Experimental investigation of acoustic substrate losses in 1850-MHz thin film BAW resonators

After optimizing for electromechanical coupling coefficient K², the main performance improvement in the thin film bulk acoustic wave resonators and filters can be achieved by improving the Q value, i.e., minimizing the losses. In Braggreflector- based solidly mounted resonator technology, a significant improvement of Q has been achieved by optimizing the reflector not only for longitudinal wave, the intended operation mode, but also for shear waves. We have investigated the remaining acoustic radiation losses to the substrate in so-optimized 1850-MHz AlN resonators by removing the substrate underneath the resonators and comparing the devices with and without substrate by electrical characterization before and after the substrate removal. Several methods to extract Q-values of the resonators are compared. Changes caused by substrate removal are observed in resonator behavior, but no significant improvement in Q-values can be confirmed. Loss mechanisms other than substrate leakage are concluded to dominate the resonator Q-value. Difficulties of detecting small changes in the Q-values of the resonators are also discussed.     

Low temperature plasma-assisted oxidation and thin-film deposition processes for forming device-quality SiO2/Si and composite dielectric-SiO2/Si heterostructures

In the high-temperature thermal oxidation of Si, the SiO₂/Si interface is continuously regenerated as the bulk oxide grows. This paper describes an alternative low temperature, 200–300 °C, plasma-assisted process that optimizes electrical properties of SiO₂/Si interfaces and bulk SiO₂ layers by separately controlling interface formation and bulk oxide deposition. Composite dielectrics, oxide/nitride (ON) and oxide (ONO), have been fabricated by extending the low temperature plasma-assisted processes to include deposition of Si₃N₄ films. The electrical properties of SiO₂/Si structures formed by the two-step, low temperature oxidation-deposition process are essentially the same as those of SiO₂/Si structures formed by high temperature, 850–1050 °C, thermal oxidation. The electrical properties of devices incorporating ON and ONO composite dielectrics are degraded with respect to the SiO₂/Si structures, but are similar to those of composite dielectrics formed by combinations of high temperature processing.     

1.05-GHz CMOS oscillator based on lateral- field-excited piezoelectric AlN contour- mode MEMS resonators

This paper reports on the first demonstration of a 1.05-GHz microelectromechanical (MEMS) oscillator based on lateral-field-excited (LFE) piezoelectric AlN contourmode resonators. The oscillator shows a phase noise level of -81 dBc/Hz at 1-kHz offset frequency and a phase noise floor of -146 dBc/Hz, which satisfies the global system for mobile communications (GSM) requirements for ultra-high frequency (UHF) local oscillators (LO). The circuit was fabricated in the AMI semiconductor (AMIS) 0.5-?m complementary metaloxide- semiconductor (CMOS) process, with the oscillator core consuming only 3.5 mW DC power. The device overall performance has the best figure-of-merit (FoM) when compared with other gigahertz oscillators that are based on film bulk acoustic resonator (FBAR), surface acoustic wave (SAW), and CMOS on-chip inductor and capacitor (CMOS LC) technologies. A simple 2-mask process was used to fabricate the LFE AlN resonators operating between 843 MHz and 1.64 GHz with simultaneously high Q (up to 2,200) and kt 2 (up to 1.2%). This process further relaxes manufacturing tolerances and improves yield. All these advantages make these devices suitable for post-CMOS integrated on-chip direct gigahertz frequency synthesis in reconfigurable multiband wireless communications.     

Sputtered SiO2 as low acoustic impedance material for Bragg mirror fabrication in BAW resonators

In this paper we describe the procedure to sputter low acoustic impedance SiO₂ films to be used as a low acoustic impedance layer in Bragg mirrors for BAW resonators. The composition and structure of the material are assessed through infrared absorption spectroscopy. The acoustic properties of the films (mass density and sound velocity) are assessed through X-ray reflectometry and picosecond acoustic spectroscopy. A second measurement of the sound velocity is achieved through the analysis of the longitudinal ?/2 resonance that appears in these silicon oxide films when used as uppermost layer of an acoustic reflector placed under an AlN-based resonator.     

基于MoS2/SiO2范德华异质结的VO2薄膜转移打印研究

近年来, 柔性电子器件由于在物联网、生物电子等领域的潜在应用引起了研究者的广泛关注。功能氧化物材料在柔性聚合物中的集成已被证明是实现高性能柔性电子器件的有效方式。由于功能氧化物薄膜通常需要高温制备, 直接在柔性聚合物基底上合成高质量的氧化物薄膜仍然是一个巨大的挑战。本研究提出了一种基于MoS₂/SiO₂范德华异质结转移打印大面积VO₂薄膜的方法, 即利用MoS₂和SiO₂薄膜亲疏水性能的不同, 可以仅使用去离子水解离MoS₂/SiO₂范德华异质结界面, 成功将Si/SiO₂/MoS₂/SiO₂/VO₂ 多层膜结构上的VO₂薄膜转印到Si、SiO₂/Si以及柔性基底上。X射线衍射(XRD)结果显示, 转印前后VO₂薄膜的晶体结构没有差异, 变温Raman光谱和变温红外反射光谱证明了转印前后VO₂薄膜良好的金属-绝缘体转变性能。本研究提供了一种有效的功能氧化物薄膜转印方法, 在不引入牺牲层和腐蚀性溶剂的条件下, 实现了VO₂薄膜在任意基底上的低温集成, 为柔性可穿戴电子器件的研制提供了一种新思路。     

五层纳米SiO2-Al2O3/聚酰亚胺复合薄膜的制备及性能

采用浸胶法制备了一系列SiO₂-Al₂O₃/聚酰亚胺（SiO₂-Al₂O₃/PI）五层耐电晕薄膜A_m A_n PA_n A_m,其中中间层（P）为纯PI薄膜,外层（A_m）、次外层（A_n）分别为SiO₂-Al₂O₃掺杂不同质量分数的纳米SiO₂-Al₂O₃/PI薄膜。采用TEM、FTIR、宽频介电谱仪、电导电流测试仪、耐电晕测试仪、介电强度测试仪和拉伸实验机对五层纳米复合PI耐电晕薄膜的微观结构、介电性能和力学性能进行了表征和测试。结果表明,SiO₂-Al₂O₃/PI复合薄膜掺杂层形成了分布均匀的有机/无机复合结构;SiO₂-Al₂O₃纳米粒子的保护作用是影响复合材料耐电晕性能的主要因素,复合薄膜A₃₂A₁₆PA₁₆A₃₂的耐电晕寿命最大,为23.4 h;外层掺杂量对五层SiO₂-Al₂O₃/PI复合材料的介电强度影响较大,复合薄膜A₂₀A₂₈PA₂₈A₂₀的介电强度最大,为302.3 kV/mm;通过对五层复合结构的设计,可以在兼顾材料力学性能的同时,提高其耐电晕寿命和介电强度。     

疏水耐环境型SiO2/TiO2/SiO2-TiO2太阳能宽光谱增透膜的制备及性能研究

利用TFCcal设计软件构建膜系结构, 采用溶胶-凝胶工艺和提拉法在超白玻璃上制备出厚度精确可控的宽光谱、高增透型SiO₂/TiO₂/SiO₂-TiO₂减反膜, 同时结合甲基三乙氧基硅烷(MTES)改性碱催化的SiO₂溶胶, 通过提拉法一次制备出高透过率疏水型薄膜。研究表明, 高增透型三层宽光谱减反膜的理论膜层厚度依次为: 80.9 nm(内层SiO₂-TiO₂)、125.0 nm(中间层TiO₂)、95.5 nm(外层SiO₂), 其在400~700 nm可见光范围内平均透过率实际可高达97.03%以上。多层膜经过退火处理后, 膜面的水接触角高达131.5°, 同时陈化两个月以后的多层膜透过率仅下降0.143%, 表明制备的SiO₂/TiO₂/ SiO₂-TiO₂多层减反膜具有优良的疏水和耐环境性能。     

AlN films sputtered on iridium electrodes for bulk acoustic wave resonators

We report on the growth of highly c-axis-textured aluminum nitride (AlN) films sputtered on iridium layers for thin film bulk acoustic microresonator applications. Iridium films were evaporated on oxidized silicon covered with Ti or Mo/Ti seed layers to improve crystal quality and adhesion. The crystal quality of the AlN films as a function of the crystal structure of the iridium electrode and its pre-conditioning by Ar⁺ bombardment was analyzed by X-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy and wet chemical etching. Solidly mounted resonators using a single low-impedance layer of silicon dioxide for acoustic isolation were fabricated for a preliminary assessment of the piezoelectric activity of AlN films and the influence of the AlN/Ir stack on the performance of the devices. The electromechanical coupling factor of the AlN films was derived by fitting the electrical response of the resonators to Mason's physical model. AlN films exhibited very high coupling factors (7.5%) barely dependent on the width of the rocking-curve around the AlN 00·2 reflection. The high acoustic impedance of iridium electrodes provided resonators with quality factors higher than those of similar resonators built on lighter electrodes, such as molybdenum.     

石墨烯/纳米减反结构复合透明导电薄膜的研究

石墨烯具有较高的透过率及良好的电导率, 作为透明导电薄膜具有潜在的应用价值。首先在石英基底上引入SiO₂纳米球阵列结构作为光学减反射层, 使石英基底可见光区光学透过率从93.2%增加到99.0%。然后利用常压化学气相沉积方法, 通过基底表面铜颗粒远程催化碳源, 直接在减反层上可控制备具有石墨烯/纳米减反结构的新型复合透明导电薄膜。通过去除SiO₂纳米球阵列结构形成反相复制的石墨烯空心球阵列结构, 且生长时间10 min时, 对应半高宽约40 cm^-1, I_2D/I_G = 2.31, I_D/I_G = 0.77, 证明在SiO₂纳米球阵列减反结构上制备了低缺陷且连续的全包覆少层石墨烯薄膜。引入SiO₂纳米球阵列减反结构后, 其在可见光区光学550 nm波长处的透过率平均提高了5.5%, 方块电阻相对无减反射层基底平均降低了20.09%。本研究方法避免了复杂的转移工序, 减少了对石墨烯的损失与破坏, 同时实现了高透光性及高导电性的功能协同, 在光伏器件、平板显示等领域展示出更大的应用前景。     

Polycrystalline AlN films with preferential orientation by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition

AlN thin films for acoustic wave devices were prepared by Microwave Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition under different process conditions, employing Si (100) and Pt (111)/SiO₂/Si (100) substrates. The films were characterized by X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infrared transmission spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The values of the distance between the plasma and the tri-methyl-aluminum precursor injector, the radiofrequency bias potential, and the substrate temperature were central in the development of polycrystalline films. The choice of the chamber total pressure during deposition allowed for the development of two different crystallographic orientations, i.e., <0001> or <1010>. The film microstructures exhibited in general a column-like growth with rounded tops, an average grain size of about 40 nm, and a surface roughness lower than 20 nm under the best conditions.     

Enhancement of Temperature Sensitivity for Metal–Oxide–Semiconductor (MOS) Tunneling Temperature Sensors by Utilizing Hafnium Oxide (HfO2) Film Added on Silicon Dioxide (SiO2)

In this paper, metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) capacitors fabricated on p-type silicon substrate with hafnium oxide (HfO₂ ) film added on silicon dioxide (SiO₂) were demonstrated as reliable temperature-detecting devices. The saturation current of MOS (p) capacitor with added HfO₂ film is easy to saturate within 0.5 V. From 40 degC to 90degC, each increase of 10degC almost doubles the saturation current. The C-V curves show that the interface properties of Si/SiO₂ and SiO₂/HfO ₂ are good. It was also shown that these devices are reliable even though they had been electrically stressed at various temperatures (30degC~90degC) for 15 000 s. They have the potential to be integrated into the circuits as temperature detectors in the era of ultralarge-scale-integration technology     

Determination of ZnO temperature coefficients using thin film bulk acoustic wave resonators

Thin film bulk acoustic wave (BAW) resonators have been the subject of research in RF microelectronics for some time. Much of the interest lay in utilizing the resonators to design filters for wireless applications. Some of the major advantages BAW devices present over other filter technologies in use today include size reduction and the possibility of on-chip integration. As the technology matures, the necessity to more fully characterize the performance of the devices and to develop more accurate models describing their behavior is apparent. In this investigation, the effects that temperature variations have on 1.8-2.0 GHz zinc oxide (ZnO)-based solidly mounted BAW resonators (SMRs) are studied. The average temperature coefficients of the series and parallel resonant frequencies of the fabricated devices are found to be -31.5 ppm//spl deg/C and -35.3 ppm//spl deg/C, respectively. The slight decrease in separation between the two resonant frequencies with temperature implies there is slightly less effective coupling with increased temperature. No definite trend is found describing the behavior of the quality factor (Q) of the resonator with temperature variations. With little temperature coefficient data for thin film ZnO available in the literature, the importance of an accurate model is evident. The resonator device performance is simulated using Ballato's electronic circuit model for acoustic devices on a SPICE-based platform. By virtue of the comparison between the predicted and measured device response, various material parameters are extracted.     

Synthesis and surface acoustic wave properties of AlN films deposited on LiNbO3 substrates

The c-axis-oriented aluminum nitride (AlN) films were deposited on z-cut lithium niobate (LiNbO₃) substrates by reactive RF magnetron sputtering. The crystalline orientation of the AlN film determined by x-ray diffraction (XRD) was found to be dependent on the deposition conditions such as substrate temperature, N₂ concentration, and sputtering pressure. Highly c-axis-oriented AlN films to fabricate the AlN/LiNbO₃-based surface acoustic wave (SAW) devices were obtained under a sputtering pressure of 3.5 mTorr, N₂ concentration of 60%, RF power of 165 W, and substrate temperature of 400°C. A dense pebble-like surface texture of c-axis-oriented AlN film was obtained by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The phase velocity and the electromechanical coupling coefficient (K²) of SAW were measured to be about 4200 m/s and 1.5%, respectively. The temperature coefficient of frequency (TCF) of SAW was calculated to be about -66 ppm/°C     

Structural, chemical, and electrical characterisation of reactively sputtered WSx thin films

WS_x films were sputter-deposited on Si, SiO₂/Si, and glass substrates from a WS₂ target in an Ar/H₂S atmosphere. Their structure, morphology, chemical composition, and electrical properties were investigated as a function of deposition parameters such as working pressure and H₂S fraction. Films could be grown in the composition range WS_0.3−WS_3.5. Crystallisation was achieved at substrate temperatures T_s > 70 °C and compositions 0.7 ≤ x ≤ 1.95. While the first 5–50 nm near the interface exhibited a basal orientation (c), further growth resulted in the formation of edge-oriented platelets (c) giving rise to a porous, lamellar microstructure. The crystalline structure was mainly turbostratic, while some degree of ordered stacking was present in samples grown at high substrate temperature (600 °C). Resistivity measurements showed a semiconductor-type temperature dependence characterised by activation energies up to 95 meV. Sheet resistance was found to be nearly independent of film thickness, suggesting that the main carrier transport takes place in an interfacial layer of about 20 nm in thickness.     

Theoretical study on SAW characteristics of layered structuresincluding a diamond layer

Diamond has the highest surface acoustic wave (SAW) velocity among all materials and thus can provide much advantage for fabrication of high frequency SAW devices when it is combined with a piezoelectric thin film. Basic SAW properties of layered structures consisting of a piezoelectric material layer, a diamond layer and a substrate were examined by theoretical calculation. Rayleigh mode SAW's with large SAW velocities up to 12,000 m/s and large electro-mechanical coupling coefficients from 1 to 11% were found to propagate in ZnO/diamond/Si, LiNbO₃/diamond/Si and LiTaO₃/diamond/Si structures. It was also found that a SiO₂/ZnO/diamond/Si structure can realize a zero temperature coefficient of frequency with a high phase velocity of 8,000-9,000 m/s and a large electro-mechanical coupling coefficient of up to 4%     

Structural investigation of bulk and thin film PLZT using X-ray absorption spectroscopy

Thin film electro-optic and non-linear optical materials are of interest for applications in high-speed integrated optical devices. Materials of the system Pb_1−x/100La_x/100(Zr_y/100 Ti_1−y/100)_1−x/400O₃ or PLZT x/y/(100−y) are attractive since they can be integrated into Si and GaAs substrates using suitable deposition techniques. In this investigation we examine the structural properties of r.f. magnetron sputter-deposited PLZT using X-ray absorption near-edge spectroscopy (XANES). For XANES analysis, four samples were selected: (1) a highly oriented PLZT 28/0/100 film of ≈ 4500 Å deposited on SiO₂; (2) a highly oriented PLZT 28/0/100 film of ≈ 4500 Å deposited on a 2 ωm SiO₂ buffer layer over a Si(100) substrate; (3) a highly oriented PLZT 28/0/100 film of ≈4500 Å deposited on Al₂O₃ (1 02); and (4) a commercial ceramic wafer of PLZT 9/65/35. The XANES experiments were performed at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL) using electron yield and fluorescence techniques. Data was taken at the Ti K-edge (4966.4eV) and compared to reference spectra. Of the reference spectra, the Ti K-edge spectra of the PLZT most closely resemble perovskite (SrTiO₃). The surface and bulk thin film are similar and all the 28/0/100 spectra resemble the spectra of 9/65/35, indicating similar cubic perovskite structures for these materials.     

Improvement of Interface in SiC Particle-Reinforced Al-Li Composite by Sol-Gel Coating Technique

This paper describes a study to investigate an improvement of the interface in SiC particle-reinforced Al-Li composite by coating the SiC particle with metallic oxide film. A coating method utilizing a sol-gel technique produced fine SiC powders covered with SiO₂, TiO₂, or ZrO₂ metallic oxide film. The film thickness was not affected by the hydrolysis time of the sol solution under a dry argon atmosphere. The average thickness of the SiO₂, TiO₂ and ZrO₂ films was about 10 nm, 8 nm and 27 nm, respectively. In metallic oxide coated SiC particle-reinforced Al-Li composite, TEM observation showed that the coating film was not damaged by fabrication processing, and that the formation of Al⁴C³ at the interface between the matrix and reinforcement was controlled by the coating film. The tensile strength and elongation of the extruded TiO₂, coated sample increased by 12% and 24%, respectively, compared with the non-coated sample.     

Bandpass filters for 8 GHz using solidly mounted bulk acoustic wave resonators

Frequency shift, design, and fabrication issues have been investigated for the realization of 8 GHz bandpass filters based on AlN thin film bulk acoustic wave resonators. Fabrication includes well-textured AlN thin films on Pt (111) electrodes and SiO/sub 2//AlN Bragg gratings for the solidly mounted resonators. The chosen ladder filter design requires the tuning of the shunt resonators with respect to the series one. For this purpose, mass loading of the shunt resonators with aluminum (Al) and SiO/sub 2/ were studied. Design simulations showed that the channel bandwidth can be doubled by shifting more than the difference of resonance and antiresonance frequency. Bandpass filters at 8 GHz were successfully fabricated with -5.5 dB insertion loss, -26 dB out-of-band rejection, 99 MHz (1.2%) /spl plusmn/0.2 dB channel bandwidth, and 224 MHz (2.8%) 3 dB bandwidth. The group delay variations within any 30 MHz channel inside the channel bandwidth amounts to <0.2 ns. Comparisons with simulation calculations and single resonator characteristics show that each /spl pi/-section includes a parasitic series resistance and inductance.     

纳米SiO2微球在PMMA凝胶聚合物电解质中的尺寸效应及其在全固态电致变色器件中的应用

本文采用St?ber法制备了不同粒径纳米SiO_2微球,将其加入到聚甲基丙烯酸甲酯(PMMA)基凝胶聚合物电解质中,研究了纳米SiO_2的尺寸效应及其对全固态电致变色器件性能的影响。研究发现,正硅酸乙酯和乙醇的体积比影响所得纳米SiO_2微球粒径大小,乙醇所占体积比例越大,制备的纳米SiO_2微球粒径越小。在PMMA基凝胶聚合物电解质中,当纳米SiO_2微球用量相同时,电解质的电化学窗口随着纳米SiO_2微球粒径的减小先增大后减小,离子电导率随纳米SiO_2微球粒径的增大而增大,在纳米SiO_2微球粒径为150 nm时电化学窗口达到最大,离子电导率的增速也变得不明显。当粒径为150 nm的纳米SiO_2微球含量为7wt%时,PMMA凝胶电解质的电化学窗口为4.8 V,电导率为1.13 mS/cm。以该电解质组装结构为:导电玻璃(ITO)‖SiO_2/碳酸丙烯脂(PC)-LiClO_4/PMMA‖金属-超分子聚合物‖ITO的透射式全固态电致变色器件,所得器件可在淡绿色和深蓝色之间变色,对比度高达60.1%,且器件的稳定性得以明显提高。     

Preparation of SiO2 thin films using the Cat-CVD method

Using the catalytic chemical vapor deposition (Cat-CVD) method, a-Si and SiN_x films have been the main focus of studies. SiO₂ films have not been studied because of the limited life of catalysts such as tungsten or molybdenum in an oxidative atmosphere. In this report, we describe oxide film preparation using an iridium catalyst. We determined the most appropriate catalyst material for the oxide film process by exposing heated materials in tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) or O₂ gas. As the result, it was confirmed that the Ir catalyst works in a slow oxidative atmosphere. Using the Ir catalyst, SiO₂ films were deposited in two gas combinations: TEOS and N₂O, and SiH₄ and N₂O. Although the SiO₂ film processed with the combination of TEOS and N₂O was stoichiometric, its breakdown voltage is not sufficient. The SiO₂ film processed with the combination of SiH₄ and N₂O showed good electrical property.