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Investigation of the Amorphous to Nanocrystalline Phase Transition at the Deposition of Silicon Films in an ECWR Plasma of Pure SiH4

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

M. Scheib
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Center of Materials Research Institute for Surface and Thin Film Analysis (IFOS)University of Kaiserslautem, P. O. Box 3049, 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany
B. Schrcder
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Center of Materials Research
H. Oechsner
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Center of Materials Research Institute for Surface and Thin Film Analysis (IFOS)University of Kaiserslautem, P. O. Box 3049, 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany
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Abstract

A novel plasma based chemical vapour deposition (PECVD) technique employing electron cyclotron wave resonance (ECWR) for plasma excitation was applied to the deposition of hydrogenated nanocrystalline silicon (nc-Si:H) films. nc-Si:H films were produced at deposition rates up to 8Å/sec (TS = 200°C) with a pure SiH4 plasma in contrast to the conventional glow discharge technique where the high hydrogen dilution usually needed leads to considerable lower deposition rates. The amorphous-to-nanocrystalline phase transition was investigated in dependence of substrate temperature, the hf-power and magnetic field mandatory for ECWR, and SiH4-flow into the plasma. With the knowledge of the plasma parameters derived from single probe measurements, and the intensities of excited plasma species detected by means of optical emission spectroscopy we can qualitatively describe the silane-plasma dissociation behaviour. The nanocrystalline phase is found to be always deposited when the dissociation degree of the SiH4 plasma is almost saturated.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1996

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