Passivation of defect states in Si-based and GaAs structures

Formation of defect states on semiconductor surfaces, at its interfaces with thin films and in semiconductor volumes is usually predetermined by such parameters as semiconductor growth process, surface treatment procedures, passivation, thin film growth kinetics, etc. This paper presents relation between processes leading to formation of defect states and their passivation in Si and GaAs related semiconductors and structures. Special focus is on oxidation kinetics of yttrium stabilized zirconium/SiO₂/Si and Sm/GaAs structures. Plasma anodic oxidation of yttrium stabilized zirconium based structures reduced size of polycrystalline silicon blocks localised at thin film/Si interface. Samarium deposited before oxidation on GaAs surface led to elimination of EL2 and/or ELO defects in MOS structures. Consequently, results of successful passivation of deep traps of interface region by CN⁻ atomic group using HCN solutions on oxynitride/Si and double oxide layer/Si structures are presented and discussed. By our knowledge, we are presenting for the first time the utilization of X-ray reflectivity method for determination of both density of SiO₂ based multilayer structure and corresponding roughnesses (interfaces and surfaces), respectively.     

Surface passivation technology for III-V semiconductor nanoelectronics

The present status and key issues of surface passivation technology for III-V surfaces are discussed in view of applications to emerging novel III-V nanoelectronics. First, necessities of passivation and currently available surface passivation technologies for GaAs, InGaAs and AlGaAs are reviewed. Then, the principle of the Si interface control layer (ICL)-based passivation scheme by the authors’ group is introduced and its basic characterization is presented. Ths Si ICL is a molecular beam epitaxy (MBE)-grown ultrathin Si layer inserted between III-V semiconductor and passivation dielectric. Finally, applications of the Si ICL method to passivation of GaAs nanowires and GaAs nanowire transistors and to realization of pinning-free high-k dielectric/GaAs MOS gate stacks are presented.     

Influence of the substrate properties on the electronic structure of organic film-inorganic substrate interfaces

The structure of electronic states at the interfaces between perylene tetracarboxyldianhydride films and ZnO, Cu, GaAs, and InAs substrates is studied by the method of total current spectroscopy. It is found that the physicochemical properties of the substrate have a strong effect on the electronic state configuration in the substrate and film. On the basis of the experimental data, potential diagrams of the interfaces are constructed, which illustrate the formation of sharp and extended dipole layers, change in the charge state of surface levels, and modification of the electronic structure of the film.     

Elementary processes at semiconductor/electrolyte interfaces: perspectives and limits of electron spectroscopy

Semiconductor device properties based on electrolyte contacts or modified by electrochemical reactions are dominated by the electronic structure of the interface. Electron spectroscopy as e.g. photoemission is the most appropriate surface science techniques to investigate elementary processes at semiconductor/electrolyte interfaces. For such investigations a specific experimental set-up (SoLiAS) has been built-up which allows performing model experiments as well as surface analysis after emersion under different experimental conditions. The experimental approach is presented by a number of experiments performed during the last years with GaAs as substrate material. Model experiments by adsorption and coadsorption of electrolyte species give information on fundamental aspects of semiconductor/electrolyte interactions. Emersion experiments give information on a final composition and the related electronic structure of electrodes after electrochemical reactions. The use of frozen electrolytes will help to bridge the gap between these two approaches. With the combination of the experimental procedures one may expect a detailed analysis of electrolyte (modified) interfaces covering chemical composition, electronic structure of surfaces/interfaces as well as surface/interface potentials.     

Origin of HfO2/GaAs interface states and interface passivation: A first principles study

First principles calculations of HfO₂/GaAs interfaces indicate that the interface states originate from the charge mismatch between HfO₂ and GaAs surfaces. We find that a model neutral interface (HfO₂ and GaAs surfaces terminated with two O and one Ga atoms per surface unit cell) removes gap states due to the balance of the interface charge. F and H can neutralize the HfO₂/GaAs interface resulting in useful band offsets, thus becoming possible candidates to passivate the interface states.     

On the influence of the surface roughness onto the ultrathin SiO2/Si structure properties

The surface roughness of the semiconductor substrate substantially influences properties of the whole semiconductor/oxide structure. SiO₂/Si structures were prepared by using low temperature nitric acid oxidation of silicon (NAOS) method and then the whole structure was passivated by the cyanidization procedure. The influence of the surface morphology of the silicon substrate onto the electrical properties of ultrathin NAOS SiO₂ layer was investigated. Surface height function properties were studied by the AFM method and electrical properties were studied by the STM method. The complexity of analyzed surface structure was sensitive to the oxidation and passivation steps. For describing changes in the oxide layer structure, several fractal measures in an analysis of the STM images were used. This fractal geometry approach enables quantifying the fine spatial changes in the tunneling current spectra.     

Superhydrophobic surfaces prepared from water glass and non-fluorinated alkylsilane on cotton substrates

Superhydrophobic surfaces have been successfully prepared by sol-gel method using water glass as starting material. Such surfaces were obtained first by dip-coating the silica hydrosols prepared via hydrolysis and condensation of water glass onto cotton substrates, then the surface of the silica coating was modified with a non-fluoro compound, hexadecyltrimethoxysilane (HDTMS), to gain a thin film through self-assembly, superhydrophobicity with a water contact angle higher than 151° can be achieved. The morphology and surface roughness were characterized by SEM and AFM.     

W过渡层结合界面对金刚石薄膜在WC-6%Co上的附着力的影响

 在微波等离子体化学气相沉积装置中,采用负偏压形核等方法,研究两种不同的W过渡层/基体结合界面对金刚石薄膜与WC-6%Co附着力的影响。采用氢等离子体脱碳、磁控溅射镀W、高偏压碳化等方法,在YG6衬底表面形成化学反应型界面,W膜在碳化时和基体WC连为一体,极大地增加了W膜与基体的附着力,明显优于直接镀钨、碳化形成的物理吸附界面。在高负偏压下碳化,能提高表面粗糙度,增加膜与基体机械钳合,而负偏压形核增加核密度,从而增加膜与基体的接触面积,结果极大地提高了金刚石薄膜的附着力。     

α-P/GaAs(100)界面的光电子能谱研究

本文采用X射线光电子能谱、紫外光电子能谱和低能电子衍射对室温下P在GaAs(100)表面上的生长进行了研究。结果表明,在生长初期P是成团吸附的,随着淀积量的增加而生长成α-P薄膜,该薄膜的价带结构与等离子体淀积的α-P:H薄膜的价带结构相似。在界面处有约一单层的P与衬底表面的Ga成键。α-P覆盖层使GaAs表面势垒下降约0.2eV。 关键词：     

Influence of initial surface reconstruction on the interface structure of HfO2/GaAs

We show that the bonding structures and electrical properties of the HfO₂/GaAs interface can be controlled by a choice of the reconstruction on the initial GaAs surface. Electron-beam evaporation of HfO₂ onto the c(4 × 4) surface yielded As-O bonds at the interface, while Ga-O bonds were dominant at the interfaces formed on the (2 × 4) and (4 × 6) surfaces. Influences of the initial surface reconstruction on the interface structure persisted even after annealing at 673 K. Electrical characterization of Ir/HfO₂/GaAs capacitors indicated that the interfacial As-O bonds cause weak Fermi level pinning. It was also suggested that the interfaces dominated by the Ga-O bonds have trapping states in the upper half of the GaAs bandgap.     

Photoreflectance characterization of CdTe thin films grown by Molecular Beam Epitaxy on GaAs(100)

CdTe films have been grown on top of GaAs(100) by means of Molecular Beam Epitaxy (MBE) at 300 °C substrate temperature. Different procedures for the CdTe growth and for the preparation of the GaAs substrates resulted in diverse crystalline qualities of the CdTe films. We present the results obtained from PhotoReflectance (PR) measurements of these films employing HeNe and Ar-ion lasers as modulating excitation. For Ar excitation, the ratio of CdTe to GaAs signal strength for the E ₀ transition is enhanced, allowing a differentiation of the contributions from film and substrate. Both the PR line shape and intensity are correlated to the structural quality of the CdTe films. One of the samples presented a below-band-gap transition of the GaAs substrate around 30±5 meV from E ₀ which is attributed to donor states produced by Te atoms diffused in the interface; this result demonstrates the high sensitivity of the photoreflectance technique to the structural properties of interfaces.     

二氧化钛薄膜表面粗糙度研究

为了探究二氧化钛(TiO₂)薄膜表面粗糙度的影响因素, 利用离子束辅助沉积电子束热蒸发技术对不同基底粗糙度以及相同基底粗糙度的K9玻璃完成二氧化钛(TiO₂)光学薄膜的沉积。采用TalySurf CCI非接触式表面轮廓仪分别对镀制前基底表面粗糙度和镀制后薄膜表面粗糙度进行测量。实验表明, TiO₂薄膜表面粗糙度随着基底表面的增大而增大, 但始终小于基底表面粗糙度, 说明TiO₂薄膜具有平滑基地表面粗糙的作用; 随着沉积速率的增大, 薄膜表面粗糙度先降低后趋于平缓; 对于粗糙度为2 nm的基底, 离子束能量大小的改变影响不大, 薄膜表面粗糙度均在1.5 nm左右; 随着膜层厚度的增大, 薄膜表面粗糙度先下降后升高。     

A molecular dynamics simulation of ultrathin oxide films onsilicon: Growth by thermal O atoms and sputtering by 100 eV Ar+ ions

Molecular dynamics was applied to study the growth and sputtering of ultrathin oxide films on (100) Si surfaces. A multibody potential which stabilized the Si/SiO₂ interface was used for this purpose. Oxide growth by exposure to O atoms was found to follow Langmuir-type kinetics with unity initial sticking coefficient of O and saturation coverage of around four monolayers, in agreement with experimental data. Sputtering of an ultrathin oxide film on silicon by 100 eV Ar⁺ ions was simulated to study ion-assisted surface cleaning. Ion irradiation was found to promote restructuring of the surface into oxide islands, as observed experimentally. Island formation was accompanied with an increase in surface roughness. The evolution of the surface state with ion dose was predicted quantitatively     

制备工艺对HfO2薄膜抗激光损伤能力的影响

采用反应蒸镀法镀制了单层HfO2薄膜,观察了薄膜表面主要的微结构缺陷,研究了基片清洗工艺对薄膜损伤阈值的影响。测量了薄膜沉积前后表面粗糙度变化。结果表明：沉积工艺可以改变粗糙度,并对薄膜抗激光损伤能力有较大的影响。     

Effects of surface roughness on the electrical characteristics of ZnO nanowire field effect transistors

We have systematically investigated the effects of surface roughness on the electrical characteristics of ZnO nanowire field effect transistors (FETs) before and after passivation by poly (methyl metahacrylate) (PMMA), a polymer-insulating layer. To control the surface morphology of ZnO nanowires, ZnO nanowires were grown by the vapor transport method on two different substrates, namely, an Au-catalyzed sapphire and an Au-catalyzed ZnO film/sapphire. ZnO nanowires grown on the Au-catalyzed sapphire substrate had smooth surfaces, whereas those grown on the Au-catalyzed ZnO film had rough surfaces. Electrical characteristics such as the threshold voltage shift and transconductance before and after passivation were strongly affected by the surface morphology of ZnO nanowires.     

Production of pulsed ultraslow muons and first μSR experiments on thin metallic and magnetic films

Standard muon spin rotation (μSR) spectroscopy implants 4 MeV spin-polarized positive muons to investigate the bulk properties of matter. Success in producing epithermal muons opens interesting possibilities for studying ultrathin films, interfaces, and even surfaces. At the ISIS Facility, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (Chilton, UK), we have produced a pulsed ultraslow muon beam (E< 20 eV) and have performed the first μSR experiments. Due to the pulsed feature, the implantation time is automatically determined and, by adjusting the final muon energy between about 8 and 20 eV, depth slicing experiments are possible down to monolayers distances. We describe slicing experiments across a 20 nm copper film on quartz substrate with evidence for a 2 nm copper oxide surface layer. A preliminary experiment on a hexagonal cobalt film suggests the existence of muon precession in the local magnetic field. The results are discussed in relation to the morphological features of the film.     

Al_(0.17)Ga_(0.83)As/GaAs(001)薄膜退火过程的热力学分析

在As_4束流等效压强为1.2×10~(-3)Pa、退火60 min条件下改变退火温度,对Al_(0.17)Ga_(0.83)As/GaAs薄膜表面平坦化的条件进行了探讨.定量分析了薄膜表面坑、岛与平台的覆盖率和台阶-平台间薄膜粗糙度随退火温度变化的规律,得到最合适的退火温度为545℃(±1℃);根据退火模型发现退火温度的改变会影响参与熟化的原子的数量,熟化原子比θ正比于退火温度,即θ∝Τ.退火温度540℃条件下退火约60 min,薄膜表面达到基本平坦,推测此时0.20θ0.25;退火温度为545℃时,推测退火时间约为55-60 min.本实验得到的结论可以为生长平坦的Al_(0.17)Ga_(0.83)As/GaAs薄膜提供理论与实验指导.     

制备工艺对HfO_2薄膜抗激光损伤能力的影响

采用反应蒸镀法镀制了单层ＨｉＯ２薄膜,观察了薄膜表面主要的微结构缺陷, 研究了基片清洗工艺对薄膜损伤阈值的影响。测量了薄膜沉积前后表面粗糙度变化。结果表 明：沉积工艺可以改变粗糙度,并对薄膜抗激光损伤能力有较大的影响。     

Generation and propagation of a picosecond acoustic pulse at a buried interface: time-resolved x-ray diffraction measurements

We report on the propagation of coherent acoustic wave packets in (001) surface oriented Al0.3Ga0.7As/GaAs heterostructure, generated through localized femtosecond photoexcitation of the GaAs. Transient structural changes in both the substrate and film are measured with picosecond time-resolved x-ray diffraction. The data indicate an elastic response consisting of unipolar compression pulses of a few hundred picosecond duration traveling along [001] and [001] directions that are produced by predominately impulsive stress. The transmission and reflection of the strain pulses are in agreement with an acoustic mismatch model of the heterostructure and free-space interfaces.     

Co/GaAs(100)界面形成以及Co超薄膜磁性质的研究

利用同步辐射光电发射和铁磁共振(FMR)研究了Co/GaAs(100)界面形成以及Co超薄膜的磁性质.结果表明,在低覆盖度(约为0.2nm)下,Co吸附原子与衬底发生强烈的界面反应,在覆盖度为0.9nm时,形成稳定的界面.从衬底扩散出的Ga原子与Co覆盖层合金化,而部分As原子与Co原子发生反应,形成稳定的键合,这些反应产物都停留在界面处很窄的区域(0.3—0.4nm)内.另一部分As原子偏析在Co覆盖层表面.结合理论模型,详细地讨论了界面结构及Ga，As原子的深度分布.FMR结果表明,生长的Co超薄膜具 关键词：