Improved Interface and Electrical Properties by Inserting an Ultrathin SiO2 Buffer Layer in the Al2O3/Si Heterojunction

An ultrathin SiO₂ interfacial buffer layer is formed using the nitric acid oxidation of Si (NAOS) method to improve the interface and electrical properties of Al₂O₃/Si, and its effect on the leakage current and interfacial states is analyzed. The leakage current density of the Al₂O₃/Si sample (8.1 × 10^?9 A cm^?2) due to the formation of low‐density SiO_x layer during the atomic layer deposition (ALD) process, decreases by approximately two orders of magnitude when SiO₂ buffer layer is inserted using the NAOS method (1.1 × 10^?11 A cm^?2), and further decreases after post‐metallization annealing (PMA) (1.4 × 10^?12 A cm^?2). Based on these results, the influence of interfacial defect states is analyzed. The equilibrium density of defect sites (N_d) and fixed charge density (N_f) are both reduced after NAOS and then further decreased by PMA treatment. The interface state density (D_it) at 0.11 eV decreases about one order of magnitude from 2.5 × 10¹² to 7.3 × 10¹¹ atoms eV^?1 cm^?2 after NAOS, and to 3.0 × 10¹⁰ atoms eV^?1 cm^?2 after PMA. Consequently, it is demonstrated that the high defect density of the Al₂O₃/Si interface is drastically reduced by fabricating ultrathin high density SiO₂ buffer layer, and the insulating properties are improved.     

Defect Characterization in Ge/(001)Si Epitaxial Films Grown by Reduced-Pressure Chemical Vapor Deposition

We studied the microstructural characteristics and electrical properties of epitaxial Ge films grown on Si(001) substrates by x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The films were grown using a two-step technique by reduced-pressure chemical vapor deposition, where the first step promotes two-dimensional growth at a lower substrate temperature. We observed a decrease in defect density with increasing film thickness. Ge films with thickness of 3.5 μm exhibited threading dislocation densities of 5 × 10⁶ cm^?2, which yielded devices with dark current density of 5 mA cm^?2 (1 V reverse bias). We also noted the presence of stacking faults in the form of lines in the films and establish that this is an important defect for Ge films grown by this deposition technique.     

Mechanism of defect formation in low-dose oxygen implanted silicon-on-insulator material

The defects and microstructure of low-dose (<0.7 × 10¹⁸ cm⁻²), oxygen-implanted silicon-on-insulator (SIMOX) material were investigated as a function of implant dose and annealing temperature by plan-view and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy. The threading-dislocations in low-dose (0.2∼0.3×10¹⁸ cm⁻²), annealed SIMOX originate from unfaulting of long (∼10 μm), shallow (0.3 μm), extrinsic stacking faults generated during the ramping stage of annealing. As dose increases, the defect density is reduced and the structure of the buried oxide layer evolves dramatically. It was found that there is a dose window which gives a lower defect density and a continuous buried oxide with a reduced density of Si islands in the buried oxide.     

Reduction of Dislocation Density by Producing Novel Structures

HgCdTe, because of its narrow band gap and low dark current, is the infrared detector material of choice for several military and commercial applications. CdZnTe is the substrate of choice for HgCdTe as it can be lattice matched, resulting in low-defect-density epitaxy. Being often small and not circular, layers grown on CdZnTe are difficult to process in standard semiconductor equipment. Furthermore, CdZnTe can often be very expensive. Alternate inexpensive large circular substrates, such as silicon or gallium arsenide, are needed to scale HgCdTe detector production. Growth of HgCdTe on these alternate substrates has its own difficulty, namely large lattice mismatch (19% for Si and 14% for GaAs). This large mismatch results in high defect density and reduced detector performance. In this paper we discuss ways to reduce the effects of dislocations by gettering these defects to the edge of a reticulated structure. These reticulated surfaces enable stress-free regions for dislocations to glide to. In this work, a novel structure was developed that allows for etch pit density of less than 4?×?10⁵/cm² for HgCdTe-on-Si. This is almost two orders of magnitude less than the as-grown etch pit density of 1.1?×?10⁷/cm². This value of 3.35?×?10⁵/cm² is below the <1?×?10⁶/cm² or even the better <5?×?10⁵/cm² target for this research, making HgCdTe-on- alternate substrate density much more like that of HgCdTe-on-CdZnTe.     

Electrical properties of Si:H/<Emphasis Type="Italic">p</Emphasis>-Si structures fabricated by hydrogen implantation

Hydrogenated silicon (Si:H) layers and Si:H/p-Si heterostructures were produced by multiple-energy (3–24 keV) high-dose (5×10¹⁶–3×10¹⁷ cm^?2) hydrogen implantation into p-Si wafers. After implantation, current transport across the structures is controlled by the Poole-Frenkel mechanism, with the energy of the dominating emission center equal to E _c ?0.89 eV. The maximum photosensitivity is observed for structures implanted with 3.2×10¹⁷ cm^?2 of hydrogen and annealed in the temperature range of 250–300°C. The band gap of the Si:H layer E _g ≈2.4 eV, and the dielectric constant ?≈3.2. The density of states near the Fermi level is (1–2)×10¹⁷ cm^?3 eV^?1.     

Heteroepitaxy of HgCdTe(112) infrared detector structures on Si(112) substrates by molecular-beam epitaxy

High-quality, single-crystal epitaxial films of CdTe(112)B and HgCdTe(112)B have been grown directly on Si(112) substrates without the need for GaAs interfacial layers. The CdTe and HgCdTe films have been characterized with optical microscopy, x-ray diffraction, wet chemical defect etching, and secondary ion mass spectrometry. HgCdTe/Si infrared detectors have also been fabricated and tested. The CdTe(112)B films are highly specular, twin-free, and have x-ray rocking curves as narrow as 72 arc-sec and near-surface etch pit density (EPD) of 2 × 10⁶ cm⁻² for 8 μm thick films. HgCdTe(112)B films deposited on Si substrates have x-ray rocking curve FWHM as low as 76 arc-sec and EPD of 3-22 × 10⁶ cm⁻². These MBE-grown epitaxial structures have been used to fabricate the first high-performance HgCdTe IR detectors grown directly on Si without use of an intermediate GaAs buffer layer. HgCdTe/Si infrared detectors have been fabricated with 40% quantum efficiency and R₀A = 1.64 × 10⁴ Ωm₂ (0 FOV) for devices with 7.8 μm cutoff wavelength at 78Kto demonstrate the capability of MBE for growth of large-area HgCdTe arrays on Si.     

Surface gettering of background impurities and defects in GaAs wafers

The first data on surface gettering of background impurities and defects from the bulk of single-crystal undoped GaAs(111) wafers are reported. The wafers were 1.6 mm thick, with an initial electron density of (1–3)×10¹⁵ cm^?3 and a mobility of 1500–2000 cm²/(V s) at room temperature. The wafers were cut from single crystals grown by the Czochralski method from a nonstoichiometric As-enriched Ga-As melt. Gettering was carried out during thermal treatment of the wafers in hydrogen at 400–850°C, with the preliminary deposited layer of Y or SiO₂ 1000 Å thick. As a result of gettering, the charge carrier density decreased to 10⁸–10¹⁰ cm^?3, while the mobility increased to 7000 cm²/(V s).     

Light-emitting Si nanostructures formed in SiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> on irradiation with swift heavy ions

SiO₂ layers containing implanted excess Si are irradiated with Xe ions with an energy of 130 MeV and doses of 3 × 10¹²–10¹⁴ cm⁻². In the samples irradiated with a dose of 3 × 10¹² cm⁻², ∼10¹² cm⁻² segregated clusters 3–4 nm in dimension are detected by transmission electron microscopy. With increasing dose, the dimensions and number of these clusters increase. In the photoluminescence spectrum, a 660- to 680-nm band is observed, with the intensity dependent on the dose. After passivation of the sample with hydrogen at 500°C, the band disappears, but a new ∼780-nm band typical of Si nanocrystals becomes evident. On the basis of the entire set of data, it is concluded that the 660- to 680-nm band is associated with imperfect Si nanocrystals grown in the tracks of Xe ions due to high ionization losses. The nonmonotonic dependence of the photoluminescence intensity on the dose is attributed to the difference between the diameters of tracks and the diameters of the displacements’ cascades responsible for defect formation.     

Magnetic ordering in crystalline Si implanted with Co ions with intermediate doses

Crystalline Si implanted with the 380-keV cobalt ions with the dose Φ = 10¹⁴?10¹⁶ cm^?2 is studied. The method of Rutherford backscattering is used to determine the Si amorphization threshold (Φ = 3 × 10¹⁴ cm^?2). A quasi-resonance anisotropic line with a width of approximately 170 mT is observed at a temperature of T = 78 K in the spectrum of the electron spin resonance of silicon implanted with Co⁺ ions with Φ ≥ 3 × 10¹⁴) cm^?2. A resonance signal of paramagnetic centers in amorphous Si regions (g = 2.0057 and δB = 0.74 mT) is observed against the background of the above line. A quasi-resonance line of the electron spin resonance related to Co atoms and intrinsic Si defects was not observed at T = 300 K.     

X-ray-emission study of the structure of Si:H layers formed by low-energy hydrogen-ion implantation

Amorphous silicon layers formed by implantation of 24-keV hydrogen ions into SiO₂/Si and Si with doses of 2.7×10¹⁷ and 2.1×10¹⁷ cm^?2, respectively, were studied using ultrasoft X-ray emission spectroscopy with variations in the energy of excitation electrons. It is ascertained that the surface silicon layer with a thickness as large as 150–200 nm is amorphized as a result of implantation. Implantation of hydrogen ions into silicon coated with an oxide layer brings about the formation of a hydrogenated silicon layer, which is highly stable thermally.     

X-ray rocking curve analysis of ion implanted mercury cadmium telluride

Junction formation by ion implantation is a critical step in producing high quality infrared focal plane arrays in mercury cadmium telluride (MCT). We have analyzed the structural properties of MCT implanted with B at doses of 10¹⁴ and 10¹⁵ cm⁻² using double and triple crystal x-ray diffraction (DCD and TCD) to monitor the disorder and strain of the implanted region as a function of processing conditions. TCD (333) reflections show that a distinct tensile peak is produced by the high dose implant while the low dose implant shows only a low angle shoulder on the substrate peak. A preliminary association of the low angle shoulder with point defects has been made since no extended defects have been observed in the low dose range. For the high dose implant, extended defect formation has been reported and may be responsible for the tensile peak. After annealing, the low angle shoulder on the low dose implant has disappeared, while the high dose implant exhibits an increase in the tensile strain from 6.5 × 10⁻⁴ to 9.3 × 10⁻⁴ after 24 h of annealing and then decreases in tensile strain to 7.3 × 10⁻⁴ after 48 h of annealing. It is believed the changes in strain are associated with the Oswald ripening and dissolution of extended defects, which has been observed during annealing of ion implanted Si.     

Incorporation and Activation of Arsenic Dopant in Single-Crystal CdTe Grown on Si by Molecular Beam Epitaxy

We report the use of molecular beam epitaxy to achieve p-type doping of CdTe grown on Si(211) substrates, by use of an arsenic cracker and post-growth annealing. A high hole density in CdTe is crucial for high efficiency II–VI-based solar cells. We measured the density of As in single-crystal CdTe by secondary ion mass spectroscopy; this showed that high As incorporation is achieved at low growth temperatures. Progressively higher incorporation was observed during low-temperature growth, presumably because of degradation of crystal quality with incorporation of As at such defect sites as dislocations and defect complexes. After As activation annealing under Hg overpressure, hole concentrations were obtained from Hall measurements. The highest doping level was ～2.3 × 10¹⁶ cm^?3, and near-10¹⁶ cm^?3 doping was readily reproduced. The activation efficiency was ～50%, but further optimization of the growth and annealing conditions is likely to improve this value.     

Optimization of the spacer layer thickness in AlInAs/InGaAs/InP MODFETs

The effects of spacer layer thickness variations on single atomic planar doped (APD) AlInAs/InGaAs modulation doped field effect transistors grown by solid source molecular beam epitaxy have been studied and characterized. The thickness of the AlInAs spacer layer was varied between 0 and 100Å. Room temperature Hall measurements found the mobility exhibited an exponential relationship ranging from 6500 to 10800 cm²/Vs. The sheet charge varied linearly from 3.46 × 10¹² cm^?2 to 2.24 × 10¹² cm^?2. An optimum spacer layer thickness based on maximum channel conductance was found to be 40Å with a mobility of 9600 cm²/Vs and a sheet charge of 3.0 × 10¹² cm^?2. The loss of mobility due to remote ion scattering was examined. This loss was related to the distribution of the Si atoms in the atomic planar doped layer in order to obtain the standard deviation of the interface. This relationship will allow various growth parameters, such as substrate temperature, growth rate, and V/III ratio to be altered to determine the optimum conditions independent of the growth chamber used to create the structures.     

Carbon in silicon: Properties and impact on devices

The properties, origin and analysis of carbon in silicon and its influence on the electrical characteristics of devices are investigated and reviewed. The typical carbon concentrations in electronic-grade silicon are still some 10¹⁶ cm^?3. The small distribution coefficient (k₀ = 0.058) causes an inhomogeneous incorporation of carbon along the crystal axis and across the crystal diameter during crystal growth. Carbon concentrations exceeding about 5 × 10¹⁶ cm^?3 in float-zoned silicon can lead to the formation of process-induced defects in the fabrication of power rectifiers and thyristors. These defects which are frequently arranged in a swirl-like pattern strongly deteriorate the electrical characteristics of these devices. It is shown that carbon is involved primarily in the generation of the defect nuclei whereas the defects finally observed form via precipitation of oxygen and agglomeration of silicon interstitials. Reasons for the benign behavior of high carbon concentrations in the processing of integrated circuits are discussed. In powder device processing the formation of carbon-induced defects is safely avoided by application of silicon containing carbon less than 5 × 10¹⁶ cm^?3.     

Electrical properties of ultrathin oxide grown by high pressure oxidation and N2O nitridation for ULSI device applications

For the first time, the feasibility of ultrathin oxides grown by high pressure oxidation (HIPOX) technology in O₂ ambient and nitrided in N₂O ambient with rapid thermal processing has been investigated in order for them to be used as a gate oxide of ULSI devices. The dielectric breakdown electric field (E _BR) and the midgap interface trap density (D _itm) of the nitrided-HIPOX oxide are ?13:9MVcm^?1 and 2 × 10¹⁰cm^?2eV^?1 respectively which are almost the same as those of the control oxide and the nitrided-control oxide. The time-tobreakdown (t_BD) of the nitrided-HIPOX oxide is longer than that of the control oxide at low electric field (<10^?4 A cm^?2) owing to the combination of nitrogen and defects near the Si?SiO₂ interface during nitridation. The lifetimes of the nitrided-HIPOX oxides increase initially, reaching a maximum value of 1:2 × 10⁹ s at a stress current density of 1 × 10^?6 A cm^?2,corresponding to over 10 years, and then decrease as nitridation proceeds.     

Si Doping of GaN in Hydride Vapor-Phase Epitaxy

Growth of GaN boules by hydride vapor-phase epitaxy (HVPE) is very attractive for fabrication of GaN substrates. Use of dichlorosilane as a source for Si doping of bulk GaN is investigated. It is shown that no tensile strain is incorporated into mm-thick, Si-doped GaN layers on sapphire substrates if the threading dislocation density is previously reduced to 2.5 × 10⁷ cm^?2 or below. High-quality GaN layers with electron densities up to 1.5 × 10¹⁹ cm^?3 have been achieved, and an upper limit of about 4 × 10¹⁹ cm^?3 for Si doping of GaN boules was deduced considering the evolution of dislocations with thickness. A 2-inch, Si-doped GaN crystal with length exceeding 6 mm and targeted Si doping of about 1 × 10¹⁸ cm^?3 is demonstrated.     

Zone-melting recrystallization of silicon thin films for solar cell application

Zone-melting recrystallization (ZMR) has been applied successfully to fabricate a thin-film silicon solar cell with high conversion efficiency that also has the potential to lower the material cost. It is found that seeding from an Si substrate during ZMR is not necessary for high-quality thin-film Si with a low defect density and the dominant (100) crystallographic orientation. This feature is very important because one can separate the thin-film Si from the substrate in order to obtain a flexible solar cell and the substrate can be recycled. Lowering the scanning speed of the upper movable carbon strip heater has proved to be most effective for high-quality crystal. In order to realize thin-film Si solar cells, a 60-μm thick Si active layer is deposited by chemical vapour deposition on recrystallized Si film. Pyramidal shape formation at the surface for light confinement by using (100) orientation and low-energy H⁺ ion irradiation for the passivation of crystal defects has been applied to the fabrication of thin-film Si solar cells and we achieved high conversion efficiencies of more than 14% for a 10 × 10 cm² cell and 16% for a 2 × 2 cm² cell.     

Removal of fluoropolimers from the surface of silicon structures by treatment in an atomic hydrogen flow

The possibility of successful removal of fluoropolimers from the surface of silicon structures by treatment in an atomic hydrogen flow is investigated. It is ascertained that the treatment of samples in a direct atomic hydrogen flow with a density of 2 × 10¹⁵ cm^?2 s^?1 at temperatures from 20 to 100°C leads to a decrease in the content of fluorocarbon residues (in particular, CF) by 5 orders of magnitude. Fluorocarbon residues are removed from both the planar surface of silicon structures and the lateral walls and the bottom of contact holes with a diameter of 0.3–0.25 μm and larger and a depth of 0.9 μm, opened in a SiO₂ layer by reactive ion etching. A treatment time of 2 min is sufficient for complete removal of the fluoropolimers. This process of dry cleaning can be recommended for use in the fabrication of integrated circuits containing an interlayer of a low-permittivity insulator.     

Exfoliation and blistering of Cd<Subscript>0.96</Subscript>Zn<Subscript>0.04</Subscript>Te substrates by ion implantation

As part of a series of wafer bonding experiments, the exfoliation/blistering of ion-implanted Cd_0.96Zn_0.04Te substrates was investigated as a function of postimplantation annealing conditions. (211) Cd_0.96Zn_0.04Te samples were implanted either with hydrogen (5×10¹⁶ cm⁻²; 40–200 keV) or co-implanted with boron (1×10¹⁵ cm⁻²; 147 keV) and hydrogen (1–5×10¹⁶ cm⁻²; 40 keV) at intended implant temperatures of 253 K or 77 K. Silicon reference samples were simultaneously co-implanted. The change in the implant profile after annealing at low temperatures (<300°C) was monitored using high-resolution x-ray diffraction, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and optical microscopy. The samples implanted at the higher temperature did not show any evidence of blistering after annealing, although there was evidence of sample heating above 253 K during the implant. The samples implanted at 77 K blistered at temperatures ranging from 150°C to 300°C, depending on the hydrogen implant dose and the presence of the boron co-implant. The production of blisters under different implant and annealing conditions is consistent with nucleation of subsurface defects at lower temperature, followed by blistering/exfoliation at higher temperature. The surface roughness remained comparable to that of the as-implanted sample after the lower temperature anneal sequence, so this defect nucleation step is consistent with a wafer bond annealing step prior to exfoliation. Higher temperature anneals lead to exfoliation of all samples implanted at 77 K, although the blistering temperature (150–300°C) was a strong function of the implant conditions. The exfoliated layer thickness was 330 nm, in good agreement with the projected range. The “optimum” conditions based on our experimental data showed that implanting CdZnTe with H⁺ at 77 K and a dose of 5×10¹⁶/cm² is compatible with developing high interfacial energy at the bonded interface during a low-temperature (150°C) anneal followed by layer exfoliation at higher (300°C) temperature.     

A comparison between atomic concentration profiles and defect density profiles in GaAs annealed after implantation with beryllium

Semi-insulating chromium-doped GaAs was implanted with 100 keV Be ions to fluences of 5 × 10¹³ and 1 × 10¹⁵ ions/cm². Specimens were annealed at 800°C for thirty minutes. Beryllium atomic concentration profiles, as determined by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS), were compared to the defect density profiles obtained from transmission electron stereomicroscopy techniques for the annealed samples. A major redistribution of Be was observed compared to the as-implanted distribution after annealing at the higher fluence, whereas only a slight redistribution of Be occurred for the lower fluence. A major difference in the defect density profiles was observed with the fluences used for this study in the region where the annealed specimens were compared. The distribution of defects throughout the implanted-annealed layer was examined in GaAs annealed after implantation with the higher fluence using sectioned specimens. The relationships between the atomic Be concentration profile, the defect density profile, and the distribution of some specific defects were compared in these sectioned layers. The distribution and size of defects appear to be directly influenced by the Be concentration and its associated implantation induced damage.