Characterization of in-situ time-resolved optical spectra during excimer-laser crystallization

A real-time in-situ time-resolved (~1 ns) optical reflectivity and transmission (TRORT) measurement system combining two He–Ne probe lasers, a digital oscilloscope, and three fast photodiodes is developed to investigate the rapid phase-change processes of Si thin films during the excimer-laser crystallization (ELC). The changes in both reflectivity and transmission of Si thin films during ELC are recorded by the TRORT measurement system. Melting and resolidification behaviors of Si thin films during ELC are interpreted. The fall time of liquid Si is reduced with increase in the excimer-laser energy density, while the rise time of liquid Si remains approximately constant at 5 ns. The first small peak in the reflectivity spectrum is proved to be not a phenomenon of explosive crystallization.     

Fabrication of large-grain polycrystalline Ge films using absorptive films

Amorphous germanium (a-Ge) films in samples with or without an absorptive film are crystallized by short-pulse XeF excimer laser crystallization (ELC). An in situ time-resolved optical reflection and transmission (TRORT) monitoring system combining a cw He-Ne probe laser, a digital oscilloscope and two photodetectors is developed to investigate the melting and resolidification dynamics of Ge films during ELC. TRORT measurements reveal that the longest melt duration is prolonged from 250 to 1000 ns by adding absorptive films in the samples. Absorptive films are shown to be effective in improving the melt duration of the molten state and the grain size of polycrystalline Ge films. The grain size with a diameter of approximately 12 μm can be fabricated in the superlateral growth regime for 90-nm-thick a-Ge films at room temperature in air by single-shot ELC.     

Fabrication of large-grain polycrystalline silicon for solar cells

The rapid recrystallization of a-Si films utilizing excimer laser crystallization (ELC) is investigated. The melt duration of liquid silicon (liquid Si) is measured by in-situ time-resolved optical measurements during ELC. The grain size of crystallized poly-Si films are characterized by FE-SEM. The substrate temperature as a function of the longest melt duration of liquid Si for different Si film thicknesses are presented. In-situ timeresolved optical measurements reveal that the longest melt duration of 400-nm-thick a-Si thin films at a substrate temperature of 500 °C is 1714 ns. The diameter of the disk grain as large as 4.7 μm is produced by ELC, which can be applied to solar cells with a high conversion efficiency and reliability.     

Rapid determination of surface roughness of polycrystalline silicon following frontside and backside excimer laser irradiation

Excimer-laser crystallization (ELC) is the most commonly employed technology for fabricating low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS). Investigations on the surface roughness of polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin films have become an important issue because the surface roughness of poly-Si thin films is widely believed to be related to its electrical characteristics. In this study, we develop a simple optical measurement system for rapid surface roughness measurements of poly-Si thin films fabricated by frontside ELC and backside ELC. We find that the incident angle of 20° is a good candidate for measuring the surface roughness of poly-Si thin films. The surface roughness of polycrystalline silicon thin films can be determined rapidly from the reflected peak power density measured by the optical system developed using the prediction equation. The maximum measurement error rate of the optical measurement system developed is less than 9.71%. The savings in measurement time of the surface roughness of poly-Si thin films is up to 83%. The method of backside ELC is suggested for batch production of low-temperature polycrystalline silicon thin-film transistors due to the lower surface roughness of poly-Si films and higher laser-beam utilization efficiency.     

Evolution of microstructure in polycrystalline silicon thin films upon excimer laser crystallization

Polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) films fabricated by pulsed excimer laser crystallization (ELC) have been investigated using time-resolved optical measurements, scanning-electron microscopy, and cross-sectional transmission-electron microscopy. Detailed crystallization mechanisms are proposed to interpret the microstructure evolution of poly-Si films for both frontside and backside ELC. It is found that the backside ELC is a good candidate for the manufacturing of low-temperature polycrystalline silicon because of the high laser efficiency and low surface roughness of the poly-Si films.     

Solidification velocity in liquid silicon during excimer laser crystallization

Excimer laser crystallization (ELC) is commonly employed to fabricate low-temperature polycrystalline silicon. A time-resolved in-situ optical system with nanosecond response time is developed to monitor and record the phase transformation process during ELC. The average solidification velocity of liquid silicon (liquid Si) is investigated from the optical spectra recorded by a fast oscilloscope. It is found that the average solidification velocities of liquid Si in the partial-melting and complete-melting regimes are fundamentally different. In the partial-melting regime, the average solidification velocity decreases with increasing excimer laser energy density; while in the complete-melting regime, it increases abruptly due to the presence of deeply supercooled liquid Si.     

Effect of K-doping on structural and optical properties of ZnO thin films

In this work, K-doped ZnO thin films were prepared by a sol–gel method on Si(111) and glass substrates. The effect of different K-doping concentrations on structural and optical properties of the ZnO thin films was studied. The results showed that the 1 at.% K-doped ZnO thin film had the best crystallization quality and the strongest ultraviolet emission ability. When the concentration of K was above 1 at.%, the crystallization quality and ultraviolet emission ability dropped. For the K-doped ZnO thin films, there was not only ultraviolet emission, but also a blue emission signal in their photoluminescent spectra. The blue emission might be connected with K impurity or/and the intrinsic defects (Zn interstitial and Zn vacancy) of the ZnO thin films.     

Micro-Raman spectroscopy characterization of polycrystalline silicon films fabricated by excimer laser crystallization

The rapid recrystallization of amorphous silicon films utilizing excimer laser crystallization (ELC) is presented. The resulting poly-Si films are characterized by Raman spectroscopy. Polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) films with higher crystallinity can be realized by a dehydrogenation process before ELC. Raman spectra as a function of various excimer laser energy densities are demonstrated. The crystallinity and residual stress of the poly-Si films are determined and discussed.     

发蓝绿光纳米硅薄膜的快速热处理制备

使用除氢、高温成核和低温生长的三段式快速热处理方法,将常规方法制备的氢化非晶硅(a-SiH)薄膜晶化成纳米硅(nc-Si)薄膜。该薄膜在波长为457.9nm的Ar⁺激光的激发下,在室温发射出蓝绿光。     

Influence of target substrate distance on the properties of transparent conductive Si doped ZnO thin films

Si doped zinc oxide (SZO, Si3%) thin films are grown at room temperature on glass substrates under argon atmosphere, using direct current magnetron sputtering. The influence of the target substrate distances on structure, morphology, optical and electrical properties of SZO thin films is investigated. Experimental results show that the target substrate distances have a significance impact on the growth rate, crystal quality and electrical properties of the films, and have little impact on the optical properties of the films. SZO thin film samples grown on glasses are polycrystalline with a hexagonal wurtzite structure and have a preferred orientation along the c-axis perpendicular to the substrate. When the target substrate distance decreases from 76 to 60 mm, the degree of crystallization of the films increased, the grain size increases, and the resistivity of films decreases. However, when the distance continuously decreases from 60 to 44 mm, the degree of crystallization of the films decreased, the grain size decreases, and the resistivity of the films increases. SZO(3%) thin films deposited at a target substrate distance of 60 mm show the lowest resistivity of 5.53 × 10⁻⁴ Ω cm, a high average transmission of 94.47% in the visible range, and maximum band gap of 3.45 eV under 5 Pa of argon at sputtering power of 75 W for sputtering time of 20 min.     

The comparison between CdS thin films grown on Si(111) substrate and quartz substrate by femtosecond pulsed laser deposition

Two kinds of cadmium sulfate (CdS) thin films have been grown at 600 °C onto Si(111) and quartz substrates using femtosecond pulsed laser deposition (PLD). The influence of substrates on the structural and optical properties of the CdS thin films grown by femtosecond pulsed laser deposition have been studied. The CdS thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photoluminescence (PL) and Raman spectroscopy. Although CdS thin films deposited both on Si(111) and quartz substrates were polycrystalline and hexagonal as shown by the XRD , SEM and AFM results, the crystalline quality and optical properties were found to be different. The size of the grains for the CdS thin film grown on Si(111) substrate were observed to be larger than that of the CdS thin film grown on quartz substrate, and there is more microcrystalline perpendicularity of c-axis for the film deposited on the quartz substrate than that for the films deposited on the Si substrate. In addition, in the PL spectra, the excitonic peak is more intense and resolved for CdS film deposited on quartz than that for the CdS film deposited on Si(111) substrate. The LO and TO Raman peaks in the CdS films grown on Si(111) substrate and quartz substrate are different, which is due to higher stress and bigger grain size in the CdS film grown on Si(111) substrate, than that of the CdS film grown on the amorphous quartz substrate. All this suggests that the substrates have a significant effect on the structural and optical properties of thin CdS films. PACS 81.15.Fg; 81.05.Ea; 78.20.-e; 78.67.-n; 42.62.-b     

Quasi-monocrystalline silicon for thin-film devices

Thermal crystallization of a double layer porous Si film creates a monocrystalline Si film with a thin separation layer between the Si film and the reusable starting wafer. The process enables transfer of thin monocrystalline Si films to foreign substrates, whereby devices may be formed before or after separation of the film. Sub-micrometer thick films are almost compact, while films with a thickness of several μm contain voids, and are therefore termed “quasi-monocrystalline”. Internal voids strongly enhance optical absorption by light scattering. The hole mobility is 78 cm² V^-1 s^-1 at a p-type starting wafer resistivity of 0.05 Ω cm. Received: 24 March 1999 / Accepted: 29 March 1999 / Published online: 5 May 1999     

退火对Ge诱导晶化多晶Si薄膜结晶特性的影响

本文采用磁控溅射法, 衬底温度500 ℃下在硅衬底上分别制备具有Ge填埋层的a-Si/Ge 薄膜和a-Si薄膜, 并进行后续退火, 采用Raman光谱、X射线衍射、原子力显微镜及场发射扫描电镜等对所制薄膜样品进行结构表征. 结果表明, Ge有诱导非晶硅晶化的作用, 并得出以下重要结论: 衬底温度为500 ℃时生长的a-Si/Ge薄膜, 经600 ℃退火5 h Ge诱导非晶硅薄膜的晶化率为44%, 在相同的退火时间下退火温度提高到700 ℃, 晶化率达54%. 相同条件下, 无Ge填埋层的a-Si薄膜经800 ℃退火5 h薄膜实现晶化, 晶化率为46%. 通过Ge填埋层诱导晶化可使在相同的条件下生长的非晶硅晶薄膜的晶化温度降低约200 ℃. Ge诱导晶化多晶Si薄膜在Si(200)方向具有高度择优取向, 且在此方向对应的晶粒尺寸约为76 nm. 通过Ge诱导晶化制备多晶Si薄膜有望成为制备高质量多晶Si薄膜的一条有效途径.     

退火对磁控溅射HfSi_xO_y薄膜光学性质的影响

采用射频反应磁控溅射方法在硅衬底制备了HfSixOy薄膜,用X射线光电子能谱(XPS)分析了HfSixOy薄膜的成分,用X射线衍射(XRD)检测了薄膜的结构,并用椭圆偏振光谱仪研究了退火处理对薄膜光学性质的影响。XRD谱显示,HfSixOy薄膜经700℃高温退火处理后仍为非晶态,而在900℃高温退火处理后出现晶化。采用Tauc-Lorentz(TL)色散模型对测试得到的曲线进行拟合并分析得出薄膜的光学常数,结果表明,薄膜的折射率随退火温度的升高而增加,而消光系数随退火温度的升高呈降低趋势。薄膜的光学带隙随着退火温度的升高增加,采用外推法得到薄膜沉积态和经500℃,700℃,900℃退火后的带隙分别为5.62,5.65,5.68,5.98eV。     

Ferroelectric SrxBa1-xNb2O6 optical waveguiding thin films on SiO2-coated Si(100) substrates

x Ba_1-xNb₂O₆ (x=0.5) films (abbreviated as SBN:0.5) on SiO₂-coated Si substrates are potential components for the application of integrated electro-optics devices. SBN:0.5 optical waveguiding thin films on SiO₂-coated Si substrates with a very thin MgO diffusion buffer have been successfully prepared by pulsed laser deposition. The as-grown films have a refractive index of 2.28, which is close to that of bulk SBN. X-ray analysis showed that the as-grown films have a single-phase tetragonal tungsten bronze structure. The SBN:0.5 thin films prepared by PLD exhibit favorable ferroelectric and optical waveguiding properties. The composition and the morphology of the films were also examined by XPS and by SEM, respectively. Ferroelectric SBN:0.5 optical waveguiding thin films on SiO₂-coated Si substrates are expected to be used in integrated electro-optic devices. Received: 27 February 1997/Accepted: 17 October 1997     

Formation and microstructure of cubic metastable iron silicides synthesized during pulsed laser annealing

Hyperfine Interactions - The phase formation and crystallization processes of metastable [CsCl]Fe1?x Si phases were investigated by irradiating?-FeSi/Si(111) thin films with a pulsed...     

低温铝诱导晶化制备纳米晶硅薄膜的物相和光学性能研究

采用射频磁控溅射镀膜系统,在玻璃衬底上制备了非晶硅(α-Si)/铝(Al)复合薄膜,结合氮气(N₂)气氛中低温快速光热退火制备了纳米晶硅(nc-Si)薄膜;利用光学显微镜、共焦光学显微仪、X射线衍射(XRD)仪、拉曼散射光谱(Raman)仪和紫外-可见光-近红外分光光度计(UV-VIS-NIR)对纳米晶硅薄膜的表面形貌、物相及光学性能进行了表征,研究了退火工艺对薄膜性能的影响。结果表明： 300 ℃,25 min光热退火可使α-Si/Al膜晶化为纳米晶硅薄膜,晶化率为15.56%,晶粒尺寸为1.75 nm;退火温度从300 ℃逐渐升高到400 ℃,纳米晶硅薄膜晶粒尺寸、晶化率、带隙逐渐增加,表面均匀性、晶格畸变量逐渐减小;退火温度从400 ℃逐渐升高到500 ℃,纳米晶硅薄膜的晶粒尺寸、晶化率继续增加,带隙则逐渐降低;采用纳米晶硅薄膜的吸光模型验证了所制备的纳米晶硅薄膜的光学特性,其光学带隙的变化趋势与吸光模型得出的结果一致。     

Effect of the laser fluence on structural and optical characterization of thin CdS films synthesized by femtosecond pulsed laser deposition

CdS thin films have been grown on Si(1 1 1) and quartz substrates using femtosecond pulsed laser deposition. X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, photoluminescence measurement, and optical transmission spectroscopy were used to characterize the structure and optical properties of the deposited CdS thin films. The influence of the laser fluence (laser incident energy in the range 0.5–1.5 mJ/pulse) on the structural and optical characterizations of CdS thin films has been studied. The results indicate that the structure and optical properties of the CdS thin films can be improved as increasing the per pulse output energy of the femtosecond laser to 1.2 mJ. But when the per pulse output energy of the femtosecond laser is further increased to 1.5 mJ, which leads to the degradation of the structure and optical properties of the CdS thin films.     

Nickel-disilicide-assisted excimer laser crystallization of amorphous silicon

Polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) thin film has been prepared by means of nickel-disilicide (NiSi多晶硅 受激准分子激光器结晶 结晶化 界面晶粒生长polycrystalline silicon, excimer laser crystallization,Ni-disilicide, Ni-metal-induced lateral crystallization, two-interface grain growthProject supported by the National High Technology Development Program of China (Grant No 2002AA303250) and by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No 60576056).9/7/2005 12:00:00 AM3/6/2006 12:00:00 AMPolycrystalline silicon （poly-Si） thin film has been prepared by means of nickel-disilicide （NiSi2） assisted excimer laser crystallization （ELC）. The process to prepare a sample includes two steps. One step consists of the formation of NiSi2 precipitates by heat-treating the dehydrogenated amorphous silicon （a-Si） coated with a thin layer of Ni. And the other step consists of the formation of poly-Si grains by means of ELC. According to the test results of scanning electron microscopy （SEM）, another grain growth model named two-interface grain growth has been proposed to contrast with the conventional Ni-metal-induced lateral crystallization （Ni-MILC） model and the ELC model. That is, an additional grain growth interface other than that in conventional ELC is formed, which consists of NiSi2 precipitates and a-Si. The processes for grain growth according to various excimer laser energy densities delivered to the a-Si film have been discussed. It is discovered that grains with needle shape and most of a uniform orientation are formed which grow up with NiSi2 precipitates as seeds. The reason for the formation of such grains which are different from that of Ni-MILC without migration of Ni atoms is not clear. Our model and analysis point out a method to prepare grains with needle shape and mostly of a uniform orientation. If such grains are utilized to make thin-film transistor, its characteristics may be improved.