High field phenomena in thin plasma nitrided SiO2 films

The effects of high field tunnel electron injection on the electrical properties of Al - thin plasma nitrided SiO₂ films - Si (p-type) structures are studied. Under high field injection, it has been observed that electron trapping, positive charge generation near the Si-SiO₂ interface (slow states) and fast state generation at the Si-SiO₂ interface have taken place. After high temperature N₂ annealing, the nitridation induced electron trap density is considerably decreased. Furthermore, under high field injection the generation rate of both the slow states and the interface states and consequently, the degradation rate of the nitrided oxide films have been also decreased after annealing.     

Nitridation of thin SiO2 films in N2 and NH3 plasmas

A low-temperature (700°C) plasma-enhanced nitridation process which improves the dielectric breakdown of thin silicon dioxide (SiO₂) layers is presented. It uses a new, production compatible, parallel plate plasma reactor working at low RF frequencies. Nitrided oxides produce less charge trapping under high field stress, higher breakdown charge and a tighter distribution of breakdown fields than pure SiO₂. More nitrogen is incorporated in films treated in a NH₃ plasma than in a N₂ plasma. However, the latter present better electrical properties.     

同步辐射光激励的二氧化硅薄膜刻蚀研究

利用热氧化法在硅晶片上生长SiO₂薄膜，结合光刻和磁控溅射技术在SiO₂薄膜表面制备接触型钴掩模，通过掩模方法在硅表面开展了同步辐射光激励的表面刻蚀研究，在室温下制备了SiO₂薄膜的刻蚀图样.实验结果表明：在同步辐射光照射下，通入SF₆气体可以有效地对SiO₂薄膜进行各向异性刻蚀，并在一定的气压范围内，刻蚀率随SF₆气体浓度的增加而增加，随样品温度的下降而升高；如果在同步辐射光照射下，用SF₆和O₂的混合气体作为反应气体，刻蚀过程将停止在SiO₂/Si界面，即不对硅刻蚀，实现了同步辐射对硅和二氧化硅两种材料的选择性刻蚀；另外，钴表现出强的抗刻蚀能力，是一种理想的同步辐射光掩模材料. 关键词： 同步辐射刻蚀 接触型钴掩模 二氧化硅薄膜     

单层SiO2物理膜与化学膜激光损伤机理的对比研究

采用离子束溅射沉积技术和溶胶-凝胶技术在K9基片上镀制了厚度相近的SiO₂单层介质膜，用表面热透镜技术对两类膜层分别进行了热吸收及实时动态热畸变实验测试，结合散射光阈值测试及实验前后膜层的显微观测，对相同基底、相同膜层材料而采用不同方法镀制的光学膜层，发现化学膜的强激光损伤阈值远高于相应物理膜；从热力学响应及膜层特性差异的角度揭示了化学膜层的强激光损伤阈值远高于相应物理膜层的微观机理，即物理膜具有高吸收下的致密膜层快传导的基底热冲击效应，而化学膜则有低吸收下的疏松空隙填充慢传导的延缓效应，大量的实验数据及现象都证实了这一结论. 关键词： 强激光辐照损伤 损伤形貌 热冲击 热吸收     

Novel catalysts: Indium implanted SiO2 thin films

Interactions of Indium (In) and silicon (Si) atoms are known to catalyze certain organic chemical reactions with high efficiency. In an attempt of creating a material that manifests the interactions, In implanted SiO₂ thin films were prepared by ion beam injection and their catalytic abilities for organic chemical reactions were examined. It has been found that, with an injection energy of approximately 0.5 keV, a thin In film is formed on a SiO₂ substrate surface and the In implanted SiO₂ thin film can catalyze an organic chemical reaction. It has been also shown that there is an optimal ion dose for the highest catalytic ability in the film preparation process. Thin-film-type catalyzing materials such as the one proposed here may open a new way to enhance surface chemical reaction rates.     

Ag-Au合金/SiO$lt;sub$gt;2$lt;/sub$gt;复合薄膜的制备与表征

以AgNO₃,HAuCl₄和正硅酸乙酯为主要原料,利用溶胶-凝胶法和旋涂技术,通过热处理和紫外光辐射还原得到了不同n_Ag/n_Au（1∶0,2∶1,1∶2,0∶1）的Ag-Au合金/SiO₂复合薄膜.从扫描电子显微镜和X射线衍射谱的结果可以看出得到的薄膜均匀性好,复合薄膜中合金颗粒的尺寸为10 nm左右.利用紫外-可见分光光谱仪研究了复合薄膜的光吸收性能,结果表明,随着n_Ag/n_Au的降低,吸收峰的位置也由最初的Ag纳米粒子的等离子共振吸收峰430 nm附近,逐渐红移到Au纳米粒子的等离子共振吸收峰605和880 nm附近.从光吸收谱可以看出,n_Ag∶n_Au＝2∶1和1∶2的两个样品分别在515,730 nm附近和550,730 nm附近出现表面等离子共振吸收峰.这表明Au-Ag合金固溶体的形成. 关键词： 2')" href="#">Ag-Au合金/SiO₂ 紫外辐射 光吸收性能     

ZnSe/SiO2复合薄膜光学常数与荧光光谱的研究

采用溶胶-凝胶工艺与原位生长技术，制备了ZnSe/SiO₂复合薄膜.X射线衍射分 析表明薄膜中ZnSe晶体呈立方闪锌矿结构.X射线荧光分析结果显示薄膜中Zn与Se摩尔比为1 ∶1.01—1∶1.19.利用场发射扫描电子显微镜观察了复合薄膜的表面形貌，结果表明复合薄 膜表面既存在尺寸约为400nm的ZnSe晶粒，也存在尺寸小于100nm的ZnSe晶粒.利用椭偏仪测 量了薄膜椭偏角Ψ，Δ与波长λ的关系，采用Maxwell-Garnett有效介质理论对薄膜的光学 常数、厚度、气孔率、ZnS 关键词： 2复合薄膜')" href="#">ZnSe/SiO₂复合薄膜 光学性质 椭偏光度法 荧光光谱     

Enhanced nonlinear optical absorption of Au/SiO2 nano-composite thin films

Nano metal-particle dispersed glasses are the attractive candidates for nonlinear optical material applications.Au/SiO 2 nano-composite thin films with 3 vol% to 65 vol% Au are prepared by inductively coupled plasma sputtering.Au particles as perfect spheres with diameters between 10 nm and 30 nm are uniformly dispersed in the SiO 2 matrix.Optical absorption peaks due to the surface plasmon resonance of Au particles are observed.The absorption property is enhanced with the increase of Au content,showing a maximum value in the films with 37 vol% Au.The absorption curves of the Au/SiO 2 thin films with 3 vol% to 37 vol% Au accord well with the theoretical optical absorption spectra obtained from Mie resonance theory.Increasing Au content over 37 vol% results in the partial connection of Au particles,whereby the intensity of the absorption peak is weakened and ultimately replaced by the optical absorption of the bulk.The band gap decreases with Au content increasing from 3 vol% to 37 vol % but increases as Au content further increases.     

Thickness determination of thin and ultra-thin SiO2 films by C-AFM IV-spectroscopy

Conductive atomic force microscopy was used to determine the electrical oxide thickness for five different silicon dioxide layers with thickness in the order of 1.6-5.04 nm. The electrical thickness results were compared with values determined by ellipsometry. A semi-analytical tunnelling current model with one single parameter set was used to superpose current/voltage curves in both the direct tunnelling and the Fowler-Nordheim tunnelling regime regions. The overall electrical oxide thickness was determined by statistical means from results of nearly 3000 IV-curves recorded for different conductive CoCr-coated tips. Good agreement between the shape of model and experimental data was achieved, widely independent of the oxide thickness. Compared with the ellipsometry value, the electrical thickness was larger by a value of 0.36 nm (22%) for the thinnest oxide and smaller by a value of 0.31 nm (6%) for the thickest oxide, while intermediate values yielded differences better than 0.15 nm (<6%). The physical differences between the measurement techniques were shown to contribute to this observation. In addition, statistical deviations between single and multiple measurements using a single tip and using a number of different tips were analysed. The causes, for example, natural oxide thickness variations, tip wear, air humidity induced effects and contaminations, are evaluated and discussed. The method proposed was able to determine the electrical oxide thickness with a standard deviation in the order of ±6-9%. The results suggest that for optimal results it is necessary to perform several repetitions of IV-measurements for one sample and, in addition, to employ more than one tip.     

Two-step nitridation of photocatalytic TiO2 films by low energy ion irradiation

Nitridation of TiO₂ films is performed by the simultaneous irradiation of low-energy N₂⁺ and H₂⁺ ions under substrate-heating condition. Spectroscopic observations of the resultant films clarify the formation of nitrogen-substituted TiO₂ (TiO_2−xN_x) with large N fractions and the agglomeration of undesirable oxynitride species attributed to the deep states in the band gap. We find that the addition of a thin TiO₂ cap layer on the ion-irradiated films improves the nitrogen bonding structure and distribution near the surfaces, leading to a good photocatalytic performance even in the visible region.     

rf reactive co-sputtered Au-Ag alloy nanoparticles in SiO2 thin films

We have studied formation of Au-Ag alloy nanoparticles in sputtered SiO₂ thin films. Silica thin films containing Au-Ag nanoparticles were deposited on quartz substrates using rf reactive magnetron co-sputtering technique. The films heat-treated in reducing Ar + H₂ atmosphere at different temperatures. They were analyzed by using UV-vis spectrophotometry, atomic force microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) methods for their optical, surface morphological as well as structural and chemical properties. The optical absorption of the Au-Ag alloy nanoparticles illustrated one plasmon resonance absorption peak located at 450 nm between the absorption bands of pure Au and Ag nanoparticles at 400 and 520 nm, respectively, for the thin films annealed at 800 °C. XPS results showed that the alloys were in metallic state, and they had a greater tendency to lose electrons as compared to their corresponding monometallic state. Using lateral force microscopy analysis, we have found that the alloy particles were uniformly distributed on the surface with grain size of about 20 nm.     

A comparative study of electroluminescence from Ge／SiO2 and Si／SiO2 films

Ge/SiO_2 and Si/SiO_2 films were deposited using the two-target alternation magnetron sputtering technique. The Au/Ge/SiO_2/p-Si and Au/Si/SiO_2/p-Si structures were fabricated and their electroluminescence (EL) characteristics were comparatively studied. Both Au/Ge/SiO_2/p-Si and Au/Si/SiO_2/p-Si structures have rectifying property. All the EL spectra from the two types of the structure have peak positions around 650－660 nm. The EL mechanisms of the structures are discussed.     

Rapid thermal nitridation of thin chromium films

Thin Cr films were nitrided during rapid thermal annealing for 3 min in NH₃ between 500 and 850°C. Nitridation begins at 500°C and occurs in a layer-by-layer fashion, first forming Cr₂N then CrN. At 550°C, Cr₂N begins to nitride to CrN despite the existence of unreacted Cr, such that a CrN/Cr₂N/Cr structure exists. At 650°C, no unreacted Cr remains and the layer consists of CrN on Cr₂N; this configuration remains at 700°C although CrN grew at the expense of Cr₂N. At 750°C, the reaction is complete, forming CrN. Oxygen accumulates in front of the growing nitrides until the temperature is high enough to allow redistribution. This occurs at lower temperatures in Cr₂N than in CrN, which may be correlated to the enhanced oxidation resistance of CrN. Phase identification was performed by X-ray diffraction, composition determination by Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, and elemental profiling by secondary ion mass spectrometry. Ion beam resonances of the forms ¹⁶O(,)¹⁶O and ¹⁴N(,)¹⁴N provided additional elemental profiling. Vickers microhardness was measured and was observed to increase sharply once a surface nitride had formed, then remained nearly constant upon further annealing.     

XPS investigation of diffusion of two-layer ZrO2/SiO2 and SiO2/ZrO2 sol–gel films

Two-layer ZrO₂/SiO₂ and SiO₂/ZrO₂ films were deposited on K9 glass substrates by sol–gel dip coating method. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique was used to investigate the diffusion of ZrO₂/SiO₂ and SiO₂/ZrO₂ films. To explain the difference of diffusion between ZrO₂/SiO₂ and SiO₂/ZrO₂ films, porous ratio and surface morphology of monolayer SiO₂ and ZrO₂ films were analyzed by using ellipsometry and atomic force microscopy (AFM). We found that for the ZrO₂/SiO₂ films there was a diffusion layer with a certain thickness and the atomic concentrations of Si and Zr changed rapidly; for the SiO₂/ZrO₂ films, the atomic concentrations of Si and Zr changed relatively slowly, and the ZrO₂ layer had diffused through the entire SiO₂ layer. The difference of diffusion between ZrO₂/SiO₂ and SiO₂/ZrO₂ films was influenced by the microstructure of SiO₂ and ZrO₂.     

非聚焦电子束照射SiO2薄膜带电效应

采用考虑电子散射、俘获、输运和自洽场的三维数值模型, 模拟了低能非聚焦电子束照射接地SiO₂薄膜的带电效应. 结果表明, 由于电子的迁移和扩散, 电子会渡越散射区域产生负空间电荷分布. 空间电荷呈现在散射区域内为正, 区域外为负的交替分布特性. 对于薄膜负带电, 电子会输运至导电衬底形成泄漏电流, 其暂态过程随泄漏电流的增加趋于平衡. 而正带电暂态过程随返回二次电子的增多而趋于平衡. 在平衡态时, 负带电表面电位随薄膜厚度、陷阱密度的增大而降低, 随电子迁移率、薄膜介电常数的增大而升高;而正带电表面电位受它们影响较小.     

Formation and escaping of positronium in porous SiO2 films at low temperature

Positronium formation and escaping has been studied in porous silica thin films at temperature ranging from 13 to 300 K by 2-3 gamma ratio of positronium (3γ-PAS) measurements. Nanoporous silica thin films were deposited by spin coating on p-type (1 0 0) Si substrates and thermal treated in air at temperatures of 600 °C. Two different molar ratios of porogen (polyvinylpyrrolidone) were used in the TEOS-ethanol mixture to obtain samples with close porosity and connected porosity with the surfaces. In both types of sample a reduction of the 2-3 gamma ratio of positronium was observed by decreasing the temperature. This finding, in disagreement with the theoretical expectation, is discussed on the basis of the possible quenching mechanisms.     

Analysis of material modifications induced during laser damage in SiO2 thin films

The damage mechanisms in silica thin films exposed to high fluence 1064 nm nano-second laser pulses are investigated. The thin films under study are made with different techniques (evaporation and sputtering, with and without ion assistance) and the results are compared. The material morphological, optical and structural modifications are locally analyzed with optical microscopy and profilometry, photoluminescence and absorption microscopies. These observations are made for fluences near and above the laser damage threshold, and also in the case of multiple pulse irradiations. An increase in absorption in and around the damages is observed, as well as the generation of different defects that we spatially resolve with absorption and luminescence mappings.     

Analysis of codeposited Gd2O3/SiO2 composite thin films by phase modulated spectroscopic ellipsometric technique

Tailoring of the refractive index of optical thin films has been a very fascinating as well as challenging topic for developing new generation optical coatings. In the present work a novel Gd₂O₃/SiO₂ composite system has been experimented and probed for its superior optical properties through phase modulated spectroscopic ellipsometry, spectrophotometry and atomic force microscopy. The optical parameters of the composite films have been evaluated using Tauc-Lorentz (TL) formulations. In order to derive the growth dependent refractive index profiles, each sample film has been modeled as an appropriate multilayer structure where each sub-layer was treated with the above TL parameterizations. All codeposited films demonstrated superiority with respect to the band gap and morphological measurements. At lower silica mixing compositions such as in 10-20% level, the composite films depicted superior spectral refractive index profile, band gap as well as the morphology. This aspect highlighted the fact that microstructural densifications in composite films can override the chemical compositions while deciding the refractive index and optical properties in such thin films.     

On the temperature dependence of Na migration in thin SiO2 films during ToF-SIMS O2 depth profiling

The detection of Na in insulating samples by means of time of flight-secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) depth profiling has always been a challenge. In particular the use of O₂⁺ as sputter species causes a severe artifact in the Na depth distribution due to Na migration under the influence of an internal electrical filed. In this paper we address the influence of the sample temperature on this artifact. It is shown that the transport of Na is a dynamic process in concordance with the proceeding sputter front. Low temperatures mitigated the migration process by reducing the Na mobility in the target. In the course of this work two sample types have been investigated: (i) A Na doped PMMA layer, deposited on a thin SiO₂ film. Here, the incorporation behavior of Na into SiO₂ during depth profiling is demonstrated. (ii) Na implanted into a thin SiO₂ film. By this sample type the migration behavior could be examined when defects, originating from the implantation process, are present in the SiO₂ target. In addition, we propose an approach for the evaluation of an implanted Na profile, which is unaffected by the migration process.     

Giant magnetoimpedance in FM/SiO2/Cu/SiO2/FM films at GHz frequencies

We study the magnetic properties at high frequency of new structures of the tri-layer samples. The magnetoimpedance effect was analyzed in FM/i/Cu/i/FM sandwiched layers, where the ferromagnetic layer (FM) is, in fact, a multilayered film [F (10 nm)+Cu (1 nm)]×50 and F is the amorphous ferromagnetic alloy Fe_73.5Cu₁Nb₃Si_13.5B₉ and i is an isolating layer produced by magnetron sputtering. The effect of, both, the probe current frequency (in the range 10 MHz–1.8 GHz) and the dimensions of the magnetic and non-magnetic layers of the MI response were investigated. A comparison between samples with and without the isolating layer is discussed. MI ratios of 220% were obtained for samples at 180 MHz with a ferromagnetic and Cu width layers of 2 and 1 mm, respectively.