Improvement of Nickel-Stanogermanide Contact Properties by Platinum Interlayer

We report an effective method to improve the formation of nickel stanogermanide(Ni Ge Sn) by the incorporation of a platinum(Pt) interlayer. After the Ni/Pt/Ge Sn samples are annealed we obtain uniform Ni Ge Sn thin films,which are characterized by means of sheet resistance, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy,cross-section transmission electron microscopy, and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy. These results show that the presence of Pt increases the smoothness and uniform morphology of Ni Ge Sn films.