scaling is in part limited by the SiO₂ dielectric layer thickness. Among the materials evaluated as alternative gate dielectrics one of the leading candidate is La₂O₃ due to its high permittivity and thermodynamic stability. However, during device processing, thermal annealing can promote deleterious interactions between the silicon substrate and the high-k dielectric degrading the desired oxide insulating properties.The possibility to grow poly-SiGe on top of La₂O₃//Si by laser assisted techniques therefore seems to be very attractive. Low thermal budget techniques such as pulsed laser deposition and crystallization can be a good choice to reduce possible interface modifications due to their localized and limited thermal effect.In this work the laser annealing by ArF excimer laser irradiation of amorphous SiGe grown on La₂O₃//Si has been analysed theoretically by a numerical model based on the heat conduction differential equation with the aim to control possible modifications at the La₂O₃//Si interface. Simulations have been carried out using different laser energy densities (0.26-0.58 J/cm²), different La₂O₃ film thickness (5-20 nm) and a 50 nm, 30 nm thick amorphous SiGe layer. The temperature distributions have been studied in both the two films and substrate, the melting depth and interfaces temperature have been evaluated. The fluences ranges for which the interfaces start to melt have been calculated for the different configurations.Thermal profiles and interfaces melting point have shown to be sensitive to the thickness of the La₂O₃ film, the thicker the film the lower the temperature at Si interface.Good agreement between theoretical and preliminary experimental data has been found.According to our results the oxide degradation is not expected during the laser crystallization of amorphous Si_0.7Ge_0.3 for the examined ranges of film thickness and fluences.     

Ge/Sb2Te3 nanocomposite multilayer films for high data retention phase-change random access memory application

The amorphous-to-crystalline transition of Ge/Sb₂Te₃ nanocomposite multilayer films with various thickness ratios of Ge to Sb₂Te₃ were investigated by utilizing in situ temperature-dependent film resistance measurements. The crystallization temperature and activation energy for the crystallization of the multilayer films increased with the increase in thickness ratio of Ge to Sb₂Te₃. The difference in sheet resistance between amorphous and crystalline states could reach as high as 10⁴ Ω/□. The crystallization temperature and activation energy for the crystallization of Ge/Sb₂Te₃ nanocomposite multilayer films was proved to be larger than that of conventional Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ film, which ensures a better data retention for phase-change random access memory (PCRAM) use. A data retention temperature for 10 years of the amorphous state [Ge (2 nm)/Sb₂Te₃ (3 nm)]₄₀ film was estimated to be 165 °C. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images revealed that Ge/Sb₂Te₃ nanocomposite multilayer films had layered structures with clear interfaces.     

氮掺杂Ge2Sb2Te5相变存储器的多态存储功能

通过反应溅射的方法，制备了N掺杂的Ge₂Sb₂Te₅(N-GST)薄膜，用作相变存储器的存储介质.研究表明，掺杂的N以GeN的形式存在，不仅束缚了Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ (GST)晶粒的长大也提高了GST的晶化温度和相变温度.利用N-GST薄膜的非晶态、晶态面心立方相和晶态六方相的电阻率差异，能够在同一存储单元中存储三个状态，实现相变存储器的多态存储功能. 关键词： 相变存储器 多态存储 N掺杂 2Sb₂Te₅')" href="#">Ge₂Sb₂Te₅     

Superconducting behavior of amorphous Zr70Cu30

Measurement of the Meissner penetration depth, λ(T) were made in amorphous Zr₇₀Cu₃₀ samples. The results indicate that this amorphous alloy behaves as a BCS superconductor with 2Δ(0)?kT_c = 3.8, where Δ(0) is the superconducting energy gap at T=0 and T_c the critical temperature. It is also concluded that the low energy excitation, TLS, characteristics of amorphous material does not contribute to T_c.     

新型GeSe2-In2Se3-AgI玻璃性能研究

采用传统熔融-淬冷法制备了一系列新型(100-x) (4GeSe₂-In₂Se₃) -xAgI(x=20,30,40 mol%)硫系玻璃样品.利用X射线衍射分析、差热分析、可见-近红外吸收光谱、红外透过光谱、喇曼分析等技术手段研究了该玻璃系统的组成、结构、热稳定性和光学特性等.利用Tauc方程计算出了样品的间接带隙;测试了部分样品在不同升温速率下的差示扫描量热曲线,并采用Kissinger法计算了玻璃样品的析晶活化能.X射线衍射数据表明,该玻璃体系在较宽的组分范围内有良好的非晶特性,成玻范围较宽;差热分析和析晶动力学研究表明,玻璃样品70(4GeSe₂-In₂Se₃)-30AgI具有较好的热稳定性(ΔT=114℃)和较高的活化能(E_a=320.4 kJ/mol).随着AgI含量的增加,玻璃的短波吸收限蓝移,并且光学带隙有增大的趋势.此外,红外透过光谱分析表明该玻璃体系具有良好的红外透过性能,其红外截止波长不会随着AgI含量的增加而发生明显变化,皆为16μm左右.     

Crystallization of Ge2Sb2Te5 phase—change optical disk media

In this paper, the crystallization behaviour of amorphous Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ thin films is investigated using differential scanning calorimetry), x-ray diffraction and optical transmissivity measurements. It is indicated that only the amorphous phase to face-centred-cubic phase transformation occurs during laser annealing of the normal phase-change structure, which is a benefit for raising the phase-change optical disk's carrier-to-noise ratio (CNR). For amorphous Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ thin films, the crystallization temperature is about 200℃ and the melting temperature is 546.87℃. The activation energy for the crystallization, E_a, is 2.25eV. The crystallization dynamics for Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ thin films obeys the law of nucleation and growth reaction. The sputtered Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ films were initialized by an initializer unit. The initialization conditions have a great effect on the reflectivity contrast of the Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ phase-change optical disk.     

3BaO·3B2O3·2GeO2非晶体晶化过程的研究

3BaO·3B₂O₃·2Ge0₂是BaO-B₂O₃-GeO₂三元系中的一个三元化合物。本文用差热分析法对3BaO·3B₂O₃·2GeO₂非晶态晶化过程进行了研究,非晶的晶化温度随颗粒度减小而下降。用等温晶化法和峰值位移法测定了不同颗粒度的晶化激活能,非晶颗粒度越小,晶化激活能越大。 关键词：     

Trap-controlled behavior in ultrathin Lu2O3 high-k gate dielectrics

Amorphous Lu₂O₃ high-k gate dielectrics were grown directly on n-type (100) Si substrates by the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. High-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM) observation illustrated that the Lu₂O₃ film has amorphous structure and the interface with Si substrate is free from amorphous SiO₂. An equivalent oxide thickness (EOT) of 1.1 nm with a leakage current density of 2.6×10⁻⁵ A/cm² at 1 V accumulation bias was obtained for 4.5 nm thick Lu₂O₃ thin film deposited at room temperature followed by post-deposition anneal (PDA) at 600 °C in oxygen ambient. The effects of PDA process and light illumination were studied by capacitance-voltage (C-V) and current density-voltage (J-V) measurements. It was proposed that the net fixed charge density and leakage current density could be altered significantly depending on the post-annealing conditions and the capability of traps to trap and release charges.     

Thermal characterization of Se85−xSb15Snx (10≤x≤13) chalcogenide glasses

Results of crystallization kinetics, viscosity, specific heat, thermal stability, and glass forming ability of Se_85−xSb₁₅Sn_x (x=10, 11, 12.5, and 13) chalcogenide glasses, using differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), under non-isothermal condition have been reported and discussed. The variation of the peak temperature of crystallization T_p with the heating rate β has been used to investigate the growth kinetics using Kissinger, Takhor, and Augis-Bennet models. The activation energy of crystallization E_c has been found to increase with Sn content and the crystal growth occurs in one dimension. The increasing trend of E_c is interpreted in terms of enhancement of the degree of cross-linking due to the formation of SnSe_4/2 structural units of energies higher than that of Se-Se and Se-Sb bond energies. The viscosity η against 1/T curves has also been drawn and indicated that the atoms of ternary Se-Sb-Sn glasses required more energy, with the addition of Sn, to complete the transformation from amorphous to crystalline state. The demand for thermal stability has been ensured through the calculations of the enthalpy released ΔH_c during the crystallization process and S-parameter, while the obtained values of the reduced glass transition temperature T_rg and Hurby number H_R have been used to estimate the glass forming ability (GFA). Results reveal that, both thermal stability and GFA enhanced with increasing Sn content and the studied samples were prepared from strong glass-forming liquids. The obtained values for the specific heat difference ΔC_p, between the equilibrium liquid and the glass, have been found to decrease with increasing Sn content and are in support of the results of thermal stability and GFA.     

Effect of grain boundaries on paraconductivity of YBa2Cu3Ox

To investigate the effect of grain boundaries on paraconductivity of YBa₂Cu₃O_x, melt-textured and c-axis oriented thin films with controlled grain boundaries (superconducting transition width, ΔT, varying between 0.54 and 2.85 K) were prepared, and dc-conductivity has been measured as a function of temperature. In the logarithmic plots of excess-conductivity (Δσ) and reduced temperature (?), starting from low values of ?, we have observed three different regions namely critical region, mean field region and short wave fluctuation region. A correlation is observed between the range of critical region and ΔT, which is found to increase with ΔT. While for ΔT values smaller than 2.5 K only static critical region is observed, for higher ΔTs both static and dynamic critical regions are observed. In the mean field region a crossover from 3D to 2D was observed for all the samples. At ? values larger than 0.24, the excess-conductivity decreased sharply as ?⁻³, which suggested the existence of the short wave fluctuations.     

Crystallization kinetics of Li2O-PbO-V2O5 glasses

Lead vanadate glasses of the system 5Li₂O−(45−x) PbO−(50+x) V₂O₅, with x=0, 5, 10, and 15 mol% have been prepared and studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The crystallization kinetics of the glasses were investigated under non-isothermal conditions applying the formal theory of transformations for heterogeneous nucleation to the experimental data obtained by DSC using continuous-heating techniques. In addition, from dependence of the glass-transition temperature (T_g) on the heating rate, the activation energy for the glass transition was derived. Similarly the activation energy of the crystallization process was determined and the crystallization mechanism was characterized. The results reveal the increase of the activation energy for glass transition which was attributed to the increase in the rigidity, the cross-link density and the packing density of these glasses. The phases into which the glass crystallizes have been identified by X-ray diffraction. Diffractograms of the transformed material indicate the presence of microcrystallites of Li_0.30V₂O₅, Li_0.67O₅V₂, LiV₆O₁₅, Li₄O₄Pb, and O₇Pb₂V₂ in a remaining amorphous matrix.     

Electrical resistivity of amorphous metallic glasses Fe80B80 and Fe78Mo2B20 between 78 and 1000 K

Electrical resistivity (ρ) of amorphous Fe₈₀B₂₀ and Fe₇₈Mo₂B₂₀ have been studied as a function of temperature (T) between 78 and 1000 K. The ρ vs T curves, obtained with specified warming and cooling rates, show that such curves are sensitive probes of the crystallization process. Within the experimental error, no anomalies in the ρ behavior can be seen at the Curie temperature of each amorphous alloy.     

Magnetic properties of amorphous ferromagnet Fe78Mo2B20

Low-field magnetic susceptibility and the magnetic field dependence of magnetization of Metglas 2605 A (Fe₇₈Mo₂B₂₀) were studied between 300 and 600 K and in fields up to 10kG. It is shown here that for an amorphous ferromagnetic alloy, the various methods of determination of Curie temperature T_c give the same value, which in this case is (564 ± 1) K. The critical exponent γ is 1.7 ± 0.1. Our low-field susceptibility measurements on Metglas 2605 (Fe₈₀B₂₀) gives a T_c of (634 ± 3) K while the reported high-field method value is 647 K. These results are discussed in terms of crystallization temperatures.     

A tem study of the crystallization behavior in amorphous vacuum condensed Er—Cu thin films

The isothermal crystallization of amorphous, vacuum condensed Er_0.6Cu_0.4 thin films was investigated in situ by transmission electron microscopy. Heterogeneous nucleation of ErCu crystallites was observed to occur on the thin rare-earth oxide layer which is inevitably formed on the external surface of the thin film exposed to the ambient atmosphere. The crystalline particles exhibited preferential growth in the direction parallel to the surface of the film. The crystallization process is interface controlled and characterized by a constant nucleation and constant growth rate. The kinetics of transformation were anslyzed in terms of Avrami's equation. The kinetic exponent n in Avrami's equation is equal to 2.9 in good agreement with the theoretical value for two-dimensional, interface-controlled growth. The experimental date allowed to derive the values of ΔE = 581 kJ.mole^?1 for the overall activation energy of the crystallization reaction, Δ_cr = 151 kJ.mole^?1 for the energy of critical nucleus formation and ΔE_m = 143 kJ.mole^?1 for the activation energy of atomic motion.     

Switching phenomenon and optical properties of Se85Te10Bi5 films

Se₈₅Te₁₀Bi₅ films of different thicknesses ranging from 126 to 512 nm have been prepared. Energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy technique showed that films are nearly stoichiometric. X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements have showed that the Se₈₅Te₁₀Bi₅ films were amorphous. Electrical conduction activation energy (ΔE_σ) for the obtained films is found to be 0.662 eV independent of thickness in the investigated range. Investigation of the current voltage (I-V) characteristics in amorphous Se₈₅Te₁₀Bi₅ films reveals that it is typical for a memory switch. The switching voltage V_th increases with the increase of the thickness and decreases exponentially with temperature in the range from 298 to 383 K. The switching voltage activation energy (ε) calculated from the temperature dependence of V_th is found to be 0.325 eV. The switching phenomenon in amorphous Se₈₅Te₁₀Bi₅ films is explained according to an electrothermal model for the switching process. The optical constants, the refractive index (n) and the absorption index (k) have been determined from transmittance (T) and reflectance (R) of Se₈₅Te₁₀Bi₅ films. Allowed non-direct transitions with an optical energy gap (E_g^opt) of 1.33 eV have been obtained. ΔE_σ is almost half the obtained value of E_g^opt, which suggested band to band conduction as indicated by Davis and Mott.     

Optical and electrical properties of thermally evaporated In49Se48Sn3 films

Nearly stoichiometric thin films of In₄₉Se₄₈Sn₃ were deposited at room temperature, by conventional thermal evaporation of the presynthesized materials, onto precleaned glass substrates. The microstructural studies on the as-deposited and annealed films, using transmission electron microscopy and diffraction (TEMD), revealed that the as-deposited films are amorphous in nature, while those annealed at 498 K are crystalline. The optical properties of the investigated films were determined from the transmittance and reflectance data, in the spectral range 650-2500 nm. An analysis of the optical absorption spectra revealed a non-direct energy gap characterizing the amorphous films, while both allowed and forbidden direct energy gaps characterized the crystalline films. The electrical resistance of the deposited films was carried out during heating and cooling cycles in the temperature range 300-600 K. The results show an irreproducible behavior, while after crystallization the results become reproducible. The analysis of the temperature dependence of the resistance (ln(R) vs. 1000/T) for crystalline films shows two straight lines corresponding to both extrinsic and intrinsic conduction. The room temperature I-V characteristics of the as-deposited films sandwiched between similar Ag metal electrodes shows an ohmic behavior, while non-ohmic behavior attributed to space charge limited conduction has been observed when the films are sandwiched between dissimilar Ag/Al metal electrodes.     

Structural characterization of La0.9Ba0.1MnO3/Y-ZrO2 film by X-ray diffraction

Perovskite manganite La_0.9Ba_0.1MnO₃(LBMO) films were deposited on (0 0 1)-oriented single crystal yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) substrate by 90° off-axis radio frequency magnetron sputtering. The film thickness ranged from 10 nm to 100 nm. Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction technique and high resolution X-ray diffraction were applied to characterize the structure of LBMO films. The LBMO film mainly consisted of (0 0 1)-orientated grain as well as weakly textured (1 1 0)-orientated grain. The results indicated that an amorphous layer with thickness of about 4 nm was formed at the LBMO/YSZ interface. The strain in LBMO film was small and averaged to be about -0.14%. The strain in the film was not lattice mismatch-induced strain but residual strain due to the difference in thermal expansion coefficient between film and substrate.     

Anomalous phenomenon of conductivity of the amorphous fast ionic conductor B2O3−0.7Li2O−0.7LiCl during the crystallization process

This paper presents a new experimental method for studying the effect of crystallization of amorphous fast ionic conductors on conductivity, which includes heating the specimen to the selected temperature and annealing the specimen within a fixed time, quenching the specimen in order to freeze its high temperature structure, then returning to a fixed temperature and measuring the conductivity. This method gets rid completely of the effect of temperature on conductivity and thus the effect of structure on conductivity can be studied. It has been found with this method for the first time that during the crystallization process the conductivity of amorphous fast ionic conductor B₂O₃-0.7Li₂O-0.7LiCl increases at the beginning with temperature, and then after passing a maximum, the conductivity decreases. This result coincides with that of the relative rate of crystallization obtained by the author with X-ray diffraction technique at the same temperature range. The interface at the crystalline and amorphous two-phase boundary is thought to be responsible for the anomalous phenomenon.     

Effects of carbon doping on chemical states of amorphous Ge2Sb2Te5, measured with synchrotron radiation

We fabricated and analyzed the chemical states of carbon-doped (5.2–13.2 at.%) Ge₂Sb₂Te₅ thin films on Si substrates using high-resolution, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy with synchrotron radiation. Thin films were completely amorphous and their phase-change temperature was 150 °C higher than for un-doped GST. As the carbon doping concentration increased, new chemical states of Ge 3d with 29.9 eV and C 1s with 283.7 eV core-levels were observed. The doped carbon was bonded only with Ge in GST and doping was saturated at 8.7 at.%.     

Ga30Sb70/Sb80Te20纳米复合多层薄膜的相变特性研究

采用磁控二靶(Ga₃₀Sb₇₀和Sb₈₀Te₂₀)交替溅射方法制备了新型Ga₃₀Sb₇₀/Sb₈₀Te₂₀纳米复合多层薄膜, 对多层薄膜周期中Ga₃₀Sb₇₀层厚度对相变特性的影响进行了研究. 结果表明, 多层薄膜的结晶温度可以通过周期中Ga₃₀Sb₇₀层厚度进行调节, 且随着Ga₃₀Sb₇₀层厚度的增加而升高. Ga₃₀Sb₇₀/Sb₈₀Te₂₀纳米复合多层薄膜的光学带隙随Ga₃₀Sb₇₀层厚度的增加而增大. 采用皮秒激光脉冲抽运光探测技术研究了多层薄膜的瞬态结晶动力学过程, 利用不同能量密度的皮秒激光脉冲可以实现Ga₃₀Sb₇₀/Sb₈₀Te₂₀多层薄膜非晶态和晶态的可逆转变.